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AP Technology NewsBrief at 6:35 a.m. EDT
[November 02, 2011]

AP Technology NewsBrief at 6:35 a.m. EDT


(Associated Press Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Sony headed for fourth straight year in the redTOKYO (AP) _ Sony reported a 27 billion yen ($346 million) loss for the latest quarter and downgraded its annual earnings forecast Wednesday to stay in the red for the fourth year straight, battered by the strong yen and poor sales of flat panel TVs. The Japanese electronics and entertainment conglomerate is now projecting a 90 billion yen loss ($1.2 billion) for the fiscal year through March 2012 after earlier forecasting a profit of 60 billion yen ($769 million).



UK: Disorder no excuse to clamp down on InternetLONDON (AP) _ Governments must not clamp down on Internet and mobile phone networks at times of social unrest, the British government said Tuesday _ weeks after suggesting police should do just that during riots. Foreign Secretary William Hague said the fact that criminals and terrorists can exploit digital networks is not "justification for states to censor their citizens." As Assange awaits ruling, WikiLeaks faces its fateLONDON (AP) _ As Julian Assange awaits a judge's extradition verdict, it could be WikiLeaks' very future that's at stake. Its finances under pressure and some of its biggest revelations already public, WikiLeaks may not have the strength to survive if Britain's High Court judge decides Wednesday in favor of a Swedish request to extradite Assange to face trial over rape allegations, some experts argue.

Security firm: Hackers hit chemical companiesBEIJING (AP) _ Cyber attacks traced to China targeted at least 48 chemical and military-related companies in an effort to steal technical secrets, a U.S. computer security company said Tuesday, adding to complaints about pervasive Internet crime linked to this country. The targets included 29 chemical companies and 19 others that make advanced materials used by the military, California-based Symantec Corp. said in a report. It said the group included multiple Fortune 100 companies but did not identify them or say where they were located.


Property tax confusion pokes Facebook in OregonSALEM, Ore. (AP) _ The promise of lucrative tax breaks helped persuade Facebook to build a data center in one of Oregon's most economically depressed counties. Now, the state and the company are in a dispute over how much Facebook may owe in property taxes, and the social networking giant fears it could be taxed on intangible assets like the value of its powerful brand. Facebook has said the state's action has the potential to rewrite an economic development deal it cut with Crook County, but not even state tax officials seem to know for sure whether the company is overreacting or it's truly facing a tax surprise.

Toyota shows machines to help sick, elderly moveTOKYO (AP) _ Toyota unveiled its ambitions for high-tech health care Tuesday, displaying experimental robots that the auto giant says can lift disabled patients from their hospital beds or help them walk. The company aims to commercialize products such as its "independent walk assist" device sometime after 2013 _ seeking to position itself in an industry with great potential in Japan, one of the world's most rapidly aging nations.

Can Kodak rescue itself via a patent bonanza?ROCHESTER, N.Y. (AP) _ Picture this: Kodak _ the company that invented the first digital camera in 1975, and developed the photo technology inside most cellphones and digital devices _ is in the midst of the worst crisis in its 131-year history. Now, caught between ruin and revival, Eastman Kodak Co. is reaching ever more deeply into its intellectual treasure chest, betting that a big cash infusion from the sale of 1,100 digital-imaging inventions will see it through a transition that has raised the specter of bankruptcy.

Ore. senator, others cited by digital-rights groupNEW YORK (AP) _ An Oregon senator who was behind a 1996 federal law that has made content-sharing services such as YouTube and Facebook possible is among three recipients of Pioneer Awards from a leading digital-rights group. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., was co-author of a law that protects online service providers from legal liability for content produced by their users. That means Google can let users freely post video on YouTube, and Facebook can let users write status updates and share links without worry they would be sued for defamation and other issues. In such cases, any liability would rest with the user who posted the item.

AT&T announces first phones for new networkNEW YORK (AP) _ The first two phones to run on AT&T's new high-speed data network will go on sale Sunday. The phones are the HTC Vivid and the Samsung Galaxy S II Skyrocket. Both are big touchscreen smartphones that run Google Inc.'s Android software. They'll cost $200 and $250 respectively, with a two-year service contract requirement.

Pete Townshend brands iTunes a 'digital vampire'LONDON (AP) _ The Who's Pete Townshend on Monday branded Apple Inc.'s iTunes a "digital vampire" that profits from music without supporting the artists who create it. Townshend said that faced with the Internet's demolition of established copyright protections, iTunes should offer some of the services to artists that record labels and music publishers used to provide. These include employing talents scouts, giving space to allow bands to stream their music and paying smaller artists directly rather than through a third party aggregator.

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