Telecommunications

• Breaking up not so hard to do with Slydial
  AP ( 22, 2008)
  NEW YORK (AP) - The old song had it right: Breaking up is hard to do. But a free new phone service called Slydial might make it easier to get through that and other awkward moments - without actually having to talk to anyone.
   
  
• Court tosses FCC 'wardrobe malfunction' fine
  AP ( 22, 2008)
  PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Among the most notorious on-screen gaffes ever, Janet Jackson's breast-baring "wardrobe malfunction" on CBS during the 2004 Super Bowl halftime show drew a $550,000 indecency fine from the Federal Communications Commission. Now a federal appeals court has thrown it out.
   
  
• Court tosses FCC 'wardrobe malfunction' fine
  AP ( 21, 2008)
  PHILADELPHIA (AP) - A federal appeals court on Monday threw out a $550,000 indecency fine against CBS Corp. for the 2004 Super Bowl halftime show that ended with Janet Jackson's breast-baring "wardrobe malfunction."
   
  
• Web networking photos come back to bite defendants
  AP ( 18, 2008)
  PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) - Two weeks after Joshua Lipton was charged in a drunken driving crash that seriously injured a woman, the 20-year-old college junior attended a Halloween party dressed as a prisoner. Pictures from the party showed him in a black-and-white striped shirt and an orange jumpsuit labeled "Jail Bird."
   
  
• AOL exec Leonsis turns film passion into business
  AP ( 17, 2008)
  NEW YORK (AP) - Retired AOL executive Ted Leonsis is turning his passion for documentaries into an Internet service meant to give independent filmmakers broader viewership.
   
  
• New Dish Network satellite launched successfully
  AP ( 16, 2008)
  LONG BEACH, Calif. (AP) - Sea Launch Co. has launched a new satellite for Dish Network Corp.
   
  
• Japan cautious in iPhone's bid for world dominance
  AP ( 16, 2008)
  TOKYO (AP) - Kentaro Tohyama is proud of his new iPhone. He stood overnight in line to get it when the device became available in Japan for the first time. But the 29-year-old computer engineer isn't about to part with his made-in-Japan cell phone either.
   
  
• EU wants to cap costs on phone text messages
  AP ( 15, 2008)
  BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) - Are mobile phone companies taking advantage of teenagers' addiction to chatting in text messages? The top telecommunications regulator for the European Union believes so, and said Tuesday that a limit should be placed on the cost of international texts.
   
  
• Apple sells 1 million iPhones in first 3 days
  AP ( 14, 2008)
  NEW YORK (AP) - Apple Inc. said Monday it has sold 1 million iPhones in the three days following the release of the latest model on Friday.
   
  
• Palm launches new Treo on Sprint network
  AP ( 14, 2008)
  NEW YORK (AP) - Palm Inc., which has been struggling to maintain its position in the hot market for "smart" phones, introduced a new Treo model Monday with Wi-Fi and GPS capabilities.
   
  
• Software problems bug Apple's launch of new iPhone
  AP ( 11, 2008)
  NEW YORK (AP) - Apple Inc.'s new iPhone went on sale Friday to eager buyers worldwide, but there were problems getting the phones to work.
   
  
• FCC chief says Comcast violated Internet rules
  AP ( 11, 2008)
  WASHINGTON (AP) - The head of the Federal Communications Commission said Thursday he will recommend that the nation's largest cable company be punished for violating agency principles that guarantee customers open access to the Internet.
   
  
• Apple iPhone debuts to lines in Japan, elsewhere
  AP ( 10, 2008)
  TOKYO (AP) - Gadget lovers worldwide are already camped out ahead of Friday's global rollout of the new model of Apple Inc.'s iPhone, which is also the first iPhone to go on sale in many countries.
   
  
• Senate to pass bill overhauling eavesdropping regs
  AP ( 009, 2008)
  WASHINGTON (AP) - The Senate finally is expected to pass a bill overhauling rules on secret government eavesdropping, completing a lengthy and bitter debate that pitted privacy and civil liberties concerns against the desire to prevent terrorist attacks.
   
  
• Judge tosses wiretapping lawsuit by Islamic group
  AP ( 003, 2008)
  SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - A federal judge on Wednesday tossed out a lawsuit by an Islamic organization that accused the Bush administration of illegally wiretapping its telephones without warrants.
   
  
• AT&T offers new option of iPhone without contract
  AP ( 001, 2008)
  NEW YORK (AP) - AT&T Inc. will sell the new version of the iPhone without a service contract for $400 more than the price with a two-year plan, a break from the rules set when Apple Inc.'s popular touch-screen gadget debuted last year.
   
  
• Europeans picking mobiles over landlines
  AP ( 27, 2008)
  BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) - Europeans are increasingly shunning landlines for mobile phones and online calling, according to a European Union survey released Friday.
   
  
• Virgin Mobile to buy Helio for $39M
  AP ( 27, 2008)
  NEW YORK (AP) - Virgin Mobile USA Inc. is buying Helio LLC, a struggling cell phone carrier that was founded to bring the advanced features of South Korean phones to the U.S. market.
   
  
• Sony Ericsson issues profit warning for 2Q
  AP ( 27, 2008)
  STOCKHOLM, Sweden (AP) - Mobile phone maker Sony Ericsson warned Friday that it will just break even in the second quarter as worsening market conditions cut into sales.
   
  
• Appeals court upholds FCC on cable rules
  AP ( 27, 2008)
  CINCINNATI (AP) - A federal appeals court has upheld the Federal Communications Commission's authority to make rules intended to increase cable television competition.
   
  
• China orders phone, Internet moratorium
  AP ( 26, 2008)
  BEIJING (AP) - The government has ordered China's fast-growing phone companies to stop adding new customers in August so they can better focus on ensuring service for the Beijing Olympics, company employees said Thursday.
   
  
• RIM shares falter on lower-than-expected outlook
  AP ( 26, 2008)
  TORONTO (AP) - Smart phone maker Research In Motion Ltd.'s fiscal first-quarter profit and revenue more than doubled, fueled by strong sales of its BlackBerry devices, but the company's forecast for the current period sent its shares down more than 11 percent Thursday.
   
  
• Charter drops Web tracking plans
  AP ( 25, 2008)
  ST. LOUIS (AP) - Charter Communications Inc. is dropping plans to track the Web usage of some high-speed Internet subscribers, citing concerns raised by customers, the company said Tuesday.
   
  
• Judge cuts sentences for ex-cable exec Rigas, son
  AP ( 25, 2008)
  NEW YORK (AP) - A father and son who built Adelphia Communications into a cable television powerhouse before they were accused of ruining it have been resentenced to lesser prison terms.