The first half of 2012 saw the largest increase in malware samples in the last four years, said McAfee Labs’ Q2 report released Tuesday (http://xrl.us/bnodjk). The virus-infection avoidance software maker said it detected 1.5 million more cases of unique malware in Q2 than Q1. The report identified new malware threats, including mobile malware targeted mainly at Android devices and an increase in malware attacks on Apple devices. “All Mac fanboys and -girls are hereby on notice: Mac malware is showing steady, continued growth,” the report said, noting that cases of malware among Mac systems are rare compared to other operating systems. “Over the last quarter we have seen prime examples of malware that impacted consumers, businesses, and critical infrastructure facilities,” McAfee Labs Senior Vice President Vincent Weafer said. “Attacks that we've traditionally seen on PCs are now making their way to other devices. ... This report highlights the need for protection on all devices that may be used to access the Internet."
Me-TV programming will air on three more TV stations, including replacing the CW as the primary channel of JF Broadcasting’s KWSD Sioux Falls, S.D., said the network’s owner, Weigel Broadcasting. WIBW-TV Topeka, Kan., and WHSV-TV Harrisonburg, Va., both owned by Gray Television, will carry the network as multicast channels later this month, Weigel said in a news release Tuesday.
Gilat enhanced its SkyEdge VSAT (very small aperture terminal) platform with advanced disaster recovery functionality. It allows for the automatic switching of transaction data to disaster recovery sites without external equipment or additional capital expense, the company said in a news release Tuesday.
Intelsat General got a contract from the U.S. government’s new custom satcom solutions program. The program will provide satellite communications to military and other users, the company said. The prime contractors will provide “end-to-end, turnkey solutions to government users that include satellite capacity, terminals, other user equipment, teleports … operations and maintenance,” it said. The contract has an initial term of three years and two one-year renewal options, Intelsat said.
AT&T and the California Public Utilities Commission asked the FCC for clarification on the requirements of Lifeline certification forms, an ex parte filing said (http://xrl.us/bnocuj). The CPUC told Wireline Bureau officials it plans to amend its current certification process by the end of the year and make forms available to eligible telecom carriers in compliance with new rules. AT&T told officials it is “not opposed to the FCC eliminating the certification form requirements in states where the eligibility determinations are made by the state’s lifeline [sic] administrator."
The FCC should continue developing a record in its net neutrality proceedings, and “remain vigilant for the manifestation of harms anticipated and articulated,” Vonage told an aide to Chairman Julius Genachowski, an ex parte filing said (http://xrl.us/bnoctn). The VoIP provider said it discussed the importance of prohibiting discrimination by network operators “who have the incentive and capability to engage in anticompetitive practices, especially in light of recent changes in the wireless and wireline broadband industry."
Regulators must support wireless innovation by allowing spectrum-sharing, the European Commission said in a proposal (http://xrl.us/bnobsx) Monday. A pan-EU approach to spectrum-sharing will lead to greater mobile network capacity, cheaper wireless broadband and new markets such as tradable secondary rights, it said. As part of its new five-year radio spectrum policy program, the EC urged regulators to monitor and potentially extend the harmonized internal market license-exempt bands, develop consistent approaches for shared usage that give incentives and legal certainty to all current and new users who can share spectrum, and guarantee protection against interference. First steps include: (1) Identifying beneficial sharing opportunities in licensed and license-exempt bands. (2) Considering whether to make sufficient license-exempt spectrum, harmonized at the EU level, available for wireless applications. (3) Defining a common route toward enabling more sharing, based on contract arrangements between users. The plan must be approved by the European Parliament and Council of Ministers.
"Credit iTunes with really establishing a border around intellectual property and music,” Logitech President Bracken Darrell said in a keynote Q-and-A session Saturday at the IFA consumer electronics show in Berlin. Before iTunes, “there was this outright piracy everywhere,” said Darrell, whose company introduced an Ultimate Ears-branded Bluetooth boombox and other wireless music products at IFA. “I mean, everybody was downloading everything, all kinds of music,” he said. “It was terrible for the artist. I would say iTunes really re-established that, and now Pandora, Spotify and others are creating new ways to consume that safe music that are consistent with intellectual property rights. It will always be a battle, I'm sure, and I'm no expert on how this will play out in the future. But it’s certainly in all of our best interests to protect the intellectual property of device makers and music makers. Anything we all can do to help fan that going forward is a good thing.”
A federal appeals court reversed and remanded a lower court’s ruling involving claims that Limelight Networks infringed certain Akamai patents. A divided en banc panel of judges of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled that Akamai can press its theory of induced infringement in the case, the majority opinion said (http://xrl.us/bnnwc9). “We conclude Akamai should be given the benefit of this court’s ruling disproving the line of divided infringement cases that the district court felt compelled to follow.” The majority’s opinion marks “dramatic changes in the law of infringement,” Judge Pauline Newman wrote in a dissent accompanying the opinion. “This new rule is not in accordance with statute, precedent and sound policy,” Newman wrote. “It raises new issues unrecognized by the majority and contains vast potential for abuse.” Limelight said the ruling effectively set aside the jury’s original verdict in the case and that “Limelight continues to believe it does not infringe and will pursue all procedural avenues to vindication” under the new inducement theory spelled out in the majority opinion. A spokesman for Akamai said the company is still reviewing the opinion but is very pleased with the new standard the court adopted. “We are very excited about the opportunity to prove Limelight’s infringement as well as the new protections afforded to interactive innovations like those pioneered by Akamai,” he said. The opinion is probably good news for Akamai, Wells Fargo analyst Gray Powell wrote in a note to investors. “Should the lower court rule in AKAM’s favor, we believe LLNW would need to either enter a license agreement with AKAM or find some other work around in order to compete in the CDN [content delivery network] space,” he said. “Longer term, this could lead to reduced competition and more favorable pricing in the CDN sector.”
Apple lost its patent lawsuit against Samsung in Japan Friday, when Tokyo District Judge Tamotsu Shoji dismissed Apple’s case and ordered the company to pay court costs. Apple had claimed in its lawsuit that Samsung had violated Apple patents related to its iPhone and iPad lines, according to Bloomberg. Japan’s ruling came a week after a U.S. District Court jury in San Jose, Calif., found Samsung had violated several of Apple’s iPhone patents and awarded Apple more than $1 billion in damages (CD Aug 28 p6). Apple sought 100 million yen (the equivalent of $1.3 million) in damages from its lawsuit in Japan, Bloomberg reported. Apple now wants a ban on the sale of eight Samsung smartphones in the U.S., including several from the company’s Galaxy series (CD Aug 29 p3). The Tokyo court ruled against a similar request after dismissing the lawsuit, according to Bloomberg (http://xrl.us/bnnwds).