Microsoft Store Now Officially Open To Third-Party Apps And Digital Stores

It appears that the Windows platform’s Microsoft Store will soon see a potential influx of apps in the near future. As announced via a recently published blog post, Microsoft has opened its digital storefront’s doors to the participation of third-party apps and distributors.

This arrives months after the company announced some significant changes to its Store’s policy, where it now allows developers to keep 100% of their revenues from app sales if they use alternative payment platforms – with the exception of games. In addition, Microsoft head of Windows and devices Panos Panay also revealed in the same month that the company is open to the idea of accepting third-party apps and stores to its digital storefront, with the aim of transforming Microsoft Store into a universal hub for Windows-based apps.

“Just like any other app, third-party storefront apps will have a product detail page — which can be found via search or by browsing — so that users can easily find and install it with the same confidence as any other app in the Microsoft Store on Windows,” wrote the first-party digital storefront’s general manager Giorgio Sardo in the blog post. “Today, we are sharing that Amazon and Epic Games will bring their storefront apps to the Microsoft Store over the next few months, and we look forward to welcoming other stores as well in the future.”

Users running the Insider version of Windows 11 are now able to see the new changes in the store. Newly included are third-party apps including Discord, Zoom, VLC, Adobe Acrobat Reader DC, as well as non-first party web browsers such as Opera and Yandex Browser. Unfortunately, these new additions are not present on the Windows 10 version of Microsoft Store just yet. The company says that the update will eventually land on its previous generation operating system, although it did not mention when that is expected to happen. 

As for Android-based applications (which Windows 11 is capable of running), these will only be available once Amazon Appstore arrives on the platform. However, Microsoft noted in its blog that a preview version of this will arrive for Windows Insiders in a future update. Details about the system requirements and market availability of the preview experience will be shared soon, it added.

The transformation of Microsoft Store into a one-stop location for users to obtain their apps is indeed convenient, especially after purchasing a new PC/laptop or conducting a clean install of Windows. Granted, not all third-party apps are available at this time, and only time will tell whether this new change will fulfil Microsoft’s vision of a unified storefront for its Windows platform.

Tech Experts Sign Open Letter Asking Apple To Not Implement Child Safety Plan

A few days ago, Apple announced that its new feature called neuralMatch would be used to scan devices and the iCloud for child abuse imagery. This was quite the surprise for the company that went against the FBI’s request to unlock a terror suspect’s iPhone. The blowback for this new move in the name of child safety was expected, to say the least. And now, that blowback has manifested in the form of an open letter to the Cupertino company.

The Apple Privacy Letter is a very straightforward one. It, and its signatories, as that the iPhone maker will not go ahead with its child safety plan. The open letter has over 4000 signatories at the time of writing.

The letter also explains why Apple’s plans on the matter is problematic. For one, because the neuralMatch tech is done on device, it circumvents end-to-end encryption. This introduces a backdoor to the system, even if Apple has claimed that this will not be the case.

Another key argument is that the tech, while well-meaning, is prone to being mutated to serve more nefarious means of surveillance. For example, the open letter quotes Dr Nadim Kobeissi, a Security & Privacy researcher, as saying that the tech may be modified to scan for homosexuality or offences against the monarchy, leading to abuse and persecution.

Ultimately, the Apple Privacy Letter asks for two things. One is that Apple doesn’t deploy the content monitoring tech. The other is so that the iPhone maker reaffirms its commitment to user privacy. After all, it has been a key point that the company won’t stop shouting about in nearly all of its announcements.

Google To Open Its First Ever Physical Retail Store

In the distant pre-Covid past, few events elicit as much as excitement as the opening of an official Apple retail store. Now, it looks like Google wants in on all that glamour too, announcing plans to open its first ever physical retail store in New York City.

As you’d expect, store visitors will be able to browse and buy Google’s products like Pixel phones, Nest smart home devices, Fitbit watches, and Pixelbooks. Customers can also shop using Google’s online store and then collect their orders from the physical store.

There’ll be staff on site to help people with things like product repairs, troubleshooting, and installation. Google will also hold how-to workshops throughout the year. None of this is surprising, of course.

Still, the retail store will be a historic achievement. Google has flirted with physical retail space in the past, only to abandon the idea later. In 2013, the company constructed two gargantuan barges to serve as high-profile showrooms, CNET said. Then in 2018, Google was reported to have plans to open a retail store in Chicago, according to the news website.

None of these (alleged) plans ever came to fruition.

This Google Store, however, will be part of the company’s urban campus in New York’s Chelsea neighbourhood, which is home to many of its 11,000 employees in the city.

Opening the store in the midst of a global pandemic is a curious choice, though it may have been unavoidable. We’ll see if it can match the famously snaking lines of Apple stores.

US Looking To Open Up To 10 New Chip Factories

If a proposed US congressional bill is passed, the country could see the opening of up to 10 new chip-making plants, US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said.

According to Reuters, Raimondo said the US$52 billion (~RM215 billion) bill, which currently seems to have bipartisan support, would generate “US$150 billion-plus” in investment in chip production and research.

“We just need the federal money … to unlock private capital,” Raimondo said. “It could be seven, could be eight, could be nine, could be 10 new factories in America by the time we’re done.”

As reported before, the US is keen to ramp up its domestic chip production capacity in the face of a global chip shortage and an escalating rivalry with China. The shortage has caused production issues for US companies from Ford to Apple, highlighting a critical vulnerability in the nation’s supply chain.

US President Joe Biden has been seeking funding for chip production in the country. Accordingly, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer last week unveiled a bill that would pour US$52 billion into domestic chip production and research over five years.

Industry groups, which have loudly pleaded for more chip investment, often highlight the fact that the US share of global chip-making capacity fell from 37% in 1990 to just 12% today.

JKJAV To Open Another Registration Session For AstraZeneca Vaccine Soon

The Special Committee on the COVID-19 Vaccine Supply (JKJAV) will be announcing another registration session for the AstraZeneca (AZ) vaccine sometime next week. This was revealed by the coordinator of the National COVID-19 Immunisation Programme (PICK), Minister Khairy Jamaluddin via Twitter earlier today.

Minister Khairy also said that the Vaccine Administration Centres (PPV) for the distribution of the AZ vaccine outside of Klang Valley will be announced at the same time as well. However, the exact day and time of the announcement were not revealed through the tweet.

The minister has previously shared that thousands of people have cancelled their vaccine registration in MySejahtera after the government announced that it is about to roll out the AZ vaccine through PICK. Hence, it was then decided that the AZ vaccine be given a separate distribution channel while still being deemed as part of the PICK.

A separate registration process was then opened last Sunday which saw all of the 268,000 available doses to be fully reserved within 3 hours 20 minutes even though there were some hiccups during the early portion of the registration session. The subsequent distribution of the AZ vaccine took place yesterday and will last until early June.

Porsche Reportedly Planning To Open An Assembly Plant in Kedah, Malaysia

Porsche is apparently looking to set up a new assembly plant for car production in Malaysia. News of this was first reported by weekly newspaper The Edge, citing people familiar with the matter.

The project will see the automaker partnering with Inokom Corporation Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary of Sime Darby Motors, the report added. The plant is said to be built in the state of Kedah, but the expected date of construction and operations were not disclosed.

In addition, the alleged new factory in Malaysia will be the car maker’s first assembly plant established outside of Germany, also joining its parent company Volkswagen which already has a facility in Pekan, Pahang. The Edge added that the move by Porsche will be a “much-needed boost” to the country, which has lagged behind neighbouring countries such as Indonesia and Thailand in securing big investments by global automakers.

Porsche deputy director of corporate communications Christian Weiss, whom The Edge cited, says the Southeast Asian region exhibits great potential and added that the company is continuously examining options for further growth in this market. The automaker has not made an official announcement regarding the supposedly upcoming Malaysian-based assembly plant at this time.