Brazil attempting to block tweets with speed trap locations

A country progressive in its stance on off-the-clock email is pushing for a far more antiquated policy when it comes to information-sharing by way of Twitter.

The Attorney General of Brazil, according to Brazilian publication O Globo (The Globe), has filed a preliminary injunction to suspend and block the Twitter profiles of users who tweet the whereabouts of speed traps, DUI checkpoints, and radar locations.

The lawsuit seeks to fine those in violation of the … Continue Reading

Email off the clock constitutes overtime — in Brazil

Answer an email from your employer after your work day is over and you’re eligible for overtime pay — but only if you’re a Brazilian citizen, that is.

The worker-friendly amendment was added to the country’s labor code and approved by Brazil President Dilma Rousseff in December.

“[The legislation] says that company emails to workers are equivalent to orders given directly to the employee,” the Associated Press reported. “Labor attorneys told the Folha de Sao … Continue Reading

Piracy gives overseas manufacturers a $2.9B competitive advantage

Microsoft released a new study today that quantifies the unfair advantage that manufacturers in emerging countries get by pirating software. The study says that companies that steal information technology software get a $2.9 billion competitive advantage over companies that pay for their software.

In just four emerging countries — Brazil, Russia, India and China — the competitive advantage is $1.6 billion per year. The number is based on a calculation about the competitive harm that … Continue Reading

Brazil social gaming market to hit $238 million by 2014

The market for social games in Brazil is expected to grow as large as $238 million by 2014, according to a study released by social research firm SuperData. That’s a significant increase from the $136 million the market is expected to be worth by the end of this year.

The study, which is based on the user behavior of 2,414 users in the region also concluded that in that same time frame the size of … Continue Reading

VivaReal raises funding to tackle Brazilian real estate market

VivaReal, a Latin American real estate portal we wrote about in 2010, announced that it has pulled in its first round of institutional funding for an undisclosed amount.

Greg Waldorf, an investor and board member of real estate portal Trulia, participated in the round and will sit on VivaReal’s board. Simon Baker, former CEO of REA Group, Australia’s leading real estate portal with a market capitalization of over $1B also invested and is an advisor.… Continue Reading

iPad 3′s biggest production challenge: that damn Retina Display

The Apple iPad 3 reportedly has a serious challenge ahead of itself when it comes to production: building that blasted pixel-rich Retina Display.

After the completely inaccurate reports about iPhone 5, it’s hard to trust any rumors about upcoming Apple products. But when it comes to the iPad 3, I find the idea of slightly bumping up the screen resolution and internal hardware completely believable. Plus, we’ve already heard similar rumblings from other sources when … Continue Reading

Demo expands its portfolio with new Brazil event

Demo, the VentureBeat-affiliated conference series that acts as a launchpad for emerging technology, is adding a new Brazil event to its portfolio.

Scheduled for June 2012, Demo Brazil will be produced by IDG Brazil. The event will showcase products and companies from the country and act as a platform for companies outside the region looking to launch in the Brazilian market.

Demo Brazil is the latest addition to Demo’s portfolio of events, which includes Demo … Continue Reading

Emerging markets will spend billions on games this year

Gamers are expected to spend billions of dollars in emerging markets this year such as Brazil, Mexico and Russia, according to market researcher Newzoo, based in Amsterdam.

Newzoo’s data shows that gaming is spreading rapidly around the globe, thanks to online play, mobile games, and new ways to pay for games such as free-to-play games with micro-transactions.

In Brazil, gamers are expected to spend $2 billion on games in 2011. Online and mobile gaming accounts … Continue Reading

Google goes transparent with new data and new look

Governments take notice: You can investigate Google’s business practices, but Google is also studying you.

The search company has updated its Transparency Report, which discloses inquiries that governments make about Google users as well as their requests to remove content. The update adds data from July 2010 to December 2010, along with new ways to digest that data.

The announcement comes on the heels of news the United State’s Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is investigating … Continue Reading

LulzSec recruits Brazilian hackers, takes down two government websites

A Brazilian component of hacker group LulzSec has taken down several Brazilian government websites as part of a massive hacking campaign led by LulzSec against government agencies.

Both the main website for the government of Brazil and the office of the President of Brazil were offline when VentureBeat tried to access the accounts. Both sites were taken down by LulzSecBrazil, a subgroup of the hacker group that has made headlines recently for several high-profile attacks … Continue Reading

DEMO: Embria delivers 'big brother' view for corporate IT

Embria is one of 53 companies chosen by VentureBeat to launch at the DEMO Spring 2011 event taking place this week in Palm Desert, Calif. After our selection, the companies pay a fee to present. Our coverage of them remains objective.

Embria, which develops software to help IT professionals manage what’s going on in their company’s network, launched a new version of its software at the DEMO Spring 2011 conference today.

The software, called Violin, … Continue Reading

Google says game developers can rely on ads for income

As mobile app developers figure out the best ways to make money, Google wants to convince them that mobile ads can be a lucrative option — especially on its AdMob mobile ad network. As one piece of evidence, Google sent me a case study that outlines the success of a company called Best, Cool & Fun Games.

The startup was founded by former investment banker Guilherme Schvartsman, who says Best, Cool & Fun Games is … Continue Reading

New biofuels CEO waxes optimistic on LS9's Brazilian play

Biofuels company LS9′s new CEO Ed Dineen says he is planning to quickly ramp up the company’s presence in Brazil.

Dineen was recruited away from petrochemicals and polymers company LyondellBasell, where he was chief operating officer and helped build the company’s presence in Brazil. His background seems to align with the new direction that LS9 will go in, which includes making inroads in booming new economies, adding more partnerships to get its biofuels production to … Continue Reading

Brazil social game player Vostu raises $30M from Accel and Tiger Global

Vostu, a social game maker focused on the Brazilian market, has raised $30 million from Accel Partners and Tiger Global Management.

Vostu, which is based in New York and has offices in São Paulo and Buenos Aires, is slugging it out with rival Mentez to become the Zynga of social games in Brazil. The well-known U.S. investors have put their money into Vostu because the Brazilian social game market is hot.

In August, Miami-based Mentez … Continue Reading

On the GreenBeat: Enfinity acquires ClearPeak, Google invests in $5 billion wind transmission project

Solar project developer Enfinity announced it has acquired solar developer ClearPeak, adopting the latter’s pipeline of renewable energy customers and projects. The acquisition will expand Enfinity’s reach coast-to-coast.

SmartSynch and Sprint (NYSE:S) announced today a residential utility smart meter that communicates over the Sprint network and uses SmartSynch’s network management. This follows SmartSynch’s announcement last week that it would team with Verizon to release a smart grid communications solution for residential utilities, and shows … Continue Reading

Mentez gets investment to build social games in Latin America and Brazil (exclusive)

Social gaming firm Mentez has raised a round of funding to build games for the Latin American market and Brazil.

New York-based Insight Venture Partners has invested an undisclosed amount of money into Miami-based Mentez. Mentez will use the money to expand its portfolio of social games across Latin America and Brazil. It currently has 21 games on Orkut, the dominant social network in Brazil. Mentez also has seven games on Facebook, which is more … Continue Reading

Reader feedback: Cheap drugs for poor nations, the art of the drug deal

Social gaming firm Mentez has raised a round of funding to build games for the Latin American market and Brazil.

New York-based Insight Venture Partners has invested an undisclosed amount of money into Miami-based Mentez. Mentez will use the money to expand its portfolio of social games across Latin America and Brazil. It currently has 21 games on Orkut, the dominant social network in Brazil. Mentez also has seven games on Facebook, which is more … Continue Reading