Gamers won't be able to make digital purchases from Nintendo's Russian eShop for now. The gaming giant has announced that the eShop in Russia has been temporarily placed in maintenance mode "due to the fact that the payment service [it uses] has suspended the processing of payments in rubles." As Nintendo Life notes, people have been reporting about the outage on social networks, showing photos of their Switch getting error code 2813-0999 when they try to access the Russian eShop.

It's unclear if Nintendo itself cut off payments in the region on purpose, or if the company had no choice but to place the eShop in maintenance mode because a third-party processor removed ruble payments from its system. The translated wording seems to indicate that the latter is more likely. 

Other gaming companies had previously taken steps to limit access to their products and services in Russia. CD Projekt Red halted sales of its games, including Cyberpunk 2077 and The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, and all titles on its GOG store in Russia and Belarus. EA followed suit, preventing players in the two countries from making purchases from its Origin storefront and app. 

Microsoft suspended all new sales of its products and services (including Xbox) in Russia, following a request from Ukraine to ban all players in the country from its system. Ukraine also asked Sony to ban all players in Russia from the PlayStation network, but the company has yet to respond. According to Eurogamer, though, Sony quietly pulled Gran Turismo 7 from sale in the country.

Advertisers within Russia can no longer create or run ads on Facebook "anywhere in the world," including their home country, the social network told Business Insider. The website has also suspended all ads targeting people in Russia, "due to the difficulties of operating in [the country] at this time." 

This is just the latest step Facebook has taken following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Shortly after the attacks started, it blocked Russian state media from running ads on its platform before restricting access to RT and Sputnik in Ukraine and across the European Union. A few days after that, Facebook started demoting the outlets' pages and any post linking to them on its main website and on Instagram. 

As a response to the social network restricting access to state-run media, Russian telecom regulator Roskomnadzor blocked Facebook in the country, though Instagram and WhatsApp remain available. The agency throttled access to the website before that when Facebook officials refused to stop fact-checking state media outlets upon its request. In a statement issued after Roskomnadzor blocked Facebook completely, Meta's president of global affairs Nick Clegg said the company "will continue to do everything [it] can to restore [its] services so they remain available to people to safely and securely express themselves and organize for action."

According to a report by independent Russian news agency Interfax, Russia also recently blocked Twitter in the country. Roskomnadzor previously limited the country's access to Twitter, as well, after the social network paused ads and recommendations and started labeling tweets from Russian state media outlets. The social network said, however, that it's only seeing the effects of throttling within the region and not of an outright ban. 

Samsung has stopped shipping its products to Russia following the country's invasion of Ukraine, the company told Bloomberg News. The tech giant said it's monitoring the "complex situation," and that it's donating $6 million, which includes $1 million worth of consumer electronics, to humanitarian efforts in Ukraine. According to the publication, the shipment suspension affects all Samsung products, including its smartphones, chips and other consumer electronic devices. 

By halting all exports of its products to Russia, Samsung has joined the growing list of companies that had paused sales of products and services in the country. Apple halted all product sales in response to the invasion and after receiving a request from Ukrainian Vice Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov. The company also limited Apple Pay, pulled the apps for Russian state-backed media outlets from its store and disabled traffic data for Maps in Ukraine to avoid putting residents in danger. Microsoft suspended all new sales of products and services in Russia, as well. 

The Korean tech giant is the top smartphone brand in the country and has a 30 percent market share, according to Counterpoint Research data. That's much higher than Apple's 13 percent market share, as of the fourth quarter of 2021. In addition, Samsung has a TV plant in Russia, though it's unclear if it has also stopped production in the factory.

Its decision to halt shipments to Russia comes after Fedorov sent Jong Hee Han, the CEO for Samsung's SET division, a letter similar to what he sent Tim Cook. In it, he asked the Korean tech giant to stop supplying the country with its products, as well as to block Samsung Pay, Samsung Galaxy Store and Samsung Shop.

As Bloomberg notes, South Korean smartphones were an exemption to the export bans recently imposed by the US government. But even if Samsung did want to continue shipping products to Russia, it would have a hard time sending products to the country anyway due to airlines and shipping services halting their activities in the region.

Over half a decade later, a new Kickstarter campaign has finally eclipsed Pebble's crowdfunding record on the website. Fantasy and sci-fi author Brandon Sanderson set up a campaign to raise $1 million within 30 days to fund four secret books he intends to release every quarter next year. It didn't take 30 days to blow past that goal, though — it took only 35 minutes. And three days on, as of this writing, the campaign has already made $20.4 million, almost $100,000 more than what the Pebble Time e-paper smartwatch raised when it was up for funding.

While Sanderson is self publishing the four books included in the project, he's not a little-known indie author. Raising over $20 million in just three days was possible because he already had a solid fanbase who knows he can deliver, seeing as he's famous for being a fast writer who can quickly churn out new books. He's known for his novels set in the Cosmere universe, which he likens to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, including the Mistborn series and The Stormlight Archive series. Three of the secret books in the campaign are also set in the Cosmere universe, with each story taking place on a different fantasy planet. Sanderson is known for finishing Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time, as well.

The author told The New York Times that one of his objectives for launching this project is to see what it would be like to challenge Amazon. The e-commerce and cloud giant dominates the printed book and ebook market, and it accounts for 80 percent of Sanderson's sales. "If Amazon's grip on the industry is weakened, that's good for the publishers — they are very much under Amazon's thumb right now. I don't want to present this as 'Brandon versus Amazon.' Amazon's great. But I think that in the long run, Amazon being a monopoly is actually bad for Amazon. If they don't have competition, they will stop innovating," he said.

To get Sanderson's secret books, fans will have to pledge a minimum of $40 for ebook copies. The audiobook versions will set them back $60 at least, while they'll have to pledge a minimum of $160 (not including shipping costs) for the premium hardcovers. Sanderson plans to release one book each in January, April, July and October 2023.

Those interested can either go in blind and just wait for the deliveries or read an excerpt from the first book on Sanderson's website. They can also listen to him read the first book's opening chapter on YouTube.

John Romero, co-founder of id Software, has released a new level for Doom II called One Humanity. It's the first level he has designed for the game since it was released in 1994 and, more importantly, it will benefit the humanitarian efforts of the Red Cross and the UN Central Emergency Response Fund in Ukraine. The level will set you back €5 or $5.50, and 100 percent of the proceeds will go towards those organizations, Romero has announced on Twitter. 

Doom II is a critically acclaimed first-person shooter that people still enjoy playing almost two decades on. To be able to play One Humanity, you must have an original copy of the game and a modern source port. 

Romero has joined the list of people and companies in the gaming industry that had taken steps to support Ukraine following Russia's invasion. The Pokémon Company donated $200,000 to GlobalGiving's humanitarian relief efforts in the country, which will benefit families and children affected by the war. EA removed Russian national team and clubs from FIFA 22, FIFA Mobile and FIFA Online, while CD Projekt Red stopped selling its games in Russia and Belarus.

Ukrainian Vice Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov also called on Sony and Microsoft to block the PlayStation and Xbox accounts of players in Belarus and Russia. Fedorov, who's also the country's Minister of Digital Transformation, is hoping the move would urge Russian citizens to resist their government's "disgraceful military aggression."

SpaceX chief Elon Musk has warned Starlink users in Ukraine that there's a high probability of the service being targeted, as it's the only working non-Russian communications system in some parts of the country. On Twitter, Musk advised people to use Starlink with caution by turning it on only when needed and placing it as far away from other people as possible. He also told users to place light camouflage over the antenna to avoid visual detection. 

As Reuters reports, Musk's warning comes after John Scott-Railton, a senior researcher at University of Toronto's Citizen Lab project, said Russia could use Starlink's uplink transmissions in Ukraine as beacons for airstrikes. In a lengthy Twitter thread, he explained Russia's extensive experience when it comes to targeting people while they're using satphones and other kinds of satellite technologies. 

Internet connection has become spotty in Ukraine since the Russian invasion began. The intense combat and explosions in major cities like Kyiv had disrupted the operations of GigaTrans, the country's main internet provider that also supplies connectivity to other networks. SpaceX activated the Starlink broadband internet service in Ukraine following a plea from Mykhailo Fedorov, who serves as the country's Minister of Digital Transformation. The company also quickly sent terminals to the country, which arrived just a couple of days after the service's activation. 

Days after receiving SpaceX's shipment, Fedorov tweeted a photo of a Starlink dish installed and in use on a rooftop. He also asked for ideas on how to keep the antenna powered in the middle of Russia's ongoing attacks. Musk responded that SpaceX is updating the terminal's software to reduce its peak power consumption and so that it can be powered from a car's cigarette lighter socket. He also said the company enabled mobile roaming so that a Starlink antenna can maintain its signal even on a moving vehicle. 

A consultant in satellite communications told Reuters that Starlink terminals weren't designed to be used while in motion, so it's not quite clear what Musk meant. One user in California stuck a Starlink antenna to the hood of his car for internet connectivity, though — they even got a ticket for it. SpaceX has also long been planning to connect moving vehicles to the Starlink network and previewed a ruggedized version of the service's dish meant for ships, aircraft and bigger land vehicles like RVs last year.

Google has stopped selling ads in Russia completely, according to Reuters. The tech giant's decision applies to YouTube, search and outside publishing partners, expanding the more limited ad bans it implemented since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began. "In light of the extraordinary circumstances, we're pausing Google ads in Russia," the company told the news organization in a statement. "The situation is evolving quickly, and we will continue to share updates when appropriate."

The tech giant blocked RT and other Russian channels from generating ad revenue on YouTube in late February before barring Russian state media from being able to monetize their content across its platforms. It had also prohibited all kinds of ads that seek to take advantage of the situation, unless they're anti-war advertisements.

Google is far from the only tech company that has implemented ad-related changes across the region. Twitter had quickly paused ads and recommendations in Russia and Ukraine after the invasion began "to ensure critical public safety information is elevated and ads don't detract from it." Facebook blocked Russian state media from running ads on its platform after the country's authorities partially restricted access to the social network. More recently, it blocked access to RT and Sputnik within the EU and Ukraine before demoting all Russian state media on its website around the world. Microsoft banned RT and Sputnik from its ad platform, as well, and pulled their news apps from its store. 

As The New York Times notes, Google has been very careful with its decisions involving Russia. It has over 100 employees in the country, and Russian authorities previously threatened to prosecute individuals if their employers don't abide by their rules. 

Google's decision to ban all ad sales in the country comes shortly after Russian communications watchdog Roskomnadzor demanded the takedown of YouTube video ads it says are spreading "false political information" about Ukraine. According to a Wall Street Journal report, Roskomnadzor is accusing YouTube of running "advertising campaigns to misinform the Russian audience" and are "aimed at creating a distorted perception of current events." 

The regulator didn't say whether it would limit YouTube in Russia if Google doesn't comply, but Russian authorities have been blocking websites that provide information contradicting their country's official narrative about the invasion. In addition to restricting access to Facebook within the country, the Russian government also limited people's access to Twitter and previously threatened to block Wikipedia.

A set of 47 Starlink internet satellites might soon be making its way low Earth orbit: SpaceX is targeting a March 3rd launch for the upcoming additions to its Starlink constellation. It's the third launch since the company lost 40 satellites in February to a geomagnetic storm, which caused atmospheric drag to increase and hinder the satellites' movement. As a result, the satellites deorbited and re-entered the atmosphere, where they burned up completely and left no debris.

SpaceX launched 46 satellites on February 21st and another 50 on February 25th since that event, so it's safe to say that it has already replaced the 40 it had lost. The company has launched over 2,000 Starlink satellites to date and currently has permission to send up to 10,000 more.

This particular set will blast off on top of a Falcon 9 rocket with a first stage booster that previously flew with GPS III-3, Turksat-5A, Transporter 2 and seven Starlink missions. The reusable booster, which has quite the flight history, will land on the Just Read the Instructions droneship in the Atlantic Ocean after separation — and will most likely fly on future missions if everything goes according to plan. 

Today's instantaneous launch window is at 9:35AM EST, and you can watch its live webcast starting at 9:15AM below. In case the conditions aren't quite right for a liftoff or if technical issues arise, SpaceX will attempt another launch tomorrow, March 4th, at 9:10AM EST.

Netflix has announced that it'll serve as home to a definitive documentary on Pamela Anderson's life, a month after the limited series Pam & Tommy debuted on Hulu. According to Entertainment Weekly, Anderson vowed never to watch the Hulu series, which focuses on the actress' short marriage with Tommy Lee and the theft and illegal distribution of their sex tape, or even its trailer. While the Hulu series was created without the involvement or even the permission of the actress, Anderson herself promoted the Netflix documentary on Instagram. 

"Not a victim, but a survivor and alive to tell the real story," she said in a handwritten note she posted on the app. The documentary film will feature interviews with Anderson, along with previously unreleased archival footage and journals. Netflix promises that the pop culture icon will "set the record straight" and that the movie, directed by Ryan White (The Keepers), will paint an "intimate portrait" of her. In comparison, the Hulu series was based on a 2014 Rolling Stone article and fictionalized some parts of the actual events. 

Anderson's camp also reportedly took issue with the fact that the Hulu series used clips from the actual sex tape, which became one of the first ever viral sex videos. According to The Washington Post, that tape demonstrated how powerful the internet is, even during its early days, as a platform for the sex industry and content distribution as a whole. 

While Anderson's sex tape debacle went down in the '90s, the rivalry between streaming giants prompt them to find new ways to get into current discussions and events. Netflix and Hulu each released their own Fyre Festival documentaries in the past, for instance, as well as their own takes on Britney Spears' life and career.

Elon Musk says Tesla will do nothing to stop United Auto Workers (UAW) from holding a union vote at the company's Fremont, California factory. In a tweet, the company chief said Tesla's real challenge in the Bay Area is negative unemployment, so it treats and compensates its "(awesome) people well" or they'd just leave otherwise. 

Musk posted the tweet in response to Kiss co-lead singer Gene Simmons who sided with the executive when he called out the President for not mentioning Tesla in his State of the Union Address. The President only praised Ford and General Motors for investing billions of dollars in their efforts to release electric vehicles, thereby generating thousands of jobs in the process. As Bloomberg notes, Biden is a labor union supporter and often snubs Tesla, which has a non-unionized workforce, in his speeches and interviews.

In a follow-up tweet, Musk claimed that Tesla factory workers have the highest compensation in the auto industry, posting an interview of GM CEO Mary Barra as his source. In the interview, news anchor and journalist Andrew Sorkin said Tesla's non-unionized workers were earning more than their unionized counterparts. Barra said she'd have to see more information, since one must also take benefits and not just wages into account, but that what Sorkin said wasn't the case last time she checked. 

The UAW has been working to unionize Tesla for years, and Musk has criticized those efforts from the start. When a Fremont production worker claimed poor working conditions and low pay in 2017, Musk reportedly sent out a letter to employees with a point-by-point takedown while also slamming UAW. He said the union's true allegiance is to the "giant car companies, where the money they take from employees in dues is vastly more than they could ever make from Tesla."  

In the same year, the National Labor Relations Board filed a complaint against the automaker after investigating complaints of unfair labor practices. According to the NLRB, workers said Tesla "coerces and intimidates" them with a confidentiality agreement that prevents them from discussing unionization. In 2018, the NLRB found that the company violated labor laws when it fired union activist Richard Ortiz and ordered it to compensate him for loss of earnings and benefits. 

The labor board also ordered Musk to delete a tweet that might sound like a threat to employees. In the tweet, Musk similarly invited efforts to unionize. "Nothing stopping Tesla team at our car plant from voting union. Could do so [tomorrow] if they wanted," he wrote. However, he also said: "But why pay union dues & give up stock options for nothing?" NLRB chair Wilma Liebman explained at the time that to an employee, that may sound like they'll no longer have stock options if they vote to unionize. As Electrek notes, Tesla offers its stock compensation program to most of its employees, and the company's rising stock prices makes it a very valuable benefit.