Android Beefing Up Market Security
A new Android service, codenamed Bouncer, has been announced by Google. The service provides automated scanning of the Android Market for potentially malicious software, by analyzing new applications, applications already in the Android Market, and developer accounts. When an application is uploaded, the service immediately checks it for known malware, spyware, and trojans. It also looks for certain behaviors that indicate an application may be a problem. According to the company, during the first and second halves of 2011, it has seen a 40% decrease in the number of potentially-malicious downloads from the Android Market, and expects that rate to continue to decline over time.
February 3, 2012
Amazon Purchasing TeachStreet
TeachStreet, the online community that brings teachers together with those looking to learn through online courses, has been purchased by Amazon. Teachers already using the TeachStreet site are being provided with a special export tool, so they can save all of their data before the site closes down, which will reportedly take place later this month.
February 2, 2012
Facebook Expected to Raise $5 Billion with IPO
After eight years, Facebook is going public. Its initial stock offering is expected to value the company at as much as $100 billion. The company is also, reportedly, seeking to raise $5 billion in its IPO.
February 1, 2012
Amazon Kindle Devices Show Strong Sales During Fourth Quarter
Amazon announced that Kindle sales showed significant growth during the fourth quarter, stating that during the nine-week holiday period ending December 31, 2011, Kindle unit sales, including both the Kindle Fire and e-reader devices, increased 177% over the same period last year.
"We are grateful to the millions of customers who purchased the Kindle Fire and Kindle e-reader devices this holiday season, making Kindle our bestselling product across both the U.S. and Europe," said Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon.com.
The company expects further growth this year.
January 31, 2012
Samsung Galaxy Note Coming to AT&T February 19th
AT&T announced that the Samsung Galaxy Note will be available for $299.99, with a new two-year contract, on February 19th. The company will begin taking pre-orders for the device on February 5th. Pre-orders processed by February 15th are expected to arrive at customers' homes by February 17th. For more information about the Samsung Galaxy Note, view the video above.
January 30, 2012
Intel Set to Acquire Patents from RealNetworks
Intel announced that it has signed an agreement with RealNetworks to purchase approximately 190 patents and 170 patent applications worldwide, as well as next-generation video codec software, for $120 million. Intel will acquire RealNetworks' foundational streaming media patents, as part of the agreement, which the company feels will allow it to continue to offer richer experiences and innovative solutions to end users across a wide range of devices.
January 27, 2012
HP to Commit webOS to Open Source by Fall 2012
HP announced its plans to deliver webOS to the open source community, committing to a schedule for making the platform's source code available under an open source license by September. The company also announced the release of version 2.0 of its webOS developer tool, Enyo, which enables developers to write single applications that work across multiple mobile devices and desktop web browsers, including webOS, iOS, Android, Internet Explorer, and Firefox. The webOS code will be made available under the Apache License, Version 2.0, beginning with the source code for Enyo, which is available now.
January 26, 2012
Netflix Stock Rises as Customers Return
Netflix stock rose in price, as the company reported an increase in subscribers after a very tough 2011. The company stated that it expects to continue to increase its streaming content library, and will be watching closely as its first original series make their debuts. Netflix will also be keeping a close eye on competitors, such as Amazon and HBO GO, but remains optimistic that its growth will continue at a steady pace.
January 25, 2012
Apple Breaks Records with iPhone, iPad, and Mac Sales
Apple announced that it experienced record quarterly revenues of $46.33 billion. The company also reported sales of 37.04 million iPhones during the quarter, along with 15.43 million iPads.
"We're thrilled with our outstanding results and record-breaking sales of iPhones, iPads and Macs," said Tim Cook, Apple's CEO. "Apple's momentum is incredibly strong, and we have some amazing new products in the pipeline."
Apple also reported increased Mac sales during the quarter, with 5.2 million units sold.
January 24, 2012
Spotlight On: Yale Locks & Hardware Yale Locks & Hardware Brings NFC to Your Front Door
Yale Locks & Hardware has introduced new locks from its Yale Real Living line that feature Near Field Communication (NFC) technology. Suitable for both residential and commercial applications, the locks allow users to simply use their NFC-enabled mobile phone to unlock doors, instead of having to fumble around for keys or access cards. The secure technology easily integrates into any modern home, and can be used with a wide range of existing home control and security systems. Additionally, the Yale Real Living line will be compatible with the ASSA ABLOY Mobile Keys platform, a scalable secure delivery infrastructure for distribution and management of mobile keys.
"From a residential perspective, the mobile phone is ubiquitous," said Jason Williams, General Manager of Yale Residential. "We use it to make reservations, schedule our day, everything. By incorporating NFC technology into our Yale Real Living locks, we've extended the functionality of the mobile phone even further. What's more, we've created a highly secure product that capitalizes on ASSA ABLOY technology that is being extremely well-received in other end-user markets."
Look for Yale Real Living line of locks, featuring NFC technology, this Spring. For more information, visit: www.yalelocks.com
January 23, 2012
RIM Names Thorsten Heins as New CEO
Research In Motion (RIM) announced that it has named Thorsten Heins as its President and Chief Executive Officer, and has also appointed him to RIM's Board. Heins joined RIM from Siemens Communications Group in December 2007, as Senior Vice President for Hardware Engineering, and became Chief Operating Officer for Product and Sales in August 2011.
January 23, 2012
Apple Brings Interaction to Textbooks on iPad
Apple announced iBooks 2 for iPad, which features new, interactive textbooks, designed to engage students and help them study more effectively. iBooks textbooks offer readers fullscreen views with fully interactive animations, diagrams, photos, videos, and more. Textbooks can also be kept up to date, unlike printed textbooks, so students are always presented with relevant information.
"Education is deep in Apple's DNA and iPad may be our most exciting education product yet. With 1.5 million iPads already in use in education institutions, including over 1,000 one-to-one deployments, iPad is rapidly being adopted by schools across the US and around the world," said Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. "Now with iBooks 2 for iPad, students have a more dynamic, engaging and truly interactive way to read and learn, using the device they already love."
iBooks textbooks can be purchased from the iBookstore for $14.99 or less, under the new Textbooks category. Titles appearing in the store will come from leading textbook publishers, such as Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, McGraw-Hill, and Pearson. The iBooks 2 app is available now as a free download from the App Store.
January 19, 2012
Create Interactive Books with iBooks Author
Apple introduced iBooks Author as a free download from the Mac App Store. iBooks Author lets anyone with a Mac create interactive iBooks textbooks, cookbooks, history books, picture books and more, and publish them directly to Apple's iBookstore. The new software is available to authors and publishers of any size, and features Apple-designed templates with a wide variety of page layouts to get user going quickly and easily. Users can add their own text and images by dragging and dropping, as well as interactive photo galleries, movies, Keynote presentations, 3D objects, and more. iBooks Author is available now from the Mac App Store.
January 19, 2012
Jerry Yang Resigns from Yahoo!
Yahoo! announced that Jerry Yang has resigned from its Board of Directors and all other positions with the company. Additionally, Yang has also resigned from the Boards of Yahoo Japan Corporation and Alibaba Group Holding Limited.
"My time at Yahoo!, from its founding to the present, has encompassed some of the most exciting and rewarding experiences of my life," said Yang in a letter to the Yahoo! Board Chairman Roy Bostock. "However, the time has come for me to pursue other interests outside of Yahoo! As I leave the company I co-founded nearly 17 years ago, I am enthusiastic about the appointment of Scott Thompson as Chief Executive Officer and his ability, along with the entire Yahoo! leadership team, to guide Yahoo! into an exciting and successful future."
Yang co-founded Yahoo! in 1995 with David Filo, and served as a member of the Board of Directors since March 1995. Yang also served as Chief Executive Officer from June 2007 to January 2009.
January 17, 2012
CES 2012 Highlights
The Consumer Electronics Show took Las Vegas by storm, as the biggest names in the tech industry turned out to unveil the latest products we'll all be seeing this year, as well as future technologies we'll be hearing more about in the years to come. Come along, as we take a look at some of the highlights from CES 2012. more
January 16, 2012
PayPal Testing Payment System with Home Depot
PayPal is testing a new payment system in a small number of Home Depot stores, in an effort to expand its service while making payment options easier for consumers. The new system is still in the testing phase, with no word as to when the system will be available.
January 6, 2012
In Tech Today's Predictions for 2012
2011 saw the introduction of new technologies and new devices that drove the tech industry forward. With 2012 now upon us, we take a look at some of the leading companies in the tech industry, and offer our predictions of what we can expect from them in the year ahead. more
January 4, 2012
TiVo Announces Patent Litigation Settlement with AT&T
TiVo announced that it has settled its pending patent litigation with AT&T. The two companies have entered into a mutual patent licensing arrangement, where AT&T has agreed to pay TiVo an initial payment of $51 million, followed by recurring quarterly guaranteed payments through June 2018. The total payments, including the initial payment, will come to $215 million. Additionally, AT&T will pay incremental recurring per subscriber monthly license fees through July 2018 should AT&T's DVR subscriber base exceed certain levels.
"We are extremely pleased to reach an agreement with AT&T, which acknowledges the value of our intellectual property," said Tom Rogers, CEO and President of TiVo. "This settlement, on the heels of our recent operational success that has resulted in the growth of TiVo's overall subscriber base, is another major accomplishment for TiVo and we believe a great outcome for our shareholders. The combination of guaranteed payments and future additional fees paid to TiVo in the event that AT&T's pay TV business continues to grow in-line with consensus analyst expectations, represents hard-earned compensation for our IP enforcement efforts. The settlement also provides us rights to innovate TiVo products and services under license from AT&T and allows us to avoid significant legal expenses that we expect would have been incurred by us during and after trial."
As part of the settlement, the two companies also entered into a cross licensing agreement of their respective patent portfolios in the advanced television field.
