There’s suddenly a whole lot going on over at Spotify, the popular music streaming service. Just yesterday, Variety reported that Wixen Music Publishing is suing the service for 1.6 billion, claiming the company is serving up thousands of songs without a proper license. And Wixen is no lawsuit troll either: They represent the late Tom Petty, Stevie Nicks, Neil Young, Donald Fagen and many other artists.
Then earlier today, news service Axios said that Spotify quietly filed paperwork for an IPO late last month, with a eye on possibly taking the company public in the next few months. Additionally, the IPO will be an unconventional “direct listing” instead of the usual big press show most tech companies go on to generate publicity before going public. But will the listing now be put on hold due to the giant Wixen lawsuit? This could be very interesting.
Leaking Intel
Bad news on the computer chip front from Intel: A flaw or bug in numerous computer CPUs has resulted in a serious security hole, and according to computer and IT news outlet The Register, the flaw could go back to chips made as long as 10 years ago. Apparently there’s no way to fix the problem “on the chip,” so the hole has to be closed in software, and OS developers at Microsoft, Apple and Team Linux are reportedly scrambling to fix the problem in their OS code.
So, no big deal? We wish: The Register tweeted out that the fix may slow some processor speeds from 17 to 23 percent. Be sure to run those updates when they pop up.
Game box
OK, enough bad news, it’s time for a little gaming fun. Check out this gem from gaming console modder Eddie Zarick. He took a new Xbox One X and… put it in a box.
But not just any box: Zarick’s clever creation, called the “Xbook One X”, makes the latest high-powered Xbox much more portable, as it’s basically a giant laptop, albeit one that has no battery because when running at full tilt, the Xbox One X needs about the same amount of power needed to run a small town.
OK, maybe not, but you do have to plug it in, and once you do, the attached High-Def monitor is ready to roll and you can also still plug the console into a nearby TV as well. Handy. Want one? Eddie says he’ll put together an Xbook just for you for a cool $2500, and you’ll need to wait a few weeks while he puts it all together. Considering how expensive a full-on gaming PC can be – and it’s not even going to be portable – we’d say that’s actually a pretty square deal.
We’ve got more news on our Facebook page and YouTube channel, and be sure to tune in to this week’s DT podcasts: Trends with Benefits (general tech shenanigans) on Thursdays, and Between the Streams (movie and TV topics) every Friday.
