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AP Technology NewsBrief at 1:43 p.m. EDT(Associated Press Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Google unveils $10-a-month 'All Access' music planSAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ Google is unveiling a streaming music service called All Access that blends songs users have already uploaded to their online libraries with millions of other tracks for a $10 monthly fee. The service puts Google in competition with popular paid subscription plans like Spotify and Rhapsody and free music services like Pandora. Google unveils social features, music streamingSAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ Google's sixth annual conference for software developers opened Wednesday with a chance for the company to showcase its latest services. Announcements include a new phone, new tools for online games and a new music-streaming service and new features to its Google Plus social network. The audience of about 6,000 people at "Google I/O" includes engineers and entrepreneurs who develop applications and other features that can make smartphones and tablets more appealing. Reporters from around the world also will be on hand, giving Google a chance to generate more hoopla about its latest innovations. Google adds player matching to AndroidSAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ Google is adding leaderboards and the ability to match players in online games to its Android operating system for smartphones and tablet computers. The new features match those available in Apple's Game Center for the iPhone and iPad. Google is also making it possible to save game progress online, so players can pick up games where they left off, even on other devices. Google CEO discloses 'rare' vocal cord problemSAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ Google CEO Larry Page has disclosed a problem with his vocal cords that makes it difficult for him to speak and breathe occasionally, but he says he remains fit enough to keep running the Internet's most influential company. The explanation that Page posted Tuesday on his Google Plus profile cleared up a mystery hanging over him since he lost his voice a year ago, causing him to miss Google Inc.'s annual shareholders meeting in June and a conference call to discuss the company's quarterly earnings in July. Netflix trading at pre-plunge levelsNEW YORK (AP) _ Netflix shares are trading at levels not seen since 2011 when it lost hundreds of thousands of customers after hiking prices for people who wanted continued access to DVDs as well as its streaming service. The company's stock jumped another 4 percent Wednesday to a 52-week high and are up nearly 40 percent since the start of the month. Russians attempt to topple Google in VietnamHANOI, Vietnam (AP) _ Vietnam's booming Internet scene is littered with failed startups that tried to take on Google and other entrenched U.S web companies. That's not deterring a newly launched Russian-Vietnamese outfit which believes it can unseat the American search engine in this fast-growing Asian market and also contend with a jittery, authoritarian government seeking to clamp down on freedom of expression online. Like Google rivals elsewhere, Coc Coc, or "Knock Knock" in English, believes the ubiquitous search engine doesn't get the nuances of the local language. It says its algorithms make for a better, quicker search in Vietnamese, while its local knowledge means the information served will be more relevant _ and hence more valuable. Experts: Smartphones another avenue for hackersMIAMI (AP) _ Smartphones are increasingly popular not only with consumers, but also with thieves who see the devices as another way to tap into bank accounts and other sensitive information, experts say. Many consumers simply don't realize how vulnerable their Androids, iPhones and other devices can be. An April study by the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta said threats are proliferating, ranging from "phishing" _ where consumers click a phony email or text message and are tricked into handing over personal information _ to consumers' reluctance to use security protections they normally have on home computers, like a password. Big 4 cellphone carriers unite on anti-texting adsNEW YORK (AP) _ The country's four biggest cellphone companies are set to launch their first joint advertising campaign against texting while driving, uniting behind AT&T's "It Can Wait" slogan to blanket TV and radio this summer. AT&T, Verizon Wireless, Sprint and T-Mobile will be joined by 200 other organizations backing the multi-million dollar ad campaign. Hedge fund boss Loeb lobbies for breakup of SonyTOKYO (AP) _ The U.S. hedge fund manager renowned for shaking up Yahoo Inc. has set his sights on Sony Corp., proposing that the Japanese electronics giant spin off up to 20 percent of its movie, TV and music division and use the money to strengthen its ailing device manufacturing unit. Sony rejected the plan, but analysts latched onto the idea as a way for Sony to unlock hidden value. Sony's U.S.-traded shares closed up $1.87, or 9.9 percent, at $20.76 on Tuesday after hitting a 52-week high of $22.22 earlier in the day. RIM unveils cheaper BlackBerryORLANDO, Fla. (AP) _ Research In Motion Ltd. unveiled a lower-cost BlackBerry aimed at consumers in emerging markets, stepping up its efforts to regain market share lost to Apple's iPhone and Android devices powered by Google's software. The lower-cost gadget, called the Q5, is the company's third smartphone to run the new BlackBerry 10 system. It will have a physical keyboard, something that sets RIM's devices apart from Apple's iPhone and most Android phones. (c) 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |