An animated explanation of how your personal data gets tracked and sold

Keeping up with our theme from yesterday’s post about how frictionless it has become for users to give unfamiliar apps broad and permanent access to their data, we stumbled on this interesting video about the personal information people unwittingly share with their mobile phone carriers.

The video comes from Michael Ringley, a graphic designer living in San Francisco. It tracks the life of an MMS message, 28,000 of which are sent every second, and shows … Continue Reading

With $50M raised, Nicira disrupts Cisco and Juniper with network virtualization

Network virtualization start-up Nicira is coming out of stealth mode today and it has an impressive set of customers who evidently believe that it can disrupt the likes of Cisco Systems and Juniper Networks. The idea is to become a company that can offload data networking demand as needed in the age of cloud computing.

If it lives up to its billing, as some of its customers say it does, it can save tens of … Continue Reading

Got big pockets? Samsung’s Galaxy Note headed to AT&T on Feb. 19 for $300

Skinny jeans wearers need not apply. AT&T announced Tuesday that Samsung’s massive 5.3-inch Galaxy Note — which was one of the most intriguing devices at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show — will be available in the U.S. on February 19 for $300 with contract.

The Galaxy Note occupies a weird space between a smartphones and a tablets, but for some it may just be the perfect balance of the two form factors. Pre-orders for the … Continue Reading

AT&T made 150K network improvements in 2011, added 700K square miles of 3G

Hoping to dispel its reputation for terrible reliability, AT&T today revealed the dramatic extent of its network improvements in 2011 as part of its fourth quarter earnings announcement.

The carrier said it made over 150,000 improvements throughout last year, including the addition of more than 700,000 square miles of 3G coverage. AT&T also said that 3G call retainability across the nation is up 25 percent from last year.

The latter is something I’ve definitely noticed … Continue Reading

The FCC is dragging its feet on wireless spectrum, says AT&T

Echoing the sentiments of its competitors, AT&T today discussed the growing need for more wireless spectrum in the US and criticized the FCC’s inability to open up more spectrum, in its fourth quarter earnings call.

AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson said the wireless industry is in the midst of tremendous growth, but “this growth cannot continue without more spectrum being cleared and brought to market.” He pointed out that the last big spectrum auction by the … Continue Reading

AT&T activates 7.6M iPhones in Q4, but reports $6.7B net loss

AT&T saw its best wireless sales ever in the fourth quarter, but the aftermath of its failed T-Mobile acquisition was a big hit on profits.

The carrier reported a net loss of $6.7 billion on revenue of $32.5 billion (up 3.6 percent from last year). That’s mostly due to the $4 billion break-up fee AT&T had to pay to T-Mobile following the failed merger, as well as losses in the company’s directory business.

But despite … Continue Reading

AT&T may launch Nokia Lumia 900 on March 19 for just $99

Nokia’s Lumia 900 Windows Phone, one of the most promising products we saw at CES 2012, may be available through AT&T on March 19 for just $99, according to a report from BGR.

Two weeks ago, we heard from Windows guru Paul Thurrott that the Nokia Lumia 900 could arrive March 18. A first quarter launch for the Nokia Lumia 900 would be a great move for Nokia and Microsoft as they begin converting customers … Continue Reading

Let’s look at the all the spectrum T-Mobile is getting from AT&T

With the AT&T/T-Mobile merger dead, AT&T is readying to compensate T-Mobile with precious mobile spectrum that covers 128 cellular market areas. But what exactly does that look like on the U.S. map?

The fine folks at GigaOM and spectrum expert Andrew Shepherd have developed a handy map, shown above, that shows exactly where T-Mobile will be getting new spectrum additions, which will help the company improve its own 4G offerings.

As noted on the map, … Continue Reading

More expensive AT&T data plans go into effect Jan. 22

AT&T has raised the cost of its data plans for smartphones and tablets and given a slight bump to data plan caps, with the new rates going into effect Sunday Jan. 22.

AT&T and chief rival Verizon Wireless used to offer unlimited data plans for their smartphones, but both have steadily moved away from those types of plans in the past few years. But as more customers pick up data-sucking iPhones, iPads, Android devices and … Continue Reading

AT&T could buy Dish to gobble up its precious wireless spectrum

After conspicuously losing its bid to acquire T-Mobile, AT&T is still out in the cold when it comes to wireless spectrum. But a new report says the telecom company could now buy Dish Network at a considerable premium to obtain its highly coveted spectrum.

AT&T’s primary motivation to buy T-Mobile USA was to get access to that company’s spectrum, a high-value commodity that makes it possible for customers to make calls and send and receive … Continue Reading

Our test for the best cell phone service provider at CES 2012

At the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, everybody wanted to talk. And when they talked on their mobile phones, they put a great deal of stress on the mobile phone carriers. We tried to figure out who handled the load the best.

CES is the biggest technology convention in the US. This year it once again broke attendance records with 153,000 analysts, exhibitors, and journalists. Regardless of your place in the industry, having mobile … Continue Reading

Facebook to reach 1B active users in August, that’s 14% of the world

Facebook is soon to have 14 percent of the world’s population all to itself. A new study says the social network will hit one billion users this year.

Gregory Lyons, a senior analyst at digital marketing firm iCrossing, ran the numbers based on Facebook’s past growth and found that Facebook will probably hit the milestone in August 2012. Currently, it has 800,000 users. He found that Facebook initially grew at an exponential rate, but then … Continue Reading

T-Mobile expands 4G network, launches cross-platform Bobsled Messenger

T-Mobile may have lost out on getting acquired by AT&T, but it’s not giving up the fight to survive in the U.S. just yet.

The carrier announced today at a small CES gathering that it has widened the availability of its fast 42-megabits-per-second 4G network to 12 new markets, which now covers a total of 184 million consumers in 175 markets.

Additionally, T-Mobile has launched Bobsled Messenger, a new cross-platform group messaging service that will … Continue Reading

Microsoft CEO Ballmer pimps new Windows smartphones at CES

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer took to the stage at CES 2012 in Las Vegas, and the first thing on his mind, naturally, was the young Windows Phone 7 operating system.

Earlier on Monday, Ballmer took the stage with Nokia CEO Stephen Elop and AT&T Mobility CEO Ralph de la Vega to promote the upcoming Nokia Lumia 900, which was biggest unkept secret of CES. The Nokia Lumia 900 will be available on AT&T and features … Continue Reading

AT&T unveils wireless data plans for PlayStation Vita

When Sony’s new portable gaming device, the PlayStation Vita, launches in the U.S. next month, it will have two data plans for its 3G-enabled model, AT&T today announced. One plan will cost $14.99 a month for 250MB; the other will cost $25 a month for 2G. Neither plan will require a long-term contract.

Unlike its predecessor, the PlayStation Portable, or its main rival, the Nintendo 3DS, the Vita features dual analog joysticks. It also comes … Continue Reading

Windows Phone’s savior: Nokia officially unveils the Lumia 900 for AT&T

Nokia’s Lumia 900 smartphone was perhaps the biggest unkept secret at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show, with rumors about it first appearing several months back. Now the phone is very real, and it could be the miracle the Windows Phone operating system needs in 2012.

Nokia CEO Stephen Elop unveiled the Lumia 900 on stage at the Consumer Electronics Show today, which is notable for being Nokia’s first LTE smartphone, as well as its first … Continue Reading

AT&T announces a slew of LTE 4G devices, plus an API platform for devs

In a bid to catch up with Verizon’s LTE lead, AT&T announced a plethora of new LTE 4G smartphones and tablets today at its annual developer summit — many of which will be exclusive to the carrier.

Additionally, AT&T unveiled its grand plans to court developers with a new API platform, which will make it easier to create compelling apps, together with a new cloud platform dubbed AT&T Cloud Architect.

At the developer summit, which … Continue Reading

Nokia’s killer Lumia 900 Windows Phone to hit CES on Monday, says NYT

Just as we expected, Nokia will unveil its Lumia 900 Windows Phone — which will be tasked with reinvigorating the mobile platform as its new flagship device — on Monday at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

The Lumia 900 will be initially available on AT&T, and is described as “sleek” and “metallic,” sources tell the New York Times. It’s a particularly exciting device for Nokia and Microsoft because it will likely be the … Continue Reading

The top 5 CES trends that will matter in 2012

If you couldn’t tell by the avalanche of product news hitting VentureBeat over the past few weeks, the next Consumer Electronics Show is almost upon us. The annual trade show, which has been held in Las Vegas for more than a decade, is where many of the world’s biggest electronics companies debut their new products, announce major news, and desperately try to remind us that they exist.

A flood of news is par for the … Continue Reading

AT&T doubling its LTE coverage with 11 new markets

AT&T, the second largest U.S. wireless carrier, is expanding coverage of its high-speed LTE network to 11 new markets, the company announced today.

AT&T’s LTE (Long-Term Evolution) network is considerably faster than the current 3G network speeds — meaning 4G-capable mobile devices can access the internet faster. In November, the company began rolling out new 4G-capable phones, such as the Samsung Galaxy S II Skyrocket and HTC Vivid. Sadly, iPhone owners won’t be able to … Continue Reading