Horizons

A screenshot of the homepage of Scroogled.com (Scroogled)

Scroogled? Microsoft and Google square off again.

By Aimee Ortiz / 02.08.13

The Google v. Microsoft rivalry continues as Microsoft launches another attack aimed at Google’s Gmail privacy policies. Microsoft, which released the “Gmail Man” spoof video a year ago, has re-vamped their Scroogled website in the style of it’s latest attack.

“Think Google respects your privacy? Think again,” says Scroogled.

The site uses the same tactics as the “Gmail Man” video. Google’s Gmail service scans recipient and sender emails, looking for keywords that are then used to generate ads.

“And there’s no way to opt out of this invasion of your privacy,” says the site, just above a clickable ad that allows users to try Outlook -- Microsoft’s own e-mail software.

Inside Scroogled are charts and graphs, each of which are said to represent surveys that reveal a number of unsatisfied customers. According a GfK report, which was commissioned by Microsoft, 88 percent of users disapprove of e-mail providers (in this case Google) scanning e-mails for advertising purposes.

This isn’t the first time that Microsoft has gone after the search-engine giant. September brought “Bing It On,” a blind test where users would pick the better search engine. And in November, Microsoft launched Scroogled for the first time as a way to criticize Google’s shopping results.

However, techies are beginning to criticize Microsoft for launching the campaign alongside their own marketing pretext.

“The problem with the kind of negative strategy Microsoft has decided to adopt in its Scroogled campaign is that the merits of its messages gets lost in its self-serving motives to promote its products,” writes PC World’s John P. Mello Jr. “Microsoft is acting no better than the boogeyman it seeks to bash.”

In a press release on Feb. 6, Microsoft tries to cut past this claim by asserting that users the first priority and marketing second.

“With the Don't Get Scroogled by Gmail consumer education campaign, Outlook.com is doing two things: First, it is highlighting Google's practice of going through the personal contents of emails to benefit Google's bottom line ahead of the user. Outlook.com has launched this education campaign and petition to help consumers get the message to Google that going through personal email messages to sell ads is unacceptable. Second, Outlook.com wants to highlight that it is an email service that puts consumers' privacy first,” says Microsoft in the press release.

Google responded to Microsoft’s campaign in a post on their Public Policy Blog on Feb. 1. When responding to whether or not Microsoft has a better privacy approach than Google, the site replied with a snarky, “We don’t make judgments about other people’s policies or controls.”

The Google’s post also ends with a sharp jab at Microsoft.

“We’ve always believed the facts should inform our marketing—and that it’s best to focus on our users rather than negative attacks on other companies. Onwards!”

For more tech news follow Aimee on Twitter, @aimee_ortiz

The Ouya is a video game console based on the Android platform. (Ouya/Kickstarter)

OUYA plans to release new video-game console every year

By Aimee Ortiz / 02.07.13

It’s the size of a Rubik’s cube, easily modified, includes free-to-play games, and only costs $99. It’s OUYA (sounds like oo-ya), the much-anticipated gaming console that raised more than $8 million on Kickstarter last year. And beginning in June, consumers will be able to purchase their own OUYA at retailers such as GameStop, Best Buy, and Target.  

In case you missed its debut, OUYA is an open-source gaming console that runs on Google’s Android platform. Gamers can connect OUYA to their televisions, allowing them to play Android and indie games or apps on their living-room screens. OUYA is marketed as easily modified. This means that it allows hardware hackers to create their own peripherals. Not to be left out of the loop, game developers can also create and sell their own games on the device; the only requirement is that they add a free-to-play component.

OUYA CEO Julie Urhman's announcement says that the tiny gaming box will be launched with 200 titles, including MineCraft, Canabalt, and Final Fantasy III.

“You can expect games from every genre, from publishers you know, triple-A publishers,” Ms. Urhman told the Wall Street Journal. 

Urhman also announced the release of a new OUYA each and every year. The goal of the constant refresh is to create a cycle for the OUYA that parallels that of smart phones.

“There will be a new OUYA every year. There will be an OUYA 2 and an OUYA 3,” says Urhman in an interview with Engadget.

Urhman assures that all games will have backwards compatibility, allowing OUYA 1 games to play on future OUYA consoles. According to an article on TechCrunch.com, this is because all games will be tied to user accounts, much like the PC marketplace Steam is now. TechCrunch writer Darrell Etherington explains that the digital delivery makes backwards compatibility an easy reality, “since there’s no messy business like disc formats to worry about.”

This is a tough year for a brand new gaming start-up. Nintendo recent released its new Wii U; Sony, and Microsoft are expected to debut new consoles this year. OUYA, however, is not concerned about the competition.

“We don’t need to beat Xbox or Sony or any console that enters the marketplace, we need to carve out our own niche,” Urhman told the WSJ. “OUYA offers a very different value proposition to the gaming you can currently experience.”

According to Urhman, OUYA supports HD and 3-D gaming. The controller will come with eight buttons, a directional pad, and a touch pad. OUYA’s controller can also be hacked for use with other electronics. 

“We are okay with that. One of the promises of being open is you can use what we build for other things. But you can create accessories and peripherals for our device as well. At the end of the day, it makes our ecosystem richer,” says Urhman in her WSJ interview.

OUYA will be available for Kickstarter backers in March, followed by pre-orders, all leading up to the the retail debut.

For more tech news follow Aimee on Twitter, @aimee_ortiz

A screenshot of the front of the newly released Facebook Card. (Facebook)

Facebook on your computer, phone, and now in your wallet

By Aimee Ortiz / 01.31.13

In the last 15 days, Facebook has made three major announcements. The first was the Facebook Graph Search, a way to search profiles en masse. The second was the results of the fourth quarter of 2012; Facebook did well, much to the shock of many Wall Street watchers. And the third, just announced today, Facebook has come out with its own reusable gift card.

Facebook will soon allow users to send “friends” a gift card to places such as Sephora, Jamba Juice, Olive Garden, and Target. According to Facebook, these gift cards are not just reusable but they can carry multiple gift amounts.

“Your card can hold multiple gift balances, and each balance is dedicated to the retailer associated with the gift. For example, you might have gift balances of $100 at Sephora, $75 at Target, $50 at Olive Garden, and $8.25 at Jamba Juice.”

The gift card will automatically reload when another friend buys the cardholder a gift amount.

The release comes the day after Facebook reported its earnings for the 2012 fourth quarter. The social network reported a higher profit than expected. In the fourth quarter, Facebook revenue grew by 40 percent, raking in $1.59 billion. Wall Street had expected $1.53 billion in revenue.

However, despite the good outcomes, the company’s high expenses appear to have pushed away some investors. Marketwatch.com reported that Facebook shares lost 6 percent today, resulting in $29.27 per share.

At yesterday’s report, Facebook also announced ways to increase revenue. Among suggestions such as cutting costs and higher mobile ads, Facebook publicized its plans to polish the Gifts products. According to the report, the Gifts product makes almost no revenue. CNET reports that Gifts was placed into the “other revenue” category. That category made an unimpressive $5 million in the fourth quarter.

"This past quarter, payments and other revenue also included around $5 million from sources outside of games primarily user promoter posts and to a lesser extent from our new Gifts product," CFO David Ebersman said, according the CNET.

The Facebook Gift Card has only been announced for a few hours and already the critics have begun to review it.

“It takes the saddest and lamest gift possible and makes it worse,” wrote Gizmodo blogger Mario Aguilar. “There is a potential upside, though. Assuming everybody in the world starts using Facebook for their lazy, last-minute gifting, all of your balances will be tied to your Facebook account and a single reusable card.” 

CNBC’s Julia Boorstin wrote, “We'll see if Facebook can establish itself as a go-to-player in online retail—the more people who hand over their credit card numbers, the more likely they'll spend money on Facebook down the line.”

Only time will tell if the Facebook Card will work its way into people’s hearts (and wallets). For now, the Facebook Card is only available in the US and on a rolling-out basis.

For more tech news follow Aimee on Twitter, @aimee_ortiz

The newest BlackBerry phones, the Z10 and Q10, after their debut for BB10. (BlackBerry/Screenshot)

BlackBerry: Re-named and re-designed, but can BB10 save the company? (+video)

By Aimee Ortiz, Contributer / 01.31.13

After a few grim years and many delays, Research in Motion has finally revealed the BlackBerry 10 operating system. RIM CEO Thorsten Heins kicked off the BB10 coming-out party Wednesday with a few surprises.

First, RIM ditched its old name and has re-branded the company as simply BlackBerry. Mr. Heins stated at the opening that the name change is a way to have “one consistent brand.”

The past few years have been rough on the Canadian company. According to Forbes, BlackBerry has not turned a profit in the last four quarters. The New York Times reports that BlackBerry has only 2.9 percent of the smart-phone market, down from 20 percent four years ago. The RIMM stock (now BBRY) has crashed almost 90 percent since its peak in 2008. The company's PlayBook tablet never took off quite the way BlackBerry hoped, thousands of jobs were cut, and the company changed CEOs. Skepticism has surrounded BlackBerry for years.

But, with its new name, the company introduced its new look. BlackBerry debuted two new phones at Wednesday's event: the Z10 and Q10.

BlackBerry hopes these two smart phones can bring in users with their many new features, such as the clever time-shifting camera. Time Shift allows consumers to take a photo of a person and then, with their finger, zoom into the subject’s face and shift the dial one seconds backward or forward, until the user finds the perfect look. Other features include screen sharing and free BBM phone calls and video messaging.

One of the biggest challenges that smart-phone companies face is fostering a vibrant app store. The Apple and Android marketplaces each boast 750,000 apps. Heins announced that 70,000 apps would be available on day one for BlackBerry 10 users. That's a great number for a new OS, but the company needs to make up for lost time.

"The new starting line that today represents begins with one consistent brand, a brand that's recognized around the world," said Heins at the announcement. "BlackBerry has changed. And we have re-designed the BlackBerry experience. We have re-engineered our products. We have re-invented this company and we want to reflect this in our brand."

Times writer David Pogue praises BlackBerry’s new features but points out a few flaws. Mr. Pogue writes about the lack of a silent button, the non-rotating calendar, the inability to drag appointments to reschedule them, and a battery that barely makes it through the day. These imperfections are not to discourage the re-named company, he writes.

“So then: Is the delightful BlackBerry Z10 enough to save its company?" he asks. "Honestly? It could go either way. But this much is clear: BlackBerry is no longer an incompetent mess — and its doom is no longer assured.”

Wall Street Journal columnist Walter Mossberg also applauded the new BB10, but complained about the small selection of apps and the lack of a cloud drive.

“The Z10 and BB10 represent a radical reinvention of the BlackBerry," writes Mossberg. "The hardware is decent and the user interface is logical and generally easy to use. I believe it has a chance of getting RIM back into the game, if the company can attract a lot more apps."

The Z10 will be available in the UK on Thursday, on Feb. 5 for Canada, and an estimated March release for the United States. All four major carriers will carry the newest BlackBerry. It will retail for $199 with a two-year contract.

The Q10 is slated for an April US release. 

For more tech news follow Aimee on Twitter, @aimee_ortiz

The Facebook logo as it is displayed on an iPad. (Matt Rourke/AP)

Facebook zooms past Google Maps to become the most used phone app in the US

By Aimee Ortiz / 01.23.13

ComScore released its latest Mobile Metrix report on Jan. 23, which ranked the top mobile application in the US by audience. Results from Android and iPhone show that Facebook has taken the No.1 spot as the most used mobile app of 2012. Google Maps has slid into second place. The rankings use data from as far back as March 2012 when considering the apps.

Facebook shot ahead of Google in October and kept climbing, reaching more than 85 million users by December.

“Of course Apple’s decision to replace Google Maps with Apple Maps on iOS 6 also caused a decline in Google Maps usage in October, which is largely responsible for the position swap. Meanwhile, Google Maps has been clawing its way back the past few months after getting reinstated on iOS 6, so look for the competition for the #1 spot to heat up as we head into 2013,” wrote ComScore VP of Industry Analysis, Andrew Lipsman, in a blog post.

Though Google Maps sat in second place, Google managed to take five out of the six top mobile apps spots in the US for 2012. Google Play, Google Search, Gmail, and YouTube were the other apps, in respective order. Combined, all five apps give Google the largest amount of visitors total.

According to a report on CNET.com, Facebook had 85,574 unique visitors using the app in December alone. Facebook also dominates in the amount of time visitors spend on the app.

The ComScore report illustrates that 23 percent of time spent on apps is spent on Facebook. This is not including the three percent that is spent on Instagram, which is owned by Facebook. Facebook acquired the photo-sharing app in April of last year.

All of Google’s apps combined only make up 10 percent. ComScore states that this means that one out of every three minutes spent on a mobile app, is spent on Facebook or Google.

The other apps mentioned in the report include, Pandora Radio, Apple iTunes, Cooliris, and Yahoo! Messenger. Although they hold their own, gaining spots seven through ten, these apps do not hold a candle to the two giants. However, the mobile app world constantly changes, a fact that Mr. Lipsman pointed out toward the end of the post. Amazon, Twitter, and eBay are all commonly used apps that might find themselves in the spotlight next year. Or, as Lipsman suggests, it will be a new app that no one will expect -- a rise similar to that of Instagram.

“If there is one thing we can all bet on, it’s that the market will look very different a year from now," he writes. "And may the best apps win.”

For more tech news follow Aimee on Twitter, @aimee_ortiz

Nintendo Co's President Satoru Iwata speaks next to the company's Wii U game controller during an interview with Reuters at the company headquarters in Kyoto, western Japan. (Yuriko Nakao/REUTERS)

To boost Wii U, Nintendo calls in the usual suspects: Mario, Yoshi, Link

By Aimee Ortiz / 01.23.13

Mario, Link, Yoshi, and other heroes are getting a Wii U makeover, according to Nintendo President Satoru Iwata. The Nintendo Direct webcast, released on Jan. 23, revealed the company's next round of big releases for the Wii U.

The long-awaited Virtual Console will be available on the Wii U this coming spring, announced Mr. Iwata. The service will resurrect classic games from Nintendo's past. Virtual Console will start with a limited selection of NES and SNES games before broadening to include Game Boy Advance games and other retro revivals. VC also includes what Iwata called, “special pricing,” for those who already own Wii versions of each Virtual Console game. The cost: $1 for NES and $1.50 for SNES games. Wii U gamers must first transfer the Wii VC games to the Wii U, in order to receive the discount.

Nintendo also kicked off a special discount program at the end of the webcast. In honor of the 30^th anniversary of the Nintendo Entertainment System, Wii U owners will be able to rent certain downloadable titles for $0.30 for 30 days. Buyer beware, warns Engadget: the games will only be available at that price for a limited time. After that, the download will, in a way, self destruct. The first game with the $0.30 price tag is Balloon Fight, the 1984 classic. According to Kotaku.com, upcoming titles for the discounted program include Kirby’s Big Adventure, Super Metroid, and Donkey Kong.

Iwata also publicized new (and old) games for the Wii U. The Nintendo President promised that a new 3-D Mario and Mario Kart will be revealed during the E3 convention this coming June. The news comes as no surprise to Nintendo fans that recognize the games as Nintendo staples.

A blast from the past (from 2003 to be exact) will be making a comeback. The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker will be undergoing a face lift to prepare it for its Wii U premiere in the fall. Kotaku reported that the Wind Waker remake will come complete with HD graphics and Off-TV Play, meaning you can play it on your GamePad controller even while the television is off. The Zelda news didn’t stop there. Iwata revealed that Nintendo is working on a new Zelda game for the Wii U.

Wii U owners should be aware that before these changes become available to them; Nintendo will be releasing two software updates to improve the console’s performance.

A USA Today reports that the Wii U, which launched in November 2012, has sold 890,000 units, a less than sterling debut. The Wii U was heavily criticized when it first appeared. Nintendo hopes the upcoming virtual console, NES anniversary pricing, Game Boy Advance titles, reboots, and new games will boost sales and please the critics.

For more tech news follow Aimee on Twitter, @aimee_ortiz

The Microsoft Surface Pro tablet will be available starting February 9th. The Surface Pro has an Intel Core i5 processor, a 10.6-inch screen, and can be used with a keyboard cover or a stylus. (Microsoft)

Surface Pro tablet arrives in early February

By Jeff Ward-Bailey, Contributor / 01.23.13

When the Microsoft Surface came out last year, there was a fair bit of confusion about what, exactly, it could and couldn’t do. Microsoft hyped the tablet as one of the first devices running the Windows 8 operating system -- but the Surface runs Windows RT, a slimmed-down version of Windows 8. Even though the Surface can run full-fledged versions of Microsoft Office and a few other apps, it isn’t compatible with older Windows programs.

If you’re confused, you’re not alone. Lots of people felt that the distinction between Windows RT and Windows 8 didn’t make sense, especially since Windows 8 was specifically designed to work equally well on both tablets and computers. Microsoft promised that a full Windows 8 version of the Surface would be coming soon -- and after more than half a year of silence, we finally have a release date: the Microsoft Surface Windows 8 Pro, as it’s formally known, will hit stores in the US and Canada on February 9th.

The Surface Pro is faster as well as a little bigger than the regular Surface tablet. It sports a 10.6-inch display and an Intel Core i5 processor, and comes in two models: a 64GB version for $899, or a 128GB version for $999. That’s a $200 price increase over the Surface RT, but the Pro is a faster machine -- and the big upshot is that it can run any program that works on a desktop, as well as apps from the Microsoft Store.

The Surface Pro also works with the “Touch Cover” and “Type Cover,” clever cases that double as full keyboards. The Touch Cover is thinner and spill-resistant, but uses pressure sensors in place of traditional keyboard keys. The Type Cover (shown in the photo above) incorporates mechanical keys and behaves more like a laptop keyboard. (It’s worth adding that the Surface Pro doesn’t come with either keyboard, and getting one will set you back about $120 for the Touch Cover and $130 for the Type Cover.) If you need even more input options, the Surface Pro comes with a pen for drawing or writing notes by hand.

The Surface Pro might be coming just in time: in spite of a big marketing push from Microsoft, and strong early indicators, the Surface hasn’t been selling too well -- just one million tablets over the holidays, by one estimate, compared with three million iPads and iPad Minis during the same period. It’s too soon to predict how well the Surface Pro will sell, but the fact that it runs all Windows applications (even older ones) might help ease customers’ concerns.

What do you think about the Surface Pro? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

For more tech news, follow Jeff on Twitter: @jeffwardbailey.

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Rose Barcklow works on her bike in the velo room at her apartment complex in downtown Denver. (Ed Andrieski/AP Photo)

Pedaling to the top: How bicycles stormed the Detroit auto show

By Aimee Ortiz / 01.16.13

The North American International Auto Show in Detroit opened its doors to reporters on Monday. Members of the media were allowed early access to the upcoming vehicle debuts and latest automotive news. One of the biggest shockers so far has been the prominent placement of bicycles.

“Consumers that may be not that active or may not even have bicycles themselves are going to associate that with an active lifestyle, an outdoor lifestyle, a healthy lifestyle," Jeremy Anwyl, vice chairman of the Edmunds.com auto website, told the Associated Press.

While bikes were not the primary focus of the Press Preview, they have been used to market vehicles in the past.

The Prius X Parlee, seen with other Toyota vehicles, was developed to be lightweight bicycle and include electronic shifters as well as a smartphone dock.

Coincidentally, the North American International Anti-Auto Show opens on Friday at the Contemporary Art Institute of Detroit. The show is an art exhibition featuring alternative modes of transportation.

The NYTimes reported that the timing is not meant to pit bicyclist against driver but rather to highlight “the environmental consequences of the automobile and the things that come from a heavy car culture.”

According the Times, Aaron Timlin, chief executive and president of the Contemporary Art Institute of Detroit, finds the event humorous, “because it is ironic.”

Irony and marketing aside, bike commuting has been on the rise in recent years. The AP reported that in places like Portland, Ore., which has already been dubbed one of the most cyclist-friendly cities in the US, bicycles and biking culture have been increasing. Some apartment complexes have started to offer secure bike storage and others have installed repair shops.

The green-minded apartment complex EcoFlats even has a bike bar on the ground floor. According to the AP, the Hopworks BikeBar features water-bottle filling stations and comes decorated with locally handcrafted bike frames.

“Three thousand people ride their bike by here each day,” Jean Pierre Veillet, the developer of the building, told the AP.

The bike movement is spreading quickly. Denver already has complexes similar to Portland's EcoFlats and other cities have begun to build them.

In Seattle, where thousands of cyclists already share the road with drivers, the Pine Street Group is building a 654-unit apartment complex that will accommodate the biking tenants and bike commuters. Commuters can join a club to have access to the repair shop and lockers.

Matt Griffin, a managing partner for the group, says that he's been car-free for nine years. He wants the complex to become a hub for commuters. Griffin told the AP that, "bikes are a good way to get around Seattle." The rising numbers suggest that people agree.

For more tech news follow Aimee on Twitter, @aimee_ortiz

Executive Chairman of Google, Eric Schmidt, back row left, and former New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson, back row right, look at North Korean soldiers working on computers at the Grand Peoples Study House in Pyongyang, North Korea. (David Guttenfelder/AP)

Google's Schmidt takes a techie tour of North Korea

By Aimee Ortiz / 01.09.13

Google chairman Eric Schmidt has spent the last three days with a private delegation on a humanitarian trip to North Korea. The delegation, which includes former New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, arrived in North Korea on Monday to stress more open Internet access and cellphones for the tightly restricted country.

“The citizens of the DPRK [North Korea] will be better off with more cellphones and an active Internet,” Mr. Richardson said to the Associated Press. "Those are the ... messages we've given to a variety of foreign policy officials, scientists and government officials."

According to the AP, experts see North Korea as one of the least connected countries. North Korea has rigid control on the flow of information and the interactions of citizens with the outside world. Many argue that the strict rules and censorship have caused the small Asian country to suffer in its isolation.

Kim Jong Un, the young leader of the Communist nation, vowed to improve the economy in his New Year speech on January 1. Un has urged citizens to expand their knowledge of science and technology as means for economic improvement. The AP reported that new propaganda signs have been spotted across Pyongyang telling citizens to “push back the frontiers” and “break through the cutting edge.”

Most North Koreans currently have a domestic intranet system as opposed to the World Wide Web.

Mr. Schmidt, who oversaw Google’s growth into an Internet giant, visited Kim Il Sung University on Tuesday. He spoke with students that have global Internet access (with permission) for research purposes.

On Wednesday he visited the Grand People’s Study House, Pyongyang’s main library, before going to see the Korea Computer Center. Several years ago, Mr. Kim's late father, Kim Jong Il, is quoted as saying: “Now is the era for science and technology. It is the era of computers."

The delegation entered an atrium exhibition hall at the computer center, according to the AP. There, the Google group got a chance to toy with North Korean computer products like the new Samjiyon tablet computer featuring foreign hardware and North Korean software. The group also got the opportunity to learn about North Korea’s data encryption software, face recognition devices, video chat and instant messaging software.

The Korea Computer Center partnered with Russia, China, India, and other nations to develop its products. Officials told Schmidt and Richardson that North Korea is hoping to reach out and establish partnerships with other countries.

Google currently has offices in over 40 countries; among those is China – another country that is criticized for its censorship. Schmidt, a staunch supporter of Internet connectivity and openness, is expected to make a donation during his visit.

However, the trip for the Google chairman and former governor has not been without criticism.

US officials initially criticized the four-day trip after North Korea launched a satellite into space using a long-range rocket on Dec. 12.

Washington considered the launch to be a ballistic missile technology test – a violation of UN Security Council resolutions. These resolutions prohibit Pyongyang from developing its nuclear and missile programs.

The Atlantic Wire released an article on Wednesday titled, “Just How Badly Is Eric Schmidt’s Trip to North Korea Going?” and speculated that the image released on Tuesday of North Korean students Googling for Schmidt may have just been a photo-op.

John Bolton, former US ambassador to the UN, calls Schmidt and Richardson “gullible” in his New York Daily News piece. He opined that Schmidt and Richardson, “have joined the long list of Americans and others used by the Kim family dictatorship for political advantage."