Amazon, Apple and Google Steal The Show at CES (blogs.com)

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Amazon, Apple and Google Steal The Show at CES (blogs.com)

Posted by msmash on Wednesday January 9, 2019 @04:05AM from the bigger-picture dept.

An anonymous reader shares a report: The enemy of my enemy is my friend, and this week's CES is clearly showing how what was once the way companies did business, has changed, and at the same time, what's old is new again and companies who once fought with each other are finding new ways to be allies. For example, Apple stopped licensing in 1997. Now they're redefining licensing by making it easier for anyone to access their iTunes platform. That's called distribution. What's next? Letting anyone make an iPhone -- I think NOT. Taken on face so far, it's clear Apple, Google and Amazon are dominating CES. News about assistants being deployed by multiple brands, new features and uses of the AI backed functionality and most of all iTunes ending up on Samsung, Vizio, and other smart TV brands. That and pure word play on the famed "what goes on in Vegas, stays in Vegas" line tied to your privacy.

Looking more closely, neither Amazon, Apple nor Google has really introduced any new products themselves. No new iPhones or MacBooks. No new Homes, Hubs, Mini's or Pixelbooks and no new Echos were introduced. But all three are dominating the news and over time, your wallets directly and indirectly. In everyway possible, they have mastered the hardware channel at this year's CES and at the same time proved that "software really is eating the world." But what about all the news about them you say? Well, its all indeed smoke and mirrors, with the media jumping on the names of Apple, Amazon, and Google when in reality what we have is a roll-out of services. Yes, those same services Tim Cook talked about is what caused the ill-informed stock market types to think Apple was a bad stock to hold onto, who misunderstand Google's real motivations, and who have yet to really see Amazon for what they are.

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Boring by Anonymous Coward · 2019-01-09 04:09 · Score: 0

Same old shit, in a new wrapper. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
1. Re: Boring by Anonymous Coward · 2019-01-09 04:15 · Score: 1
  
  Yep. Very. CES is pointles these days. I can't remember the last time there was any real innovation that does society any real good. Plenty of bad and perhaps that's why Apple, Amazon and Google dominate the show.
2. Re: Boring by AmiMoJo · 2019-01-09 04:32 · Score: 2
  
  When the biggest news is that Apple has been forced to open up its services a bit to get new customs, rather than some interesting new tech, you know things have stagnated.
  It's kind of a weird time to have a trade show though. Everyone gets all their new stuff out for xmas. This is the new project time with an eye on release later in the year. All the new phones are due around October...
  Well, Nissan announced a new Leaf. It's a bit "meh" but it's something.
  
  --
  const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
  SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
3. Re: Boring by crow · 2019-01-09 04:36 · Score: 1
  
  CES still seems to still be where new TVs are launched, so if you're in the market for one, this is a good time to see if there is anything interesting coming, or if you should be looking to grab last year's model at a discount.
4. Re: Boring by AmiMoJo · 2019-01-09 04:50 · Score: 1
  
  That's true. Those OLEDs do look nice, although they are mostly just an incremental upgrade from last year. In fact the reviewers seem to be saying you might as well save some cash and buy last year's model.
  
  --
  const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
  SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
5. Re:Boring by mindwhip · 2019-01-09 05:10 · Score: 1
  
  Not even really true. Except for the apple TV thing, which I only heard in passing in a general article listing all the TV related announcements and isn't even really about apple or innovation, this is the first I've seen any reporting on any of these three from CES this year and all this article claims is the opposite of my personal experience so I am inclined to consider it a paid promotion to try and make up for their lack of impact.
  
  --
  [The Universe] has gone offline.
6. Re: Boring by crow · 2019-01-09 05:15 · Score: 1
  
  Yup. I have my eye on a particular TV, and I was hoping to see essentially the same thing with an extra HDMI port or two. I just don't get why they're so stingy with those, especially when they want the TV to be the hub of everything with smart menus and such, but then they push you towards using a switch (in your receiver or otherwise). I'm hardware must be just pennies, but I'm guessing the limiting factor is patent fees. Now if they just updated HDMI to let the TV see the downstream switch and control it to make it look like the ports were in the TV to the consumer, that would solve this problem. Since they've thrown everything else into the HDMI spec, I figure this will come sooner or later (half-joking).
7. Re: Boring by AmiMoJo · 2019-01-09 05:28 · Score: 2
  
  I think the new CEC spec supports switches being controlled by the TV, but don't quote me on that.
  The lack of HDMI ports is frustrating. I think they use it to upsell higher end models by throwing in an extra port or two.
  
  --
  const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
  SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
8. Re: Boring by Anonymous Coward · 2019-01-09 05:53 · Score: 0
  
  "I think the new CEC spec supports switches being controlled by the TV, but don't quote me on that."
  -- AmiMoJo, January 9th, 2019
9. Re: Boring by crow · 2019-01-09 07:00 · Score: 1
  
  If CEC spec supports that, then it's a matter of smart TVs getting smarter to detect it and treat ports on compliant switches just like native ports. That would be really cool and solve the port shortage problem. Now if only I worked for Roku or someone like that...
10. Re:Boring by Aighearach · 2019-01-09 07:51 · Score: 3, Funny
  
  Same old shit, in a new wrapper. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
  I'm not sure how they manage to get from "Looking more closely, neither Amazon, Apple nor Google has really introduced any new products themselves," all the way to "steal the show."
  Or, to rephrase the entire story, "Burble burble burble PROMO burble burble CONSUME burble burble. fnord"
11. Re:Boring by Plumpaquatsch · 2019-01-13 11:44 · Score: 1
  
  Same old shit, in a new wrapper. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
  I'm not sure how they manage to get from "Looking more closely, neither Amazon, Apple nor Google has really introduced any new products themselves," all the way to "steal the show."
  Or, to rephrase the entire story, "Burble burble burble PROMO burble burble CONSUME burble burble. fnord"
  Errm, isn't getting all the press despite not even being at the show pretty close to the definition of "stealing the show"?
  
  --
  Of course news about a fake are Fake News.
12. Re:Boring by Aighearach · 2019-01-14 11:27 · Score: 1
  
  If that is the only reason for the show, then that would be true.
  I thought the show was to convince purchasing people that their stuff is going to be the Next Big Thing in the rapidly-approaching holiday shopping season. If that was really the reason, then whatever the media said wouldn't even count for anything.
13. Re:Boring by Plumpaquatsch · 2019-01-14 21:26 · Score: 1
  
  If that is the only reason for the show, then that would be true.
  Ooops, I forgot all about the booth babes, sorry.
  
  I thought the show was to convince purchasing people that their stuff is going to be the Next Big Thing in the rapidly-approaching holiday shopping season. If that was really the reason, then whatever the media said wouldn't even count for anything.
  You make it sound like the vast majority of the public makes their buying decision based on actually going to the show instead of getting the info from the media. We're not in the early 80s any more.
  
  --
  Of course news about a fake are Fake News.
Anybody with half a brain knows... by Anonymous Coward · 2019-01-09 04:17 · Score: 0

What goes on in Vegas stays in Vegas only as long as you do what the mafiosos ask you to. Otherwise that little tryst with your secretary or a prostitute while you were high rolling at the casino will get back to your wife, boss, or constituents as applicable if you don't do them just a little favor, or hand them just a little taste...
Seriously though, Vegas was Google/M$/Apple before any of them had the twinkle of it in their eye. Just look at (video) surveillance of the floor in casinos from the 70s-80s to today.
It's bad form to submit your own blog articles. by Anonymous Coward · 2019-01-09 04:28 · Score: 1

n/t
Apple TV vs. iTunes on Competitors by crow · 2019-01-09 04:33 · Score: 4, Interesting

Apple's attempt to get media on your TV was their AppleTV product that didn't do so well. While they would love to control all the hardware, they're more afraid of losing out on media to Amazon, NetFlix, Google, Spotify, and many others. If that happens, it's one less tie into the iPhone ecosystem, and Apple won't risk that.
Streaming is convenient, but not so much if you have to keep switching services to get everything you want, so all the big players want to be your one true provider. Limiting access is a strategy for failure.
1. Re:Apple TV vs. iTunes on Competitors by Anonymous Coward · 2019-01-09 04:43 · Score: 0
  
  I've never understood why Apple wants to be a content producer, rather than just be the best available ecosystem with which to consume others' content. Unless Apple execs are as star-struck by the Hollywood scum, er I mean stars, as anybody else.
  If Apple wasn't a content producer, they could offer their Apple ecosystem to all the content providers, making Apple products the best way for consumers to have access to everything, and easy to switch between. Now they're in competition with the other producers, and that will prevent many (most?) from wanting to be available on Apple products.
  If my understanding of the situation is wrong, I look forward to the gentle corrections that /. is famous for providing.
2. Re:Apple TV vs. iTunes on Competitors by bob4u2c · 2019-01-09 04:57 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  I've never understood why Apple wants to be a content producer, rather than just be the best available ecosystem
  Simple, Content Producers get paid over and over and over and over again for the same product. Think of that movie you saw at the theater, then rented on dvd, then watched on cable. Hardware products don't have as much churn, and unless you lock in a large market to begin with you never make a second sell to a consumer. If Apple had both they would dominate the market, much like cable providers and cable boxes of the past.
  
  Apple is more on the road to taking a middleman cut, they don't make the content nor do they make the device its consumed on, but they do make a percentage for matching the two up. Hmm, when I put it that way is Apple a pimp?
3. Re:Apple TV vs. iTunes on Competitors by squiggleslash · 2019-01-09 05:05 · Score: 1
  
  I was under the impression they'd always seen their content selling side as a means to get people to buy Apple hardware. If they're now worried about their content selling side losing business to more open alternatives, that tells me they see hardware as a dead end. That's... interesting.
  Maybe "Mac OS W" is on the way after all...
  
  --
  You are not alone. This is not normal. None of this is normal.
4. Re:Apple TV vs. iTunes on Competitors by crow · 2019-01-09 05:11 · Score: 1
  
  They need to be a content producer since Amazon, HBO, and Netflix all are doing it (and soon Disney). If they don't produce their own content, then they have no real story to tell as to why people should use their service instead of the others.
  If we had laws separating content creators and distributors with mandatory distribution licensing to prohibit long-term exclusive contracts, then we would likely be in a much better situation for consumers in streaming, as you could pick any service, and you would get everything within one year once the exclusive deals expired.
  Better, that is, except for one thing: There would be a less content. Lots of stuff is being produced solely because it locks people in to the service funding it. It would kill most of the exclusive original content.
  That said, I would still like to see some mandatory licensing legislation, but not anything too strong that would stop the production of new shows we're seeing right now. I'm not sure exactly what the right policy is.
5. Re:Apple TV vs. iTunes on Competitors by crow · 2019-01-09 05:18 · Score: 1
  
  I would guess that it's two factors.
  One is that business evolves, and the content business is now big money.
  The other is the content business is still getting people to buy iPhones, but they're willing to sacrifice other hardware if it keeps people in their ecosystem buying iPhones.
6. Re:Apple TV vs. iTunes on Competitors by aitikin · 2019-01-09 05:57 · Score: 1
  
  Apple is more on the road to taking a middleman cut, they don't make the content nor do they make the device its consumed on, but they do make a percentage for matching the two up. Hmm, when I put it that way is Apple a pimp?
  Actually, they're more on their way to being a content creator, coming from the middle man cut. They've got at least 30 projects announce that are exclusive to them, including an adaptation of Asimov's Foundation series and an unnamed (or no known name for yet) Ronald D. Moore series (as well as tons of other, non-scifi and sci-fi content). I'm not sure I want that stuff to work out or not...
  
  --
  "Don't meddle in the affairs of a patent dragon, for thou art tasty and good with ketchup." ~ohcrapitssteve
7. Re:Apple TV vs. iTunes on Competitors by Anonymous Coward · 2019-01-09 06:01 · Score: 0
  
  Apple's attempt to get media on your TV was their AppleTV product that didn't do so well. While they would love to control all the hardware, they're more afraid of losing out on media to Amazon, NetFlix, Google, Spotify, and many others. If that happens, it's one less tie into the iPhone ecosystem, and Apple won't risk that.
  Streaming is convenient, but not so much if you have to keep switching services to get everything you want, so all the big players want to be your one true provider. Limiting access is a strategy for failure.
  Every platform (spotify, itunes, amazon) all want to make more of the margin, as well as be able to deliver better value to the artists, actors, producers. they see themselves as cutting out the middleman.
8. Re: Apple TV vs. iTunes on Competitors by Anonymous Coward · 2019-01-09 08:35 · Score: 0
  
  > There would be a less content
  Whatsa matter you? You thinka less content is bAd for Italian?
9. Re:Apple TV vs. iTunes on Competitors by bob4u2c · 2019-01-09 10:16 · Score: 1
  
  Thanks for the link.
  
  There are three I might check in on: Time Bandits, Amazing Stories, and what Ronald Moorre comes up with. Most of the shows listed just don't appeal to me though.
  
  Also I wonder about a few of them. Like the Oprah deal. It seems like they are buying rights to programs; which is fine, but they aren't exactly the content creators themselves.
10. Re:Apple TV vs. iTunes on Competitors by Anonymous Coward · 2019-01-09 14:17 · Score: 0
  
  Think of that movie you saw at the theater, then rented on dvd, then watched on cable.
  Yea. What a bunch of fuckers. I pay for Netflix so that I can sleep at night and give "bigger boys" something to worry about. Last time I actually used Netflix was may be 6 years ago?
  There is fun stuff happening with darknets. If all goes well, soon there will be almost zero piracy ;)
11. Re:Apple TV vs. iTunes on Competitors by Tough+Love · 2019-01-09 14:59 · Score: 1
  
  Microsoft went through a similar vanity publishing phase, that's how we got Slate and MSNBC. But it didn't last. Microsoft found that publishing is much harder work than shipping software.
  
  --
  When all you have is a hammer, every problem starts to look like a thumb.
12. Re:Apple TV vs. iTunes on Competitors by Tough+Love · 2019-01-09 16:45 · Score: 1
  
  The number of people who know or care about Azimov is a tiny sliver of humanity. You and I know about it, but try your sister. Sinking a bunch of money producing this only to distribute on a network with subscriber share that rounds to zero seems predictive of where this project is heading.
  
  --
  When all you have is a hammer, every problem starts to look like a thumb.
13. Re:Apple TV vs. iTunes on Competitors by Tough+Love · 2019-01-09 16:48 · Score: 1
  
  The difference with Amazon, HBO, and Netflix is, they actually have a user base. Some change of getting a recovery on their content investment.
  
  --
  When all you have is a hammer, every problem starts to look like a thumb.
14. Re:Apple TV vs. iTunes on Competitors by aitikin · 2019-01-11 01:39 · Score: 1
  
  The number of people who know or care about Azimov is a tiny sliver of humanity. You and I know about it, but try your sister. Sinking a bunch of money producing this only to distribute on a network with subscriber share that rounds to zero seems predictive of where this project is heading.
  Right, but a ton of other people know Opera, James Corden's Carpool Karaoke stuff, the guys from It's Always Sunny, etc.
  
  --
  "Don't meddle in the affairs of a patent dragon, for thou art tasty and good with ketchup." ~ohcrapitssteve
15. Re: Apple TV vs. iTunes on Competitors by Anonymous Coward · 2019-01-11 08:53 · Score: 0
  
  Kind of like Game of Thrones ten years ago.
16. Re:Apple TV vs. iTunes on Competitors by Plumpaquatsch · 2019-01-13 11:54 · Score: 1
  
  The number of people who know or care about Azimov is a tiny sliver of humanity.
  
  Yeah, just a little higher than those who even heard of Phillip K. Dick or Margaret Atwood.
  
  --
  Of course news about a fake are Fake News.
The 3 As by Anonymous Coward · 2019-01-09 04:33 · Score: 0

Amazon
Apple
Alphabet (aka Google)
Of course they're dominating the news by Anonymous Coward · 2019-01-09 04:37 · Score: 0

The companies are dominating the news because the companies are paying the media to make them dominate the news. Perhaps not in direct cash payments, but free meals, better "access" (that is, first in line to get the press releases that are already written up as articles ready to print), and promise of future "leaks". Or hell, Bezos owns his own media outlet, he's paying them already.
The media whores are worse than actual whores, because the sex workers are at least honest about what they're doing.
Headline is partially correct. by Anonymous Coward · 2019-01-09 04:38 · Score: 1

Amazon and Google dominated the show.
As usual apple was there only to steal things.
1. Re:Headline is partially correct. by geekmux · 2019-01-09 05:22 · Score: 0
  
  Amazon and Google dominated the show. As usual apple was there only to steal things.
  That "thief" is one of the most successful and valuable companies in the history of capitalism. They appear to be doing something right, as hundreds of millions of consumers continue to buy and support "stolen" products.
2. Re:Headline is partially correct. by Anonymous Coward · 2019-01-09 06:52 · Score: 0
  
  Classic ipology!
What goes on in Vegas stays in the Cloud by bussdriver · 2019-01-09 04:46 · Score: 5, Insightful

What goes on in Vegas stays in Facebook,Google,Amazon.
What goes on in Vegas stays with Facebook partners.
What goes on in Vegas you snap-chatted will be resurrected in 10 years.
What goes on in Vegas stays in your cell provider's location DB; which is for sale.
What goes on in Vegas stays in Facebook,Google,Amazon,Apple profiles.
Vote?

--
Democracy Now! - uncensored, anti-establishment news
Lazy, Disconnected Media by alvinrod · 2019-01-09 04:56 · Score: 2

I think this just shows how lazy and disconnected the tech press is more than it shows how Amazon, Apple, etc. are doing. Rather than doing research into the new technology or what the companies are offering, these media outlets just recycle the same junk that they always spit out to be gobbled up by a general audience that has as little interest in anything technical as the people covering it.

There's probably a YouTube channel with a few tens of thousands of subscribers that does a much better job covering these events than any of the people writing for the mainstream rags or some of these so-called technology websites. There's still good and interesting coverage out there, but you'll have to do a bit more digging.
1. Re:Lazy, Disconnected Media by Anonymous Coward · 2019-01-09 06:08 · Score: 0
  
  There are three types of media at CES:
  1) New and Shiny-this is the bulk of what we are seeing and hearing
  2) Release and Review-they look under the hood, actually kick the tires and try out the products vs. just take a rewrite of a news release or a product spec sheet.
  3) IPO-Insight perspective and opinion-(where I tend to write) sharing a viewpoint around what's being put out from the companies, looking at the trends and cutting through the b.s. and turning an angle into a story.
2. Re:Lazy, Disconnected Media by ZZZaphod · 2019-01-09 07:19 · Score: 1
  
  I agree. I only clicked this link because I wondered if I missed something overnight. I've been following the CES info from a dozen sites and scouring youtube and not seen those three names mentioned. Panasonic gave specs on its first Full Frame DSLR, and NVidia introduced a new gpu, a new monitor-gpu standard, and laptop partnering, car companies.. well are car companies. But I've seen no mention of those.
3. Re:Lazy, Disconnected Media by Anonymous Coward · 2019-01-09 09:55 · Score: 0
  
  You'd think AMD showing off an 8-core CPU that basically matches a 9900k, but at lower power consumption would be more important.
  Oh, and it has the extra space for an 8-core chiplet.
  I wonder what that could mean.
4. Re:Lazy, Disconnected Media by Tough+Love · 2019-01-09 14:51 · Score: 1
  
  A 7nm GPU can also fit in that space
  
  --
  When all you have is a hammer, every problem starts to look like a thumb.
The line is "What happens in Vegas..." by Anonymous Coward · 2019-01-09 04:58 · Score: 0

Message aside, this is terribly written.
Did They Really "Steal the Show"? by Anonymous Coward · 2019-01-09 05:00 · Score: 0

Did Amazon, Apple, and Google literally "steal" the CES or was only the attendee's data stolen? I highly suspect it was the latter. ;)
bad writing again by Anonymous Coward · 2019-01-09 05:05 · Score: 0

I guess grammarly misses the subject of sentences upon occasion, but even with software assistance it is obvious when somebody is borderline illiterate. So is it ADD drugs that are responsible for the terrible writing? Aspergers? WTF
1. Re:bad writing again by Anonymous Coward · 2019-01-09 07:46 · Score: 0
  
  Truly awful.
I'm not surprised... by 110010001000 · 2019-01-09 05:05 · Score: 0

....they are stealing our data too.
I thought CES was dead by Anonymous Coward · 2019-01-09 05:08 · Score: 0

Well, yeah, Amazon, Apple, and Google. Together they aren't worth a pimple on a bull's ass.
iTunes on a TV? by nwaack · 2019-01-09 05:16 · Score: 1

Those TV's are going to have to get thicker again to support the 8th gen Core i7, 8GB of RAM and 1TB of HD space they're gonna need to run it :)
Dominating the news? Why? by Anonymous Coward · 2019-01-09 05:31 · Score: 0

Is this a trump thing, with everybody tripping over each other for access? What are they offering in exchange? It's really lame. People need to learn to turn their backs.
The enemy of my enemy... by Anonymous Coward · 2019-01-09 05:37 · Score: 0

29. The enemy of my enemy is my enemy's enemy. No more. No less.
-- The Seventy Maxims of Maximally Effective Mercenaries [Schlock Mercenary]
Maybe its because theres not much to say... by mr.dreadful · 2019-01-09 05:55 · Score: 2

Imagine a year where there weren't any Oscar-worthy movies. Would they cancel the Academy Awards? No. Because at the end of the day, CES (and the Academy Awards) are mostly just marketing events. There's a lot of money floating around the CES event and not having anything really new or note-worthy isn't going to disrupt business as usual. Marketers going to market, regardless.
Slashvertisement by sexconker · 2019-01-09 06:53 · Score: 1

This is one of the worst Slashvertisements I've ever seen. I've been following CES 2019 and I've not seen anyone give half a shit about virtual assistants, and I've not seen anyone even care that Amazon, Apple, and Google showed up.
1. Re:Slashvertisement by Anonymous Coward · 2019-01-09 07:55 · Score: 0
  
  Google NEWS "CES" and six of the top ten articles mention Amazon or Google. Two of the headlines mention AI. This website, a technology website that constantly bashes Apple and generally is negative about Google and Amazon, still managed to post headlines about Amazon, Google, and Apple at CES.
  It seems the impressions of "sexconker" from "following" CES are atypical.
2. Re:Slashvertisement by Anonymous Coward · 2019-01-09 13:26 · Score: 0
  
  It's even more sickening when you remember that Apple didn't even attend CES. This is slashvertisement complaining about how no new products were announced at CES by a company that wasn't there.
I was expecting to read "steal.. user data at CES" by Anonymous Coward · 2019-01-09 08:04 · Score: 0

Ah, steal the show. Is that like when they take over everything and act like it's theirs?
This post is unintelligible by Anonymous Coward · 2019-01-09 10:16 · Score: 0

This post is unintelligible. It's barely English. How did it get on Slashdot?
Did I miss something by DarkRookie2 · 2019-01-10 05:46 · Score: 1

The only things I saw were shitty VAs and shitty laptops

--
http://progressquest.com/spoltog.php?name=Son+Of+Son+Of+DarkRookie