Google today announced that it has been taking its Street View Trekker – the compact backpack version of its Street View cars – and its underwater Street View cameras to the Galapagos Islands and that it plans to make these images available on Google Maps later this year. The company worked together with the Charles Darwin Foundation, the Galapagos National Parks Directorate and, for the underwater survey, the Catlin Seaview Survey.
TechCrunch
Tag Archives: year
Google Takes Street View Trekker And Underwater Cameras To The Galapagos Islands, Coming To Google Maps Later This Year
Posted by Gsurface
on May 23, 2013
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Sony report details what Kaz Hirai has achieved in his first year as CEO
Posted by Gsurface
on May 22, 2013
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In recent years, Sony’s state of the union report has made for wince-inducing reading, but one year into Kaz Hirai’s “One Sony” strategy we seem to be seeing hints of a turnaround. The company is trumpeting its return to profitability after several loss-making quarters, thanks to boosts in its film and financial services units — not to mention some aggressive asset sales. Unfortunately, Sony still has the weak heart of its consumer electronics business to nurse, but promises that aggressive cost-cutting in its TV department will see it back in the black shortly.
Sony has also announced plans to “significantly expand” its business model around the PlayStation 4 and promises to speed up smartphone development to incorporate the company’s hardware and imaging know-how. With one eye on those dwindling PC market figures, Sony will look to make profitable machines rather than chasing market share. The company has also said that, aside from its successful Mirrorless ILC division, will shift focus on its imaging business from consumer electronics to medical and security. With all of this change, let’s just hope that no-one forgets to buy someone in the PR department a wider camera lens.
Filed under: Sony
Source: Sony
Customers not as happy with iPhone as they were last year
Posted by Gsurface
on May 21, 2013
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The American Customer Satisfaction Index shows Apple remains on top, but it’s declining while Motorola, Nokia, and Samsung are rising. [Read more]
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EFF Resumes Accepting Bitcoin Donations After Two Year Hiatus
Posted by Gsurface
on May 21, 2013
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hypnosec writes “The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) has started accepting donations in the form of Bitcoins again after a two year hiatus, stating that the legal uncertainty hovering over the digital currency has all but disappeared. On their blog the EFF noted that a report from U.S. Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), in addition to their own findings, ‘have confirmed that, as a user of Bitcoin or any virtual currency, EFF itself is likely not subject to regulation.’”
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Flickr’s new $499.99 per year ‘Doublr’ service explained
Posted by Gsurface
on May 21, 2013
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Flickr’s selling a new pro photo plan that costs as much as an iPad. Here’s what it does and who it’s aimed at. [Read more]
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Google Glass Year In Review
Posted by Gsurface
on May 20, 2013
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It’s been a little over a year since Google started teasing something it called “Project Glass.” The futuristic, wearable computer that would change the way that you interact with the world was nothing more than a series of rumors for months before it was “formally introduced” in April 2012. Not known for hardware and not having a current bonafide physical device that was popular among consumers, many opined that this was Google’s way of begging for attention. It might have been, and it definitely worked. In thirteen months, Glass has gone from Star Trek fantasy to reality. It’s been quite the whirlwind of activity. The “wearable computing” age is upon us, and it’s been widely reported that Apple was working on a watch, therefore many assumed that Google was working on a similar device to keep up. This was clearly not the case and Google’s co-founder Sergey Brin took special interest in the Glass project and has been leading the charge going back to when prototype weighed around eight pounds in August 2011. Let’s take a stroll down memory lane, as a lot has happened over the past year in Glassland. It’s real(ish) The video from Google itself got sent people’s imaginations into overdrive. It was called “One day…” and gave us a glimpse into the life of a daily user of what Google had up its sleeve. We now know that the “One day…” reference had more to do with what the product could become, not what it would be in its first iteration: The user experience in this video is aspirational, at best, as the current iteration of Glass is more of a compliment and utility to your day, rather than the augmented reality “enhancer” as this video demonstrates. Still, the elements that make Glass handy are all there, taking calls, getting directions and taking pictures from a new point of view. Immediately after the video, and public admonishment that the project was real, the press wondered out loud if Apple should compete and that other companies should stand up and take notice. We also now know that the rumored final name for the device, Google Eye, isn’t likely. Good thing, because it sounds way creepier than Glass. We’ll get to more “creepiness” later. It was clear that Glass was getting a lot of attention, both positive and negative, from the start. Even Jon Stewart did a parody
TechCrunch
Google Play In-App Purchase Revenue Growth Jumps 7X In One Year, Subscription Revenue Growing 2X Each Quarter
Posted by Gsurface
on May 17, 2013
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Google held a session today at I/O 2013 about how to make money on Android, and in the initial few minutes it shared some updated stats around Google Play revenues and how those are progressing. Not surprisingly, the big growth is coming with in-app purchases, though Google’s recently launched subscription model is also making headway.
TechCrunch
Facebook’s rocky year as a public company
Posted by Gsurface
on May 17, 2013
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The social network’s freshman year was punctuated by extreme highs and lows, but in the end Facebook stayed Facebook. [Read more]
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Android to get built-in Bluetooth Smart Ready support this year
Posted by Gsurface
on May 16, 2013
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As powerful as Android can be, Bluetooth is one of its glaring weaknesses: the absence of a default Bluetooth framework has led to inconsistent implementations from both device builders and app developers. Google is at last covering that gaping hole, however. As hinted earlier today, it’s incorporating Bluetooth Smart Ready support (that is, Bluetooth 4.0 on a dual-mode chip) in an upcoming version of Android. Having a common platform should allow for more reliable behavior, not to mention fewer roadblocks to using low power Bluetooth Smart (single-mode Bluetooth 4.0) devices like the Fitbit Flex. There’s only one catch that we can see, so far: when Google hasn’t said how soon we’ll get that Android upgrade, wireless peripheral lovers will have to remain patient.
Filed under: Cellphones, Peripherals, Tablets, Mobile, Google
Source: Bluetooth Blog
Microsoft Windows 8 update will be free when it comes later this year
Posted by Gsurface
on May 15, 2013
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QFPay, The Square of China, Is Processing Close To $400M Per Year
Posted by Gsurface
on May 11, 2013
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QFPay‘s card reader admittedly looks a bit clunkier than its U.S. or European equivalents Square or iZettle.
It looks like a wonky, old calculator. But that’s because Chinese consumers don’t trust merchants easily and a basic phonejack reader without a keypad makes them nervous, says COO Tim Lee. He says consumers are worried that their PINs will get stolen by unscrupulous merchants.
TechCrunch
HIPAA rules, outdated tech cost U.S. hospitals $8.3B a year
Posted by Gsurface
on May 7, 2013
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HIPAA, along with outmoded communications technology, reduces the time available for patient care, according to a new survey of healthcare professionals
Computerworld News
Microsoft's Windows Blue to be available later this year
Posted by Gsurface
on May 7, 2013
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Microsoft's update of its Windows 8 operating system, code-named Windows Blue, will be available later this year, supporting a variety of form factors and display sizes, and providing more options for both businesses and consumers.
Computerworld News
Acer confirms 10-inch Iconia A3 tablet, wants to sell 10 million slates this year
Posted by Gsurface
on May 6, 2013
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Acer’s senior VP Scott Lin recently confirmed that a new 10-inch Iconia A3 tablet will arrive this summer and and was quick to include it in some very ambitious sales plans. The device (not pictured) has yet to be priced or spec’d (or seen) yet, but Lin hopes that it’ll make up some of the 10 million slates the company’s looking to sell in 2013. He also announced a refresh for the $ 150 Iconia B1 this summer with a dual-core CPU, updated design and 1GB of ram, and said that 1.5 million units of that model have shipped so far this year. The company would like to move another 1.5 million by year’s end along with 5 million of the recently announced 8-inch Iconia A1 tabs and 2 million Iconia A3s to make up the balance. Considering that competitor Asus sold 3 million tablets in Q1 and has the hit Nexus 7 to peddle, it seems a lofty goal for Acer — especially since it only reluctantly leaped into tablets not so long ago.
Via: Android Beat
Source: Focus Taiwan
Tekton Enzo, a strong contender for Speaker of the Year
Posted by Gsurface
on May 5, 2013
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Tekton’s new tower not only has the power to rock your world, it sounds sweet with all music genres. [Read more]
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Paul’s Call To Abolish the TSA, One Year Later
Posted by Gsurface
on May 4, 2013
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A year ago today, we noted that Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky called for the abolition of the Transportation Security Administration. It’s now nearly 12 years since the hijacked-plane terror attacks of 2001; the TSA was created barely two months later, and has been (with various rules, procedures, and equipment, all of it controversial for reasons of privacy, safety, and efficacy) a major presence ever since at American commercial airports. “The American people shouldn’t be subjected to harassment, groping, and other public humiliation simply to board an airplane,” wrote Paul last year, and in June of 2012, he followed up by introducing two bills on the topic; the first calling for a “bill of rights” for air travelers, the other for privatizing airport screening practices. Neither bill went far. Should they have? Libertarian-leaning Paul did not succeed in knocking back the TSA, never mind privatizing its functions (currently funded at nearly $ 8 billion annually), though some of the things called for in his bill of rights are manifest now at least in muted form. (Very young passengers, as well as elderly passengers, face less stringent security requirements, for instance, and TSA has ended its prohibition of certain items aboard planes.) Whether you’re from the U.S. or not, what practical changes would you like to see implemented? What shouldn’t be on the bill of rights for airplane passengers?
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
U.S. Cellular to sell ‘Apple products’ this year
Posted by Gsurface
on May 3, 2013
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It’s circumspect about which products, but surely a carrier that sells devices like Samsung’s Galaxy S3 and the HTC One would also want to offer the iPhone. [Read more]
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Year two of #Kristofize – honoring Nicholas Kristof
Posted by Gsurface
on April 27, 2013
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Last year, a group of fans created an impromptu birthday tribute to Nick Kristof, the crusading NYT columnist. Time for the 2013 version. [Read more]
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Wunderlist Pro goes live for iOS, Mac and web, priced at $50 per year (video)
Posted by Gsurface
on April 26, 2013
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6Wunderkinder let us know last week that it was entering the big leagues of task management with Wunderlist Pro, and today it’s possible for us to follow along. The company’s first premium service is now available for those running the iOS, Mac and web apps, albeit with a slightly higher than anticipated $ 50 yearly subscription price alongside the $ 5 monthly option. What Pro users get for their money currently remains the same: they can assign tasks to others, add an unlimited number of subtasks and choose from eight more backgrounds. File attachments and sharing are coming soon, 6Wunderkinder says. Android and Windows users will have to sit tight while their versions of Wunderlist Pro finish baking, but everyone else can start collaborating today.
Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Internet
Source: 6Wunderkinder
LG’s first flexible OLED phone due before the year is out
Posted by Gsurface
on April 25, 2013
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LG plans to launch a flexible OLED smartphone before the end of the year, the company’s VP of mobile has confirmed, though it’s unclear to what extent the work-in-progress handset will actually flex. The OLED panel in question is the handiwork of LG Display according to VP of LG mobile Yoon Bu-hyun, the WSJ reports, with
Rep. Mike Rogers Dismisses CISPA Opponents “14 Year Old Tweeter On the Internet”
Posted by Gsurface
on April 18, 2013
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gale the simple writes “Mike Rodgers made a minor splash Tuesday when he decided to liken CISPA opponents to 14-year-old basement dwellers. The EFF, naturally, picked up on this generalization and asked everyone to let the representative know that it is not just the 14-year-olds that care about privacy.”
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Outgoing Intel CEO knocks Windows 8, predicts $200 touch PCs this year
Posted by Gsurface
on April 17, 2013
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Intel’s outgoing CEO took a few parting shots at Microsoft’s Windows 8 Tuesday as he explained a slump in both revenue and profits for the first quarter.
Computerworld News
Sun unleashes biggest solar flare of the year yet
Posted by Gsurface
on April 13, 2013
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Hacking airplanes in flight? I did that a year ago, Brad ‘RenderMan’ Haines says
Posted by Gsurface
on April 12, 2013
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ICANN Says It Will Allow Chinese Top-Level Domain Names This Year, Followed By Other Languages
Posted by Gsurface
on April 11, 2013
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The president of ICANN (the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) Fady Chehade told the Wall Street Journal that the organization will launch Chinese character options for top-level domains in the second half of this year. (A top-level domain is the part of the Web address after the dot, so the Chinese characters would replace the .com, .net, .org’s, etc. that you see in most Web addresses).
Mozilla Makes Leadership Changes: CEO Gary Kovacs To Step Down Later This Year, Mitchell Baker Becomes Executive Chair
Posted by Gsurface
on April 10, 2013
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Mozilla, the non-profit organization behind Firefox, Firefox OS and other online tools, today announced that its CEO Gary Kovacs, who joined Mozilla in 2010, will step down “later this year.” The organization has already started a search for his replacement. Kovacs will remain a member of Mozilla’s board of directors. Previous to becoming Mozilla’s CEO, Kovacs was the senior vice president of markets, solutions and products at Sybase (through its acquisition by SAP), the general manager and vice president of mobile and devices at Adobe and the vice president of product Marketing at Macromedia. More Leadership Changes At Mozilla In addition, Mozilla is making some changes to its leadership team. Mitchell Baker, for example, will become the Executive Chair “as she returns to a deeper involvement in Mozilla’s daily activities.” He focus will be on “ensuring that organizations and individual contributors have the tools they need to make meaningful contributions to unlock the potential of the Web.” Jay Sullivan, who was previously Mozilla’s senior vice president of products, will now become its COO and Harvey Anderson has been appointed senior vice president for business and legal affairs, while Li Gong has been appointed senior vice president for mobile devices, in addition to his current role as the organization’s president of its operations in Asia. Brendan Eich will remain Mozilla’s CTO and senior vice president of engineering. These changes, Mozilla says, come as it is building up its “pivot to mobile.” As Mitchell Baker, who herself was Mozilla’s CEO from 2004 to 2008, notes in a blog post today, Kovacs joined Mozilla “to make a dramatic pivot — to move Mozilla from the desktop browser world into the mobile ecosystem.” She also noted that he has “reinvigorated our focus on working with commercial partners, a trait that was central in Mozilla’s early life but less so during the Firefox desktop era.” Kovacs himself notes in today’s announcement that “the past two and a half years have been pivotal in the evolution and rapid growth of Mozilla. I am very proud of our accomplishments as a team. In our mission to empower the next two billion Web users, we’ve made great advances in desktop and mobile and in our ability to lead at the pace of the market. With this solid foundation and a strong team in place, this is the right time for me to announce the transition plan and a
TechCrunch
Terrafugia’s Transition aircraft not likely to see production this year
Posted by Gsurface
on April 7, 2013
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Terrafugia’s Transition flying car (or driveable plane) has stayed out of the spotlight since we caught a glimpse of it last year, but AOL Autos recently checked-in with the daring manufacturer to gauge its progress. Sure, the prototype has already scored a VIN from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and an N-number from the Federal Aviation Administration, but it turns out the land /air hybrid is still awaiting complete certification by the NHTSA. Production dates won’t be announced until the craft has been rubber-stamped by Uncle Sam, and that isn’t expected to occur within the next 12 months. For now, suppliers are being lined up, and it’s very likely that another prototype will be fashioned before it hits the assembly line. You might not be able to sit inside your very own Transition soon, but you will be able to see the first model on display at Cape Cod’s Heritage Museum this summer.
Filed under: Transportation
Via: Autoblog
Source: AOL Autos
Microsoft Outlook to reportedly hit Windows RT this year
Posted by Gsurface
on April 7, 2013
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Those rumors that Microsoft was reportedly testing an Outlook app for Windows RT devices have been reinforced. A couple of people around Microsoft’s campus were spotted using the Microsoft Outlook desktop app on their Microsoft Surface devices. Unlike those previous rumors however, Microsoft Outlook is said to be coming to consumers later this year, with
2.4B computing devices to ship this year, Gartner says
Posted by Gsurface
on April 4, 2013
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Almost 2.4 billion computers, tablets and cell phones will ship this year, according to estimates from Gartner.
Computerworld News
Non-Volatile DIMMs To Ship This Year
Posted by Gsurface
on April 4, 2013
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Lucas123 writes “Both Viking and Micron plan to ship cards that combine DRAM and NAND flash on a standard DDR3 DIMM. The cards will have twice as much NAND flash as volatile memory. For example, the non-volatile DIMMs will come in capacities ranging from 4GB of DRAM to 16GB and 8GB of flash to 32GB of flash. Micron also sees its NVDIMM card being used as a storage tier, as cache for RAID systems, system check pointing, full system persistence, data logging, de-duplication and fast access to metadata. Without providing specifics, Viking said the NVDIMM cards will cost roughly a few hundred dollars each, more than a standard DDR3 DIMM module but still inexpensive enough for server and storage admins to consider for boosting application performance.”
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Dell to release new Windows tablets later this year
Posted by Gsurface
on April 3, 2013
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Dell will release Windows tablets later this year that could potentially include devices with screen sizes larger than 10 inches.
Computerworld News
Leaked BlackBerry road map reveals two phablets, widescreen tablet in coming year
Posted by Gsurface
on April 1, 2013
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BlackBerry plans to release a larger tablet and two phone-tablets, or phablets, over the next year, according to a leaked road map presentation slide.
Computerworld News
H-1B demand this year will be fast, furious
Posted by Gsurface
on April 1, 2013
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The U.S. begins accepting new H-1B visa petitions on Monday and strong demand is expected. This is going to be followed by much fury.
Computerworld News
Sequoia Capital In Singapore After A Year, Has Yet To Invest In A Local Startup
Posted by Gsurface
on March 30, 2013
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When Sequoia Capital India landed in Singapore, the buzz around town was that a big-name US fund being in the country was going to really jolt the market and provide serious cred to the startups here. The Indian team running operations here, however, appears to have spent the last year of its time in the island state helping its Indian funds expand into Singapore, rather than directly investing in startups here. Singapore is a popular choice as a base for foreign companies looking to expand into Southeast Asia. Early last year, Sequoia Capital India MD, Shailendra Jit Singh, expressed interest in having the fund’s companies expand into the region. Sequoia Cap in the US also appeared to have been eyeing activity in Singapore for a while—it had its first offsite meeting in the country in 2011, and was in discussion with Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong about its presence here. The Prime Minister’s Office oversees its R&D arm, the National Research Foundation (NRF), which has been busy backing local venture capital firms here over the past few years. Its Technology Incubation Scheme is a program that matches funds picked by 11 appointed VCs here, in the proportion of 85 percent to 15 percent—the larger portion dished out by the government. This allows the VCs here to provide bigger sums of seed capital to startups, with much of the risk absorbed by the NRF. Former NRF projects head, Yinglan Tan, was also pulled over to Sequoia Capital India’s team in July last year, where he is now a venture partner based in Singapore. When I ran into Tan in Manila a couple of months ago, he was evasive about the funds they’re looking at in Singapore, but was happy to try to set up meetings with their existing funds in Singapore—all Indian-based startups, except for Airbnb and Evernote. Some of these companies that are being incubated in Singapore by Sequoia Cap include Via, Druva, Mu Sigma, Idea Device and Practo. The meetings never happened, but word on the street is that Tan has been meeting with some Singapore-based startups that are approaching Series A or B in size, and are looking to expand beyond the island. One that I know of provides Wi-Fi infrastructure. As for its current startups here, Via is pretty sizable. It operates a flight booking portal similar to Expedia and Zuji, and has about 1,200 employees,
TechCrunch
Microsoft could rake in $1.25B first year from Office on iOS, Android, asserts analyst
Posted by Gsurface
on March 29, 2013
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Microsoft could rake in more than $ 1 billion in revenue in the first year after launching Office for Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android platforms, an analyst said today.
Computerworld News
Mars could be hit by a comet next year
Posted by Gsurface
on March 28, 2013
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A few years ago Jupiter was hit by several chunks of the comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 after the comet broke apart. The massive gravity of Jupiter ripped that comet into pieces and those chunks collided with the planet. Since Jupiter has such a thick atmosphere, all we could see were the effects the impact had on
Hirai remakes Sony in first year as CEO, now must win consumers
Posted by Gsurface
on March 28, 2013
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In his first year as Sony CEO, Kazuo Hirai has remade the company, cutting thousands of jobs, selling off large businesses and core properties, and moving divisions around the world.
Computerworld News
Apple iTV iffy this year because of supply issues, says report
Posted by Gsurface
on March 27, 2013
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Apple’s iTV is dependent on high-volume Ultra HD display supply, which doesn’t look promising this year. [Read more]
CNET News
Real-Time Gmail Spying a ‘Top Priority’ For FBI This Year
Posted by Gsurface
on March 27, 2013
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Fnord666 sends this quote from an article at Slate: “Despite the pervasiveness of law enforcement surveillance of digital communication, the FBI still has a difficult time monitoring Gmail, Google Voice, and Dropbox in real time. But that may change soon, because the bureau says it has made gaining more powers to wiretap all forms of Internet conversation and cloud storage a ‘top priority’ this year. … a 1994 surveillance law called the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act only allows the government to force Internet providers and phone companies to install surveillance equipment within their networks. But it doesn’t cover email, cloud services, or online chat providers like Skype. Weissmann said that the FBI wants the power to mandate real-time surveillance of everything from Dropbox and online games (‘the chat feature in Scrabble’) to Gmail and Google Voice. ‘Those communications are being used for criminal conversations,’ he said.”
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Dungeons & Dragons Coming To iOS Later This Year As Wizards Of The Coast Teams Up With Playdek
Posted by Gsurface
on March 26, 2013
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A new partnership between mobile game publisher Playdek and Wizards of the Coast, famed creator of Magic: The Gathering and other tabletop games will bring Dungeons & Dragons to the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch later this year. Playdek will be developing officially sanctioned and licensed titles that bring various Wizards of the Coast tabletop experiences to iOS devices, with the first such efforts slated to go live sometime in 2013.
TechCrunch
FAA may ease ‘reading device’ restriction during takeoff and landing later this year
Posted by Gsurface
on March 24, 2013
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By early 2014, passengers may be able to use certain electronic devices in airplane mode during takeoff and landing, according to a New York Times report. The publication’s industry sources say that the Federal Aviation Administration may announce more lenient electronics policies later this year, allowing passengers to use “reading devices” during takeoff and landing — while it’s not clear which gadgets would qualify, cellphones would remain on the ban list. The FAA commissioned an industry group to study the issue of in-flight electronics use — the team, which includes representatives from Amazon, Boeing, the CEA, FCC, and others, will announce the results of its study by July 31st.
The issue has support from key lawmakers as well. Senator Claire McCaskill is calling the FAA out on its authorization of pilots to use iPads in the cockpit and flight attendants to use devices of their own, while restricting passengers from reading books on e-readers — “A flying copy of ‘War and Peace’ is more dangerous than a Kindle,” she told the Times. And we’d have to agree. Until the FAA announces a policy revision, we all have no choice but to reluctantly comply with the ban, but with devices like Google Glass on the horizon, updated restrictions could not come too soon.
Filed under: Transportation, Wireless
Source: The New York Times
JetBlue names its WiFi service “Fly-Fi”, coming later this year
Posted by Gsurface
on March 20, 2013
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JetBlue first announced that it would be bringing in-flight WiFi to its fleet of aircrafts back in 2011, but we have yet to see anything from the airline at this point, although they announced back in September that free in-flight WiFi would be available soon. The project is still making progress, though, as the company
On The Heels Of Another Record Year, Vidyo Introduces Virtualized Video Conferencing
Posted by Gsurface
on March 18, 2013
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Video conferencing startup Vidyo continues to grow, thanks to the help of service provider partnerships and through sales to various enterprise, government, and health agencies. It’s trying to make adopting its technology easier and cheaper, especially for large resellers and enterprises, with the introduction of products that work through a new, virtualized infrastructure.
TechCrunch
Carrier App Stores Suck, So Japan’s KDDI Did Something Different And Is Pulling In $250M A Year For Apps
Posted by Gsurface
on March 16, 2013
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When Apple launched its app store about five years ago, the company had no idea it would become the success it is today. It disintermediated carriers from what would become a lucrative revenue stream, one that’s brought Apple more than $ 11 billion in gross revenue (based on the $ 8 billion figure that CEO Tim Cook said the company had paid out to developers by last month).- In the old feature phone world, developers used to have to beg and plead with the carriers for pre-install deals on phones. But these days, they just go straight through Apple’s review process or directly into Google Play. Some carriers have tried to run app stores over the years like Verizon’s Vcast app store, but they haven’t exactly been successful. Because Google Play and the iOS app store are still the main channels for downloading apps, how do carriers cope and stay relevant? Instead of starting another old app store, Japan’s second largest carrier KDDI launched a subscription program for a collection of about 500 apps last year. Called the AU Smart Pass, it comes pre-installed on its Android phones. At 5 million users per month paying 399 yen ($ 4.20) each, that’s up to $ 250 million in annualized revenue to pay out to developers. It’s definitely a unique model. KDDI partners with developers to bring apps into the AU Smart Pass but they often ask for premium or special unlocked content. For example, Japan’s hit messaging app Line, which has more than 120 million users, gives away exclusive stickers. Many of the other apps are normally paid ones. Then KDDI splits overall subscription revenues back with developers based on monthly active usage. Developers can also offer in-app purchases, but they get to keep 80 to 90 percent of revenue instead of the standard 70 percent that Google Play or Apple’s app store gives them. “We needed to invent a new model and we wanted to manage the shift from feature phones to smartphones,” said Kazuhito Shimizu, who oversees mobile business development for KDDI in the U.S. He oversees a $ 60 million corporate venture fund that has taken stakes in companies like New York-based taxi and transportation startup Hailo. “This is kind of like Netflix for apps,” he added, saying that consumers would get confused if there were two app stores — Google Play and a branded KDDI store — on their Android phones. The
TechCrunch
March Madness Live apps are free this year, stream all the games — if you have cable
Posted by Gsurface
on March 16, 2013
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This year’s version of the NCAA March Madness Live app is live in the iOS App Store (an Android version is scheduled to arrive on Google Play this weekend) and unlike last year the apps are free. Unfortunately there’s still a catch, since while the games aired on CBS will be streamed registration free via the web and apps, games on cable (TNT, TBS and TruTV) will require users to login with the account they use for their pay-TV provider.
The action gets started with the seedings on Selection Sunday, with the First Four games kicking off on the 19th. The March Madness apps are ready for smartphones and tablets on Android and iOS and “redesigned for optimization across platforms” this time around. Whether or not you have the privilege of membership (or can borrow a login from a friend) the apps are available beyond the source link.
Filed under: Home Entertainment, Software, HD, Mobile
Verizon to use cable spectrum for LTE starting this year
Posted by Gsurface
on March 13, 2013
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Verizon Wireless CTO Nicola Palmer told Fierce Wireless in an interview that the company is on track to begin using the 20MHz of AWS spectrum it bought last year from the major cable operators to help boost capacity on its 4G LTE network. [Read more]
CNET News
Ouya online multiplayer to launch by end of the year
Posted by Gsurface
on March 12, 2013
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Julie Uhrman, the founder and CEO of Ouya, states that the gaming console will not support online multiplayer when it launches. She hopes that the the developers will be able to get the feature up and running by the end of the year. But fear not, local multiplayer will still be supported, so you’ll be
Google’s stock may break $1000 within a year
Posted by Gsurface
on March 11, 2013
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The folks over at RBC Capital Markets believes that Google’s stock may surpass $ 1000 within the next 12 months. As of today, Google’s stock is currently worth $ 835.04, so the $ 1000 figure may not be too far off. RBC states that it’d be more accurate to say that the stocks will reach around $ 950 within
Amazon phone reportedly delayed until later this year
Posted by Gsurface
on March 11, 2013
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