Blog articles from 12/2010

Two European standards bodies delivered standards for a universal micro USB phone charger, which will let Europeans use one charger for multiple phones. The European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization (CENELEC) and the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) this week released charger standards for data-enable mobile phones, or phones that can be connected to a computer. The Commission expects the first common chargers and mobile phones...

Apple Inc., a California-based consumer electronics giant said it had removed a program from its popular App Store that allowed users to view information from the WikiLeaks website, as well as its Twitter feed, using Apple’s iPhone and iPad mobile devices. WikiLeaks recently published a raft of U.S. diplomatic cables, prompting the ire of U.S. government. Apple isn’t alone in cutting off access to WikiLeaks or halting business transactions with the group behind the website....

Microsoft Corp., feeling pressure from hit products like Apple Inc.'s iPad, is crafting a new operating system that deviates from the software giant's heavy reliance on chip technology pioneered by Intel Corp., according to people briefed on Microsoft's plans. The company next month plans to demonstrate a new version of its widely used Windows operating system that targets low-power devices and adds support for chips based on designs from ARM Holdings PLC as well as the x86 chip...

Sony Corp. opened an online streaming-music service in the U.K. and Ireland and said it will roll out the platform to other major markets next year, as it looks to try to catch up with rivals such as Apple Inc. in linking electronics to digital content. The electronics and entertainment conglomerate said that its Music Unlimited service, which opened in the U.K. and Ireland on Tuesday, will be available in the U.S., Canada, Australia, New Zealand and other European countries next...

Brett Sappington , Senior Research Analyst from Parks Associates recently spoke at TelcoTV 2010. IPTV Magazine caught up with him to interview him for the IPTV blog. How Access Providers Can Keep Broadband Customers – Research on Services that Increase Subscriber Retention! There are some services that access providers can offer that increase subscriber retention rates. Brett Sappington from Parks Associates explained to me at TelcoTV that their research of 3,000 homes...

Companies such as Amazon.com Inc. and Etsy Inc., a site that sells handmade and vintage goods, are making gift recommendations for individuals by tapping into the trove of comments and preferences collected by social-networking giant Facebook Inc. The social-shopping efforts are all in an experimental phase, but the goal is to change how consumers discover and choose products—and increasing their likelihood to click on the buy button. The latest retail efforts focus on using...

Apple Inc . says sales of its redesigned set-top box will likely top 1 million units later this week. The device allows consumers to download TV shows and movies, and stream them to high-definition televisions, eliminating the need for late-night trips to the rental video store. Apple TV owners are clearly TV junkies. The consumer electronics giant says they’re renting and purchasing over 400,000 TV episodes and over 150,000 movies per day. The approaching one-million...

Electronic retailing giant Amazon.com has never revealed how many units of its Kindle ereaders it has sold, always offering vague glowing statements that the Kindle is the company’s “most gifted” item and that Kindles continue to set sales records. However, without knowing how many Kindles the company selling, all those statements are almost meaningless: after all, if you sell three devices on quarter, selling four devices the next quarter is a 33 percent increase in sales!...