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AP Technology NewsBrief at 5:05 a.m. EST
[February 25, 2013]

AP Technology NewsBrief at 5:05 a.m. EST


(Associated Press Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) AT&T snags OnStar wireless contract from VerizonBARCELONA, Spain (AP) _ AT&T Inc. is scoring a win over rival Verizon Wireless as it takes over the contract to supply wireless connections to cars with General Motors' OnStar service. Verizon Wireless and its predecessor companies have supplied the network for OnStar since the service launched in the 1990s, but AT&T will take over with the 2015 model year, AT&T and GM said Monday.



Correction: Wireless Show-Firefox Phones storyBARCELONA, Spain (AP) _ In a story Feb. 24 about the launch of phones using the Firefox web browser, The Associated Press reported erroneously that 13 phone companies around the world have committed to supporting the phones. The figure is in fact 18. A corrected version of the story is below: Huawei reveals 'fastest smartphone in the world'BARCELONA, Spain (AP) _ Huawei, a Chinese company that recently became the world's third-largest maker of smartphones, calls its new flagship product "the fastest smartphone in the world" and wants to use it to expand global awareness of its brand. Parts of the presentation of the phone at a press conference Sunday in Barcelona, Spain, suggest that the company has some way to go in polishing its pitch for a global audience.

Iceland's plan to ban Internet porn sparks uproarREYKJAVIK, Iceland (AP) _ In the age of instant information, globe-spanning viral videos and the World Wide Web, can a thoroughly wired country become a porn-free zone Authorities in Iceland want to find out. The government of the tiny North Atlantic nation is drafting plans to ban pornography, in print and online, in an attempt to protect children from a tide of violent sexual imagery.


HP to make $169 Android tablet, eschewing WindowsBARCELONA, Spain (AP) _ Hewlett-Packard Co. is making a tablet computer that uses Google's Android operating system, steering clear of Microsoft's latest tablet-oriented version of Windows, the company said Sunday. The HP Slate 7 will have a 7-inch screen, making it similar in size to the Amazon Kindle Fire. It will cost $169 when it goes on sale in April in the U.S.

Wireless show expected to draw crowds to BarcelonaWhen the top executives of the world's wireless industry gather next week in Barcelona for their annual trade show, cellphones will take a back seat to talk of cars, electric meters and insulin monitors. That idea of empowering new devices with wireless connections has been percolating for years. General Motors cars have had wireless OnStar connections for more than a decade. But the push is intensifying now that most people have cellphones _and the wireless industry's future growth depends on it. That means the GSM Mobile World Congress, the telecommunications industry's largest annual trade show, will be abuzz with discussion of devices like "smart" meters that report a home's usage of electricity, natural gas or water back to the utility, and to your phone.

Big studios behind swag-fueled Oscar pushLOS ANGELES (AP) _ Giant coffee table books, iPod Shuffles, signed letters from directors, even "Lincoln" turkey roasting pans. That's just some of the largesse doled out by the studios to voters for awards presented earlier this season _ each with the potential to influence the outcome of Hollywood's most important awards, Sunday night's Oscars. Such gifts are strictly forbidden by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. But for studios, the stakes are high, and they've been creative in working around the rules to give their movies the best spotlight possible. A best picture win can boost a film's commercial appeal and solidify relations with big-name actors and directors.

Judge blocks shareholder vote on Apple proposalNEW YORK (AP) _ A federal judge is blocking Apple from conducting a shareholder vote on a package of governance proposals, handing a victory to a rebel investor who is trying to persuade the company to share more of its cash with its investors. U.S. District Judge Richard Sullivan in New York ruled Friday that Apple Inc. was wrong to bundle four amendments to its corporate charter into one proposal for a vote at next Wednesday's annual meeting. Shareholders should get to vote on the amendments separately, he said. Although the ruling was preliminary, before both sides had a chance to fully make their case, Sullivan said Apple was likely to lose. He granted dissident investors a preliminary injunction against Apple pending a full trial.

Microsoft joins list of companies recently hackedREDMOND, Wash. (AP) _ Microsoft has joined the list of prominent technology companies confirming they have been hit by a recent computer hacking attack. In a blog posting Friday, Microsoft said it had found no evidence that any customer data had been heisted.

Microsoft lapse cause outages in Azure serviceREDMOND, Wash. (AP) _ Microsoft unwittingly let an online security certificate expire Friday, triggering a worldwide outage in an online service that stores data for a wide range of business customers. The sloppy housekeeping represents an embarrassing lapse for Microsoft Corp. as the software maker tries to bring in more revenue from the storage service, which is called Azure.

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