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AP Technology NewsBrief at 5:14 p.m. EDT(Associated Press Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Extremists flocking to Facebook for recruitsLONDON (AP) _ When the English Defense League sprang to life two years ago, it had fewer than 50 members _ a rough-and-tumble bunch of mostly white guys shouting from a street corner about what they viewed as uncontrolled Muslim immigration. Now, the far-right group mentioned by confessed Norway gunman Anders Behring Breivik as an inspiration says its ranks have swollen to more than 10,000 people, a spectacular rise its leaders attribute to the immense global power of Facebook and other social networking sites. Samsung second quarter profit slides 18 percentSEOUL, South Korea (AP) _ Samsung's net profit slid 18 percent in the second quarter as weakness in semiconductors and liquid crystal displays countered the electronics giant's growing strength in smartphones. Samsung, the world's biggest manufacturer of memory chips, LCDs and flat screen televisions, earned 3.51 trillion won ($3.33 billion) in the three months ended June 30, it said Friday in a regulatory filing. Samsung earned 4.28 trillion won the same period last year. Phone companies present rural broadband planWASHINGTON (AP) _ AT&T Inc., Verizon Communications Inc. and four other telecom companies are offering a proposal to overhaul an $8 billion federal phone subsidy program in order to pay for high-speed Internet access in rural and other underserved areas. They say the plan, which was filed with the Federal Communications Commission on Friday, would bring broadband service to nearly all Americans within five years. Nintendo shares plunge after 3DS price cutTOKYO (AP) _ Shares of Nintendo Co. took a beating Friday, losing more than a fifth of their value at one point, after the Japanese video game giant announced a worldwide price cut for its new 3DS in an effort to salvage poor sales. The move spooked investors and analysts, who had expected a quarterly loss but were taken aback by the severity of Nintendo's woes. Motorola Mobility outlook disappointsMotorola Mobility Holdings Inc., the maker of cellphones and cable set-top boxes that split off from the rest of Motorola in January, is struggling to continue its turnaround and find a stable foothold in the world of smartphones and tablets. On Thursday, it posted a loss for the latest quarter and forecast earnings for the current quarter well below analyst expectations, sending its shares down. Debt fight could bring more airwaves for broadbandWASHINGTON (AP) _ The debt ceiling battle could produce an unlikely winner: smartphone users. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's current plan would direct the Federal Communications Commission to auction off highly valuable radio spectrum to wireless carriers desperate for more airwaves. Companies such as AT&T and T-Mobile USA say they need more capacity to keep up as their customers increasingly use iPhones, tablets and other portable devices to handle mobile applications, online video and other bandwidth-hungry services. Sprint posts wider loss, teams with LightSquaredNEW YORK (AP) _ Sprint Nextel Corp. on Thursday said its loss widened in the second quarter as it spent more to attract and keep customers, in the face of competition from AT&T and Verizon. The extra spending meant that Sprint kept adding subscribers, continuing a fragile turnaround, but investors frowned at the extra spending and sent the stock down sharply. Oracle to HP: Core of lawsuit 'complete fiction'SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) _ Oracle says a former Hewlett-Packard executive has been falsely accused of stealing trade secrets in one of several ongoing legal skirmishes between the two technology heavyweights. Oracle Corp. demanded in a letter sent to Hewlett-Packard Co. on Thursday that it drop its lawsuit against Adrian Jones, a former senior vice president who was in charge of HP's server, storage and networking businesses in Asia before going to work for rival Oracle. SKorea: Alleged hacking attack hits Internet usersSEOUL, South Korea (AP) _ The personal information of about 35 million Internet users in South Korea was stolen in an alleged hacking attack that originated in China, officials said Thursday. Hackers purportedly attacked popular Internet and social media sites Nate and Cyworld earlier this week, stealing data such as social security numbers and email addresses, the Korea Communications Commission said in a statement. Panasonic reports quarterly loss on quake, tsunamiTOKYO (AP) _ Panasonic slumped to a 30.4 billion yen ($389 million) quarterly loss, hit by lower sales after the earthquake in northeastern Japan, and announced the sale of part of its refrigerator and washing machine business to Chinese rival Haier. Panasonic Corp., which makes Viera TVs and Lumix cameras, said Thursday the deal for Haier Group to buy the Sanyo brand home appliances businesses in Japan and Southeast Asia is set to be completed by March 2012. (c) 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |