Yahoo is wooing app developers with a new mobile development suite that makes it easier to build apps with search, integrate ads into the code, and analyze app performance. Yahoo is hoping that the development suite will not only encourage developers to build new apps, but also build apps that host its advertisements. Flurry Analytics, a Yahoo acquisition, will provide users with a collection of new tools designed to analyze their app’s performance and securely share that information with others. Continue reading Yahoo Unveils Mobile Development Suite with Analytics and Ads

Consumers criticized Samsung for recording users through its smart TVs and sending the data to a third party, but other companies reportedly take a similar approach. Many of the audio recordings come from devices with voice recognition, like LG’s smart TVs or Amazon Echo. Such recording of unknowing users is not limited to the living room. Automobiles from companies such as GM and Chevrolet can record and send information about a driver’s speed, location, and their route to work. Continue reading Numerous Smart Devices May Now Be Secretly Recording Users

Revenue from mobile gaming is expected to rise 16.5 percent this year to $3.04 billion, surpassing the revenue growth of e-books, music, and videos. An estimated 60 percent of that growth is expected from in-app purchases. Mobile gaming companies will likely make most of that revenue from only a few strong-performing games because the revenue distribution is highly skewed towards the top. Currently, European gaming companies are making the most successful mobile games. Continue reading Mobile Gaming Revenue on an Upswing, Supercell is Top Earner

In order to help build traction for its Google Wallet service, Google is exploring how it can unite banks, wireless carriers, payment networks and device makers to carry the payment service. The company is reportedly willing to offer wireless carriers additional revenue to have Google Wallet featured on Android phones. Google’s attempt to revive its mobile payment service comes after a recent announcement by Apple claiming that its Apple Pay is now the leading contact-less payment service.  Continue reading Google Seeks Carrier Support to Revive Wallet Payment Service

Digital piracy tracking firm Irdeto reports that global downloads of pirated Oscar-nominated films jumped 385 percent in the 30 days following the nomination announcements on January 15. Irdeto suggests the pirated downloads represent about $41 million in lost revenue. While Hollywood studios and motion picture companies continue to struggle with the problem of piracy, some have recommended embracing the Internet for initial releases, making films available theatrically and online at the same time. Continue reading Academy Award Nominations Lead to Spike in Pirated Downloads

The Kardashian sisters, Howard Stern and rap artist Tyler The Creator are all getting new shows, only not on traditional TV but rather the Internet and a mobile app. Whalerock Industries, a company based in Santa Monica, has confirmed it plans to launch personal channels for these artists in the coming months. Each channel will feature an eclectic mix of premium content from the celebrities including videos, music, photos, merchandise and gaming. The app will be available this June.  Continue reading Whalerock to Launch Celebrity Networks via Web and Mobile App

As more people cut the cord and abandon their pay TV plans, Dish Network believes it can retain customers by offering a new remote control that promises to help people find what they want to watch. Startup Ray Enterprises is already working with Dish to make its advanced remote control compatible with Dish Network’s Hopper DVR. The $200 touchscreen remote includes search and recommendation features and the ability to control other devices connected to the TV. Continue reading Dish Has Plans to Offer a $200 Advanced Touchscreen Remote

Hulu recently introduced a new feature called Watchlist that combines the Queue, Favorites, and Shows You Watch features that already exist on the platform into a single personalized interface. Much like the existing features, Watchlist lets users keep track of shows, pick favorites and keep a list of those they have already watched. The new feature also detects a user’s favorite shows and automatically curates a list based on those shows with the most favored programs conveniently listed at the top.  Continue reading Hulu’s New Watchlist Feature Helps Simplify Your Binge Viewing

Apple has hired popular BBC Radio 1 host Zane Lowe to give its streaming service Beats Music a new personality. From the beginning, Beats Music was different from other music streaming services because it featured real humans with knowledge of specific genres to curate the playlists, rather than relying upon an algorithm or its other employees. However, Lowe with his name recognition and experience as a radio host may finally give Beats the star power it needs to appeal to the mainstream. Continue reading Beats Music Gets Star Power with Newly Hired Host Zane Lowe

With the release of its new Apple Watch line slated for April, Apple has reportedly ordered five to six million units to meet anticipated first quarter demands. The order accounts for all three models, which includes the Apple Watch, Watch Sport and Watch Edition. According to close sources, Apple’s order primarily consists of the Apple Watch Sport and Apple Watch Edition models. It plans to up the production of its Watch Edition in the second quarter to exceed one million units per month.   Continue reading Apple Preps for its Apple Watch Rollout with High Volume Order

According to the Digital Living Network Alliance (DLNA), wireless VidiPath technology will enable the secure delivery of subscription TV to all certified devices in the home. This could lead to eliminating the need to rent multiple set-top boxes. Wi-Fi-based VidiPath provides access to subscription TV across smartphones, tablets, Blu-ray players, game consoles and PCs. The first VidiPath-certified products are slated for availability in the first quarter. Comcast, Cox and Time Warner Cable are among those planning to offer VidiPath STBs. Continue reading DLNA: VidiPath Tech to Enable Subscription TV Across Devices

It seems that cord-cutting is continuing with the coveted 18- to 34-year-old demographic. New data from Nielsen indicates that traditional TV viewing among millennials dropped 10.6 percent between September and January, falling at twice its normal rate. According to Nielsen, there are nearly 20 percent fewer young adults watching primetime television than in 2011. Additionally, the median age of the TV audience is now 50, just outside the 18- to 49-year-old demographic important to advertisers. Continue reading Nielsen Notes Dramatic Shift in TV Viewing Among Millennials

Facebook believes that it can charge marketers more money to advertise to “influencers,” the individuals responsible for sharing information that often causes spikes in the local share rate. The social network recently patented a new method to determine exactly who those influencers are. Unlike the methods of other Internet companies, Facebook does not measure the influence of an individual by the number of followers or connections, but rather the percentage of followers who re-share content. Continue reading Facebook Patents a Unique Method for ‘Influencer Marketing’

Twitter’s new tool that analyzes the performance of mobile apps is now handling about 5 billion sessions per day from app developers. The tool is called Answers, and it is part of a larger set of free tools called Fabric. Twitter released Fabric in October to encourage the growth of the mobile app ecosystem by offering tips to improve performance and design, and making Twitter easier to integrate into third-party apps. Answers competes with services such as Google Analytics and Flurry. Continue reading Twitter Mobile App Analysis Tool is Popular With Developers

Toy-making company Elemental Path unveiled the first connected smart toy to be powered by IBM’s Watson cognitive supercomputing system. A talking dinosaur is the first in the line of smart toys known as CogniToys. The dinosaur has speech recognition capabilities and it can have conversations with children, answering a wide range of their questions. Elemental Path’s Kickstarter campaign has already more than doubled its goal of raising $50,000 to start producing the smart toys. Continue reading Talking Smart Toys to Run on Watson Supercomputing System