The Federal Communications Commission announced on Tuesday that AT&T (T) has agreed to pay a $700,000 fine for switching data plans of select customers. The nation’s second largest carrier was faced with a complaint for switching customers from their grandfathered pay-as-you-go data plans despite the fact that AT&T promised some customers they could keep their current plans. Those customers affected by the company’s actions will also … [Read more...]
‘Google Wallet card’ leak points to weakness in NFC mobile payments
November 7, 2012 By
Launched in May 2011, Google Wallet was supposed to revolutionize shopping and replace cash and credit cards with NFC-enabled smartphones. While the idea was and still is ambitious, Google (GOOG) Wallet has been hampered by the reluctance of retailers and small businesses to upgrade their point-of-sale systems to support NFC. Last week, Android Police published what were alleged screenshots of Google’s plans for a “Google Wallet … [Read more...]
Scientists working on new broadband tech that could create 2000x faster fiber speeds
November 7, 2012 By
Think Google (GOOG) Fiber is fast? Whatever. Some scientists in Wales are brewing something that’s 2,000 times better. As ISPreview reports, a group of scientists working at the Welsh Bangor University are trying to create “a commercially affordable method of using Optical Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OOFDM) over fibre optic lines, which could deliver broadband ISP speeds that are 2,000 times faster than current … [Read more...]
Microsoft launches Halo 4 on Xbox 360
November 7, 2012 By
First-person shooter fans have been salivating for Halo 4 for nearly five years since the release of Halo 3. Sure, there was 2009′s Halo 3: ODST, but that game didn’t feature poster boy Master Chief. Microsoft (MSFT) officially launched Halo 4 worldwide on Tuesday (except in Japan; they get it November 8th) for Xbox 360. Halo 4 is developed by 343 Industries’ after Bungie decided to part ways with Microsoft. Although … [Read more...]
Android app revenue on the rise, closing gap with iOS
November 7, 2012 By
For a while now, developers looking to make serious money selling their apps were better off trying their luck at Apple’s (AAPL) App Store than with Google (GOOG) Play. But over at Tech-Thoughts, Sameer Singh has found some new data suggesting that in-app purchases are likely helping Google Play close the gap. Specifically, Singh looks at four different estimates for how much revenue iOS and Android apps generate on their respective app … [Read more...]
Major cable companies try to make themselves innovative by opening up new research center
November 7, 2012 By
“Innovative” is probably not the word you use to describe your cable company. But Reuters reports that major players such as Comcast (CMCSA) and Time Warner Cable (TWC) are trying to change all that by opening up a new research center in Silicon Valley. The research center will be headed up by CableLabs, “a nonprofit research and development consortium established by the industry,” and will “work on projects with … [Read more...]