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At CES, Samsung followed in LG's footsteps in unveiling a 55-inch OLED TV for the masses.

Differentiating the TV is its "Super OLED" panel which "has self-emitting RGB sub-pixels and is faster than LED," says the company. OLED panels will provide "accurate color reproduction and 'true-to-life picture quality,'" and the OLED display will "virtually eliminate motion blur," as well, noted Samsung, at the time.

Furthermore, the TV included Samsung's newly introduced "Smart Interaction" technology, which includes an integrated webcam and two mics for motion and voice control. For example, you can turn on/off the TV, raise the volume, use some apps, facial recognition and even search via the built-in browser using the interface. The TV will be powered by a dual-core processor.

Today, Samsung has said the TV will be available "during the second half of this year in the domestic market" (meaning South Korea) at an equivalent cost of $9000 USD, making it more than double the price of the next most expensive 55-inch display in the market.

Apple and Foxconn have announced today they will share the initial costs of improving Chinese factories where millions of iOS devices are built.

Foxconn CEO Terry Gou would not give a figure on the costs but with over 1 million workers the upgrades will certainly not come cheap. Adds the exec:

"We've discovered that this (improving factory conditions) is not a cost. It is a competitive strength. I believe Apple sees this as a competitive strength along with us, and so we will split the initial costs."

In February, wages were raised, on average, 21 percent for its workers and last month the two companies reached an agreement to hire new workers and cut overtime for existing workers.

Foxconn has become infamous for a string of suicides in 2010 and 2011 in which workers killed themselves to have their families collect on a higher payout than they would have made in years of working.

According to multiple sources, Microsoft has been pitching their Windows Phone platform to Facebook in an effort to bring a joint venture smartphone to the market.

It is unclear how far any discussions have gone, but the partnership does make sense given the two companies share similar rivals in Apple and Google.

Windows Phone, despite a high-profile release, has only managed to take 2 percent of the smartphone market, falling well behind Android and iOS.

Microsoft's latest devices (built by Nokia) have been selling better than expected in the U.S. but are barely moving overseas.

Facebook has over 900 million users and significant brand loyalty so exploring a partnership, at least, could do wonders for both companies.

RIM has announced today that the U.S. Department of Defense has approved agency use of a number of BlackBerry 7 smartphones.

After successful testing by U.S. Army and Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) sponsors and partners, the following phones are now listed on DISA's Unified Communications Approved Product List (UCAPL):

BlackBerry Bold 9900 and 9930 (touch screen with keyboard)
BlackBerry Torch 9810 (touch screen with slide out keyboard)
BlackBerry Torch 9850 and 9860 (full screen touch screen)
BlackBerry Curve 9360 (keyboard)

"The Army introduced a wide range of new apps and capabilities for their BlackBerry users last year, and these new BlackBerry 7 smartphones will now enable Army users, and all DoD users, to experience an even greater level of performance on new smartphones that include features such as voice activated universal search, Near Field Communications, Augmented Reality, and Social Feeds 2.0 just to name a few," says Scott Totzke, SVP, BlackBerry Security Group at RIM. "RIM's unwavering focus on security and RIM's achievement of key security certifications including FIPS 140-2 validation and Common Criteria EAL4+ accreditation continue to be very important to many of our DoD and enterprise customers, but leveraging the full power of BlackBerry smartphones is also important as it helps them realize the full potential of their investment in the BlackBerry platform."

Samsung has purchased the cloud music and movie provider mSpot for $9 million.

The service will be prominently featured in Samsung's ecosystem including being added to all upcoming Samsung phones and tablets as a "featured app."

"mSpot shares our vision to bring a best-in-class cloud and streaming entertainment experience to consumers, and they've backed it up with innovative technical solutions from a great engineering team," added TJ Kang, senior vice president of Samsung Electronics' media solution center.

The service allows users to upload their own music and stream it wherever there is an Internet connection, similar to Google Music. Users are also given 5GB free storage and unlimited access on one mobile device.

If you have an Android device, playing a song will also launch a related streaming music station, similar to Pandora or Slacker.

This morning, a report hit the wire that AOL was looking to sell its popular Engadget and TechCrunch tech content sites.

AOL CEO Tim Armstrong has denied the report, claiming it is "100 percent untrue."

Adds Armstrong: "We are planning to invest in those properties, not sell them." The CEO did note that he had held discussions with other companies for investment opportunities but it seems that AOL will invest in the blogs itself.

TechCrunch backed the story, as well, noting "a gaggle of Aol folks decided it might be smart to turn TC, Engadget and some other tech properties (including some yet to be acquired) into a separate company/entity, valued at $200 million. Eventually, as Armstrong alludes to in [the] Ad Age article, the plan was scrapped."

The site then criticized the editor of the original report, who happened to be a former TC writer: "We figure this story got skewed because PandoDaily is going through its own troubles, and looking for a target to project its drama onto; Sometimes not wanting to seem weak makes you seem weak."

Microsoft has updated two of its most popular Xbox Live apps today.

The MLB.tv app, which launched in March in North America, will now be pushed to 18 new nations. Those countries are Australia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Czech Republic, France, Germany, India, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Poland, the Russian Federation, South Africa, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom.

Gamers in those nations can now install the premium app and gain access to live and on-demand MLB games.

The free CinenaNow app has also been updated to include new release movies and TV shows. The app gives users access to premium video content, either for rental or for purchase.

Says MajorNelson: "Today, the CinemaNow app in the U.S. will be offer instant access to an extensive library of premium video content for rental and purchase, featuring new release movies and TV shows with no subscription required."

Apple has confirmed the third-generation iPad will be headed to 30 new nations next week.

On May 11th, the tablet will reach Argentina, Aruba, Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, Cambodia, Chile, Costa Rica, Curacao, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Jamaica, Kenya, Madagascar, Malta, Martinique, Mauritius, Morocco, Peru, Taiwan, Tunisia, and Vietnam.

The next day, Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates will get access to the popular device.

Apple's latest, which adds a more powerful processor and Retina Display, saw strong sales last quarter for the company. The LTE device saw 3 million sales in its first weekend and continues to see millions sold per month.

Not every app makes enough, not even close.

Stories like that of of the billion-dollar Instagram sale have put a lot of focus on the mobile app space. Research conducted by App Promo will probably dampen hopes for a lot of developers looking to become the next millionaires.

It found that more than 59 percent of apps do not generate enough revenue to break even. Only 12 percent of mobile app developers earn $50,000 or more for their apps, most of which have budgets around $30,000 for development, and also spend on average 14% of the revenue on marketing.

"With over a million applications in the market across platforms, app publishers are finding it increasingly challenging to cut through the noise and get their apps discovered and downloaded," the firm wrote in its white paper.

"Those developers that spend money and time on marketing outside of the app stores found the most success based on the revenue they had earned for their app. This core finding echoes what we believe as a leading app marketing and strategy firm, that in order to make an app a successful business you need to ensure that you have a budget and time allocated to marketing and promoting your app."

HTML5 can unlock apps from specific operating systems.

Mozilla CEO Gary Kovacs spoke at the CTIA trade show, arguing that HTML5 can free mobile users from limits of operating systems. He likened the current situation to the days when AOL had its customers in a "walled garden", but ultimately users decided to move away.

"In the early days of AOL we were within their walls," he said. "And it all worked great until it didn't." The next chapter of the Internet was "open", he said, and predicted that it is also the next step for mobile users.

"The Web grew by an order of magnitude," he said. "The shift changed our world. Humans don't like walls. We want to wander. And we want freedom."

Over 64% of the time users spend on their smartphones, they are using some specific app. Kovacs also admitted that browser providers, like Mozilla, have failed to innovate for the mobile space. "All we've done is shrinkage," he said, pointing out also that only 10 percent of websites are optimized for mobile screens.

Countless billions of green pigs slaughtered.

Rovio is celebrating a huge milestone for its baby, Angry Birds. Combining all versions of the game, free and premium, Angry Birds, Angry Birds Seasons, Angry Birds Rio, and Angry Birds Space, the phenomenon now accounts for over one billion downloads.

"We are so thankful to all of our fans for their support, and we can?t wait for them to see what we have coming up," said Rovio communications specialist Sini Matikainen.

Angry Birds exploded in popularity shortly after its 2009 launch for iOS devices. It is one of the most profitable games in history.

Operators upset about an "unfair race."

Everything Everywhere asked Ofcom - the UK communications regulator - to allow it to use some of its existing spectrum to roll out next generation 4G services in the region. Ofcom had a consultation period while it is considering EE's request, and of course, all three main rivals attacked the proposal.

O2, Vodafone and Three all expressed their opposition to the plan, calling it unfair and questioning the regulators goals for competition in the market.

"We are concerned that Ofcom's proposal to allow one operator to launch 4G early on its existing spectrum is contradictory to its objective of delivering a competitive market environment with four competing players," an O2 spokesman told the BBC.

Vodafone said that permission for EE to use existing spectrum for next generation services would represent an unfair race.

"We can't understand why Ofcom would ignore the overwhelming evidence that giving Everything Everywhere a head start could seriously undermine competition in the UK market," Vodafone said in a statement. "Put simply, why is it that the French and German runners should be allowed to start the 4G race whilst the British runner is still chained to the starting blocks? Is that what we can expect at the forthcoming Olympics?"

Norwegian teens charged with cyber crimes.

An 18 year old and a 19 year old have been arrested by police in Norway in connection with cyber attacks against several targets across the world, including Britain's Serious Online Crime Agency (Soca). Other victims reportedly include the Norwegian lottery, the Bild newspaper in Germany and several American websites.

The National Criminal Investigation Service (NCIS) in Norway said it was investigation distributed denial of service (ddos) attacks against websites over a period of a few weeks.

"The case is still under investigation," said Norwegian prosecutor Erik Moestue. "It is still too early to say anything about the motive for the actions."

"We have arrested the two we think were most important in these attacks, but we still want to talk to more people," he added. Two two teens arrested in the case so far were charged last week. The maximum penalty for their alleged crimes is six years imprisonment.

Irrational Games needs more time, money.

The third instalment of the mega-popular BioShock series has been pushed back until next year, it was announced today. Its developer, Irrational Games, said it needs more time and money to complete the eagerly anticipated title.

BioShock Infinite was originally due to go on sale in October this year, but has been pushed to February 26, 2013. "Bioshock Infinite is a very big game, and we're doing things no-one has ever done in a first-person shooter," said game designer Ken Levine.

"We had a similar experience with the original Bioshock which was delayed several months. Irrational Games is one of those rare developers lucky enough to ask the people who sign the cheques: 'Hey, can we have a few more."

The delay means that BioShock Infinite will avoid head-on launch competition with other heavyweights, such as Halo 4 and Call of Duty: Black Ops 2.

BioShock Infinite moves the gamer from below the waves and into a Sky city environment with an ongoing civil war between an ultranationalist ruling class and a resistance movement. At the E3 conference last year, a preview of BioShock Infinite won the Best of Show award, and received praise from critics.

Microsoft becomes seventh core member.

Hybrid Memory Cube is a revolutionary innovation in DRAM memory architecture that sets a new standard for memory performance. To help develop the new technology, Micron and Samsung lead a consortium of industry players for research and development.

Microsoft has become the seventh core member of the consortium. "The Cube represents a major step forward in the direction of increasing memory bandwidth and performance, while decreasing the energy and latency for moving data between the memory arrays and the processor cores," said KD Hallman, general manager of Microsoft?s strategic software/silicon architectures group.

The consortium lists some potential benefits from Hybrid Memory Cube usage, such as..

• HMC Combines high-speed logic process technology with a stack of through-silicon-via (TSV) bonded memory die.
• HMC delivers dramatic improvements in performance, breaking through the memory wall and enabling dramatic performance and bandwidth improvements - a single HMC can provide more than 15x the performance of a DDR3 module.
• The revolutionary architecture of HMC is exponentially more efficient than current memory, utilizing 70% less energy per bit than DDR3 DRAM technologies..
• Hybrid Memory Cube's increased density per bit and reduced form factor contribute to lower total cost of ownership, by allowing more memory into each machine and using nearly 90% less space than today's RDIMMs.

Hybrid Memory Cube represents the key to extending network system performance to push through the challenges of new 100G and 400G infrastructure growth. Eventually, HMC will drive exascale CPU system performance growth for next generation HPC systems.