Talkin' Gamestonk and Robots | Table Of Content Episode 33

TABLE OF CONTENT TALKING POINTS Episode 33
1/31/2021

(Host Scene)

Zazz - Welcome to Table of Content. The round table show where we discuss all the happenings around streaming, gaming and entertainment. I am Zazzaboo your host and the Editor in Chief of TableOC.com. We have two great streamers here tonight ready to drop their opinions on us about the latest but first returning from Covid Quarantine Jim Dandy himself….

~Welcome Stump

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Intro guests - Rogue and Tyranizam

Streaming News

Twitch council member CohhCarnage pushing for major change to bans
A major streamer is speaking out over TwitchesTwitch's handling of suspensions and bans.

Form Dexerto -

As a member of the Twitch Safety Advisory Council, streamer Ben ‘CohhCarnage’ Cassell has explained one major change he wants to make following the confusing ban of World of Warcraft streamer Mohamed ‘Ziqo’ Beshir.

On January 19, Ziqo revealed that he would not be streaming for a few days due to a Twitch suspension, but was clearly a bit confused by what had happened, unaware of the reason for his ban.

Shortly after, Ziqo revealed that he had learned the reason for his suspension: using hateful speech and slurs, deducing himself that he believed that they were accusing him of using a homophobic slur.

While the WoW veteran didn’t fully understand what he must have said or done to cause the suspension, he accepted it and his account was restored on January 26. after an appeal.

Saying that Ziqo’s ban reversal was “great to hear,” Cohh added that the issue should have been “fixed in minutes,” calling on Twitch to “come up with policies where people given false bans get front page time for the time they lost.”

He followed up saying that one huge problem is Twitch not including account managers in the process. He tweeted: “If that account manager was given the clip, he could have shown it to Ziqo. Ziqo could have said, ‘No, I didn’t say that. I said this.’ Problem solved.”

Of course, in his role with the Twitch advisory council, fans will be hoping this means more positive changes to how bans are handled, especially with situations such as Ziqo’s that seem to confuse just about everyone.

Rogue- Do you think anything will become of someone like Cohh speaking out about the lack of sensible reaction by twitch on bans?

Twitch slammed for failing to moderate their own channel's chat
Everytime Twitch seems to make steps in the right direction they turn right around and step in it. They are once again facing backlash over TOS and chatting on the platform..

From Dexerto -

As part of Twitch’s celebration of its community, on January 23 it held a Participation Awards to commemorate the work of their streamers and the community.

The stream focused on using Twitch chat as a direct medium between the hosts and viewers. But, as the event was running, some, including partnered streamers, criticized Twitch for ineffectively moderating the messages in chat.

This wasn’t the only debacle from the stream. It turns out that one of the awards was inadvertently handed out to a bot account, rather than a real person.

It’s been a turbulent few days for the platform, as users condemned their decision to ban a 15-year-old streamer with 90,000 followers because he had made his account when he was under 13. Meanwhile, other top streamers on the platform who also made their account when under 13 have gone unpunished.

Tyranizam - How does this happen? A platform that is constantly blasted for how they handle others who have things happen like this.

G4 returns today on YouTube and Twitch
Ahead of its return later this year, G4 will air a new series called B4G4 on YouTube and Twitch. It starts streaming today (Friday, January 29th). Among other content, the series will feature comedy sketches, game reviews and music parodies, with fans getting the chance to submit their own work to the show through the G4 Reddit community. It’s also one of the ways those same fans can take part in G4’s online search for hosting and writing talent.

G4 provided an initial look at the show in a short clip it shared on its social media channels. “It’s a bit of work in progress, but that’s the point,” says G4 “CEO” Jerry XL (played by YouTube sketch comedian Gus Johnson) of B4G4. “Tell us what you hate. Tell us what you love. Tell us what you’d be willing to spend your discretionary income on.”

The announcement comes one day after G4 confirmed both Attack of the Show! and X-Play will return when the network officially relaunches this summer. G4 first started teasing its return last summer but has so far said little about where you’ll be able to watch all of its shows. With its ties to NBCUniversal, there’s been some speculation its content could land on Peacock.

Stump - I am stoked about this what do you want to see from a network dedicated to our industry

Tech/Gaming News

Xbox Game Pass subscribers hit 18 million
In this day and age we are subscription to death. We have to consider which subscription streaming service has the best library for us and also which razer company has the smoothest shave. Microsoft however is separating itself from the pack when it comes to subscription services.

From the verge

Microsoft is continuing to attract people to its Xbox Game Pass service. The “Netflix for video games” service now has 18 million subscribers, up from the 15 million previously reported in September. Xbox Game Pass is a subscription service that offers access to a growing selection of more than 100 Xbox games for $9.99 per month.

Microsoft has been pushing Xbox Game Pass for more than a year now, and it’s clear the company is heavily invested in its future. Bungie’s Destiny 2 title appeared on Xbox Game Pass late last year, and Control is also available on the service for both Xbox and PC.

On an earnings call today, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella also revealed that Xbox Live has more than 100 million monthly active users. Nadella also said the launch of the Xbox Series X and S was the most successful in Microsoft’s history, with “the most devices ever sold in a launch month.”

There have also been a variety of promotions designed to entice consumers into Xbox Game Pass. Microsoft regularly offers the first month of the service for $1 and has been incentivizing Xbox Live Gold customers to switch over to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, which includes the company’s new xCloud game streaming feature.

Rogue - How long until Xbox purchases or merges with someone like netflix or HULU?

Sophia the Robot Creators Announce Plan to Mass-Produce Robots This Year
We have been heralding the rise of the machines for sometime here on TableOC. This would seem to be a major step in that front .

From IGN

Sophia the Robot and three other models from Hanson Robotics will go into mass production this year and are expected to begin rolling out of factories in the first half of 2021.

This news comes by way of a new report from Reuters after a tour through Hanson Robotics' Hong Kong factory conducted by Sophia the Robot, whom you might recognize as the viral robot from years ago that was granted citizenship in Saudi Arabia back in 2017.

Hanson Robotics believes now to be a better time than ever to roll out these robots as they can help not only the healthcare sectors of the world, but the retail and airline industries as well.

Reuters noted that according to the International Federation of Robots, worldwide sales of professional-service robots jumped up 32% to $11.2 billion from 2018 to 2019. Those numbers have likely risen during the current COVID-19 pandemic as robots are seen around the world helping in the healthcare sector and Hanson said he believes that in a world of COVID-19, more automation is needed to keep people safe.

One of the robots Hanson Robotics is launching this year, Grace, has been created specifically for the healthcare sector.

Tyranizam -  What sort of implications do you see coming with this sort of tech becoming mass produced?

Timeline: GameStop's 1,600% surge in retail investor vs hedge fund battle
Shares of GameStop surged as much as 1,600% between Jan. 11 and Wednesday after an unprecedented stock market battle pitting amateur investors piling on the videogame retailer’s shares against hedge funds scrambling to cover losing bets.

The use of volatile call options, herd buying through social network Reddit, the involvement of Tesla’s Elon Musk and a burst of copycat trades in an apparent speculative retail bubble have contributed to put low profile GameStop on the front page of financial news.

The following are significant moments in the GameStop share price:

Dec. 8, 2020: GameStop shares tank after company misses Wall Street estimates for quarterly revenue as pandemic-led store closures and intense competition from digital-game sellers hit sales.

Jan 11: GameStop appoints Chewy.com founder and two other e-commerce veterans to its board in a deal with investor Ryan Cohen’s RC Ventures, as it doubles down on digital sales

Jan 12: Short interest at 70.9 mln shares, down from 71.2 mln on Jan 8, per S3 Partners. Notional value of short bets rose to $1.4 bln from $1.3 bln, reflecting the rising stock price

Jan 13: GameStops shares rise 57%, followed by another 27% jump the next day to $39.90. Its median target price among analysts is only $12.50.

Jan 19: Short seller Citron Research takes aim. Tweets about GameStop, saying buyers at these levels are “the suckers at this poker game” and stock “back to $20 fast.”

Jan 20: Citron Research delays negative report, says it does not want to go live with its report on the stock

Jan 22: Shares rise another 50%.

Jan 25: GameStop stock soars as much 144% then settles up 18% with retail traders storming in to buy more.

Jan 26: Elon Musk tweets "Gamestonk!!", along with a link to Reddit's Wallstreetbets stock trading discussion group, where supporters refer to the Tesla CEO as "Papa Musk." here

Jan 26: Shares surge 92.7%. Top securities regulator in Massachusetts reportedly says trading in GameStop suggests there is something “systemically wrong” with the options trading.

Jan 27: Melvin Capital and Citron closes the majority of their GameStop position at a loss

Stump - Do we now officially live in a meme economy? This has to scare many big companies, not just wall street firms. Imagine a hostile takeover of a company by a bunch of neckbeards on reddit.

Entertainment News

First Trailer For Tim Allen And Richard Karn's New TV Show Is Basically Home Improvement Without The Family
UGHHHHHH Tim Allen is back with his longtime cohort Al (Richard Karn and they are bringing us a brand new show that sounds like it will be a blast.

From cinemablend

For fans of the '90s sitcom Home Improvement, 2021 is something of a banner year. Not only did Tim Allen deliver a baffling Last Man Standing crossover episode in which he portrayed both Tim Taylor and Mike Baxter, but the comedian also reteamed with former co-star Richard Karn for a brand new series with talented builders as its focus. First announced last year, History's Assembly Required released its first trailer, which feels like it could have been an ad for Home Improvement's in-show Tool Time.

Both Tim Allen and Richard Karn serve as co-hosts for Assembly Required, and both are also executive produces behind the scenes. They'll be joined in hosting duties by DIY YouTube star April Wilkerson, who serves as the show's resident expert. We'll have to wait and see whether Wilkerson will become another foil for Allen's jokes, or if she'll join him in poking clever fun at Al...er, I mean Karn.

The show will take place on the Set of Tool Time which Allen kept after the show wrapped.Assembly Required debuts on Tuesday, February 23, at 10:00 p.m. ET. on the history channel.

Rogue - Was Home improvement a show that made the jump and were you even alive to remember it?

Harry Potter TV Show Reportedly In Development For HBO Max
What isn't in the works at HBO. Last week we found out they were working on a second Game of thrones prequel  and now this.

From the piece at screen rant

A live-action Harry Potter show is reportedly in the works at HBO Max. Harry Potter became a bonafide phenomenon over the last few decades. The books, penned by J.K. Rowling, spawned eight films that directly adapted the novels. All together, the films grossed over $7 billion at the box office and have continued to be popular in syndication and at-home media.

Like many established franchises, the possibilities are endless when it comes to a Harry Potter television series. The most obvious choice, and likely the one fans want the most, would be one that directly follows up the immensely popular films.

A Harry Potter series would either have to follow the characters as they navigate their adult lives or it could explore the lives of their children, something Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, a play and sequel, already began to do.

Tyranizam - What do you want from a Harry Potter series?

Stump - What's the next movie franchise TV spinoff? Use this to lead into bold predictions at the end

BOLD PREDICTIONS

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