epic

The US has invested 16 years and 8 billion dollars in renewing the software of its GPS network. Result: a failure of epic proportions

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The Next-Generation Operational Control System project (OCX) was going to modernize the constellation of the United States’ more than 30 GPS satellites. The company RTX Corporation (previously known as Raytheon) managed to win the project in 2010 with a budget of 3.7 billion dollars. The project was supposed to be completed in 2016, but in reality the US has spent $8 billion and 16 years later has an absolute disaster on its hands. 16 years of broken promises. In 2010 the iPad had just appeared on the scene and cloud computing was a somewhat diffuse concept. The project of the US Government was reasonable, and proposed that the OCX system be operational by the time Lockheed Martin’s new GPS III satellites debuted. The development became a chaos of bugs and requirements changes, and to this day it is unclear when, if ever, it will be completed. In Xataka 90% of Iran’s oil industry depends on a tiny island. One that is already on the radar of the US and Israel A fortune invested. The financial management of the project is the first big disaster. The initial budget was estimated at 1.5 billion dollars, but since the award until today that figure has risen to reach almost 7.7 billion of current dollars, to which another 400 million are added to support an improved version of the satellites, the GPS IIIF. This increase is not due in large part to the project suddenly being much more ambitious or more capable, but rather to the costs of having been fixing everything that has gone wrong since they started working on it. Software costs more than satellites. Every time software fails an integration test, the bill runs into tens or hundreds of millions of dollars. That has made the OCX system one of the most expensive and least efficient software projects in recent US military history. In fact, it far exceeds the cost of the satellites themselves that it had to control: the 22 GPS III satellites of the contract signed in 2018 have a budget of 7.2 billion dollars. Satellites of the future controlled by a fairground shotgun. Currently the United States has a fleet of GPS III satellites in orbit capable of emitting much more powerful “M-code” signals and interference resistantsomething that among other things allocates them especially for military applications. The problem is that since the OCX software not workingthey are managing them with control systems inherited from the 90s. It is as if we had a VHS video connected to watch movies on an 8K Smart TV: the potential is there, but one of the components is an absolute bottleneck. {“videoId”:”x8wlh9q”,”autoplay”:false,”title”:”United States vs. China: The CHIPS WAR”, “tag”:”webedia-prod”, “duration”:”1611″} The cybersecurity nightmare. One of the big problems of this project has been the cybersecurity requirements. OCX was designed to resist cyberattacks from powers such as Russia or China, but that requirement has become a spectacular technical burden. Pentagon standards have evolved so quickly that they have not been able to be adapted to an architecture that begins to become obsoleteand covering successive patches is locking the system in a complex vicious circle: the software is never finished because more and more vulnerabilities appear. Failed tests. The latest report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has been the final straw. During the tests the system again showed once again instabilitywhich has forced the final delivery to be delayed to the end of 2026 or even 2027. Frank Calvelli, of the Air Force, has expressed his dissatisfaction with that unacceptable management of private industry: the strategic advantage that this project should offer at a time like this is inaccessible due to the disastrous progress of the project. It’s not that difficult. for a long time the excuse for justify the delays was that OCX was “the most complex software ever created for space,” but other players in the sector have shown that achieving these types of technical milestones is possible. SpaceX has demonstrated this with technical “miracles” like its reusable Falcon 9 or with the development of Starship, for example, so those arguments are falling on deaf ears now. Waiting for a better GPS. These problems also affect us end users, who will not be able to enjoy the L5 signals for now. This much more robust frequency will significantly improve accuracy in urban centers with many tall buildings. The irony is tragic: we cannot use extraordinary space infrastructure because the base stations cannot cope with it. While waiting for the problems to be resolved, the learning is clear: the software cannot be a monster that takes 16 years to build In Xataka The GPS in the Baltic has been experiencing interference for months and the culprit is becoming increasingly clear: Russia And while as always, China. While the US crashes against its project to renew the GPS constellation, China has once again managed to “become independent” from Western technology. Your satellite navigation system Beidouit does not replace GPS, true, but It already complements it in 140 countries. Once again China’s long-term view has its obvious result: it has taken 20 years in deploying its constellation, but they already surpass the GPS system in metrics such as signal availability or integrated messaging services. Europe, by the way, also has its own alternative. In Xataka |GPS “dead zones” are spreading around the world: jammers are to blame for confusing drones (function() { window._JS_MODULES = window._JS_MODULES || {}; var headElement = document.getElementsByTagName(‘head’)(0); if (_JS_MODULES.instagram) { var instagramScript = document.createElement(‘script’); instagramScript.src=”https://platform.instagram.com/en_US/embeds.js”; instagramScript.async = true; instagramScript.defer = true; headElement.appendChild(instagramScript); – The news The US has invested 16 years and 8 billion dollars in renewing the software of its GPS network. Result: a failure of epic proportions was originally published in Xataka by Javier Pastor .

Epic Games has won. Fortnite will return to the Play Store and developer commissions will be lower than ever

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It’s been almost six years since it started the war between Epic Games and Google. A battle in which the American court ended up determining that the Google Play Store it was a monopolyand in which the company was forced to change its commission system and policy with third-party stores. Today, we know exactly what those changes will look like. A new era. We don’t say it, Google says it in its publication titled “A new era for choice and openness.” The lawsuits with Epic Games have forced the company to take a new directionmaking its commission system more flexible and allowing third-party developers to implement their own stores. The change in commissions. Google will eliminate its 30% commissions and move to a new 20% one. This rate refers to the commission charged by the application store when a user purchases something within an app (in app purchase). New developers who join the new Google programs will be able to reduce this commission up to 15%. These figures say goodbye to the 30% rate that giants like Epic Games described it as abusiveand which were modified by judicial order of the US Supreme Court. Third party stores. Epic Games had to launch your Epic Games Store outside of Google Play to avoid commissions, something that will no longer be necessary. Just like Apple had to do, Google will have to facilitate the installation process of third-party stores. As they have shown in their own publication, there will be an interface on Android dedicated to third-party application stores, so that users who download them have a more simplified and unified installation flow. This interface will be available to all developers who want to join the program. Otherwise, we will continue to be able to install them like any other APK. The before and after. The Google/Epic case marks a before and after: it is a warning to the rest of the giants. The PC platform Steam charges a 30% commission on game sales and microtransactions. Same figure that Sony charges developers on the PlayStation Store. For years, 30% became the name of large stores, but European regulatory pressures and the antitrust trials held in the US are the first blow to this wall of 30. In Xataka | Obtainium: what it is and how this alternative application store to the Google Play Store on Android works

Google and Epic Games propose a historic agreement that is an earthquake for the Play Store

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The long and costly legal war between Epic Games and Googlewhich began in 2020, is about to end. Both companies have jointly submitted an agreement proposal and a modified court order which, if approved, not only resolves all its disputes, but also redraws the rules of the Android app store for the coming years. Chronology. To understand why Google has agreed, you have to rewind. After a long trial, a jury ruled in favor of Epic in 2023, declaring that Google’s Play Store operated as an illegal monopoly. Based on that verdict, Judge Donato issued a harsh court order a year later. This forced Google to open its ecosystem and included allowing third-party stores within the Play Store itself. In addition, it prohibited Google from tying its billing system to the store, and allowing developers to link to external payments. Braking attempt. Google immediately appealed, warning that the changes would harm the “security and privacy” of users. On October 18, 2024, the judge granted the Mountain View giant a temporary suspension while the appeal was being resolved. It was just a momentary respite. Surrender. After losing appeals, the US Supreme Court rejected Google’s latest request for a suspension. This reactivated the original court ordergiving the company an imminent deadline that ended on October 22. It had to start dismantling its control over the Android software store. Image by Official GDC on Flickr New agreement. Faced with the obligation to comply with a sentence that it hated, Google has negotiated a lesser evil. This new agreement, which was presented yesterday, replaces the original order with agreed rules that will be in force until June 30, 2032. Tim Sweeney himself, CEO of Epic, rated it X as an “impressive” and “comprehensive solution.” These were the words of Sameer Samat, the president of Android, who also reacted to the news: Together with Epic Games, we have proposed changes for Android and Google Play that focus on expanding developer choice and flexibility, reducing fees, and encouraging greater competition, all while ensuring user safety. If approved, this would resolve our disputes. We hope to continue discussing the issue with the judge on Thursday. The agreement details a new maximum commission structure. Google will not be able to charge more than 20% for in-game purchases that offer advantages (such as loot boxes or improvements). For everything else, the maximum commission will be 9%. On the other hand, the developers they win the right to display their own payment systems with Play Billing. Additionally, they will be able to show different (i.e. cheaper) prices if the user chooses the alternative payment. However, the Big Tech will continue to charge your “service fee”– Even if a developer uses its payment platform, Google reserves the right to charge the service fee (the 20% or 9% mentioned). According to media such as The Vergea Google spokesperson clarified that the developer saves the billing fee (cost of processing the payment), but not the service fee. Global impact. Although the court order is limited to the US, this change to the Android operating system will have a global impact. This opens the door for third-party stores—such as the one that Epic announced with Telefónica— can be installed without any friction. Without forgetting that this pact also prohibits Google (for three years) from making payments to manufacturers or operators to pre-install competing stores or to not place them in specific places on the device. What’s coming now. The agreement is not final: it must be approved by the judge. Both parties have a hearing scheduled for this Thursday, November 6, to discuss the proposal. We’ll see how it ends, but it seems that the final agreement will not be very different from this one. Cover image | Composition with images of Sergey Galyonkin for Flickr and Xataka Android In Xataka | Google has put AI summaries where there used to be links to news. And the media is bleeding

Crocs’s is one of the most epic stories in industry

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Crocs has managed to strain rubber closures In catwalkshave collaborated with luxury brands and some are sold for authentic barbarities. No one seems to care about the obvious: they are very ugly. Comfortable? Definitely. Nice? Not even. This is the story of how a brand of shoes designed for navigators has become a global fashion phenomenon. The beginnings: a fishermen shoe Founded in 2002, the company began selling the Crocs Beach. They are the classic crocs that we all know; of rubber, soft and non -slip, perfect for navigators. Their comfort made other workers begin to use themmainly who spent many hours standing (I bought some when I was cashier in a store). The thing could have stayed there and the Crocs would continue to be comfortable footwear to work. We know that it was not so. In 2006, Crocs went over and managed to raise 208 million dollars, The largest initial public offer of a footwear company to date. The same year, They bought Jibbitz for 10 million dollarsthe company that created the first ornaments that are placed in the holes of the clogs. The crocs They began to be known worldwide And they left the workplace to sneak into everyday life. Joy lasted little and The financial crisis of 2008 hit the company strongly, getting to be On the verge of bankruptcy. In the following years, the company had to close many stores and reduce its catalog to survive. The culprits that the crocs become cool The cheapest of these costs 795 euros. Image: Balenciaga The change did not happen overnight, but perhaps the turning point It was marked by designer Christopher Kane in 2016when He put on his models with Crocs at London Fashion Week. They were not normal crocs, they had marbled colors and were decorated with crystals. But they were still Crocs, and on a catwalk. What seemed like a punctual provocation was only the beginning. A year later, the controversial firm Balenciaga said “hold me the cubata” and left in Paris fashion week with some 10 centimeter platform crocs. Suddenly crocs was daring, it was cool. It was putting comfort above all. We have seen it with Other fashions like Labubu: the Celebrities They played a key role in the massive acceptance of the crocs. The celebrities They started going out with their crocs And many launched collaborations. The first was Drew Barrymore in 2018shortly after Post Malone followedthat exhausted all pairs in a single day. There have been many more since then: Justin Bieber, Bad Bunny, SZA … Suddenly Crocs was daring, it was cool. It was putting comfort above all. Much more than comfort: a form of expression Collaboration with Animal Crossing. Image: Crocs Carrying crocs became An act of rebellion. Yes, they are ugly clogs, and what? In This great article They speak of the human need to differentiate ourselves from the mass and the crocs offered just that: to be the rare, the one who does not fit the rest. Collaborations with brands or celebrities were a great impulse, but Crocs’s success goes much further. Jibbitz’s purchase was a master play when introducing The customization component: Not only do you buy your product, you also do it with those little pins. Not only is they very comfortable, they are a form of expression. Not only is they very comfortable, they are a form of expression. To collaborations with artists or designers, others such as the newly announced with Nintendo and his game are added Crossing animalthat of Barbie or that of Pokémon To name just some examples. This is how CROCS establishes an emotional connection and loyalty to its customers. The shoe that resurfaced from its ashes That Crocs were on the verge of bankruptcy makes its history more epic if possible. In 2020, already recovered from the coup, 1,390 million dollars entered, which is not bad, but it was nothing compared to what was coming. Pandemia pIt was rotated that a more informal lifestyle was adopted and In 2021 Crocs had explosive growthreaching 2,310 million dollars of income, or what is the same: a growth of 67%. They did not stop there and in 2022 they rose to 3,550 million, 53% more. In 2023 the trend stabilized with 3,960 million and in 2024 they have installed above the 4,000 million dollars. Another key growth factor is the diversification of its catalog. When we think of crocs, we all have the classic model in the mind, but in recent years the brand’s catalog has grown a lot and, although they maintain the essence of the original, they have managed to expand their audience and reach more public, thus increasing their sales. And let’s not forget another key factor: the profit margin. According to the latest results, The margin amounts to 61.7%. That is, for every 100 dollars they earn, they stay 61.7. Not bad. The most expensive crocs for sale in stockx. Crocs not only managed to survive, he managed to prosper until he became a footwear brand accepted by all; From the general public to the one who seeks the most exclusive. Today, resale stores such as stockx have extra rare pairs that They are sold for more than 1,000 eurossome even for more than 2,000. But without a doubt the greatest achievement of Crocs is that it has become a fashion icon without changing its design. In any case, it has been the fashion industry that has been adapted to them. That is the magic of these ugly clogs: being the discordant note, a GLitch in a world they do not belong. Cover image | Melike B, Pexels In Xataka | Labubu Humanity Bags are being small. So its creator already knows how to sell even more

Epic has noted a victory that had been waiting for a while

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‘Fortnite‘He just returned to the iOS App Store in the United States. It is not a new game, much less: it is the same title that accumulated millions of users when debuted in 2017 and that has not stopped updating since then. The return comes after a long legal battle between Epic and Apple, who took the store game in 2020. Now it is available again, and that says much more than it seems: the rules of the iOS ecosystem are starting to move, and Epic once again occupies a place that Apple had closed. A fight that started with a button. Epic decided to include its own payments within Fortnitethus skipping the standards of the App Store. Apple responded by removing the game from his store. That movement was the beginning of a dispute that did not go unnoticed. The case ended in court. What came later was a high profile battle between two giants in the sector. Epic accused Apple of imposing unfair conditions, while Apple defended that the rules were the same for everyone. A partial victory for Epic. Justice did not consider Apple to have a monopoly, but it did conclude that violated the disloyal competition law of California. The failure forces Apple to allow apps to include links or buttons towards external payment systems. Apple didn’t make it easy. Although Apple modified its policies after the judicial resolution, it introduced warning screens that advised against the use of external payment methods, all this with Epic protesting again and again. Europe forced the first crack. In the European Union, the context is different. Under the pressure of the community authorities and thanks to the new legislation of the Digital Markets LawApple allowed Epic Games to install Fortnite on the iPhone through Your own application store. This exemplifies how the rules of the game can vary according to the region. In Android the story was similar (but not the same). Google also withdrew Fortnite from his store for the same reason: Epic had activated his own payment system. However, in December 2023 A jury declared that Google maintained a monopoly in the mobile app distribution market. The company has appealed. Today, Google Play still does not offer Fortnite, although Android users can download it directly from the Epic website. Epic does not give up. The company has been denouncing what it considers abusive conditions by large application stores, especially with regard to commissions. Its objective is to change that model, and Fortnite’s return to the iPhone seems, at least for the moment, a small step in that direction. Images | APPSHUNTER | Epic Games In Xataka | The ghost of video games at 100 euros is closer than ever. And the owners of ‘GTA VI’ know

Apple loses the war against Epic. Fortnite returns triumphant and Spotify already prepares its rematch

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Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers accuses Apple of lying under oath and eliminates commissions for external paymentsopening the door to important changes in the application market. Why is it important. The judge has ordered Apple to stop commissions on external purchases and have eliminated restrictions on how developers can lead users to alternative payment methods. This decision can be a before and after in the app industry … and cut billions of Apple’s annual revenues. The sentence dismantles Apple’s strategy, which tried to avoid the 2021 court order charging a 27% commission for external purchases and installing “fear screens” to deter users from using options outside their ecosystem. Between bambalins. The judge accused Apple’s Vice President of “Lying blatantly under oath” and has sent the case to the Prosecutor’s Office to investigate possible contempt crimes. According to judicial documents, Apple knew perfectly what he was doing and “at every moment he chose the most anti -competitive option.” The magistrate also revealed that Tim Cook ignored the advice of Phil Schiller, head of the App Store, who advocated complying with the original order without charging commissions. “Cook chosen badly,” he said in A demolition failure of 80 pages. The background. It all started in 2020 when Epic Games included in Fortnite its own payment systemcausing its immediate expulsion from the App Store. Although Apple He won most original litigation issuesThe judge ruled that the company was limiting the competition by preventing developers from informing users about payment alternatives. The new sentence arrives after years of legal battle and dismantles the business model that represents an important part of the almost 100,000 million dollars that Apple enters annually for services. What is happening. Epic Games has announced that Fortnite will return to the American App Store next week. His CEO, Tim Sweeney, has offered a “peace proposal”: if Apple applies this framework without worldwide commissions, Epic will return to all app store and leave all related litigation. Meanwhile, Spotify has already sent an update of its application that will allow US users to see subscription prices, access external purchase links and change between different plans without going through the Apple payment system. The company considers this ruling as “the most important action to date” against Apple anti -competitive practices. The big question. Will this sentence change the way in which all application stores operate? Epic is already positioning an attractive offer: since June, developers will not pay commissions for the first million dollars of income through their store. This case could be a turning point, especially because it adds to the regulatory pressure that Apple already faces in Europe with the Digital Markets Law. For users, it means more payment options, possible discounts and a more transparent experience when buying digital content. In Xataka | Apple has been obsessed with the Iphone Premium for years. All I needed was a good and cheap Outstanding image | Xataka

The director of ‘Independence Day’ and ‘Tomorrow’ produces this apocalyptic epic that has just come to streaming

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If you are interested in catastrophes cinema, you have undoubtedly heard of Roland Emmerich: ‘Tomorrow’ or ‘2012’ until the most recent and hilarious ‘Moonfall’, his Cite has always been synonymous with the joggy and shameless show, as he demonstrated since his beginnings in classics such as ‘Independence Day’, ‘Universal Soldier’ ​​or ‘Stargate’. Now it comes to us To Filmin A film in which Emmerich assumed the role of a producer, but that maintains his vibrant rhythm and his vision of science fiction as a warning about our future: ‘The Colony‘. The film is directed by Tim Fehlbaum, which was already seen in a similar situation with ‘Hell’, in which a group of survivors had to protect themselves from the solar rays that had ended life on earth. Fehlhaum has also been nominated this year to the Oscar for Best Screenplay for his film about the kidnapping of several Israeli athletes in the 1972 Munich Olympics. On this occasion, climatic disasters have left the land completely uninhabitable, and the population has had to abandon it. However, on other planets, settlers are not able to reproduce, and a woman returns to earth to discover the cause of that infertility. In our desolate planet you will encounter an explorer with which it concludes that it is time for the settlers to return to the earth. But the few remaining land do not agree that it is a good idea. Undoubtedly, the most suggestive (and scary) of the film is the vision of the planet, whose surface, After climate change, it has been flooded by immense masses of water. Survivors take refuge in stranded loaders, in an aesthetic that partly reminds the world described in ‘Waterworld’. Not without some visual pessimistic poetry, ‘The Colony’ raises a bleak future, but in which there is space for hope. In Xataka | ‘Mickey 17’ is the new dystopian science fiction film that leads the box office. The problem is not enough

In 2024 Nicolas Cage, in 2025 Stephen King. The revolutionary horror cinema returns with a new epic of humor and gore

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Osgood Perkins is one of the most stimulating horror film directors of today (in addition, consecrated to gender: fans are lucky that it is not one of those creators who roll two impact films and then retire to more prestigious genres or profitable). And above, it is wonderfully prolific: last year, ‘Longlegs‘It became the cult film par excellence; This year, already in February, his ‘The Monkey’ is on his way to running the same fate. Oz Perkins likes fear. As is well known, Perkins is the son of an authentic horror cinema icon, Anthony Perkins, but with his good work he has been distanced from the titanic shadow of his father: before his international revelation with ‘Longlegs’, Perkins He already signed small but tremendously disturbing films, in which he showed an incredible hand for gender. As in his debut, the very sick ‘The envoy of evil‘, his personal vision of fairy tales with’Gretel and Hansel‘, And the modest but very intense’I am the beautiful creature that lives in this house‘For Netflix. ‘Longlegs’, a murky descent to madness. Descent, but as one descends rolling down the stairs to the darkest corner of a flooded medium basement. ‘Longlegs’ left Patidifuso to everyone in 2024 thanks to one of the most extreme papers of Nicolas Cage (which is already), but also because of the unexpected of their script turns and for the few concessions that this story gave this story this story of an FBI agent with some extrasensory capacity, and that is embarked in the search for a murderer who soon acquires absolutely inexplicable dyes. And now, Stephen King. Here is all of icons of the disheveled gesture and the insomnia nights. Stephen King, Nicolas Cage and now, Stephen King. Because his is the story that inspires Perkins’s new movie, ‘The Monkey’, which arrives at theaters this week. The original story is the variant of a code that King has used on countless occasions (‘the store’, ‘animal cemetery’), that of the monkey leg: do not want something very strong, because the desire can meet with the same force and with devastating consequences. But Perkins has brought the original story completely to its land. The desire monkey. The film starts when two twin brothers find among their father’s objects, whom they did not get to know, an old toy monkey with a drum. Soon a series of truculent deaths begin to happen in their surroundings, and that blame the monkey. The brothers decide to get rid of him and continue with their lives, although they end up distancing over the years. But suddenly the strange deaths take place again and the brothers must meet to end the power of the monkey. Laugh until he died. We said that Perkins had taken his own way when adapting the original story, and that path is that of humor. The deaths, absolutely free, unexpected and very bloody, are the most grotesque that have been seen on the screen from the saga ‘final destination’, with which ‘The Monkey’ has more than one point in common. Blood acrobatics, creative gore and a feverish rhythm of demential deaths mark the rhythm of a hilarious film and that definitely consecrates Osgood Perkins as one of the greats of modern terror. In Xataka | About the new ‘Wolf Man’ weighs more than a curse: the shadow of the failed mcu of monsters that wanted to build universal

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