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Comment I'll miss it (Score 1) 77

by Elsebet (#63460110) Attached to: Netflix Will End Its DVD-By-Mail Service After 25 Years

I've been a subscriber since 2004, back when we lived in Columbus, OH. The service went with us from there to WA and now to PA where we live now. I've watched a lot of movies that aren't available on streaming. I'll definitely miss the red envelopes but it makes sense that it would end at some point.

Submission + - Microsoft pays for positive XBox One coverage, requires breaking FTC rules (kotaku.com) 1

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Microsoft, partnered with Machinima, has put forth a promotion for YouTube personalities — make a video about the XBox One and get money for it. Problematically, they also require that the review not mention anything negative and not disclose that they're getting paid, which breaks FTC disclosure rules. Microsoft has a well-known history of astroturfing, but is this the first proof of them doing it illegally?

Submission + - XBox One will charge gamers full price to play used games (kotaku.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: The XBox One was revealed today, and In addition to requiring daily online checkins, another infuriating piece of news was revealed: the XBox One will require payment in order to play used games. In a conversation with a Kotaku reporter, Phil Harrison says: "They would then have to purchase the right to play that game through Xbox Live ... yes, it will be the same price". Combined with the focus on being a set top box more than gaming, has Microsoft stopped caring about playing games on its game console?

Submission + - Google forbids advertising on Glass (thepointdaily.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Contrary to widespread thought, Google Glass will not be an advertising platform: "Google Inc has lately told app developers that they are not allowed to present ads to Google Glass users and they are also not permitted to sell users’ personal and private information for the fulfillment of advertising needs. The internet company has explicitly and openly said that the Glass platform should and must be clean and clear of any ads whatsoever, because the technology is designed to facilitate internet browsing and other related activities, therefore, the featured podium cannot be used to advertise products as it will cause the user experience to diminish." Seems like Google is going for hardware-only revenue on this one.
Oracle

SAP Agrees To Pay Oracle $306 Million In Corporate Theft Case 29

Posted by Unknown Lamer from the also-swear-fealty-to-larry-ellison dept.
angry tapir writes "SAP has agreed to pay Oracle US$306 million in connection with the corporate-theft case that Oracle filed against it and a former SAP subsidiary in 2007, according to a filing made Thursday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. The long-running legal dispute centers on illegal downloads of Oracle software and support materials by SAP subsidiary TomorrowNow, which offered lower-cost support services for Oracle software. SAP admitted liability for actions taken by TomorrowNow workers, and a jury awarded Oracle US$1.3 billion in damages in November 2010." The $1.3 billion fine was overturned shortly after, causing more months of litigation.
Republicans

Ask Slashdot: Which Candidates For Geek Issues? 792

Posted by Soulskill from the cthulu-write-in dept.
Okian Warrior writes "An oft-repeated sentiment on Slashdot is that we should change the situation by voting in better officials. An opinion that appears in nearly every political thread is: 'we're to blame because we elected these people.' On the eve of the first primary (in New Hampshire), I have to wonder: how can we tell the candidates apart? Ron Paul is an obvious exception, and I am not discounting him, but otherwise it seems that no candidate has made a stand on any issue. Consider the candidates (all of them, of any party) as a set. What issue can I use to divide them into two groups, such that one group is 'for' something and the other is 'against'?"
Iphone

Apple Patents Using Apps During Calls 434

Posted by Soulskill from the that-sounds-a-great-idea dept.
bizwriter writes "Apple has had quite a week in patents for the iPhone, and it's only Tuesday. First was the victory at the International Trade Commission over HTC. And now there's a shiny new patent on switching to an app during a live phone call (#8,082,523). There may be non-infringing ways of doing something similar, but they probably will be clumsy in comparison."
Android

Apple Wins Injunction Banning Import of HTC Devices 314

Posted by Unknown Lamer from the apple-knows-best dept.
Newly accepted submitter squish18 writes "All Things D reports that Apple has won an injunction banning the import of some HTC phones starting in April 2012. The ruling by the ITC stems from two claims of the '647 patent concerning software used to enter personal data in mobile devices. It is interesting to note that the ITC has also reversed previous rulings regarding regarding infringement of two other '647 claims, as well as patent '263 claims." It looks like Apple's victory is relatively minor. They lost claims on all patents except for one, and HTC/Google can work on implementing similar functionality in a non-infringing way.
Android

Google Wallet Stores Card Data In Plain Text 213

Posted by samzenpus from the read-it-and-weep dept.
nut writes "The much-hyped payment application from Google on Android has been examined by viaForensics and appears to store some cardholder data in plaintext. Google wallet is the first real payment system to use NFC on Android. Version 2 of the PCI DSS (the current standard) mandates the encryption of transmitted cardholder data encourages strong encryption for its storage. viaForensics suggest that the data stored in plain text might be sufficient to allow social engineering to obtain a credit card number."
Australia

Australian Federal Court Ends Ban On Samsung Galaxy Tab Sales 129

Posted by Soulskill from the apple-invented-the-kangaroo dept.
New submitter Dedokta writes "The Australian Federal Court has overturned the injunction placed on the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 and ordered Apple to pay court costs. Apple has applied for an appeal with the Supreme Court, but Samsung is now free to sell the Galaxy Tab within Australia. Samsung is not off the hook yet, however; the full case to see if they have indeed infringed upon Apple patents is still to be heard early next year."
Android

Microsoft Now Collects Royalties From Over Half of All Android Devices 241

Posted by Unknown Lamer from the where-can-i-get-me-some-patents dept.
An anonymous reader writes "Microsoft has inked a deal with Compal Electronics, which pumps out gadgets that run Android and Chrome OS, for an undisclosed sum." Microsoft has an explanatory weblog post; with this deal over half of all Android devices are licensing patents from Microsoft. Notably refusing to cooperate and instead opting for the court battle route are Motorola and Barnes and Noble.
Google

Google's Search Copying Accusation Called 'Silly' 380

Posted by timothy from the well-that's-not-very-silly-now-is-it? dept.
itwbennett writes "Google's Bing sting, reported in Slashdot just days ago and subsequently denied by Microsoft, is now being called 'silly' and 'petty' by search industry analysts and execs. The reason: it would be impossible for Microsoft to use the copied results to reverse engineer Google's search algorithms. And in fact it is more likely that Microsoft was conducting competitive research. Charlene Li, founder of technology research and advisory firm Altimeter Group, saw Google's actions as a misguided response to a real threat from a competitor in its core search business. 'Google isn't used to having competition. You look at this incident and you wonder why they are doing this. It feels amateurish in a way, a kind of 'they're not playing fair' attitude,' she said."
Censorship

WikiLeaks App Removed From Apple Store 338

Posted by CmdrTaco from the dying-of-not-surprise dept.
Stoobalou writes "An 'unofficial' WikiLeaks App which contained published documents from the Cablegate leaks has been withdrawn from the Apple App Store.The $1.99 App created by developer Igor Barinov has been removed from sale without explanation despite the fact that all of the information contained in it is publicly available."
Censorship

Apple Bans Android Magazine App From App Store 574

Posted by CmdrTaco from the every-day-a-little-more-evil dept.
recoiledsnake writes "Apple dialed its battle with Android up a notch today by banning an Android magazine app from its App Store, leaving no way for users to install the app on iPads, iPhones and iPod Touches without jailbreaking. The reason for rejection, as given by an Apple rep, was: 'You know... your magazine...It's just about Android.... we can't have that in our App Store.' The bi-monthly publication — the Android counterpart to an iPhone magazine Dixon began putting out earlier this year — launched Nov. 11. 'It's funny really because I don't think we would sell many magazines on Android through Apple App Store,' Dixon told Media Watch. 'But the question is where this is going.' This comes on the heels of Jobs lashing out at Android, calling it fragmented, and its patent attacks on Android."
Cellphones

Apple Patents Remotely Disabling Jailbroken Phones 381

Posted by Soulskill from the trying-to-put-the-break-in-jailbreak dept.
An anonymous reader writes "Apple yesterday applied for a patent to allow remotely disabling electronic devices when 'unauthorized usage' is detected. The patent application covers using the camera to take pictures of the unauthorized user and using GPS to determine location, and it involves ascertaining whether the phone has been hacked or jailbroken, using those as criteria for detecting 'suspicious behavior.' The patent would allow the carrier or any other 'authorized' party to disable or restrict the functionality of the device. Is this Apple's latest tool to thwart jailbreaking?"

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