Verizon has announced that it will close its own app store called Verizon Apps for Android and BlackBerry this coming January.
Verizon calls the closing of Verizon Apps as a move to “evolve” their strategy and to “simplify today’s experience and meet the needs of tomorrow” amid the changed landscape in the tech industry.
The carrier moves quick to point out that most apps available on the Verizon Apps marketplace are already available in other online stores such as Google Play and the …

Microsoft will replace Windows Live Messenger with Skype, according to sources familiar with the matter.
Sources close to The Verge exposed Microsoft’s plans to integrate two of its products: the Windows Live Messenger client and VoIP, chatting service Skype. The move will see Windows Live Messenger retire as a freestanding service in the coming months.
If the rumors are true, the software giant will deliver an official announcement anytime from now.
Last month, Microsoft released Skype …

Drawn up by the Kaspersky security company, the IT Threat Evolution report is a ranked list which shows 10 of the most insecure software products. The 2012 Edition comes with a big surprise for Microsoft critics: the company’s products are no longer on the list.
This performance was achieved despite the fact that Microsoft products are used by a huge number of users, which makes any vulnerability to be hunted and exploited mercilessly for spreading malware. This ideal could be achieved …

Microsoft Internet Explorer continues to grow more popular and seems to edge out other web browsers.
According to Net Applications’ latest Desktop Browser Market Share report, data from 160 million unique, monthly visitors show how Microsoft’s web browser is slowly gaining ground against its rivals.
The firm’s figures for October saw Internet Explorer as it continuously surpassed its rivals in user adoption to grab more than half of the web browser market at 54.13 percent – 0.5 percent …

AT&T has launched a new photo and video sharing service for its customers.
The U.S. telecoms carrier says that users of the service, dubbed as AT&T Locker, will receive 5 GB of free storage – enough room for 5,000 average-sized images.
AT&T Locker allows users to upload photos and videos on a secure digital library and easily share content through social networks such as Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter or via e-mail.  The service helps users create personalized albums for photos …

AT&T, collaborating with the National Archives, its John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, the Foundation for the National Archives, and the Kennedy Library Foundation, has created an app and website of the new exhibit, “To the Brink: JFK and the Cuban Missile Crisis,” bringing it to online audiences around the world.
“To the Brink” is a new exhibit at the National Archives that looks back at the Cuban Missile Crisis from the 50-year mark. The exhibit shows …

Authorities in France have arrested a 20-year-old hacker who was defrauding smartphone users via malicious apps.
According to the BBC, the hacker who has been described as “extremely smart”, used fake apps purporting to be popular apps to amass about 500,000 Euros since last year.
Authorities say that the hacker did not study computer science.
The hacker whose name has not been revealed reportedly worked from his parent’s home in Northern France and developed apps which he offered free to …

In a move designed to reduce the biggest security inhibitors that organizations face in implementing cloud, mobile and big data initiatives, IBM has announced its largest set of security software to date to holistically secure data and identities.
IBM said its new software capabilities will help clients better maintain security control over mobile devices, mitigate internal and external threats, reduce security risks in cloud environments, extend database security to gain real-time insights …

According to the latest research by Strategy Analytics, there are now more than one billion smartphone users in the whole world. After sixteen years since the smartphone business started, the one billionth user was reached during the third quarter of this year.
According to Neil Mawston, Strategy Analytics’ executive director, “We estimate 1 in 7 of the world’s population owned a smartphone in the third quarter of

Social video chat company ooVoo is seeing quick and unparalleled growth in subscribers, as more consumers prefer to stay connected with the latest video-enabled mobile devices.
ooVoo has announced it has gathered seven million new subscribers in less than 100 days, from June 24 to September 21.
The company claims one million new subscribers signup to join the free service’s 58 million registered users every two weeks, making ooVoo the fastest-growing social video chat service and an …