Author: AFP
Nintendo surprised fans on Tuesday by announcing a new chapter in its 40-year-old “Zelda” saga, one of the Japanese video game giant’s biggest cash-cows. During an event broadcast on the web, the firm said “The Legend of Zelda Echoes of Wisdom” would be scheduled for release on the Switch console on September 26. Eiji Aonuma, producer of the Zelda series, said on the webcast that fans would be able to play as Princess Zelda herself rather than the elf-like warrior Link — a first for an official entry into the game’s cannon. “This time around Link has vanished and it’s…
Apple on Monday unveiled “Apple Intelligence,” inserting artificial intelligence capabilities into the software powering its coveted lineup of devices. “Recent developments in generative intelligence and large language models offer powerful capabilities that provide the opportunity to take the experience of using Apple products to new heights,” Apple chief executive Tim Cook said as he opened an annual Worldwide Developers Conference. Apple executives stressed privacy safeguards have been built into Apple Intelligence to make its Siri digital assistant and other products smarter, while not pilfering user data.
McDonald’s has lost a legal battle against an Irish fast food chain after a top EU court ruled Wednesday that the global chain could not exclusively call its chicken burgers “Big Mac”. The long-running fight began in 2017 when Supermac’s of Ireland sought to have McDonald’s “Big Mac” trademark revoked in the European Union, after the US giant opposed the Irish chain’s own trademark application in the bloc. The EU Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) initially upheld Supermac’s application, but later on appeal reaffirmed the trademark protection for McDonald’s “Big Mac” hamburgers. On Wednesday, the Luxembourg-based General Court altered the EUIPO’s…
France authorities have banned Israeli defence firms from exhibiting at a trade show next month near Paris, organisers said on Friday. “By decision of the government authorities, there will be no stand for the Israeli defence industry at the Eurosatory 2024 fair,” organisers Coges Events said. Neither Coges nor the defence ministry provided an explanation. Seventy-four Israeli firms had been set to be represented at the event from June 17 to 21 at fairgrounds close to Paris’ main international airport, with Coges previously saying around 10 of them were to exhibit weapons. Contacted by AFP, the Israeli embassy said it…
Easyjet said Thursday that chief executive Johan Lundgren would step down in early 2025 after seven years piloting the no-frills airline, notably through Covid turbulence. Easyjet, which flies mainly across Europe, added in a statement that it would promote chief financial officer Kenton Jarvis to the top post.
Hungry McDonald’s customers in parts of Asia had trouble ordering at stores, on cellphones and at electronic kiosks on Friday after a system outage. In Japan, the US fast food giant said on X, formerly Twitter, that it was “currently experiencing a system failure” and “temporarily suspending operation at many outlets”. China was also affected for several hours, with the outage a hot topic on social media platform Weibo, but the firm later said its online ordering system had been fully restored. McDonald’s in Hong Kong wrote on Facebook that its “mobile ordering and self-ordering kiosks are not functioning” but…
Bitcoin hit a fresh record above $71,000 on Monday as demand for the cryptocurrency picks up amid optimism that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates this year. The unit hit a peak of $71,432 in afternoon Asian business, according to Bloomberg data, meaning it has advanced almost 70 percent this year. The rally was helped by news that Britain’s Financial Conduct Authority had said it would allow the creation of crypto-related securities. That comes after US authorities gave the green light this year to exchange-traded funds pegged to bitcoin’s spot price, persuading some mainstream investors to take the plunge…