Articles by Rachelle Dragani

Verizon will reveal a new shared data policy this summer and end its unlimited data option, according to CFO Fran Shammo. Currently, the company allows customers who had a US$30-per-month unlimited data plan before Verizon's switch to tiered plans last July to keep their unlimited plans when they upgrade their phones to LTE devices. That option wi...

Flickr announced a redesign recently, introducing larger onscreen displays for high-res images The photo sharing site launched what it calls its "liquid layout," stating that "Large sizes + Low compression = Beautiful photos." Since Flickr uses less compression than many other image sharing sites, it claimed, the detail and color of Flickr photos i...

The U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee plans to examine allegations that Microsoft is giving its own Internet Explorer Web browser preferential treatment over competing Web browsers in a version of its upcoming Windows 8 operating system "This is a preliminary inquiry," Lynn Becker, communications director for Sen. Herb Kohl, told TechNewsWorld. Kohl ...

Facebook is testing a new feature that offers to promote users' posts and status updates for a fee The new service is currently only available in New Zealand. There, Facebook users can pay US$2 to "highlight" a post, making it more visible to a greater number of their Facebook contacts. Users can pay via credit card or PayPal.

Dish Network began offering a new service Thursday that lets users skip all commercials for shows broadcast on major networks when watched the day after the programming first aired Dubbed "Auto Hop," the feature on Dish Network's digital video recorders allows users to bypass commercials on recorded HD prime-time programs from ABC, CBS, FOX and NBC...

Sprint is launching a new type of mobile hotspot -- the Sierra Wireless 4G LTE Tri-Fi Hotspot, the first device that will convert LTE, WiMAX and 3G networks into a WiFi signal ...

Social network MySpace settled with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission Tuesday over charges related to how the site was using members' personal information The social network had access to personal data from users, including their full names, ages and genders. MySpace promised users it would not share that information unless it received user consent...

The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation is urging Internet companies to provide back doors that facilitate online surveillance, according to a Cnet report. The bureau reportedly aims to increase the amount of data they can collect through online channels. [*Correction - May 7, 2012] Because of a shift in popular communication methods - from phone...

Facebook announced an estimated price for its long-awaited initial public offering Thursday, setting a range of US$28 to $35 per share. The top end of its estimate would give the social network a valuation of $96 billion. The company's upcoming roadshow starts Monday and will stop in major U.S. cities including New York, Boston, Chicago and San Fr...

Yelp reported a net loss in its first quarter as a publicly traded company after aggressive expansion abroad led to a sharp increase in costs. The site, which provides online reviews of local businesses, released its earnings on Wednesday for its first ever fiscal quarter after filing its IPO. Yelp reported a net loss of US$9.8 million, or 31 cent...

Motorola Mobility revealed its quarterly earnings for its first fiscal quarter of the year Tuesday, reporting a slightly higher net loss than last year The company lost US$86 million, or 28 cents per share, compared to $81 million, or 27 cents per share, for the same time a year ago.

The England and Wales High Court has ordered that Internet service providers in the UK must block access to The Pirate Bay The High Court ruled in February that the site and its users were in violation of copyright law and followed with the court order Monday commanding ISPs to restrict access to the site....

Amazon's first fiscal quarter surprised shareholders Thursday by beating performance expectations. Investors sent shares upward even though the online retailer reported a 35 percent drop in net income. Amazon announced a net income of US$130 million, or 28 cents a share, for its latest fiscal quarter. That's down from the $201 million, or 44 cents...

Google Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt defended his company's actions regarding Java and Android as he took the witness stand Tuesday in Google's ongoing trial, in which the company stands accused of misusing Java programming code in the development of its mobile operating system. Oracle, which acquired rights to Java when it bought Sun Microsyste...

Microsoft is giving its SkyDrive cloud storage service a makeover that will include new apps and greater synchronization abilities across mobile and PC devices The new service includes SkyDrive for the Windows desktop, so it can be managed right from Windows Explorer or from SkyDrive.com. Users can grab the files directly from Windows Explorer and ...

LightSquared made an outstanding payment to Inmarsat Friday for Phase 1 of its spectrum agreement. It received an additional two years to seek federal approval before it must pay for the second phase of the deal. Previously, Inmarsat had said it wasn't certain it would receive any more payments from LightSquared, especially after the Federal Commu...

Microsoft reported higher than expected earnings Thursday, with Windows 7 license sales up despite the company's plan to release a new version of its desktop operating system later this year. The company's PC division gained 4 percent from a year ago, earning US$4.6 billion in revenue. The gain was in part thanks to an uptick in businesses buying ...

Verizon reported a strong first quarter of 2012, it revealed Thursday, thanks in part to new FiOS and wireless subscribers Verizon took in US$1.69 billion in profit, or 59 cents per share, an increase from the 51 cents per share it reported from the same time last year. The company's operating revenues were $28.2 billion, up 4.6 percent. The wirele...

Cloud-based storage utility Google Drive is set to debut next week, according to The Next Web Rumors regarding a Google online storage space have persisted for years, but it's actual release is now just around the corner, according to information The Next Web said it received from a Google Drive partner.

Facebook is rolling out its Facebook Offers service, a way for users to get discounts and promotions from local businesses via the social networking site The offers will be distributed through users' Facebooknews feeds. Users can then sign up to receive the offers via email andredeem them at participating businesses. Users are more likely to see o...