Showing posts with label plans. Show all posts
Showing posts with label plans. Show all posts

Sunday, August 14, 2011

Boot up: Apple's projector plans, angry birds maker ' seeks $ 1.2bn valuation ' and more

A quick burst 6 links you to chew over, as picked by the technology team

Nilay Patel: "there is a fundamental problem with patents in the United States.

"It is us.

"I think all of us: the companies and people who directly interact with the patent system, the media reports about interactions, analysts and experts who inform the media, and finally the big, active and vocal readership that we try and service with our reporting. As a group, we have accepted and let be the lazy conventional wisdom that the patent system is broken beyond repair, a relic from an earlier time, which has been replaced by the rapid pace of technical innovation, especially in the software, and that it should perhaps be scrapped entirely. "

Apple has "plans to integrate mini-or pico-projectors in similar future iOS devices at the same time introducing a likely Projector Accessories for led"

"Rovio entertainment Oy, Finnish creator of" Angry birds "mobile phone game, is in negotiations to receive funding, which would value the company at about $ 1.2 billion, two people with knowledge of the discussion said".

Zuckerberg calls a Chill feature "lame". Here is the response: "Chills so what will we do? We have already removed this feature. " Lame.

How Google + hope to beat Facebook: undercutting it. "launch of its Google + social gaming platform, Google has found a way to differentiate itself from Facebook. In the case of transactions in the game will Google only charging a 5 percent Commission for game developers instead of 30 percent to Facebook charges. "

"Today we are adding games to Google +. With Google + project, we want to bring nuance and richness of genuine sharing on the Internet. But sharing is about more than just conversations. The experience we have together is just as important for our relations. We want to play games online as fun, and just as meaningful as a player in real life. "

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Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Moshi Monsters plans move into online children TV

Moshi Monsters, UK social networking homepage for kids, revealed plans to move into online tv with a free iPlayer-style service.

The home page, which started in 2008, invites children to adopt a monster, play games and communicate with each other. Online TV player, Moshi TV, will include caricatures of popular Moshi characters or "moshlings", as Lady Googoo, dustbin Beaver and 49 Pence and animations downloaded by users. Due to start later this year,

Moshi television has the advantage of tapping into an existing audience of almost 38 m registered users all over the world, mainly aged between six and 11.

Michael Acton Smith, founder of the parent company mind Candy, said there was a widespread demand among children after a safe, socially-powered video website completely for them. "this is how the children will enjoy media. They do not want to sit and broadcast to-they will interact, and share and comment on, "he said.

"We reverse the traditional television on its head, and let the children decide what is popular by voting things up and make them more visible."

Moshi employs 20 editors and officer safety, and insists it will go through each piece of downloaded content. Children will be able to upload their own animations and short films, but not recordings of themselves or other children.

Moshi Monsters is profitable: while signing up to the site is free, a subscription fee enables its members to gather more moshlings and merchandise alone is sales forecast to reach $ 100 m £ 62 m in 2011.

Acton Smith said Moshi TELEVISION was being spun as a new company, and expects to have recruited nearly 30 employees at the end of the year. Rather than charging children or running commercials, Moshi TV charge content owners to put their output on the Web site.

Though Moshi claims rapid growth in the United States, which now represents 35% of its total audience, it is still over an intensely competitive market. In the United Kingdom dominates the Penguin Club Disney-owned, with an estimated 1224 m monthly users in February, according to comScore. Moshimonsters.com recorded 927,000, Stardoll 754,000 and Habbo 481,000.

Acton Smith said the time and thought had been invested in creating a distinctive, edgy visual style of the Moshi Monsters, originally created by illustrator Vincent Bechet.

"Pixar is one of the companies we have been inspired by, and it enables hundreds of millions of dollars in each film," he said.

"Secondly, it is to achieve this social is key – children love to impress and communicate just as adults do, and we have built secure tools for them to do."

He added internet : is a winner takes the entire market. Facebook has won LinkedIn social, has won business and Zynga has won the social gaming. But no one has gone deep in kids ' space, although it is a multi million offline industry. We want to be the top player so we are rapidly growing. "


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Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Ofcom under the plans the end roll over contracts

Automatic contract renewals, which binds the home phone and broadband customers for further 12-month contracts are prohibited under the proposal of telecommunications Ofcom underregulator.

At the moment, find thousands of telephone users, typically come to the end of a 12-or 18-month contract, even sign up for another year unless they actively opt out renewal. These contracts, also known as rollover contracts currently offered by BT and several smaller Telecoms providers.

Consumers who fail to read their mail correctly, or is away at the time have found themselves bound to a new contract – often against their will.

Ofcom under estimates, around 15% of British residential consumers who roll over contracts. It mentions that they are anti-competitive and should be prohibited.

The regulator said that it will consult industry in a process that ends on the 12. Unless companies can justify why roll over contracts should continue, they will probably be banned "in summer".

Separately, Ofcom under the has this week warned it could yet TalkTalk faces a fine, even though it pays £ 2. 5 m compensation for former Tiscali customers over 62,000 defective invoicing.

Ofcom under says it received more than 1,000 complaints regarding incorrect bills from companies after people had stopped taking their services.

Problems are caused by the acquisition of Tiscali, TalkTalk in late 2009. The issue has been highlighted in the Guardian money many times.

Among billing errors received a customer bills for £ 110 from TalkTalk after she switched to another provider. Another customer paid Tiscali £ 610, despite cancelling her account in February 2006, after being sent bills from debt collection services.

Several customers have complained to the money they have been chased by the debt collectors to money, as they knew they did not owe.

TalkTalk says: "we are pleased Ofcom under has recognized the significant steps we have taken to resolve the billing issues. We moved our customers to our single billing platform at the end of January, and our focus on the ability to resolve any outstanding issues continue.

But the watchdog still receiving complaints and warned it could issue the TalkTalk with a fine, which could be up to 10% of its turnover – if it found evidence that it had continued to violate the rules.

Because TalkTalk had taken significant steps to solve the problem within the time limit set, says Ofcom under that, under existing rules could not be fine company for the original offence.


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