Star Wars in Fortnite; Encryption Ultimatum (#17)

On this show, we cover recent headlines, the a16z Podcast way -- what’s hype, what’s real; why they matter from our vantage point in tech -- and this week, we cover the following news (in conversation with Sonal Chokshi):

1. Star War trailer premieres in... Fortnite? What's the significance of the latest Star Wars trailer debuting inside a video game over a movie theater or TV or even YouTube and Facebook? It has to do with the bigger picture of games, social networks, and virtual worlds; so what are the implications for marketers, game developers, and how we will live/work/play? -- with Jonathan Lai, consumer team
2. Congress warns tech companies to take action on encryption... or else! Concerned about protecting the most vulnerable Americans and devices "going dark" to law enforcement (especially given "several serious cases where we can't access the device in the time period where it is most important for us to access it"), Congress recently sent a warning to tech companies to get their "act together" on encryption... or else "we will impose our will on you", by this time next year. But what if we're having the wrong conversation to break the deadlock, and what conversation could we be having? -- with Martin Casado, general partner, and operating partner for security Joel de la Garza

Relevant/ related links:

• on gaming 
  • State of play: Six trends revolutionizing gaming by Jonathan Lai and Andrew Chen
  • New business models for gaming [podcast] with Kevin Chou, Chris Dixon, and Sonal Chokshi
  • Come for the games, stay for the party [podcast] with Andrew Chen, Jonathan Lai, and Lauren Murrow
  • Tech trends changing gaming [podcast] with Tim Shafer, Justin Bailey, Herman Narula, and Sonal Chokshi
• on security
  • 16 steps to securing your data (and life) by Joel de la Garza