TMCnet News
AP Technology NewsBrief at 1:39 p.m. EDT(Associated Press Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) News of the World shutting down amid scandalLONDON (AP) _ Rupert Murdoch's News International shocked Britain on Thursday by announcing it is shutting down the News of the World, the best-selling tabloid at the center of an ugly phone hacking scandal. The tabloid, long known for its dubious undercover reporting techniques, had gravely offended the British public by hacking into the cell phone voicemail of a missing teenage girl, possibly even interfering with the police investigation into her murder. Voicemail spying shows phone network weak spotsSAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ The voicemail tampering scandal engulfing Rupert Murdoch's News of the World tabloid demonstrates not only the vulnerability of phone networks, but also the fallibility of the people who help maintain them. The British tabloid is accused of breaking into voicemail accounts of various celebrities and dignitaries _and even crime victims and their families_ in a relentless hunt for scoops. End near for endless data use on smartphonesSAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ When Verizon Wireless kills off its unlimited data plan for new smartphone customers on Thursday, it will mark another blow for endless Web surfing and video streaming. The move by the nation's largest wireless carrier has long been anticipated. More people are switching to smartphones and using an increasing amount of data for all manner of wireless activities. The shift could help wireless carriers ensure that they can handle the traffic flowing over the new higher-speed "4G," or fourth-generation, data networks they're rolling out. Review: Google Plus thoughtful answer to FacebookNEW YORK (AP) _ My first thought about Google Plus: "Here we go again." After Google's earlier attempts at social networking failed spectacularly, it was easy to scoff at this seeming Facebook wannabe. Its "Picasa ultimatum" didn't help much either. If you have an account with Picasa, Google's photo-sharing service, the first thing Google asks is whether you'd want to share your Picasa photos. Say no, and you're not allowed to sign up at all. That seemed unnecessarily harsh. Cricket's music plan showing promiseLOS ANGELES (AP) _ If you think people who pre-pay their cellphone bills aren't the type to shell out for music these days, think again. Pre-paid wireless carrier Cricket said Thursday that its Muve Music service has quickly become one of the top unlimited mobile music plans in the United States with 100,000 subscribers, just months after launching in January. SKorea's LG touts Optimus 3D smartphone for gamingSEOUL, South Korea (AP) _ LG Electronics is touting 3-D smartphones as an alternative to dedicated handheld game devices. The company launched its LG Optimus 3-D phone Thursday in South Korea after beginning a global release last month covering more than 60 markets including Spain and Britain. No special glasses are required to view 3-D content on the phone. Samsung says 2nd-quarter operating profit fellSEOUL, South Korea (AP) _ Samsung Electronics' profitability slumped in the second quarter as strong performance in fast-growing smartphones could not overcome weakness in liquid crystal displays. Operating profit for the three months that ended June 30 will fall to between 3.5 trillion won and 3.9 trillion won ($3.7 billion) from 5.01 trillion won a year earlier, Samsung said in a statement. Hulu sees 1M paying subscribers by end of summerLOS ANGELES (AP) _ Online video service Hulu expects to have more than a million paying subscribers by the end of summer, several months earlier than forecast, its chief executive said in a blog post Wednesday. The rapid popularity of the paid plan may increase interest in Hulu, whose media company parents _ including The Walt Disney Co., News Corp. and Comcast Corp. _ have put it up for sale. Facebook launches video calls, group chat featuresNEW YORK (AP) _ Quick on the heels of Google's launch of its latest social-networking venture, Facebook said Wednesday that its 750 million users will now be able to make video calls on the site. The feature will be powered by the Internet phone service Skype. Facebook also redesigned its chat feature, so that the people a user messages the most often show up first. Obama takes on 'tweeters' in Twitter town hallWASHINGTON (AP) _ So much for 140 characters or less. A president, it seems, gets to respond to a tweet on his own terms. President Barack Obama got an avalanche of questions on Wednesday at a town hall forum through Twitter, the popular social media service. Of the many thousands that streamed in, he answered 18 in a familiar, spoken explanatory style that well-exceeded the limited length of a tweet. (c) 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |