Report: Android Smartphones Outsell iPhone in Q1

By
Mark Hefflinger
-
0

Port Washington,
N.Y. – Smartphones running
Google’s (NASD: GOOG) Android operating system outsold Apple’s (NASD: AAPL) iPhone for the first time
during the first quarter of 2010, according to a report from market research
firm NPD Group.

Android-powered handsets accounted for 28% of all U.S. smartphone
sales in the first quarter, behind leader Research in Motion’s (NASD: RIMM) BlackBerry
(36%), but ahead of Apple’s iPhone (21%) for the first time.

Over a dozen
Android-powered smartphones are now on the market, to Apple’s solitary iPhone.

NPD said Verizon’s (NYSE: VZ) promotions have spurred sales of Droid and BlackBerry
smartphones, and helped the company compete with AT&T for market share.

AT&T led with 32% of all U.S.
smartphone sales in the first quarter, compared to the 30% sold by Verizon, 17%
by T-Mobile, and 15% by Sprint (NYSE: S).

 

Related Links:
http://www.npd.com/press/releases/press_100510.html

Pirate Bay Bidder Pandeya Taps Ted Cohen to Facilitate Deal

By
Mark Hefflinger
-
1

San Francisco – Hans Pandeya, whose latest attempt to
acquire file-sharing hub The Pirate Bay comes in the form of a bid launched by
a public American company called BMSV, has hired TAG Strategic’s Ted Cohen to
help facilitate the deal, Wired.com reports.

Cohen, the former head of digital
at EMI, was previously retained to work on similar plans to transform
file-sharing services Napster and Limewire into legitimate distribution
services.

"Ten years ago, I went through this [with Napster] — there
should be a way to pull this off," Cohen told Wired.com, of a potential
legal Pirate Bay. "If the industry wasn’t ready
ten years ago, I think they are possibly ready for it now."

"If you
can convert 30 percent of [The Pirate Bay users to a paid subscription],
everybody sees the wisdom in that now, more-so than they did two or three years
ago. I don’t think it’s a fool’s quest," added Cohen.

The Pirate Bay’s
brand reputation and past actions that infuriated copyright owners could pose
obstacles to such a deal, however.

"[Branding] was a serious challenge for
Bit Torrent when we did the license agreements, and it’s proving difficult for
a lot of other companies in a similar space," Ashwin Navid, the co-founder
of file-sharing software firm BitTorrent, told Wired.com.

"For example
Boxee has a hard time, DIVX has a hard time — these companies that have pushed
the envelope on copyright tend to get categorized as renegades, and the lawyers
have a hard time — and the [entertainment] brand managers have a hard time —
embracing those brands."

*Disclosure: Ted Cohen is on Digital Media Wire’s strategic advisory board.

 

Related Links:
http://www.wired.com/epicenter/2010/05/a-legit-pirate-bay

Report: Apple Developing 'Gianduia' as Flash Alternative

By
Mark Hefflinger
-
0

Los Angeles
– Apple (NASD: AAPL) is developing an alternative to Adobe’s (NASD: ADBE) Flash, which it banned
developers from using on its iPhone and iPad products, Apple Insider reported.

The Gianduia technology, described as a client-side, standards-based framework for rich Internet apps, was first introduced at Apple’s World of WebObjects
Developer Conference last year.

Gianduia has reportedly been in use at Apple’s
own retail stores — in the form of the One to One program, iPhone reservation
system, and Concierge service for Genius Bar reservations.

Apple recently
modified the terms of its developer agreement for the iPhone, banning the use
of third-party development platforms like Adobe’s Flash.

 

Related Links:
http://snipurl.com/w4pws
(Apple Insider)

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-20004509-37.html

WordStream Raises $6 Million for Online Marketing Services

By
Mark Hefflinger
-
0

Boston
– WordStream, a Boston-based provider of search engine optimization and
pay-per-click software, has raised $6 million in its second round of venture
capital, according to published reports.

Founded in 2007, WordStream provides a
private, online keyword tool for conducting keyword discovery, keyword
research, keyword grouping, keyword optimization, and search marketing
workflow.

Egan-Managed Capital led the round, which also included Sigma
Partners, according to TechCrunch.

 

Related Links:
http://techcrunch.com/2010/05/07/wordstream-funding/

http://www.wordstream.com

Facebook Hires Former FTC Chairman to Defend Privacy Policies

By
Mark Hefflinger
-
0

Washington
– Facing increased federal scrutiny about its privacy practices, Facebook has
hired Tim Muris, the former chairman of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the
Financial Times reported.

Muris previously led the FTC under George W. Bush
between 2001-2004, helping to create the agency’s "National Do Not Call
Registry."

Now, he will help Facebook defend its privacy practices —
which are currently being investigated by the FTC — following complaints from
privacy advocates.

Just last week, Muris, most recently of counsel at the law
firm of O’Melveny & Myers, received the FTC’s Lifetime Achievement award.

 

Related Links:
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/c1ce050a-5b92-11df-85a3-00144feab49a.html

http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2010/05/kirkpatrick.shtm

FCC Allows MPAA, Pay-TV Services to Block Analog Outputs

By
Mark Hefflinger
-
0

Washington
– The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has moved to allow cable and
satellite TV service providers to block consumers from viewing new release
films on analog devices as a means of preventing piracy. Following lobbying by
the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), the FCC agreed to allow
implementation of a "Selectable Output Control" (SOC) scheme, which
enables programmers to remotely disable the audio/video outputs on their
set-top boxes.

The effect will be that analog devices and some older HD sets
will not be able to access the video-on-demand films made available at the same
time they are still in theaters, during a 90-day window.

The FCC noted that it
did not grant the MPAA’s full waiver request, which would have extended from
a film’s theatrical release through its DVD release date.

In granting the MPAA’s waiver, the
FCC said that "the service that MPAA proposes would serve the public
interest and that providers of first-run theatrical content are unlikely to
offer the service absent the ability to activate SOC."

Opponents of the
SOC scheme, including rights group Public Knowledge, were dismayed by the FCC’s
move.

"The FCC is allowing the MPAA to control your television," Public
Knowledge staff attorney John Bergmayer told Wired.com.

 

Related Links:
http://snipurl.com/w4nwj
(PDF: FCC ruling)

http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2010/05/fcc-allows-soc

Woozworld Lands $3 Million for Virtual World for Tweens

By
Mark Hefflinger
-
0

Montreal
– Woozworld, a virtual world for tweens (ages 9-14), announced on Monday that
it has raised $3 million in its first round of funding, led by iNovia Capital
and ID Capital.

Launched in December 2009 by Tribal Nova, Montreal, Canada-based Woozworld will now
become a separate entity.

The site currently counts 350,000 members and 1 million
user-generated virtual spaces.

Woozworld will use the funds for marketing and
continued development of its virtual world.

 

Related Links:
http://snipurl.com/w4nqg

http://www.woozworld.com

Mobile Analytics Firm Localytics Closes First Round of Funding

By
Mark Hefflinger
-
0

Cambridge,
Mass. – Localytics, a provider of
mobile analytics services, announced on Monday that it has closed its first
round of funding, led by Launchpad Venture Group and New York Angels.

While the
amount raised was not disclosed, TechCrunch pegged the investment at around $700,000.

Cambridge, Mass.-based Localytics was a member
of the 2009 TechStars Boston class, receiving $18,000 from the incubator
program.

The company said it will use the funds to expand the services and
features of its community and enterprise mobile analytics services.

 

Related Links:
http://snipurl.com/w4l9s

http://techcrunch.com/2010/05/10/localytics

First Reviews of Microsoft "Kin" Social Phones Roll In

By
Mark Hefflinger
-
0

Los Angeles
– The first reviews of Microsoft’s (NASD: MSFT) new "Kin" line of social
media-focused mobile phones have been published, and while some have praised
their physical design and the Kin Studio back-up software that accompanies the
phones, others have been critical of social media features, the on-board
camera, and particularly the Kin’s price tag. The Kin One and Kin Two will be
sold exclusively by Verizon from May 13, for $50 and $100, respectively, after
a $100 mail-in rebate and two-year service contract.


 

Related Links:
http://snipurl.com/w26bw
(WSJ)

http://snipurl.com/w268g
(Gizmodo)

http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/05/kin-one-and-two-review/1

http://www.wired.com/reviews/product/pr_microsft_kin

http://www.kin.com

Spotify Music Service to Launch in the Netherlands

By
Mark Hefflinger
-
0

London – Streaming music
service Spotify will soon launch in the Netherlands, MusicWeek reported,
citing head of communications Jim Butcher. The company, which is also expected
to launch the Spotify service in the U.S.
this year, does not yet have a launch date for the Netherlands. Spotify is currently
available in the U.K., France, Spain,
Sweden, Norway and Finland.


 

Related Links:
http://snipurl.com/w25pe
(MusicWeek)

http://www.spotify.com

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