Motorola Inc. has partnered with Swedish telecommunications giant Ericsson on advanced technology for public safety agencies, the two companies said Tuesday. Get the full story »
Filed under: Technology
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Apple TV could help Netflix growth
Shares in Netflix Inc. neared their all-time high on Thursday, after Apple Inc. said that the company’s streaming video service would be added to a new version of Apple TV.
The tie-in with Apple TV, a smaller, cheaper version of Apple’s earlier web-to-TV product, could cement Netflix’s dominance in the online movie rental business. Get the full story »
Verizon to offer no-contract plans for many phones
Verizon Wireless said Thursday it will offer no-contract data plans for many of its 3G multimedia phones and smartphones, including those from its premier Droid line of devices.
The prepaid data package costs $30 a month for unlimited access. For $10 a month, customers can get a data plan for their multimedia phones, or those that aren’t designed for intense Web browsing as smartphones are. The $10 data plan is capped at 25 megabytes a month.
The prepaid segment has grown rapidly in the last few years, fueled both by recessionary pressures on consumers and newer generations of phone users that dislike being tethered to a two-year contract. Major carriers such as Verizon have traditionally focused on post-paid subscribers, who tend to be a more reliable and lucrative source of revenue. But with increased competition from no-contract carriers such as Cricket Wireless, Boost Mobile and Virgin Mobile, which have smartphones in their line-ups in addition to no-frills handsets, other companies have started to sweeten their prepaid offerings as well. Get the full story »
Sep. 2, 2010 at 1:54 p.m.
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Filed under: Cell phones, Computers, Entertainment, Technology, Telecommunications, Wireless Google reported in talks for iTunes competitor
Google Inc. is in talks with music labels on plans for a download store and a digital song locker that would allow its mobile users to play songs wherever they are as it steps up its rivalry with Apple Inc., according to people familiar with the matter.
Google Vice President of Engineering Andy Rubin has been leading conversations with the labels about what a new Google music service would look like, according to these sources. Get the full story »
Sep. 2, 2010 at 11:45 a.m.
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Filed under: Crime, Fraud, Internet, Technology, Telecommunications Illinois AG suing firm for identity protection charges
Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan said Thursday she is suing a California company for charging consumers for identity protection services that they never requested.
The lawsuit, filed in Sangamon County Circuit Court, claims that ID Lifeguards Inc. of Glendale, Calif., charged $157,562 on the phone bills of 5,071 Illinois consumers between September 2009 and March 2010. Get the full story »
Sep. 1, 2010 at 5:26 p.m.
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Filed under: Consumer news, Internet, Technology, Telecommunications, Wireless U.S. delays web traffic rules
Communications regulators on Wednesday put off a controversial decision on Internet traffic rules, giving industry and consumer groups a chance to forge a compromise while avoiding a politically sensitive issue ahead of the November elections. Get the full story »
Carl Icahn buys more Motorola shares
Billionaire investor Carl Icahn is continuing to buy up shares of Motorola Inc., disclosing his second batch of purchases in a week. Get the full story »
Daley panel to address needs of tech firms
Mayor Richard M. Daley said Tuesday that he has created a committee to study infrastructure needs for local technology companies and entrepreneurs.
The committee comprises 20 members, including top executives at local tech firms and representatives from area universities. The group also includes local venture capitalist Matt McCall of New World Ventures, Navteq Chief Executive Larry Kaplan, Kevin Willer of Google’s Chicago office, and Brad Keywell and Eric Lefkofsky, co-founders of Lightbank, a Chicago-based investment fund focusing on early-stage tech companies. Get the full story »
Aug. 30, 2010 at 1:32 p.m.
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Filed under: Cell phones, Government, International, Technology, Telecommunications India says RIM to give it access to secure data
BlackBerry maker Research In Motion will give India access to secure data from Sept. 1, a government source said Monday as the country pushes RIM, Google and Skype to set up servers in India due to its security concerns.
On Monday, the interior ministry said RIM had offered India a few proposals to gain access its secure data and that the feasibility of the solutions would be assessed within 60 days. It did not give details of the solutions. Get the full story »
Aug. 30, 2010 at 12:14 p.m.
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Filed under: Cell phones, Consumer electronics, Consumer news, Food, Internet, Retail, Technology Meijer introduces digital coupon program
Meijer Inc. said Monday it is launching a new digital coupon program where shoppers can choose coupons from the store’s Web site and redeem them by entering their mobile phone numbers at check-out.
The mPerks program rolls out this week at the superstore chain’s 196 stores in Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky. Customers can sign up for an account linked to their personal cell phone number at mperks.meijer.com. Shoppers select coupons from the site to be stored in their account. At check-out, keying in the phone number redeems all applicable coupons. Get the full story »
Aug. 30, 2010 at 11:28 a.m.
Filed under: Cell phones, Consumer electronics, Internet, Technology, Wireless Clearwire offers pay-as-you-go 4G service
Clearwire Corp. launched Monday a new pay-as-you-go 4G mobile Internet service aimed at a young urban consumers in Chicago and 48 other markets.
Clearwire launched 4G service in Chicago late last year, offering broadband speeds that top those of 3G networks and allow for bandwidth-intensive activities such as streaming high-definition video. Sprint and Comcast also offer 4G products and services, which run on Clearwire’s network.
The new pay-as-you-go service is called Rover and will be branded separately from Clearwire’s other 4G offerings. Mike Sievert, Clearwire’s chief commercial officer, said in a conference call that Rover is geared toward city-dwelling youth between the ages of 18 and 24. Get the full story »
Big-name companies to unveil more iPad rivals
From The Financial Times | Big-name manufacturers, including Samsung and Toshiba, will present rivals to the iPad this week, as Apple prepares to introduce a raft of new products.
Samsung and Toshiba are expected to lead a tablet charge at the IFA consumer electronics show in Berlin on Thursday, hours after a San Francisco media event where an annual update of Apple’s iPod range is expected. But analysts say it will take time for Apple’s rivals to whittle away at the iPad’s dominance. Get the full story »
‘Monsters & Money’ in mourning
“Monsters & Money in the Morning” never quite found its voice, but co-host Mike Hegedus clearly found his in the final moments of the final edition of WBBM-Ch. 2’s bold but short-lived experiment that never found its audience.
Hegedus closed out the seven-month run of “Monsters & Money” just before 7 a.m. on Friday with an emotional plea for the television business “to take risks, to be different, to create something new and to give it time to succeed” or surrender to mediocrity.
