Patent trolls’ latest gambit: Sue businesses if they dare to use office scanners

We’ve seen a lot of ridiculous claims asserted by patent trolls over the past few years, but this one truly takes the cake: Ars Technica reports that an entity called “Project Paperless LLC” has been sending out letters to small and medium-sized businesses demanding licensing fees for using office scanners capable of sending PDFs via email. Steven Vicinanza, founder of Atlanta-based IT services provider...

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Typical American without a landline: A 27-year old Latino living in Columbus, Ohio

The statistical study compiled by NHIS about landline and mobile phone usage in American households is a pretty fascinating read. The number of U.S. adults with a mobile phone but no landline rose to 34% in the first half of 2012. That percentage is ticking up roughly two points every six months — a fairly rapid clip. The number of adults with a landline but no mobile phone plunged below 8% according...

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Microsoft lashes out at Google’s decision to spurn Windows Phone

Dave Heiner, vice president and deputy general counsel for Microsoft (MSFT), took aim at Google (GOOG) and the company’s unwillingness to develop for Windows Phone 8 in a blog post on Wednesday. Heiner claims that, “Google continues to prevent Microsoft from offering consumers a fully featured YouTube app [among other] for the Windows Phone.” Microsoft has been apparently been trying to get a full-feature...

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Despite repeated sellouts, Nexus 4 sales estimated to total just 375,000 units

Google’s (GOOG) has had trouble keeping latest Nexus-branded smartphone, the LG (066570)-built Nexus 4, in stock as hordes of Android fans would swarm Google’s website each time more units became available. According to new estimates however, the Nexus 4 stock-outs were due entirely to inventory issues rather than immense demand. The xda-developers community has done some calculations based on data...

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Microsoft’s huge R&D budget is useless if its best ideas are poorly executed or never released

PC World’s Matt Smith has a lengthy article highlighting all of Microsoft’s (MSFT) coolest research projects to show that, contrary to popular opinion, the company is a fountain of research and innovation. And Microsoft’s R&D team really is working on some cool stuff, including interactive displays that can be projected directly onto your arm and a “Magic Wall” that brings to mind the holodeck...

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Google chairman heading to North Korea

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — When he lands in North Korea, even Google's executive chairman will likely have to relinquish his smartphone, leaving him disconnected from the global information network he helped build.Eric Schmidt is a staunch advocate of global Internet access and the power of Internet connectivity in lifting people out of poverty and political oppression. This month, he plans to travel...

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Apple reportedly not looking to buy Waze after all

Despite earlier rumors that claimed a deal was in the works, CNET and TechCrunch are both reporting that Apple (AAPL) has no plans to acquire Waze. It was previously reported that Apple was considering a buyout of the social navigation startup in an effort to improve its widely-panned Maps application. A second report suggested that negotiations between the two companies were further along than once...

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Google settles on patents, other antitrust claims

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Google is pledging to license hundreds of key patents to mobile computing rivals under more reasonable terms and to curb the use of snippets from other websites in Internet search results in a settlement that ends a high-profile antitrust probe.In a major victory for Google, the Federal Trade Commission unanimously concluded that there isn't enough evidence to support complaints...

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FTC tightens rules protecting children's online privacy

 The government announced tighter rules on Wednesday to protect children's online privacy by restricting the collection of data, like the child's location, unless parents consent.The actions by the Federal Trade Commission mark an update to rules that were based on the 1998 Children's Online Privacy Protection Act, developed when most computers were big beige boxes sitting under office desks...

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Vatican takes first spot in Internet domain name draw

 The Vatican has come out in first place in a long-awaited draw to expand the Internet address system with new domain names that go beyond the usual .com, .org or .net endings.ICANN, the corporation that oversees the Internet address system, announced this week the domain name .catholic written in Chinese characters will be the first bid it considers in a drive to expand and reorganize sites...

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Vatican says pope beats Justin Bieber on re-tweets

 Pope Benedict, white-haired, 85, and a neophyte to social media site Twitter, has beaten out 18-year old heartthrob Justin Bieber to set a percentage record for re-tweeting by his followers, the Vatican said on Thursday.The Vatican newspaper said that as of noon Italian time on Thursday the pope had 2.1 million followers on Twitter, eight days after his first tweet was sent.While Canadian singer-songwriter...

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Saudi website editor could face death for apostasy-rights group

RIYADH (Reuters) - The editor of a Saudi Arabian website could be sentenced to death after a judge cited him for apostasy and moved his case to a higher court, the monitoring group Human Rights Watch said on Saturday.Raif Badawi, who started the Free Saudi Liberals website to discuss the role of religion in Saudi Arabia, was arrested in June, Human Rights Watch said.Badawi had initially been charged...

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Sri Lanka arrests 100 Chinese for cyber fraud, police say

 Sri Lanka on Saturday arrested at least 100 Chinese nationals accused of an internet fraud scheme targeting people in their home country, a police spokesman said.The accused, all in Sri Lanka on tourist visas, are suspected of hacking into computers in China and then demanding their owners transfer them money, police spokesman Prishantha Jayakodi told Reuters.Chinese police requested help from...

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News Summary: Kodak sells patents for $525 million

STEPPING STONE: Eastman Kodak is selling its digital imaging patents for about $525 million, money the struggling photo pioneer says will help it emerge from bankruptcy protection in the first half of 2013.GROUP OF 12: Apple Inc., Google Inc., Samsung Electronics Co., Research In Motion Ltd., Microsoft Corp., China's Huawei Technologies and Facebook Inc. are among the 12 companies paying to license...

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Best Buy exec leaves for COO post at Symantec

Best Buy's president of digital operations is leaving the struggling electronics chain to become chief operating officer at the computer security company Symantec.Best Buy has been implementing a turnaround plan as it faces tough competition from discounters and online retailers. The Minneapolis company last week extended until after the holiday season the window for co-founder Richard Schulze to...

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SC Gov Haley unveils $6.3 billion budget proposal

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) -- Gov. Nikki Haley's budget plan she presented Thursday would spend more on computer security, law enforcement and health care. She also asked that not-yet-projected revenue go toward tax relief that saves the average filer less than $30.Her $6.3 billion budget plan for the fiscal year that starts July 1 seeks $47 million for computer security following a massive breach at the...

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Samsung is replacing faulty Galaxy S IIIs that are suddenly dying for no reason

Samsung (005930) is reportedly quietly replacing faulty Galaxy S III devices according to many users on XDA Developers. The issue appears to be related to the NAND becoming corrupted and killing off the Galaxy S III’s mainboard, which causes the phone to essentially “brick” itself. Users have reported the issues have affected some devices after 150-200 days after purchase. Users on XDA Developers...

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Insight: Security fears dogged Canada debate on China energy bid

In September, two months after China's state-owned CNOOC Ltd made an unexpected $15.1 billion bid for Canadian energy company Nexen Inc, Canada's spy agency told ministers that takeovers by Chinese companies may threaten national security.The rare warning from the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), which was disclosed to Reuters by intelligence sources, did not stop the takeover. That...

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