Microsoft's set to make an AI-related announcement today at 1pm ET, but it will not be streaming the keynote to the public. Not to worry, though, we're here at the event in Redmond and will be liveblogging all the news the company is sharing today. After Google unveiled its ChatGPT rival Bard yesterday, Microsoft revealed it had been planning today's event all along, without disclosing many details beyond telling us to expect information about "exciting projects." Thanks to a tweet from OpenAI's Sam Altman, though, we can at least guess that generative AI is on the agenda, if not the star of the show. We'll be starting this liveblog around 12:30pm ET, with myself (Cherlynn Low) on text and our head of video Brian Oh taking pictures. See you soon!
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Microsoft Teams makes it easier to host meetings using sign language
It's now much simpler to participate in a Microsoft Teams meeting if you have hearing issues. Microsoft has introduced a sign language view that lets people who are deaf or hard of hearing, as well as their interpreters, prioritize each other during meetings. Those video feeds will remain in consistent locations, at sizes large enough for sign language to be visible. You'll see as many as two other signers throughout a meeting, and video will remain large even when slides or screen shares are visible.
The view also makes preferences "sticky" thanks to a new accessibility settings pane, Microsoft says. You won't have to worry about pinning interpreters or enabling captions every time a Teams call begins. You can jump directly into a meeting instead of tweaking options.
The sign language view and accessibility pane are currently available only through a Public Preview available on a user-by-user basis. They'll roll out to all commercial and government customers in the "coming weeks," Microsoft says. It could take a while before everyone can use the functionality. Still, this promises to greatly simplify meetings for anyone with limited hearing — and might make Teams more viable if alternatives like Zoom (which only recently added support for interpreters) aren't up to the task.
Microsoft Teams makes it easier to host meetings using sign language
It's now much simpler to participate in a Microsoft Teams meeting if you have hearing issues. Microsoft has introduced a sign language view that lets people who are deaf or hard of hearing, as well as their interpreters, prioritize each other during meetings. Those video feeds will remain in consistent locations, at sizes large enough for sign language to be visible. You'll see as many as two other signers throughout a meeting, and video will remain large even when slides or screen shares are visible.
The view also makes preferences "sticky" thanks to a new accessibility settings pane, Microsoft says. You won't have to worry about pinning interpreters or enabling captions every time a Teams call begins. You can jump directly into a meeting instead of tweaking options.
The sign language view and accessibility pane are currently available only through a Public Preview available on a user-by-user basis. They'll roll out to all commercial and government customers in the "coming weeks," Microsoft says. It could take a while before everyone can use the functionality. Still, this promises to greatly simplify meetings for anyone with limited hearing — and might make Teams more viable if alternatives like Zoom (which only recently added support for interpreters) aren't up to the task.
Disney reportedly freezes hiring and expects some layoffs
Disney CEO Bob Chapek has told division leads in a letter that the company is implementing cost cutting measures in part to help it "achieve the important goal of reaching profitability for Disney+ in fiscal 2024." Based on the internal memo obtained by CNBC, Disney is planning to limit additions to its workforce through a targeted hiring freeze. It will still welcome new people for the "most critical, business-driving positions," but all other roles are on hold for now. Chapek has also admitted in his letter that Disney "anticipate[s] some staff reductions" as it looks at all aspects of its business to find places where it can save money.
Chapek's letter comes after Disney reported less-than-stellar earnings for the previous quarter. While Disney+ welcomed 12.1 million new subscribers for the company's fourth fiscal quarter ending on October 1st, the company's operating loss for streaming jumped from $0.8 billion to $1.5 billion. The company expects its losses to taper off going forward, thanks to its streaming services' price hikes and the launch of an ad-supported tier on Disney+. In his memo, Chapek also reiterated he is "confident in [the company's] ability to reach the targets [it has] set," but Disney clearly intends to tighten its belt until it hits its goals.
Disney is but one of the many companies imposing a hiring freeze due to the economic downturn. When Meta chief Mark Zuckerberg announced that the Facebook parent company is laying off 11,000 employees, he also said that it's extending its hiring freeze through the first quarter of 2023. Amazon froze hiring at its corporate offices earlier this month, as well.
Disney reportedly freezes hiring and expects some layoffs
Disney CEO Bob Chapek has told division leads in a letter that the company is implementing cost cutting measures in part to help it "achieve the important goal of reaching profitability for Disney+ in fiscal 2024." Based on the internal memo obtained by CNBC, Disney is planning to limit additions to its workforce through a targeted hiring freeze. It will still welcome new people for the "most critical, business-driving positions," but all other roles are on hold for now. Chapek has also admitted in his letter that Disney "anticipate[s] some staff reductions" as it looks at all aspects of its business to find places where it can save money.
Chapek's letter comes after Disney reported less-than-stellar earnings for the previous quarter. While Disney+ welcomed 12.1 million new subscribers for the company's fourth fiscal quarter ending on October 1st, the company's operating loss for streaming jumped from $0.8 billion to $1.5 billion. The company expects its losses to taper off going forward, thanks to its streaming services' price hikes and the launch of an ad-supported tier on Disney+. In his memo, Chapek also reiterated he is "confident in [the company's] ability to reach the targets [it has] set," but Disney clearly intends to tighten its belt until it hits its goals.
Disney is but one of the many companies imposing a hiring freeze due to the economic downturn. When Meta chief Mark Zuckerberg announced that the Facebook parent company is laying off 11,000 employees, he also said that it's extending its hiring freeze through the first quarter of 2023. Amazon froze hiring at its corporate offices earlier this month, as well.
‘Metal Gear Solid 2’ mod adds a third-person camera to Hideo Kojima’s masterpiece
Twenty years ago this month, Konami released Metal Gear Solid 2: Substance, an expanded reissue of MGS2: Sons of Liberty. If you’ve been looking for an excuse to revisit one of the most important games of the 21st century, now is the perfect time. Over the weekend, modder oct0xor released The Substance of Subsistence, a mod that adds a third-person camera to Hideo Kojima’s masterpiece.
If it’s been a while since you played MGS2, you may have forgotten the game employed an overhead camera that was a holdover from Metal Gear, Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake and Metal Gear Solid. It wasn’t until 2006’s Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence, the expanded rerelease of Snake Eater, that Hideo Kojima and Konami implemented a proper third-person camera. That bit of history is also where the mod's name comes from, with The Substance of Subsistence referring to the expanded editions of each game.
Adding a new perspective to MGS2 was no easy task. "The code to have a normal third-person camera was never present in the game, and in order to implement it, I had to reverse engineer and rewrite many things in the game engine," oct0xor told PC Gamer. You can learn more about the work that was involved in a developer diary oct0xor shared a few months back.
You can find instructions on how to install the Substance of Subsistence on Github. The tricky part is finding a copy of the game for PC. Konami delisted Metal Gear Solid 2 and Metal Gear Solid 3 from GOG and other digital storefronts over a “temporary” licensing issue in 2021. In July, the company said it was still working on resolving the dispute but did not provide a timeline for when the games would be available to purchase again.
‘Metal Gear Solid 2’ mod adds a third-person camera to Hideo Kojima’s masterpiece
Twenty years ago this month, Konami released Metal Gear Solid 2: Substance, an expanded reissue of MGS2: Sons of Liberty. If you’ve been looking for an excuse to revisit one of the most important games of the 21st century, now is the perfect time. Over the weekend, modder oct0xor released The Substance of Subsistence, a mod that adds a third-person camera to Hideo Kojima’s masterpiece.
If it’s been a while since you played MGS2, you may have forgotten the game employed an overhead camera that was a holdover from Metal Gear, Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake and Metal Gear Solid. It wasn’t until 2006’s Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence, the expanded rerelease of Snake Eater, that Hideo Kojima and Konami implemented a proper third-person camera. That bit of history is also where the mod's name comes from, with The Substance of Subsistence referring to the expanded editions of each game.
Adding a new perspective to MGS2 was no easy task. "The code to have a normal third-person camera was never present in the game, and in order to implement it, I had to reverse engineer and rewrite many things in the game engine," oct0xor told PC Gamer. You can learn more about the work that was involved in a developer diary oct0xor shared a few months back.
You can find instructions on how to install the Substance of Subsistence on Github. The tricky part is finding a copy of the game for PC. Konami delisted Metal Gear Solid 2 and Metal Gear Solid 3 from GOG and other digital storefronts over a “temporary” licensing issue in 2021. In July, the company said it was still working on resolving the dispute but did not provide a timeline for when the games would be available to purchase again.
Microsoft’s Game Pass Friend & Family tier goes live in two countries
Following a leak last week, Microsoft has unveiled the Game Pass Friends & Family in Ireland, offering the same benefits of Game Pass Ultimate for you and four others at €22 ($22) per month. That's less than double the Game Pass Ultimate price for one person (€13), and works out to just €4.40 ($4.40) a month each. Better still, it's not limited to family and the only restriction is that all four members have to be in the same country.
So far, it's come to just two countries, but that might change soon. "Currently we are piloting this plan in Colombia and the Republic of Ireland. Future countries / regions might be added in the next months," Microsoft wrote in a FAQ.
Users in those countries with an existing Game Pass Ultimate plan will see their remaining days pro-rated, basically according to the price difference. That means for 30 days of Game Pass Ultimate you'll get 18 days of Game Pass Friends & family, while 30 days of Xbox Game Pass or Live Gold gets you 12 days. 30 days of EA Play nets 6 days of Game Pass Friends & Family.
In the US, Xbox Game Pass or PC Game Pass costs $10 per month, while Game Pass Ultimate is $15 with multiplayer capabilities. The Game Pass Friends & Family is likely to cost around $25 stateside, according to The Verge, or $5 per month per person. On top of multiplayer, Ultimate users can also access Xbox Cloud Gaming, Xbox Live and more.
Microsoft’s Game Pass Friend & Family tier goes live in two countries
Following a leak last week, Microsoft has unveiled the Game Pass Friends & Family in Ireland, offering the same benefits of Game Pass Ultimate for you and four others at €22 ($22) per month. That's less than double the Game Pass Ultimate price for one person (€13), and works out to just €4.40 ($4.40) a month each. Better still, it's not limited to family and the only restriction is that all four members have to be in the same country.
So far, it's come to just two countries, but that might change soon. "Currently we are piloting this plan in Colombia and the Republic of Ireland. Future countries / regions might be added in the next months," Microsoft wrote in a FAQ.
Users in those countries with an existing Game Pass Ultimate plan will see their remaining days pro-rated, basically according to the price difference. That means for 30 days of Game Pass Ultimate you'll get 18 days of Game Pass Friends & family, while 30 days of Xbox Game Pass or Live Gold gets you 12 days. 30 days of EA Play nets 6 days of Game Pass Friends & Family.
In the US, Xbox Game Pass or PC Game Pass costs $10 per month, while Game Pass Ultimate is $15 with multiplayer capabilities. The Game Pass Friends & Family is likely to cost around $25 stateside, according to The Verge, or $5 per month per person. On top of multiplayer, Ultimate users can also access Xbox Cloud Gaming, Xbox Live and more.
Snap reportedly gives up on its selfie drone just four months after its debut
It's been less than four months since Snap unveiled a selfie drone called Pixy, but it seems the company is already giving up on the device. CEO Evan Spiegel told employees that Snap is halting further work on Pixy amid a reprioritization of resources, according to The Wall Street Journal.
The $250 drone can take off from and land in your hand. It has four preset flight paths and can capture photos and videos that you can transfer to and share on Snapchat. For now, at least, Pixy is still available to buy from Snap's website. The Journal suggests Snap will keep selling Pixy for the time being. Snap declined to comment.
Like many other companies, Snap has been feeling the brunt of a broader economic slowdown. In July, it posted its weakest quarterly sales growth to date, which sunk its share price by around 40 percent. Snap's stock has fallen by around 80 percent over the last year. The company also said last month that it would significantly slow down hiring.
Several major tech companies have been shifting priorities in recent months. Meta, for instance, reportedly shelved plans for a smartwatch with two cameras and it's said to be refocusing Portal devices as enterprise products. Others have slowed downhiring plans and laidoffemployees.