Google Is Finally Set To Launch Its Own Podcasts App For Android

A Google-centric blog has revealed evidence that the search giant will finally release its own podcasts app for Android.

As you may know, Google currently offers podcast access via its Google Play Music app. I use, recommend, and really like Google Play Music. But it’s not the right place for podcasts, and not just because of the name. Podcasts are different from song, or from audiobooks, for that matter, and it’s always been an uneasy fit.

Google has announced plans to start moving users over to the new Gmail design and eventually remove the old one entirely, with the changes kicking off next month. According to theverge, the announcements technically apply only to G Suite users — that is, people who have paid accounts through their company or organization — and Google declined to comment on whether the changes will be the same for regular Gmail users.

Microsoft is acquiring GitHub. After reports emerged that the software giant was in talks to acquire GitHub, Microsoft is making it official today. This is Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella’s second big acquisition, following the $26.2 billion acquisition of LinkedIn two years ago. GitHub was last valued at $2 billion back in 2015, and Microsoft is paying $7.5 billion in stock for the company in a deal that should close later this year.

Microsoft has sunk a data centre in the sea off Orkney to investigate whether it can boost energy efficiency. The facility, a white cylinder containing servers equivalent to several thousand high-end consumer PCs, could sit on the sea floor for up to five years. If Project Natick proves a success, Microsoft envisages sinking groups of five cylinders and being able to deploy a data centre offshore in 90 days, instead of the several years it would take on land.

The Electronic Expo 2018 is right around the corner, and with that comes the Sony E3 2018 press conference.

Sony’s intends to run the count down by making a new announcement every single day starting from 6th June running right the way through to the organisation’s press conference on 11th June. The appetisers will air live at 8AM PT/4PM BST every day, and will span everything from a first-party release date through to brand new games.

Business Insider has reported information from sources familiar with the companies involved that executives from Microsoft have been holding talks with GitHub officials in regard to potential acquisition. The Git-repository hosting service, which has its headquarters in San Francisco, was last valued in 2015, with an estimate of US$2 billion being placed on the company.