Google unveils video game plans
Google introduced a new video game service on Tuesday that allows people to play high-definition games instantly over the internet, joining an industrywide experiment to offer a so-called Netflix of gaming.
The new service, called Stadia, will work for anyone with a fast internet connection and a computer, phone or tablet. The service will also work with Google’s Chromecast, an inexpensive dongle that plugs into television sets to stream videos.
Google said Stadia would be released later this year, but did not announce a price.
By focusing on streaming games – titles that are pulled from servers instead of downloaded to the customer’s device – Google is trying to catch the next wave of gaming. The premise: users pay a subscription to access a library of games that they can immediately play, as opposed to the traditional model of paying for a disc or waiting to download a game.
Delta executive named for FAA
Stephen Dickson, a former Delta Air Lines executive, was nominated by the White House to become the permanent head of the Federal Aviation Administration, an agency facing scrutiny after two deadly crashes in less than five months.
Dickson was chosen amid intensifying calls worldwide for the FAA to explain its approval of the Boeing 737 Max 8 plane, the jet involved in the disasters. Earlier this month, an Ethiopian Airlines jet crashed, killing 157 people.
Dickson retired as Delta’s senior vice president of flight operations this fall after 27 years at the company. He is a former U.S. Air Force officer, Air Force Academy graduate and F-15 fighter pilot, according to Delta.
The FAA has been run by Daniel Elwell, the acting administrator, since January 2018.
Jury says Roundup weed killer caused man’s cancer
A jury in federal court in San Francisco has concluded that Roundup weed killer was a substantial factor in a California man’s cancer.
The unanimous verdict on Tuesday came in a trial that plaintiffs’ attorneys said could help determine the fate of hundreds of similar lawsuits against Roundup’s manufacturer, agribusiness giant Monsanto. It was the second jury verdict to find that Roundup caused non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
Another jury reached that conclusion last year awarded the plaintiff, DeWayne Johnson, $289 million.
Tuesday’s verdict came in the case of 70-year Edwin Hardeman. The judge overseeing Hardeman’s lawsuit had split the trial into two phases. Hardeman’s attorneys first had to convince jurors that his use of Roundup was a significant factor in his non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
The trial will now proceed to the damages phase.
Disney acquires 20th Century Fox
When the Walt Disney Co.’s $71.3 billion acquisition of Fox is completed early Wednesday, the birthplace of CinemaScope, “The Sound of Music” and “Titanic” will fade into Disney’s ever-growing Magic Kingdom.
The demise of 20th Century Fox as a standalone studio thins the ranks of the famed “Big Six” major studios. It also casts long shadows over a movie industry grappling with new digital competitors from Silicon Valley and facing the possibility of further contraction.
Disney’s acquisition has endless repercussions but it’s predicated largely on positioning Disney for the future. The company needs more content for its coming streaming platform, Disney+, and it wants control of its content across platforms.
Come Wednesday, the company will have more influence on the movies Americans see than any company ever has.