Hasta La Gadget!

Google has acquired a small share of Himax Display Technologies, which is perhaps best known for rolling out the first USB 3.0 pico projector. Perhaps lesser known is its involvement with Glass, having created the tiny display on the device. The acquisition is still pending, and leaves room for additional shares.

Under the acquisition, Google will acquire a 6.3-percent share in the maker of liquid crystal on silicon chips, more commonly called LCOS. Likewise, Google will also retain an option for boosting that number to 8.5-percent at the same price as the initial acquisition for the duration of 12 months at the time of closing.

Should such a further acquisition happen, Google’s total holdings would then amount to 14.8-percent. Still, Himax Technologies retains 81.5-percent at the moment, and for the foreseeable future will remain the major shareholder. Other investors in the company include Intel Capital Corporation, KPCB Holdings, Inc., and Khosla Ventures I, L.P.

Though announced, the acquisition is still in the process of closing, having to go through the required regulatory measures and such. It is expected the deal will close during the third quarter of this year. The funds received from the deal will then be used by Himax for upgrades, expansion capacity, and other related areas. Himax Technologies will invest in its Display Technologies as part of this.

Said Himax’s President and CEO Jordan Wu, “Google is a preeminent global technology leader. We are delighted to receive this investment and to form a strategic partnership with Google. Beginning the second quarter of this year, we had already begun expanding capacity to meet demand for our LCOS product line. This investment from Google further validates our commitment to developing breakthrough technologies and state-of-the-art production facilities.”

VIA: Android Community

SOURCE: Yahoo Finance

Google buys stake in Himax, maker of the Glass display is written by Brittany Hillen & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2013, SlashGear. All right reserved.

AT&T has announced its Next program, which allows users to grab a new device annually without a down payment, then make monthly payments on the device much in the same way one leases a car. After the 12 months have come to an end, that device can then be turned in for a different device, or can be kept with additional payments.

Under the program, current customers can choose either a tablet or a smartphone every year sans various fees, such as an activation and upgrade fees, as well as eschewing a down payment on the device. There’s a contract with the program, which requires the subscriber to make payments for 20 months if they choose to keep the device rather than trade it in for a new one.

AT&T Mobility’s President and CEO Ralph de la Vega said: “With AT&T Next, customers can get the newest smartphone or tablet every year with no down payment. That’s hard to beat, and it’s an incredible value for customers who want the latest and greatest every year.” The program is open to those who are eligible.

According to the carrier, the monthly device charge will range from $15 to $50 per month, depending on which device the user selects. AT&T used the Samsung GALAXY S 4 as a specific example, with it costing customers $32 monthly. Using that example, if someone chose to keep the device and make payments on it for 20 months, the total rate would come out to $640 USD.

As such, the program will certainly appeal to some, but will end up costing more in the long run in some instances, considering that a two-year contract and the device subsidization that comes with it will only be four months longer than the 20-month period, making it more financially sensible, but perhaps not as convenient for those who don’t hang on to devices for long.

SOURCE: AT&T

AT&T Next offers monthly device payment option, starts July 26 is written by Brittany Hillen & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2013, SlashGear. All right reserved.

AT&T has announced that it will be acquiring Leap Wireless for the hefty sum of about $1.19 billion, something that will bring the prepaid service Cricket under its ownership. The move still needs to be approved by regulators, but one source who spoke to The Wall Street Journal states that there are “pretty good” odds it will go through.

The announcement was made by AT&T today, with the carrier paying $15 per share for the company, more than double its current stock price of $7.98 per share. Leap Wireless is currently the sixth largest company in the industry, while AT&T holds position as fourth out of the four major U.S. carriers. Such a merge, as many have pointed out, will further centralize the wireless carriers in the country.

Leap Wireless currently has in excess of 5 million subscribers, all of which will be transitioned under AT&T’s wing if the merger goes through. As part of the acquisition, the buyer will be taking over Leap’s wireless spectrum, boosting its 4G rollout, as well as the carrier’s retail stores and its substantial $2.8 billion worth of debt.

In addition, AT&T will be retaining the Cricket name while giving those users access to its 4G network, as well as expanding service under Cricket to additional US markets. Overall, Leap will bring with it spectrum that covers approximately 137 million people in the US, which is said to be “largely complementary” to what it already has.

Such a move comes at a time when other carriers have been involved in various acquisitions, such as T-Mobile US taking over MetroPCS earlier this year, as well as SoftBank Corporation nabbing Sprint Nextel. Presently, AT&T has about 107 million subscribers.

SOURCE: Android Community

AT&T purchase of Leap Wireless brings Cricket under new ownership is written by Brittany Hillen & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2013, SlashGear. All right reserved.

The Moto X rumors and news haven’t slowed, and today another source has come forward with some information about Google’s marketing budget for the flagship handset, which is said to be up to $500 million. The information was given to the folks over at The Wall Street Journal, which also comments on claims regarding the handset’s prices and carriers.

Reportedly, Google’s market plans are part of the reason the Moto X will be carried by the four big carrier in the United States: AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint, and Verizon. It was suggested that Google may exceed the reported $500 million marketing budget, which is mostly reserved for the United States, as well as for “some overseas markets” that weren’t specified.

In addition, and what is no doubt good news, Motorola worked it out with the carriers that bloatware will be kept to a “minimum,” according to the sources. The same sources also confirmed that the customization features we’ve been seeing in various leaks are true, saying that various color options will be available for the handset, as well as custom engraving on the back of the device if desired.

The sources then went on to talk about pricing, saying that it will have “comparable” pricing to competing smartphones, with the iPhone 5, HTC One, and Samsung GALAXY S 4 all be specified. As such, users are likely looking at a price of $199 with a two-year contract, or several hundred dollars without contract subsidization. It is also said the handset’s pricing then could drop a little while after its launch.

This follows in line with comments regarding the Moto X’s pricing made by Motorola’s Dennis Woodside during the D11 conference. Says Woodside, he doesn’t anticipate the wide range in handset pricing to persist, and that he feels Motorola is now in an industry receptive to it “building a low-cost, high-quality market.”

SOURCE: Android Community

Moto X reportedly to have up to half a billion marketing budget is written by Brittany Hillen & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2013, SlashGear. All right reserved.

According to an inspector general’s report, the government spent approximately $630,000 from 2011 through 2012 to increase the number of “likes” the State Department’s Facebook page received. While the initiative was successful, having increased the numbers on the page dramatically, many critics are speaking out against the action, calling it a waste of money.

Before the campaign was started, the total number of Facebook fans on four Bureau of International Information Program Facebook pages totaled about 100,000, a number the State Department considered too low for its intentions. In order to boost the number of likes, the bureau initiated an advertisement and social media program with the intention of increasing the number of likes its accounts collectively had.

As a result, the numbers increased to over 2 million “likes” per Facebook page held by the bureau, with the total cost exceeding half a million over a two-year period. Beyond that, the effort also drew a smaller amount of attention to the company’s non-English Facebook pages, having increased the collective numbers from approximately 68,000 to in excess of 450,000.

Such likes were achieved via advertising, which is where the funds were used, with the inspector general’s report also indicating the use of photos to garner additional followers. Said the report, which was released in May: “Many in the bureau criticize the advertising campaigns as “buying fans” who may have once clicked on an ad or “liked” a photo but have no real interest in the topic and have never engaged further. Defenders of advertising point to the difficulty of finding a page on Facebook with a general search and the need to use ads to increase visibility.”

While there are arguments on both sides, at the end of the day the numbers speak for themselves: the number of “fans” engaging with the four Facebook pages is reported as considerably lower than how many likes each page has. According to the report, the combination of numbers between fan commenting, sharing, and liking amounts to about 2-percent of the page’s total followers. The average status has less than 100 comments, and the average interaction with the pages come in the form of “likes”.

SOURCE: The Atlantic

State Department spent over half a million to boost Facebook page “likes” is written by Brittany Hillen & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2013, SlashGear. All right reserved.