Nokia Lumia 720 starts receiving the Lumia Black update

The Nokia Black update is now available for the Lumia 720 as owners have reached us to report they are now enjoying the latest Nokia extras on their handsets.





The Nokia Lumia Black update brings the Glance screen feature, support for Bluetooth 4.0 and Nokia Beamer (which the 720 doesnt get due to the 1GB RAM requirement). Early adopters report that the Glance screen works perfectly as works well with the newly the double tap to wake feature, which also came as part of the update. The phone also feels snappier, according to some reports.

The Lumia 720 update means that the majority of the Nokia Lumia lineup has already received the Black update. This includes the Lumia 520, Lumia 625, Lumia 920 as well as the Lumia 1020 AT&T variant. The Lumia 620 is the only one that yet to receive the enhancement suite.

Nokia released a three minute video overview of the Lumia Black update, which we covered in our blog.

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PearOS 8 brings the look and feel of iOS7 OSX to Linux

Supposing you’re in a situation where you’d love to work with Apple’s OS X desktop operating system, but for whatever reason you’d rather not – or cannot – work with an Apple-made piece of hardware. If you’re the alternate-solutions type, there may be hope for you with the Linux Ubuntu-based system called Pear OS. The newest version of Pear OS – that’s Pear OS 8 – works with a look and feel that’s very much the most solidly cross-breed inspired iOS/OS X system out in the wild today – again, working with Unbuntu, but certainly appearing to bust out an alternate-universe Apple system by all looks and touches.

With Pear OS 8, users are able to load up to a variety of machines. This operating system works on desktop computers, tablets, and – though the developers of the system have not quite commented on this specifically as yet – massive-screened smartphones as well. This system works in both 32- and 64-bit system iterations, and will eventually work with Microsoft’s Surface line of tablets in addition to the current functional desktop system.

Of course developer David Taveres will need some support in the form of a crowd-funded effort to make this all happen, but for now things are looking hopeful. Users are currently able to have a peek at Pear OS 8 for desktop machines with downloads ready and waiting – the tablet (and alternate displays) version is the bit that’s currently in full-speed-ahead development. The creators of this system also have their very own Pear Cloud and a variety of Pear-based apps in full effect. There’s also a burgeoning community of hardcore Pear OS users ready and willing to roll with each new version.

At the moment, Pear OS 8 works with machines that have a 700 MHz or higher processor, 512MB of RAM or higher, and 8GB of hard-drive space at least. The display of this potential Pear OS 8 machin must be VGA capable of 1020 x 768 pixels or higher, while either a CD/DVD drive or USB port is needed to install the OS in the first place. It’s recommended that the device work with ATI and in some cases the proprietary fglrx driver, Intel i915 or better, and NVIDIA graphics with their own proprietary driver.

Sound like a healthy upgrade to you? Have a peek at the system and let us know how it’s working for you – and we’ll keep you updated on the full Tablet Edition action in the meantime! Slashgear

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BlackBerry turned down Bieber because hes not going to last

According to Bloomberg Businessweek, the fine Canadian singer offered himself as a brand ambassador to his fellow Canadians for a mere $200,000 and 20 phones. He was rejected.

 

How could anyone turn down this magnetism?

(Credit: Justin Bieber/VEVO screenshot by Chris Matyszczyk/CNET) 
 
Time and cruelty have a wicked relationship.

I fancy they sit in a bar together most nights and look back to see what they both have wrought.
Thats why tonight they might be having a beer, a giggle, and dance at news that has just emerged about the company formerly known as RIM.

Bloomberg Businessweek has been chatting to quite a few current and former employees of BlackBerry in order to understand what went right and what went less right.

While you might be fascinated with some of the technological debates surrounding this fascinating company, I was moved by one sole tale.

It is the tale of a fine young Canadian who -- according to Vincent Washington, senior development manager at RIM between 2001 and 2011 -- came to his fellow Canadians with a very modern idea.

His idea was that he, Justin Bieber that is, a fine young Canadian, would become the brand ambassador for the fine maturing Canadian company.

See Video

Washington told Bloomberg Businessweek: "He said, Give me $200,000 and 20 devices, and Im your brand ambassador, basically. And we pitched that to marketing: Heres a Canadian kid, he grew up here, all the teeny-boppers will love that."

Naturally, the marketing people rose as one, jigged around the room and praised the heavens for this miraculous occurrence.

Said Washington: "They basically threw us out of the room. They said, This kid is a fad. Hes not going to last. I said at the meeting: This kid might outlive RIM." Everyone laughed."

Some might see this as Washington polishing his credentials. Still, its a better idea than that had by anyone whos been handling BlackBerrys marketing since the company attempted to have any marketing at all.

Its efforts have lurched from the forgettable to the forgettable. Indeed, the highlight was perhaps its signing of Alicia Keys to be its brand ambassador.

This wondrous move was slightly tarnished when she tweeted from her iPhone and then offered the familiar explanation that shed been hacked.

Read the rest of this post --->

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Samsung to pay Ericsson 650 million plus royalties to end patent battle

Samsung Electronics Co will pay Ericsson $650 million along with years of royalties to end a technology licence spat, the Swedish company said on Monday.

The worlds No. 1 mobile network equipment maker sued Samsung in 2012 on the grounds that the Korean firm had infringed patents involving technology for clearer voice transmission, touchscreen functions and network efficiency.

The smartphone and tablet maker, which is increasingly active in network equipment, made a counter claim.

The initial payment will lift fourth-quarter sales by 4.2 billion Swedish crowns and net income by 3.3 billion, Ericsson said in a statement.

Analysts in a Reuters poll had forecast fourth quarter net sales of 65.1 billion crowns and net income of 4.0 billion.

Ericsson declined to give further details of the agreement or what royalties Samsung would pay, but its shares rose 2.4 percent by 1123 GMT as markets anticipated billions of crowns of extra revenue for the Swedish firm for years to come.

Kasim Alfalahi, Ericssons Chief Intellectual Property Officer, would not say how long the agreement with Samsung was, but said patent agreements generally cover four to seven years.

"Ericssons settlement with Samsung is going to be an important future driver of its earnings," JP Morgan analyst Rod Hall said in a note.

"The ongoing revenue could be approx 2.1 billion Swedish crowns annually and, with these revenues having 70 percent ongoing margin, they could add 5.4 percent to 2014 EPS."

Bernstein analyst Pierre Ferragu estimated annual revenues from the royalties at 1.7 billion crowns.

Ericsson shares rose 2.2 percent by 1244 GMT, outperforming European technology stocks which were up 0.8 percent. Shares in Samsung, which declined to comment, fell 1.2 percent.

Patent wars

Patent infringement suits have become frequent in high-tech industries such as telecoms in recent years.

While equipment such as handsets share much of their technology, forcing rivals to take out licences from one another, companies are also desperate to protect any advantages they have and maximise incomes that are under pressure from fierce competition, leaving plenty of room for dispute.

Samsung is also embroiled in a legal battle with Apple in several countries, with Apple alleging various Samsung products infringed its patents.

The Korean firm signed a licensing deal with Ericsson in 2001 covering handset and network patents and renewed that deal in 2007.

However, the two could not agree terms in 2011 when the deal ran out, with Samsung accusing Ericsson of demanding prohibitively higher royalty rates to renew the same patent portfolio.

"This agreement allows us to continue to focus on bringing new technology to the global market and provides an incentive to other innovators to share their own ideas," Alfalahi said.

Ericsson, which invests about 30 billion crowns annually in research and development, has over 33,000 patents covering key technology for 2G, 3G and 4G networks and handsets. It has more than 100 licence agreements with major players in the industry.

Samsung said on Sunday it had signed a cross-licensing agreement with Google and signed a licence deal with Nokia in November last year.

© Thomson Reuters 2014

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Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 lite leaks out in a user manual

There’s still no press release to announce it, but the long-rumored Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 Lite is now being confirmed by Samsung. The company’s Polish website revealed the User Manual of the SM-T110 - which is the Wi-Fi version of the new tablet. Moreover, a Polish retailer is already taking orders for the Tab 3 Lite, asking $165 for the Wi-Fi model, and $263 for the 3G one (SM-T111).

The tablet’s features, as listed by the retailer, include: Android 4.2 Jelly Bean, a 7-inch display with 600 x 1024 pixels, 2MP rear camera, dual-core 1.2GHz Marvell PXA986 processor with Vivante GC1000 GPU, 1GB of RAM, 8GB of internal memory, MicroSD card support, and a 3,600 mAh battery.

Apparently, the Galaxy Tab 3 Lite measures 193 x 117 x 9.7 mm and weighs 310 grams, thus being a tad larger and (insignificantly) heavier than last year’s Galaxy Tab 3 7.0, which measures 188 x 111.1 x 9.9 mm.

We’re not sure that the photos presented by the Polish retailer show the newer Tab 3 Lite, as there doesn’t seem to be any difference between the tablet they’re giving us and the old 7-inch Tab 3. In any case, the User Manual confirms that we shouldn’t expect major design changes.

Samsung is probably getting ready to announce the Galaxy Tab 3 Lite and clarify everything in the near future, so well report back when official details are available. PhoneArena

download the leaked user manual here - downloadcenter/samsung

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T Mobile’s John Legere Talks About CES And The Future Of T mobile

It was all some could talk about when Tmo’s CEO John Legere got thrown out of the At&t party that he attended back during CES last week. Rumors had started swirling around that he was harassing other attendees of the party and that he was trespassing. That was the official word he was given after double checking with guards of the party about why he was being asked to leave, in short, At&t’s Chief really wanted him out of the party. Interestingly enough, Legere had legitimate passes to the party, but was asked to leave anyway. Legere at one pointed had commented that he just “really wanted to see Macklemore” perform, which seems like just as good of a reason to be there as any. Was this all just a publicity stunt by T-Mobile’s CEO to get some exposure? That’s what people thought, but according to TMOnews this isn’t the case. However, T-Mobile ended up getting some attention anyway, which might not necessarily have been a bad thing.

In addition to T-Mobile being in the news over the CES event, Big Magenta had some things to say regarding the many questions over the Sprint buyout. When Chief Marketing Officer Mike Sievert was asked about the merger, he had this to say in response:

“We envision a better industry where if you’re not happy with where you are, you can just move to another carrier. We’re willing to take that risk, we’re passionate about being the best and we know people will stay. It’s a different philosophy.We’ve no interest in any future for our company that would change our basic philosophy. None.”

While this isn’t a clear cut “yes” or “no”, and it is a bit cryptic, it sounds like that should a Sprint buyout of T-Mobile cause any sort of changes, Siever is saying they would be completely opposed to it. That being said, we still have no idea whether a company buyout would lead to a breakdown of the T-mobile philosophy the company stands behind so dearly.

T-Mobile CEO Legere also had some things to say in regards to At&t at his interview with NYT, and his response to one thing in particular makes you think. After At&t announced their plans for sponsored data, Legere commented that,

“Can you imagine that that was one of the top things you have to announce at CES, that your customers are so pissed about their data caps you’ve found a way to generate a revenue stream?”

When later asked about Uncarrier in the interview, Legere said this

“What I find interesting is people really believe that AT&T hasn’t started fighting yet. They’re in full fight mode. You go fromNext, you go to zero down payments, you go to what they did over the holidays — they changed their dress attire in the stores. And then they came out with a plan to try to throw cash at people. That’s as good as it gets and it’s not working.”

Legere obviously feels passionate about his company, and isn’t afraid to speak his mind about it or his competitors. What do you think about T-Mobile? Do you use At&t and if so what do you think about their plans for sponsored data? Let us know what you think in the comments.

The post T-Mobile’s John Legere Talks About CES And The Future Of T-mobile appeared first on AndroidHeadlines.com |.

via AndroidHeadlines.com | http://www.androidheadlines.com/2014/01/t-mobiles-john-legere-talks-ces-future-t-mobile.html

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High res photos of Sonys Xperia Z1 Honami leaked

New high-res snaps of both a black and a white Sony Xperia Z1 (Honami) have been brought to our attention, and the source, unsurprisingly, is somewhere in China. While these are obviously dummy devices, theyre still a pretty close (and realistic) match with what were expecting to see unveiled soon.

The new shots are somewhat late to the party, but they nevertheless complete the feeling that Sonys Xperia Z1 (Honami) has claimed a spot on the list of most hyped up phones this year. However, thats not surprising in the least – while the design may not necessarily be everybodys cup of tea, all the initial information weve had in the form of leaks and hints indicate that the Xperia Z1 will be a hardware beast.

But the specs on the Sony Xperia Z1 are only a part of the story: Sony itself appears intent to battle through the hardships of cultural reorganization in order to carry out its relatively nascent “One Sony” strategy that Sony CEO Kaz Hirai has vowed will turn the Japanese manufacturer into a smartphone powerhouse. Whats infinitely more important than vows and promises, though, are the actual results of said good intentions, and those have started appearing already. Namely, after a rather tumultuous period financially,

Sony has gone back to profitable and has delivered on its promise of converging the different departments of expertise at thecompany (e.g. Triluminos displays in smartphones, X-Reality engine for mobile, the BIONZ image processor, etc). These all have helped Sony shape a truly competitive line-up this time around – one that caters to a very wide range of customers: the Honami mini for the more conservative of us, all the way up to the downright extravagant Sony Xperia Z Ultra. Of course, how Sonys new contenders will end up handling the ruthlessly competitive smartphone market remains to be seen.

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Panasonic ToughBook W7 Convertible Tablet PC

Panasonic has been launch their new convertibel tablet PC Panasonic ToughBook 19 - next generation afer Panasonic ToughBook W7 with 10.4 inch screen display which empowered by Intel Core 2 Duo U7500 (1.06GHz).
Some feature also included at ToughBook 19 like 80 HDD storage with sextensible memory which is up to 4GB DDR3. The ToughBook 10 also support 1024×768 (XGA) pixel resolution with 2 megapixel camera on the top of screen with LED flash. The price on the market will be around 3,199 USD

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No That Sansabelt “Action Pants” Ad You Saw On Facebook Is Not Real

Everyone loves vintage ads, especially the ones that haven’t aged particularly well. You know, the sexist and racist ads that look horrible to modern eyes, and the ones that sixty years of unrelenting irony have rendered unintentionally hilarious. However, before you hit “share” on Facebook, stop and think: is this vintage ad simply too hilarious?

Very few people have been asking themselves that question recently. That’s how a fantastic print ad for Sansabelt slacks came to make the Internet rounds, since everyone felt compelled to share it with their favorite men of action.

Tee-hee! The pants are extra-reinforced in the crotch, which is called “THE ACTION ZONE!” This could be placed unironically in a mainstream magazine ad because crotch jokes were not invented until 1974! Yeah, not so much.

The image itself was a 2010 parody published on the blog How to be a Dapper Gent, adapted from a real vintage ad that ran in Esquire sometime in the ’60s. Adapted.

Sansabelt was a real product, of course. They were pants designed to be worn without a belt: “sans a belt,” get it? The brand’s parent company went out of business in 1967, but the new owner of the brand promises to bring Sansabelt back. Maybe they should hire the blogger who made this ad to create viral marketing campaigns for them….even if the ads need a few years to really take off.

Antiviral: Here Is What’s Bullshit on the Internet This Week [Gawker] (Thanks, Ben!)

by Laura Northrup via Consumerist

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Altek launches externally attachable cameras for smartphones

Altek, a digital camera ODM based in Taiwan, is producing a lens-style digital camera using its own brand name. The lens-style camera attaches to smartphones and tablets and will be priced at $2980 NT ($100 USD). The altek Cubic will have a 1/2.3inch 13MP CMOS sensor, 3X optical zoom, NFC and Wi-Fi connectivity. Weighing 65 grams, the dimensions are 52.5 x 45 x 26 mm.

Altek says that the phone camera will be launched immediately and is priced to return a profit margin of 10% for the company. That is higher than the 5% to 6% profit margin usually seen with digital cameras.

While this product is branded under the Altek name, the company says that it is working on other imaging products for smartphones and tablets. Target clients include most OEMs except for Apple and Samsung. Such products will account for 50% of its 2014 revenue with digital cameras dropping to 30%
PhoneArena

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Woman Busted For Fake 100 Bills Because “Moe Money” Isn’t In Charge Of Signing Currency

(MyFox8.com)

While for most consumers an attempt to pay with fake money probably amounts to joking “Ha ha, you don’t accept old Blockbuster cards as payment, do you? (wink!)” there are others out there who’ll go to great lengths to pull a fast one on retailers with counterfeit bills. That being said, having Moe Money’s signature on your $100 bills isn’t going to convince anyone that thing is anything but a fakety fake fake.

The 19-year-old suspect was charged with uttering a forged instrument, forgery of instrument and obtaining property by false pretense, reports MyFox8.com, and one count of inducing giggles by using the name Moe Money in the first place.

Police accuse her of trying to buy a gift card at a local Walgreens with a counterfeit $100, which led to her arrest. Cops later found $12,882 in fake money after her arrest, but it’s unclear if she’d ever successfully spent any more of the Moe Money money before.

Side note: Even if Moe Money was believable as a real guy, giving him the job title under his signature of “Proprietor of the Commonwealth” instead of say, Secretary of the Treasury or something is a giant tipoff too. Because while maybe not everyone knows who Secretary of the Treasury or the Treasurer of the United States are in any given year — “Current events, so tough,” whatever you tell yourself — the Proprietor of the Commonwealth is straight fiction and is not signing any money. Sorry, Moe.

UNCG student arrested for counterfeit currency [MyFox8.com]

by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

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Sharp Aquos Xx and Xx mini packs Snapdragon 800 processors ultra thin bezels

Japanese carrier Softbank has recently announced that itll be carrying Sharps two new flagship devices – the Aquos Xx and the Aquos Xx mini. The Japanese companys mobile arm has definitely been struggling, so the adoption of its phones has been largely limited to Japan. As you should know by now, there appears to be no one way to go about conquering the smartphone industry and in the case of Sharp, it sure isnt for lack of a compelling product, at least in view of the newly christened Xx and Xx mini.

Sharp Aquos Xx

Just how compelling is the new Sharp duo, though? Lets take a look

With some small exceptions, the Sharp Aquos Xx reads like a geeks dream. Its got all the cutting edge hardware on board – Snapdragon 800, 2GB of RAM, and a big 5.5-inch, 1080p screen S-CG Silicon TFT screen (instead of the expected IGZO screen). Its an older technology, and in years past, Sharp has justified its use over IGZO panels due to the higher pixel densities it can achieve, not to mention that its simply cheaper. The rest of the specs include a non-removable 2600mAh battery, and 32GB of microSD-expandable storage.

As far as the design of the Aquos Xx is concerned, we found it to be rather uninspired and kind of thick, though we do have a thing for nearly bezel-less phones – the screen on the Xx accounts for 82% of the devices front. On the back, youve got a 16.3-megapixel CMOS sensor with an aperture of f/1.9, while a far less impressive 1.2-megapixel unit resides at the front. The Sharp Aquos Xx will be made available sometime in December, though pricing is currently unknown.

Sharp Aquos Xx Mini 

The 4.5-inch Sharp Aquos Xx mini is a proper sized-down version of its sibling, with a few key exceptions. For example, while the Xx mini also comes packing a punch thanks to Qualcomms Snapdragon 800 and 2GB of RAM, the display is, again, 1080p, though this time around Sharp has fitted an IGZO LCD panel. In case youre wondering, that adds up to a jaw-droppingly dense 490 ppi. The battery on the Xx mini is similarly embedded, but smaller, at 2120mAh.

Much alike to the Aquos Xx, the design on the Xx mini simply looks dated, not to mention that despite its attractive slim bezels at the front, the device is also on the thick side at 9.8mm. Looking at the camera, the spec sheets points towards a 13.1-megapixel rear unit with the same wide f/1.9 aperture and an identical 1.2-megapixel front shooter. The device is slated for a disappointingly distant February release, while pricing info has been altogether omitted.(PhoneArena)

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Google Makes Its Apple TV Killer More Appealing for Apple Owners

 

Nice timing: On the same day that Apple upgraded Apple TV by adding more content to its Web TV box, Google upgrades Chromecast, its Apple TV competitor — by making it more appealing to Apple users.

The upgrade comes via a new iOS app, which is something Google had previously promised. There’s nothing earth-shattering here, but the app will make it easier for people to use Chromecast with iPhones and iPads as their primary controllers.

Read the rest of this post --->

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Motorola Looking to Expand MotoMaker into Illinois Europe and Latin America According to Job Postings

Motorola currently has a factory in Fort Worth, TX which does all the MotoMaker Moto X’s, in the US. And that is why the Moto X is only available in the US and Canada. Well it’s actually available in Latin America as well, but only in black and white. We also know that Motorola has a big announcement for Europe next week, which we are all speculating is the Moto X for Europe. The reason why only North America has MotoMaker-made Moto X’s is because you need a factory nearby to create these Moto X’s and get them out the door and in customers hands within 4 days. If they make a custom Moto X in Texas and then send it to a customer in Europe, it probably won’t get there in 4 days. Which is why they need to open up a factory over there.

Luckily, it turns out, Motorola has posted job openings on January 2nd looking for a “Program Manager Moto Maker” in the UK. What’s even more interesting is the same day, Motorola posted a listing looking for a Program Manager MotoMaker in Latin America as well. Brazil to be specific. As well as in Libertyvilee, Illinois. So it’s looking like Motorola is really about to get things going with MotoMaker. I’m excited to see MotoMaker land in even more countries so even more people can get a custom Moto X.

The question, however, is how much will the Moto X be in Europe. Right now it’s priced at $399 in the US unlocked, off contract. Which is a pretty good price for this phone. I think it’s an amazing phone, but I may be biased since it is my daily driver. Electronics tend to be a bit more expensive in Europe, so it’ll be interesting to see what Motorola sells the Moto X over there for. Either way, I know a lot of our European friends are excited for the Moto X.

The post Motorola Looking to Expand MotoMaker into Illinois, Europe, and Latin America? According to Job Postings appeared first on AndroidHeadlines.com |.

via AndroidHeadlines.com | http://www.androidheadlines.com/2014/01/motorola-looking-expand-motomaker-illinois-europe-latin-america-according-job-postings.html

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Lenovo Unveils the S930 and S650 Smartphones Running Android 4 2

Lenovo is also announcing two new S Series smartphones today. That’s the S650 and the S930. The S650 has a 4.7-inch qHD 960×540 resolution IPS display, while the S930 is sporting a 6-inch 1280×720 resolution display. Other than that the specs are nearly identical between the two. Both are powered by a MediaTek quad-core processor running Android 4.2. They are also just 8.7mm thin. Both the S930 and S650 have valuable technologies to help users get the most out of their devices, including having dual-SIM support, allowing you to use two phone numbers on one device. Now that’s not too popular here in the States, but over in Asia, where Lenovo is pretty big, it’s really popular.

Both smartphones also come with a 8MP camera on the back with flash, along with a “capable front camera”. We’re assuming that means a VGA front-facing camera. There’s also 8GB of internal storage on both devices. They also come with gesture-based controls and the latest Lenovo launcher Customizations. Which have really changed over the past year.

Additionally, the S930 provides an immersive and rich audio experience with its twin speakers and Dolby Digital Plus and even has directional sensors to move characters in 3D.

For those interested in picking up the S650 and the S930, they will be sold for $229 and $319 respectively. And that’s off-contract and unlocked. Lenovo says they will be available immediately in countries where Lenovo smartphones are sold. So that pretty much means nothing for Europe and North America again, similar to the Vibe Z.

The S650 and the S930 are pretty nice devices coming from Lenovo, however they are not high-end devices. But at this price point, I think they’d do well. Especially in countries where the Nexus 5 and Google Play are not available. Sure they are sporting a qHD display, but at $229, you can’t really complain too much. How many of you are interested in the S650 or S930.

Pictures of the S650

Pictures of the S930

The post Lenovo Unveils the S930 and S650 Smartphones Running Android 4.2 appeared first on AndroidHeadlines.com |.

via AndroidHeadlines.com | http://www.androidheadlines.com/2014/01/lenovo-unveils-the-s930-and-s650-smartphones-running-android-4-2.html

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United Nations Names Online Privacy That You Probably Don’t Have As A Universal Human Right

(Saechang)

Online privacy: it’s a contentious ground between corporations and consumers, a troubled 21st century frontier of expectations, and, apparently, a universal human right.

As we read via Broadband DSL Reports, the United Nations recently adopted a resolution calling out online privacy as a universal human right. The resolution (PDF) expands the UN’s existing stance on privacy to include the digital realm.

The current iteration of the UN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights enumerates 29 general areas of universal rights. The list not only includes topics like freedoms of thought and expression, but also the rights to employment and to education, condemnations of slavery and torture, and the right to privacy, which is explicitly recognized in Article 12.

Article 12 begins, “No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence,” and affirms the right to the protection of the law from any such interference.

UN resolutions and findings are non-binding. Any nation, including member states, can (and always does) have whatever sovereign laws it pleases, whether or not they abide by idealistic universal declarations.

The timing of the resolution, which was adopted late in 2013, seems sure to be related to the cascade of revelations about the NSA’s phone and computer monitoring activities inside and outside of the United States. As an aside in his speech today about those NSA issues, President Obama did announce the formation of a new government group to research big data and the related industry and government privacy implications. The White House fact sheet explains:

This group will consist of government officials who—along with the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology—will reach out to privacy experts, technologists and business leaders, and look at how the challenges inherent in big data are being confronted by both the public and private sectors; whether we can forge international norms on how to manage this data; and how we can continue to promote the free flow of information in ways that are consistent with both privacy and security.

Th White House announcement also reaffirmed its commitment to the online privacy bill of rights (PDF) it laid out in 2012. While the framework from 2012 is a big step toward consumer protection, its guidance is voluntary, as is compliance. Legally speaking, online privacy in the US is still a messy patchwork of laws, regulations, and hopes for good faith actions from the folks–public and private alike–who gather and hold the data.

by Kate Cox via Consumerist

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