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| Mexico telecoms regulator reins in Slim and his empire Friday, Mar 07, 2014 06:30 PM PST  By Tomas Sarmiento and Christine Murray MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexico's telecommunications watchdog on Friday slapped regulations on Carlos Slim's telephone company America Movil and two of his financial and industrial companies, as it seeks to rein in the multi-billionaire and boost competition. Mexico is trying to open up its phone and TV industries following the passage last year of wide-ranging telecoms reform meant to claw back the vast market shares enjoyed by Mexico's media players. America Movil controls about 80 percent of Mexico's fixed-line business via its Telmex unit and some 70 percent of the mobile sector through its Telcel unit. As was widely expected, the Federal Telecommunications Institute (IFT) declared America Movil "dominant," meaning it has an outsized share of the market. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. extends Terremark contract as HealthCare.gov host Friday, Mar 07, 2014 02:56 PM PST  The Obama administration said on Friday Verizon Communications Inc's Terremark unit will remain under contract as host of the federal website HealthCare.gov to better ensure a smooth end to Obamacare's open enrollment period on March 31. Terremark's contract with the Department of Health and Human Services was due to expire on March 30, the day before the end of open enrollment for 2014, a time when high daily volumes are expected as consumers from 36 states rush to use to website to sign up for subsidized private health insurance. It would be extended for up to seven months, according to federal documents. Hewlett-Packard Co has been named to replace Terremark as website host and operator of the department's federal data center as part of Obama's Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Full Story | Top |
| Elite security posse fostered founders of WhatsApp, Napster Friday, Mar 07, 2014 02:21 PM PST  By Joseph Menn SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - A few days after selling WhatsApp to Facebook for $19 billion, Jan Koum stepped into a suite at the St. Regis Hotel in San Francisco to celebrate with old friends, including CEOs, reformed hackers and a few people who fell into both those camps. Conducted over snacks and beer, the late-night festivity was a spontaneous reunion of a security super-group that had come to Koum's aid in 2000 as he grappled with a denial-of-service attack that knocked Yahoo offline when Koum was responsible for security there. The two most famous exceptions are WhatsApp, the messaging service that Koum co-founded, and Napster, the pioneering file-sharing company that was shut down by the music industry in 2001. Napster Co-founder Shawn Fanning was one of several members still in high school. Full Story | Top |
| In twist, Mexico says non-telecom Slim firms dominate telecoms Friday, Mar 07, 2014 01:54 PM PST By Alexandra Alper and Tomas Sarmiento MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexico's telecoms regulator on Friday declared two of billionaire Carlos Slim's major financial and industrial companies "dominant" in telecommunications, but has yet to slap the tag on Slim's flagship telecom company. It is widely expected that Slim's telecom company America Movil will be declared dominant, or having an outsized share in its market, although a spokesman said the company has not yet been notified. Mexico is trying to spur competition in its tight-knit phone and TV industries through a wide-ranging telecoms overhaul passed last year. The newly empowered Federal Telecommunications Institute (IFT) deemed Slim's bank Inbursa and conglomerate Grupo Carso, which both have direct or indirect stakes in America Movil, dominant in telecoms given their "economic interests," the companies said on Friday. Full Story | Top |
| Man who sued Facebook's Zuckerberg must face fraud charges: judge Friday, Mar 07, 2014 12:11 PM PST  By Joseph Ax NEW YORK (Reuters) - A New York businessman must face criminal fraud charges for trying to claim a billion-dollar stake in social media company Facebook Inc, a federal judge ruled on Friday. Paul Ceglia, 40, is accused of forging a 2003 contract with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg that supposedly entitled him to part ownership of the company. After an hour-long hearing in New York, U.S. District Judge Andrew Carter rejected Ceglia's request to throw out the charges, finding he had failed to meet the "high standard" needed to dismiss a grand jury indictment. Ceglia sued Zuckerberg and Facebook in 2010 in a federal court in Buffalo, New York, claiming that he and Zuckerberg had signed a contract while Zuckerberg was a freshman at Harvard University for Ceglia to invest $1,000 in a planned social networking website. Full Story | Top |
| Suspected Russian spyware Turla targets Europe, United States Friday, Mar 07, 2014 11:45 AM PST  By Peter Apps and Jim Finkle LONDON/BOSTON (Reuters) - A sophisticated piece of spyware has been quietly infecting hundreds of government computers across Europe and the United States in one of the most complex cyber espionage programs uncovered to date. Several security researchers and Western intelligence officers say they believe the malware, widely known as Turla, is the work of the Russian government and linked to the same software used to launch a massive breach on the U.S. military uncovered in 2008. Full Story | Top |
| Mexican tycoon Slim's Grupo Carso designated 'dominant' in telecoms Friday, Mar 07, 2014 10:44 AM PST  Mexican Tycoon Carlos Slim's conglomerate Grupo Carso said on Friday it had been declared dominant in the telecoms sector by a new watchdog, which cited the firm's "economic interests". Slim's telecom giant America Movil, which has about 80 percent of Mexico's fixed-line business and some 70 percent of the mobile sector, is expected to be told it is dominant in its market by the new Federal Telecommunications Institute (IFT) as well. Full Story | Top |
| Germany to invest proceeds from frequency sales in broadband Friday, Mar 07, 2014 10:35 AM PST BERLIN (Reuters) - German Infrastructure Minister Alexander Dobrindt said on Friday Berlin will invest the proceeds of planned sales of frequency bands to mobile telephone services in broadband infrastructure expansion. Germany's right-left coalition government aims to have broadband of at least 50 megabits a second available across the country by 2018, up from a coverage level of 60 percent. For the upgrade an estimated 20 to 34 billion euros is necessary. (Reporting by Thorsten Severin and Peter Maushagen, editing by David Evans) Full Story | Top |
| UK court ruling may prompt more scrutiny of Amazon tax plans Friday, Mar 07, 2014 10:34 AM PST  By Tom Bergin LONDON (Reuters) - Amazon's tax affairs could come under more scrutiny in Britain, tax experts said, after a judge questioned whether it really was organized in the tax efficient way it said it was. The ruling comes as big technology groups, including Amazon, face increasing scrutiny in Britain over their tax practices. A UK judge ruled earlier this month that Amazon had infringed the trademark of soap maker Lush by posting advertisements on Google mentioning "Lush soap" and by offering customers who searched for "Lush soap" on its own website a list of options. Since Lush products were not available on Amazon's UK website - on the manufacturer's insistence - the judge ruled customers could be confused. Full Story | Top |
| Mexican tycoon Slim's bank Inbursa designated 'dominant' in telecoms Friday, Mar 07, 2014 10:31 AM PST  Mexican Tycoon Carlos Slim's financial arm Inbursa said on Friday it had been declared dominant in the telecoms sector by a new watchdog, which cited the financial group's "economic interests". Slim's telecom giant America Movil, which has about 80 percent of Mexico's fixed-line business and some 70 percent of the mobile sector, is expected to be told it is dominant in its market by the new Federal Telecommunications Institute (IFT) as well. Full Story | Top |
| Baidu-led partnership applies for China banking license Friday, Mar 07, 2014 03:09 AM PST  Baidu Inc has formed a partnership to apply for a private banking license, as China's biggest search engine provider moves from acting as a store front for money market funds to a certified financial institution. Baidu and other Chinese Internet companies such as Tencent Holdings Ltd and Alibaba Group Holding Ltd have offered wealth management products since last year. They have attracted millions of investors thanks to interest rates on consumer deposits that are higher than those offered by banks, which are subject to a cap of 3.3 percent for one-year savings. Full Story | Top |
| A week after Mt. Gox collapse, Japan struggles to understand bitcoin Friday, Mar 07, 2014 12:49 AM PST  By William Mallard TOKYO (Reuters) - A week after the collapse of Mt. Gox, Japan is still struggling to craft a response to the bitcoin phenomenon, saying the crypto-currency is not legal tender, though it might be taxable and subject to money-laundering controls. The issue took on new prominence in Japan on February 28, when Mt. Gox sought Chapter 11-style bankruptcy protection, saying it had lost bitcoins and cash worth some half a billion dollars due to hacker attacks. Although the government understands that bitcoin is not issued or backed by any government or central bank, "we have not grasped the situation in its entirety." The authorities are monitoring the Mt. Gox bankruptcy process and, if necessary, will consider a response, said Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga. Fewer than 1 percent of Mt. Gox's 127,000 creditors are Japanese, the company has said. Full Story | Top |
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