Roku lands $45M in funding, plans hardware, media expansion

Roku, the maker of a popular player for streaming Web content to TV sets, has closed a new round of funding.

The company has landed a $45 million investment from companies including News Corp. and British Sky Broadcasting, it announced today.

Also participating in the round were prior Roku venture investors Menlo Ventures and Globespan Capital Partners, as well as an unnamed strategic investor. In addition to the cash injection, News Corp's chief digital officer, Jon Miller, has joined the Roku board of directors, while Roku CEO Anthony Wood remains chairman.

"Our philosophy is to give consumers the best streaming TV experience, with the most content and at the best value in the market; and it has served us well as millions of consumers have brought Roku into their homes," said Wood. "With the News Corporation and Sky strategic relationships, we are poised to further grow our leadership position and to become the TV distribution platform of the future."

Roku will use the funding to promote brand awareness, launch new advertising campaigns and enter new markets. It also plans to increase engineering and production to support the growth of both its hardware and the digital media services available on the Roku platform, including advertising, games, transactional and pay-per-view video, and content.

The company is set to release the Roku Streaming Stick this fall. The wireless, dongle-sized steaming device will be compatible with the latest television sets and consumer electronics, according to Roku, and will be the first step in breaking away from simply producing steaming players, and into connecting its platform to smart TVs and related hardware.

[Source: cnet]

Sky announces iPad remote control functionality, due later this summer in Sky+ app

Sky is announcing a number of changes to its Sky Go, Sky+, and Sky Anytime UK TV services today. Perhaps the biggest change is a promised Sky+ mobile app update for iOS. Due later this summer, the update will allow Sky customers to use their iPad as a remote control to pause and rewind TV by swiping within the iPad app. Sky HD users will also be able to view the planner feature within the iPad app and delete or add shows to the recording list. The update looks like it will arrive ahead of rival TV provider Virgin Media's own iPad offering — set for release in September.

Sky is also planning to add eight live kid's channels to its Sky Go application next month, boosting its offering to 32 live channels on its smartphone, PC, Mac, and iPad apps. Alongside the Sky Go updates, the company's Anytime service will include Channel 5 catch-up programs later this year — an addition that will help it compete with the broader catch-up services offered on Virgin Media's range of set top boxes.

[Source: The Verge]

Meet the 'bots' that edit Wikipedia

Wikipedia is written and maintained by tens of thousands of volunteers across the world. Those, in turn, are assisted by hundreds of "bots" - autonomous computer programmes that keep the encyclopaedia running.

"Penis is the male sex organ," the Wikipedia page in question read.

While that statement is undeniably true and thus may merit inclusion in Wikipedia, it belongs nowhere in the site's article on national supreme courts and their legal roles.

When an anonymous Wikipedia reader in South Carolina offered that contribution to the globally popular online encyclopaedia last week, it took just seconds for the blemish to be discovered and deleted.

The vandalism was caught not by a reader, but by a simple artificial intelligence programme called a bot - short for robot.

[Source: BBC - Click to read the full story]

Google updates YouTube, Nexus Q and Play Movies & TV apps in one fell swoop

As software updates go, this Mountain View hat trick scores low on the excitement scale. Starting today, a trio of version bumps are slated to rollout, bringing minor bug fixes to Play Movies & TV andYouTube, while also giving owners of older, non-ICS handsets the ability to control that latter app remotely. Additionally, tweaks have been made to improve the Nexus Q's guest mode, which should come in handy as support for that odd peripheral has now been bolstered to include devices running Gingerbread and up. Sure, this trine of refreshed Google apps won't necessarily set your pulses racing, nor will it satisfy your Jelly Bean cravings. But, hey, you take what you can get.

[Source: Engadget]

Huawei Device Partners with Eurosport for the Broadcast of this Summer’s Biggest Sporting Events

Huawei, a leading global information and communications technology (ICT) solutions provider, today announced its partnership with Eurosport, the number one pan-European TV channel, for the broadcast of this summer’s biggest sporting events. This partnership is a significant step in Huawei Device’s efforts to build its brand among consumers across Europe, while celebrating the commercial availability in the region of its flagship smartphone, the Huawei Ascend P1.

As part of the agreement, Huawei’s Ascend P1 advertisements will be broadcast during selected Eurosport’s sports event coverage from July. Additionally, RSS feeds of Eurosports news updates and sporting results will be placed on Huawei Device online platforms including its website www.huaweidevice.com and global Facebook page.

“Our partnership with Eurosport provides an opportunity for consumers in more than 129 million households across Europe and North Africa to engage with the Huawei Device brand as we transition from a B2B to B2C company,” said Shao Yang, Chief Marketing Officer, Huawei Device. “Throughout this year our focus is on building the brand by introducing premium products, such as the Ascend P1, that enhance the consumer experience.”

Eurosport. “With our record breaking audience performance in 2012 and our multi-media communication platform Eurosport will provide Huawei with a powerful and effective communication plan for the Ascend P1 launch.” 

“We are delighted that Huawei Device has selected Eurosport, Europe's number one sports entertainment network, to be their exclusive pan-regional media partner for the forthcoming launch of the Huawei Ascend P1 smartphone in Europe,” said Mark McFarlane, Commercial Director,

The Ascend P1 is a super-slim smartphone that delivers outstanding speed, power and functionality. With sales in China commencing from mid-April, the Huawei Ascend P1 is available through more than 3,000 retail stores throughout China. The Ascend P1 will be available in Denmark, Germany, France, Portugal and Italy in July, with other markets to follow.

O2 offering free WiFi around London's busiest streets

O2 is making good on its promise to coat the busiest parts of London in free WiFi. Between now and the end of July, seven locations including Oxford Street, Regent Street, Exhibition Road, Leicester and Piccadilly Squares will offer unfettered access -- even if you don't subscribe to O2's cellphone network. There's no word on if the network will remain free forever, but given the painful time we spent crouching in Starbucks doorways on recent trips to New York and Paris, we hope the company does the right thing for the sake of harassed visitors to the capital.

[Source: Engadget]

London bans wireless access points at Olympics

If you thought the list of banned items at the Olympic Games couldn't get any longer, now the IOC is gunning for that mobile hotspot in your pocket. The prohibited list includes all of the things you'd expect (weapons, alcohol, toxic materials) but also this:  "Personal / private wireless access points and 3G hubs (smart devices such as Android phones, iPhone and tablets are permitted inside venues, but must not be used as wireless points to connect multiple devices)" Probably best to leave that router at home and make sure you only activate your smartphone's hotspot when you're hidden in a crowd, folks.

[Source: Engadget]

Watch your favourite live and recorded TV anywhere in the world with Belkin’s @TV Plus

(Rushden, UK). – 25 July, 2012 – Belkin has today unveiled the latest addition to its entertainment line-up, with the introduction of @TV Plus. Belkin’s @TV Plus allows you to watch live TV on your mobile devices – wherever you are in the world. Whether you’re traveling on holiday or on business, commuting by bus or train, or just enjoying the sun in the garden, you needn’t miss your favourite TV show or live sports event ever again.

Belkin’s @TV Plus turns your iOS or Android tablet and smartphone, or your laptop into a TV,enabling you to watch and control all of your home TV channels from anywhere in the world, as long as there’s a WiFi or 3G/LTE connection. @TV Plus also allows you to record live TV directly onto your mobile device so you can watch your favourite TV when it’s convenient for you, even if you don’t have access to WiFi*.

Belkin’s @TV Plus is easy to install and use, connecting to your digital set top box and to your router via it’s built in wireless connection, or via a wired connection if preferred. @TV Plus streams the signal from your digital TV service to up to 8 devices simultaneously within your home network, or to one mobile device located outside.

@TV Plus also turns your mobile device into a remote control, allowing you to scroll through channels and tap to record live programs with the SurfSwipe integrated channel guide. The @TV Plus App works on Android and iOS platforms for tablets and Smartphones, and is available from iTunes and the Android Play Store. Windows and MacOS player and configuration software is also provided.

@TV Plus (G1V1000) - £149.99/€199.99

• Control your digital set-top box using your smart device whenever you want, wherever you are
• Record live television to your smart device’s internal memory*
• Surf channels at the flick of a finger with SurfSwipe integrated channel guide**
• Wi-Fi enabled for easy placement in any room of the house
• Built In security with Cloud-based connection, built-in firewall and NAT traversal
• App for iOS and Android tablets and smartphones
• PC and MacOS player and configuration software
• @TV Plus will be available in August.

*In the UK, record feature can only be used while on your home network
**In supported countries

New Canon X Mark I Pro Launched

The X Mark I Pro is the latest addition to our award-winning X series line-up already consisting of business function calculators, mouse, keypads, pointer and portable printing calculators. The new model’s 610 advanced functions are the highest available in Canon’s X series line-up. It is intended for those customers who demand not only advanced functions, but also seek a unique and luxury product with a stylish design.

LOL … gotcha !!! I bet you thought this was a new camera.

Qantas will equip some planes with iPads later this year

Australian airline Qantas has followed the lead of some other airlines in cutting traditional in-flight entertainment systems in favor of tablets. Starting in the fourth quarter of 2012, selected Boeing 767 planes will include an iPad in every seat. Unlike other airlines, which generally choose to pre-load content, Qantus will give customers streaming access to 200 hours of audio and television, using an in-flight wireless system it's been testing since early this year. Qantas says that one plane is already fitted with the iPads, and The Canberra Times reports it will be expanded mostly on domestic east coast flights and flights to Perth.

As with Scoot and Alitalia, Qantas is likely making the change in part for a very practical reason: fuel savings. Removing bulky entertainment systems can significantly cut the weight of an aircraft, making it more efficient. For now, most of these companies are phasing in tablets gradually, but it's becoming less unusual to see them adopted.

[Source: TheVerge]

Google Acquires Sparrow

The GMail app we all grew to love has now moved homes. Sparrow has been bought up by the powers-that-be at Google HQ. Things will continue, but will we see development halt on the Mac app as we know it? I think so.

The following quote is from the company website.

"We're excited to announce that Sparrow has been acquired by Google! We care a lot about how people communicate, and we did our best to provide you with the most intuitive and pleasurable mailing experience.

Now we're joining the Gmail team to accomplish a bigger vision — one that we think we can better achieve with Google. We’d like to extend a special thanks to all of our users who have supported us, advised us, given us priceless feedback and allowed us to build a better mail application. While we’ll be working on new things at Google, we will continue to make Sparrow available and provide support for our users.

We had an amazing ride and can't thank you enough.

Full speed ahead!" [Quote Dom Leca, CEO, Sparrow]

Evernote updates Safari browser extension

Evernote has added a heap of new features to its Safari extension, all of which should appeal to power users. The big change is that when you add a web page, it will automatically attempt to file your clipping into the tags and notebooks you've already set up —ex. if you clip a recipe, Evernote might be able to guess that you'd like it in your cookbook notebook — and now if that notebook happens to be shared, it will actually work. Evernote will also attempt to automatically detect which portion of the page's content you're interested in. Lastly, Evernote inserts itself into your Google searches, adding a link to the top of the results page that points back to your own account. You can add the new web clipper by going to this page in Safari.

[Source: TheVerge]