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Leaked memo details Verizon's $2 fee for paying your bill; autodraft or ACH the only way out (update: confirmed)
A couple of years back, AT&T offered select customers a $25 prepaid MasterCard to switch their billing over to autodraft. Soon, Verizon Wireless will be following Sprint's footsteps and charging you for every month that you aren't using that very system. Tactical differences aside, the leaked memo shown above details what has to be one of the most consumer-unfriendly policy changes since the carrier boosted its early termination fee for "advanced devices." Effective January 15th, any customer that opts to pay their wireless bill online or over the phone will be charged an extra $2 each month, and the only way to sidestep it is to sign up for AutoPay or to pay by electronic check, where there's no credit card fee passed on to the carrier. For those unaware, AutoPay automatically drafts the most recent amount from either a linked checking / savings account or a credit card on file, and while we can understand VZW's desire to better control when it's getting paid, charging customers to make it happen is just downright ludicrous. Here's a thought, Verizon: enforce stricter penalties on late payments, or just offer those that shift to AutoPay a small discount for going out of their way to make your life a little easier. Or, you know, for all those hours that your network has been down during the holidays. Update: Verizon has officially confirmed the change to its policies and the $2 surcharge you'll be hit with each month if you're not using autodraft or some other small subset of payment options. Head after the break for all the details straight from the horse's mouth. [Thanks, Alex]
Apple and Microsoft join Nintendo et al in support of Internet-censorship bill
Initially we though Apple and Microsoft had come out in support of sopaipillas, the delicious and flaky fried pastry treat served in parts of Central and South America, as well as the North American Southwest. Imagine our surprise when we discovered that what they're actually supporting is the far less scrumptious SOPA, or "Stop Online Piracy Act" which Nintendo, EA and Sony have already put their weight behind. The supporting statement didn't come from Apple or Microsoft directly, but rather through the Business Software Alliance; a trade group that represents both Apple and Microsoft, as well as other tech giants such as Adobe, McAfee, Dell and Symantec. Meanwhile, Internet-technology companies like Google, Facebook, Twitter and Zynga have taken a vocal anti-sopaipilla anti-SOPA stance, going so far as to purchase a full-page ad in the New York Times. We're pretty worried this bill is going to pass, truth be told, so we're going to take this opportunity to say everything we won't be able to say once Internet censorship becomes the norm. Okay, ready? Hey Internet, [REMOVED].
US Senate passes patent system reform bill, Obama expected to sign into law
Think it's time to change our patent system? So does Congress. Yesterday, the Senate approved the America Invents Act by an 89-8 vote that could bring about the most drastic changes to the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) in five decades. Under the bill, which the House approved back in June, patents would be awarded not to the first person to invent a technology, but to the first one to actually file with the USPTO, bringing US policy in line with protocol adopted in most other countries. It also calls for a streamlined application process and would allow the USPTO to charge set fees for all apps. The revenue generated from these fees would go directly to a capped reserve fund, allowing the office to retain the lion's share of the money, rather than funneling much of it to Congress, as had become the norm. Supporters say this extra revenue will give the USPTO more power to chip away at its backlog of some 700,000 patent applications, while a new third-party challenge system will help eliminate patents that should've never received approval in the first place. Opponents, meanwhile, criticized the bill for not eliminating fee diversion altogether (an amendment that would've placed more severe restrictions was ultimately killed, for fear that it would jeopardize the bill's passage), with Washington Democratic Senator Maria Cantwell questioning the legislation's impact on small businesses, calling it "a big corporation patent giveaway that tramples on the rights of small inventors." But Senator Patrick Leahy, a Vermont Democrat who sponsored the bill, argued that yesterday's approval marks a major and historic inflection point in US patent policy: The creativity that drives our economic engine has made America the global leader in invention and innovation. The America Invents Act will ensure that inventors large and small maintain the competitive edge that has put America at the pinnacle of global innovation. This is historic legislation. It is good policy. The America Invents Act will now make its way to President Obama's desk, where it's expected to receive his signature. For more background on the legislation, check out the links below.
Light bulb efficiency passes through US House, incandescent bulbs flicker in celebration
Not like Congress has anything more pressing on its plate right now, but the suits on Capitol Hill have somehow found time to poke their noses in yet another minute aspect of our personal lives -- lighting. All jesting aside, it was starting to look like those old, power-hungry incandescent bulbs wouldn't have a second chance at life. If you'll recall, a bill was passed way back in 2007 to kill 'em off by 2012, but Republicans were attempting to reverse things in order to give Americans a bargain option in the years ahead. Despite a 233 to 193 vote in favor of the repeal earlier this week, the necessary super majority wasn't reached. Not willing to be left in the dark, those adamant about getting it turned around shoved it into something else as an amendment late Friday, which did indeed get the oh-so-coveted stamp of approval. Translation? GE has a production line to reactivate, STAT.
Nissan plant in Smyrna, Tennessee to start Leaf production by late 2012
No worries Nissan EV fans, more Leaves are on the way -- that's according to Bill Kreuger, the head honcho of Nissan's manufacturing and supply chain division. Kreuger tells Automotive News, the catastrophic earthquake in Japan that shut down several large plants was just a small speedbump in the release of the flagship electric vehicle. Nissan North America has been preparing a 1.6 billion dollar production complex in Smyrna, Tennessee, to begin rolling out EVs in the masses by late 2012. The plan is to have the plant assemble about 200,000 battery modules and as many as 150,000 Leafs each year, and we're guessing it'll have quite an easy go finding names for each and every one.
'Let's Play' videos may soon make you a felon thanks to Senate Bill S.978 [Updated]
[Update: This Is My Next's Nilay Patel has published an extensive break-down of S.978, and it looks like the bill, if passed, wouldn't actually change much of anything for the majority of people who don't profit from their YouTube videos. "Some of the outcry here is a little overblown, as the text of the bill isn't quite as bad as you might think."] Hold on to your butts, Internet, because this party is going to get a whole lot worse before it gets any better. According to Game Informer, a Senate Bill has been introduced which, if passed, would make streaming unauthorized copyrighted material a felony, resulting in up to 5-years of jail time. Bill S.978 states that "10 or more public performances by electronic means, during any 180-day period, of 1 or more copyrighted works" will result in "not more than 5 years" of imprisonment, so long as the performance in question is valued at at-least $2,500 USD, or if the value of a license to legally "perform" the content is valued at $5,000 or more. These are, in essence, the same criteria that allow for DMCA take-down notices to be issued by copyright holders, however jail time and felony status are not currently associated with this particular flavor of copyright infringement. Should this bill jump through all the right hoops, its broadly worded contents could potentially cover everything from homemade gameplay clips (commonly referred to "Let's Play" videos), to fan-made music videos, webcam cover songs, and anything else that involves copyrighted music or video. S.978 could also potentially cover cell-phone videos of concerts and press events, making 13-year-old Beliebers and jaded gaming journalists alike equally in danger of losing their right to vote. If accepted into law, these addenda will be attached to existing copyright laws and will not only apply to YouTube users, but to the sites that embed YouTube content as well. Internet activism group Demand Progress has set up a web-form for those who disagree with the legislation and wish to communicate their displeasure to their local representatives. We would be concerned about the bill's implications as well, but fear not dear reader: the legislation doesn't cover puppet shows as far as we can tell, so Joystiq Playhouse's shadow-kabuki production of Battle Arena Toshinden should still be on track.
Verizon's tiered data plans won't affect grandfathered customers after all?
Yesterday's revelation that Verizon may soon be enforcing usage-based data plans came as a slap in the face to many, but there may be at least one speck of sunlight shining through the dark clouds above. Screenshots appeared today, purportedly from employee communications, that would go a long way toward assuaging our worst nightmares: Verizon is indeed planning to mirror AT&T's policy of letting current customers hang onto their grandfathered data plans -- even when renewing contracts. It's probably best to keep your fingers crossed, but we understand if your hands are busy clutching those old plans as if your life depended on it.
Verizon tiered data plans coming July 7, starting at $30? (update)
We were hoping it wouldn't happen, but it appears that Verizon CFO Fran Shammo's summer foreboding of his company's dreaded tiered data plans could be right on the money. Droid-Life is reporting the magic date will be July 7 and has provided supposed pricing details: data plans without tethering would start at $30 for 2GB, while 5GB and 10GB will cost $50 and $80 respectively. Tethering will cost an extra $20 and adds another 2GB to the pool. There's said to be no notable separation between 3G and 4G -- you'd be billed exactly the same whether you're packing a Droid X2 or a Droid Charge. These new plans wouldn't affect anyone currently under contract, though it's still unknown if customers can hang onto them when it's time to renew. While this remains filed in the "grain of salt" cabinet for now, it may be a good time to at least start checking out your next phone. Update: We just received an internal memo sent around today to select Verizon Wireless employees, and the verbiage is impossible to deny. These things are coming, and soon. Read it in full after the break. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Tennessee law bans 'distressing images,' opens your Facebook inbox
Congratulations Tennessee! Governor Bill Haslam has put your state in the national spotlight and, for once, it has nothing to do with Bonnaroo or how bad the Titans are. The republican executive of the state signed a ban on "distressing images" into law last week that we're sure constitutional lawyers are going to have a field day with. Anyone who sends or posts an image online (and yes, that includes TwitPics) that they "reasonably should know" would "cause emotional distress" could face several months in jail and thousands of dollars in fines. The best part? Anyone who stumbles across the image is a viable "victim" under the law and the government doesn't even have to prove any harmful intent. So, Tennessee residents who aren't cautious enough using Google image search could get a few people in trouble. Another, and perhaps more perturbing, part of the same bill also seeks to circumvent restrictions on obtaining private messages and information from social networking sites without a search warrant. We give it about a month before this gets struck down on obvious grounds that it's unconstitutional.
Mass. bill proposes stepping up state's game dev incentives
With EA set to break ground for a new facility at LSU, and Gameloft considering similar "endeavors" in New Orleans, Louisiana legislatures have got to be feeling good about the allure of the state's Digital Interactive Media Credit. 1500 miles to the northeast, Massachusetts is considering enacting similar tax incentives for game developers through a bill filed earlier this year by Rep. Vincent Pedone. As the bill, affectionately known as "H03301," continues to kick around the Mass. Legislature, representatives of specialty tax services provider Alliantgroup take a look at its proposed "rewards" on Develop. While subject to alteration, the current draft of the bill proposes significant tax credits for both labor- and production-based costs incurred by large and small game-related companies alike, including a potential credit for a "promotional logo of the commonwealth of Massachusetts" placed on a game. In other words, stamp a game with a "Made in Massachusetts" logo (as Alliantgroup dubs it) and a company could earn up to a $75,000 annual credit under the bill's current stipulations. Of course, the bill has yet to be put to a vote by state lawmakers, who can ill afford to sleep on it for long if they want to keep pace in the "quest" to win over the game industry. In addition to Louisiana, Alliantgroup identifies 16 other "game-friendly" states, including neighboring Rhode Island, which last year lured away Curt Shilling's 38 Studios from Mass. ["Made in Massachusetts" logo source: Massachusetts Bay Trading Co, Inc.]
House of Representatives votes to block FCC's net neutrality rules
Well, it looks like Republicans in the House of Representatives weren't about to let this one slip past a possible government shutdown -- they just passed a measure that seeks to block the FCC's net neutrality rules by a largely party line vote of 240 to 179. That follows a House subcommittee vote last month but, as then, the bill still faces an uphill battle in the Senate and with the President, who's expected to veto any such legislation if it somehow got to his desk. Not surprisingly, the rhetoric from both sides is only increasing following this latest development, with Democrat Rep. Henry Waxman saying the Republican bill would "end the internet as we know it," while Republican Rep. Fred Upton argues that "the internet is not broken and this bill will assure that the FCC does not break it."
Android Market gets in-app billing, your virtual nickels are now spoken for
Google said they were coming this week, and here they are -- Android apps can now have their own miniature storefronts for in-app purchases galore. You'll find Tap Tap Revenge, Comics, Gun Bros, Deer Hunter Challenge HD, WSOP3 and Dungeon Defenders: FW Deluxe accept your credit card for microtransactions starting this very instant, and Android developers can start building similar functionality into their own creations right now. Head on over to our source link for instructions on how to shake those extra coins out. Don't want to commit to a full transaction yourself? Hit the break for a quick video refresher of how in-app purchases work. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Poll: How much are you paying for cable or satellite TV?
Amidst all this talk of cord cutting (or not), a la carte pricing and revamped ESPN-less packages, we're wondering how much most people actually are paying for their pay-TV service. So check out the ranges in the poll below and let us know what TV costs you each month (just TV and related equipment like set-top boxes or cable cards, not phone, internet, home automation, etc.) Of course, you can always head to the comments and answer the bigger question -- do you think you're getting (anywhere close to) your money's worth? %Poll-58807%
U.S. government hits snag printing new $100 bills, prints old ones instead
The U.S. Treasury Department may have been eager to open the doors to its money printing factory back in July to show off its brand new $100 bills, but it looks to be a decidedly different story today. As CNBC reports, all of the added security measures have apparently been harder to print than expected, and have resulted in a creasing problem that has left some bills with a blank portion on the face. The real problem, however, is that it's not clear how many bills have the flaw, which has forced the department to "quarantine" some 1.1 billion bills until they can be sorted -- one person familiar with the matter says as many as 30 percent were affected at the height of the problem. As you might expect, that accounts for a pretty big chunk of the bills intended for circulation, which has forced the fed to print some more of the older $100 bills that still feature Bush Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson's signature in the meantime.
Federal Wi-Net bill proposes a femtocell and WiFi hotspot in every federal building
Here's one way to fix the spectrum crunch: set up wireless base stations and WiFi hotspots in every single one of the 9,000 buildings currently owned and operated by the US General Services Administration. That idea, along with the proposal that such installations be made mandatory in all future federal structures, was put before the US Senate this Friday. It's argued that installing femtocells at those locations would improve reception indoors, lighten network loads in busy areas, and expand accessibility for more rural locales. Ubiquitous WiFi routers, on the other hand, hardly require any justification beyond "common sense," but you should be aware that the Federal Wi-Net bill also asks for a $15 million budget for the performance of retrofitting and future installs. Full PR after the break.
FCC set to approve rules compelling carriers to alert you when you're about to go over your limit
Politicians do love themselves a sharp and emotive turn of phrase, of which few are as good as "bill shock." That's the term the FCC has used to sum up all those instances when you've had unexpected surcharges on your monthly wireless bill, caused by unknowingly going outside the bounds of your geographical coverage or monthly allowance. Seeing this issue as something it could help alleviate, the Commission set up a Consumer Task Force back in May in an effort to seek out solutions, and now it has returned with perhaps the most obvious one: getting your network operator to shoot out a voice or text message warning you when you're about to incur costs outside of your normal plan. That's basically what AT&T already does with iPad owners approaching their monthly data limits, which the federales see as a good practice that should be extended across all carriers. We can see no good reason why it shouldn't.
U.S. officials push for broader internet wiretapping regulations
The NSA may have its ominously named Perfect Citizen program to guard against potential cyber attacks, but it looks like the U.S. government still isn't quite satisfied with its surveillance capabilities in the age of the internet. As the New York Times reports, federal officials are now pushing for some expanding wiretapping regulations that would require any communications service -- including everything from encrypted BlackBerry messages to Skype to social networking sites -- to be "technically capable of complying if served with a wiretap order." That, officials say, is necessary because their current wiretapping abilities are effectively "going dark" as communications move increasingly online. While complete details are obviously a bit light, the officials do apparently have a few ideas about how such a radical change might be possible, including a regulation that foreign-based companies that do business in the US be required to install a domestic office capable of performing intercepts, and a flat out requirement that "developers of software that enables peer-to-peer communication must redesign their service to allow interception." Of course, the specifics could still change, but the Obama administration is apparently intent on getting a bill of some sort submitted to Congress next year. [Image courtesy PBS]
California considers electronic ads on license plates, we consider never moving there
Driving in California could get a little more annoying in the coming days. The Legislature of the state that brought you Brody Jenner and Spencer Pratt is now considering a bill which would allow the beginning of research into electronic license plates for vehicles. The new-fangled plates would look just like regular ones when a vehicle was in motion, but would flash awesome advertisements and other messages when stopped for more than four seconds. One San Francisco based startup, Smart Plate, is already hard at work on developing just such a device, but they're not in production yet. The measure is seen largely as a money making scheme for California, which -- like nearly everywhere else in the world -- is heavily in debt after several years of hard partying and irresponsible shopping trips. Parties interested in advertising on the plates would apparently contact the California DMV directly (then wait in line for 12 to 14 hours before submitting their preliminary application for ad space). If approved, the DMV will be required to submit its research and findings to the Legislature by January of 2013. Here's to the future!
Senators push for tracking of pre-paid cellphones
New York Senator Chuck Schumer has already taken aim at texting while driving, and it looks like he's now set his sights on pre-paid cellphones, which he says can also be dangerous -- when in the wrong hands, at least. To that end, he and Republican co-sponsor John Cornyn of Texas have introduced legislation that would give authorities the ability to identify the owners of pre-paid cellphones, which they say is long overdue "because for years, terrorists, drug kingpins and gang members have stayed one step ahead of the law by using prepaid phones that are hard to trace." That new tracking ability would also consequently place some new requirements on cellphone carriers and people buying the phones -- specifically, anyone buying a pre-paid cellphone would be required to present identification before buying a phone, and cellphone carriers would have to keep that information on file for 18 months after the phone has been deactivated. Of course, the legislation still has a ways to go before it becomes law, but Schumer says it at least has a good chance of winning support from the Obama administration. Head on past the break for the complete press release.
FCC task force seeks to squash 'bill shock,' give you the 411 on impending overages
Call us crazy, but it seems as if the FCC has been earning its keep of late, and the toiling continues today with an effort meant to address "bill shock." For those unaware, bill shock is a phenomena on par with bitter beer face in terms of significance, and it typically occurs when you accidentally roam internationally, text well beyond your monthly limit or burn through your minutes within the first week of your billing period. 'Course, some would argue that you -- as a functioning human being -- should keep tabs on how often you use your own mobile, but we wouldn't kvetch with a heads-up here and there so long as these alerts are cheap and easy to implement. As of today, the Consumer Task Force is listening for solutions, and while some carriers already ping you when you leave the country and are about to incur severe roaming charges, that practice is far from uniform. Too bad such a service would essentially nix your ability to play the ignorance card when you get back from that jaunt to Mexico, eh?
