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FTC rules that health apps must notify consumers affected by data breaches
The FTC ruled that companies producing health apps must inform users impacted by data breaches, lest they face a financial penalty of over $43,000 per day.
FTC sues Frontier for 'misrepresenting' internet speeds
The FTC and six states have sued Frontier Communications for misrepresenting internet speeds to consumers.
Shopify’s new app helps you buy from local businesses
Shopify's new app, Shop, helps consumers order from local businesses, follow favorite brands and track online orders.
EU orders Facebook and Google to prevent consumer scams
Social media platforms are still a wild, wild west of consumer fraud, with uncountable numbers of scams everywhere. The EU has ordered Facebook, Google and Twitter to put a stop to them or risk facing "enforcement action." It's demanding that the social media companies find a way to spot and remove such listings as soon as they're aware of them and create direct communication lines with watchdogs to discover wrongdoing.
American, Chinese consumers more enthusiastic about smartwatch wallets than Europeans
A survey conducted by German market research firm GfK seems to indicate that the ability to use a smartwatch like the Apple Watch for electronic payment receives a more enthusiastic response in the US and China than in European countries. The survey tapped 1,000 smartphone owners each in the US, UK, Germany, South Korea, and China. While 54 percent of Chinese and 40 percent of American respondents said they'd be interested in using a smartwatch-based contactless payment system, only 27 percent of those in the UK and South Korea, and 20 percent of German consumers were excited about the prospect. Likewise, 70 pecent of Chinese consumers, 50 percent of Americans, and 43 percent of South Koreans were interested in storing personal health information in a smartwatch, while only 33 percent of UK respondents and 25 percent of Germans had any interest in doing so. AppleInsider's Sam Oliver speculated that the relative lack of credit card-based contactless payment systems in the US and China could be one reason that consumers in those two countries are so receptive to the idea of gaining faster payment through a smartwatch-based system. Apple Pay, Apple's NFC-based smart payment system that works with the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, begins its rollout in the US this week and should be an early indicator of just how Americans will react to being able to make payments without reaching for a wallet.
iOS games spending overtakes dedicated games
App analytics firm App Annie has released a new report about portable gaming, and announced that iOS gamers are now spending more money on Apple's platform than on traditional handheld titles. The light blue above is last year's fourth quarter, the dark blue is this year's first quarter, and as you can see, both iOS and Google Play spending is up, and has actually topped spending on traditional handheld devices like the Nintendo 3DS and the PS Vita. This is mostly due, says App Annie, to a seasonal drop in traditional handheld game spending -- game sales always tend to go up over the holidays, and then drop in the new year. But it's also clear that iOS is growing a lot -- and in fact, in the chart above, it's actually higher than even traditional gaming was last quarter. We'll have to see how this plays out going forwards. Both the PS Vita (made by Sony) and the 3DS (made by Nintendo) have packed schedules for software releases this year, and the Sony handheld is set to be supported by the release of the new PS4 console. So this battle isn't over at all yet. But smartphones are clearly a dominant force in the world of portable gaming, and consumers are happy more and more to spend their money on iOS games rather than another traditional handheld title.
Editorial: when the ecosystem is the product, picking a favorite isn't easy
Have you ever taken the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator personality test? If not, you will eventually fail in a happy hour when people compare their personality-type acronyms. I took the test years ago, and have no recollection of my official personality type. ENTJ (Extroverted, Intuitive, Thinking, Judging)? ISFP (Introverted, Sensual, Feeling, Perceiving)? No idea. But I can tell you this: I am a WiBG digital citizen. That is my Ecosystem Type Indicator. Back to that in a minute. First, some ecosystem history.
Apple becomes Asia's second most popular brand
A company called Campaign Asia-Pacific has released the results of its latest survey, examining the popularity of various brands in Asia. Apple has reached number two on the list. The company from Cupertino has topped big names like Sony and Panasonic, and jumped up along with Nestle (which is also growing hugely in Asia lately) to take the second spot inside the top five. But Apple still has a little climb to go. Samsung is currently still the top brand in the Asia region, and that's a company that's going head up against Apple itself, both in patent battles and on retail shelves. But Apple's growth is still huge, especially when you consider that this is a survey of all consumer brands. Clearly, consumers in that region are interested in high quality electronics, and Apple's making a big push to get noticed over there as best it can. [via AppleInsider]
Goldman Sachs sees iPad demand slowing
Almost two years after the iPad launch, Goldman Sachs reports that demand is slowing down, just as the holiday shopping season begins. "While improving holiday demand into late November could certainly push the momentum in the other direction, we believe it is prudent to assume the iPad is facing some near-term demand challenges," writes Bill Shope. Shope believes price is the reason. Amazon's Kindle Fire tablet is much less expensive at US$199, for example. While many consumers are still willing to pay more for a quality product, there's no question price is a big driver in a market like this. Shope recommends that if Apple wants to keep demand for the iPad as high as it's been in the past, the company will need to get the price down. The iPhone's price dropped off sharply after introduction, but we haven't seen that same drop with the iPad. Shope also says that increasing adoption of iCloud and Siri integration would likely drive iPad demand back up. Shope does call the iPad's growth chart "remarkable by any metric," but his analysis says Apple must act soon to kick the iPad back out into the spotlight as competing tablets threaten to take it away.
Study: Shopping on iPads increases spending
Whether you want to hear it or not (and trust me, I don't either), the holidays are just a couple of weeks away. Just a short 14 days from now, the holiday season will be upon us, and Black Friday and other holiday deals will be everywhere, encouraging us to buy gifts, sale items, and whatever else retailers can get moving off of the shelves. And so a stat like this is extremely interesting to those retailers: People who shop for products on an iPad are almost twice as likely as people who shop on other platforms (including Android or PC) to actually buy the item they're looking for. According to IBM Coremetrics, not only do those users buy items, but they often buy more than other users would. All of that makes sense when you think about it -- to buy an iPad in the first place, you have to be a pretty savvy shopper, not to mention spend a premium price on what's certainly a premium item. And you have to be pretty dedicated, given that you're shopping for a certain item in any way other than just going to the store and picking it up. I'm interested to see this year as well (though of course the iPad was around last year too), just how having more iPads around affects shopping habits. Browsing for prices on your iPhone is one thing, but pulling up prices inside an app on your iPad while in the store has to be a different experience than just comparing prices with what you see on the shelf. The iPad could be a very potent tool for shopping, and clearly people with iPads are people who are ready to shop. Enjoy these two quiet weeks, sure, but then we'll see how this holiday shopping season plays out.
The AT&T / T-Mobile senate hearing: deciphering the war of words
Over the course of the next year, AT&T and its opponents will be in the ring, duking it out in a war of words in attempt to convince the government that a $39 billion takeover of T-Mobile by AT&T should or should not take place. Consumers have the most to win or lose here, yet we are resigned to watching from the sidelines as both sides lob countless facts and stats at each other like volleys in a tennis match. If you look at the merger process as a stairway to climb up, AT&T is still near the very bottom. Every rung will be full of intense scrutiny as it is: if the two companies are allowed to merge, the national GSM market becomes a monopoly, and the wireless industry as a whole would shift to only three national players plus a handful of less-influential regional carriers. The carrier's going to blow as much as $6 billion if the merger is not approved -- almost enough to buy Skype -- it can't just expect to put up some feel-good facts and stats to win the hearts of the decision-makers. AT&T has to be absolutely sure it'll come out victorious in the war, else it risks losing the trust (and money) of its shareholders. But to accomplish such a feat, it has to be on top of its game. There was no better time to show off what it's made of than last week's Senate Judiciary Committee hearing conducted by the Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and Consumer Rights. When the Committee entitles a hearing "Is Humpty Dumpty Being Put Back Together Again?," it's either exercising a sense of humor or a preconceived notion of the merger due to the implication that Ma Bell is simply reforming. CEO Randall Stephenson appeared as a sacrificial lamb, going before Congress and his opponents to explain his side of the story, answer hardball questions, and endure a hard-hitting round of criticism. Continue reading as we take you topic by topic and examine what he -- and his opponents -- had to say about the merger.
Calibrate your monitors for cheap
In the world of computer monitors, there's quality, ... and then there's the rest of us. I buy my monitors at places like Costco, Target and Best Buy, where you can pick up a 27-inch unit for under $300. Remember that statement about "you get what you pay for?" It's particularly true of low-end monitors where color calibration is often an afterthought rather than a guiding product principle. TUAW Talkcast regular Shawn "Doc Rock" Boyd offers a great workaround for all of us who buy low on the food chain. Instead of spending upwards of $200 for a display calibrator, he's discovered that you can rent a color meter from your local photo shop for somewhat less than $20. He offers a quick but excellent write-up on his personal blog, with hints about the process. (Don't forget to save your calibrated settings in case you need to swap out hard drives or upgrade to a new OS.) Apple-branded shiny and white is a wonderful thing, but it's not a solution for everyone. Doc's calibration rental solution provides an effective workaround for people who want to make the most of the equipment they can afford.
4G Shocker! Study finds consumers want what they fail to understand
We've certainly seen our fair share of 4G devices in the Las Vegas sun (well, convention center) this year, but as you might have guessed, a recent study finds that increased awareness does not necessarily equal increased understanding. As the Nielsen Company recently discovered, the majority (54 percent) of consumers who know or care about 4G were relying on the old International Telecommunications Union definition of mobile data speeds over 100 Mb/s, even though carriers have sort of been making up their own rules (for instance, T-Mobile and AT&T are calling their HSPA+ networks 4G). And what to make of the large percentage of people who think that 4G somehow refers to the iPhone 4? That one's a perpetual head-scratcher. But in the end, the study finds that none of that really matters: almost three in ten consumers are gearing up to buy a 4G device within the next twelve months. And \that's what really matters, right?
Apple set to have a great holiday season, says Changewave
The holiday shopping season kicked off in America with Black Friday today, and Apple should finish out the rest of 2010 with a bang. ChangeWave, a firm that covers consumer trends, has told Apple 2.0/Fortune Tech that one of its surveys has consumers leaping for laptops, specifically those made by Apple. 10 percent of respondents told the firm they plan to buy a laptop in the next 90 days, and of those, 36 percent say they're looking for a Mac. That's an 11 point jump since the last time ChangeWave did this research, which one of its analysts says is "the highest level of planned laptop buying ever for Apple in a ChangeWave survey." In short, Apple is likely to sell a lot of laptops this holiday season. That's not all -- NPD is saying that according to its research, 11 percent of consumers (that's all consumers) are planning to buy iPads from Apple by February of next year. That's pretty nuts -- the iPad's sales chart has been heading upward for a long time, and the end of the year will apparently be no different. NPD also shared that iPad use time seems to increase the longer that consumers own the device, starting with 15 hours a week or so near purchase, up to 18 hours or more after a few months of ownership. Sounds like Apple's going to have a nice and profitable holiday season -- not surprising, given its growth already in this and past years.
SNL's Black Friday doorbuster ad promises waxed floors and fire hazards galore
We all know that there's nothing funny about actual injury or death caused by a stampeding crowd rabidly in search of cheap TVs. There is, however, plenty to laugh at in the video below from the most recent Saturday Night Live. The mock Black Friday ad for Mega-Mart includes all the post-Thanksgiving hallmarks of consumerism we've come to love: super cheap electronics, scary-looking shoppers and a sales rep who sounds an announcer at a horse race. Enjoy the full video below.
HDCP may spoil your Apple TV fun
Given the minimal available output ports (just HDMI and TOSlink optical audio) on the Apple TV, it's no surprise that the low-cost HDMI to DVI cables used in some home media setups aren't supported. Unfortunately, if you're using HDMI converters or cables of the sort, you may be out of luck with the new device. Your iTunes movie and TV purchases may be available to your Apple TV via Home Sharing, but unless the signal pathway between your ATV and your display is all-digital and HDCP compliant, that content (flagged as 'protected' by the content providers) will not display. While some DVI-equipped TVs and HDMI/DVI cables are HDCP savvy, most are not. This isn't unique to the new Apple TV among Apple's products, by the way. Try playing a rented/purchased iTunes movie on a DisplayPort-equipped MacBook Pro while a DVI monitor is connected; you'll get bupkis. Even the original Apple TV has HDCP control on the HDMI port, although in that case the analog outputs are available. Even though Apple's specification is clear on the HDMI all the way requirement, it implies that unprotected content should play fine even if the HDCP checks are unavailable. That's not what several users have discovered, per Ted Landau at Macworld, as they report wavy displays using HDMI–DVI. If you've been having HDCP-driven agita with your new Apple TV, let us know below.
Toshiba issues recall for 41,000 T Series laptops because of burn hazard
Toshiba's announced a worldwide, voluntary recall of about 41,000 T Series laptops because of a burn hazard. The laptops apparently carry the risk of overheating AC adapters which can then... burn you. Toshiba has reported that its received 129 complaints, including two minor burns, about the laptops, which include the Satellite T135, Satellite T135D and Satellite Pro T130, which were sold between August of 2009 through August of 2010. If you happened to buying one of these burn-prone babies, hit up the source to contact Toshiba for more information.
Four out of ten IT professionals would buy a tablet, but would you?
Macworld is reporting that their partner Network World recently did a poll and came up with the figure of four out of ten Network World readers willing to buy a tablet on day one sight unseen. That's an interesting result (and it's not the only one seen along those lines), but I want to know what you TUAW readers think. We've got a pretty good group of professionals, "pro-sumers" (ugh, sorry, I'll never use that word again), and just plain Mac fans in the audience here, and I think we represent a pretty good cross-section of Apple's core audience. Jump in on our poll below, and let us know, if the impossible became possible, if you'd plunk down the rumored $1000 for a tablet even before Steve's demo, or if you'd rather wait and see (or maybe not even buy a tablet at all, no matter what it does). %Poll-40508% Personally, I'm more of a "maybe," though I can totally understand the belief that this is already a revolutionary project (we've certainly been waiting long enough for it). Or perhaps those of us who already have an iPhone and a MacBook aren't really as interested in the in-between as Apple might think.
Toys R Us expands layaway to include consoles, adds hardware to trade-in program
Toys R Us announced today that its "Big Gift" layaway program will now include video game hardware. TRU CEO Jerry Storch states that it was the "number one" request from customers. For those who don't know what layaway is: it's the practice of a company holding onto a "purchased" product until the customer has paid for the item in full. For the TRU program, customers must deposit 20% of the console's total purchase, including tax, and a "$10 service charge." Payments can be made at the store in cash, check, credit card ... wait, what? If someone has a credit card, then -- nevermind. Payment must be made in full before December 6. There will also be a fee for canceled orders and the program is not available in Maryland. The retailer is also expanding its video game trade-in program, which began in September, to include video game hardware. The program begins this Friday, November 20, and works almost the same way as the software trade-in: customers go to the "guest service desk," their items are scanned, an offer is made and they receive a gift card if all is approved. We've listed all consoles and handhelds available for trade-in after the break.
NPD: 14% of US households have online game subscriptions
NPD's latest update to its "Entertainment Trends in America" report finds that 14 percent of Americans have an "online gaming" subscription. We contacted NPD for a better explanation of what that exactly encompasses; a representative explained it includes "Xbox Live paid subscription, online gaming website paid subscription, MMOG (game specific) paid subscription and online video game rental service." For comparison, the 2008 figure was 13 percent. Interestingly, 81 and 76 percent of households have cable and internet subscriptions, respectively. Meanwhile, both newspapers and magazines experienced a 2 percent drop in subscriptions. The company found that "monthly per-capita entertainment-content subscription" spending rose to $115, a 7 percent increase from last year. Some could argue that people doing that in this economy is surprising, then again, in this economy, home entertainment would seem the most cost-effective solution for having fun.
