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  • Mobile Internet Connections – Reliable Targets for Hackers

    Researcher Karsten Nohl, an expert in data security, started a campaign against the major mobile operators in order to determine the adoption of more stringent measures to secure data traffic created by the users of mobile internet services.

    To demonstrate how vulnerable users of mobile Internet connections are to hackers interested in spying them, he created a software application that once installed on the mobile phone allows us to monitor all data traffic carried by GPRS.

    The owner of such a GPRS interceptor can track Web surfing habits of other people and even intercept sensitive data, such as passwords or credit card details.

    The whole demonstration was made possible thanks to a cheap Motorola smartphone and some free applications, modified to allow the interception and decryption of data traffic transmitted in the mobile networks using GPRS.

    The researcher wanted to point out that the encryption algorithms used for secure connections in mobile networks cannot provide effective protection even in the face of attackers poorly trained and are even lacking in some operators.

    Apparently, mobile phone operators choose not to implement the algorithms performance for secure connections in order to monitor data traffic carried out by users, to facilitate the detection and blocking the viruses that spread inside the network and the detection and blocking of Skype connections.

    Two years ago, the same researcher revealed the algorithms required for decrypting the calls carried by GSM networks. Last year he launched an application that allows users to verify if the calls initiated in the telephone networks can be bugged or not by malevolent persons.

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    Apple Launches New Lawsuit Against Motorola Regarding its Xoom Tablet
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    Apple Took Two Thirds of Available Mobile Phone Profits in Q2

  • Apple Launches New Lawsuit Against Motorola Regarding its Xoom Tablet

    Just one day after Apple convinced the court in Düsseldorf, Germany, that Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 imitates the iPad and obtained a court order that prohibits the sale of the South Korean tablet in few European countries, here’s that Steve Jobs and his team from Cupertino launches a new lawsuit, this time against Motorola.

    The incriminated product is Motorola Xoom, also for the alleged design elements inspired by iPad 2. The trial will take place at the same court in Düsseldorf. Even if Apple will win in the first instance, the companies accused can appeal, a fact already confirmed by the South Koreans.

    Apple has also won a major victory against its South Korean rival, Samsung Electronics, after the court in Dusseldorf has banned the sale of Samsung Galaxy tab in the European Union, except the Netherlands. Apple spokeswoman Kristin Huguet, confirmed that the court has issued a temporary ban against the Galaxy Tab 10.1. It is not yet clear why the order did not include the Netherlands.

    Samsung Electronics, the largest technology company in Asia in terms of revenue, said it will appeal German court decision. Samsung is also the world's largest producer of memory chips and televisions and the second largest producer of mobile phones.

    German court decision comes a week after Samsung was forced to postpone the launch of Galaxy tablet on the market in Australia because of similar legal actions filed by Apple.

    On the IT&C market, such lawsuits are on the agenda. There is a huge network in which many important companies are judging each other for the infringement of various patents. In terms of design-problem lawsuits and not software, is very difficult to make an objective judgment.

    If Apple will finally win all these lawsuits, it will be created a precedent under which the company in Cupertino could also attack other major manufacturers of tablets.

    You may also want to read:
    Blackberry Wants to Help the British Police
    Fujitsu-Toshiba Announced IS12T, the World’s First Windows Mango Phone
    RIM Unveils New Blackberrys: Torch 9810, Torch 9860 and Bold 9900

  • Cisco Reports Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2011 Earnings

    Cisco has reported its fourth quarter and fiscal year results for the period ended July 30, 2011. The company reported fourth quarter net sales of $11.2 billion, net income on a GAAP basis of $1.2 billion or $0.22 per share, and non-GAAP net income of $2.2 billion or $0.40 per share.

    "We've made significant progress on our comprehensive action plan to position ourselves for our next stage of growth and profitability, while delivering solid financial results in Q4," said John Chambers, chairman and CEO, Cisco. "As we start our next fiscal year, you will see a very focused, agile, lean and aggressive company, that is laser focused on helping our customers use intelligent networks to transform their businesses."

    Other Financial Highlights from Cisco's report:
          
            —  Cash flows from operations were $2.8 billion for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2011, compared with $3.0 billion for the third quarter of fiscal 2011, and compared with $3.2 billion for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2010. Cash flows from operations were $10.1 billion for fiscal 2011, compared with $10.2 billion for fiscal 2010.
           
            —  Cash and cash equivalents and investments were $44.6 billion at the end of fiscal 2011, compared with $43.4 billion at the end of the third quarter of fiscal 2011, and compared with $39.9 billion at the end of fiscal 2010.
           
            —  During the fourth quarter of fiscal 2011, Cisco repurchased 95 million shares of common stock under the stock repurchase program at an average price of $15.85 per share for an aggregate purchase price of $1.5 billion. During fiscal 2011, Cisco repurchased 351 million shares of common stock at an average price of $19.36 per share for an aggregate purchase price of $6.8 billion. As of July 30, 2011, Cisco had repurchased and retired 3.5 billion shares of Cisco common stock at an average price of $20.64 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $71.8 billion since the inception of the stock repurchase program. The remaining authorized amount for stock repurchases under this program as of July 30, 2011 was approximately $10.2 billion with no termination date.
           
            —  Days sales outstanding in accounts receivable (DSO) at the end of the fourth quarter of fiscal 2011 were 38 days, compared with 37 days at the end of the third quarter of fiscal 2011, and compared with 41 days at the end of the fourth quarter of fiscal 2010.

            —  Inventory turns on a GAAP basis were 11.8 in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2011, compared with 11.1 in the third quarter of fiscal 2011, and compared with 12.6 in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2010. Non-GAAP inventory turns were 11.4 in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2011, compared with 10.3 in the third quarter of fiscal 2011, and compared with 12.1 in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2010.

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  • Blackberry Wants to Help the British Police

    BlackBerry maker RIM offered to help the police in Great Britain to identify the protesters in the main cities of the Kingdom, after several days of violence that produced, on Tuesday, the first victim.

    "We think at those who have suffered from violence this weekend in London. I contacted the authorities and we want to help in any way we can," told for The Inquirer Patrick Spence, manager at RIM.

    His statements come after, during the day, it has been speculated that the wave of violent protests in London has been organized through BlackBerry Messenger network, known as BBM, present on BlackBerry smartphones. RIM declined to specify exactly how will cooperate with British authorities.

    London violence broke out during the night of Saturday, in response to the deadly shooting of a man by police. Several other protests have erupted since then in several UK cities, which resulted in approximately 450 arrests. The number could reach several thousands if RIM agrees to provide incriminating information to police.

    You may also want to read:
    RIM Unveils New Blackberrys: Torch 9810, Torch 9860 and Bold 9900
    RIM Fires 2000 Employees and Announces Two New Smartphones
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  • Vonage Reports Record High Net Income of $22 million

    Vonage Holdings announced results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2011. The Company reported record high net income of $22 million and record high adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (“EBITDA”) of $44 million.

    Vonage generated record high adjusted EBITDA of $44 million, up from $41 million in the year ago quarter and $43 million sequentially. Income from operations increased to $31 million from $24 million in the year ago quarter and $30 million sequentially.

    Net income increased to a record high $22 million or $0.10 per share, up from a net loss of $1 million or $0.00 per share in the year ago quarter, which included $12 million in charges relating to the Company's prior debt.  This increase was driven by a $7 million increase in income from operations and a $7 million reduction in interest expense. Net income increased from $21 million or $0.10 per share sequentially. 

    Revenue was $218 million, down from $225 million in the year ago quarter due to a $3 million decline in deferred revenues related to discontinuation of activation fees and lower customer equipment and shipping revenue.  Revenue declined from $220 million sequentially, primarily due to lower activation revenue and Universal Service Fund ("USF") fees. These factors contributed to a decline in average revenue per user ("ARPU") to $30.28, down from $31.21 in the prior year and $30.45 sequentially.

    Telephony services ARPU was $30.14, down from $30.71 a year ago due primarily to impacts from lower deferred activation revenue.  Telephony services ARPU decreased sequentially from $30.23 due to lower deferred activation revenue and USF fees.

    New Products

    Vonage announced two new products during the past week:  Extensions and Time to Call.

    Extensions, a free enhancement to the Company’s flat rate, unlimited international calling plan, addresses the needs of international long distance callers by extending the value provided by Vonage’s home service plans to additional phone numbers and devices including smartphones and feature phones.

    Time to Call provides low-cost, easy to use international calling on smartphones around the world.  According to the company, it is the first downloadable mobile application that allows pay-per-call international dialing to more than 190 countries. To promote its global launch, the Company is providing a free international call to everyone that downloads the application. This mobile application, designed for iPhones, allows consumers to make international calls of up to 15 minutes while avoiding high prices and roaming fees charged by traditional telecommunications carriers. The service is available in 87 countries around the world.  Time to Call provides direct payment through iTunes.

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  • Fujitsu-Toshiba Announced IS12T, the World’s First Windows Mango Phone

    The first smartphone that uses the new Mango OS is produced by Fujitsu-Toshiba and has been launched on Wednesday, during an event held in Tokyo.

    IS12T has a 3.7-inch screen and a 13.2 megapixels camera. The smartphone is equipped with Bluetooth and Wi-Fi and has included a CDMA modem. The new smartphone with Windows Mango weighs 113 grams and Fujitsu-Toshiba officials said the battery has a use of 11 days on standby and six hours on phone calls.

    IS12T has 32GB a built-in memory and is waterproof.

    The phone will be available only in Japan starting from September. Company officials have not disclosed the price.

    IS12T is the first in a series of devices to be launched in coming months, by which Microsoft hopes to signal that it is still a serious player in the smartphone market.

    In the same period last year, Microsoft was launching Windows 7 for smartphones, a system that failed to cope with the competition coming from Apple and Google Android.

    Despite the fact that it received thousands of applications and positive reviews, the new platform, which replaced Windows Mobile failed to obtain a significant market share on smartphones market. Microsoft had a market share of 2.7% of smartphones in the first quarter of 2011, according to IDC. But the year before, in the first quarter of 2010, Microsoft's market share was at 7.1%. As the number of smartphones sold with Windows 7 or Windows Mobile Phone, it fell from 3.9 to 2.8 million in the two periods.

    Mango, official Windows Phone 7.5, brings improvements to the Windows Phone 7, according to company representatives. Some of them include a new way to view e-mails, more efficient, Facebook Chat and Internet Explorer 9, for a faster web browsing.

    Besides Fujitsu-Toshiba, other manufacturers are also collaborating with Microsoft, such as the Taiwanese company Acer or the Chinese from ZTE, but the most awaited phones are expected to be launched by Nokia.

    IS12T is the first in a series of devices to be launched in coming months, by which Microsoft hopes to signal that it is still a serious player in the smartphone market.

    You may also want to read:
    RIM Unveils New Blackberrys: Torch 9810, Torch 9860 and Bold 9900
    Apple Took Two Thirds of Available Mobile Phone Profits in Q2
    Samsung Galaxy R Revealed
    HTC Sensation vs. Samsung Galaxy S 2

  • RIM Unveils New Blackberrys: Torch 9810, Torch 9860 and Bold 9900

    Canadian manufacturer Research in Motion has introduced on Wednesday three new Blackberry models: Torch 9810, Torch 9860 and Bold 9900.

    The new phones, along with an upgrade of Bold unveiled just few days ago, are part of what the Canadian company calls "the biggest global launch of the company”. This way, RIM is trying to regain its market share in the U.S., the region where the company lost ground to Apple's iPhone and to the numerous models with Google Android.

    The three terminals with touchscreen that are running on BlackBerry OS 7, have improved screens and 1.2 GHz Qualcomm processor – which is actually the most powerful  in a Canadian phone. This will be launched globally by the end of August.

    The browser of the new phones is up to 40% faster than that running on the oldest Torch model.

    The much coveted BlackBerry Torch 9810, also known as the Torch 2, has also appeared today on AT&T site, the largest mobile network in the United States. The device runs the new BlackBerry OS 7 and supports ultra-fast 4G connectivity.

    Information on the official AT&T website in connection with the device with removable keyboard shows a significant improvement of the hardware part compared to the first Torch. Blackberry Torch 9810 has a 1.2 GHz processor, 8GB of internal memory (the ability to expand its storage up to 32GB) and 4G support, which offers the fastest Internet connection speeds for smartphones.

    Regarding the software, the model will run, as expected, the BlackBerry operating system 7.

    BlackBerry Torch 9810 will be available "soon" in AT&T.

    RIM shipped 13.2 million phones in three months that ended in May, the first drop in sales since mid-2007.

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  • Apple Took Two Thirds of Available Mobile Phone Profits in Q2

    iPhone is a huge success for Apple. Besides the fact that is making almost half of the company’s revenues, iPhone collects two-thirds of total profits of the smartphone manufacturers.

    This figure was provided by the consulting company Asymco, founded and led by Horace Dediu. He gathered data from financial statements of the main protagonists that are competing on market for our money for phones.

    Asymco says that Apple has 66.3% of the pie, followed by Samsung with 15%, Research in Motion (RIM) is gathering with its BlackBerrys 11% and HTC has other 7.4%. Moreover, four major global manufacturers – Nokia, Motorola, Sony Ericsson and LG – have losses in the last quarter.

    According to Strategy Analytics, Apple now holds the crown of smartphone shipments, with 18.5% of market, followed by Samsung with 17.5% and Nokia with 15.2%.

    Samsung, the main threat, is using three platforms

    Unlike its analysts, who give Samsung with 19.2 million smartphones sold, Dediu estimates the giant at 19.9 million units shipped. Apple has already announced officially that they have 20.3 million terminals. The problem is that Samsung is producing phones that are running on three platforms, Android, Windows Phone 7 and its Bada OS. Rumors say the company refrain from publishing the breakdown and the number of phones, not only because of patent problems they had with Apple and Microsoft, but just because Android deliveries were under Nokia sales, 16.7 million Symbian phones.

    HTC will surpass Blackberry and Nokia

    Asymco analysts also write that the era of slightly increase of the smartphone producers already ended and that is very clear that Symbian and BlackBerry OS have become a burden to their developers and users are not buying any, since the decreases are not cyclic. Nokia already jumped in the Microsoft boat, but RIM is trying a transition to QNX, the operating system on the PlayBook tablet. Also, the hot competition could strongly hit smaller companies such as Motorola and Sony Ericsson. In addition, with iPhone nano entering the fight for the low-cost and medium segment of smartphones would be almost equivalent to a disaster for the small producers of Android or LG, who cannot make profit even so. And that's exactly what Apple is going to do.

    Also, at this rate, HTC will surpass RIM over the next three months in terms of units sold, after giving 12.1 million units in the last quarter (+142%), while RIM has sold 13,2 million BlackBerry phones (+18%).

    You may also want to read:
    Samsung Galaxy R Revealed
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    HTC Sensation vs. Samsung Galaxy S 2

  • Samsung Galaxy R Revealed

    Samsung announced the launch of the latest Android smartphone – Galaxy R. The phone has a slim design with a thickness of only 9.55 mm and is weighing 131 grams.

    Galaxy R comes equipped with a 4.19-inch Super Clear LCD screen and a dual-core processor, which offers the ability to record 720p HD video and to play 1080p Full HD (Divx, WMV, MP4, H.264 B/P) at 30fps.

    New Samsung device is equipped with a 5MP camera on the back and a 1.3MP on the front. It has an internal memory of 8GB, which can be extended to 32GB by using a microSD memory card.

    On the connectivity, the handset comes with Bluetooth 3.0 HS and USB 2.0 support. The Dual Channel Wi-Fi connection is also included as standard.

    Besides using the intuitive Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) platform, Galaxy R also includes Samsung Hubs, which provides access to content anytime, anywhere and provides continuing connectivity with users’ social circles.

    Hubs included are:

    • Social Hub – combines contacts, calendar and user’s e-mail with instant messaging and social networking connections, all within an easy to use interface that gives you control of social life everywhere.
    • Music Hub – provides access to over 14 million tracks, new and old, which transforms Galaxy R in your own jukebox.
    • Readers Hub – allows users to access whenever and wherever a large library, consisting of over 2.3 million books, 2,000 newspapers and 3,000 magazines in a variety of languages.
    • Game Hub – offers a great experience for both fans of gaming and mobile gaming enthusiasts.

    Samsung has improved the functionality of their new smartphone by including a number of other functions like Samsung Voice Command, an intuitive voice recognition service that allows hands-free control.

    Voice recognition feature gives users the ability to listen to their offline written messages and to respond with voice, while the calls, the e-books and other functions, can be started by a voice command.

    The Koreans have also included the L! ve Panel function, providing the ability to customize the main screen and improve the visual experience with 3D effects.

    The “Find My Mobile” function allows users to locate, call, remotely block the device and to activate the call history when the smartphone is lost or stolen. This function removes the worries about losing the device or some confidential data.

    The phone comes with a battery of 1650 mAh, which provides autonomy of 580 minutes of conversation and 550 hours in standby.

    Galaxy R will be available from July in Europe and will be included successively in global markets, including Asia.

    You may also want to read:
    HTC Sensation vs. Samsung Galaxy S 2
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    RIM Fires 2000 Employees and Announces Two New Smartphones

  • Telesphere’s VideoConnect Makes HD Business Videoconferencing a Reality

    Telesphere recently announced the launch of VideoConnect, a cloud-based videoconferencing service for businesses of every size. Today the company announced that VideoConnect is the first worldwide commercial deployment of Broadsoft’s BroadCloud Video, an enterprise-grade videoconferencing and telepresence service that incorporates Polycom’s standards-based HDX systems and VVX 1500 business media phones, along with CounterPath’s Bria softclients.

    In packaging together the combined capabilities of BroadCloud Video, CounterPath and Polycom, Telesphere now offers businesses of any size enterprise-grade videoconferencing that employees can connect to ranging from room telepresence environments, desktops and the rapidly expanding user base of video-ready smartphones and tablet devices.

    By using the BroadCloud Video call-bridging technology that is powered by the Polycom UC Intelligent Core software platform, Telesphere’s VideoConnect offers support for up to 12 simultaneous meeting participants across various videoconferencing platforms, endpoints and protocols during a single HD videoconference. According to the company, this protocol- and vendor-agnostic approach allows participants using a wide variety of room-based videoconferencing systems, videophones and softphones to all see, talk with and hear one another immediately.

    “VideoConnect makes video conferencing easy for every employee to use and extremely cost effective for every size business to deploy,” said Telesphere CEO Clark Peterson. “By working with BroadSoft, CounterPath and Polycom, Telesphere can now deliver enterprise-grade, cloud-based video communications to every conference room, office, business desktop and laptop in the world.”

    In November 2010, Polycom extended its relationship with BroadSoft with the announcement of BroadSoft's BroadCloud Video service. This cloud service is a hosted infrastructure that integrates with Polycom’s UC Intelligent Core software platform to enable leading service providers like Telesphere to lower the cost and complexity of delivering videoconferencing and unified communications services.

    Leslie Ferry, vice president of marketing, BroadSoft, said: “Telesphere VideoConnect is exactly the type of service-provider offering BroadCloud Video was designed to enable – HD videconferencing that supports multiple devices and integrates seamlessly with key unified communications services, and can be offered with a pricing structure compelling to cost-sensitive and underserved mid-market enterprises. We applaud Telesphere’s innovation in bringing a CapEx-free videoconferencing solution to market that we believe can accelerate adoption of video.”

    VideoConnect features an intuitive user interface with a nearly flat learning curve for employees, as its producer claims. For example, when employees place a call from a videophone or a webcam-equipped personal computer using a softphone such as CounterPath’s Bria, Bria for BroadWorks, Telesphere’s infrastructure detects whether the called party also is video-enabled and, if so, automatically sets up a one-to-one video call. This design eliminates the need for employees to maintain separate videophones, additional numbers or special addresses for colleagues, clients and business partners.

    Direct one-to-one video calls are free, while charges for group videoconference calls using the BroadCloud Video bridge are based on minutes and port usage.

    Additional key VideoConnect features and functionality include:

    ·      BroadCloud Video-enabled support for HD video quality at up to 1080p and connection via SIP, H.264, H.263, H.323 and H.320.
    ·      Employees within the same company can use four-digit dialing for video calls.
    ·      BroadCloud Video-enabled seamless integration of videconferencing with additional or existing enterprise and unified communications services such as web collaboration, IM & Presence and HD voice.
    ·      An intuitive UI that automatically displays the video feeds from the six most recent speakers, with the current one in the center pane.
    ·      For videoconferences with more than two parties, a Telesphere-provided video attendant welcomes each participant to the bridge, requests a passcode and places them in a virtual waiting area if the conference hasn’t begun. This feature enables any size business to provide a highly professional, concierge-level user experience.
    ·      Real-time monitoring that automatically moves participants back to the waiting area if the moderator unexpectedly drops.

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