Over the years, Google’s productivity suite has had many names. What started as Google Apps became G Suite and is now known as Workspace. Over that same timeframe, the company has offered just as many ways to access that software, announcing new subscription plans while doing away with older ones. It now plans to sunset a tier that had survived the suite’s most recent rebranding.

In an email spotted by 9to5Google, the company told Workspace administrators it won’t offer G Suite legacy free edition as of July 1st, 2022. The company plans to transition those users to paid accounts starting on May 1st. Google says it will automatically select a subscription plan for users who don’t pick one on their own by the start of May, noting it will look at their current usage when making the decision. Any individual or organization the company migrates to a paid subscription plan automatically won’t be billed for at least two months. However, the company says it will suspend the accounts of individuals and organizations that don’t input their billing information by July 1st.

Business and enterprise Workspace accounts start at a monthly cost of $6 per user. The company will offer "deep" discounts to those affected by the decision. To be clear, if you're using Gmail, Docs, Sheets and other apps through a free Google account, you won't be affected by the move. What's more, Google will continue to offer free Workspace plans to nonprofits and schools that qualify for its Fundamentals tier. That’s not changing with today’s announcement, nor do organizations with legacy G Suite Basic, Business, Education or Nonprofit subscriptions have to worry about a potential surprise bill.

The Weather Channel will come to YouTube TV sometime in 2022. Google and Allen Media Group, the network’s owner, announced the move as part of a broader multi-year partnership that sees the media company becoming a Google Cloud client. AMG says The Weather Channel is one of several networks it plans to bring to the service in 2022 and beyond. The company also plans to work with Google on streaming apps for Android phones and tablets, as well as Google TV and Android TV devices. The exact timing of when all of that may happen Google and AMG didn’t say. Still, the deal is a significant one for the search giant. It will help it address one of the more notable gaps in its live TV offering.

With the Senate Judiciary Committee scheduled to discuss the American Innovation and Choice Online Act and the Open App Markets Act this week, Apple and Google are stepping up their opposition to both bills. According to CNBC, Apple recently told lawmakers the legislation would make iPhone users less safe.

“The bills put consumers in harm’s way because of the real risk of privacy and security breaches,” Apple said in a letter seen by CNBC. The company specifically targets app sideloading as a potential threat. One of the provisions of the Open App Markets Act would force platform holders to allow consumers to sideload software and install third-party app stores. “But, if Apple is forced to enable sideloading, millions of Americans will likely suffer malware attacks on their phones that would otherwise have been stopped,” the company states in the letter.

On Tuesday, Google, in a post attributed to Kent Walker, the company’s president of global affairs and chief legal officer, advanced a similar argument. “Google is able to protect billions of people around the world from cyberattacks because we bake security and privacy protections into our services,” he said.

Walker warns the bills could hurt the company’s ability to integrate automated security features in its services. He also claims the bills could hurt the company’s ability and that of its US counterparts to compete with foreign firms by forcing them to obtain approval from “government bureaucrats” whenever they plan to release new features or address existing issues.

Apple and Google may not like the proposed bills, but they have support from others in the tech ecosystem. Specifically, the Coalition for App Fairness, an organization Epic and Spotify co-founded to pressure the two companies to change their app store policies, has come out in support of the legislation. “Moving this important legislation forward sends a clear and unambiguous message that monopoly control of the app ecosystem is no longer acceptable,” the group said on Monday.

The Senate Judiciary Committee will discuss both bills on Thursday, at which point they could advance to the floor of the Senate. At that point, the Senate would need to make time to vote on the legislation. That’s something that could take time with all the other issues it needs to consider in the coming weeks.

AT&T and Verizon say they will voluntarily delay the deployment of their new C-Band 5G services near some US airports after several carriers, including Delta, United and Southwest Airlines, wrote to the federal government to warn of potential flight delays due to the rollout. An AT&T spokesperson told CNBC the carrier was “frustrated” by the Federal Aviation Administration’s inability to safely deploy the networking standard without disrupting aviation services, a feat the company said 40 other countries have done without issue.

Verizon shared AT&T’s sentiment. “We have voluntarily decided to limit our 5G network around airports,” the company said. “The Federal Aviation Administration and our nation’s airlines have not been able to fully resolve navigating 5G around airports, despite it being safe and fully operational in more than 40 other countries.”

In a letter obtained by Reuters, airlines warned interference from 5G cell towers could affect the safety equipment on their planes. Devices like airplane altimeters, which pilots use to land when visibility is low, operate on C-Band adjacent frequencies. Airlines asked that AT&T and Verizon not offer 5G service within two miles of some of the country’s busiest airports. “Immediate intervention is needed to avoid significant operational disruption to air passengers, shippers, supply chain and delivery of needed medical supplies,” they said.

Before airlines sent out the letter to government officials, AT&T and Verizon had agreed to establish buffer zones around 50 airports to reduce the risk of flight disruption. They also agreed to a month-long delay in December, and then a further two-week delay in January, to give the FAA more time to address any interference concerns.

Israeli police have employed NSO Group’s Pegasus spyware to extract data from phones belonging to Israeli citizens, according to an investigation by the country’s Calcalist business publication. Police reportedly used the controversial software to target a number of individuals, including politicians and members of an activist group that had called for the removal of former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. According to the report, Israeli police conducted their surveillance without court supervision, a claim both police and public officials deny.

“All police activity in this field is done in accordance with the law, on the basis of court orders and strict work procedures,” Israeli Police said. The Washington Post reports Omer Bar-Lev, the country’s country’s public security minister, said an initial investigation had found no evidence of a “secretive wiretapping” program but promised a judge would check everything “thoroughly and unequivocally.”

“We would like to clarify that the company does not operate the systems in its customers’ possession and is not involved in their operation,” NSO Group said in a statement the company shared with Israeli media. “The company sells its products under license and supervision for the use of security bodies and state law enforcement agencies, to prevent crime and terrorism legally, and according to court orders and local law in each country.”

Per The Guardian, Israeli law only allows Shin Bet, the country’s domestic intelligence agency, to hack a phone without a court order. What’s more, the only context in which the agency is allowed to carry out such an action is to prevent a terrorist attack involving Palestinians, Israeli-Arabs or Israeli-Jews. Approval from a senior Shin Bet official or the attorney general’s office is also required. No such exemption exists for the country’s police service. However, according to Calcalist, the software wasn’t directly covered by Israel’s existing laws.

The report comes a month after Reuters found the Pegasus spyware had been used to target at least nine US State Department officials. In that instance, an unknown assailant had used the software to target federal employees who were either stationed in Uganda or whose work involved the African country. NSO has claimed its software can’t target devices linked to American or Israeli phone numbers. 

It took more than a decade, but Weird Al is finally about to get the documentary he has always deserved. You may recall back in 2010 Funny Or Die released a trailer for Weird: The Al Yankovic Story. The clip promised an unflinching look at Yankovic’s life with performances from actors like Aaron Paul, Olvia Wilde and Gary Cole. We’re not about to get that film (sadly), but Roku may just give us the next best thing.

The company announced today it’s backing production on WEIRD: The Weird Al Jankovic Story. Instead of Aaron Paul as Yankovic, we get Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe. Eric Appel, best known for his work on Silicon Valley and Brooklyn Nine-Nine, co-wrote the film’s script alongside Yankovic and is directing the project. If Appel’s name sounds familiar, it’s because he directed the 2010 trailer for Weird: The Al Yankovic Story.

“I am absolutely thrilled that Daniel Radcliffe will be portraying me in the film,” Yankovic said in a statement. “I have no doubt whatsoever that this is the role future generations will remember him for.” WEIRD: The Weird Al Yankovic Story doesn’t have a release date yet, but production on the film is slated to start next month. Once it’s ready, it will be available to watch for free on The Roku Channel.

The airline industry claims a “catastrophic” event could unfold on Wednesday when AT&T and Verizon activate their new C-Band 5G networks. In a letter obtained by Reuters, the CEOs of several prominent passenger and cargo airlines, including Delta, United and Southwest, warn interference from 5G cell towers could affect the sensitive safety equipment on their planes.

"Unless our major hubs are cleared to fly, the vast majority of the traveling and shipping public will essentially be grounded," they state in the letter, which was sent to the heads of the White House Economic Council, Federal Aviation Administration and Federal Communications Commission, as well as Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. "Immediate intervention is needed to avoid significant operational disruption to air passengers, shippers, supply chain and delivery of needed medical supplies."

The airlines have asked that AT&T and Verizon not offer 5G service within 2 miles of some of the country’s busiest and most vital airports. They’re also urging the federal government to ensure “5G is deployed except when towers are too close to airport runways until the FAA can determine how that can be safely accomplished without catastrophic disruption." The agency established 5G buffer zones at 50 airports on January 7th. 

The letter is the latest development in the ongoing back and forth between the airline and wireless industries. AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon spent nearly $80 billion at the start of 2021 to secure the repurposed C-Band spectrum the FCC had put up for auction. In November, AT&T and Verizon agreed to delay their C-Band rollouts to January 5th to help the FAA address any interference concerns. They later proposed limiting the power output of cell towers close to airports and agreed to a further two-week delay on January 4th.

Were she still alive, Betty White would be celebrating her 100th birthday today. In honor of that occasion, Google is celebrating the actor's life. Type White's full name into the company's search engine and you'll be treated to a special graphic. "Thank you for being a friend," the tribute reads, referencing White's most famous role, as rose petals fall from the top of the screen. White passed away of natural causes at the age of 99 on December 31st. White's decades-long career was full of highlights that included starring roles on popular sitcoms like The Mary Tyler Moore Show and The Golden Girls. In 2010, she also hosted Saturday Night Live at the age of 88.  

Google

If you’ve been patiently waiting to pick up the new iMac, now is your chance to do so at a discount. Amazon has reduced the cost of the 8-core GPU model to $1,399, down from $1,499. That’s a price that matches the previous all-time low the retailer established for Apple’s latest all-in-one computer back in December.

We like the new 24-inch iMac a lot. We awarded it a score of 89 when we reviewed it last year. Featuring the same M1 chip that’s found in the 2020 MacBook Air, the 2021 iMac is fit for most computing tasks, including photo and video editing. It’s also 50 percent quieter than its Intel predecessor thanks to a more efficient thermal design. The 24-inch model also comes with an excellent 4.5K display that covers the entire DCI-P3 color gamut. Another handy upgrade is the included 1080p FaceTime camera. It makes use of AI software to enhance the color and exposure of your footage.

Some of the few drawbacks to note are that the display isn’t HDR-capable and the included Magic Mouse and Keyboard aren’t for everyone. Specific to this promotion, Amazon has only discounted the green and silver models. 

If you want to save as much money as possible, Amazon has had the base model discounted to $1249 for a couple of weeks. That said, we think the 8-core GPU model is a better value. In addition to a more capable GPU, it comes with two extra USB-A ports (its more affordable sibling only has USB-C connectivity), Gigabit Ethernet and a Magic Keyboard with Touch ID. Those might seem like small additions, but they add a lot to the useability of the machine.

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Google has begun rolling out the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro’s latest update following a delay in December. As may you recall, the company “paused” the release of the OTA after there were reports of the software causing calls to drop and disconnect. The issue was such that Google took the nearly unprecedented move of removing the associated factory images for that update from its developer website.

In December, the company said the software would arrive sometime in “late January.” Last week, it pushed up that timeline to today, January 14th. “The update will be available for all devices over the following week, but exact timing may vary depending on your carrier and country,” the company said. To that point, some carriers have said they’ll begin pushing out the software starting early next week. For instance, Canadian carrier Fido notes on its website it’s targeting January 17th for the start of its rollout.

Now that the update is available, it includes all the fixes Google had planned to release in December in addition to more than a dozen new ones. Among other tweaks, you’ll find a fix for an issue that had caused the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro to drop a connection to a WiFi network in certain situations. Additionally, the update addresses a bug that had caused the phones to drain their batteries faster than expected.