Facebook Fails to Police Device Makers’ Use of Personal Data

Last month, Facebook admitted that it failed to properly oversee the seven device manufacturers that the company allowed to access personal data of hundreds of million of people in order to build a so-called Facebook Experience. The Silicon Valley company detailed its errors, which was detected by its own government-approved privacy monitor in 2013, in a letter to Senator Ron Wyden (D-Oregon), a privacy advocate and frequent Facebook critic. Meanwhile, Facebook users whose data was compromised have not been alerted. Continue reading Facebook Fails to Police Device Makers’ Use of Personal Data

RIM Changes its Name, Unveils Surprising BlackBerry Z10

In his review of the new BlackBerry Z10, personal-tech columnist David Pogue reverses his earlier suggestion that Research In Motion’s smartphone was doomed. While the once dominant BlackBerry has dropped to a single-digit percentage of the market and the company’s stock has plummeted, Pogue surprisingly notes that the new phone is “lovely, fast and efficient, bristling with fresh, useful ideas.” Continue reading RIM Changes its Name, Unveils Surprising BlackBerry Z10

Trouble at RIM: Will the BlackBerry Company Consider Selling?

  • Jaguar Financial Corporation CEO Vic Alboini, an investor in struggling Research In Motion, is urging the BlackBerry maker to consider selling the company. He has recommended that RIM form a committee of independent executives to explore the proposal.
  • According to the article: “RIM is seeing its once commanding presence in the smartphone market eroded by the likes of Android and Apple’s iOS: where a year ago RIM accounted for 19 percent of the market, second-quarter figures from Gartner put the company’s current share at 12 percent.”
  • Alboini suggests that selling RIM would maximize the company’s value to investors, who have watched their investments in the Canadian company significantly decline during the last year.
  • “RIM has been hanging hopes for its future on the BlackBerry PlayBook tablet, as well as a new swath of smartphones expected to land in 2012 based on RIM’s recently-acquired QNX operating system — the same OS used in the PlayBook,” reports Digital Trends. “So far, industry response to the PlayBook has been muted, with many citing its reliance on a BlackBerry handset for email as a major impediment — and U.S. mobile carrier Sprint recently backed out of plans to offer a 4G version of the PlayBook, citing lack of customer interest.”

Senior RIM Exec Submits Open Letter to BlackBerry Management

  • An open letter to Research In Motion senior management reportedly written by a “high-level RIM employee” gives a frank description of what’s wrong and makes startling recommendations.
  • The letter starts with: “I have lost confidence.”
  • It suggests there is a need to focus on the end user instead of strategic alignments, partner requests or legal advice.
  • It also recommends focusing on a few projects as Apple had to do when Jobs returned — and calls for a “new, fresh thinking, experienced CEO.”
  • Developers, not carriers will “make or break us.” Also, reach out and get input from the employees.