Android for wearables coming, says Google software boss

Google is branching out in the wearable technology market, with the release of a software development kit.

It would allow developers to create wearable devices such as smartwatches and fitness trackers using the Android operating system.
Google’s senior vice-president of Android, Chrome and apps said: “We want to develop a set of common protocols by which they can work together.”
The kit would be available in two weeks’ time, Sundar Pichai added.

Samsung’s Gear 2 uses Tizen instead of Android, which its predecessor used

Samsung’s Galaxy Gear smartwatch did run a version of Android – but after concerns over its interface and battery life, it switched to the Tizen software platform for its latest watch, the Gear 2.
Google Glass is the company’s main foray into wearables so far. The device includes eyeglass frames equipped with a camera and small display controlled by voice command. The product is not yet on general sale but is being tested by selected people.
“Google is taking wearables seriously and it wants everyone else to,” said John Delaney, vice-president of mobility research at analyst firm IDC.
“The industry thinks wearables is the next big thing as sales of smartphones start to plateau in developed markets and this is the latest attempt to build momentum behind it,” he said.
“Google would be a competitor in the market but also an enabler if it helps Android developers.”
Apple is reportedly working on a smartwatch that could use the operating system used on its iPhones and iPads.
Android is already the most used operating system on smartphones and more than 1.1 billion devices running Android are expected to ship this year, according to the research firm Gartner.
Geoff Blaber, an analyst at CCS Insight, said it was a logical move for Google.
“From Google’s perspective, it’s essential it introduces some consistency into a fast-fragmenting wearables space,” he said
“Without a consistent software development kit there was a danger that the wearables space would quickly result in a fragmented array of implementations that would make it harder for Google to control and monetise.
“Google is striving to avoid history repeating itself. The early wearables landscape is reminiscent of the tablet market when manufacturers sought to respond to Apple’s iPad by using Android for larger screen devices before Google had fully optimised the platform,” he added

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Google and Viacom settle seven-year YouTube row

Google and Viacom have resolved a long-running legal battle regarding copyrighted material on YouTube.

The out-of-court settlement brings to an end a dispute that began in 2007.
Viacom had sought $1bn (£600m) in damages from the search giant.
The companies said in a joint statement: “This settlement reflects the growing collaborative dialogue between our two companies on important opportunities, and we look forward to working more closely together.”
The terms of the deal were not disclosed, but the BBC understands no money has changed hands.
Shared revenueLast April, a judge in New York rejected Viacom’s damages claim, but the company launched an appeal.
Viacom’s complaint was that shows such as The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, South Park and SpongeBob SquarePants had been uploaded to YouTube without authorisation, and subsequently viewed hundreds of thousands of times.
In its defence, Google said it had followed the law set out by the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, which states that a host site – such as YouTube – cannot be held accountable for the material uploaded by its users, provided it acted to remove content when asked by the copyright holder.
Since its launch in 2005, and particularly after its acquisition by Google a year later, YouTube has tussled with content creators regarding copyrighted clips being uploaded and viewed for free.
However, it has settled many of those disputes thanks to its shared revenue model – in which advertising is displayed alongside copyrighted content with a share going to both Google and the copyright holder.

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Sony unveils virtual reality headset for PlayStation 4

Sony has unveiled a prototype for a virtual reality headset for its PlayStation 4 console at a developers conference in San Francisco.

Shuhei Yoshida, president of Sony’s Worldwide Studios, said Sony had been working on the technology – called Project Morpheus – for three years.
“We believe VR will shape the future of games,” said Mr Yoshida in a blog post.
The prototype will be made available to developers, but no commercial release date was given.
Project Morpheus is a head-mounted display with 1080p resolution and a 90 degree field of view.
It has sensors built into the unit that can track head orientation and movement, so that when a user’s head moves, the image of the virtual reality world moves with it.
Sony’s move into virtual reality follows a product released by crowd-sourced group Oculus Rift.
It unveiled its prototype headset Crystal Cove at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

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