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Microsoft has announced today that it will pull out from the Consumer Electronics Show after this year's event.

Spokesman Frank Shaw adds that the company will not complete avoid the event, meaning no keynote presentation and no booth: "We'll continue to participate in CES as a great place to connect with partners and customers across the PC, phone and entertainment industries, but we won't have a keynote or booth after this year because our product news milestones generally don't align with the show's January timing."

Microsoft is following the trend Apple and Google started years ago, having their own smaller shows instead of being part of larger events.

The Consumer Electronics Association confirmed Microsoft's move (via Cnet):
"Both CEA and Microsoft have agreed that the time has come to end this great run, and so Microsoft will not have a keynote at the 2013 CES. Microsoft is an important member of CEA and we wish them all the best as they evolve their plans for new ways to tell consumer stories."

The first Android 4.0.1 ROM with HTC Sense has been leaked today.

Rather than a "vanilla" experience like the Galaxy Nexus, HTC adds their Sense UI overlay to Android, and their Ice Cream Sandwich update will be no different.

The new ROM will keep Sense 3.5, with the company's well known unlock screen and direct app launcher shortcuts. The power widget seems to have been updated for ICS, with on/off toggles for Wi-Fi, 4G, etc.

This initial leak is definitely an unfinished version of the update, which will likely see a large overhaul and polished features. HTC has said its devices will get the update in the Q1 2012.

Regardless, the ROM is available here: [ROM][★★ICS★★][Sense 3.5][21 Dec]RCMix ICE v1.0, First Sense Android 4.0.1 rom!!!

21-year-old Chicago resident Andre Curry has been arrested an charged with battery less than a week after he posted a picture on Facebook of his child with bound wrists, ankles, and tape over her mouth.

The caption for the photo said "This is wut happens wen my baby hits me back. ;)" The girl is reportedly just 22 months old.

TheDirty.com brought the picture to the national spotlight, asking users to call Chicago PD and report the photo.

Curry has been charged with aggravated domestic battery, and needs to be in court today.

The photo has been taken down.

Multiple sources today are reporting that Amazon, Microsoft and Nokia all considered purchasing struggling BlackBerry smartphone maker RIM before backing out.

Amazon was allegedly having casual talks with the Canadian company over the summer, but never formally bid. Supposedly, Microsoft and Nokia mulled over a joint offer, but never formally bid, either.

The company has struggled for years now as Android and iOS take its U.S. market share. The once hallowed smartphone maker has fallen from over 45 percent U.S. smartphone share, to 9.5 percent this year. The trend is expected to continue down into the foreseeable future, especially as Nokia and Microsoft push their Windows Phone platform.

Recently, RIM delayed their BlackBerry 10-based phones until the end of 2012, effectively killing any momentum they hoped to gain from the recent launch of their BlackBerry 7 devices. The company noted that they were delaying the launch of the BlackBerry 10 devices as they wait for the production of dual-core chips with LTE support. RIM had initially planned to release the phones in February-April and had decent hype.

The NFL has announced that it will stream some of this year's playoffs, including the Super Bowl, via NFL.com and NBCSports.com.

Additionally, the games will be available on Verizon smartphones if you have the NFL Mobile app. If you have a 4G data plan, the app is free, but if you have a 3G-capable device only, Verizon Video subscriptions cost $10 per month.

Outside of the Super Bowl, fans can watch Wild Card Saturday and the Pro Bowl.

The NBC Sports live stream will have different ads than those seen on TV, but fans can watch the commercials on demand within hours.

Fans can watch the NFL Super Bowl on February 5th.

Android just keeps on growing.

Google's Andy Rubin has stated this week that the platform is now seeing 700,000 activations per day. The Android Chief posted the figure on his Google+ account.

In May, the company revealed 400,000 devices were being activated daily, which jumped to 500,000 in June and then 550,000 in July.

Overall, Google has activated over 220 million Android devices, in total. The figure jumped from 100 million in June.

Major rival Apple said in October that there had been over 250 million iOS devices activated. Android should surpass that in the next few months.

With the ink barely dry on the ITC order to ban their Android smartphones found to be infringing on an Apple patent, HTC announced a workaround.

As we pointed out yesterday, HTC can avoid the ban entirely by removing the infringing (Android) code related to the patent. That code is what allows a user to select a piece of information and use it in an app such as the dialer or Google Maps.

Speaking to the media, and joined by Google Senior Vice President Andy Rubin, HTC's Peter Chou announced that the company is already testing new phones which work around the patented technology. He also criticized Apple, saying [via Reuters]:

This industry should not allow one company use its powerful weapon to stop other innovation and take it all...this is not fair.

In reality all Apple has accomplished is forcing Google, along with HTC and their other partners, to spend more money to ensure Android devices can continue to include features they already have. The irony is it is probably costing Apple just as much as anyone else.

In September Sony made a major change to the TOS (Terms Of Service) for the PlayStation Network to prevent subscribers from participating in class action lawsuits.

It was obvious at the time that the change was a reaction to multiple data breaches experienced by the company. By preventing class action lawsuits, they clearly hoped to avoid losses from lawsuits over any future negligence on their part.

Under the terms of the new agreement, any PSN subscriber who wished to retain the right to join a class action lawsuit in the future would be required to contact Sony and opt out of this particular clause within 30 days of agreeing to it.

In the case of a data breach due to Sony negligence, that would mean each individual subscriber would have to file a separate lawsuit in order to collect any damages.

Now Gamespot is reporting a California man has responded to the change with a class action lawsuit. They say he claims the clause was hidden 21 pages into the agreement, making it unlikely those agreeing to it would ever notice.

As rumors fly that Warner is trying to delay new releases in Redbox kiosks by more than two additional weeks, one analyst is suggesting they are overestimating their leverage.

The introduction of 28 day delays between the time titles are released for sale and when they are offered for rental is a scheme the studios came up with in 2009. It is intended to be an incentive for consumers to buy discs which can't yet be rented.

Although Netflix was the first company to agree to these windows, Redbox was the studios' primary target because of their presence in major retail chains. Not surprisingly, disc sales have not made the resurgence predicted by the studios.

The deals were pushed through largely by backroom deals between the studios and companies supplying discs to rental outlets. According to Eric Wold, an analyst with B. Riley & Co, over the last several months Redbox has worked out a strategy to get around those arrangements.

Home Media Magazine recently reported about an investor note in which he wrote:

More revelations are coming to light about who is illegally downloaded pirated content via the website YouHaveDownloaded, and this time it appears to be RIAA employees.

YouHaveDownloaded.com maintains a database of downloads via BitTorrent and the IP address associated with each one. Since most Internet users have dynamic IP addresses, which may change at any time, it is likely inaccurate in most cases.

However, some IP addresses aren't dynamic. Typically corporations, governments, and other large organizations use static IP addresses which don't change. Assuming the database contains good information, it should be relatively accurate for those using such IP addresses.

Last week TorrentFreak revealed that IP addreses used by several major studios and also French President Nicholas Sarkozy were linked to illegal downloads. Now they have added the RIAA and US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to that list.

This is particularly ironic considering the RIAA has sued countless people for alleged illegal downloading using nothing more than an IP address to identify them. In a statement to CNET, the organization denied TorrentFreak's claim, saying:

LightSquared, a company hoping to build a wholesale mobile network with 4G data capabilities, has apparently given up on approval from the NTIA (National Telecommunications and Information Administration) and is trying to force the FCC to allow them to launch their service.

LightSquared's problems stem from a decision to use frequencies originally licensed for satellite communication for a terrestrial network. Because of the significantly higher power used for terrestrial communications, this results in interference with existing GPS signals on adjacent frequencies.

Earlier this year LightSquared's network was approved by the FCC, but that approval was conditional. Among the FCC's conditions was that LightSquared satisfy the NTIA that potential GPS problems were solved. The NTIA has conducted two rounds of testing, and so far LightSquared's network has failed both, meaning they have not met the FCC's conditions.

Apparently abandoning the hope of getting NTIA approval, LightSquared has now petitioned the FCC asking for unconditional approval on the grounds the GPS industry demands they pay for modifications to existing equipment. These modifications were designed at LightSquared's request, and are apparently the only solution they have been able to identify.

According to the latest figures from Enterbrain, the PS Vita is selling well in Japan.

The highly-anticipated handheld went on sale in the nation on Saturday, and Enterbrain says 321,000 units were sold in its first 48 hours of availability.

Although the sales were high, Sony had allegedly ordered 500,000 initial units, meaning the console is not selling up to internal expectations. Sony had even been rumored to be increasing its initial shipments to 700,000 units.

In comparison (via 1up), the original PSP sold 166,000 units in its first 2 days, and more recently the Nintendo 3DS sold 371,000 units in the same time frame.

Sales may be hindered due to issues experienced by early buyers, with many complaining of a non-responsive screen and freezing during gameplay. Sony has since released a firmware update and apologized.

Earlier this week, AT&T quit its $39 billion bid for T-Mobile after government and corporate opposition would have made it almost impossible to complete the acquisition.

Because of the failed bid, AT&T will have to give money and other "goodies" to T-Mobile parent Deutsche Telekom. Today, we have more details on what the company will receive.

First, AT&T will pay a $3 billion breakup fee (the largest ever), which it will pay in the next week. Additionally, the company must agree to "a large package of mobile communications spectrum and a long-term agreement on UMTS roaming within the U.S. for T-Mobile USA, all of which is worth about $1 billion," says Cnet.

T-Mobile will get new spectrum in 128 markets, including most of the major markets including Los Angeles, Dallas, Houston, Atlanta, Washington, D.C., Boston, San Francisco, Phoenix, San Diego, Denver, Baltimore and Seattle.

On the roaming end, T-Mobile will get to roam on the AT&T network for the next 7 years.

Lady Gaga had her Twitter account hacked yesterday, leaving 17 million fans with spam links promising "free iPads."

The tweet from the musician's account read: "Monsters, I'm giving away FREE iPad2's to each one of you in the spirit of the holidays :) Go to bit.ly/s5MTqM to receive one!" Bit.ly was quick to update the link and flag it, but the hackers posted another one, this time promising free Macbooks.

Finally, Gaga (or her PR team) took back the account, tweeting: "Phew! The hacking is over! And just in time, I'm on my way to Japan! So excited to spend Xmastime with my TokyoMonsters!"

The damage was done, apparently, as 7000 fans did click the link, and a few even retweeted the message. Additionally, singers Nelly Furtado and Nicole Scherzinger were hit my same hacker(s), with their accounts offering free Apple products too.

Skype has said this week it will be making free Wi-Fi available at over 50 airports in the U.S.

The promotion goes live today and will last through December 27th. The company says the promo is supported on PC, Macs and iOS devices. There was no word on Android.

Using the Wi-Fi, users can make video or voice calls with the VoIP service.

For a map of the airports, check the attached picture. Most of the major airports, like NY, Atlanta, Boston, DC, Miami and Chicago are included.

Skype gives instructions (via Cnet):

-Sign in to Skype.
-Go to Tools | Options | Skype Wi-Fi Access.
-Click the check box to Enable Skype Wi-Fi Access.
-Connect to a Wi-Fi public hot spot.
-In the Skype menu bar, click Tools | Skype Wi-Fi Access.
-Follow the instructions to join a compatible public Wi-Fi network.
-The free Wi-Fi can come in handy, especially around the holidays. Though more airports have been adding Wi-Fi coverage, some offer it only in certain terminals or specific areas.