This is more bark than bite, imo. They're just threatening to withhold products at this point, but as the article points out:
So... go right ahead. Let's see how this really plays out.
Most people don't know how to switch between inputs on their TVs or have gotten rid of their DVD or BluRay players at this point.
They're using the built in streaming apps or they've plugged a Roku in where the cable box used to go.
The RIAA vs the AI industry... Can they both lose?
As far as it is, it's still just under one day at light speed.
I don't think LLMs are useless, but I do think little SoC boxes running a single application that will vaguely improve your life with loosely defined AI features are useless.
Plenty of free apps get monetized just fine. They just have to offer something people want to use that they can slather ads all over. The AI doo-dads haven't shown they're useful. I'm guessing the dedicated hardware strategy got them more upfront funding from stupid venture capital than an app would have, but they still haven't answered why anybody should buy these. Just postponing the inevitable.
Reviewer opinions on both Humane and Fisker are pretty consistently negative so this isn't some mean YouTuber with an axe to grind situation.
The products are bad and people shouldn't waste their hard earned money and time on them. Venture Capital firms may lose money, but that comes with the territory. Not every venture is a win.
It's a shame this isn't working out, I was really hoping it would turn out to be a better way of doing self-checkouts.
The little convenience store on my way to work is nice, but I guess it falls apart in a larger store situation.
I'm converting from Firesticks once the new Apple TVs come out. I'm sick of the constant upselling and Amazon's been putting much more effort into blocking me from using a custom launcher than basic stability and usability.
I did, when I bought the device. And if the manufacturer does a good job, I'll recommend them to friends and family and likely buy more of their products.
The FOSS community does most of the heavy lifting with security updates anyway. Most of these things are running Linux, so they've already helped themselves to that community's work.
I don't have a problem with a streaming service doing that. Hardware, no. If I bought it, I own it and the manufacturer can fuck right off.
$130 menu price but regularly goes on sale for $99. Still not cheap (especially compared to the "free" ad platform built in to the TV) but lessens the sting a bit. And much less likely to be abandoned by its manufacturer and get exploited.