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Apple seeks European trademark for green apple logo

Some four years after Apple Inc. and Beatles-backed record label Apple Corps announced that the two companies had settled their trademark dispute (with Apple Inc. coming out the owner), the Mac and iOS device maker has filed paperwork with the European Trademarks Office seeking to make the famous Granny Smith logos its own abroad.

The filings, unearthed by Patently Apple, cover 14 international trademark classifications in common areas like advertising, games, and computer hardware, and in more obscure ones like precious metals and building construction.

Following the 2007 settlement, Apple had filed trademark applications with the U.S. Patent and … Read more

Chinese all-electric SUV to begin final testing for U.S. market

Green Automotive, an electric vehicle importer and distributor, today announced that Roush Industries will "provide structural and vehicle engineering support" during the testing and confirming process of shaping an all-electric SUV to meet Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards for the U.S. market.

According to Green Automotive, Roush will begin testing an electric version of the Chinese-made Zotye SUV.

The testing will include an evaluation of safety features such as airbags, seat belts, and other safety design elements, "mapping the vehicle data against the required safety standards," and a report that "details the test findings … Read more

NASA science satellite lost in $424 million launch failure

NASA's Glory atmospheric research mission satellite crashed into the southern Pacific Ocean early today after a protective nose cone fairing failed to separate during launch aboard an Orbital Sciences Corp. Taurus XL rocket. The $424 million failure was the second in a row for the Orbital Sciences booster following the 2009 loss of another environmental satellite due to a similar nose cone malfunction.

"I think it's not an understatement to say tonight we're all pretty devastated," said Ronald Grabe, a former space shuttle commander who now manages Orbital's Launch Systems Group. "But we … Read more

Hearst launching Manilla for paperless bills

Manilla, a new company focused on the digital management of household bills and accounts, was unveiled Monday at the Demo conference--though it's not the type that usually shows up at the annual launch-and-pitch conference.

For one, Manilla was created within publishing conglomerate Hearst and is currently not backed by any other investors; second, the crowd of tech-industry regulars may find Manilla disappointingly basic.

That's the point. Manilla is geared not toward the bleeding edge of technology enthusiasts, but toward the average American head of household, the person responsible for corralling the home's cable and phone bills, bank … Read more

If Hulu loses CEO, who would want that gig?

Toast.

That's what Jason Kilar's career at Hulu is supposed to be soon if all the media speculation is correct.

Hulu is controlled by broadcast networks, NBC, ABC, and Fox, but that didn't stop Kilar, Hulu's CEO, from writing in a blog post Wednesday that TV is cluttered with too many ads and he predicted that prices and profit margins for the TV sector would decline. He even lamented the tendency of "incumbents" (read: TV execs) to fight change. Much of his post was about what Hulu needed to offer consumers if it is … Read more

The 404 751: Where Peter Ha adds The Daily logo next to his Pepsi tattoo (podcast)

Two days ago Rupert Murdoch announced The Daily, News Corp.'s latest publication built for the iPad platform, and we've been waiting all week to get its tech editor, Peter Ha, in the studio to tell us about the new pricing model and how it'll shape the future of online publishing. Lucky for us, today is that day, but the show starts off with a bit of controversy. Tune in to hear Jeff's fumble!

But Peter's not here to talk about the Korean flag or tattoos, he joins us today to chat about The Daily. The magazine/book/newspaper, or whatever you want to call it, is fielding plenty of comparisons to free news outlets like The New York Times and The Huffington Post that also have their own iPad apps, or even Flipboard, another visually interactive app for the tablet platform.

But from what Peter tells us, The Daily is a different kind of user experience in that it delivers editorial content made specifically for the iPad, whereas those other apps simply pull in RSS-feed versions of their Web-based counterparts.

For 99 cents a week or $39.99 a year, The Daily uses a set of templates to deliver content more in line with a newspaper as a backseat user experience, as opposed to the personalized, curated set of blogs you choose for Flipboard or other "mobile news readers."

The Daily also provides content interactively by way of a floating carousel of categories with 360-degree high-resolution photos, audio clips, and video. Whether or not that justifies the subscription fee is up to the user, although we're all impressed by (and a little pensive about) the ability to record and post audio comments in addition to text.

Stay tuned for the second half where we examine the plausibility of The Daily coming to the fragmented Android Market. Like it or hate it, Android is certainly the default operating system for consumers to turn to after iOS, but Wilson doesn't believe that Android users will accept the idea of paying for apps anytime soon. On the other hand, the guy can barely predict his plans for this weekend, so don't take his words too seriously.

As usual, we have a blast riffing back and forth with Peter Ha, who's not only a hilarious friend of the show but also offers valuable insight into the mobile publishing industry, the ongoing mobile OS wars, and hopefully Rupert Murdoch's to-do list. Check out today's show and let us know what you think about The Daily! Give us a call at 1-866-404-CNET and leave us a voice mail, or e-mail us at the404(at)cnet(dot)com.

Episode 751 Subscribe in iTunes (audio) | Subscribe in iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read more

Netflix rises as studios' DVD money plunges

Not long ago, ambitious young executives at the six major Hollywood film studios maneuvered to get into the home entertainment divisions.

Nowadays, getting assigned to home entertainment is like being sent to the Eastern front. Better to work in theatrical distribution, international, or maybe studio facilities. Recently, I spoke with an executive from one of the big studios who, while discussing the challenges of working in the film industry, noted there was one silver lining: "At least I don't work in home entertainment."

The studios' home-entertainment divisions typically oversee sales of DVDs and Blu-ray discs as well … Read more

Reuters 'eyewitness' claims Apple's iPad 2 was at The Daily event

Making the rounds on the Internet today is a story about a Reuters "eyewitness" who claims to have seen an iPad 2 at the press event for News Corp.'s The Daily.

The story certainly makes a splashy headline for Reuters, but its content has been thoroughly scrutinized by other mainstream media, including TechCrunch's MG Siegler, whose "Reuters Knows A Guy Who Knows A Guy Who Totally Saw The iPad 2 Today" headline captures most of the sentiment around the Web.

Siegler's main point of contention, one that I certainly agree with, is that "this is the age of the cameraphone. Where's the goddamn picture?"

As Siegler put it, the meat of the story from Reuters reads:

A Reuters eyewitness saw what appeared to be a working model of the next iPad with a front-facing camera at the top edge of the glass screen at a press conference to mark the debut of News Corp's Daily online paper in New York on Wednesday.

A source with knowledge of the device confirmed its existence, adding that the final release model could have other features. News Corp and Apple declined to comment.

To break it down, someone saw what that person believed to be an iPad 2 (due to a front-facing camera on the device) and told someone from Reuters (apparently under the condition of anonymity) but couldn't manage to get any evidence. Another source "confirms" that Apple will indeed make version 2 of the best-selling consumer electronic device in history.

Yes, that's meaty.… Read more

News Corp. ready to unload MySpace

News Corp. is weighing the sale of MySpace as one of a few remaining options to deal with the once popular but now languishing social network.

News Corp. CEO Chase Carey said yesterday in an earnings conference call that the time is right to consider either restructuring its relationship with MySpace or just selling it outright.

"We recognize that the plan to allow MySpace to reach its full potential may be best developed under a new ownership structure and we're evaluating those strategic alternatives," Carey said, according to the AFP news service.

Although Carey clarified that options … Read more