CRM News: Mobile Tech

Facebook Pulls Camera App Out of Its Hat as Instagram Deal Pends
May 25, 2012

With some hoopla, the Facebook Camera app hit the iTunes App Store on Thursday. A fairly simple app, it syncs with a user's Facebook account, offers a variety of Instagram-like photo editing tools, and allows for the upload of multiple photos at once. It also geotags photos and collects all of the photos uploaded by friends in one stream that's viewable within the app. The app's editing tools allow for cropping and adding effects.

Taking Axis for a Spin: New iOS Browser Is a Sweet Ride
May 25, 2012

"Exciting" hasn't been a word linked to Yahoo for a long time, but if the moribund company has more surprises like Axis up its sleeve, that may change. Axis is a combination iOS app and browser extension that creates seamless browser connections among devices. What's more, it does it with visual elan.

iPad-vertising Is Taking Off
May 25, 2012

Tablets are now a solid fixture in the mobile ad ecosystem, according to a new report. However, the format hasn't been fully exploited yet, in spite of the tablet's strong presence in the mobile world, thanks to Apple's iPad. Non-phone mobile devices -- primarily, tablets -- accounted for 20 percent of all impressions for Q1 2012, compared to 15 percent in the first quarter of 2011, according to Millennial Media's latest mobile advertising report.

Apple to DoJ: I Know You Are, but What Am I?
May 24, 2012

Apple on Thursday struck back against the United States Department of Justice's charges that it joined several major publishers in an effort to fix the prices of e-books. In a filing with the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, Apple contended that the government's complaint against Apple is fundamentally flawed as a matter of fact and law.

Yahoo's Axis Strikes Alliance Between Desktop and Mobile
May 24, 2012

Yahoo on Thursday launched Axis, a new mobile browser and plug-in. It lets users begin a search on a desktop and continue on iPhones and iPads, or vice versa. It also offers a faster, smarter search with instant answers and visual previews. Axis is offered both as a standalone mobile browser for iOS devices and as a plug-in for desktop browsers running HTML5.

Europeans Bet Big Against Facebook
May 24, 2012

Today in international tech news: A large number of European traders are placing bets that Facebook's stock will continue to tumble in the coming months. Also: Google defends itself against accusations from the EU, a longtime Research In Motion executive steps down, a Latvian firm is ordered to pay a fine after duping people into downloading fake apps, and an Apple designer is knighted.

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Smartphone
May 24, 2012

If your device is having difficulty completing tasks like file downloading, it's a dead giveaway that it needs some maintenance. We're used to the idea of spending a bit of time running hard disk defragmentation, spyware scans and other tools on our PCs, but we may not be so au fait with what's needed on the limited-memory phones and PC-substituting tablets we're using daily.

Apple, Samsung Chiefs Pick Up Their Marbles and Go Home
May 23, 2012

Before Apple and Samsung launched a new chapter in their multicountry, multiargument patent dispute, Judge Lucy Koh of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, told the two sides to sit down and try to iron out their differences. Apple CEO Tim Cook and Samsung CEO Choi Gee-sung duly complied with the judge's orders, spending at least nine hours in each other's company over the course of two days.

Under Google's Wing, Motorola Can Stop Dabbling
May 23, 2012

Motorola Mobility's financial performance has been less than stellar in the last three years, so its acquisition by Google for $12.5 billion could be a boon for the company. "Motorola has been running at an operating loss for quite a few quarters," observed Ramon T. Llamas, who analyzes mobile devices technology and trends for IDC.

Rx for Medical Students: Take One Tablet
May 23, 2012

The educational e-book market has grown fiercer in the last few years, raising the question of where the end game will leave educational institutions in their attempts to reduce student churn, increase productivity and radically reduce costs. As the battling e-textbook giants try to cut exclusive deals and limit competitors' supplies of e-content, educators are wondering if their choices of learning material will be choked as a result.

Are Amazon Pre-Orders a Sign of Galaxy S III Fever?
May 22, 2012

Amazon has begun taking pre-orders for the Samsung Galaxy S III, a handset that will become available in Europe at the end of this month. The offering has caused some head-scratching: If this were the newest iPhone, the rush to get one might be understandable. However, the unlocked Galaxy S III smartphone will cost an eye-popping $799.99, and it won't be fully compatible with any U.S. network.

Google Gets Motorola's Patents - and Problems
May 22, 2012

Google has officially closed its acquisition of Motorola Mobility for $12.5 billion. This could transform the search engine giant from a software player to a maker of hardware: smartphones, tablet PCs and even set-top boxes. More importantly for Google is gaining control of Motorola's patent portfolio, which could help it fend off lawsuits from rivals such as Apple and Microsoft.

Verizon Eggs On Data-Chugging Mobile Video With Viewdini
May 22, 2012

Verizon Wireless on Tuesday introduced Viewdini, a mobile video aggregation portal. It will run on the company's 4G LTE network and let users search and access videos from a variety of content providers. Partners include Comcast Xfinity, Hulu Plus, mSpot and Netflix. Others, including Verizon FiOS, will be added soon. Viewdini is an Android app that can be downloaded for free from the Google Play store.

Apple Runs Galaxy Tab Blocking Play
May 22, 2012

Apple filed a motion for an injunction against a familiar patent sparring opponent Friday, requesting that Samsung's Galaxy Tab 10.1 be banned from sales in the U.S. The company made a similar bid last year as part of the ongoing and many-faceted legal battle between Apple and Samsung.

Why China Stuck Its Foot in Android's Door
May 22, 2012

China's antitrust authorities have approved Google's purchase of Motorola Mobility, on the condition that the Android operating system remain open source and its code be made freely available to original equipment manufacturers. Android devices had nearly 74 percent of the Chinese market in Q4, 2011, and that means Android is in a dominant position, China's Commerce Department said.

Cable ISPs Form Fellowship of the WiFi
May 21, 2012

Five major cable service providers in the United States are teaming up to allow their high-speed Internet customers access each other's metro WiFi networks. The five are Bright House Networks, Cablevision, Comcast, Cox Communications and Time Warner Cable. The agreement will create a chain of more than 50,000 hotspots.

Tiny Welsh Burg Paints the Town Wiki
May 21, 2012

Monmouth, Wales, has become the first "Wikipedia town," making it an area of international interest as it informally redubbed itself "Monmouthpedia." The Saturday event was attended by 70 to 75 people, said project leader John Cummings -- a sizable group for the area. That day, some 1,100 QR codes that Cummings, volunteers and city officials had placed on various points of interest around the town went live.

Information Highwaymen Will Follow the Cybermoney
May 21, 2012

An FBI report about Bitcoin leaked to a number of online media outlets earlier this month caused anxiety in some corners of the Internet. Bitcoin "provides a venue for individuals to generate, transfer, launder, and steal illicit funds with some anonymity," says the 20-page report. "Bitcoin will likely continue to attract cyber criminals who view it as a means to move or steal funds as well as a means of making donations to illicit groups," it predicts.