New laws that took effect on January 1st, 2013 make it illegal for employers to demand access to their workers’ password-protected Facebook (FB) accounts. After some high-profile instances of companies requiring access to employees’ accounts, Congress was asked to consider a law making such demands illegal on the grounds that they constitute an invasion of privacy. Congress blocked the law, however its decision had no bearing on laws being considered at the state level. Now, California and Illinois have become the first two states to make it expressly illegal for employers to make such demands, Reuters reports. The new laws also apply to other similar social networks and are not limited to just Facebook.
Showing posts with label Technology. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Technology. Show all posts
New law makes it illegal for employers in California and Illinois to demand Facebook passwords
Labels: Technology
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Fake John le Carré Twitter Account Fakes J.K. Rowling's Fake Twitter Death
Labels: Technology
We've seen "Cormac McCarthy" Tweet apocalyptic non sequiturs. "Philip Roth" promised us a bite-sized short story. Now a fake Twitter account for British spy novelist John le Carré is spreading bizarre death rumors about J.K. Rowling. After a few days of Tweeting harmless missives, the week-old handle @JLecarre dropped this would-be bombshell on its nearly 2,500 followers Wednesday morning:
A terrible news. My publisher phones me announcing that J.K. Rowling dies by accident. Few minutes ago. No words!
— John le Carré (@JLecarre) January 2, 2013
OK, there are at least three dead-giveaways that this is a fake account. One: If J.K. Rowling had died, does anyone credibly think John le Carré would be the one breaking the news? Rowling and le Carré don't even share a publisher—he's with Penguin and she's printed by Little, Brown and Company—making this story even more implausible. Two: As noted by le Carré's literary agent Jonny Geller, the "L" in the author's name shouldn't be capitalized, as it is in the handle of this hoax account. Three: Phrases like "a terrible news" and "my publisher phones me" sound more like snippets from an ESL workbook than lines from an author praised for his chilly, controlled prose style. This could again be the work of Italian media troll Tommaso De Benedetti, who copped to creating a fake Philip Roth account recently. "Twitter works well for deaths," he told The Guardian's Tom Kington, describing his M.O. for spreading misinformation about the deaths of public figures like Fidel Castro and Pedro Almodóvar.
A terrible news. My publisher phones me announcing that J.K. Rowling dies by accident. Few minutes ago. No words!
— John le Carré (@JLecarre) January 2, 2013
OK, there are at least three dead-giveaways that this is a fake account. One: If J.K. Rowling had died, does anyone credibly think John le Carré would be the one breaking the news? Rowling and le Carré don't even share a publisher—he's with Penguin and she's printed by Little, Brown and Company—making this story even more implausible. Two: As noted by le Carré's literary agent Jonny Geller, the "L" in the author's name shouldn't be capitalized, as it is in the handle of this hoax account. Three: Phrases like "a terrible news" and "my publisher phones me" sound more like snippets from an ESL workbook than lines from an author praised for his chilly, controlled prose style. This could again be the work of Italian media troll Tommaso De Benedetti, who copped to creating a fake Philip Roth account recently. "Twitter works well for deaths," he told The Guardian's Tom Kington, describing his M.O. for spreading misinformation about the deaths of public figures like Fidel Castro and Pedro Almodóvar.
Kicked Off Facebook, Kid Creates Own Social Network
Labels: Technology
If you can't join it, create your own.
That's the attitude one Florida preteen ran with after his parents banned him from using Facebook. Instead of begging or slamming doors when his account was deactivated, the 11-year-old launched his own social network tailored specifically to children.
Grom Social founder Zachary Marks had a Facebook account for roughly a week despite being two years too young to join the site, having lied about his age to create an account. And when his parents discovered that he may have been engaging in risky online activities, they pulled the plug.
"I spent all my time on the computer chatting with friends. Then, I made mistakes," Marks explained on the Grom Social About page. "One of my adult friends cursed and posted something inappropriate, and I cursed back. Also, I friend-requested grownups who I did not know. About a day later, my dad found out. He was really mad. I had to deactivate my account."
Marks said he wasn't interested in any existing, kid-friendly, social networks — "They were all childish," he said — so he set out to create one for "Groms," a slang term for young surfers that he repurposed to mean something close to "precocious kid."
In order to keep kid members safe, only parents and parent-approved adults can join Grom Social. Parents of kid members are kept up to date on their youngster's online activities via email. The site also has a built-in language filter to keep the expletives from flying straight into kids' virgin eyes.
Grom Social is also compliant with COPPA, the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act, a controversial law aimed at keeping kids safe online that some argue is ineffective and unconstitutionally limits children's First Amendment rights.
Under COPPA, websites, apps and plug-ins are not allowed to collect information from children less than 13 years old without their parent's express consent. The burden of verification, however, simply isn't worth it to most mainstream social networks, including Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr and Foursquare, so they ban members under 13.
To date, Grom Social has almost 7,000 members and is open to users under 15 in the United States and Canada.
This story was provided by TechNewsDaily, a sister site to LiveScience.
10 Ways to Protect Yourself on Social Media Websites
Parents Flock to Social Media to Keep Tabs on Kids
10 Best Parental Software Monitoring Products
Copyright 2013 LiveScience, a TechMediaNetwork company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
That's the attitude one Florida preteen ran with after his parents banned him from using Facebook. Instead of begging or slamming doors when his account was deactivated, the 11-year-old launched his own social network tailored specifically to children.
Grom Social founder Zachary Marks had a Facebook account for roughly a week despite being two years too young to join the site, having lied about his age to create an account. And when his parents discovered that he may have been engaging in risky online activities, they pulled the plug.
"I spent all my time on the computer chatting with friends. Then, I made mistakes," Marks explained on the Grom Social About page. "One of my adult friends cursed and posted something inappropriate, and I cursed back. Also, I friend-requested grownups who I did not know. About a day later, my dad found out. He was really mad. I had to deactivate my account."
Marks said he wasn't interested in any existing, kid-friendly, social networks — "They were all childish," he said — so he set out to create one for "Groms," a slang term for young surfers that he repurposed to mean something close to "precocious kid."
In order to keep kid members safe, only parents and parent-approved adults can join Grom Social. Parents of kid members are kept up to date on their youngster's online activities via email. The site also has a built-in language filter to keep the expletives from flying straight into kids' virgin eyes.
Grom Social is also compliant with COPPA, the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act, a controversial law aimed at keeping kids safe online that some argue is ineffective and unconstitutionally limits children's First Amendment rights.
Under COPPA, websites, apps and plug-ins are not allowed to collect information from children less than 13 years old without their parent's express consent. The burden of verification, however, simply isn't worth it to most mainstream social networks, including Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr and Foursquare, so they ban members under 13.
To date, Grom Social has almost 7,000 members and is open to users under 15 in the United States and Canada.
This story was provided by TechNewsDaily, a sister site to LiveScience.
10 Ways to Protect Yourself on Social Media Websites
Parents Flock to Social Media to Keep Tabs on Kids
10 Best Parental Software Monitoring Products
Copyright 2013 LiveScience, a TechMediaNetwork company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Israel sees new US poise, including military, to curb Iran
Labels: TechnologyJERUSALEM (Reuters) - U.S.-led efforts to curb Iran's nuclear program have resumed since President Barack Obama's re-election and include preparation for possible military action, a senior Israeli official said on Tuesday.
The remarks by Vice Prime Minister Moshe Yaalon suggested cautious optimism at prospects for an international resolution to the decade-old standoff with Tehran, though Israel says it remains ready to attack its arch-foe alone as a last resort.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has set out a mid-2013 "red line" for tackling Iran's uranium enrichment project. The West says this program is aimed at developing the means to build atomic bombs. Tehran denies this, saying it is enriching uranium solely for peaceful civilian uses.
Yaalon told Army Radio on Tuesday that Israel knew there would be no movement on the issue before the U.S. election in November, but had expected a renewed effort after the vote.
"And indeed it has been renewed," he said.
He cited contacts among the six world powers - the United States, Russia, France, China, Britain and Germany - and Iran about holding new nuclear negotiations, ongoing sanctions against Iran, "and preparations, mainly American for now, for the possibility that military force will have to be used".
Yaalon did not elaborate. Another Israeli official told Reuters the minister was alluding mainly to recent U.S. military mobilization in the Gulf.
The powers said last week they hoped soon to agree with Iran soon on when and where to meet. There have been suggestions it could happen this month, though January now seems more likely.
But, sounding defiant, Iran's top nuclear official was on Tuesday quoted as saying there would be no halt to uranium enrichment to 20 percent fissile purity - an advanced threshold alarming foreign negotiators.
ZONE OF IMMUNITY
A former armed forces chief who belongs to Netanyahu's rightist Likud party, Yaalon questioned Obama's resolve on Iran during the Democratic president's first term. By contrast, Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak, the lone centrist in Netanyahu's coalition government, argued in Obama's favor.
Yaalon is a frontrunner to succeed Barak, who has announced he will retire from politics after Israel's January 22 election.
On Monday, Barak reiterated Israel's determination to deny Iran the capability to make a bomb. Israel, widely assumed to have the Middle East's only atomic arsenal, sees a nuclear-armed Iran as a mortal threat.
The prospect of unilateral Israeli air strikes, and ensuing retaliation by Iran, a big oil exporter, and its Islamist guerrilla allies in Lebanon and Gaza, worries world powers, in part because it could destabilize a fragile global economy.
Speaking to Jewish leaders in New York, Barak acknowledged the limitations of Israeli forces against Iran's distant, dispersed and well-defended nuclear facilities.
"The Iranians are deliberately trying to create a level of redundancy and protection for their program, what we call the ‘zone of immunity'. Once they enter the zone of immunity, fate will be out of our hands," Barak said.
"The state of Israel was founded precisely so that our fate would remain in our own hands."
Barak's term "redundancy" refers to Israel's belief that Iran seeks to stockpile raw uranium and enrichment centrifuges on a scale that would allow it to restore independent nuclear capacity should its known facilities be attacked.
Iran's nuclear infrastructure has been dogged by sabotage, including cyberwarfare. Iran's Ministry of Communications and Technology Information said on Sunday it had identified a "new, targeted data-wiping malware". The ministry's statement did not say what computer systems might have been affected.
While Israel has not publicly claimed responsibility for such incidents, Yaalon said there could be more in store, in parallel to global economic pressure.
"Sometimes malfunctions happen there - worms, viruses, explosions. Therefore this schedule is not necessarily chronological. It is more technological," he told Army Radio.
"We are, without a doubt, closely tracking developments in the program there, lest they attempt to pass the red line.
Read More..
The remarks by Vice Prime Minister Moshe Yaalon suggested cautious optimism at prospects for an international resolution to the decade-old standoff with Tehran, though Israel says it remains ready to attack its arch-foe alone as a last resort.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has set out a mid-2013 "red line" for tackling Iran's uranium enrichment project. The West says this program is aimed at developing the means to build atomic bombs. Tehran denies this, saying it is enriching uranium solely for peaceful civilian uses.
Yaalon told Army Radio on Tuesday that Israel knew there would be no movement on the issue before the U.S. election in November, but had expected a renewed effort after the vote.
"And indeed it has been renewed," he said.
He cited contacts among the six world powers - the United States, Russia, France, China, Britain and Germany - and Iran about holding new nuclear negotiations, ongoing sanctions against Iran, "and preparations, mainly American for now, for the possibility that military force will have to be used".
Yaalon did not elaborate. Another Israeli official told Reuters the minister was alluding mainly to recent U.S. military mobilization in the Gulf.
The powers said last week they hoped soon to agree with Iran soon on when and where to meet. There have been suggestions it could happen this month, though January now seems more likely.
But, sounding defiant, Iran's top nuclear official was on Tuesday quoted as saying there would be no halt to uranium enrichment to 20 percent fissile purity - an advanced threshold alarming foreign negotiators.
ZONE OF IMMUNITY
A former armed forces chief who belongs to Netanyahu's rightist Likud party, Yaalon questioned Obama's resolve on Iran during the Democratic president's first term. By contrast, Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak, the lone centrist in Netanyahu's coalition government, argued in Obama's favor.
Yaalon is a frontrunner to succeed Barak, who has announced he will retire from politics after Israel's January 22 election.
On Monday, Barak reiterated Israel's determination to deny Iran the capability to make a bomb. Israel, widely assumed to have the Middle East's only atomic arsenal, sees a nuclear-armed Iran as a mortal threat.
The prospect of unilateral Israeli air strikes, and ensuing retaliation by Iran, a big oil exporter, and its Islamist guerrilla allies in Lebanon and Gaza, worries world powers, in part because it could destabilize a fragile global economy.
Speaking to Jewish leaders in New York, Barak acknowledged the limitations of Israeli forces against Iran's distant, dispersed and well-defended nuclear facilities.
"The Iranians are deliberately trying to create a level of redundancy and protection for their program, what we call the ‘zone of immunity'. Once they enter the zone of immunity, fate will be out of our hands," Barak said.
"The state of Israel was founded precisely so that our fate would remain in our own hands."
Barak's term "redundancy" refers to Israel's belief that Iran seeks to stockpile raw uranium and enrichment centrifuges on a scale that would allow it to restore independent nuclear capacity should its known facilities be attacked.
Iran's nuclear infrastructure has been dogged by sabotage, including cyberwarfare. Iran's Ministry of Communications and Technology Information said on Sunday it had identified a "new, targeted data-wiping malware". The ministry's statement did not say what computer systems might have been affected.
While Israel has not publicly claimed responsibility for such incidents, Yaalon said there could be more in store, in parallel to global economic pressure.
"Sometimes malfunctions happen there - worms, viruses, explosions. Therefore this schedule is not necessarily chronological. It is more technological," he told Army Radio.
"We are, without a doubt, closely tracking developments in the program there, lest they attempt to pass the red line.
Three burning questions loom as RIM gets ready to report
Labels: TechnologySome people say that the November quarter that Research In Motion (RIMM) will report this week is not important. They are wrong. Even though the new BlackBerry model range debuting in 2013 is the key for RIM’s long-term survival, there are three issues that are vitally important for the company right now. RIM must keep certain aspects of its performance from caving in before the new phones begin trickling to the market early next year, and here are three things to watch for as RIM reports its fiscal third-quarter results on Thursday.
[More from BGR: How to turn an old Kindle Fire into a Nexus 7 with Android 4.2.1 Jelly Bean [video]]
Global subscriber base. RIM surprised the market when it reported its summer quarter by showing continuing global subscriber growth despite its U.S. collapse and European trouble. Blackberry’s growth has continued in Africa, Middle Wast and South-East Asia, giving RIM surprising longevity considering its share of new smartphone sales in America may have caved below 3% by now. However, a recent Kantar Worldpanel study showed that in the three months ending in October, BlackBerry market share slipped badly in markets like Brazil and Spain. Until last summer, RIM had maintained a decent grip on Latin America and Mediterranean countries via its cheap Curve devices. They may have finally started eroding even in those countries where BlackBerry had retained some vigor as a low-end youth brand. After its surprisingly robust 80 million subscriber base number from the summer quarter, RIM can afford to show a bit of erosion in November and February quarters. But steep drops would be deeply worrisome — RIM may not get aggressively priced low-end models based on the new OS out before next summer or even autumn.
ASP level. RIM has experienced steep average sales price decline over the past year. Nevertheless, another major plunge is still possible. In the UK market, BlackBerry Christmas promotions are almost entirely built around the cheap Curve 932o — and its price as a pre-paid model has plunged to unprecedented 99 pounds. This is exceptionally low for a model that debuted just last spring. European operators have effectively abandoned RIM’s more expensive business-focused models like the Bold. BlackBerry phones are now being marketed as some of the cheapest smartphones anyone can buy. How deep will this cut into RIM’s ASPs? If the plunge is bad enough, reversing the damage with new high-end models next summer may be extremely difficult. The core customer base for RIM’s high-end devices was built on the U.S. and the UK markets, but RIM has wiped out in America nearly completely and the UK carriers have switched to marketing BlackBerry handsets as bargain bin specials on par with Huawei or ZTE models. If BlackBerry ASP level dives too low during November and February quarters, undoing the damage will be a herculean task.
BlackBerry Messenger popularity. Business News reported last January that BlackBerry Messenger was growing at 140% pace in Nigeria, one of the key African mobile phone markets. BBM’s user base growth last winter was also torrid in South Africa. However, stand-alone messaging apps like WhatsApp and 2go have delivered scorching growth in Africa and Asia during 2012. 2go has soared ahead of Blackberry Messenger in popularity in Nigeria and is spreading rapidly in South Africa. WhatsApp became a top-three iPhone app in more than 100 countries last winter and offers cross-platform support that is a big draw in the South-East Asian markets that remain RIM’s lifeline: Malaysia, Philippines and Indonesia. Globally, WhatsApp has grown from relaying 1 billion daily messages in the fall of 2011 to 10 billion by fall 2012. By now, that rampant growth may have started encroaching on BBM popularity. RIM does not report on Messenger user numbers every quarter, so visibility on this front could remain limited in coming months. But any erosion in the Messenger user base is likely to have an impact on RIM’s overall subscriber base.
Read More..
[More from BGR: How to turn an old Kindle Fire into a Nexus 7 with Android 4.2.1 Jelly Bean [video]]
Global subscriber base. RIM surprised the market when it reported its summer quarter by showing continuing global subscriber growth despite its U.S. collapse and European trouble. Blackberry’s growth has continued in Africa, Middle Wast and South-East Asia, giving RIM surprising longevity considering its share of new smartphone sales in America may have caved below 3% by now. However, a recent Kantar Worldpanel study showed that in the three months ending in October, BlackBerry market share slipped badly in markets like Brazil and Spain. Until last summer, RIM had maintained a decent grip on Latin America and Mediterranean countries via its cheap Curve devices. They may have finally started eroding even in those countries where BlackBerry had retained some vigor as a low-end youth brand. After its surprisingly robust 80 million subscriber base number from the summer quarter, RIM can afford to show a bit of erosion in November and February quarters. But steep drops would be deeply worrisome — RIM may not get aggressively priced low-end models based on the new OS out before next summer or even autumn.
ASP level. RIM has experienced steep average sales price decline over the past year. Nevertheless, another major plunge is still possible. In the UK market, BlackBerry Christmas promotions are almost entirely built around the cheap Curve 932o — and its price as a pre-paid model has plunged to unprecedented 99 pounds. This is exceptionally low for a model that debuted just last spring. European operators have effectively abandoned RIM’s more expensive business-focused models like the Bold. BlackBerry phones are now being marketed as some of the cheapest smartphones anyone can buy. How deep will this cut into RIM’s ASPs? If the plunge is bad enough, reversing the damage with new high-end models next summer may be extremely difficult. The core customer base for RIM’s high-end devices was built on the U.S. and the UK markets, but RIM has wiped out in America nearly completely and the UK carriers have switched to marketing BlackBerry handsets as bargain bin specials on par with Huawei or ZTE models. If BlackBerry ASP level dives too low during November and February quarters, undoing the damage will be a herculean task.
BlackBerry Messenger popularity. Business News reported last January that BlackBerry Messenger was growing at 140% pace in Nigeria, one of the key African mobile phone markets. BBM’s user base growth last winter was also torrid in South Africa. However, stand-alone messaging apps like WhatsApp and 2go have delivered scorching growth in Africa and Asia during 2012. 2go has soared ahead of Blackberry Messenger in popularity in Nigeria and is spreading rapidly in South Africa. WhatsApp became a top-three iPhone app in more than 100 countries last winter and offers cross-platform support that is a big draw in the South-East Asian markets that remain RIM’s lifeline: Malaysia, Philippines and Indonesia. Globally, WhatsApp has grown from relaying 1 billion daily messages in the fall of 2011 to 10 billion by fall 2012. By now, that rampant growth may have started encroaching on BBM popularity. RIM does not report on Messenger user numbers every quarter, so visibility on this front could remain limited in coming months. But any erosion in the Messenger user base is likely to have an impact on RIM’s overall subscriber base.
New Android botnet discovered across all major networks
Labels: TechnologyA new Android spam botnet has been discovered across all major networks that sends thousands of text messages without a user’s permission, TheNextWeb reported. The threat, which is known at SpamSoldier, was detected on December 3rd by Lookout Security in cooperation with an unnamed carrier partner. The malware is said to spread through a collection of infected phones that send text messages, which usually advertise free versions of popular paid games like Grand Theft Auto and Angry Birds Space, to hundreds of users each day.
[More from BGR: Facebook’s Instagram monetization plan: License users’ photos without paying for them]
Once a user clicks on the link to download the game, his or her phone instead downloads the malicious app. When the app is downloaded, SpamSoilder removes its icon from the app drawer, installs a free version of the game in question and immediately starts sending spam messages.
[More from BGR: How not to fix Apple Maps]
The security firm notes that the threat isn’t widespread, however it has been spotted on all major carriers in the U.S. and has potential to do serious damage if something isn’t done soon to stop it.
Read More..
[More from BGR: Facebook’s Instagram monetization plan: License users’ photos without paying for them]
Once a user clicks on the link to download the game, his or her phone instead downloads the malicious app. When the app is downloaded, SpamSoilder removes its icon from the app drawer, installs a free version of the game in question and immediately starts sending spam messages.
[More from BGR: How not to fix Apple Maps]
The security firm notes that the threat isn’t widespread, however it has been spotted on all major carriers in the U.S. and has potential to do serious damage if something isn’t done soon to stop it.
16 Things You Forgot Happened in 2012
Labels: Technology1. GoDaddy Supported SOPA and Faced the Consequences
Technically this debacle took place in the last week of 2011, but the backlash lasted well into 2012. GoDaddy, the popular domain registrar and web hosting company, showed early support for the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), a hotly contested bill regarding copyright violations that was introduced by U.S. Representative Lamar S. Smith. Many Internet users believed SOPA would lead to extreme censorship of the web and were shocked to hear that GoDaddy supported it. As a result, hundreds of high-profile sites joined a boycott and mass-transfer movement sparked by Ben Huh, founder of the Cheezburger Network, moving their domains away from GoDaddy. The company eventually withdrew its support for SOPA, but not before it lost many customers. In September 2012, GoDaddy faced another PR nightmare when its DNS servers went down due to a distributed denial of service attack, and with the servers went many customers' websites for a long period of time. The company apparently didn't have a backup plan, furthering soiling its reputation. Image courtesy of Flickr, dsleeter_2000.
Click here to view this gallery.
[More from Mashable: 7 Ways Augmented Reality Will Improve Your Life]
This has been quite the eventful year. What with the U.S. presidential election, Hurricane Sandy and its aftermath, the continued influence of social media in the Arab Spring and countless other major headlines, it's easy for smaller yet nonetheless significant news events to escape our memories.
SEE ALSO: 40 Essential Mashable Stories You May Have Missed in 2012
[More from Mashable: Cinemagram’s Picks for 13 Incredible GIFs of 2012]
Since it's nearly impossible to remember everything that happened in 365 days, we've rounded up 16 stories that you may have forgotten about in 2012. From the serious to the hilarious, the offensive to the heartwarming, you'll be reminded of something worth remembering.
What other 2012 news do you think is worth remembering? Share your small but important picks in the comments.
Read More..
Technically this debacle took place in the last week of 2011, but the backlash lasted well into 2012. GoDaddy, the popular domain registrar and web hosting company, showed early support for the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), a hotly contested bill regarding copyright violations that was introduced by U.S. Representative Lamar S. Smith. Many Internet users believed SOPA would lead to extreme censorship of the web and were shocked to hear that GoDaddy supported it. As a result, hundreds of high-profile sites joined a boycott and mass-transfer movement sparked by Ben Huh, founder of the Cheezburger Network, moving their domains away from GoDaddy. The company eventually withdrew its support for SOPA, but not before it lost many customers. In September 2012, GoDaddy faced another PR nightmare when its DNS servers went down due to a distributed denial of service attack, and with the servers went many customers' websites for a long period of time. The company apparently didn't have a backup plan, furthering soiling its reputation. Image courtesy of Flickr, dsleeter_2000.
Click here to view this gallery.
[More from Mashable: 7 Ways Augmented Reality Will Improve Your Life]
This has been quite the eventful year. What with the U.S. presidential election, Hurricane Sandy and its aftermath, the continued influence of social media in the Arab Spring and countless other major headlines, it's easy for smaller yet nonetheless significant news events to escape our memories.
SEE ALSO: 40 Essential Mashable Stories You May Have Missed in 2012
[More from Mashable: Cinemagram’s Picks for 13 Incredible GIFs of 2012]
Since it's nearly impossible to remember everything that happened in 365 days, we've rounded up 16 stories that you may have forgotten about in 2012. From the serious to the hilarious, the offensive to the heartwarming, you'll be reminded of something worth remembering.
What other 2012 news do you think is worth remembering? Share your small but important picks in the comments.
LG’s woeful comeback attempt
Labels: TechnologyBack in 2008, Samsung (005930) and LG (06657011) were battling head to head in North America and Europe. Now Samsung is heading for 29% global handset market share for 2012, while LG is tumbling to 4%. After a long and depressing spiral, LG has staged a fairly aggressive come-back attempt in the end of 2012. Sadly enough, the bid for relevance seems to be coming undone.
[More from BGR: BlackBerry 10 browser smokes iOS 6 and Windows Phone 8 in comparison test [video]]
Perhaps the most visible part of LG’s rebound effort is Nexus 4 — the sleek quad-core Android phone that was supposed to be a hot Christmas item in Europe and North America due to its reasonable price and hot display tech. But production problems have hampered the Nexus 4 roll-out badly, leading to the first shipment selling out in half an hour in the United Kingdom and Canadian retailers offering four-to-seven week shipping estimates at the end of November. The resulting friction between Google (GOOG) and LG has now led to an ominously snippy comment from Google’s United Kingdom and Ireland Managing Director Dan Cobley: “Supplies from the manufacturer are scarce and erratic, and our communication has been flawed.” This does not bode well for the Google-LG relationship in 2013.
[More from BGR: Google Maps causes huge spike in iOS 6 adoption]
LG’s recent strategy for its high-end models resembles HTC (2498) approach: price them like Samsung and hope for the best. The results have been similarly devastating to both brands. The LG L9 costs a bizarre 23,000 rupees in India, where the cheapest iPhone is now 26,000 rupees. While Nokia (NOK) and Samsung wage war in the 4,000 to 7,000 rupee smartphone price bracket, LG is putting a lot of effort to compete directly with the iPhone and Galaxy S III. Whereas HTC is finally catching a wave in Europe with its cheap new Windows model 8S, LG has opted to stay in the brutally competitive Android arena.
Of course, LG still competes also in the low-end market. But the one-time champion of the cheap smartphone niche is being squeezed hard by the Chinese vendors Huawei and ZTE. LG’s pivotal low-end model for 2012 is L3. Its prepaid price in the U.K. has started drifting towards the £50 mark, pushed there by tepid consumer interest.
Two years ago getting a decent touch screen smartphone for £50 would have been a sensation. But the Chinese vendors have been moving aggressively down the price ladder while improving build quality rapidly. Comparisons to Chinese cheapie models have been tough on LG. “Tiny, awfully low-res screen… creaky, scratch-prone body… glitchy software… underwhelming hardware,” concluded a cruel CNET UK analysis of the L3. The Chinese are raising the bar in the bargain basement category too rapidly for LG to keep up.
So here is the one-time close rival of Samsung: losing ground to Chinese at the low-end; blown out of the water at the high-end by Galaxy S III and iPhone 5; botching the crucial mid-range Nexus 4 roll-out. HTC is now showing some glimmers of a turnaround, but LG remains on the Siemens express to phone brand oblivion.
Read More..
[More from BGR: BlackBerry 10 browser smokes iOS 6 and Windows Phone 8 in comparison test [video]]
Perhaps the most visible part of LG’s rebound effort is Nexus 4 — the sleek quad-core Android phone that was supposed to be a hot Christmas item in Europe and North America due to its reasonable price and hot display tech. But production problems have hampered the Nexus 4 roll-out badly, leading to the first shipment selling out in half an hour in the United Kingdom and Canadian retailers offering four-to-seven week shipping estimates at the end of November. The resulting friction between Google (GOOG) and LG has now led to an ominously snippy comment from Google’s United Kingdom and Ireland Managing Director Dan Cobley: “Supplies from the manufacturer are scarce and erratic, and our communication has been flawed.” This does not bode well for the Google-LG relationship in 2013.
[More from BGR: Google Maps causes huge spike in iOS 6 adoption]
LG’s recent strategy for its high-end models resembles HTC (2498) approach: price them like Samsung and hope for the best. The results have been similarly devastating to both brands. The LG L9 costs a bizarre 23,000 rupees in India, where the cheapest iPhone is now 26,000 rupees. While Nokia (NOK) and Samsung wage war in the 4,000 to 7,000 rupee smartphone price bracket, LG is putting a lot of effort to compete directly with the iPhone and Galaxy S III. Whereas HTC is finally catching a wave in Europe with its cheap new Windows model 8S, LG has opted to stay in the brutally competitive Android arena.
Of course, LG still competes also in the low-end market. But the one-time champion of the cheap smartphone niche is being squeezed hard by the Chinese vendors Huawei and ZTE. LG’s pivotal low-end model for 2012 is L3. Its prepaid price in the U.K. has started drifting towards the £50 mark, pushed there by tepid consumer interest.
Two years ago getting a decent touch screen smartphone for £50 would have been a sensation. But the Chinese vendors have been moving aggressively down the price ladder while improving build quality rapidly. Comparisons to Chinese cheapie models have been tough on LG. “Tiny, awfully low-res screen… creaky, scratch-prone body… glitchy software… underwhelming hardware,” concluded a cruel CNET UK analysis of the L3. The Chinese are raising the bar in the bargain basement category too rapidly for LG to keep up.
So here is the one-time close rival of Samsung: losing ground to Chinese at the low-end; blown out of the water at the high-end by Galaxy S III and iPhone 5; botching the crucial mid-range Nexus 4 roll-out. HTC is now showing some glimmers of a turnaround, but LG remains on the Siemens express to phone brand oblivion.
Soccer: Real need rapid turnaround before United clash
Labels: TechnologyDefeat at Malaga on Saturday has surely dashed any lingering hopes Real Madrid had of defending their La Liga title and they urgently need to find their form before Manchester United's Champions League visit on February 12.
Jose Mourinho's decision to drop goalkeeper and captain Iker Casillas for the 3-2 reverse was still sending out shockwaves on Sunday and the defeat had left an "insurmountable" gap to make up on unbeaten leaders Barcelona, according to the Portuguese coach.
Real are 16 points behind Barca after 17 matches and seven adrift of second-placed Atletico Madrid.
When they return from the Christmas break they need to overturn a 2-1 first-leg deficit at home to Celta Vigo in the last 16 of the King's Cup and elimination would leave the Champions League as the only competition they can realistically hope to win this term.
Mourinho justified benching Casillas by suggesting inexperienced number two Antonio Adan was on better form than the 31-year-old Spain international, a fixture between the posts for more than a decade and hugely popular with the fans.
The sight of Spain's World Cup and European Championship hero watching nervously from the sidelines as Malaga beat Real at home for the first time in almost 30 years will have done little to alter the perception that all is not well off, as well as on, the pitch.
Mourinho dismissed a question about whether he feared for his job after the Malaga reverse which followed last weekend's 2-2 draw at home to Espanyol.
"If I sense that the players have lost their desire I am too honest to continue in a losing battle," he said.
"But the players have desire, they showed they still have desire. They played well enough to win against Espanyol, they played well enough to win today. They didn't have any luck and things turned out badly."
CALM WATERS
Appearing at a charity event on Sunday, Casillas attempted to calm the waters and said the team was more important than any individual player.
"The coach decides who plays," he told broadcaster La Sexta.
"During the week I could tell I wasn't going to play but it wasn't a setback," he added.
"Mourinho didn't say anything to me, he did not explain anything to me. He doesn't give me explanations when I play, so when I don't play he doesn't do so either.
"You have to respect the coach's decision and I have to train a lot more to try to win back confidence."
Sergio Ramos, another of Real's club captains, expressed surprise at the omission of his Spain team mate but urged unity among players and staff.
"It's not normal or usual to see him on the bench but we have nothing to say about it, it's a decision for the coach," he told reporters after the Malaga game.
"Iker is the captain of the team, a leader in the dressing room and a key component for us," he added.
"We are not going to get involved in any controversy. We all have to be in the same boat and row in the same direction.
"Enough seeking controversy where there is none. We all want the same thing."
Despite the calls for unity from the two club heavyweights, there remains a sense that Real and Mourinho are teetering on the edge and many coaches have been sacked for a lot less by the club's impatient presidents.
However, a morale-boosting Cup comeback against Celta and a decent run in La Liga would help set the team up for the United tie and a run at the 10th European title that has eluded them since 2002.
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Jose Mourinho's decision to drop goalkeeper and captain Iker Casillas for the 3-2 reverse was still sending out shockwaves on Sunday and the defeat had left an "insurmountable" gap to make up on unbeaten leaders Barcelona, according to the Portuguese coach.
Real are 16 points behind Barca after 17 matches and seven adrift of second-placed Atletico Madrid.
When they return from the Christmas break they need to overturn a 2-1 first-leg deficit at home to Celta Vigo in the last 16 of the King's Cup and elimination would leave the Champions League as the only competition they can realistically hope to win this term.
Mourinho justified benching Casillas by suggesting inexperienced number two Antonio Adan was on better form than the 31-year-old Spain international, a fixture between the posts for more than a decade and hugely popular with the fans.
The sight of Spain's World Cup and European Championship hero watching nervously from the sidelines as Malaga beat Real at home for the first time in almost 30 years will have done little to alter the perception that all is not well off, as well as on, the pitch.
Mourinho dismissed a question about whether he feared for his job after the Malaga reverse which followed last weekend's 2-2 draw at home to Espanyol.
"If I sense that the players have lost their desire I am too honest to continue in a losing battle," he said.
"But the players have desire, they showed they still have desire. They played well enough to win against Espanyol, they played well enough to win today. They didn't have any luck and things turned out badly."
CALM WATERS
Appearing at a charity event on Sunday, Casillas attempted to calm the waters and said the team was more important than any individual player.
"The coach decides who plays," he told broadcaster La Sexta.
"During the week I could tell I wasn't going to play but it wasn't a setback," he added.
"Mourinho didn't say anything to me, he did not explain anything to me. He doesn't give me explanations when I play, so when I don't play he doesn't do so either.
"You have to respect the coach's decision and I have to train a lot more to try to win back confidence."
Sergio Ramos, another of Real's club captains, expressed surprise at the omission of his Spain team mate but urged unity among players and staff.
"It's not normal or usual to see him on the bench but we have nothing to say about it, it's a decision for the coach," he told reporters after the Malaga game.
"Iker is the captain of the team, a leader in the dressing room and a key component for us," he added.
"We are not going to get involved in any controversy. We all have to be in the same boat and row in the same direction.
"Enough seeking controversy where there is none. We all want the same thing."
Despite the calls for unity from the two club heavyweights, there remains a sense that Real and Mourinho are teetering on the edge and many coaches have been sacked for a lot less by the club's impatient presidents.
However, a morale-boosting Cup comeback against Celta and a decent run in La Liga would help set the team up for the United tie and a run at the 10th European title that has eluded them since 2002.
Soccer-Norwich settle dispute with former manager Lambert
Labels: TechnologyLONDON, Dec 23 (Reuters) - Norwich City have come to an agreement with their former manager Paul Lambert and his new side Aston Villa to settle the dispute over his departure, the Premier League club said on Sunday.
Villa will pay Norwich the original amount agreed in Lambert's contract with the Norfolk club who will pay the former Scotland midfielder his bonus due after the 2011/12 season.
"This represents a final settlement of all claims and disputes between the parties," Norwich added in a short statement on their website (www.canaries.co.uk).
The settlement follows a bitter dispute between the parties in which Lambert and Norwich said they were suing each other following his Carrow Road exit at the end of last season.
Norwich chairman Alan Bowkett told a fans' forum in October that Lambert was seeking 2 million pounds ($3.24 million) in compensation for breach of contract and unfair dismissal.
Lambert, who said he was "extremely disappointed" that news of the dispute had been made public, told a news conference he was being sued over his move to Premier League rivals Villa.
"What Norwich haven't made public is that they are suing me. Am I concerned Norwich fans are only hearing one side of the story? Yes," he said at the time.
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Villa will pay Norwich the original amount agreed in Lambert's contract with the Norfolk club who will pay the former Scotland midfielder his bonus due after the 2011/12 season.
"This represents a final settlement of all claims and disputes between the parties," Norwich added in a short statement on their website (www.canaries.co.uk).
The settlement follows a bitter dispute between the parties in which Lambert and Norwich said they were suing each other following his Carrow Road exit at the end of last season.
Norwich chairman Alan Bowkett told a fans' forum in October that Lambert was seeking 2 million pounds ($3.24 million) in compensation for breach of contract and unfair dismissal.
Lambert, who said he was "extremely disappointed" that news of the dispute had been made public, told a news conference he was being sued over his move to Premier League rivals Villa.
"What Norwich haven't made public is that they are suing me. Am I concerned Norwich fans are only hearing one side of the story? Yes," he said at the time.
UPDATE 2-Soccer-Ligue 1 top scorers
Labels: TechnologyDec 23 (Infostrada Sports) - Top scorers of the Ligue 1 on Sunday
18 Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Paris St Germain)
11 Bafetimbi Gomis (Olympique Lyon)
10 Dario Cvitanich (Nice)
9 Anthony Modeste (Bastia)
Wissam Ben Yedder (Toulouse)
8 Julien Feret (Stade Rennes)
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (St Etienne)
7 Jeremie Aliadiere (FC Lorient)
Yoan Gouffran (Girondins Bordeaux)
Romain Alessandrini (Stade Rennes)
Eden Ben Basat (Stade Brest)
6 Benjamin Nivet (ES Troyes AC)
Cedric Barbosa (Evian Thonon Gaillard FC)
Saber Khlifa (Evian Thonon Gaillard FC)
Alain Traore (FC Lorient)
Dimitri Payet (Lille)
Nolan Roux (Lille)
Younes Belhanda (Montpellier HSC)
Souleymane Camara (Montpellier HSC)
Lisandro Lopez (Olympique Lyon)
Andre-Pierre Gignac (Olympique Marseille)
Mevlut Erding (Stade Rennes)
Jonathan Pitroipa (Stade Rennes)
Foued Kadir (Valenciennes)
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18 Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Paris St Germain)
11 Bafetimbi Gomis (Olympique Lyon)
10 Dario Cvitanich (Nice)
9 Anthony Modeste (Bastia)
Wissam Ben Yedder (Toulouse)
8 Julien Feret (Stade Rennes)
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (St Etienne)
7 Jeremie Aliadiere (FC Lorient)
Yoan Gouffran (Girondins Bordeaux)
Romain Alessandrini (Stade Rennes)
Eden Ben Basat (Stade Brest)
6 Benjamin Nivet (ES Troyes AC)
Cedric Barbosa (Evian Thonon Gaillard FC)
Saber Khlifa (Evian Thonon Gaillard FC)
Alain Traore (FC Lorient)
Dimitri Payet (Lille)
Nolan Roux (Lille)
Younes Belhanda (Montpellier HSC)
Souleymane Camara (Montpellier HSC)
Lisandro Lopez (Olympique Lyon)
Andre-Pierre Gignac (Olympique Marseille)
Mevlut Erding (Stade Rennes)
Jonathan Pitroipa (Stade Rennes)
Foued Kadir (Valenciennes)
UPDATE 2-Soccer-Ligue 1 results and standings
Labels: TechnologyDec 23 (Infostrada Sports) - Results and standings from the Ligue 1 matches on Sunday
Sunday, December 23
Olympique Marseille 1 St Etienne 0
Toulouse 2 Sochaux 0
Valenciennes 2 Evian Thonon Gaillard FC 1
Saturday, December 22
Ajaccio 2 Stade Rennes 4
FC Lorient 2 Stade de Reims 2
Girondins Bordeaux 0 ES Troyes AC 0
Lille 4 Montpellier HSC 1
Olympique Lyon 3 Nice 0
Bastia 4 AS Nancy 2
Friday, December 21
Stade Brest 0 Paris St Germain 3
Standings P W D L F A Pts
1 Paris St Germain 19 11 5 3 36 12 38
2 Olympique Lyon 19 11 5 3 33 17 38
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3 Olympique Marseille 19 12 2 5 24 20 38
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4 Stade Rennes 19 10 2 7 29 24 32
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5 FC Lorient 19 8 7 4 32 29 31
6 Valenciennes 19 8 5 6 31 24 29
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7 Girondins Bordeaux 19 6 11 2 21 14 29
8 Lille 19 7 8 4 24 18 29
9 Nice 19 7 8 4 26 26 29
10 St Etienne 19 7 6 6 24 14 27
11 Montpellier HSC 19 7 5 7 29 24 26
12 Toulouse 19 7 5 7 25 20 26
13 Bastia 19 6 4 9 26 41 22
14 Stade Brest 19 6 3 10 20 28 21
15 Stade de Reims 19 4 7 8 16 20 19
16 Ajaccio 19 5 6 8 21 29 19
17 Evian Thonon Gaillard FC 19 5 4 10 22 32 19
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18 Sochaux 19 4 4 11 17 29 16
19 ES Troyes AC 19 2 7 10 20 37 13
20 AS Nancy 19 1 8 10 15 33 11
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Note: Ajaccio deducted 2 points.
1-2: Champions League / EC I
3: Champions League preliminary round
4: Europa League
5-6: Europa League depending on domestic cup
18-20: Relegation
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Sunday, December 23
Olympique Marseille 1 St Etienne 0
Toulouse 2 Sochaux 0
Valenciennes 2 Evian Thonon Gaillard FC 1
Saturday, December 22
Ajaccio 2 Stade Rennes 4
FC Lorient 2 Stade de Reims 2
Girondins Bordeaux 0 ES Troyes AC 0
Lille 4 Montpellier HSC 1
Olympique Lyon 3 Nice 0
Bastia 4 AS Nancy 2
Friday, December 21
Stade Brest 0 Paris St Germain 3
Standings P W D L F A Pts
1 Paris St Germain 19 11 5 3 36 12 38
2 Olympique Lyon 19 11 5 3 33 17 38
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3 Olympique Marseille 19 12 2 5 24 20 38
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4 Stade Rennes 19 10 2 7 29 24 32
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5 FC Lorient 19 8 7 4 32 29 31
6 Valenciennes 19 8 5 6 31 24 29
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7 Girondins Bordeaux 19 6 11 2 21 14 29
8 Lille 19 7 8 4 24 18 29
9 Nice 19 7 8 4 26 26 29
10 St Etienne 19 7 6 6 24 14 27
11 Montpellier HSC 19 7 5 7 29 24 26
12 Toulouse 19 7 5 7 25 20 26
13 Bastia 19 6 4 9 26 41 22
14 Stade Brest 19 6 3 10 20 28 21
15 Stade de Reims 19 4 7 8 16 20 19
16 Ajaccio 19 5 6 8 21 29 19
17 Evian Thonon Gaillard FC 19 5 4 10 22 32 19
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18 Sochaux 19 4 4 11 17 29 16
19 ES Troyes AC 19 2 7 10 20 37 13
20 AS Nancy 19 1 8 10 15 33 11
-------------------------
Note: Ajaccio deducted 2 points.
1-2: Champions League / EC I
3: Champions League preliminary round
4: Europa League
5-6: Europa League depending on domestic cup
18-20: Relegation
Soccer-Marseille cling on with leaders after beating St Etienne
Labels: Technology Andre Ayew struck just before the break to give Olympique Marseille a 1-0 home win against St Etienne on Sunday and keep them level on points with leaders Paris St Germain.
As Ligue 1 goes into a three-week break, OM are third with 38 points, behind pacesetters PSG and second-placed Olympique Lyon on goal difference.
St Etienne, who last beat OM at the Velodrome in 1979, are 10th with 27 points from 19 matches.
The game got off to a rather dull start with neither team creating chances and Marseille looking cautious having lost their last two home games.
Marseille, however, went ahead on the stroke of halftime when Ghana striker Ayew, who will play in the African Nations Cup with the Black Stars from Jan. 19 to Feb. 10, headed home from a Rod Fanni cross.
Josuha Guilavogui was set up by Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang but Steve Mandanda dived into the midfielder's feet to deny St Etienne an early opportunity to equalise two minutes into the second half.
Fanni cleared Aubameyang's strike off the goal line 15 minutes from time to keep his team ahead.
Andre Ayew then came close to doubling the tally in the 85th minute after being set up by his younger brother Jordan, only for his low shot to be blocked by Stephane Ruffier.
Earlier, Valenciennes moved up to sixth on 29 points after goals by Gregory Pujol and Jose Saez gave the Northerners a 2-1 win against visiting Evian Thonon Gaillard.
Toulouse, who had bagged only four points from their last eight games, beat Sochaux 2-0 courtesy of goals by Adrien Regattin and Emmanuel Riviere.
On Saturday, PSG claimed a 3-0 win at Stade Brest and Lyon beat Nice 3-0 at home.
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As Ligue 1 goes into a three-week break, OM are third with 38 points, behind pacesetters PSG and second-placed Olympique Lyon on goal difference.
St Etienne, who last beat OM at the Velodrome in 1979, are 10th with 27 points from 19 matches.
The game got off to a rather dull start with neither team creating chances and Marseille looking cautious having lost their last two home games.
Marseille, however, went ahead on the stroke of halftime when Ghana striker Ayew, who will play in the African Nations Cup with the Black Stars from Jan. 19 to Feb. 10, headed home from a Rod Fanni cross.
Josuha Guilavogui was set up by Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang but Steve Mandanda dived into the midfielder's feet to deny St Etienne an early opportunity to equalise two minutes into the second half.
Fanni cleared Aubameyang's strike off the goal line 15 minutes from time to keep his team ahead.
Andre Ayew then came close to doubling the tally in the 85th minute after being set up by his younger brother Jordan, only for his low shot to be blocked by Stephane Ruffier.
Earlier, Valenciennes moved up to sixth on 29 points after goals by Gregory Pujol and Jose Saez gave the Northerners a 2-1 win against visiting Evian Thonon Gaillard.
Toulouse, who had bagged only four points from their last eight games, beat Sochaux 2-0 courtesy of goals by Adrien Regattin and Emmanuel Riviere.
On Saturday, PSG claimed a 3-0 win at Stade Brest and Lyon beat Nice 3-0 at home.
Police Find Clothing Tied to Missing Yacht School Friends
Labels: Technologylothing items believed to belong to two missing yacht school friends were found on the rocks of a small island off the coast of Maine, Kennebunkport police said today.
Zachary Wells, 21, and Prescott Wright, 23, were last seen hanging out at a home in the seaside community on Thursday, police chief Craig Sanford said.
The disappearance of the two friends baffled authorities, who have searched by air, water and in wooded areas for the men.
Today marked the first breakthrough in the case, when authorities discovered the clothing, including one item that was marked to indicate that it belonged to one of the men, Sanford said.
Wells and Wright are students at The Landing School in Arundel, Maine., where they were learning boat building and yacht design.
When the men failed to show up for classes on Thursday and Friday, administrators at the school contacted police.
Authorities found no signs of a disturbance at the home, Sanford said, and searches of the nearby area did not turn up any clues. Only one of the men owns a vehicle, and it remained parked in the driveway of the house.
"There's no one area to pinpoint because we don't know where they might have gone," Sanford said, calling it one of the strangest cases he has ever seen.
Both men were expected to head to their home states for the holidays.
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Zachary Wells, 21, and Prescott Wright, 23, were last seen hanging out at a home in the seaside community on Thursday, police chief Craig Sanford said.
The disappearance of the two friends baffled authorities, who have searched by air, water and in wooded areas for the men.
Today marked the first breakthrough in the case, when authorities discovered the clothing, including one item that was marked to indicate that it belonged to one of the men, Sanford said.
Wells and Wright are students at The Landing School in Arundel, Maine., where they were learning boat building and yacht design.
When the men failed to show up for classes on Thursday and Friday, administrators at the school contacted police.
Authorities found no signs of a disturbance at the home, Sanford said, and searches of the nearby area did not turn up any clues. Only one of the men owns a vehicle, and it remained parked in the driveway of the house.
"There's no one area to pinpoint because we don't know where they might have gone," Sanford said, calling it one of the strangest cases he has ever seen.
Both men were expected to head to their home states for the holidays.
Man set trap and then shot and killed firefighters responding to Webster, N.Y. fire
Labels: TechnologyA man with a criminal history shot and killed two West Webster, N.Y. firefighters and seriously injured two others as they responded to a fire at his home, police say.
William H. Spengler, Jr., 62, apparently started a 5:35 a.m. fire at his home on Lake Road and then waited with an armament of weapons for first responders to arrive, Webster N.Y. Police Chief Gerald Pickering said at an afternoon news conference.
“He was shooting from high ground or a berm," Pickering said. "He was barricaded with weapons to shoot first responders."
After a brief exchange of gunfire with police, Spengler then shot and killed himself at the scene, Pickering said.
Spengler was convicted in 1981 in the death of his 92-year-old grandmother a year earlier. He served time in prison and was released in 1998, Pickering said.
Spengler beat Rose Spengler to death with a hammer 1980, the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle reported. Rose Spengler had lived in the home next to William Spengler on Lake Road at the time of her death.
Local police had not noted any criminal activity in his recent past, Pickering said.
Pickering said they are looking into the apparent disappearance of Spengler's sister who is unaccounted for at this time.
Police and fire officials are continuing to gather evidence and will inspect the seven homes that were destroyed in the fire that spread to nearby houses in the small lakeside town located 10 miles east of Rochester.
The victims in the shooting are Mike Chiapperini, also a lieutenant and public information officer with the local police department, and Tomasz Kaczowka, Pickering said.
"These people get up in the middle of the night to fight fires. They don't expect to be shot and killed," a tearful Pickering said at the press conference.
Chiapperini was described by Pickering as a lifelong firefighter who started with the department's explorer program and had about 20 years of experience. Kaczowka was a younger firefighter who was on the force for about two years and was also a 911 dispatcher, he said.
West Webster firefighters Joseph Hofsetter and Theodore Scardino were seriously injured and are at Strong Memorial Hospital with gunshot wounds, a hospital spokeswoman said. Scardino has injuries to his chest and lungs. Hofsetter was injured in the pelvis, the spokeswoman said at a media briefing. Both are in guarded condition, she said.
An off-duty police officer from nearby Greece, N.Y., John Ritter was also injured by shrapnel during the shooting, Pickering said.
Pickering said that one of the firefighters who survived made his way across a bridge to safety. The other three did not make it across, Pickering said. Police arrived and rescued the other three firefighters, but two were fatally shot, Pickering said.
The morning scene was described as chaotic as police and firefighters dealt with an immense blaze as well as gunshots, local news station WHAM-TV reports.
“I’m not aware of anything like this happening in Webster, obviously not a firefighter being fired upon,” Webster Fire Marshal Rob Boutillier told the Democrat and Chronicle. Pickering described Webster as resort lakeside community that is quiet and usually peaceful.
WHAM reported that an outpouring of support has come through the Webster community. Black flags reportedly have been draped at some homes and offices to honor those killed and injured.
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William H. Spengler, Jr., 62, apparently started a 5:35 a.m. fire at his home on Lake Road and then waited with an armament of weapons for first responders to arrive, Webster N.Y. Police Chief Gerald Pickering said at an afternoon news conference.
“He was shooting from high ground or a berm," Pickering said. "He was barricaded with weapons to shoot first responders."
After a brief exchange of gunfire with police, Spengler then shot and killed himself at the scene, Pickering said.
Spengler was convicted in 1981 in the death of his 92-year-old grandmother a year earlier. He served time in prison and was released in 1998, Pickering said.
Spengler beat Rose Spengler to death with a hammer 1980, the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle reported. Rose Spengler had lived in the home next to William Spengler on Lake Road at the time of her death.
Local police had not noted any criminal activity in his recent past, Pickering said.
Pickering said they are looking into the apparent disappearance of Spengler's sister who is unaccounted for at this time.
Police and fire officials are continuing to gather evidence and will inspect the seven homes that were destroyed in the fire that spread to nearby houses in the small lakeside town located 10 miles east of Rochester.
The victims in the shooting are Mike Chiapperini, also a lieutenant and public information officer with the local police department, and Tomasz Kaczowka, Pickering said.
"These people get up in the middle of the night to fight fires. They don't expect to be shot and killed," a tearful Pickering said at the press conference.
Chiapperini was described by Pickering as a lifelong firefighter who started with the department's explorer program and had about 20 years of experience. Kaczowka was a younger firefighter who was on the force for about two years and was also a 911 dispatcher, he said.
West Webster firefighters Joseph Hofsetter and Theodore Scardino were seriously injured and are at Strong Memorial Hospital with gunshot wounds, a hospital spokeswoman said. Scardino has injuries to his chest and lungs. Hofsetter was injured in the pelvis, the spokeswoman said at a media briefing. Both are in guarded condition, she said.
An off-duty police officer from nearby Greece, N.Y., John Ritter was also injured by shrapnel during the shooting, Pickering said.
Pickering said that one of the firefighters who survived made his way across a bridge to safety. The other three did not make it across, Pickering said. Police arrived and rescued the other three firefighters, but two were fatally shot, Pickering said.
The morning scene was described as chaotic as police and firefighters dealt with an immense blaze as well as gunshots, local news station WHAM-TV reports.
“I’m not aware of anything like this happening in Webster, obviously not a firefighter being fired upon,” Webster Fire Marshal Rob Boutillier told the Democrat and Chronicle. Pickering described Webster as resort lakeside community that is quiet and usually peaceful.
WHAM reported that an outpouring of support has come through the Webster community. Black flags reportedly have been draped at some homes and offices to honor those killed and injured.
Newspaper Publishes Gun Owners' Names and Addresses
Labels: TechnologyA newspaper in New York has received a wave of criticism from its readers after publishing the names and addresses of all of the individuals with handgun or pistol permits in its coverage area.
Hundreds of residents in New York's Westchester and Rockland counties were surprised to find their names and addresses listed on a map posted by The Journal News on Sunday. Users can click any dot on the map to see which of their neighbors has a permit for a gun.
The map sparked more than 500 comments from readers within a day of its appearance on the website, many of them voicing outrage at the paper's decision to make the information public.
"This is CRAZY!! why in the world would you post every licensed gun owner information?? What do you hope to accomplish by doing this. This is the type of thing you do for sex offenders not law abiding gun owners. What next? should i hang a flag outside my house that says I own a gun? I am canceling my subscription with your paper today!!!" said commenter Curtis Maenza.
"How about a map of the editorial staff and publishers of Gannett and Journal News with names and addresses of their families…," wrote commenter George Thompson.
All of the names and addresses were compiled through public records. The paper also requested the information from Putnam County, which is still compiling the records for publication, according to The Journal News' website.
In a statement to ABC News, The Journal News said its readers "are understandably interested to know about guns in their neighborhoods," because of the conversation about gun control on its website after the shooting in Newtown, Conn., last week.
"We obtained the names and addresses of Westchester and Rockland residents who are licensed to own handguns through routine Freedom of Information law requests. We also requested information on the number and types of guns owned by permit holders, but officials in the county clerks offices in Westchester, Rockland and Putnam counties maintained that those specifics were not public record," the statement read.
"New York's top public-records expert, Robert Freeman, disagrees," it added.
The paper declined to answer further questions about the map.
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Hundreds of residents in New York's Westchester and Rockland counties were surprised to find their names and addresses listed on a map posted by The Journal News on Sunday. Users can click any dot on the map to see which of their neighbors has a permit for a gun.
The map sparked more than 500 comments from readers within a day of its appearance on the website, many of them voicing outrage at the paper's decision to make the information public.
"This is CRAZY!! why in the world would you post every licensed gun owner information?? What do you hope to accomplish by doing this. This is the type of thing you do for sex offenders not law abiding gun owners. What next? should i hang a flag outside my house that says I own a gun? I am canceling my subscription with your paper today!!!" said commenter Curtis Maenza.
"How about a map of the editorial staff and publishers of Gannett and Journal News with names and addresses of their families…," wrote commenter George Thompson.
All of the names and addresses were compiled through public records. The paper also requested the information from Putnam County, which is still compiling the records for publication, according to The Journal News' website.
In a statement to ABC News, The Journal News said its readers "are understandably interested to know about guns in their neighborhoods," because of the conversation about gun control on its website after the shooting in Newtown, Conn., last week.
"We obtained the names and addresses of Westchester and Rockland residents who are licensed to own handguns through routine Freedom of Information law requests. We also requested information on the number and types of guns owned by permit holders, but officials in the county clerks offices in Westchester, Rockland and Putnam counties maintained that those specifics were not public record," the statement read.
"New York's top public-records expert, Robert Freeman, disagrees," it added.
The paper declined to answer further questions about the map.
At Christmas Eve Mass, pope urges space for God
Labels: TechnologyPope Benedict XVI marked Christmas Eve with Mass in St. Peter's Basilica and a pressing question: Will people find room in their hectic, technology-driven lives for children, the poor and God?
The pontiff also prayed that Israelis and Palestinians live in peace and freedom, and asked the faithful to pray for strife-torn Syria as well as Lebanon and Iraq.
The ceremony began at 10 p.m. local time Monday with the blare of trumpets, meant to symbolize Christian joy over the news of Christ's birth in Bethlehem. As midnight neared, chuch bells tolled throughout Rome, while inside the basilica, the sweet voices of the Vatican's boys' choir resounded joyously.
Christmas Eve Mass at the Vatican traditionally began at midnight, but the start time was moved up years ago so as to give the 85-year-old pontiff more time to rest before his Christmas Day speech. That address is to be delivered at midday Tuesday from the basilica's central balcony.
A smiling Benedict, dressed in gold-colored vestments, waved to photo-snapping pilgrims and applauding church-goers as he glided up the center aisle toward the ornate main altar of the cavernous basilica on a wheeled platform guided by white-gloved aides. The platform saves him energy.
In his homily, Benedict cited the Gospel account of Mary and Joseph finding no room at an inn and ending up in a stable which sheltered the baby Jesus. He urged people to reflect upon what they find time for in their busy, technology-driven lives.
"The great moral question of our attitude toward the homeless, toward refugees and migrants takes on a deeper dimension: Do we really have room for God when he seeks to enter under our roof? Do we have time and space for him?" the pope said.
"The faster we can move, the more efficient our time-saving appliances become, the less time we have. And God? The question of God never seems urgent," Benedict lamented.
The pope worried that "we are so 'full' of ourselves that there is no room left for God." He added, "that means there is no room for others either — for children, for the poor, for the stranger."
With his voice a bit hoarse, and looking somewhat tired as the two-hour ceremony neared its end, Benedict decried that history has suffered through "misuse of religion," when belief in one God became a pretext for intolerance and violence. Still, he insisted that where God is "forgotten or even denied, there is no peace either."
"Let us pray that Israelis and Palestinians be able to live their lives in the peace of the one God and in freedom," the pope said.
Benedict also mentioned his hope for progress in Syria, which is mired in civil war, as well as Lebanon and Iraq.
Reflecting the Vatican's concern about the exodus of many fearful Christians from the Muslim-dominated Middle East, Benedict expressed hope that "Christians in those lands where our faith was born maybe be able to continue living there" and that Christians and Muslims "build up their countries side by side in God's peace."
Hours before the basilica Mass, Benedict lit a Christmas peace candle on the windowsill of his studio window overlooking St. Peter's Square.
Read More..
The pontiff also prayed that Israelis and Palestinians live in peace and freedom, and asked the faithful to pray for strife-torn Syria as well as Lebanon and Iraq.
The ceremony began at 10 p.m. local time Monday with the blare of trumpets, meant to symbolize Christian joy over the news of Christ's birth in Bethlehem. As midnight neared, chuch bells tolled throughout Rome, while inside the basilica, the sweet voices of the Vatican's boys' choir resounded joyously.
Christmas Eve Mass at the Vatican traditionally began at midnight, but the start time was moved up years ago so as to give the 85-year-old pontiff more time to rest before his Christmas Day speech. That address is to be delivered at midday Tuesday from the basilica's central balcony.
A smiling Benedict, dressed in gold-colored vestments, waved to photo-snapping pilgrims and applauding church-goers as he glided up the center aisle toward the ornate main altar of the cavernous basilica on a wheeled platform guided by white-gloved aides. The platform saves him energy.
In his homily, Benedict cited the Gospel account of Mary and Joseph finding no room at an inn and ending up in a stable which sheltered the baby Jesus. He urged people to reflect upon what they find time for in their busy, technology-driven lives.
"The great moral question of our attitude toward the homeless, toward refugees and migrants takes on a deeper dimension: Do we really have room for God when he seeks to enter under our roof? Do we have time and space for him?" the pope said.
"The faster we can move, the more efficient our time-saving appliances become, the less time we have. And God? The question of God never seems urgent," Benedict lamented.
The pope worried that "we are so 'full' of ourselves that there is no room left for God." He added, "that means there is no room for others either — for children, for the poor, for the stranger."
With his voice a bit hoarse, and looking somewhat tired as the two-hour ceremony neared its end, Benedict decried that history has suffered through "misuse of religion," when belief in one God became a pretext for intolerance and violence. Still, he insisted that where God is "forgotten or even denied, there is no peace either."
"Let us pray that Israelis and Palestinians be able to live their lives in the peace of the one God and in freedom," the pope said.
Benedict also mentioned his hope for progress in Syria, which is mired in civil war, as well as Lebanon and Iraq.
Reflecting the Vatican's concern about the exodus of many fearful Christians from the Muslim-dominated Middle East, Benedict expressed hope that "Christians in those lands where our faith was born maybe be able to continue living there" and that Christians and Muslims "build up their countries side by side in God's peace."
Hours before the basilica Mass, Benedict lit a Christmas peace candle on the windowsill of his studio window overlooking St. Peter's Square.
Windows already threatening iPhone in Southern Europe
Labels: TechnologyKantar Worldpanel’s report for November came out and much has been made of the iPhone market share surge in the United States. What I find interesting in the November numbers is just how ice cold the iPhone has gone in so many international markets, from Australia to Brazil to Southern Europe. The iOS market share showed hefty declines outside in many major markets: down 5.4 percentage points in Australia to 35.9% and down 1.6 points in Brazil to 1.6%. That’s right — the iPhone market share has halved in the most important South American market over the past year. And this happened while BlackBerry and Symbian market shares absolutely caved in. This should have been the period for Apple (AAPL) to pick up points while RIM (RIMM) and Nokia (NOK) floundered. Instead, the sky-high pricing of the iPhone models has effectively started reversing Apple’s market share gains across several major markets.
[More from BGR: Fan-made tweak gives Apple a blueprint for better multitasking in iOS 7 [video]]
In November, the burden of the stiff iPhone pricing was highlighted by how rapidly Windows has started closing the market share gap in Spain, Italy and France. Because Nokia has had trouble ramping up the production of the new Lumia 920 and 820 Windows models, it chose to crank out older Windows models like 800 and 610 for remarkably aggressive Christmas promotions. As European markets are now hitting 50% smartphone market penetration, consumer demand is shifting towards cheap models, and Apple cannot compete in the budget category. The new first-time smartphone buyers have a lot lower household income than the consumers who bought smartphones in 2010. In the recession-ravaged Europe, the upgrade cycle is lengthening and prepaid smartphones are a more important part of the overall product mix.
[More from BGR: RIM’s biggest problem: It’s still scrambling to catch yesterday’s hottest mobile app]
As a result, Windows market share in Italy hit a stunning 11.8% in November despite the razor thin availability of the Lumia 920. Windows has already erased most of the market share lead iPhone had in Italy. The iOS market share slipped to 20.6% during the last month. In Spain, Windows market share vaulted to 3% from 0.4% a year earlier while iOS share faded to 4.4%. As the affordable HTC (2498) 8S ramps up and the even cheaper Lumia 620 launches at the end of January, Windows may overtake iPhone in Spain already in February.
The strong performance Apple had in France and the United Kingdom kept its overall European market share climbing by 2.5 percentage points in November. But in Southern Europe, Latin America and parts of Asia, iPhone is slipping badly due to the lack of a low-end version. This is what is driving the Google (GOOG) Play revenue surge globally as Android apps now narrow the huge lead Apple built in the app market before the year 2012. Apple may well have to reconsider its iPhone pricing strategy in a fundamental way. Maintaining $620 ASP level globally could lead to a scenario where Android has 10-to-1 volume lead outside the United States and Northern Europe, and Windows actually has a shot at pulling well ahead of Apple in lower income countries from Spain to Brazil to South-East Asia.
Read More..
[More from BGR: Fan-made tweak gives Apple a blueprint for better multitasking in iOS 7 [video]]
In November, the burden of the stiff iPhone pricing was highlighted by how rapidly Windows has started closing the market share gap in Spain, Italy and France. Because Nokia has had trouble ramping up the production of the new Lumia 920 and 820 Windows models, it chose to crank out older Windows models like 800 and 610 for remarkably aggressive Christmas promotions. As European markets are now hitting 50% smartphone market penetration, consumer demand is shifting towards cheap models, and Apple cannot compete in the budget category. The new first-time smartphone buyers have a lot lower household income than the consumers who bought smartphones in 2010. In the recession-ravaged Europe, the upgrade cycle is lengthening and prepaid smartphones are a more important part of the overall product mix.
[More from BGR: RIM’s biggest problem: It’s still scrambling to catch yesterday’s hottest mobile app]
As a result, Windows market share in Italy hit a stunning 11.8% in November despite the razor thin availability of the Lumia 920. Windows has already erased most of the market share lead iPhone had in Italy. The iOS market share slipped to 20.6% during the last month. In Spain, Windows market share vaulted to 3% from 0.4% a year earlier while iOS share faded to 4.4%. As the affordable HTC (2498) 8S ramps up and the even cheaper Lumia 620 launches at the end of January, Windows may overtake iPhone in Spain already in February.
The strong performance Apple had in France and the United Kingdom kept its overall European market share climbing by 2.5 percentage points in November. But in Southern Europe, Latin America and parts of Asia, iPhone is slipping badly due to the lack of a low-end version. This is what is driving the Google (GOOG) Play revenue surge globally as Android apps now narrow the huge lead Apple built in the app market before the year 2012. Apple may well have to reconsider its iPhone pricing strategy in a fundamental way. Maintaining $620 ASP level globally could lead to a scenario where Android has 10-to-1 volume lead outside the United States and Northern Europe, and Windows actually has a shot at pulling well ahead of Apple in lower income countries from Spain to Brazil to South-East Asia.
The Way the World Could Have Ended
Labels: TechnologyWe realize there's only so much time one can spend in a day watching new trailers, viral video clips, and shaky cell phone footage of people arguing on live television. This is why every day The Atlantic Wire highlights the videos that truly earn your five minutes (or less) of attention. Today:
RELATED: What Happens When You Sing 'All Night Long' All Night Long
Knock, knock. You're still here, right? So are we. Like, whew, all that apocalyptic stuff — we can laugh about it now, right? So let's kick back with this music video from a group called Eclectic Method, which compiles, mixes, and mashes all the end-of-the-world scenes that Hollywood has ever created:
RELATED: The Only 'Kiss From a Rose' Cover You'll Ever Need
RELATED: Myspace Hopes Its Sexy New Video will Bring You Back
Happy holidays to you! And you! And you! But not to you, Henri, you existential cat:
RELATED: A 'Mad Men' Rickroll and the Man That Destroys Carnival Games
RELATED: A Video to Restore Our Faith in Humanity and a Glacier Tsunami
So, before we leave you for the holidays we have one piece of advice. Remember this and hold on to it when you are three glasses deep in a drunken egg-nog haze: never trust a "trust fall."
And, finally, here's an otter eating an invisible sandwich. Happy holidays!
Read More..
RELATED: What Happens When You Sing 'All Night Long' All Night Long
Knock, knock. You're still here, right? So are we. Like, whew, all that apocalyptic stuff — we can laugh about it now, right? So let's kick back with this music video from a group called Eclectic Method, which compiles, mixes, and mashes all the end-of-the-world scenes that Hollywood has ever created:
RELATED: The Only 'Kiss From a Rose' Cover You'll Ever Need
RELATED: Myspace Hopes Its Sexy New Video will Bring You Back
Happy holidays to you! And you! And you! But not to you, Henri, you existential cat:
RELATED: A 'Mad Men' Rickroll and the Man That Destroys Carnival Games
RELATED: A Video to Restore Our Faith in Humanity and a Glacier Tsunami
So, before we leave you for the holidays we have one piece of advice. Remember this and hold on to it when you are three glasses deep in a drunken egg-nog haze: never trust a "trust fall."
And, finally, here's an otter eating an invisible sandwich. Happy holidays!
RIM shares dive as fee changes catch market off guard
Labels: TechnologyShares of BlackBerry maker Research In Motion Ltd plunged more than 20 percent on Friday on fears that a new fee structure for its high-margin services segment could put pressure on the business that has set the company apart from its competitors.
It was the stock's biggest, single-day, percentage price drop since September 2008. But shares were still nearly 80 percent above the year's low, which was reached in September. They started to rally in November as investors began to bet that RIM's long-awaited new BlackBerry 10 phones, which will be unveiled in January, would turn the company around.
The services segment has long been RIM's most profitable and accounts for about a third of total revenue. Some analysts said there was a risk that the fee changes could endanger its service ecosystem and leave the Canadian company as just another handset maker.
The fee changes, which RIM announced on Thursday after market close, overshadowed stronger-than-expected quarterly results. The company said the new pricing structure would be introduced with the BlackBerry 10 launch, expected on January 30.
RIM said some subscribers would continue to pay for enhanced services such as advanced security. But under the new structure, some other services would account for less revenue, or even none at all.
Chief Executive Thorsten Heins tried to reassure investors in a television interview with CNBC on Friday, saying RIM's "service revenue isn't going away".
He added: "We're not stopping. We're not halting. We're transitioning."
Since taking over at RIM in January, Heins has focused on shrinking the company and getting it ready to introduce its new BB10 devices, which RIM says will help it claw back ground it has lost to competitors such as Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics.
But the new services pricing strategy came as a shock to markets, and some analysts cut their price targets on RIM stock.
RIM will not be able to sustain profitability by relying on its hardware business alone, said National Bank Financial analyst Kris Thompson, whom Thomson Reuters StarMine has rated the top RIM analyst based on the accuracy of his estimates of the company's earnings.
Thompson downgraded RIM's stock to "underperform" from "sector perform" and cut his price target to $10 from $15.
Forrester Research analyst Charles Golvin said the move was likely about stabilizing market share: "At the moment, they need to stem the bleeding."
He said the tiered pricing might line up better with RIM's subscriber base as it expands in emerging economies.
RIM's Nasdaq-listed shares closed down 22.7 percent at $10.91 on Friday. The stock fell 22.2 percent to C$10.86 on the Toronto Stock Exchange.
COUNTDOWN TO LAUNCH
The success of the BB10 will be crucial to the future of RIM, which on Thursday posted its first-ever decline in total subscribers. Heins said on CNBC that the company expected to ship millions of the new devices.
He cautioned that this will require heavy investment, which will reduce RIM's cash position in its fourth and first quarters from $2.9 billion in its fiscal third quarter. He said, however, it would not go below $2 billion.
Still, doubts remain about whether RIM can pull off the transformation. Needham analyst Charlie Wolf said the BB10 would have to look meaningfully superior to its competitors for RIM to stage a comeback.
Canaccord Genuity analyst Michael Walkley said it was highly unlikely that the market would support RIM's new mobile computing ecosystem, and he remained skeptical about the company's ability to survive on its own.
"We believe RIM will eventually need to sell the company," said Walkley, who cut his price target on RIM shares to $9 from $10.
Baird Equity Research analysts said BB10 faced a daunting uphill battle against products from Apple, as well as those using Google Inc's Android operating system, and, increasingly, phones with Microsoft Corp's Windows 8 operating system.
Baird maintained its "underperform" rating on the stock, while Paradigm Capital downgraded the shares to "hold" from "buy" on uncertainty around the services revenue model.
"RIM has gone from having one major aspect of uncertainty - BlackBerry 10 adoption - to two, given an uncertain floor on services revenue," William Blair analyst Anil Doradla said.
RIM will have to discount BB10 devices significantly to maintain demand, Bernstein analyst Pierre Ferragu said.
The BlackBerry, however, still offers the security features that helped it build its reputation with big business and government, a selling point with some key customers.
Credit Suisse maintained its "neutral" rating on the stock, but not because it expected BB10 to be a big success.
"Only the potential for an outright sale of the company or a breakup keeps us at a neutral," Credit Suisse analysts said.
Separately on Friday, ailing Finnish mobile phone maker Nokia said it had settled its patent dispute with RIM in return for payments.
Read More..
It was the stock's biggest, single-day, percentage price drop since September 2008. But shares were still nearly 80 percent above the year's low, which was reached in September. They started to rally in November as investors began to bet that RIM's long-awaited new BlackBerry 10 phones, which will be unveiled in January, would turn the company around.
The services segment has long been RIM's most profitable and accounts for about a third of total revenue. Some analysts said there was a risk that the fee changes could endanger its service ecosystem and leave the Canadian company as just another handset maker.
The fee changes, which RIM announced on Thursday after market close, overshadowed stronger-than-expected quarterly results. The company said the new pricing structure would be introduced with the BlackBerry 10 launch, expected on January 30.
RIM said some subscribers would continue to pay for enhanced services such as advanced security. But under the new structure, some other services would account for less revenue, or even none at all.
Chief Executive Thorsten Heins tried to reassure investors in a television interview with CNBC on Friday, saying RIM's "service revenue isn't going away".
He added: "We're not stopping. We're not halting. We're transitioning."
Since taking over at RIM in January, Heins has focused on shrinking the company and getting it ready to introduce its new BB10 devices, which RIM says will help it claw back ground it has lost to competitors such as Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics.
But the new services pricing strategy came as a shock to markets, and some analysts cut their price targets on RIM stock.
RIM will not be able to sustain profitability by relying on its hardware business alone, said National Bank Financial analyst Kris Thompson, whom Thomson Reuters StarMine has rated the top RIM analyst based on the accuracy of his estimates of the company's earnings.
Thompson downgraded RIM's stock to "underperform" from "sector perform" and cut his price target to $10 from $15.
Forrester Research analyst Charles Golvin said the move was likely about stabilizing market share: "At the moment, they need to stem the bleeding."
He said the tiered pricing might line up better with RIM's subscriber base as it expands in emerging economies.
RIM's Nasdaq-listed shares closed down 22.7 percent at $10.91 on Friday. The stock fell 22.2 percent to C$10.86 on the Toronto Stock Exchange.
COUNTDOWN TO LAUNCH
The success of the BB10 will be crucial to the future of RIM, which on Thursday posted its first-ever decline in total subscribers. Heins said on CNBC that the company expected to ship millions of the new devices.
He cautioned that this will require heavy investment, which will reduce RIM's cash position in its fourth and first quarters from $2.9 billion in its fiscal third quarter. He said, however, it would not go below $2 billion.
Still, doubts remain about whether RIM can pull off the transformation. Needham analyst Charlie Wolf said the BB10 would have to look meaningfully superior to its competitors for RIM to stage a comeback.
Canaccord Genuity analyst Michael Walkley said it was highly unlikely that the market would support RIM's new mobile computing ecosystem, and he remained skeptical about the company's ability to survive on its own.
"We believe RIM will eventually need to sell the company," said Walkley, who cut his price target on RIM shares to $9 from $10.
Baird Equity Research analysts said BB10 faced a daunting uphill battle against products from Apple, as well as those using Google Inc's Android operating system, and, increasingly, phones with Microsoft Corp's Windows 8 operating system.
Baird maintained its "underperform" rating on the stock, while Paradigm Capital downgraded the shares to "hold" from "buy" on uncertainty around the services revenue model.
"RIM has gone from having one major aspect of uncertainty - BlackBerry 10 adoption - to two, given an uncertain floor on services revenue," William Blair analyst Anil Doradla said.
RIM will have to discount BB10 devices significantly to maintain demand, Bernstein analyst Pierre Ferragu said.
The BlackBerry, however, still offers the security features that helped it build its reputation with big business and government, a selling point with some key customers.
Credit Suisse maintained its "neutral" rating on the stock, but not because it expected BB10 to be a big success.
"Only the potential for an outright sale of the company or a breakup keeps us at a neutral," Credit Suisse analysts said.
Separately on Friday, ailing Finnish mobile phone maker Nokia said it had settled its patent dispute with RIM in return for payments.
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