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It is a truism that consumers' smartphones, armed with a slew of sophisticated apps, function as mini computers. That being the case, smartphones programmed with sales force marketing and productivity applications have almost become sophisticated enough to be compared to mainframe computing They're not quite there yet, but sales force software dep...

A notable behavioral shift has occurred in the United States over the last few years. Communication methods have changed. One transformation is that people are less dependent on the classic voice telephone call -- landline or mobile -- and rely more on textual communications like those provided through social networks. Another metamorphosis is the adoption of the smartphone...

Google has received multiple offers for the cable box division of Motorola, according to reports that surfaced Monday It may now be considering bids for the set-top business from two companies, Pace and Arris Group, both of which are manufacturers of cable equipment. What makes a potential deal all the more interesting is that it is likely that Goo...

The Federal Communications Commission is interjecting itself into a long-standing argument over the safety of using electronic devices during flights. Chairman Julius Genachowski sent a letter to Michael Huerta, acting administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration, calling for an expansion of the permitted use of tablets, e-readers, and other portable devices on flights. The letter was obtained by The Hill, which first reported the proposed policy change.

Apple's new map system on iOS 6, which replaced Google Maps, has drawn plenty of criticism from pundits Now, it's the subject of a warning by Australian police. are warning drivers to be wary of Apple's new maps system, which shows their fair town as being in the middle of Murray Sunset National Park....

Video games, often a hot seller during the holiday season, are seeing softer sales this year. That's according to data released by NPD Group that shows video game sales down 11 percent for the month of November, compared to sales figures from the same period last year Sales for November totaled US$2.55 billion in the video game category, which is ...

A number of law enforcement groups are lobbying Congress to add provisions to a bill revamping the 1986 Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA) that would require wireless carriers to archive text messages for as long as two years. There may be reasons for companies to archive messages -- but simply functioning as a record-keeping arm for law enforcement is not one of them, privacy advocates maintain...

The Politics of AbundanceBy Reed Hundt and Blair LevinNovember 2012$1.99 e-book available at several outlets including Amazon, iTunes and Barnes & Noble The duo that led the Clinton-era FCC, Reed Hundt and Blair Levin, recently published a new e-book titled The Politics of Abundance. It looks to the success of the 1990's for solutions to today's p...

When Double Cola wanted to encourage its customers to keep coming back for more of its vintage fizzy drink, it started a rewards program. Using tried-and-true loyalty methods, the company offered customers the opportunity to turn over the cola's caps, earn points, and get discounts and merchandise "These guys wanted to come into the current generat...

Last week was defined largely by two interesting stories. One had Apple bringing some manufacturingback to the U.S.(some interesting thoughts on this here),and the other revolved around the outcome of the latest trialbetween Apple and Samsung. It shows you how hard it is to read a judge, though. I thought Judge Lucy Koh would likely raise the awar...

Google has restyled its YouTube page to make it easier for viewers to keep up with channel subscriptions. The redesign builds on last year's introduction of a Guide on the home page. Google is now displaying the YouTube Guide across all devices The changes underscore the benefits of subscribing to the various channels. After viewers sign up, the Gu...

Recently while presenting the findings of a Big Data survey to an executive team, I was a bit taken aback when the CEO stopped me and said, "I'll listen to what you learned from the survey as long as you don't use those two words again -- 'Big Data' -- I've already told my team there will be hell to pay if one more person tells me, 'we ought take a look at what Big Data can do for us,' that may be the last suggestion they make at the company." I would love to say I was surprised, but it wasn't the first time I had heard this sentiment from an executive...

Judge Lucy Koh on Thursday heard another round of quibbling between Apple and Samsung lawyers. Calling for some sort of "global peace," she reportedly asked both sides if there was any endpoint coming in their slugfest over patent issues Koh presided earlier this year over the high-profile, often bitter trial between the giants that ended with the ...

Buoyed by the recent success of its Mars rover Curiosity, NASA on Tuesday announced plans for a multiyear Mars program that includes launching a new robotic science rover in 2020 ...

Akamai is joining forces with AT&T to help the telecom carrier better deliver Web and entertainment content to mobile consumers The two will team up over the next year, with AT&T folding much of Akamai's content delivery platform into its IP network. The system will be jointly marketed, managed and supported by the duo.

Akamai is joining forces with AT&T to help the telecom carrier better deliver Web and entertainment content to mobile consumers The two will team up over the next year, with AT&T folding much of Akamai's content delivery platform into its IP network. The system will be jointly marketed, managed and supported by the duo.

Buried halfway through a wordy investment statement from Deutsch Telekom: "T-Mobile USA has entered into an agreement with Apple to bring products to market together in 2013." Those 17 words launched a frenzy of speculation. Was this finally the agreement that T-Mobile had been waiting for? Would it soon provide the iPhone and possibly the iPad to...

This year men are doing more of the shopping, and they're not the befuddled dads TV shows project. They're purposeful shoppers looking for the best deals. This newly emergent breed is dubbed the "mansumer" by IPG Mediabrands agency BPN in its 2013 Retail Trends Report released this week. The report covers emerging trends for the 2012 holiday shopping season, and looks forward to shopping trends for 2013 as well. ...

This year's EMC Industry Analyst Summit included numerous highlights familiar to regular IT conference attendees: a self-generated report card on the previous year's activities and a discussion of plans for the year ahead, for example Few, however, offer the level of access EMC does by holding candid and unscripted Q&A sessions with senior executiv...

Microsoft next month will roll out a service update for Microsoft Dynamics CRM that will have a new user interface, integration with Yammer, Skype and Office 2013, and cross-browser support. ...