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| Samsung debuts wearables and latest Galaxy smartphone Monday, Feb 24, 2014 07:10 PM PST  By Paul Sandle BARCELONA, Spain (Reuters) - Samsung Electronics unveiled a new smartwatch and fitness band along with the latest version of its Galaxy smartphone on Monday, demonstrating how the battleground for innovation is shifting from the hand to the wrist. The world's biggest smartphone maker set a trend less than six months ago for wearable devices that link to mobile handsets with its Galaxy Gear watch, which has seen rivals like Sony and Huawei follow in its wake. Low-price Chinese rivals are churning out products that look increasingly similar at a time when smartphone sales have started to ease, taking a toll on Samsung's earnings. To fight back, Samsung is taking a less glitzy marketing approach to control costs. Full Story | Top |
| Netflix may need to pay AT&T, Verizon for faster speeds Monday, Feb 24, 2014 05:20 PM PST  Netflix Inc, which agreed to pay Comcast Corp for faster video delivery, may have to make similar arrangements with other broadband providers to ensure customers get trouble-free access to its streaming movies and TV shows. Verizon Communications' chief executive said on Monday he expects Netflix will pay the telecom company for faster speeds after Netflix customers complained about slow connections to Verizon's FiOS service. AT&T spokesman Mark Siegel said in a statement on Monday that "we're in discussions with Netflix to establish a more direct connection between our networks, similar to agreements we have with others, so that AT&T broadband customers who use Netflix can enjoy an even better video experience." Talks with telecom companies that provide broadband Internet access gained momentum after Sunday, when Netflix agreed to pay Comcast Corp for faster speeds. Full Story | Top |
| LinkedIn jumpstarts China expansion with Chinese language site Monday, Feb 24, 2014 04:57 PM PST By Alexei Oreskovic SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Professional social networking website LinkedIn Corp launched a Chinese language version of its website on Monday, a move that could jumpstart its expansion into the world's largest Internet market by users even as the company acknowledged it will have to police what some of them say on its website. LinkedIn Chief Executive Jeff Weiner acknowledged in a blog post on Monday that the company would have to censor some of the content that users post on its website in order to comply with Chinese rules. But Weiner said the benefits of providing its online service to people in China outweighed those concerns. He vowed that the company would be "transparent" about its practices as it builds its presence in a country it said is home to one in five of the "knowledge workers" that are LinkedIn's core audience. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. freezes assets of work-at-home Web firms promising thousands Monday, Feb 24, 2014 02:21 PM PST (Reuters) - A U.S. district court in Utah has frozen the assets of several Internet business coaches accused of lying to customers about their potential earnings after signing up for the services, the Federal Trade Commission said on Monday. The companies are Essent Media LLC, Net Training LLC, YES International, Coaching Department, and Apply Knowledge, the FTC said in a statement. The commission, which voted 4-0 to sue the Utah-based defendants, filed a lawsuit against them this month. "This case halts a massive scam that bilked consumers out of millions for useless work-at-home kits and business coaching services," said Jessica Rich, director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection. Full Story | Top |
| AT&T speaking to Netflix about deal for faster speeds Monday, Feb 24, 2014 01:34 PM PST  (Reuters) - AT&T Inc said it is talks with Netflix about a possible agreement to improve performance for broadband customers who use the streaming video service. AT&T spokesman Mark Siegel said in a statement that "we're in discussions with Netflix to establish a more direct connection between our networks, similar to agreements we have with others, so that AT&T broadband customers who use Netflix can enjoy an even better video experience." (Reporting by Liana B. Baker; Editing by David Gregorio) Full Story | Top |
| Senate committee sets date for Comcast, Time Warner Cable hearing Monday, Feb 24, 2014 01:30 PM PST  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Senate Judiciary Committee plans to hold a hearing on March 26 to examine how the proposed merger of Comcast Corp and Time Warner Cable Inc would affect consumers, the committee's chairman said on Monday. Although lawmakers have no formal role in reviewing mergers and acquisitions, Senator Patrick Leahy, a Vermont Democrat, said in a statement that the deal "touches on important policy questions" about how Americans access pay TV and the Internet. ... Full Story | Top |
| What's up for Alibaba's mobile app strategy? Monday, Feb 24, 2014 01:06 PM PST  By Denny Thomas and Paul Carsten HONG KONG/BEIJING (Reuters) - Billionaire Jack Ma's Alibaba, the dominant force in China's $1.6 trillion e-commerce market, may already have lost a battle with rival Tencent for the world's biggest mobile market. While Alibaba Group Holding Ltd dominates in e-commerce, Tencent Holdings Ltd has taken over China's smartphone screens with its WeChat, or Weixin, social messaging platform. It's a battle that is being more closely watched after Facebook Inc's $19 billion WhatsApp buy, and puts the spotlight on Ma's mobile strategy, especially as Alibaba winds up for a mega IPO that could value the company at close to $130 billion. The WhatsApp acquisition and that of mobile messaging firm Viber by Japan's Rakuten Inc have driven home this month how crucial mobile messaging platforms are to controlling user experience on smartphone screens. Full Story | Top |
| WhatsApp to add voice calls after Facebook acquisition Monday, Feb 24, 2014 01:04 PM PST  By Leila Abboud and Eric Auchard BARCELONA (Reuters) - WhatsApp will add free voice-call services for its 450 million customers later this year, laying down a new challenge to telecom network operators just days after Facebook Inc scooped it up for $19 billion. The text-based messaging service aims to let users make calls by the second quarter, expanding its appeal to help it hit a billion users, WhatsApp CEO Jan Koum said at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona on Monday. Buying WhatsApp has cemented Facebook's involvement in messaging, which for many people is their earliest experience with the mobile Internet. Adding voice services moves the social network into another core function on a smartphone. Full Story | Top |
| EU lawmakers delay vote on scrapping roaming fees by 2015 Monday, Feb 24, 2014 12:45 PM PST  By Foo Yun Chee and Leila Abboud BRUSSELS (Reuters) - EU lawmakers postponed a planned vote on Monday on scrapping mobile phone roaming charges by 2015 and preventing telecoms network operators from charging companies such as Google and Amazon to provide faster web services. Officials from the European Parliament said the committee vote, one step in a series which could lead to changes in EU rules, was delayed for procedural reasons. The proposals from the European Parliament's industry committee go far beyond European Telecoms Commissioner Neelie Kroes's plans to overhaul the EU telecoms industry, which include ending roaming fees by 2016. "Roaming providers shall not levy any surcharge (from December 15, 2015) in comparison to the charges for mobile communications services at domestic level on roaming customers in any member states for any regulated roaming call made or received," the committee said in a proposal document seen by Reuters. Full Story | Top |
| America Movil may seek shareholder pact over Telekom Austria Monday, Feb 24, 2014 12:42 PM PST  Mexican telecoms giant America Movil said on Monday it could start formal talks to create a shareholder syndicate for Telekom Austria with the company's biggest Austrian stakeholder. Controlled by billionaire Carlos Slim, America Movil has a 27 percent stake in Telekom Austria and said in a statement it had held discussions with different stakeholders of the Austrian telecoms company, including Austrian state holding company OIAG. In the statement, the Mexican company did not specify under what conditions it could form a shareholder syndicate. A shareholders' pact would mean the partners have to vote in unison on major company issues, ensuring OIAG had a say in the company's future even if America Movil raised its stake in the Austrian firm above OIAG's 28 percent. Full Story | Top |
| Personal assistant apps gather, manage online bills, banking Monday, Feb 24, 2014 12:27 PM PST Tired of logging into dozens of online accounts to do Internet banking and pay bills? New apps are designed to ease the burden by gathering and organizing documents for you. About 61 percent of Internet users in the United States do their banking online and the number is growing, according to the Pew Research Center. "We're like a personal assistant that manages all the paperwork for you," said Martin Stein, chief marketing officer for FileThis, based in Marin, California. Full Story | Top |
| Facebook CEO riding high - for now, after WhatsApp deal Monday, Feb 24, 2014 12:02 PM PST  By Alexei Oreskovic and Leila Abboud SAN FRANCISCO/BARCELONA (Reuters) - Facebook Inc Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg took a victory lap at the world's largest mobile technology conference in Barcelona on Monday, after beating out Google Inc in a $19 billion acquisition of free messaging service WhatsApp. Just 18 months after appearing at risk of getting crushed by the swelling mobile wave, the No. 1 social network is riding high. Now, Zuckerberg's purchase of WhatsApp - while raising eyebrows with the hefty price paid for a company that boasts 450 million users but has little revenue - places Facebook at the heart of smartphone communications. Full Story | Top |
| Germany's Loewe seeks new investor after group withdraws Monday, Feb 24, 2014 11:44 AM PST  Insolvent German television maker Loewe is looking for a new partner to salvage the company after a group of investors said they wanted to pull out of a deal to purchase some of its assets and keep the brand going. A group of investors, including a former senior manager at Apple and Bang & Olufsen, said in January they would buy Loewe's core television business for an undisclosed price. But Loewe said on Monday the investors had informed it of plans to withdraw from the contract. Loewe, started by brothers Siegmund and David Ludwig Loewe in 1923, first sought protection from creditors in July and then filed for insolvency in October after a strategy to combat the economic downturn by focusing on premium customers backfired. Full Story | Top |
| 'Pony' botnet steals bitcoins, digital currencies: Trustwave Monday, Feb 24, 2014 11:23 AM PST  By Jim Finkle BOSTON (Reuters) - Cyber criminals have infected hundreds of thousands of computers with a virus called "Pony" to steal bitcoins and other digital currencies, in the most ambitious cyber attack on virtual money uncovered so far, according to security firm Trustwave. Trustwave said on Monday that it has found evidence that the operators of a cybercrime ring known as the Pony botnet have stolen some 85 virtual "wallets" that contained bitcoins and other types of digital currencies. The firm said it did not know how much digital currency was contained in the wallets. It was on hundreds of thousands of machines," said Ziv Mador, security research director with Chicago-based Trustwave. Full Story | Top |
| Icahn, eBay trade accusations as fight escalates Monday, Feb 24, 2014 11:15 AM PST  By Nadia Damouni and Phil Wahba NEW YORK (Reuters) - Billionaire investor Carl Icahn accused eBay Inc Chief Executive John Donahoe of failing to spot - or ignoring - conflicts of interest on the company's board and called again for the spinoff of its fast-growing PayPal payments business. Icahn, who also disclosed a 2.15 percent stake in the e-commerce giant on Monday, said in a letter to shareholders that two long-time board members, Marc Andreessen and Scott Cook, had business interests that directly competed with eBay. The activist investor said he had found "multiple lapses in corporate governance" and called on both Andreessen and Scott to resign from eBay's board. Full Story | Top |
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