Arkansas
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Tech firms sue Arkansas over social media age verification law
A tech alliance including Meta and TikTok is suing Arkansas over its social media age verification law.
Walmart is using driverless trucks to complete a seven-mile delivery loop
As promised, Walmart has started doing fully driverless box truck deliveries in partnership with startup Gatik between its own locations on a 7-mile loop.
Amazon hands over Alexa data after murder suspect gives the okay
Amazon has agreed to hand over Alexa data to prosecutors in a murder trial after the defendant, an Echo owner, gave permission. The company had initially refused to do so, saying it "seeks to protect the privacy rights of its customers" and that Alexa's questions and answers are protected by the first amendment. The case involves Arkansas resident James Bates, who is charged with the murder of a man found dead in his hot tub in November, 2015.
Amazon refuses to hand over Alexa info for murder investigation
Amazon continues to resist law enforcement's demands to hand over the audio recordings for an Echo involved in an Arkansas murder investigation. The tech titan has filed a motion to throw out a search warrant from prosecutors, arguing that both the users' voice commands and Alexa's replies are protected by the First Amendment. As such, the demand must be subjected to a "heightened standard" -- prosecutors must prove that they can't find the information elsewhere and must demonstrate a compelling need for the recordings.
Feds agree to unlock iDevices for an Arkansas prosecutor
Arkansas prosecutor Cody Hiland doesn't have to go after Apple to unlock an iPhone and an iPod belonging to two teenagers accused of killing a 66-year-old couple. According to Associated Press, the FBI has agreed to help him crack the devices open. The prosecutor believes that one of the teenagers charged of capital murder and aggravated robbery used his iPod to talk about his plan to kill the victims. He thinks he can find more evidence in the device, as well. Based on recent events, the agency could be more than capable of delivering on its promise.
Cops gave a malware-laden drive to a lawyer for whistleblowers
Arkansas' Fort Smith Police Department may be responsible for some particularly sinister digital tricks, if you ask one lawyer. An attorney representing whistleblowers in a police corruption scandal says that the Department sent him a hard drive laden with trojans when he requested documents. Given that the rogue files were found in a folder specific to the court order (that is, they were added after the court order was issued), it looks as if someone in the FSPD wanted to hijack the lawyer's computer and sabotage his case. And that's not the only suspicious behavior, either -- the city reportedly deleted email accounts and messages that it knew it was supposed to keep.
Arkansas to get its first Apple Retail Store
This is going to make our readers in The Natural State very happy. Apple is set to open its first retail store in Arkansas. The store will be located in The Promenade at Chenal Mall in Little Rock, reports ifoAppleStore. While there is no hard opening date yet, all signs point to an October launch. In 2007, a year before the Chenal Mall opened, "Apple" was listed as a tenant, but the store failed to materialize by the time the mall opened in 2008, despite Apple filing for a building permit in November 2007 and posting job listings in January 2008. However, after new job postings for the Little Rock Apple Store surfaced last week, it appears the store is back on. After the opening of the Arkansas store and a store in Anchorage, AK in September, as MacRumors notes, there will only be six states in the US still without an Apple retail store: Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont, West Virginia and Wyoming.
Suddenlink swings recent HD trio to Arkansas
Our HD senses are tingling, but it's still too early to tell if Suddenlink is onto a regional rollout here. Late last month, the cable company dished out Animal Planet HD, TLC HD and Discovery HD to customers in Lubbock, Texas; now, those same three have arrived in Batesville, Arkansas on slots 758, 756 and 757, respectively. The newcomers are available on the HD Basic tier, which is provided gratis with an HD DVR rental, bringing the grand total in the area up to 23. Be sure and keep an eye on your Suddenlink EPG for this trio -- it could be making the rounds.
Cox adding slew of HD channels in Kansas / Arkansas
Cox is shuffling around the lineups down in Arkansas and Kansas, but relocation isn't the only process going down. A plethora of new high-definition channels are headed to both locales on November 18th, and here's a look at what's to come: SciFi HD, Bravo HD, Nickelodeon HD, Hallmark Movie Channel HD, Lifetime Movie Network HD, Planet Green HD, CMT HD, VH1 HD, MTV HD and Spike HD. For the full spill of what stations are moving, what stations are vanishing and what stations are being added to what slots, hit the read link and put those sleuthing skills to good use.
Conway, Arkansas next in line for AT&T's U-verse
U-verse is already available in select parts of the Natural State, but if you had any doubts about AT&T's eagerness to expand, we've now learned that Conway is next on the list. If / when the service arrives (there's no apparent time table for a launch), the fiber-based service will compete directly with local cable company Conway Corp., and CEO Richie Arnold isn't worried about the newcomer moving to town. As it stands, the Conway City Council and AT&T still have to agree on a "fee to be paid the city from profits gathered by AT&T for video services equitable to that paid by Conway Corp.," and after that, things should be good to go.
AT&T's U-verse moseys over to Central Arkansas
Just days after AT&T announced that its fiber-based U-verse TV service was available in select parts of Jacksonville and South Bend comes news that it's also ready for Central Arkansas. Consumers in parts of over six local communities -- including Little Rock, North Little Rock, Benton, Cammack Village, Maumelle and Sherwood -- can phone up the provider and order U-verse TV, high-speed internet and digital phone service. Per usual, AT&T has made clear that it'll be expanding in Arkansas "on an ongoing basis," and considering just how dangerously close all of this is to Mississippi, we can't see the Magnolia State holding out much longer.
Cox adding a dozen HD channels in Northwest Arkansas
Don't say Cox Communications never did anything for you, alright Arkansas? Based on a letter from the company received by one particular fellow in the area, the aforementioned carrier is gearing up to launch a full dozen new high-def channels in Northwestern Arkansas. Specifically, the regions of Fayetteville, Springdale, Rogers and Bentonville will be covered, but we suspect the newcomers could bleed out to other areas as well. So, what all will you be getting? Try Versus / Golf HD, Food HD, Travel Channel HD, Cinemax HD, Animal Planet HD, Science HD, CNN HD, TBS HD, TLC HD, Discovery HD, HGTV HD and NFL Network HD. No specific date was given, but all twelve should go live sometime this month.[Thanks, Dwight]
Allegiance Communications rolls out array of HD channels
Though Allegiance Communications may not be known very well nationally, we're sure mid-sized markets in Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas and Texas are quite familiar with the name. Nevertheless, said cable carrier has reportedly just "completed the first phase of channel additions for 2008," and there's definitely some HD love mixed in. According to Oklahoma's Tecumseh Countywide News, local residents can now access A&E HD, HGTV HD, Food Network HD, National Geographic HD and Starz HD on channels 972, 973, 975, 976 and 974, respectively. Better still, the outfit has also promised that ESPN2 HD will be joining the fold in the coming months, and just in case that still wasn't enough, subscribers can look forward to Chiller, Fox Business HD and RFD HD showing up in the not-too-distant future. Not bad for a rural carrier, huh?
XM hit with false advertising lawsuit over "commercial free" claims
Talk about a company that can't stay out of the courtroom. Yet again, we've got XM headed back for another round of sticky legal action, and while we highly doubt the firm's lawyers are done digesting the NMPA suit from less than a month ago, now it's being forced to deal with an Arkansas man's allegations in US District Court. Matthew Enderlin is apparently quite upset with XM's "false claims of commercial free music," as he adumbrates that the channels actually do include "promotional and advertisement segments." Unsurprisingly, XM has said the suit is "without merit," but Mr. Enderlin isn't backing down; au contraire, he's actually seeking to "have the suit certified as a class-action suit so all XM Radio customers can be considered plaintiffs." Bet you weren't expecting to join in on the fun yourself, eh?[Via Orbitcast]
Arkansas school to trial iPod, WiFi-equipped school bus
If you thought taking a ride on the GamerBUS was a thrill, this one will really make you long to be a youngster in Arkansas again. Reportedly, the Sheridan school district is launching the Aspirnaut Initiative to bring laptops, iPods, and wireless internet right onto Bus 46, and amazingly, they expect kids to actually glean knowledge rather than hit up a round or two of Counter-Strike. The project hopes to make the unbelievably long (three hours, to be exact) commute that some rural students face a bit less boring and a tad more educational, as students will have access to informational podcasts and web-based learning modules whilst cruising on home. Interestingly, the three-year pilot project will not give students class credit for their extra effort initially, but for brainiacs who stick with the program, they'll purportedly be keeping the goods for themselves once the trial run concludes.[Via ArsTechnica]
