Confirmed: Windows Phone 7 launches October 11th in New York City, and T-Mobile's on board


If there was any scrap of doubt in your mind, we'll obliterate it for you right now -- October 11th is the day Windows Phone 7 will be unveiled in the US, not just at a fancy London event... and wonder of wonders, T-Mobile's the star of the show. The event agenda clearly states there will be "an exclusive showing of T-Mobile powered Windows Phone 7 devices" at 3:30PM EST, and you can bet your britches we'll be there live to cover the whole thing.

Verizon Will Refund $90 Million to Overcharged Data Users

Verizon Wireless, writing to us this evening, has officially confirmed it will credit 15 million customers with $90 million in compensation for "mistaken past data charges."

Most customers should expect a credit in the $2 to $4 range, although some royally screwed customers will apparently "receive larger credits or refunds," the statement read. The credits will begin to flow sometime later this month and into November.

Additional explanation provided by Verizon, from their email:

As we reviewed customer accounts, we discovered that over the past several years approximately 15 million customers who did not have data plans were billed for data sessions on their phones that they did not initiate. These customers would normally have been billed at the standard rate of $1.99 per megabyte for any data they chose to access from their phones. The majority of the data sessions involved minor data exchanges caused by software built into their phones; others involved accessing the web, which should not have incurred charges. We have addressed these issues to avoid unintended data charges in the future.

Who among you Verizon-wielding readers was on the receiving end of a data overcharge? Anyone?

Hacker claims third-party iPhone apps can freely transmit UDID, pose serious threat to privacy


When Apple addressed a congressional inquiry on privacy in July, the company claimed that it couldn't actually track a particular iPhone in real time, as its transactions were anonymous and thoroughly randomized. Bucknell University network admin Eric Smith, however, theorizes that third-party application developers and advertisers may not have the same qualms, and could be linking your device to your name (and even your location) whenever they transmit data. Smith, a two-time DefCon wardriving champ, studied 57 top applications in the iTunes App Store to see what they sent out, and discovered that some fired off the iPhone's UDID and personal details in plaintext (where they can ostensibly be intercepted), including those for Amazon, Chase Bank, Target and Sam's Club, though a few were secured with SSL. Though UDIDs are routinely used by apps to store personal data and combat piracy, what Smith fears is that a database could be set up linking these UDIDs to GPS coordinates or GeoIP, giving nefarious individuals or organizations knowledge of where you are.

U-Kiss releases “Shut Up!” MV Teaser


Man, U-Kiss is killing it today, with teaser after teaser!

Well, here’s another treat for U-Kiss fans, as they just released the MV teaser for their title track, “Shut Up!”

It’s actually a pretty damn catchy song, and things are looking up for their comeback. What do you think? Let us know in the comments below.

Jang Dong Gun and Go So Young are happy parents


On the 4th of October, actors Jang Dong Gun and Go So Young became parents to a baby boy! Go So Young gave birth at a hospital in Seoul Kangnam around 4am this morning.

Of course, husband Jang Dong Gun was there to experience the whole process. The baby was born at 3.2kg and is very healthy.

Jang Dong Gun said, “I’m so thankful and happy that my wife and baby are both healthy. Thank you to everyone that has been caring for us.”

Congratulations to the couple!

Source +Photo: Sports Seoul

Miss ELVA tops album sales after first week

ELVA Hsiao’s “Miss ELVA” tops both G-Music and Five Music album sales charts after its first week of release. Veteran idol Wallace Chung’s comeback album, “All Eyes On Me”, is second place on Five Music’s sales chart.

ELVA, who has always been seen as a creature of love, openly sings, “I like…I like you” in her latest single, “Miss ELVA”; She said, “I hope that after ‘Confession’ (her previous hit), my fans can bring the one they like to KTV and sing this song (Miss ELVA) to him/her to declare their love.”

Her second single, “Wrong Person”, has also been well received. Some fans even commented that it’s the best ballad from ELVA in recent years. She responded, “The song reflects a relationship that guys and girls of young or old have experienced before. It expresses a past memory that I have, and it’s also a way to let out your feelings or comfort a wounded soul.”

35 year old Wallace Chung put aside his music career and went to the Mainland in 1999 to start filming dramas. He released “Soul Man” back in 2004, but it wasn’t widely promoted. Now after six years, he comes back with a new album to shine again in the music industry.

Fans befriend 'Social Network' with $23M debut

Movie fans are spending some face time with a story about the founders of Facebook.

"The Social Network," director David Fincher's drama about the quarrelsome creation of the online juggernaut, debuted as the No. 1 weekend film with $23 million.

Distributor Sony hopes for a long shelf life for the film, which has earned Academy Awards buzz and rave reviews. Rory Bruer, Sony's head of distribution, said "The Social Network" has a good shot at becoming a $100 million hit.

"It really is a great start for us. This is a movie that is resonating everywhere. The reviews are the best I've seen at our studio in my career," Bruer said. "It's just one of those movies that critics and audiences alike are embracing, and I think it's going to have a tremendous life."

The weekend's other new wide releases had weak starts. Paramount's horror flick "Case 39," starring Renee Zellweger, opened at No. 7 with $5.35 million, while Overture Film's vampire tale "Let Me In," based on the novel "Let the Right One In," debuted at No. 8 with $5.3 million.

What Microsoft wants from Google

Microsoft wants access to any technology that sells.

That appears to be what its suit against Motorola is all about. At issue, writes deputy general counsel Horacio Gutierrez (right, from CNET), are “key features that users have come to expect from every smartphone,” specifically the ability to sync mail and contacts between the phone and the Web.

Of course, iPhones do that too, don’t they?

As Florian Mueller notes at FOSSPatents, this seems part of a coordinated attack against Google lodged by incumbents in a variety of areas — Oracle, Apple and now Microsoft. All are ostensibly attacks on Android, a Linux distro Google began developing before the iPhone came out.

One important fact I pointed out to Mueller is that this suit was not filed in the “patent troll” court — the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas in Tyler. Instead, it was filed in Seattle.

This is not a suit at a trial, in other words. As Paula noted Friday this is a business suit, The hope is that Google will cross-license its Android technology with Microsoft, just as Oracle and Apple hope to gain some control of Android with lawsuits.

Altek Leo, the 14 megapixel Android cameraphone, headed for Europe in 2011


Altek's wonderfully outlandish Android-based Leo smartphone, which sports a "real" 14 megapixel CCD with "real" 3x optical zoom and 720p video, was already slated for Q4 of this year in Asia, but Altek has recently announced the phone will also be launching Q1 2011 in Europe. On a slightly disconcerting note, Altek says it's still in search of "channel partners," so if you happen to know any channel / partner combos, push this little monster in their direction before 14 megapixels starts to sound old hat, would you?

Leehom releases “Need Someone By Your Side (需要人陪)” MV


In the music video, Leehom plays a busy office worker who reminisces over a past relationship. He sets aside his “quality idol” image to act in his first ever truly intimate scene, and said he hopes it will change people’s impression of him. Check out MV below.

powered by Blogger | WordPress by Newwpthemes | Converted by BloggerTheme