Use Wufoo integrations and get your data to your favorite apps.
[email protected]

Category: AT&T

There are 3 posts published under AT&T.
7 Oct, 2013

Top Startup and Tech News Today: 7 Things You Missed Today

1. Straight Shot Accelerator’s First Startups Make Their Pitches

 

Last week, the 90-day program for Straight Show wrapped up. This accelerator program offers $20,000 in investments, more than 300 mentors, and more than $75,000’s worth of in-kind services. Seven startups participated in Straight Shot’s inaugural program. Networking opportunities for these startups included possible investors who attending the program’s culminating event, a Demo Day, which had a packed audience of about 400 people. Managing Director of Straight Shot, Faith Larson, said that the accelerator, which was founded by Mark Hasebroock of Dunde Venture Capital has learned a few things from its inaugural class. Straight Show held several community events throughout the 90-day program, and Larson says that next year they hope to host fewer, but larger events. Larson also said that the accelerator may work on offshoots of the Straight Shot brand, such as coding classes or a development academy. “Straight Shot can be a mechanism to attract and develop talent,” said Larson.

 

2. Forget The iPhone 5s, Let’s Talk About The iPhone 6

 

Sales of Apple’s iPhone 5S have been very impressive so far, but analysts are saying that next year’s release of the iPhone 6 will put Apple’s current sale numbers to shame. The Apple iPhone 6 is expected to feature a display screen that is 4.8 inches, making it larger than the current model’s 4 inches. Analysts Peter Misek of Jeffereies stated that he expects the price target of the iPhone 6 to be roughly $600. “The ecosystem is excited about the iPhone 6, which we feel is warranted. We think the stock will appreciate ahead of the iPhone 6 launch,” he wrote.

 

3. Google and Facebook Seek to Drive Down Cost of Internet Access, Join Alliance for Affordable Internet

 

The fight for affordable internet access in the developing word is a prominent battle, thanks, in part, to the large names that are joining up to back this measure. Google and Facebook are some of the newer additions to the host of other notable tech companies, such as Yahoo, Intel, and Microsoft. Along with special interest groups and governments, these organizations have formed the Alliance for Affordable Internet, which is a coalition designed to drive down competitive costs through introducing policy chances. This group is spearheaded by the World Wide Web foundation and hopes to reduce costs to “less than 5-percent of average monthly income” in up to 12 countries through 2015.

 

4. LG Starts Producing Curved Displays To Cure Dull Phone Design

 

LG is beginning to mass produce of what they call “the world’s first flexible OLED panel for smartphones.”  LG announced this amid rumors that it would release a curved smartphone next month. The flexible panel is built on plastic substrates instead of glass and is set in a concave curve. LG Display’s Chief Technology Officer Yeo Sang-Deog said that LG is attempting to release “new products with enhanced performance and differentiated designs next year.” The new phone will measure 6 inches diagonally, making the slimmest and lightest smartphone known. LG’s OLED panel will have a 700mm radius of curvature, which is twice the curvature, of the Galaxy Nexus.

 

5. U-Verse Live TV Streaming Comes to iPhone

 

AT&T promised to bring live U-Verse TV screaming to mobile devices, and has managed to fulfill this promise a couple of days early. The app, which was supposed to go live on the app store a couple of days later, went up recently and allows subscribes to watch up to 108 live channels while at home. This number diminishes to 25 when the user is away from home. Along with the ability to live stream, customers always get improved remote controls, new parental tools, and a fresher interface. The app is expected to hit the Android market on October 21st.

 

6. Alleged Silk Road Mastermind, Ross Ulbricht, Denies Charges, Says Lawyer

 

Robert Ulbricht of the underground marketplace, Silk Road, denied his charges in a federal court, via his lawyer, yesterday. His bail has been postponed until October 9th. Earlier this week, the FBI shut down Silk Road and charged Ross Ulbricht as illegal drugs were becoming available through the site. Ulbricht was charged with three conspiracies: computer hacking, narcotics trafficking, and money laundering. The next day, he was charged separately, in Maryland, for drug trafficking and hiring a hitman. Assistant US Attorney Randall Luskey said that the government is against releasing Ulbricht on bail, saying that “no combination of surety will assure community safety or guarantee appearance.”

 

7. Samsung Finally Launches Its HomeSync Set-Top Box

 

Samsung finally has an answer to Apple TV, and it comes in the form of HomeSync. HomeSnyc was showcased back in February and is finally available to order. HomeSynx enables Samsung Galaxy owners to stream media from their phones and tablets onto the TV set, as the device runs on Android and has its own processors. Users will also be able to access Google Play via their television and play Android games on a bigger screen. The HomeSync also supports multiple accounts, and concerned parents can set up restricted content accses for their children. HomeSync costs roughly $300.

Jessie Yen
248
24 Sep, 2013

Top Startup and Tech News Today-7 Things You Missed Today

1. AT&T, Verizon, Sprint Are Paid Cash by NSA For Your Private Communications

The NSA (National Security Agency) pays AT&T, Verizon, and Sprint hundreds of millions of dollars per year for access to 81% of all international calls in the US, according to a leaked inspector general’s report. The secret report states that “NSA maintains relationships with over 100 U.S. companies”, emphasizing that the United States has the “home-field advantage as the primary hub for worldwide communications.”

According to the report, AT&T charges $325 for each activation fee and then a $10 a day additional fee to monitor the account. Verizon charges $775 for the first month and then $500 for the months that follow after. Microsoft, Yahoo, and Google refuse to say how much they charge the government to tap into their emails and information. The Washington Post states that in a separate report, the NSA has been said to pay the telephone companies roughly $300 million annually in order to access communication information.

2. Ailing BlackBerry Agrees To $4.7 Billion Buyout

Blackberry has agreed to a probable $4.7 billion buyout from Ontario-based Fairfax Financial Holdings. Fairfax, which is headed by billionaire Prem Wasta, is already BlackBerry’s largest shareholder with approximately 50% of BlackBerry’s shares. They plan on taking the smartphone maker private. Wasta says that the sale of BlackBerry “will open an exciting new private chapter for BlackBerry, its customers, carriers and employees… We can deliver immediate value to shareholders while we continue the execution of a long-term strategy in a private company.”

Under the proposed deal, $9 would be offered for each outstanding share, and Fairfax would contribute its own shares in this transaction. BlackBerry’s board supports this plan. A firm and solid deal is expected by November 4th.

 

3. Apple Polishes Forecast After Selling 9 Million New iPhones

 

Apple has sold 9 million new iPhones during their first three days in stores. This record breaking sale period has prompted the company to issue a new and, much rosier, financial forecast. Shares in the company closed up 5% at $490.65 on Monday after the company said that revenue during the fiscal fourth quarter would most likely be between $34 and $37 billion. Apple rarely adjusts its outlook mid-quarter, so this change in numbers comes as a surprise.

“The critics have told you Apple lost its magic,” said Daniel Ernst, a Hudson Square Research analyst.  “Customers are telling you something very different. Clearly, people like the product. That sentiment is almost more important than the number.” Sales of the iPhone 5S and 5C nearly doubled that of the iPhone 5’s 5 million numbers during the first weekend. The 9 million sale surpassed the rough number of 6 million that analysts projected.

4. Google Says Widespread Gmail Outages and Delays Should Be Resolved Soon

 

If you’re a user of Gmail, you may have noticed Gmail failing to load and having a very rocky performance. Google says that the delays should be resolved soon. Gmail has been dealing with disruption and outages for users over the past day, with slow load times and delayed receiving of emails as a result. More than 50% of users have been seeing performance issues. Google hopes to resolve the problem soon – until then, simply wait out the problem while they fix the email service.

5. Is the Race for Smartphone Camera Megapixels Over?

 

Smartphones like to brag about the number of megapixels their phone offers. However, things might be changing, as smartphone makes shift their focus on not the number of megapixels, but the size of each pixel. Apple and HTC both launched new smartphones this year with larger pixels, as opposed to more pixels. HTC actually halved its pixel count, saying that having fewer pixels allowed the now larger pixels to capture more light. CK Lu, a principal research analyst for Gartner, says that “It is not a race of the megapixels anymore… Some phone makers are deciding to make bigger pixels instead, which is a tradeoff, but results in better quality pictures in low light.”

However, analysts say that this isn’t the end of the megapixel competition. Dale Gai, an anlalyst for Barclays says that many companies will continue focusing on just megapixels. However, more established companies with higher-end smartphones will continue focusing on megapixel size, as they look for ways to differentiate their camera from the camera of other smartphones.

6. Tough Times Ahead For LG and Sony

Apple’s announcement of selling a record breaking 9 million iPhones during its debut weekend for the 5s and 5s is a nightmare for Asian vendors who are rolling out huge numbers of Android models. This is particularly harsh for the two vendors trying to stage comebacks in 2013 – namely, LG and Sony. The rapid sell-outs of the gold iPhone 5S might mean smaller early production volumes, as many industry sources are currently anticipating. Also, since Apple’s consumer demand is above Wall Street and industry projections, it can be assumed that Apple’s unaccounted for consumer base is one stolen from possible customers for LG and Sony.

Samsung is currently preparing an aggressive marketing campaign for the Galaxy Note, while smaller brands LG, Sony, and HTC are targeting the $600+ smartphone bracket. It will be likely that some of these brands, or all of these brands, will reconsider their marketing and product plan before the year ends.

7. Flipboard Raises $50 Million in New Funding

 

Flipboard, the app startup that lets users read digital copies of magazines, has raised $50 million new funding, putting them at a valuation of $800 million. This marks the company’s third funding round. Flipboard says that their user base has grown 60% to 80 million users, compared to six months ago. Also, there are now 3.5 million magazines on Flipboard.  “It’s definitely early days for us still but the traction this quarter will be 2x or 3x what last quarter was,” said Mike McCue, CEO of Flipboard. “The combination between the traction we’ve seen on the revenue side with these brand advertisements and brand magazines combined with what we did with 2.0 where anyone can build their own magazine—that really got us moving towards doing another round of fundraising.”

McCue says that most of the late financing will go towards hiring engineers and designers. He sees the staff, currently at a size of 90, growing to a size of 200.

Jessie Yen
239
18 Sep, 2013

Top Startup and Tech News Today-7 Things You Missed Today

1. IBM Commits an Additional $1 Billion to Linux Innovation

 

IBM announced at LinuxCon that it would invest $1 billion in Linux and other open source technologies. The hope is that this investment will let clients utilize big data and cloud computing. This is IBM’s second commitment of $1 billion to Linux development. With this announcement came the unveiling of the Power Systems Linux Center initiative in France and the Linux on Power development cloud initiative. Both are intended to expand IBM’s support of Linux open source vendors and applications.

 

The Linux on Power development cloud initiative is done in hopes of expanding IBM’s Power System Cloud. Users will be allowed to access a no-charge cloud service that will give developments, partners, and clients the ability to “prototype, build, port, and test” their Linux applications. IBM VP of Power Development, Brad McCredie, says that “the era of big data calls for a new approach to IT systems; one that is open, customizable, and designed from the ground up to handle big data and cloud workloads.”

 

2. How Facebook Stands to Gain by Sharing Its Trade Secrets

 

Companies used to live by the idea of secrecy, and guard their operations in order to ensure that competitors never gained an advantage. This used to be the method that most corporations employed; however, Facebook changed this game by disclosing a very detailed report on how they ran their data centers, powered their website, and developer their mobile apps.

 

This 71-page report also details the company’s approach. This includes everything from removing the plastic bezels from their servers to reject app modifications that increase power consumption. This report was published as part of the multi-company effort called Internet.org to bring the Internet to the next 5 billion. This effort has generally been called a philanthropic effort, and an effort of economic empowerment and human rights, but there is, naturally, plenty to gain from Facebook in terms of opening up huge new markets.

 

Asides from opening new markets, Facebook has a lot to gain in terms of sharing such information: it makes their own life far easier. If Facebook can get companies thinking how they think, they’ll buy similar materials that Facebook runs on. The less “exotic” and special something is, the cheaper its cost will be. Facebook has a large enough presence that it can easily steer product decisions.

 

Facebook is not the only company to share their secrets and embrace open-source software; there are many other companies that do the same. But, they are one of the larger companies to do so, and though they stress the charitable nature of their action, there is a clear economic advancement that can be gained from doing so.

 

3. Iran restores blocks on Facebook, Twitter

 

Iran’s block on Facebook and Twitter was lifted for several hours. The brief access was a “technical glitch” that was quickly fixed. Those who managed to gain access only gained it for a brief period of time. This points to increasing struggles between groups seeking to have Facebook and other social networking sites unblocked by those working in the Iranian government, who have firm control over Internet access.

 

Many Facebook and Twitter users in the capital, Tehran, assumed that the brief Internet freedom was the result of a new policy from President Hasan Rouhani. Many people wrote on their social media accounts, praising him for the new openness in Iran. This praise was quickly subdued when the social media sites became no longer available on Tuesday morning.

 

4. What will iOS7 do for your iDevice?

 

iOS7, the first operating system designed by Jony Ive, the man behind the physical look and feel of all Apple devices, will be ready for download on Wednesday. But, even if your device is compatible, not all promised 200 new features of iOS7 will be available.

 

The latest OS brings a serious overhaul of Siri to make her performance more in line with what Android offers via Google Now. Siri can now directly plug into Wikipedia, Twitter, Bing, transit routes, traffic updates, and even the user’s own photo album. But, not all headlines features will function on every Apple device; ultimately, it depends on each device’s processor, RAM, and screen resolution requirements.

 

Here’s a list of what iOS7 will do for you:

-       Airdrop, a protocol for sharing files over wifi, even when there is no signal, will be coming to the iPhone 5, Touch (5th generation), iPad 4 and iPad Mini.

-       Siri will be updated with a new graphical interface and the ability to tap into Wikipedia and Bing for web searches.

-       iOS7 will include lens filters which will only be available on the iPhone 5 and the iPod touch (fifth generation.) You can now apply effects before you take the photo.

-       iTunes Radio will work across iPhones 4, 4s, and 5, and the iPad 2, 3, 4, and mini.

 

5. Google buys Bump app for sharing smartphone files

 

Google has bought  out Bump, the smartphone app that lets you share contacts, pictures, and other data by bumping” smartphones together. Google has bought out the Bump team but is leaving popular Bump application available to users. “We couldn’t be more thrilled to join Google,” Bump co-founder and chief, Lieb, said “Bump and Flock will continue to work as they always have for now; stay tuned for future updates.”

 

The deal has been reported to have been worth $30-$60 million.

 

6. AT&T Promises (Again) Not To Disconnect Your Account If It Suspects You Of Illegally Downloading

 

Even though its copyright warning letter says AT&T will cut users suspected of illegally downloading copyrighted material off from Internet, AT&T says that it will not. The letter warned that illegally downloading was a violation of AT&T Term’s and could result in “a limitation of Internet access or even suspension or termination” of the account.

 

The letter is a part of the “six strikes plan,” where nation’s ISPs send warnings to those they think are breaking copyright law. This is supposed to be about education and repeat violators are not supposed to be cut off from the Internet; instead they are supposed to be temporarily redirected to another page where they will be required to view educational materials on copyright. AT&T says that the letter in which they warn off cutting people off from internet is simply telling people what could happen should the person be guilty of illegally downloading under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. But the six strike warnings are merely allegations, AT&T promises it won’t be closing down anyone’s internet.

 

7. Google’s AdID to take a bite out of third-party cookies

 

Google is fed up with the third-party cookies. So, they have a plan called AdID to get rid of them from your online advertising. This plan could upend the $120 billion online advertising business while giving more control over which ads are shown to customers and to Google. An anonymous source at Google says that AdID could give Google a big bump in the company’s online ad business (Google currently controls 1/3 of all online advertising revenue.) “The AdID would be transmitted to advertisers and ad networks that have agreed to basic guidelines, giving consumers more privacy and control over how they browse the Web,” said the anonymous source.

 

Google, on the other hand, designed that any plans were imminent. “We believe that technological enhancements can improve users’ security while ensuring the Web remains economically viable,” a Google spokesperson told CNET. “We and others have a number of concepts in this area, but they’re all at very early stages.”

 

 

 

 

Jessie Yen
519