Admantx Lands $2.8 Million for Contextual Advertising

By
Mark Hefflinger
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0

Hartford, Conn. – Admantx, a provider of contextual advertising technology, said on Wednesday that it has closed a $2.8 million first round of funding, from Atlante Ventures Mezzogiorno.

Hartford, Conn.-based Admantx said that this is the first outside funding the company has secured since it was spun off last year from semantic software provider Expert System.

Admantx’s platform combines semantic Web, natural language processing and social collaboration features.

The company will use the funds to bolster sales and marketing efforts.

 

Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/3lzs224

http://www.admantx.com

YOU On Demand Secures $10.9 Million for Chinese VOD Platform

By
Mark Hefflinger
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0

New York – YOU On Demand, which claims to be the first national pay-per-view and video-on-demand platform in China, said on Wednesday that it ha raised $10.9 million through a private placement of its shares.

The single largest investor was FIL Investment Management (Hong Kong), which now holds 9.4% of the company’s stock.

New York-based YOU On Demand said it will use the funds to continue development of its video distribution platform, as well as for marketing, promotions and general corporate purposes.

 

Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/3qadlfm

http://www.yod.com

Violin Memory Raises $40 Million for Flash Memory

By
Mark Hefflinger
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0

Mountain View, Calif. – Violin Memory, a developer of memory arrays, said on Tuesday it has raised $40 million in its third round of funding, just four months after the company closed its second round at $35 million.

Violin did not disclose the identities of its latest backers, but Toshiba and Juniper co-led the previous round.

“Our new capital will allow us to speed up product development and global expansion in Europe and Asia to surpass $100 million in revenue this year, the first step in building a billion dollar company,” said CEO Don Basile, the former chairman and CEO of Fusion-io.

“This pace of revenue growth will continue to make Violin the fastest growing storage company in the last decade.”

Mountain View, Calif.-based Violin’s silicon storage systems combine software, Toshiba NAND Flash, DRAM and distributed processing. The technology is currently being used in data center for companies like AOL, Perforce and Microsoft.

The company now has raised $85 million.

 

Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/4yvktdc

Senate Confirms Former RIAA Lawyer as U.S. Solicitor General

By
Mark Hefflinger
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0

Washington – The U.S. Senate on Monday voted to approve the appointment of former Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) attorney Donald Verrilli Jr. to serve as solicitor general, Wired reports.

Verrilli led the major record label trade group’s landmark lawsuit against file-sharing service Grokster, which was decided in the labels’ favor by the Supreme Court in 2003. He was also recently leading Viacom’s $1 billion copyright suit against YouTube.

Verrilli will fill the position left vacant after Elena Kagan was appointed to the Supreme Court last year.

 

Related Links:
http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2011/06/senate-confirms-verrilli/

Google Adds 'Mediafire' to Piracy-Related Search Filter

By
Mark Hefflinger
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0

Mountain View, Calif. – Google has added cyberlocker service Mediafire to a list of “piracy-related” keywords that it filters from its Instant and Autocomplete search features, joining other terms like “torrent,” “BitTorrent” and “RapidShare,” TorrentFreak reported.

A Google spokesperson noted to TorrentFreak that the move “do[es] not remove any results from search results or prevent users from typing any term they choose into their queries.”

“When evaluating terms for inclusion, we examine several factors, including correlation between the term and results that have been subject to valid DMCA takedown notices,” the spokesman added.

“This is something we looked at and thought we could make some narrow and relatively easy changes to our Autocomplete algorithm that could make a positive difference… We also take a similar approach to a narrow class of terms related to pornography, violence and hate speech.”

 

Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/3jhr4mz (TorrentFreak)

Nintendo Debuts Wii U Console, Touchscreen Controller Tablet

By
Mark Hefflinger
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0

Los Angeles – Nintendo on Tuesday unveiled its next-generation game console, the Wii U, which will come with a new mini-tablet touchscreen controller.

The company said that the system will ship sometime between next April and the end of 2012.

Nintendo said the Wii U will be able to display graphics in 1080p high-definition, and will be backwards-compatible with existing Wii controllers and game titles.

The new Wii U controller sports a 6.2-inch, horizontally-oriented touchscreen, motion-sensing technology and analog controls on either side of the screen.

At its E3 Expo presentation on Tuesday, Nintendo demonstrated a title for the new system called “Chase Mii,” where a number of players using first-generation Wii controllers and looking at the television display chase after a player using the new Wii U controller, who has an exclusive view of a map on the controller’s display that cannot be seen by the other players.

 

Related Links:
http://e3.nintendo.com/hw

http://tinyurl.com/3laa7m5 (N.Y. Times)

Hackers Launch New Attacks Against Sony

By
Mark Hefflinger
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0

Los Angeles – A hacker group has launched another series of attacks against Sony, this time claiming to have stolen source code and data from the Sony Computer Entertainment Developer Network and SonyBMG, while other hackers have targeted Sony Pictures Russia, CNET reports.

The “LulzSec” hacker group said in a post on The Pirate Bay’s message boards that its recent actions mark its sixth attack against Sony, and claim the group stole Sony source code and internal network maps.

LulzSec denied involvement in an attack that took the Sony Pictures Russia website offline.

LulzSec also said that a person allegedly arrested in connection with its actions was not a part of its group, and that a private Internet Relay Chat forum it used that has been exposed was not its “core chatting channel.”

 

Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/3zo29yl (CNET)

http://thepiratebay.org/torrent/6449737/Sownage_2

Group Files FCC Complaint Against Verizon Over 4G Tethering

By
Mark Hefflinger
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0

Washington – A consumer advocacy group has filed a complaint against Verizon with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), alleging the company is violating terms of a spectrum agreement by preventing consumers from freely “tethering” their 4G smartphones to function as modems for other wireless devices, Wired reports.

Free Press says that Verizon has asked Google to remove tethering application from the Android Market app store, while charging $20 per month for its own tethering service.

Free Press claims that the move violates the terms of Verizon’s spectrum license with the FCC, which says the company may not “deny, limit or restrict” its customers’ ability to use the applications or devices of their choosing.

“Verizon’s conduct is bad for the public and bad for innovation. It also appears to be illegal under the FCC’s rules that govern Verizon’s LTE network,” said Free Press policy counsel Aparna Sridhar.

“Users pay through the nose for Verizon’s LTE service, and having done so, they should be able to use their connections as they see fit. Instead, Verizon’s approach is to sell you broadband but then put up roadblocks to control your use of it.”

The complaint asks the FCC to investigate Verizon’s alleged violation of the terms of its licenses.

 

Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/4yway8m (Free Press statement)

http://www.wired.com/epicenter/2011/06/verizon-tethering-fcc/

Report: Smartphone App Downloads to Near 48 Billion in 2015

By
Mark Hefflinger
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0

Scottsdale, Ariz. – Driven by increased smartphone penetration and the proliferation of apps, mobile application downloads are expected to reach nearly 48 billion in 2015, according to a report from market research firm In-Stat.

Smartphone penetration is expected to increase from 23% of total phone shipments in 2010, to 45% in 2015.

Meanwhile, touchscreen technology shipped on nearly 90% of smartphones in 2011, a figure expected to increase to nearly 100% in the next several years.

“The projected rapid penetration of touchscreen-enabled devices will allow more users to easily interact with mobile applications, thereby driving growth,” said In-Stat analyst Amy Cravens.

“Increased on-board memory capacity will also lead to a better user experience.”

 

Related Links:
http://instat.com/press.asp?ID=3155&sku=IN1104930MCM

Sony Debuts PlayStation Vita Handheld, 24-Inch 3D Gamer Display

By
Mark Hefflinger
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1

Tokyo – Sony on Tuesday announced that it will begin selling its next-generation handheld game system, the PlayStation Vita, for $249-$299 in the fall.

A Wi-Fi model will sell for $249, while a model that also features a 3G connection — via AT&T in the U.S. — will sell for $299.

The device sports a 5-inch touchscreen front display, multi-touch pad on the rear, and two analog sticks.

Sony said the Vita will come with applications that allow users to locate nearby gamers, and a “Party” mode that enables voice or text chat during online gaming or when using other applications.

The company said on Tuesday that its previous-generation PSP handheld game system, which debuted in December 2004, has now sold 70 million units worldwide.

Separately, Sony said it plans to introduce a $499, 24-inch 3D display in the fall. The HD LCD display will come bundled with 3D glasses that will retail for $69, and developer Insomniac Games’ “Resistance 3.”

 

Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/6c39ygv

http://tinyurl.com/3moq2zf

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