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Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Internet runs out of addresses as devices grow (AP) : Technet

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Internet runs out of addresses as devices grow (AP) : Technet

Internet runs out of addresses as devices grow (AP)

Posted: 01 Feb 2011 02:11 PM PST

By PETER SVENSSON, AP Technology Writer Peter Svensson, Ap Technology Writer – Tue Feb 1, 5:11 pm ET

NEW YORK – The spread of Internet use in Asia and the proliferation of Internet-connected phones worldwide are causing the Internet to run out of numerical addresses, which act as "phone numbers" to ensure that surfers reach websites and e-mails find their destination.

The top-level authority that governs such addresses will distribute the last batches on Thursday, two people with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press. They spoke on condition of anonymity because a formal announcement wasn't planned until Thursday.

That doesn't mean consumers will suddenly find websites unreachable, though. And if everything goes according to plan, Internet users won't even notice.

"It will just be 'business as usual' if everyone gets their job done," said John Curran, CEO of the American Registry for Internet Numbers, or ARIN, one of five regional groups that dole out such addresses. ARIN covers the U.S., Canada and the Caribbean.

The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority, the top-level administrator of the system, has called a press conference in Miami on Thursday. One person said its last five "blocks" of Internet Protocol, or IP, addresses will be distributed then. These blocks, each with 16.8 million addresses, will be distributed to the regional registries. That means the regional groups will have IP addresses to distribute further to Internet service providers, websites and others before running out. Curran expects to deplete his allotment in six to nine months.

The current Internet address system, Internet Protocol version 4, has been in place since the 1980s. It allows for a theoretical maximum of 4.3 billion addresses in use, far beyond what was thought necessary for what was then mainly a network for academic use.

Engineers have known for years that the pool of these IP addresses would one day run out. Websites and service providers have been experimenting with a new technology that allows for many more addresses — an infinite number, for all practical purposes. But many have been slow to do so because of a lack of immediate benefits. The exhaustion of IP addresses at the top level puts pressure on them to move more quickly.

The new system is called Internet Protocol version 6, or IPv6. Curran said only about 2 percent of websites support it. However, many of those are the most-visited sites on the Internet, including Google and Facebook. He expects smaller sites to scramble for IPv6 addresses now.

As Internet service providers run out of IPv4 addresses, they'll have to give subscribers IPv6 addresses. The challenge lies in connecting them to websites that have only IPv4 addresses. In essence, IPv4 and IPv6 are different "languages." Several "translation" technologies are available, but they haven't been tested on a large scale, Curran said. That could lead to problems reaching some websites, or slow surfing.

"We're estimating how these boxes will work, but we haven't seen one deployed with tens of thousands of customers on it yet," Curran said.

The "end game" — the distribution of the last five blocks — was triggered by the distribution of two of the last seven blocks on Tuesday. They went to the Asia Pacific Network Information Centre, the regional registry for East Asia (including India), Australia and the Pacific islands.

Google, Microsoft spar over search results quality (AP)

Posted: 01 Feb 2011 03:36 PM PST

By JESSICA MINTZ and MICHAEL LIEDTKE, AP Technology Writers Jessica Mintz And Michael Liedtke, Ap Technology Writers – Tue Feb 1, 6:36 pm ET

SEATTLE – Google is accusing Microsoft Corp. of cheating as the two duel for Internet search supremacy, but Microsoft denies the charge, saying it's just using all available weapons to lessen its rival's dominance.

The dust-up between the two companies that process virtually all of North America's search requests grabbed the spotlight Tuesday at an event sponsored by Microsoft about the future of Internet searches. Microsoft's practices have even wider implications now that its technology powers Yahoo Inc. searches in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Australia, and Brazil as part of a 10-year partnership that grew out of the companies' inability to mount a serious challenge to Google on their own.

Google's attempt to embarrass Microsoft at an event devoted to innovation served as the latest reminder of the tensions between the technology heavyweights. While Microsoft has been pecking at Google in search, Google has been chipping away at Microsoft's advantage in computer software with its own suite of competing products.

"We just want everyone to know the truth about how Microsoft operates as a search engine, which is by taking the hard work of others and presenting it as their own," said Amit Singhal, a Google fellow who oversees the company's closely guarded search formulas. He made his comments in a phone interview.

Microsoft did nothing more than adjust its results after monitoring Internet Explorer users' search requests and clicking activity on Google as well as its own site, Bing, according to Harry Shum, a corporate vice president for Bing. In a blog post, Blum derided Google for engaging in a "a spy-novelesque stunt."

Google Inc. set out to expose Microsoft's tactics last year, said Matt Cutts, the head of Google's Web spam team. That's when it appeared Bing was showing search results that seemed a little too close to Google's own — especially for obscure, misspelled queries.

The similarities raised suspicions that Microsoft's IE Web browser and various other tools were feeding information back that helped Microsoft's engineers make Bing's results more Google-like.

Google laid a trap to prove it. The company made a list of gibberish or obscure search terms and manually linked them to unrelated websites. Then, 20 Google engineers took home laptops loaded with Internet Explorer, searched Google.com for those terms and clicked on the artificial results. Soon after, searching for the same odd terms on Bing would call up the same odd results.

Cutts likened the trap to a mapmaker drawing a fake street or the Yellow Pages adding a fake name to its directory to flush out copycats.

The "Bing Sting" was first reported on the Search Engine Land blog before emerging as a hot topic during a panel discussion that included Cutts and Shum. The San Francisco event was streamed over the Internet.

"It's not like we actually copy anything," Shum said. "We learn from customers who are willing to share data with us, just like Google does."

Those data include not only the searches people type into Bing, but also into Google, and what links they click on. The information can be used to fine-tune Bing's own search results. And that sort of "collective intelligence," Shum said, is how the Web is supposed to work.

Google doesn't use people's behavior on Bing the same way, Cutts said during Tuesday's event.

In an interview, Singhal argued it's unfair for Bing to piggyback on Google 's technology.

"It's like a student cheating on his test and saying, 'Yeah, I could see my classmates' test, so I wrote it down,'" Singhal said. "If that's not cheating, what is?"

Cutts and Shum traded jabs about whether people read the fine print when installing the Chrome or IE browser software that explains what Web surfing information is fed back to the company.

When the discussion moved on to the problem of increasing spam pages and low-quality content online, Shum blamed Google for rewarding the owners of such pages with advertising dollars.

Cutts said Google manually blocks spam pages regardless of whether they carry Google ads but wants to find a technology solution for the problem instead of picking off useless sites one by one.

___

Liedtke contributed from San Francisco.

HP discloses scope of new CEO's contract (AP)

Posted: 01 Feb 2011 08:06 PM PST

By JORDAN ROBERTSON, AP Technology Writer Jordan Robertson, Ap Technology Writer – 1 hr 9 mins ago

SAN FRANCISCO – Hewlett-Packard Co. gave its new CEO, who came aboard during a tumultuous time for the technology conglomerate, a compensation package that could be worth tens of millions of dollars.

Leo Apotheker, 57, is getting a $1.2 million salary, a $4 million cash signing bonus, and $4.6 million in relocation costs and reimbursement for non-compete payments from his former employer, German business software maker SAP AG, HP outlined in a regulatory filing Tuesday.

The majority of his payday will come from restricted stock that was worth nearly $38 million based on HP's stock price the day it was granted in September. That was when Apotheker agreed to fill a void left atop the computing industry heavyweight after his predecessor Mark Hurd was ousted last summer in a sexual harassment scandal.

Apotheker won't get his stock award all at once. And the value he ultimately sees may wind up being far less — or far more — depending on HP and its stock perform over the next three years. The majority of his stock is performance-based, which means he'll only get all of it if HP hits certain financial targets.

Because Apotheker didn't start at HP until November, which was after the company's latest fiscal year ended, HP didn't calculate a total value of his compensation package like it did for other executives who worked there earlier.

Hurd's was paid a $1.1 million salary for the 2010 fiscal year, and received a $12.2 million severance payment. He was in line for almost $10 million in stock awards that were canceled as part of a settlement that allowed him to work at Oracle Corp., an HP rival.

HP's board was criticized about the size of Hurd's severance package. The company's stock sank after Hurd's resignation, wiping out $9 billion in shareholder wealth in the first day of trading after the August announcement. Hurd stands to make millions of dollars more at Oracle, a business software maker that's muscling into HP's turf of computer servers.

Hurd also exercised $12.5 million in HP stock options during the period.

At the time of Hurd's resignation, a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press that Hurd was negotiating a three-year contract worth as much as $100 million. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because of not being authorized to speak publicly about the matter.

The value of Apotheker's contract could go as high as $100 million, if HP's stock doubles over the next three years and he gets all of the performance-based units.

Hurd's contract talks fell apart when he was accused of sexual harassment. He tangled with directors over the nature of his relationship with a former HP marketing contractor, and over whether to disclose the allegation even though the board found no evidence to support it. HP and the contractor, Jodie Fisher, said Fisher and Hurd didn't have a sexual relationship.

HP's board cited inaccurate expense reports for Hurd's outings with Fisher as a key part of its decision to demand his resignation. Hurd says he didn't prepare his own expenses, and that Fisher's name was never intentionally omitted.

The AP's formula for calculating executive compensation is designed to isolate the value that the company's board placed on the executive's total compensation package during the last fiscal year. It includes salary, bonus, performance-related bonuses, perks, above-market returns on deferred compensation and the estimated value of stock options and awards granted during the year.

The calculations don't include changes in the present value of pension benefits, and they sometimes differ from the totals companies list in the summary compensation table of proxy statements filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which reflect the size of the accounting charge taken for the executive's compensation in the previous fiscal year.

First look: Dell Streak 7 Android tablet (speedy processor, iffy screen) (Ben Patterson)

Posted: 01 Feb 2011 11:00 AM PST

By Ben Patterson ben Patterson – Tue Feb 1, 2:00 pm ET

The second major Android tablet available on a big U.S. carrier—T-Mobile, in this case—the Dell Streak 7 arrives with a souped-up, dual-core Tegra 2 processor, and it's priced to move. Too bad about the lousy display.

On sale starting Wednesday, February 2, the Dell Streak 7 arrives on the scene with a seven-inch display—same as on the Samsung Galaxy Tab, which landed on all four of the major U.S. carriers late last year—as well as a front- and rear-facing cameras, HD video recording, mobile hotspot capabilities, and support for T-Mobile's speedy HSPA+ network.

The new Streak also comes with a $199 two-year contract price—$50 less than T-Mobile's discounted two-year contact price for the Samsung Galaxy Tab, and a good $200 less than the Tab's original, carrier-subsidized $399 sticker price.

Under the hood, the Streak 7 packs in a dual-core Tegra 2 processor from Nvidia, which we'll also be seeing in tablets like Motorola's 10-inch Xoom and smartphones like the LG Optimus 2X and the Moto Atrix 4G.

Those hoping for speedy performance on the Tegra 2-powered Streak won't be disappointed; the thing pretty much screams, with home screens and apps responding quickly and smoothly to taps and swipes, while the bundled Asphalt 5 racing game hugged its tight corners with style to spare.

I also tried a few Flash-encoded videos on the desktop version of YouTube and came away impressed with the Streak's relatively smooth, hitch-free performance.

The Streak marks the first tablet to support T-Mobile's speedy HSPA+ network, which the carrier has recently gone ahead and labeled as "4G."

Without wading into a debate about whether HSPA+ qualifies as a true 4G data network, I can report that the Streak racked up impressive figures in my limited speed tests here in Brooklyn, regularly topping 3Mbps downstream and averaging about 1Mbps upstream. That's pretty much on par with my WiMax-enabled Overdrive 4G modem for Sprint.

Nice, but don't expect the Streak to ship with Honeycomb, the new tablet-focused version of Android. Instead, the Streak comes with Android 2.2—the same, now-outdated version of Android upon which Samsung's Galaxy Tab is based.

While Android 2.2 runs well enough on the Streak's seven-inch display, it lacks the tablet-centric navigation and app support expected in the forthcoming Honeycomb upgrade, which Google is expected to detail at a press event Wednesday morning.

Of course, it's always possible that the Streak 7 and the Tab will eventually see updates for Honeycomb, but there's no telling when that may happenâ€"and in the meantime, a series of Honeycomb-based tablets (such as the Xoom for Verizon and the LG-designed G-Slate for T-Mobile) are slated to arrive in just a few months or so. In other words, Android tablet shoppers might be better off waiting just a bit longer.

The Streak comes armed with a pair of cameras: a 1.3-megapixel lens in front for video chat, along with a 5MP snapper in back capable of 720p-quality video capture. Both cameras performed reasonably well in my brief tests, with image quality that's reasonably solid if nothing to write home about. In a head-to-head with the Samsung Tab, the Streak's 5MP rear camera tops the Tab's rear-facing 3MP sensor, which only shoots SD-quality video.

Then again, the Tab has an edge on the Streak in terms of look and feel, with the hefty Streak tipping the scales at nearly 16 ounces, or more than two ounces heavier than the Tab. Two extra ounces may not sound like a lot, but I could certainly feel the difference as I held the Streak in my hands.

Dell has its own custom interface skin, dubbed "Stage," sitting atop the Android OS. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, of course; personally, I'm not a fan. The five "Stage" home screen modules come with their own little shelves (or stages, I suppose) along the bottom, each labeled as "Home," "Social," "Music," "Web," and "Email," with the titles in big capital letters.

Take a look for yourself, and you like it, great. For my money, "Stage" looks a bit cheesy.

A bigger problem, however, is the Streak's actual display. With a resolution of just 800 by 480, the Streak's screen looks considerably less tight than the 1024 by 600 display on the Galaxy Tab, pixel structure clearly visible and on-screen text looking disappointingly jaggy. You could consider that a necessary trade-off considering the Streak's relatively low two-year contract price … but then again, the Samsung Galaxy Tab is going for just $50 more with service on T-Mobile.

I haven't had time to perform a thorough battery test on the Streak, but I can tell you this: After 24 hours of letting the fully-charged tablet sit in sleep mode, connected via 4G but otherwise dormant, the Streak's battery meter was down to 50 percent. Not terrible, but not terribly encouraging either.

Overall, I'd call the Streak a solid, speedy Android tablet saddled with an underwhelming display—and within a few months, it'll be overwhelmed by a swarm of more compelling, Honeycomb-powered competitors. My advice: wait for just a bit longer, until we get a better look at the Xoom, the G-Slate, and the other expected Honeycomb tablets.

Correction: In an earlier version of this post, I erroneously referred to HP rather than Dell while discussing the "Stage" UI skin. Apologies for the foul-up.

— Ben Patterson is a technology blogger for Yahoo! News.

Follow me on Twitter!

LG to show off glasses-free 3D Android phone (Ben Patterson)

Posted: 01 Feb 2011 07:04 AM PST

By Ben Patterson ben Patterson – Tue Feb 1, 10:04 am ET

Small 3D displays that don't require glasses are in, and LG plans to show off what it's calling the first "full" 3D smartphone at a mobile conference later this month.

The LG Optimus 3D isn't really the first Android phone to do the glasses-free 3D trick—after all, we heard word of the no-glasses, 3D-enabled Sharp Galapagos in November, while the Samsung W960 (granted, just a feature phone) beat everyone to the glasses-free 3D phone party last May.

But LG is promising a "full" 3D experience thanks to a dual-lens camera capable of taking 3D pictures, which (presumably) you'll be able to view instantly on the handset's 3D display.

So, how big of a display are we talking here? LG's press release goes way easy on the details, adding only that the Optimus 3D will come with HDMI support and DLNA for sharing 3D content, with "further details and a live demo" slated for Mobile World Congress in Barcelona later this month.

For a picture—or a purported picture, at least—of the Optimus 3D, we need look no further than Phandroid, which has a snapshot of what appears to be a new LG Optimus handset with a four-inch-ish screen.

A tipster claims that the Optimus 3D will come with a dual-core processor, same as on the recently announced Optimus 2X, while a little dot that appears to be a lens for a front-facing camera sits in the upper-right corner of the handset's bezel.

In any case, we'll be getting the full skinny on the Optimus 3D at LG's MWC press event; I won't be making the trip to Barcelona, unfortunately, but I'll be following along remotely.

Handheld devices with small, glasses-free 3D displays will be getting a major test with the arrival of the Nintendo 3DS later this month in Japan, with a worldwide release to follow in March. During my brief hands-on with the 3DS, I called its 3D screen "far better than I was expecting" with "a real sense of depth to the image," although I could "feel the eye strain creeping in" when the 3D effect was pushed too far.

Expect more glasses-free 3D smartphones to arrive on the heels on the LG Optimus 3D, although whether we're talking an honest-to-goodness trend or little more than a gee-whiz fad remains to be seen.

Related
Press release [LG]
LG Optimus 3D Pictured Live For First Time [Phandroid]

— Ben Patterson is a technology blogger for Yahoo! News.

Follow me on Twitter!

HTC Inspire 4G: First Impressions (PC World)

Posted: 01 Feb 2011 05:47 PM PST

Ginny Mies Ginny Mies – Tue Feb 1, 8:47 pm ET

HTC Inspire 4G, arrived in the PCWorld offices today. AT&T also announced that the Inspire will have the sweet pricetag of $100 (with a two-year contract) and will be available in retail stores February 13.

On paper, the Inspire 4G sounds a lot like a GSM version of Sprint's HTC EVO 4G. It sports a 4.3-inch display, runs Android 2.2 with HTC Sense and has an 8-megapixel camera. So, why the $100 gap between the EVO 4G ($200 with a two-year contract) and the Inspire 4G? Well, the Inspire doesn't have a front-facing camera, an HDMI slot or a kickstand. On the other hand, it does have Dolby Mobile HD sound, which is great for watching full-length movies on your phone.

This is a bit finicky, but I'm not a huge fan of the way HTC has designed the SIM card and battery slots. Rather making the battery cover one removable piece, you have to remove two different panels to get to these slots. The battery slot was especially hard to remove and put back together. I felt like I had to use some force to get the piece to snap in-which is never a good feeling.

The Inspire's unibody design is otherwise very attractive and it feels nice and solid in hand. It is slightly thinner than the EVO and a touch lighter as well. The 4.3-inch display looks gorgeous and nicely showcases HTC Sense.

We weren't getting a very strong HSPA+ signal over at the PCWorld offices in the South Park neighborhood of San Francisco. Then again, we don't really get a strong 3G signal over here either. Powered by a 1GHz Snapdragon processor, the Inspire is perfectly speedy and handled multiple open apps just fine.

I'm still putting the camera, camcorder and other multimedia features to the test so stay tuned for our full rated review.

Sumo faces reports of bout-fixing (AP)

Posted: 01 Feb 2011 08:21 PM PST

By ERIC TALMADGE, Associated Press Eric Talmadge, Associated Press – 55 mins ago

TOKYO – Japan's scandal-tainted national sport of sumo wrestling is facing new allegations that senior wrestlers used cell phones to plan how to fix matches.

Japanese media reported Wednesday that police have found suspicious text messages on several wrestlers' cell phones suggesting they were planning to fix bouts and going so far as to detail how one would attack and how he wanted his opponent to fall.

The text messages, found on the phones of wrestlers in sumo's second-highest division, indicate that the wrestlers routinely fixed bouts and charged hundreds of thousands of yen (thousands of dollars) per match to do so, according to Japan's Kyodo news service.

Public broadcaster NHK, which airs the six annual sumo tournaments live, carried a similar report. It said sumo officials were planning to hold an emergency meeting Wednesday to discuss the matter.

Police had no immediate comment. It was not clear if a formal criminal investigation would be launched.

Japan Sumo Association chairman Hanaregoma said he was aware of the reports, but had not been contacted by police.

"We are examining the situation," he said.

Sumo — which has its roots in ancient religious purification rituals — has been dogged by scandals.

Several wrestlers were arrested last year for betting illegally on baseball games, allegedly with gangsters as go-betweens. That scandal followed allegations in 2009 of widespread marijuana use among the ranks that led to the explusion of three Russian fighters.

Kyodo said the text messages this time were found on phones confiscated when police were investigating the baseball gambling ring.

Last week, reports surfaced that three sumo wrestlers were involved in drunken incidents, including a late-night brawl.

Scandals are particularly high profile for sumo because it is seen by most Japanese as not only a sport but a bastion of Japanese tradition and culture, and wrestlers are expected to observe a high standard of public behavior.

But rumors of ties with the underworld have been rife, and the baseball gambling scandal deeply sullied sumo's image.

Unsubstantiated allegations of gangster involvement in bout-fixing have plagued the sport for decades, but have never been proved.

Google Launches Shopping App for iPhone (Mashable)

Posted: 01 Feb 2011 02:06 PM PST

Ben Parr Ben Parr – Tue Feb 1, 5:06 pm ET

Google is launching its popular shopping app, Google Shopper, for iPhone, complete with voice, image and local search.

Originally released for Android last year, Google Shopper can find products based on text, voice or barcode recognition to get the price comparison of a specific product online. If you do a search for "HP printer," you'll be a list of different printer types, as well as a list of nearby locations where you can purchase the item. Google also displays a rating for the item, based on user reviews.

When you select a specific item, Google gives you more details about the product. You can then choose to either check for the item on a variety of online retailers, or you can look up a list of local retailers that carry the product. If you choose Local search, Google will display whether the item is available or not in each store. You can also "star" a specific item to save for later or you can share it with your friends via Facebook, Twitter and/or Google Reader.

Just like its Android counterpart, Shopper for iPhone is fast, simple and effective. For someone who wants to just get the price comparison, no matter where they are, the app will prove to be a reliable companion. That can't be good for the likes of ShopSavvy and other shopping and barcode-reading applications.

The app is available in the app store now for iPhones running iOS 4.0 and higher.

LG announces 3D smartphone; Google hiring to bolster Android apps (Appolicious)

Posted: 01 Feb 2011 01:03 PM PST

Can a Phone Become Your Digital Wallet? (PC World)

Posted: 01 Feb 2011 06:00 PM PST

Anne B. McDonald Anne B. Mcdonald – Tue Feb 1, 9:00 pm ET

Back in 2006 I was fascinated (and a little jealous) when I read that shoppers in Japan could pay for a soda by waving their cell phone at a vending machine. Since then I've been impatiently waiting for this handy pay method to spread to the United States. So when the technology that makes it possible--Near Field Communication--started being discussed again recently, I got hopeful.

If you work in a building that requires you to wave a card to gain entry, you have an idea of how NFC works. That card has an embedded circuit with your permissions encoded. Similarly, NFC--a high-frequency wireless communications technology--allows the exchange of data between devices at a maximum distance of about 4 inches. Users wave or tap their mobile phone against a reader and then enter a PIN on the handset to verify a purchase.

So, What's New?

A clutch of tech giants recently issued announcements that made me optimistic. Nokia says that all of the smartphones it introduces this year will have NFC capability. All phones using the new 2.3 version of Google's Android operating system will be NFC-capable, too. And AT&T Wireless, T-Mobile, and Verizon Wireless have formed ISIS, a joint venture to develop an NFC mobile payment system.

Google also is testing NFC technology in Portland, Oregon, as part of its HotPot location-based recommendation service, in which you rate Google Places-listed businesses in a method similar to that of Yelp. You then start getting recommendations in your search results for things that Google thinks you will like based on the preferences that you've stated.

In the Portland tests, if a business links itself to its Places page, it may request a kit from Google that contains a "Recommended on Google" decal with NFC tech built in. Smartphone users can touch their device to the sticker for more info.

And the NFC Forum, which works to promote the use of the technology in consumer electronics and mobile devices, had interesting entries in a contest for ideas on how to use NFC. One was the Smart Poster: Imagine touching your phone to an NFC-enabled poster and immediately receiving something such as a movie trailer or a discount coupon.

Sounds like fun, right? Here's the bad news: Although devices may have the capability, we won't see it in action anytime soon. Avi Greengart, research director for consumer devices at Current Analysis, told me: "NFC could be extremely useful as secure ID or a payment mechanism. In fact, we already use NFC in some credit cards and keyfobs. The technology isn't the issue--it's getting the technology widely deployed with consumers and, at the same time, ensuring the infrastructure for accepting payments is upgraded to match. This chicken-and-egg problem is unlikely to be resolved this year."

Mobility expert Bob Egan agrees: "The noise around NFC will be very big in 2011, but the transactions, by volume and amount transacted, will be very small."

After I spoke with the analysts, rumors started to swirl that Apple is considering NFC capability for its new iPhones and iPads. (For some analysis, see "iWallet: 4 Things NFC Payments Need to Take Off.")

I'm a Droid user, though. So even if Apple jumps on the NFC bandwagon, I'll still be hoarding unwrinkled dollar bills for a while--just so I can get my ginger-ale fix from the basement vending machine.

Google jumps into location check-in game (AFP)

Posted: 01 Feb 2011 12:55 PM PST

– Tue Feb 1, 3:55 pm ET

SAN FRANCISCO (AFP) – Google on Tuesday began letting smartphone users check into spots on the go as the Internet star jumped into the hot location-based services arena with Facebook, Foursquare and Gowalla.

The check-in feature was added to a Latitude service that lets people with GPS-enabled Android smartphones share their whereabouts with selected friends.

"You can still use Latitude to automatically update and share your location, but check-ins let you add context to the location, like captions to a photo," Google software engineer Joe LaPenna said in a blog post.

The new Latitude service works with a 5.1 version of Google Maps for devices running on Android software.

Unlike other smartphone check-in services, Latitude can use satellite postioning capabilities of handsets to automatically update where people are, according to LaPenna.

"You can talk to friends or finish your bagel without fumbling with your phone," LaPenna said. "Once you leave, Latitude knows to automatically check you out of places so friends aren't left guessing if you're still there."

Location-sharing service Foursquare last week announced that its ranks grew by 3,400 percent in the past year and that it now has more than six million registered users.

Foursquare and rival Gowalla let people log their locations by "checking in" from where they are at any given moment using smartphones or other Internet-linked devices.

People's whereabouts and text comments, if any, are then shared with selected circles of friends.

Facebook last year released a Places and Deals applications that let members use smartphones to share their whereabouts with friends and get rewarded with notifications regarding deals at nearby shops or restaurants.

Facebook Places marked the firm's first step into location-based services that have been catching on with the popularity of smartphones.

Location-based services have proven potential when it comes to targeting advertising or promotions that users happen to be near.

5 Ways an Amazon Prime Video Streaming Service Could Best Netflix (PC World)

Posted: 01 Feb 2011 12:57 PM PST

Brennon Slattery Brennon Slattery – Tue Feb 1, 3:57 pm ET

Amazon appears to be fishing for an edge over streaming video kingpin Netflix with a reported new offering that would allow unlimited videos streaming of select Hollywood movies and TV shows for a flat $79 a year.

According to Internet reports, Amazon will extend its Amazon Prime service to include unlimited streaming of select movies and TV shows. Amazon Prime is a $79-a-year offering allows you to get two day and standard shipping for free on selected Amazon.com items and one day shipping for $3.99. The news comes from Engadget that grabbed screenshots of what appears to be an Amazon teaser posted for a short time on the site.

The pics purport that a "Watch now" button appears next to movie titles, in addition to text that reads, "Your Amazon Prime membership now includes unlimited, commercial-free, instant streaming of 5,000 movies and TV shows at no additional cost."

Though Amazon Prime Streaming is still a rumor at this point, the idea makes sense, and if Amazon does it right, I think it could be a phenomenal success.

Here are 5 ways Amazon can succeed with a streaming service:

Monthly Subscription Rate

An Amazon Prime membership costs $79 per year. Netflix's no-disc streaming-only plan is $95.88 per year, but because this is on a month-by-month basis, customers think they're saving money.

Configuring the economic model for Amazon Prime on a month-by-month basis might be tricky-and I'm certainly no accountant-but it's a sharp and simple marketing tool. Amazon could then compare and contrast Prime Streaming to other subscription models and win the price wars instantly.

Consumer-Friendly Pricing Structure

Amazon waged a tough battle against publishers back when Amazon's $9.99 e-book pricing cap was dismantled. Though the company lost, its willingness to fight showed how Amazon breaks spines to provide the lowest prices for its customers.

As Forbes mentions, Amazon's entrance into the streaming subscription world means more money flowing into movie studios:

"Netflix spent over $400 million in 2010 for rights to their streaming content. With their deal with Starz set to be renewed this year, they'll end up paying a lot more than that in 2011. Another player in that game could conceivably double the amount of money going to studios to license their content. And if Amazon wants to stream newer movies and TV shows, it will have to pay even more."

Amazon has the money, it has the consumer base, and it has a sterling reputation for providing Wal-Mart-worthy prices. Hell, it could even flat-out buy Netflix if it wanted.

Emphasis on Disc+ On Demand

Streaming video is popular, but a lot of people still want DVDs, and unless Amazon starts renting DVDs (highly unlikely) Netflix will have a leg-up. However, if Amazon emphasized Disc+ On Demand-a deal in which you buy a physical copy of a movie and receive a complimentary 2-day rental of the film via Amazon Video on Demand-it could appear as though it's as DVD-friendly as Netflix.

Also, Amazon could flip the model: you rent or stream a movie through VoD or Prime, respectively, and have the option to receive a physical disc with 2-day shipping. Brilliant for movie lovers and collectors.

Family-Sharing Plans

Here's an oft-forgotten fact that CNET reminded me of: Amazon Prime memberships can be shared with up to three "family members." Whether said sharing program would be included in a streaming plan is up for grabs, but it does present an interesting option-one that could even allow Amazon to offer "family plans" for discounted rates.

The Kindle Tablet

A robust video streaming service and a selection of almost 1 million e-books would make the Kindle Tablet a smart move for the future. Amazon likes that the Kindle e-reader is a dedicated device, and the Kindle Tablet could be the same: by ignoring Android and its apps, and creating a homemade UI, Amazon could again build and corner a niche market. Whereas the iPad does tons of things, the Kindle Tablet would do only two or three things-but wicked well.

If Amazon Prime Streaming is to be believed, Amazon has a long road ahead. Netflix Instant is on practically every device on the market-I wouldn't be surprised to see dishwashers with Netflix Watch Instantly emblazoned on the side. But if Amazon can assemble a decent package with the five homeruns above, it might just come out on top.

Bump iOS app can now share app recommendations (Macworld)

Posted: 01 Feb 2011 04:50 PM PST

David Chartier David Chartier – Tue Feb 1, 7:50 pm ET

Bump vaulted into widespread iPhone popularity by being the billionth downloaded app way back in April 2009 (my, we've come a long way, haven't we?). Since then, the "bump iPhones to share something" utility has gained features including text messaging and media sharing. Now Bump Technologies is back with a much requested feature: sharing app recommendations.

Upon opening Bump 2.4, you can select the new Apps option from its expanding toolbox of shareable items and pick one or more apps to share with another user via bumping.

As with similar app discovery utilities like AppsFire and Frenzapp, Bump is using a few clever tricks to discover your most recently used apps, but it will most likely not see every app you have installed or downloaded. A search box should help you track down any other apps you want to recommend.

Once you bump, your fellow Bump user will receive your custom tailored list of apps, each linking to its respective App Store entries. On its blog, Bump Technologies said this has been its biggest feature request lately, especially in light of the App Store's stock that is now north of 300,000 apps.

Also new in this release are improvements to the speed of texting and photo messaging. Bump 2.4 is available now for free in the App Store and it requires iOS 3.0 or later.

iOS 4.3 Beta 3 Seeded to Developers (PC World)

Posted: 01 Feb 2011 01:40 PM PST

Mike Keller Mike Keller – Tue Feb 1, 4:40 pm ET

Apple's third beta of iOS 4.3 is now in the hands of developers. This new beta includes three separate packages: iOS, the SDK, and Apple TV Software. Typically, Apple releases three betas to its developers before seeding a Gold Master. This latest beta feels snappier and more polished, as well as introduces a welcome surprise.

As you may know by now, this will be the first major update to iOS that will not be compatible with pre-iPhone 3GS/iPod Touch 3rd-generation hardware. No doubt that the most anticipated feature of 4.3, HD streaming over AirPlay, would be taxing on older devices. The update will also bring HTTP Live Streaming statistics, which allows developers to track video streaming usage and performance metrics (such as bitrate, dropped frames) in order to optimize content. Clearly, video streaming is a focus of this update.

And as first reported by App Advice, iOS 4.3 beta 3 contains a surprise feature that gives users the ability to delete an app while it is being downloaded- useful in the event you start downloading a large app on accident. Previously, you could only pause the download in progress, so this has been a highly requested feature for a while (especially since AT&T stopped offering the unlimited data plan to new customers).

If you're an iOS developer, head on over to Apple's developer site and get the latest beta.

[via MacRumors]

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CommVault Systems (Investor's Business Daily)

Posted: 01 Feb 2011 03:10 PM PST

– Tue Feb 1, 6:10 pm ET

CommVault Systems (NMS:CVLT), a developer of data management software, said Q3 EPS rose 16% to 22 cents, a penny above estimates, helped by growth in enterprise contracts worth $100,000 or more. Revenue grew 18% to $83.6 mil, beating views for $78.1 mil. Software sales climbed 19% and services sales were up 18%. Shares rose 4.2% to 32.18.
at 9:34 PM

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