Good Morning! Google is rolling out a massive update to cut down on search spam and low-quality content, potentially reducing such content by 40%. Epic Games has won a significant victory against Apple in Europe, allowing them to launch the Epic Games Store on iOS devices. Warner Bros. Discovery has announced plans to remove multiple Adult Swim games from online stores, sparking concerns about game preservation.

— Forrest Knight & Meghanadh Vasireddy

Google Launches Big Search Updates to Cut Spam and Poor Content

Google has unleashed a massive set of updates aimed at cutting down on spam and low-quality content polluting its search results. This multi-pronged effort involves overhauling core ranking algorithms and implementing stricter policies against abusive practices.

At the core is a revamped understanding to better identify "unhelpful" pages that provide poor user experiences or seem optimized solely for search engines rather than human readers. Specific targets include:

• "Scaled content abuse" - mass-producing low-quality pages aimed at manipulating rankings via automation, hired writers, or combinations

• "Expired domain abuse" where expired domains are repurposed with unrelated spam content

• A new "site reputation abuse" policy penalizing injecting spam on reputable sites without oversight

Multiple core ranking systems responsible for evaluating webpage relevance and quality signals have been overhauled. Google warns this "more complex update than usual" will likely cause significant ranking fluctuations as the interconnected systems are updated over several weeks.

The Impact: By Google's estimates, this comprehensive offensive against search spam could reduce low-quality, unoriginal content in search results by a staggering 40% compared to previous levels.

Read More Here

Epic Games Wins Big Against Apple in Europe

The Digital Markets Act (DMA) is a new European Union regulation aimed at promoting fair competition and curbing the dominance of big tech companies in the digital market. One of its key provisions requires gatekeepers like Apple to allow third-party app stores and sideloading on their platforms.

The Dispute: Epic Games, the company behind the popular game Fortnite, had plans to launch its Epic Games Store on iOS devices in Europe, taking advantage of the DMA rules. However, Apple terminated Epic's developer account in Sweden, which Epic claimed was retaliation for criticizing Apple's proposed DMA compliance plan.

After a swift inquiry by the European Commission, Apple agreed to reinstate Epic's developer account, marking the first significant victory for the DMA. This decision allows Epic Games to proceed with launching the Epic Games Store and bringing Fortnite back to iOS in Europe, fostering competition in the app market.

Implications:

• It sends a strong signal to developers that the European Commission is committed to enforcing the DMA and holding gatekeepers accountable.

• It sets a precedent for other developers seeking to challenge monopolistic practices of platform owners.

• It highlights the impact of the DMA in reducing the dominance of big tech giants and promoting fair competition in the digital realm.

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Warner Bros. Discovery Removing Adult Swim Games from Online Stores

Warner Bros. Discovery has announced plans to remove (or "retire") multiple games from the Adult Swim Games label from digital storefronts like Steam and console stores. Developers were given 60 days notice.

WBD is citing lack of resources and logistics as reasons for not transferring publishing rights back to the developers, despite the transfer process on Steam being very simple (just 3 clicks). This means when the games are delisted, all community data like reviews, guides, achievements etc. will be wiped out instead of being preserved.

Developer Response:

Some affected developers plan to re-upload the games on their own, but this will come at a huge cost:

• Game histories & communities built over years will be reset

• Owen Reedy (Small Radios Big Televisions) has made his game free to allow continued access

• Other developers are pushing back against WBD's refusal to transfer rights.

Impact: Over 18 Adult Swim Games titles could be impacted by this delisting.

Parallels: This mirrors WBD's recent cancellations of movies/TV shows as cost-cutting measures, raising concerns about game preservation.

Read More Here

🔥 More Notes

• CISA concludes two-day summit on open source security with three action items

• "Java is here to stay": Popular programming language to remain on business hit lists in 2024

• Nvidia bans using translation layers for CUDA software — previously the prohibition was only listed in the online EULA, now included in installed files [Updated]

Youtube Spotlight

Everything You NEED to Know about Web Scraping (Advanced)

In this video, Forrest shares his extensive experience with web scraping, discussing the challenges and solutions he has encountered, as well as the ethical and legal considerations involved. He provides a comprehensive overview of web scraping, including its importance and real-world applications, and delves into advanced topics such as handling complex web technologies, optimizing scripts, proxy management, data storage, and data integration.

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