Google apologizes over Pixel influencer demands

The company has removed a form that said creators had to regularly feature its devices.                               [The Morning After]( It's Monday, August 19, 2024. The relationship between tech companies and influencers can be murky. A recent post on Threads showed part of the sign-up form to receive Pixel devices for influencers and YouTubers, [mandating]( that signees feature Google’s hardware “in place of any competitor mobile devices” or else “we will need to cease the relationship between the brand and the creator.” First, our Engadget editors didn’t get this when they signed up for review samples for the four (yes, four) new Pixel phones. It transpired this was for the Team Pixel program, set up by Google to communicate with creators and, it seems, send them devices. Google responded: “The goal of #TeamPixel is to get Pixel devices into the hands of content creators, not press and tech reviewers. We missed the mark with this new language that appeared in the #TeamPixel form yesterday, and it has been removed.” It’s not yet clear if these Team Pixel members have received a new agreement, but will the demands remain, just not baked into a Google form or contract? The company is sending devices out so creators can try out (and talk up) the Pixel 9 series — if they don’t, Google may fail to see the point. — Mat Smith The biggest stories you might have missed - [Engadget review recap: Dyson’s non-weird headphones and the ThinkPad X1 Carbon]( - [How to choose the best TV for gaming right now]( - [The Plucky Squire expertly transforms old ideas into something new]( - [Microsoft boosts Windows’ FAT32 partition size limit after nearly three decades]( ​​You can get these reports delivered daily direct to your inbox. [Subscribe right here!]( [Fortnite returns to iOS in the EU as the Epic Games Store debuts on mobile]( Fall Guys is on smartphones for the first time too. [[TMA] Epic Games]( Epic has finally brought the Epic Games Store to mobile devices. The app marketplace is now available on iOS in the European Union (after the bloc required Apple to allow third-party app stores on iPhone and iPad) and on Android worldwide. As a result, Fortnite is once again available on iOS without laborious workarounds. The store is bringing Fall Guys to iOS and Android for the first time, with nearly full parity with the console and PC versions, minus the level builder. [Continue reading.]( [How to watch all of Xbox’s Gamescom streams]( And the big opening night stream. Gamescom is Germany’s huge annual gaming trade show. This year, Microsoft has announced a major Xbox presence throughout the event. The first is the opening night livestream, which kicks off on August 20 at 2PM ET. While that stream isn’t Xbox-centric, we’re expecting some relevant news during the keynote. It will be available via the Gamescom[YouTube page](. Then there are three streams from Xbox, each focusing on a different slate of games. [Continue reading.]( The Morning After is a daily newsletter from Engadget designed to help you fight off FOMO. Who knows what you'll miss if you don't [subscribe](. Craving even more? [Like us on Facebook]( or [follow us on Twitter](. Have a suggestion on how we can improve The Morning After? [Send us a note.]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Youtube]( [Instagram]( You are receiving this email because you opted in at [engadget.com](. Not interested anymore? [Unsubscribe]( from this newsletter. Copyright © 2024 Yahoo. All rights reserved.