Netflix Takes Aim at the Cable Guys, With a Promise to Start Firing Tomorrow. What's Next for You?

Ireland says will not be U.S. 'whipping boy' on tax

By Carmel Crimmins and Padraic Halpin DUBLIN (Reuters) - Ireland's finance minister said the country would not be the "whipping boy" for what he called a flawed U.S. Senate report that said Irish loopholes helped technology giant Apple shrink its tax bill. Ireland has been forced to defend its corporate tax rate after the Senate said on Monday that Apple paid little or no tax on tens of billions of dollars in profits channeled through Irish subsidiaries and that it had negotiated a special corporate tax rate of less than 2 percent. ...

Video: Infinity Ward shows how Call of Duty: Ghost will be its most realistic, immersive game yet

Infinity Ward, the acclaimed developer behind hit games such as Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 and the upcoming Call of Duty: Ghost, is looking to bring strikingly realistic models and environments to the latest installment in the Call of Duty franchise. The new gaming engine that will debut with Call of Duty: Ghost later this year will deliver a variety of graphical improvements such as enhanced visual fidelity, high-resolution textures and more. The company notes that one of its new technologies, known as Sub-D, greatly improves formerly blocky details by exponentially boosting polygon counts in real-time, allowing for incredibly realistic character models that can show fine hairs, bruising, cuts and even the dirt beneath finger nails. Call of Duty:

Dish on national security PR offensive against SoftBank

By Alina Selyukh and Liana B. Baker WASHINGTON/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Dish Network Corp is ramping up its Washington-centric campaign to thwart Japanese firm SoftBank Corp's bid for Sprint Nextel Corp, hoping to convince lawmakers and government reviewers that it poses national security risks. On Wednesday, Dish ads appeared in Washington publications the Washington Post, Politico, The Hill, Roll Call and the National Journal as well as online news sites, including Reuters.com. ...

HP's 2Q offers hope even as revenue slump deepens

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Hewlett-Packard is still scrambling to meet the growing demand for more versatile and less expensive mobile devices as a slump in its personal computer sales deepens, but the company's cost-cutting measures and focus on more profitable areas of technology appear to be easing the pain.

Apple, former Washington wallflower, now at center of tax fight

By Andy Sullivan, Gabriel Debenedetti and Poornima Gupta WASHINGTON (Reuters) - For years, Apple Inc kept a low profile in Washington as it grew into one of the most valuable companies in the world. Now the iPad maker has taken the lead, perhaps inadvertently, on a top priority for U.S. business: simplifying America's tax code. Chief Executive Tim Cook, who was called before the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations on Tuesday to answer questions about Apple's alleged tax avoidance, used his appearance to plead for an overhaul of corporate taxes. ...

HP raises 2013 outlook as Whitman's plan takes hold

By Poornima Gupta SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Hewlett-Packard Co raised its 2013 earnings outlook after quarterly results beat low expectations, as CEO Meg Whitman's turnaround plan helped offset shrinking personal computer sales with enterprise computing services. While fiscal second-quarter profit plummeted 32 percent, Wall Street had braced for worse. HP shares gained 14 percent after the company projected full-year earnings per share of $3.50 to $3.60, raising the lower end by 10 cents, and fiscal third-quarter profit that topped analyst estimates. ...

Samsung buys major stake in rival smartphone maker

Samsung has reportedly made a major investment in rival South Korea-based smartphone maker Pantech. Yonhap News was first to report the news and it says Samsung spent roughly $50 million for 10% of the company. Samsung’s motives are unclear, though the deal will reportedly “help further solidify bilateral cooperation in smartphone and other business areas.” Pantech is currently the No.3 phone maker in South Korea behind Samsung and LG, and the new investment makes Samsung the company’s third-largest shareholder behind Qualcomm and Korea Development Bank.

MOOC University

Georgia Tech will soon offer a Master's degree in Computer Science that you can receive online. This could be huge, Rob Walker writes.

Android App Video Review: Toy Story: Smash It!

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Twitter beefs up security after hacking spree on media

By Jim Finkle (Reuters) - Twitter Inc unveiled technology to boost security for its users, following a spate of attacks on accounts of prominent media outlets including the Associated Press, the Financial Times and The Onion. The micro blogging site, which transmits some 400 million messages a day, said on Wednesday that it had begun rolling out an optional "login verification" service to thwart hackers seeking to hijack accounts with stolen passwords. ...