Indicted Megaupload founder opens new sharing site

Indicted Megaupload founder opens new sharing site — Indicted Megaupload founder Kim Dotcom launched a new file-sharing website that promises users greater privacy and defies the U.S. prosecutors who accuse him of facilitating massive online piracy.

The colorful entrepreneur unveiled the "Mega" site ahead of a lavish gala and news conference at his New Zealand mansion on Sunday night, the anniversary of his arrest on racketeering charges related to his now-shuttered Megaupload file-sharing site. The site Dotcom started in 2005 was one of the most popular sites on the Web until U.S. prosecutors shut it down and accused him and several company officials of facilitating millions of illegal downloads.

Associated Press/New Zealand Herald, Richard Robinson - Indicted Megaupload founder Kim Dotcom appears on a large screen during the launch of a new file-sharing website called "Mega" at his Coatesville mansion in Auckland, New Zealand, Sunday, Jan. 20, 2013. The colorful entrepreneur unveiled the site ahead of a lavish gala and press conference on the anniversary of his arrest on racketeering charges related to his now-shuttered Megaupload file-sharing site. (AP Photo/New Zealand Herald, Richard Robinson) New Zealand Out, Australia Out

In Dotcom's typical grandiose style, the launch party featured a tongue-in-cheek re-enactment of the dramatic raid on his home a year earlier, when New Zealand police swooped down in helicopters onto the mansion grounds and nabbed him in a safe room where he was hiding.

"Mega is going to be huge, and nothing will stop Mega — whoo!" a gleeful Dotcom bellowed from a giant stage set up in his yard, seconds before a helicopter roared overhead and faux police agents rappelled down the side of his mansion. Dotcom eventually ordered everyone to "stop this madness!" before breaking out into a dance alongside miniskirt-clad "guards" as music boomed.

Bravado aside, interest in the site was certainly high. Dotcom said half a million users registered for Mega in its first 14 hours.

U.S. authorities are trying to extradite the German-born Internet tycoon from New Zealand, where he is free on bail. Prosecutors say Dotcom made tens of millions of dollars while filmmakers and songwriters lost around $500 million in copyright revenue.

U.S. prosecutors declined to comment on the new site, referring only to a court document that cites several promises Dotcom made while seeking bail that he would not — and could not — start a Megaupload-style business until the criminal case was resolved.

"I can assure the Court that I have no intention and there is no risk of my reactivating the Megaupload.com website or establishing a similar Internet-based business during the period until the resolution of the extradition proceedings," Dotcom said in a Feb. 15, 2012, affidavit.

Dotcom argues that he can't be held responsible for copyright infringement committed by others and insists Megaupload complied with copyrights by removing links to pirated material when asked.

"Our company and assets were taken away from us without a hearing," Dotcom said. "The privacy of our users was intruded on, communications were taken offline and free speech was attacked. Let me be clear to those who use copyright law as a weapon to drown innovation and stifle competition: You will be left on the side of the road of history."

Mega, like Megaupload, allows users to store and share large files. It offers 50 gigabytes of free storage, much more than similar sites such as Dropbox and Google Drive, and features a drag-and-drop upload tool.

The key difference is an encryption and decryption feature for data transfers that Dotcom says will protect him from the legal drama that has entangled Megaupload and threatened to put him behind bars.

The decryption keys for uploaded files are held by the users, not Mega, which means the company can't see what's in the files being shared. Dotcom argues that Mega — which bills itself as "the privacy company" — therefore can't be held liable for content it cannot see.

"What he's trying to do is give himself a second-string argument: 'Even if I was wrong before, this one's all right because how can I control something if I don't know that it's there?'" said Sydney attorney Charles Alexander, who specializes in intellectual property law. "I can understand the argument; whether it would be successful or not is another matter."

To Dotcom, the concept is very simple.

"If someone sends something illegal in an envelope through your postal service," he says, "you don't shut down the post office."

The Motion Picture Association of America, which filed complaints about alleged copyright infringement by Megaupload, was not impressed.

"We are still reviewing how this new project will operate, but we do know that Kim Dotcom has built his career and his fortune on stealing creative works," the MPAA said in a statement. "We'll reserve final judgment until we have a chance to take a closer look, but given Kim Dotcom's history of damaging the consumer experience by pushing stolen, illegitimate content into the marketplace, count us as skeptical."

Still, as much as Dotcom's new venture might enrage prosecutors and entertainment executives, it shouldn't have any impact on the Megaupload case.

"All it might do is annoy them enough to say, 'We're going to redouble our efforts in prosecuting them'," said Alexander, the attorney. "But I don't think it makes any practical difference to the outcome."

Dotcom denied the new site was designed to provoke authorities, but got in plenty of digs at their expense, saying that their campaign to shutter Megaupload simply forced him to create a new and improved site.

"Sometimes good things come out of terrible events," Dotcom said. "For example, if it wasn't for a giant comet hitting earth, we would still be surrounded by angry dinosaurs — hungry, too. If it wasn't for that iceberg, we wouldn't have a great Titanic movie which makes me cry every time I see it. And if it wasn't for the raid, we wouldn't have Mega." ( Associated Press )

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Polaroid Reinvents Itself Again With “Fotobars”

Polaroid Reinvents Itself Again With “Fotobars” -In 1948 Polaroid revolutionized the photography market by replacing the drawn-out process of developing film with an instant photo -- what could take weeks to see was now ready within 60 seconds. Polaroid provided its customers with instant gratification and a quick and easy way to share photos amongst friends, something that Steve Jobs took to heart when he declared Polaroid CEO Edwin Land to be his hero and a national treasure.

In a sad twist of fate, the instantaneous world that Polaroid helped to create ended up being its downfall. The company was unable to keep up with those it inspired and has has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy twice since 2001.

Polaroid has tried to become relevant to Instagram users by creating its own mobile camera application and hiring Lady Gaga as a company spokeperson. But experts said these attempts lost sight of what Polaroid represented and ultimately failed.

Polaroid’s latest venture, however, has the tech world abuzz. The company plans to partner with Fotobar to create a number of stores that will allow customers to alter and print their mobile photos instantly. In a world where most pictures get lost in the buzz of Facebook (FB), Polaroid might be onto something. The company that revolutionized instant photography is now encouraging budding photographers to slow down and give their pictures the respect they deserve.

Christopher Bonanos, author of Instant: The Story of Polaroid and creator of polaroidland.net sat down with The Daily Ticker to discuss the company’s new venture. “What they’re thinking of is some of the magic that made Polaroid work back in its heyday,” says Bonanos, “and this does some of that, it gets into some of that same mind space for lack of a better term.”

Polaroid plans on opening 10 Fotobar locations in 2013. The first will be a 2,000 square foot flagship store in Delray Beach, Florida slated to open this February. The Fotobars will have a similar look to the Apple store and will be designed to function not only as retail outlets but also as a place to soak in the Polaroid experience -- there will be a gallery space that is available for parties and photo classes.

Polaroid CEO Scott W. Hardy says in a press release this is the perfect encapsulation of what the company represents.

“Polaroid is about sharing life’s most precious and memorable moments. We have been, and continue to be, about self‑expression, creativity and fun. Polaroid Fotobar retail stores represent a perfect modern expression of the values for which we have stood for 75 years. We are very excited about the opening of these stores, and the opportunities they will create for millions of consumers to have classic Polaroid experiences.”

The stores will allow customers to select photos from their phones and wirelessly transfer them to a workstation where they can digitally manipulate the pictures to their liking. Once the photo is ready to go it can be printed on a wide variety of materials and will receive custom framing. Trained “Phototenders” will be on hand to assist with any step of the process.

Photo developing kiosks have all but disappeared since the advent of the digital camera and high-quality camera phone but Polaroid is betting that there is still demand for an updated version of the old process. ( Daily Ticker )

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Siblings Separated for 65 Years Reunited by an iPad and an 8-Year-Old

Siblings Separated for 65 Years Reunited by an iPad and an 8-Year-Old - The Internet makes our lives easier in a lot of ways. Specifically, if you've lost touch with someone for a few years, having the world wide web at your fingertips, can make your search go a lot more smoothly. But what if you have not seen someone for sixty-five years? That was the case for Betty Billadeau and her brother Clifford Boyson, who were put into two separate Chicago foster homes as children in 1948. Clifford and Betty were able to speak to each other for the first time in more than 6 decades via video chat. "How long have you been looking for me?" Boyson responds, "a long, long, long time." Billadeau told a local TV reporter Anne Allred that she knew he was there, but not where he was at, and that not knowing exactly where her brother was had left a hole in her heart.

Perhaps even more surprising that the reunion itself is who orchestrated it. "That's the little munchkin. He's the one who found ya," Boyson says to Billadeau during the chat, referencing Eddie Hanzlin, an 8-year-old neighbor of Boyson's. Eddie got online, and it only took him a week to find Boyson's sister. Eddie's parents are friends of Clifford, and the man asked the little boy to look online to see if he could find his sister. Eddie ultimately found her on Facebook, and he did it by using her maiden name, "Boyson."

Betty is still blown away by the fact that a child helped bring she and her brother together again, calling it "mind boggling." She says that once they're able to meet in person, she will give Clifford the one thing she has not been able to give him in all these years, a hug from his big sister.

And it looks as if that face-to-face reunion is just days away. Boyson lives in Davenport, Iowa and Billadeau is in Florissant, Missouri. Billadeau plans to drive to Davenport this weekend to see her brother, and give him the first hug he's received from his big sister since they were kids. ( Trending Now  )

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Ten Incredibly Simple Things You Should Be Doing to Protect Your Privacy

Ten Incredibly Simple Things You Should Be Doing to Protect Your Privacy - Over the weekend, I wound up at Washington, D.C.’s Trapeze School with a group of friends. Before one of them headed up a ladder to attempt a somersault landing from the trapeze bar, she handed me her phone and asked me to take photos. “What’s the password?” I asked. “I don’t use one,” she replied. My jaw dropped as it often does when someone I know tells me they’re choosing not to take one of the very simplest steps for privacy protection, allowing anyone to snoop through their phone with the greatest of ease, to see whichever messages, photos, and sensitive apps they please.

So this post is for you, guy with no iPad password, and for you, girl who stays signed into Gmail on her boyfriend’s computer, and for you, person walking down the street having a loud conversation on your mobile phone about your recent doctor’s diagnosis of that rash thing you have. These are the really, really simple things you should be doing to keep casual intruders from invading your privacy.

1. Password protect your devices: your smartphone, your iPad, your computer, your tablet, etc. 

Some open bookers tell me it’s “annoying” to take two seconds to type in a password before they can use their phone. C’mon, folks. Choosing not to password protect these devices is the digital equivalent of leaving your home or car unlocked. If you’re lucky, no one will take advantage of the access. Or maybe the contents will be ravaged and your favorite speakers and/or secrets stolen. If you’re not paranoid enough, spend some time reading entries in Reddit Relationships, where many an Internet user goes to discuss issues of the heart. A good percentage of the entries start, “I know I shouldn’t have, but I peeked at my gf’s phone and read her text messages, and…”

2. Put a Google Alert on your name. 

This is an incredibly easy way to stay on top of what’s being said about you online. It takes less than a minute to do. Go here. Enter your name, and variations of your name, with quotation marks around it. Boom. You’re done.

3. Sign out of Facebook, Twitter, Gmail, etc. 

when you’re done with your emailing, social networking, tweeting, and other forms of time-wasting. Not only will this slightly reduce the amount of tracking of you as you surf the Web, this prevents someone who later sits down at your computer from loading one of these up and getting snoopy. If you’re using someone else’s or a public computer, this is especially important. Yes, people actually forget to do this, with terrible outcomes.

4. Don’t give out your email address, phone number, or zip code when asked. 

Obviously, if a sketchy dude in a bar asks for your phone number, you say no. But when the asker is a uniform-wearing employee at Best Buy, many a consumer hands over their digits when asked. Stores often use this info to help profile you and your purchase. You can say no. If you feel badly about it, just pretend the employee is the sketchy dude in the bar.

5. Encrypt your computer. 

The word “encrypt” may sound like a betrayal of the simplicity I promised in the headline, but this is actually quite easy to do, especially if you’re a MacHead. Encrypting your computer means that someone has to have your password (or encryption key) in order to peek at its contents should they get access to your hard drive. On a Mac, you just go to your settings, choose “Security and Privacy,” go to “FileVault,” choose the “Turn on FileVault” option. Boom goes the encryption dynamite. PC folk need to use Bitlocker.

6. Gmailers, turn on 2-step authentication in Gmail. 

The biggest takeaway from the epic hack of Wired’s Mat Honan was that it probably wouldn’t have happened if he’d turned on “2-step verification” in Gmail. This simple little step turns your phone into a security fob — in order for your Gmail account to be accessed from a new device, a person (hopefully you) needs a code that’s sent to your phone. This means that even if someone gets your password somehow, they won’t be able to use it to sign into your account from a strange computer. Google says that millions of people use this tool, and that “thousands more enroll each day.” Be one of those people. The downside: It’s annoying if your phone battery dies or if you’re traveling abroad. The upside: you can print a piece of paper to take with you, says James Fallows at the Atlantic. Alternately, you can turn it off when you’re going to be abroad or phone-less. Or you can leave it permanently turned off, and increase your risk of getting epically hacked. Decision’s yours.

7. Pay in cash for embarrassing items. 

Don’t want a purchase to be easily tracked back to you? You’ve seen the movies! Use cash. One data mining CEO says this is how he pays for hamburgers and junk food these days.

8. Change Your Facebook settings to “Friends Only.” 

You’d think with the many Facebook privacy stories over the years that everyone would have their accounts locked down and boarded up like Florida houses before a hurricane. Not so. There are still plenty of Facebookers that are as exposed on the platform as Katy Perry at a water park. Visit your Facebook privacy settings. Make sure this “default privacy” setting isn’t set to public, and if it’s set to “Custom,” make sure you know and are comfortable with any “Networks” you’re sharing with.

9. Clear your browser history and cookies on a regular basis.

When’s the last time you did that? If you just shrugged, consider changing your browser settings so that this is automatically cleared every session. Go to the “privacy” setting in your Browser’s “Options.” Tell it to “never remember your history.” This will reduce the amount you’re tracked online. Consider a browser add-on like TACO to further reduce tracking of your online behavior.

10. Use an IP masker. 

When you visit a website, you leave a footprint behind in the form of IP information. If you want to visit someone’s blog without their necessarily knowing it’s you — say if you’re checking out a biz competitor, a love interest, or an ex — you should consider masking your computer’s fingerprint, which at the very least gives away your approximate location and service provider. A person looking at their analytics would notice me as a regular visitor from Washington, D.C. for example, and would probably even be able to tell that I was visiting from a Forbes network address. To hide this, you can download Tor or use an easy browser-based option.

These are some of the easiest things you can do to protect your privacy. Ignoring these is like sending your personal information out onto the trapeze without a safety net. It might do fine… or it could get ugly. These are simple tips for basic privacy; if you’re in a high-risk situation where you require privacy from malicious actors, check out EFF’s surveillance self-defense tips. ( Forbes )

READ MORE - Ten Incredibly Simple Things You Should Be Doing to Protect Your Privacy

Can Samsung survive without Android?

Can Samsung survive without Android? - Samsung (005930) is the world’s top Android smartphone vendor by a staggering margin. Aside from LG (066570), which managed a small $20 million profit from its mobile division last quarter, no other global Android vendor can figure out how to make money selling Android phones. Meanwhile, Samsung posted a $6 billion profit on $47.6 billion in sales in the third quarter, thanks largely to record smartphone shipments and a massive marketing budget. Even as industry watchers turn sour on Apple, Samsung is seen steamrolling into 2013 and its stock is up nearly 50% on the year while Apple (AAPL) shares continue to fall from a record high hit in September. As unstoppable as Samsung appears right now, one key question remains: Is Samsung driving Android’s success or is Android driving Samsung’s success? Starting in 2013, we may finally begin to find out.

Earlier this year, BGR wrote about Samsung’s effort to look beyond Android. Even with its own UI and application suite — and even with its own content services — Samsung will always rely on Google (GOOG) if it continues to base its devices on Google’s latest Android builds.

This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it means Samsung will never truly control the end-to-end experience on its products. It also means Samsung will never truly own its smartphones and tablets. Instead, Samsung’s devices will deliver an experience that is an amalgamation of Google’s vision and its own.

But there are alternative options. One example is the path Amazon (AMZN) has taken. Amazon let Google do the grunt work and then took its open-source Android OS and built its own software and service layer on top. Kindle Fire users don’t sit around waiting for Android updates — many of them don’t even know they’re using an Android-powered tablet.

Samsung could do the same thing, but there is a great deal of prep work that would need to be done first. Amazon’s efforts were so successful (depending on your measure of success) because the company already had a massive ecosystem in place before it even launched its first device. Streaming movies and TV shows, eBooks, retail shopping and a stocked application store were all available on the Kindle Fire from day one.

Samsung doesn’t have this luxury. Yet.

Samsung could also take ownership of a new OS, and Tizen may or may not end up being that OS. Samsung is co-developing the new Linux-based mobile platform with Intel (INTC) and 

others, and a new rumor from Japan’s The Daily Yomiuri suggests Samsung plans to launch its first Tizen phone in 2013. “Samsung will probably begin selling the [Tizen] smartphones next year and they are likely to be released in Japan and other countries at around the same time,” the site’s sources claim.

This will be a slow process. If Samsung follows the same path it took with Bada, Samsung’s earlier Linux-based OS that was folded into the Tizen project, things will start out slow as Samsung launches regional devices that are restricted to a few Eastern markets. Testing the waters before dumping serious marketing dollars into the project isn’t a bad idea, especially considering the battle at the bottom of the smartphone OS food chain that will already be taking place in 2013.

But one thing is clear: Samsung is looking to broaden its strategy and move beyond a point where it relies entirely on another company for its smartphone software. ( BGR News )

READ MORE - Can Samsung survive without Android?