In new provisional findings, the U.K.'s competition regulator says Microsoft's $69B purchase of Activision Blizzard could stifle competition in cloud and console gaming and ultimately harm gamers. The U.K. Competitive Markets Authority (CMA) argues that the deal could lead to fewer gaming choices, higher prices, and less innovation for millions of players. More: - The findings stem from the CMA's second-phase investigation into the mega-deal that was launched in September.
- In a provisional report released today, the CMA says the deal could weaken the important rivalry between Microsoft’s Xbox console and Sony’s rival PlayStation.
- For example, Microsoft could make Activision Blizzard's "Call of Duty" games exclusive to only Xbox and its own cloud service, and/or limit certain features on PlayStation.
- Even a slight increase in Microsoft's position could "substantially reduce competition" to the detriment of cloud gamers, the CMA said.
- In response, Microsoft said it's already committed to "easily enforceable solutions that address the CMA’s concerns."
Zoom Out: - The CMA said it's open to so-called "structural remedies" to address its concerns.
- This might include Microsoft's spinning off the "Call of Duty" brand or separating Activision from Blizzard.
- The U.K. agency is now accepting feedback from parties before issuing a final decision in April.
- Activision Blizzard's other popular franchises include World of Warcraft, Diablo, Overwatch, and Candy Crush, the latter of which falls under its King subsidiary.
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL 
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Zoom said it plans to lay off 1,300 employees, equating to about 15% of its workforce. In a memo to employees sent yesterday, CEO Eric Yuan said the video chat software maker is adjusting to the “uncertainty of the global economy.” More: - Zoom benefitted from a surge in demand during the pandemic but hired too quickly, tripling in size over only two years.
- "We didn’t take as much time as we should have to thoroughly analyze our teams or assess if we were growing sustainably, toward the highest priorities," according to Yuan.
- The layoffs will impact all of Zoom's departments and organizations.
- The CEO admitted that he is "accountable for these mistakes and the actions we take today."
- As a result, Yuan announced a 98% cut to his own salary for the upcoming fiscal year. His base salary last year was $301,731.
- Zoom's executive team will also lower their base salaries by 20%, and all the executives will forgo corporate bonuses for the fiscal year, according to the company.
SFGATE
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Tesla is set to present the third part of Elon Musk's "master plan" during its March 1 investor day. Master Plan 3 will involve "the path to a fully sustainable energy future for Earth," Musk wrote in a tweet today. More: - In a tweet last March, Musk said Tesla's third plan will center on "scaling to extreme size, which is needed to shift humanity away from fossil fuels, and AI."
- "Master Plan Part 3" will also include sections about SpaceX and The Boring Company, he said.
- Musk's previous master plans laid out Tesla's long-term goals:
- In the first plan in 2006, Musk said the EV maker would develop a low-volume sports car and dedicate proceeds to building cheaper EVs at increasingly higher volumes.
- The 2016 follow-up plan, dubbed "Part Deux," outlined long-term plans for solar roofs, self-driving capability, ride-sharing of its autonomous vehicles, and Tesla's expansion into all major automotive segments.
Zoom Out: - Tesla will host the upcoming investor day at its Texas gigafactory near Austin.
- The live-streamed event will also cover Tesla's expansion plans and its next-generation platform for more affordable vehicles.
THE VERGE
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Apple has opened up its buy now, pay later feature to retail employees for testing, suggesting that the company could release it to the public very soon. The "Apple Pay Later" feature will allow users to split their Apple Pay purchases into four equal payments over six weeks, without interest or fees. More: - Previously, Apple's corporate workers began testing the feature, which is now rolling out in beta to its more than 80,000 retail employees.
- First announced at WWDC last June, the pay later feature was due out with iOS 16 last year but experienced technical and engineering issues that caused delays.
- The latest test suggests that the feature will appear on Apple's Wallet app for iPhones and iPads in the near future.
- According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Apple may also offer a feature, in partnership with Goldman Sachs, that splits the costs of larger purchases over several months, with interest included.
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In its Q4 earnings today, Uber reported a 49% jump in revenue over the prior year, fueled by an all-time high in ridership. The ride-hailing company experienced its "strongest quarter ever," according to CEO Dara Khosrowshahi. More: - After experiencing lows in travel due to COVID-19, Khosrowshahi said the impact of the pandemic is "well and truly behind" Uber.
- The company reported $30.7B in gross bookings during Q4, a 19% increase YoY.
- For the first time, Uber reported two billion quarterly trips, up from 1.7 billion last year.
- During the pandemic, Uber's Eats delivery unit surged until it was surpassed by its mobility unit during all of 2022.
- In Q4, mobility had revenue of $4.1B versus $2.9B for Uber Eats.
- In the current quarter, Uber has forecasted 20% to 24% growth in gross bookings over the prior year.
*Disclaimer: Inside.com Founder & CEO Jason Calacanis is an investor in Uber. THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
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Chinese search giant Baidu said it's developing a ChatGPT-like AI bot that it will incorporate into its search function. In English, the bot will be named Ernie, which stands for "Enhanced Representation through Knowledge Integration." More: - The bot, which is based on Baidu's large language model first proposed in 2019, is now undergoing internal testing.
- Ernie can "integrate extensive knowledge with massive data, resulting in exceptional understanding and generation capabilities," a Baidu spokesperson said.
- Ernie will initially be embedded in Baidu's search services, enabling conversational results similar to ChatGPT.
- Baidu could launch the Ernie AI service in March, a source told Reuters.
Related: CNBC
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 |  | Beth is a writer and editor at Inside.com covering artificial intelligence and daily technology news. She has written the Inside AI newsletter since 2019. You can reach her at Beth.Duckett@inside.com. |   | | Editor | Eduardo Garcia is a writer and editor based in New York. He is the author of "Things You Can Do," an illustrated book about climate action. Bylines in The New York Times, The Guardian, Slate, Scientific American, and others. In one of his previous lives, Eduardo worked as a Reuters correspondent in Latin America for nearly a decade. | |
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