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The Electronic Entertainment Expo, better known as E3, is officially dead. “After more than two decades of E3, each one bigger than the last, the time has come to say goodbye. Thanks for the memories,” the Entertainment Software Association, E3’s organizer, wrote on X. The industry trade group wrote closed out the statement with “GGWP” or “good game, well played.”

E3’s troubles have been well documented in recent years, with the pandemic arguably exacerbating the video game expo’s demise. There hadn’t been an in-person E3 since 2019. The 2021 edition took place virtually, but the ESA canned the 2020, 2022 and 2023 events entirely. 

The ESA told its members this spring that after major names pulled out of this year’s planned E3, the event “simply did not garner the sustained interest necessary to execute it in a way that would showcase the size, strength and impact our industry.” ReedPop, the organizer of PAX and New York Comic Con, was set to run E3 2023 before the event was canned.

“We know the entire industry, players and creators alike have a lot of passion for E3. We share that passion,” ESA president and CEO Stanley Pierre-Louis told The Washington Post. “We know it’s difficult to say goodbye to such a beloved event, but it’s the right thing to do given the new opportunities our industry has to reach fans and partners.”

In truth, the writing was on the wall before any of us had heard of COVID-19. Sony, the biggest publisher in the industry, opted not to take part in the 2019 edition. EA declined to hold an E3 press conference that year too, instead choosing to run its own EA Play showcase a few days before the industry event.

Many publishers no longer need an E3 to show off their upcoming slate of games. It used to be the case that they needed to strike deals with retailers to secure shelf space for their games and hardware ahead of the holiday season, and those agreements were often struck at E3. But the industry has changed significantly in recent years. While a ton of big games arrived this past October, publishers now release major titles throughout the year (in large part to help them meet quarterly revenue targets). Others focus on supporting long-term live-service games that aren’t beholden to any release calendar. Digital game sales also mean that publishers and platform holders don’t have to worry as much about partnerships with retailers.

Another key reason for E3’s demise is that publishers can now show off their games to fans directly at any time and without having to struggle for attention against competitors at a trade show. The likes of Nintendo and Sony command the attention of hundreds of thousands of fans whenever they hold a Nintendo Direct or State of Play. There are so many ways for major publishers to get out the word about their games that E3 is no longer necessary in that regard. Skipping E3 also meant that publishers don’t have to deal with the costs of attending a trade show or meeting another entity’s deadlines for having demos or trailers ready.

On the other hand, the death of E3 could hurt independent studios that rely on trade shows to show off their games to publishers in the hopes of securing distribution and/or funding deals. It may also harm smaller publishers that have to compete with the giants for attention.

While E3 may be gone, gaming events aren’t going away. Summer Game Fest, a sort-of E3 replacement that The Game Awards producer and host Geoff Keighley started in 2020, expanded last year to include a physical event for the first time. Some major publishers — such as Capcom, Ubisoft and Xbox — held games showcases in association with Summer Game Fest this year. The event will return for its fifth edition in 2024. You can probably still expect many publishers to still be holding showcases in May and June, despite the death of E3.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/e3-is-officially-dead-153411735.html?src=rss 

Apple is attempting to avoid a fine and ongoing legal battle with the European Union. The company is allegedly offering its rivals access to its Near-Field Communication (NFC) technology, used for tap-and-go payments, Reuters reports. The update follows the European Commission’s May 2022 charge and ongoing probe into Apple’s potential antitrust Apple Pay practices.

The Commission has been investigating Apple since 2020, with Executive Vice-President Margrethe Vestager previously stating there were “indications that Apple restricted third-party access to key technology necessary to develop rival mobile wallet solutions on Apple’s devices.” 

While Apple’s current proposal could get it out of a hefty fine and settle the case against it, it’s not guaranteed to move forward. The Commission will likely confer with Apple’s rivals and customers in the next month or so to determine if it should accept the offer. More than 2,500 banks across Europe use Apple Pay. 

Apple also faces a lawsuit in the United States, brought in July 2022 by Iowa’s Affinity Credit Union. Similarly, it accuses Apple of engaging in anti-competitive behavior by illegally restricting iOS users to Apple Pay for any contactless payments.

In September 2023, a US District Court Judge Jeffrey S. White of California ruled that the case would move forward, stating: “Plaintiffs have plausibly alleged that Apple Pay charges arbitrary and inflated fees to issuers, and that competition in the tap-and-pay iOS mobile wallet market would spur innovation and lead to lower prices.” In his decision, White also explained that the plaintiffs properly demonstrated Apple’s alleged and attempted monopolization.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apple-may-lift-nfc-restrictions-in-europe-to-escape-antitrust-fines-131004981.html?src=rss 

BeReal is launching new features for its app, which won Apple’s 2022 iPhone App of the Year. The company tries to differentiate its platform by prompting spontaneous authenticity via randomly timed two-minute windows to take selfies. Now, it’s adding a feature similar to Apple’s Live Photos. In addition, invite-only groups, tags and 2023 recaps are on their way to the “Your friends for real” platform.

Behind the Scenes (BTS) is BeReal’s branding for its Live Photos-esque feature. Like Apple’s version, BTS captures a video for a few seconds before taking a static shot. After posting, your friends can long-press on the shot to see the short video clip. BTS is an opt-in feature, so nobody should be sucked into it unwillingly, and you can toggle it anytime.

Meanwhile, RealGroups are invite-only groups. In the new communities, group creators can manage the “Time to BeReal” notification (alerting you it’s time to say cheese), offering users a degree of control over the app’s core gimmick for the first time. RealGroups will also support private chat and private BeReals between group members. The company says its Live Photos clone and groups have been the platform’s “most community-requested features.”

Like Apple, Spotify, YouTube Music and various social platforms, BeReal will offer a 2023 recap. It sounds like it doesn’t stray far from the beaten path, with the company pegging it as “a custom experience that users can record and share anywhere they want,” alongside promotional hashtags.

Finally, the app’s new tagging feature lets you cc your friends to ensure they catch your daily selfies. There should be plenty of people to choose from, as BeReal says its platform now has over 25 million daily active users.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/bereal-which-still-exists-gets-tags-private-groups-and-a-2023-recap-120041785.html?src=rss