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Earlier this year, RadioShack declared bankruptcy after years of declining sales and failed attempts to rebound.

Besides selling physical locations, trademarks and other inventory, the company is also selling off 65 million names and physical addresses in addition to 13 million email addresses - personal data that could be greatly valuable to a top bidder.

Reportedly, RadioShack's largest creditor, Standard General, has won the bid for the assets including the personal data but a judge still has to approve the purchase and there is a chance that the data could be a problem in trying to close the auction.

Among those challenging the purchase are the Texas and Tennessee attorney generals and major carrier AT&T, who previously partnered with RadioShack to market phones and does not want data of its customers getting into the hands of a rival carrier.

Popular game video streaming service Twitch reached out to its users yesterday to inform them of a minor breach in which some user accounts were accessed by unauthorized parties.

Reads the blog post:

Supercell, the private Finnish gaming startup, has revealed their 2014 earnings today.

The gaming company saw its revenue grow to $1.7 billion in 2014, up from $850 million in 2013 (when considering the euro currency was stronger), and profits are an incredible $565 million, up from $267 million in 2013.

Supercell has had a string of hits including Clash of Clans, Boom Beach and the more family-friendly Hay Day. Clash of Clans, for example, has been the top grossing game for iOS and Android for over two years now.

Clash and Boom Beach are so important to the studio and so successful that Supercell has been releasing commercial ads for the games, including one for the Super Bowl that is estimated to have cost up to $10 million.

Supercell is so efficient, that they only have three active games right now and just 150 employees. Other gaming companies like Rovio have more employees and Candy Crush hitmaker King Digital has 1200 employees.

Cyanogen, the mobile operating system startup looking to take down Google has raised another $80 million from venture capitalists.

The company says it will use the funds to hire developers and to "accelerate the development" of its open OS platform.

"We're committed to creating an open computing platform that fundamentally empowers the entire mobile ecosystem from developers to hardware makers, and most importantly, consumers around the world," said Kirt McMaster, CEO of Cyanogen Inc. "We're excited to have the backing of an amazingly diverse group of strategic investors who are supporting us in building a truly open Android."

"We invested in Cyanogen because we're big proponents of what they're doing in opening up Android and supporting global and local ecosystem players," said Sandesh Patnam, Technology Sector Lead of Premji Invest. "Cyanogen is well positioned to become the 3rd leading mobile OS, and we're excited to back them in growing their business on a global scale."

With the new funding, Cyanogen has now raised $110 million.

While many cool tech projects have appeared on crowdfunding sites like Indiegogo and Kickstarter, there are only some that reach beyond the niche and appeal to a wide range of consumers.

One such project is the new WonderCube, a tiny piece of hardware that promises "8 mobile essentials in One Cubic Inch."

The WonderCube combines a built-in Lightning or microUSB cable, a stand, a microSD slot and an LED torch all-in one, which allows for emergency charging, syncing to PCs, and more, all from a tiny cube that fits on your keychain.

Take a look at the WonderCube here, as it campaigns at $49 ($20 off expected retail):

Last week, HTC broke the news that their old HTC One M7 phone would not get the update to Android 5.1 unless you had the Google Play Edition.

The decision was not too surprising since HTC guarantees Android updates for just the first two years of a device's life, but there were still a large amount of M7 owners who were saddened at the news.

When the phone launched in 2013, it started with Android 4.1.2 and currently runs Lollipop 5.0, which is a lot more than can be said for other devices released in the last two years.

HTC's Mo Versi did change his tune a bit after the backlash, explaining "I heard you all on M7 5.1 for Carrier versions. Many of the fixes are already in our current SW, but understand your concerns. Stay tuned."

That's not a guarantee the phone will get the update, but it's better than nothing.

According to a new poll, Iceland has a new top political party - the Pirate Party.

24 percent of citizens would vote for a Pirate candidate today, read the poll, and founder Rick Falkvinge called the result an "extraordinary accomplishment."

First established in 2006 in Sweden, the Pirate Party has been at the forefront of discussions on copyright reform, privacy and freedom of speech.

In Iceland, the party launched about 30 months ago, and in the previous poll, only 13 percent of respondendts would have voted for a Pirate candidate. Independence party candidates were nearly as popular, at 23.4 percent, down from 25.5 percent previously. The Social Democratic Alliance polled at 15.5 percent followed by the Progressive Party at 11 percent.

"People are sick of traditional politics and the revolving doors. They are hopefully ready for more responsibility for that is one of our main aims, to create platforms for people to be more engaged via direct democracy. People seem to like that we speak like other people and behave like ordinary people," added Pirate MP Birgitta Jónsdóttir.

According to reports, Universal Music Group - the world's largest label, is pressuring Spotify to limit its free streaming service that is used by over 50 million people.

The label is starting to rethink the popular 'freemium' model of streaming services like Spotify, which offers access to tens of millions of songs for free, with limited ads.

UMG CEO Lucian Grainge even stated last month that "Ad-funded on-demand is not going to sustain the entire ecosystem of the creators as well as the investors." Grainge hopes that more restrictions on the free streaming will push consumers to purchase a premium subscription that costs $10 per month and gives unlimited ad-free music and mobile access.

New reports claim that it isn't just UMG who is pushing for some change. Sony and Warner are both said to be souring on freemium, but may not be pressuring Spotify currently.

Streaming brings billions in revenue, but it seems the labels want a better conversion rate to premium subscriptions.

Sony is offering another flash sale on PlayStation titles, including PSOne, PS3, PSP and PS Vita titles.

Some games are discounted as low as $0.80, down from prices ranging from $4.99 to $19.99.

The Deals Under $1 Flash Sale ends at 9:00 a.m. Pacific on Monday, March 23.

The full list of games (Game, Console, Sale Price, Retail Price):

Babel Rising PS3 $0.90 $9.99
Back to the Future : The Game – Full Series PS3 $0.80 $19.99
BEJEWELED 3 PS3 $0.95 $4.99
Beta Bloc PSP/PS Vita $0.95 $4.99
BREATH OF FIRE IV PS3/PSP/PS Vita $0.96 $5.99
CHAMPIONSHIP BASS PS3 $0.96 $5.99
Cloudberry Kingdom PS3 $0.90 $9.99
Dead Head Fred PSP/PS Vita $0.90 $9.99
Dead Nation PS3 $0.88 $7.99
Dead Nation Apocalypse Edition PS4 $0.90 $14.99
Despicable Me: The Game PSP/PS Vita $0.90 $9.99
Dino Crisis PS3/PSP/PS Vita $0.96 $5.99
Dino Crisis 2 PS3/PSP/PS Vita $0.96 $5.99
Eat Lead: The Return of Matt Hazzard PS3 $0.90 $9.99
echochrome PS3 $0.90 $9.99
EXTREME PINBALL PS3 $0.96 $5.99
FEEDING FRENZY 2 PS3 $0.95 $4.99
Ferrari: The Race Experience PS3 $0.90 $14.99
Fighting Force PS3/PSP/PS Vita $0.96 $5.99
Flashback PS3 $0.90 $9.99
Galaga Legions DX PS3 $0.90 $9.99
Game of Thrones PS3 $0.80 $19.99
Gravity Rush PS Vita $0.81 $13.49
Heavy Fire Afghanistan PS3 $0.90 $14.99
Heavy Fire Shattered Spear PS3 $0.90 $9.99
HI-OCTANE PS3 $0.96 $5.99
Home – A Unique Horror Adventure PS4 $0.95 $4.99
ibb & obb PS3 $0.90 $9.99
Jurassic Park : The Game – Full Season PS3 $0.80 $19.99
Katamari Damacy PS3 $0.90 $9.99
Klonoa : Door to Phantomile PS1 $0.96 $5.99
Kurulin Fusion PSP $0.95 $4.99
Mad Riders PS3 $0.90 $9.99
MAGIC CARPET PS3 $0.96 $5.99
Matt Hazard: Blood Bath and Beyond PS3 $0.90 $9.99
Mega Man X4 (PSOne Classic) PS3/PSP/PS Vita $0.96 $5.99
Mega Man X5 PS3/PSP/PS Vita $0.96 $5.99
Mortal Kombat Arcade Kollection PS3 $0.90 $9.99
Myst PSP/PS Vita $0.84 $11.99
Narco Terror PS3 $0.90 $9.99
NOBY NOBY BOY PS3 $0.95 $4.99
NUCLEAR STRIKE PS1 CLASSIC PSX $0.96 $5.99
PAC-MAN Championship Edition DX+ Full Version PS3 $0.90 $9.99
PAYDAY The Heist PS3 $0.90 $14.99
Poker Night 2 PS3 $0.90 $9.99
POPULOUS THE BEGINNING PS3 $0.96 $5.99
Puzzle Agent PS3 $0.90 $9.99
RIPD PS3 $0.90 $9.99
Rock of Ages PS3 $0.90 $9.99
Sacred Citadel PS3 $0.90 $9.99
Sam & Max: Beyond Time and Space – Full Season PS3 $0.80 $19.99
Sam & Max: The Devil's Playhouse PS3 $0.80 $19.99
Shoot Many Robots PS3 $0.90 $9.99
SOVIET STRIKE PS3 $0.96 $5.99
Star Wars : Battlefront II PSP $0.90 $9.99
Streetkix PSP/PS Vita $0.84 $11.99
Super Pocket Tennis PSP/PS Vita $0.95 $4.99
Surgeon Simulator: A&E Anniversary Edition PS4 $0.91 $12.99
Syphon Filter PS3/PSP/PS Vita $0.96 $5.99
Syphon Filter 3 PS3/PSP/PS Vita $0.96 $5.99
TAC Heroes PSP/PS Vita $0.84 $11.99
Tales from Space PS3/PS Vita $0.96 $7.99
Tales of Monkey Island PS3 $0.80 $19.99
Tekken 2 PS3/PSP/PS Vita $0.96 $5.99
Tennis in the Face PS4 $0.95 $4.99
Texas Cheat'em PS3 $0.90 $9.99
The Expendables 2 PS3 $0.90 $14.99
THEME PARK PS3 $0.96 $5.99
Tokyo Jungle PS3 $0.90 $14.99
Twisted Metal: Black PS3 $0.90 $9.99
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire Special Editions US PS3 $0.90 $9.99
Who Wants To Be A Movie Millionaire PS3 $0.99 $2.99
Wild Arms PS3/PSP/PS Vita $0.96 $5.99
Zeno Clash 2 PS3 $0.90 $14.99
ZUMA PS3 $0.95 $4.99

According to the WSJ, high level Federal Trade Commission officials recommended a lawsuit against Google back in 2012 over anti-competitive practices, but eventually dropped the request in 2013.

The FTC went as far as to say that the search giant had a monopoly on the Internet, and was abusing its power.

Staff members blasted the company in a 160-page critique, concluding that Google's "conduct has resulted--and will result--in real harm to consumers and to innovation in the online search and advertising markets."

In 2013, however, FTC commissioners voted unanimously to end any investigation after Google made voluntary changes to its practices. It also appears that the FTC's economic bureau did not favor legal action against Google, so the commissioners had multiple conflicting reports to deal with.

See more here: Inside the U.S. Antitrust Probe of Google

In a Swiss luxury watch conference the company called Vector introduced an interesting timepiece. Unlike the traditional smartwatches that last a day or two without a charge this one lasts a whole month.

Vector is bringing two different versions of their smartwatch to the market. The more expensive and round Luna starts at $349 while the more affordable and rectangular Meridian will start from as low as $199.

What gives an edge over Apple Watch – if the 40 times better battery life isn't enough for you – is that Luna and Meridian will be supported on iOS, Android as well as Windows devices.

Vector did not disclose what type of operating system their smartwatches run and other details are scarce as well. You'll also have to wait until late summer to get your hands on one.

Engadget reports that Vertex – company lead by a former Timex CEO Joe Santana – will be bringing more premier models to the market later on. Maybe there's a version to compete against the golden Apple Watch selling for over 10 000 dollars.

According to a new report, Apple is preparing to launch a new Apple TV at this year's WWDC in June.

If accurate, Apple will also unveil a full App Store and a software development kit specifically for the Apple TV, giving developers a chance to truly develop for the platform.

While there is little known about what the new box will do, the report claims that Apple is aiming not just at the TV but at the living room in general. "Think TV, music, apps and a little bit of home automation as well," says the report.

To be expected is an upgrade to the Apple A8 chipset, a huge increase in internal storage, Siri voice control and Homekit-enabled home automation support.

Rumors of a new Apple TV have increased significantly in the last few weeks after Apple announced a price drop on its current (2012) model, to $69 from $99.

Music streaming service Deezer has launched its 'Elite' HD offering globally, following a beta period in the U.S.

Deezer normally costs $9.99 per month for unlimited streaming of 35 million tracks in standard 256kbps quality, and the Elite package costs $14.99 per month and gives access to all tracks as FLAC encoded at 1,411kbps or better.

The tracks can also be streamed to your mobile device, if they can handle FLAC.

Deezer is relatively small compared to Spotify and Rdio, but still has 16 million monthly users and 6 million premium subscribers.

Source:
TechCrunch

Last year, Sony was hit by one of the more vicious cyber attacks in corporate history, with terabytes of data stolen and splashed across the Web, including tens of thousands of private emails.

The attack will end up costing the company about $15 million this quarter, but the Sony Pictures division still managed to post a profit for the quarter.

Importantly, the company says the impact of the attack for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2015, "will not be material."

Overall sales fell 20 percent year-over-year to $1.79 billion and operating profit fell 79 percent year-over-year to $53 million as there were no huge hits with the exception of 'Fury.'

Yesterday, Windows VP Terry Myerson shocked the world when it announced that even Chinese pirates of the operating system would get a free upgrade to Windows 10 when it launches over the summer.

Since the initial announcement, Microsoft's PR team has kicked into high gear, adding some caveats to the news.

First, the offer is actually good for everyone around the world, not just China, so every market of pirates can get on the upgrade to Windows 10. Secondly, and admittedly a bit more confusingly, Microsoft just said this, as well: