Amy Winehouse Found Dead

Amy Winehouse was found dead in her London apartment Saturday afternoon.

Just last month, Winehouse was forced to cancel her European tour, following a disastrous performance in Belgrade that went viral on YouTube. The troubled singer, has long struggled with drug and alcohol addiction, making many references to these struggles in her music.

TMZ confirmed earlier reports out of London, that Winehouse was found in her apartment and pronounced dead on the scene.

Best known for her 2006 breakthrough album, Back to Black, the singer was known for her deep voice and brazen lyrics. Winehouse was 27.

A Look Back at a Star for the Digital Era

Winehouse was extremely popular on YouTube. The songs from Back to Black continue to be popular cover targets for aspiring YouTube artists, thanks to its haunting lyrics and musicality. From iTunes to AOL Live, Winehouse made a number of appearances at digital focused events and distributed releases specifically for digital audiences.

At SXSW 2007, Winehouse performed an electrifying live acoustic set.



Sadly, Winehouse’s more troubled moments were captured and disseminated online as well. Earlier this summer, Winehouse’s disastrous performance in Belgrade, Serbia was caught by several audience members. The resulting fallout from the videos, which went viral, caused her to cancel her European tour and her record label issued takedown notices agains the most popular videos.

Mumbai blasts toll rises to 19

Mumbai: The toll in the Mumbai triple blasts rose to 19 with a victim succumbing to his injuries at Saifee Hospital early Saturday, an official said.

The victim has been identified as Babulal Das, the official from Birihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's (BMC) Disaster Control Centre told a news agency.

Das died around 3 am.

On Friday evening, another victim, Avinash Tanka, 24, had succumbed to his injuries.

The three blasts that rocked central-to-south Mumbai Wednesday evening -- Dadar, Zaveri Bazar and Opera House -- was the first terrorist attack in the financial hub of the country after 26/11.

Of the 129 injured, 21 continue to be in a critical state and are under treatment in various hospitals.

US takes hardline on North Korea, South China Sea

Bali: Tentative steps by North and South Korea to repair relations are not enough to warrant a return to multination nuclear disarmament talks, the Obama administration said at an Asian security conference on Saturday, where it also took a tough line on resolving heightened tensions in the South China Sea.

Declaring the United States a "resident power" with vital strategic interests throughout the Asia-Pacific, US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said North Korea must do more to improve ties with the South before Washington will consider resuming six-party talks aimed at getting Pyongyang to abandon nuclear weapons in return for concessions.

In addition, Hillary laid out specific guidelines for the peaceful settlement of competing territorial claims by China and its Southeast Asian neighbours in the South China Sea, where she said such disputes are threatening the peace and security that has driven the region's economic growth and prosperity.

Also on the agenda at Saturday's talks on the Indonesian resort island of Bali was Myanmar, which Hillary said has reached a "critical juncture”.

The new civilian government, which took over late last year after a half-century of military rule, needs to make "concrete, measurable progress" in bringing about democratic reforms if it wants to win the confidence of the international community.

That includes releasing more than 2,000 political prisoners and holding meaningful dialogue with its political opponents.

The meeting opened with a buzz, with South Korea's Foreign Minister, Kim Sung-hwan, and the North's Pak Ui Chun walking casually into the conference hall together.

A day before, their countries' top nuclear negotiators met for the first time since nuclear disarmament talks collapsed three years ago, opening the door for dialogue and a potential return, eventually, to more negotiations between the two Koreas, the US, China, Japan and Russia.

Hillary told diplomats from 26 other Asian and European countries that she was encouraged to see the change.

"But we remain firm that in order for six-party talks to resume, North Korea must take steps to improve North-South relations," she said. "North Korea continues to present a critical proliferation challenge to the international community and to threaten regional stability with its provocative actions."

Since the last round of talks, North Korea has conducted a second nuclear test and revealed a uranium enrichment facility that could give it another way to make atomic bombs. Recent North Korean threats against Seoul's conservative government include a vow to retaliate over South Korean soldiers' use of pictures of the ruling North Korean family for target practice.

Ahead of the conference, China and its Southeast Asian neighbours also agreed to a preliminary plan to resolve territorial disputes in the potentially resource-rich South China Sea.

China claims the sea — of tremendous strategic importance to everyone because one-third of the world's shipping transits through it — in its entirety. The Philippines, Vietnam, Taiwan, Brunei and Malaysia loudly disagree.

There have been several flare-ups in the waterway in recent months, with Beijing usually accused of being the instigator.

Hillary urged all parties to show restraint and to comply with international law "and resolve their disputes through peaceful means”. It's vital, she said, that they work together.

As a starting point, the US wants all nations to map out their claims in terms consistent with customary international law, a senior US official said on condition he not be named, adding that many of the claims seem to be "exaggerated”.

North Korea's newly appointed envoy, Ri Yong Ho, meanwhile, said on Friday that he and his South Korean counterpart, Wi Sung-lac, agreed during their meeting to work together to quickly restart nuclear talks.

Wi, who described the talks as "productive" and "helpful”, confirmed the agreement and said he and Ri would continue their efforts.

North Korea stands to get badly needed aid and other concessions if it returns to the talks and has indicated in recent months that it may be ready.

North Korea's main ally, China, has been pressing for a speedy resumption of the talks. The US and other countries have held out, saying that meaningful North-South dialogue must occur first. A senior US official welcomed Friday's meeting but said it remains to be seen if the rapprochement is enough to warrant a return to the table.

The official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss closed-door diplomacy, said Hillary and the foreign ministers of Japan and South Korea would meet in Bali on Saturday to assess the situation and plot a way forward. The official would not predict if a decision on resuming the six-party talks would be made at the meeting.

In a meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi, Hillary affirmed "our mutual desire for peace and stability on the Korean peninsula" but offered no hint on whether the US would agree to resume the nuclear talks.

Yang, however, signalled China's intense interest in getting things back on track. "Anything we can do together to promote better atmosphere and good dialogue among the parties concerned and to work together to restart the six-party talks would be in the best interests of peace, stability and security of the region," he said.

The disarmament talks have been stalled since 2008, when North Korea walked out to protest international criticism of a prohibited long-range rocket launch. Tensions between the North and South have remained high ever since.

Norway horror: 80 die in camp shooting, 7 in blast

Oslo: A homegrown terrorist set off a deadly explosion in downtown Oslo before heading to a summer camp dressed as a police officer to commit one of the deadliest shooting sprees in history, killing at least 80 people as terrified youths ran and even swam for their lives, police said on Friday.

Police initially said about 10 were killed at the forested camp on the island of Utoya, but some survivors said they thought the toll was much higher. Police director Oystein Maeland told reporters early Saturday they had discovered many more victims.

"It's taken time to search the area. What we know now is that we can say that there are at least 80 killed at Utoya," Maeland said. "It goes without saying that this gives dimensions to this incident that are exceptional."

A suspect in the shootings, and the Oslo explosion that killed seven people, was arrested. Though police did not release his name, Norwegian national broadcaster NRK identified him as 32-year-old Anders Behring Breivik and said police searched his Oslo apartment overnight. NRK and other Norwegian media posted pictures of the blond, blue-eyed Norwegian.

A police official said the suspect appears to have acted alone in both attacks, and that "it seems like that this is not linked to any international terrorist organisations at all”. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because that information had not been officially released by Norway's police.

"It seems it's not Islamic-terror related," the official said. "This seems like a madman's work."

The official said the attack "is probably more Norway's Oklahoma City than it is Norway's World Trade Centre." Domestic terrorists carried out the 1995 attack on a federal building in Oklahoma City, while foreign terrorists were responsible for the September 11, 2001 attacks.

The official added, however, "it's still just hours since the incident happened. And the investigation is going on with all available resources."

The attacks formed the deadliest day of terror in Western Europe since the 2004 Madrid train bombings, when shrapnel-filled bombs exploded, killing 191 people and wounding about 1,800.

The motive was unknown, but both attacks were in areas connected to the ruling Labor Party government. The youth camp, about 20 miles (35 kilometres) northwest of Oslo, is organised by the party's youth wing, and the Prime Minister had been scheduled to speak there on Saturday.

A 15-year-old camper named Elise said she heard gunshots, but then saw a police officer and thought she was safe. Then he started shooting people right before her eyes.

"I saw many dead people," said Elise, whose father, Vidar Myhre, didn't want her to disclose her last name. "He first shot people on the island. Afterward he started shooting people in the water."

Elise said she hid behind the same rock that the killer was standing on. "I could hear his breathing from the top of the rock," she said.

She said it was impossible to say how many minutes passed while she was waiting for him to stop.

At a hotel in the village of Sundvollen, where survivors of the shooting were taken, 21-year-old Dana Berzingi wore pants stained with blood. He said the fake police officer ordered people to come closer, then pulled weapons and ammunition from a bag and started shooting.

Several victims "had pretended as if they were dead to survive," Berzingi said. But after shooting the victims with one gun, the gunman shot them again in the head with a shotgun, he said.

"I lost several friends," said Berzingi, who used the cell phone of one of those friends to call police.

The blast in Oslo, Norway's capital and the city where the Nobel Peace Prize is awarded, left a square covered in twisted metal, shattered glass and documents expelled from surrounding buildings. Most of the windows in the 20-floor high-rise where Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg and his administration work were shattered. Other buildings damaged house government offices and the headquarters of some of Norway's leading newspapers.

The dust-fogged scene after the blast reminded one visitor from New York of September 11.

Ian Dutton, who was in a nearby hotel, said people "just covered in rubble" were walking through "a fog of debris”.

"It wasn't any sort of a panic," he said, "It was really just people in disbelief and shock, especially in a such as safe and open country as Norway. You don't even think something like that is possible."

Police said the Oslo explosion was caused by "one or more" bombs.

The police official who spoke on condition of anonymity said the Oslo bombing occurred at 3:26 pm local time (1:26 pm GMT), and the camp shootings began one to two hours later. The official said the gunman used both automatic weapons and handguns, and that there was at least one unexploded device at the youth camp that a police bomb disposal team and military experts were working on disarming.

The suspect had only a minor criminal record, the official said.

National police chief Sveinung Sponheim said seven people were killed by the blast in downtown Oslo, four of whom have been identified, and that nine or 10 people were seriously injured.

Sponheim said a man was arrested in the shooting, and the suspect had been observed in Oslo before the explosion there.

Sponheim said the camp shooter "wore a sweater with a police sign on it. I can confirm that he wasn't a police employee and never has been."

Aerial images broadcast by Norway's TV2 showed members of a SWAT team dressed in black arriving at the island in boats and running up the dock. Behind them, people who stripped down to their underwear swam away from the island toward shore, some using flotation devices.

Sponheim said police were still trying to get an overview of the camp shooting and could not say whether there was more than one shooter. He would not give any details about the identity or nationality of the suspect, who was being interrogated by police.

Oslo University Hospital said 12 people were admitted for treatment following the Utoya shooting, and 11 people were taken there from the explosion in Oslo. The hospital asked people to donate blood.

Stoltenberg, who was home when the blast occurred and was not harmed, visited injured people at the hospital late Friday. Earlier he decried what he called "a cowardly attack on young innocent civilians”.

"I have message to those who attacked us," he said. "It's a message from all of Norway: You will not destroy our democracy and our commitment to a better world."

NRK showed video in Oslo of a blackened car lying on its side amid the debris. A reporter who was in the office of Norwegian news agency NTB said the building shook from the blast and all employees were evacuated. Down in the street, he saw one person with a bleeding leg being led away from the area.

A reporter headed to Utoya was turned away by police before reaching the lake that surrounds the island, as eight ambulances with sirens blaring entered the area. Police blocked off roads leading to the lake.

The United States, European Union, NATO and the UK, all quickly condemned the bombing, which Britain's Foreign Secretary William Hague called "horrific" and NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen deemed a "heinous act”.

"It's a reminder that the entire international community has a stake in preventing this kind of terror from occurring," President Barack Obama said.

Obama extended his condolences to Norway's people and offered US assistance with the investigation. He said he remembered how warmly Norwegians treated him in Oslo when he accepted the Nobel Peace Prize in 2009.

Nobel Peace Prize Chairman Thorbjorn Jagland said it appeared the camp attack "was intended to hurt young citizens who actively engage in our democratic and political society. But we must not be intimidated. We need to work for freedom and democracy every day."

A US counterterrorism official said the United States knew of no links to terrorist groups and early indications were the attack was domestic. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigation was being handled by Norway.

At least two Islamic extremist groups had tried to take credit for the attacks. Many intelligence analysts said they had never heard of Helpers of Global Jihad, which took initial credit. The Kurdish group Ansar al-Islam also took credit on some jihadist web sites.

Norway has been grappling with a homegrown terror plot linked to al Qaeda. Two suspects are in jail awaiting charges.

Last week, a Norwegian prosecutor filed terror charges against an Iraqi-born cleric for threatening Norwegian politicians with death if he is deported from the Scandinavian country. The indictment centred on statements that Mullah Krekar — the founder of Ansar al-Islam — made to various news media, including American network NBC.

Terrorism has also been a concern in neighbouring Denmark since an uproar over cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad six years ago.

Hacker group claims WikiLeaks-style joint effort with media outlets on News of the World emails

The sourcing collaborations that WikiLeaks struck up with a cabal of prominent international news organizations last year seem to be something of a game-changing new media model. The controversial whistle-blowing group's partnerships with major press outlets ensured that its vast cache of classified military and diplomatic documents got wide play in the media.

Now, a like-minded online collective claims it has forged similar relationships in an effort to further expose wrongdoing at News Corp.'s embattled British publishing division News International, as it weathers a severe and fast-spreading scandal over widespread phone-hacking at Rupert Murdoch's tabloid properties.

And who better to potentially have dug up fresh dirt about the company's alleged phone-hacking practices than, well, a bunch of hackers?

LulzSec, a nebulous troupe of hacktivists who wreaked havoc on the website of News International's surviving tabloid, The Sun, several days ago, now claims to be in possession of 4GB worth of emails poached during its online fishing expedition on Tuesday.

An affiliated hacker group, Anonymous, which had earlier retaliated against companies that stopped doing business with WikiLeaks in the wake of its data dumps, likewise appears to have tapped an email server at News International.

An administrator of one of the accounts affiliated with Anonymous, @AnonymousIRC, tweeted Thursday: "We think, actually we may not release emails from The Sun, simply because it may compromise the court case." The message referred to the ongoing criminal probe of News Corp. and some of its current and former top executives, including Rupert Murdoch, James Murdoch and Rebekah Brooks, who was editor of the company's recently shuttered tab News of the World in 2002, when journalists there allegedly hijacked the voicemail of a murdered 13-year-old girl.

But LulzSec announced on its own Twitter account Thursday: "We're currently working with certain media outlets who have been granted exclusive access to some of the News of the World emails we have."

Which "certain media outlets" might LulzSec be in cahoots with?

The Guardian and the New York Times would seem obvious candidates. Both papers were in on the WikiLeaks revelations, and both have done more to advance the phone-hacking story than any other news organizations. The two broadsheets even had a bit of a collaboration of their own when Guardian editor-in-chief Alan Rusbridger approached Times captain Bill Keller last year to help "stop the story from dying on its feet," as Rusbridger writes in the latest issue of Newsweek.

Alas, neither paper is in the loop this time around, both have confirmed.

Rusbridger was out of the office Friday, as was Keller (perhaps there's tete-a-tete in progress?), but the Guardian chief forwarded The Cutline's email to a spokeswoman for the newspaper, who said, "We're not one of the media outlets in question and we have not been approached." Keller, through a Times spokeswoman, replied: "We have had no contact" with LulzSec.

Nor did either editor entertain an inquiry as to whether their venerable publications would work with LulzSec—which would have obtained whatever information it sourced to the papers through the same morally and legally compromised practices favored by the bad actors at News of the World. But it certainly doesn't stretch credulity to assume that there are plenty of editors and reporters out there who would gladly run with whatever intelligence from the British tabloid wars LulzSec was willing to share.

For now, the logistics of the supposedly pending email dump remain a guessing game. Though yet another affiliated hacker group, Sabu, claims it is imminent and explosive: "We're releasing something we found in The Sun's mail server, shortly. Ouch. Ready for the media storm?"

Show us the smoking gun!

The New Nokia E6 Reviews

Nokia's E-series phones have done two things to BlackBerry: first, they've given the latter a run for its money and second, they've proved to it that business phones need not be ugly.

Nokia E71 had takers from not only the corporate areas but even the college-goers started loving it. Its successor E72 also enjoyed considerable success. And then came the E5 which is often touted as the “BlackBerry Killer”.

Nokia's latest offering, almost after a year of E5's launch, is the E6. The phone arrives in the time of iPhones and Android devices which are unmistakably loosening the Finnish giant's grip on the upper segment market. Nokia understands that Symbian is now a thing of “medieval ages” and it needs to offer a revamped OS and a revved-up interface and may be some extra goodies as well. The E6 doesn't disappoint. It is all spiced-up, the user interface is more appealing and there also some treats you would normally not find in a business phone. But the biggest surprise is the new, hotly-awaited Symbian Anna OS on which the phone runs.

Appearance, Build and Display

The handset is quite sleek, a trademark of the E-series. Ruggedly built, the phone is composed of stainless steel, matte plastic and Gorilla Glass, thereby confirming that it has been built to withstand a lot of wear and tear (and even a few nasty drops!). Measuring 115.5 x 59 x 10.5 mm and weighing about 133 gm, which is quiet okay for a phone like this, the handset can be comfortably held in the hand. The QWERTY keypad is sturdy, even though the keys are a bit softer as compared to the E71.

The 2.46-inch capacitive touch-screen takes up almost half the space, and yes, the phone does feel a bit cramped. Pegged at 640 x 480 pixels (almost twice of what E5 offered), the screen resolution is fairly good. And here's a wee bit of surprise, the phone boasts of a pixel density of 328 ppi, which is 2 ppi more than the iPhone's Retina display.

Camera and Other Media

The new Nokia E6 comes with an 8 MP fixed-focus camera with dual-LED flash. The quality of still images, to be honest, is average - decently detailed and moderately sharpened. Some images might appear under-contrasted. You can record up to 720p HD videos running at 25 fps (frames per second). But again, the video quality, too, is average.

The music application hasn't changed much in Symbian Anna. Supported audio formats include MP3, AAC, WMA, and WAVE. The video player on the device can support DivX, XviD, MP4, WMV, and most MKV videos. Under the garb of a YouTube app, all you get is a web shortcut, a disappointment, indeed. The phone has 350 MB of internal memory and an external card slot which can support memory cards up to 32 GB.

Interface and Applications

The phone offers a great deal of customization. It lets you add and rearrange widgets and shortcuts easily. There's also a small notification area but not as good as the ones found in Android devices. Pressing and holding the home key opens Task Manager which allows you to view the open tabs, switch between them, and close them. In spite of just 256 MB of RAM, E6 can easily handle about 12 apps simultaneously. The new Symbian Anna is a welcome addition by Nokia. But iOS or Android can easily dwarf it in terms of appearance and appeal. That apart, the new OS runs smoothly and promises that we can finally bid goodbye to the sluggish ancient version of Symbian.

There's a bettered, touch-optimised version of Ovi maps. The E6 gets locked with the satellites faster than Samsung Galaxy S2! The Lonely Planet city guide is a great addition. But the flash games are disappointing. The new 7.3 version of the browser is fast but does not stand a chance when compared to Androids. Word, Excel and Powerpoint files can be easily edited and there's Adobe Reader as well. The Ovi Store's UI looks overhauled. It doesn't crash anymore and offers a good number of apps. But again, this remains a petty achievement in front of Andriod and iOS.

Performance

Thought the new Symbian Anna aids tremendously in improving the phone's overall performance, Nokia could have definitely done something better than a 680MHz CPU and 256MB of RAM memory. Still, the overall performance of the phone doesn't disappoint, especially when you compare it with E71 and E5.

Call quality is extremely satisfying and so is the signal reception. Running on Symbian Anna, the phone comes with the fastest, most powerful web browser for a Nokia phone. It loads websites faster than the N8. The phone is fitted with 3.7V 1500 mAh battery which offers 14.8 hours of talktime, more than double of what BlackBerry offers. The E6 promises 28 days of standby time and three days music playback time.

The Last Word

The new E6 from Nokia promises to heal the Finnish company's injuries to an extent. It presents a robust built, an innovative touch-and-type UI and good multimedia offerings. As CNET says, “The E6 is most definitely an improvement over the E5, offering a touch-screen interface, improved Symbian^3 'Anna' OS and a more robust and aesthetically-pleasing design”. Overall, a capable business phone with plenty of apps to suit business users (and can also appeal to other users). Those who have used either (or more) of E71, E72 and E5 will love this one.

The phone is let down a bit by the lack of an auto-focus camera and a not-so-powerful processor but its reasonable price of Rs 17,500 more than makes up for all this. Its closest rival, the ageing BlackBerry Bold 9780, costs around Rs 22k.

The device may not be a next-generation smartphone but it certainly promises to be a wonderful purchase at Rs 17.5 k, provided you have nothing against the “old man called Symbian”.

Price in India: To acquire this, you need to spend Rs 17,500.

: Touch and keypad combo, the new Symbian Anna, sturdy and pleasing built, superb battery life, revamped Ovi store

: Camera doesn't have autofocus, not-so-powerful processor, can be easily dwarfed by Android devices on many aspects

MensXP Rating: 3.5/5

Key Specifications

GENERAL

2G Network GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900

3G Network HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1700 / 1900 / 2100

SIZE

Dimensions 115.5 x 59 x 10.5 mm, 66 cc

Weight 133 g

DISPLAY

Type TFT capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors

Size 640 x 480 pixels, 2.46 inches

- Gorilla glass display

- QWERTY keyboard

- Multi-touch input method

- Accelerometer sensor for auto-rotate

- Proximity sensor for auto turn-off

SOUND

Alert types Vibration, MP3, WAV ringtones

Loudspeaker Yes

3.5mm jack Yes

MEMORY

Phonebook Practically unlimited entries and fields, Photocall

Call records Detailed, max 30 days

Internal 8 GB storage, 256 MB RAM, 1 GB ROM

Card slot microSD, up to 32GB, buy memory

DATA

GPRS Class 33

EDGE Class 33

3G HSDPA 10.2Mbps, HSUPA 2.0Mbps

WLAN Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n

Bluetooth Yes, v3.0 with A2DP

Infrared port No

USB Yes, v2.0 microUSB, USB On-the-go support

CAMERA

Primary 8 MP, 3264x2448 pixels, fixed focus, dual-LED flash,check quality

Features Geo-tagging, face detection

Video Yes, 720p@25fps, check quality

Secondary Yes, VGA

FEATURES

OS Symbian Anna OS

CPU 680 MHz ARM 11 processor, 2D/3D Graphics HW Accelerator with OpenVG1.1 and OpenGL ES 2.0

Messaging SMS, MMS, Email, Push Email, IM

Browser WAP 2.0/xHTML, HTML

Radio Stereo FM radio with RDS

Games Yes + downloadable

Colors Black, White, Silver

GPS Yes, with A-GPS support

Java Yes, MIDP 2.1

- Stainless steel panels

- Active noise cancellation with dedicated mic

- Digital compass

- TV-out

- MP4/H.264/H.263/RV player

- MP3/WMA/WAV/RA/eAAC+ player

- QuickOffice document editor (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, PDF)

- Organizer

- Flash Lite 4.0

- Voice command/dial/commands

- Predictive text input

BATTERY

Standard battery, Li-Ion 1500 mAh (BP-4L)

Stand-by Up to 681 h (2G) / Up to 744 h (3G)

Talk time Up to 14 h 48 min (2G) / Up to 7 h 30 min (3G)

Larry Summers calls Winklevoss twins 'A**holes'

What did Larry Summers really think of the Winklevoss twins?

"Rarely, have I encountered such swagger, and I tried to respond in kind," the former president of Harvard said in an interview at Fortune's Brainstorm Tech conference.

Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss were at Harvard at the same time that Mark Zuckerberg launched Facebook, and they had come to Summers for help in their fight for a piece of the action.

Summers dismissed them, a scene dramatized in the movie the "Social Network."

Summers didn't try to dispel the portrayal.

"One of the things you learn as a college president is that if an undergraduate is wearing a tie and jacket on Thursday afternoon at three o'clock, there are two possibilities. One is that they're looking for a job and have an interview; the other is that they are an a**hole. This was the latter case."

The Winklevoss twins have taken dozens of runs at Facebook in court since 2004. The brothers and a third Harvard classmate, Divya Narendra, have alleged that Zuckerberg had stolen the idea for Facebook from them.

Facebook promptly countersued the trio and their own social networking site, ConnectU, alleging that they had hacked into Facebook to steal data and spam users. The legal volley of claims and counterclaims went back and forth until 2008, when the Winklevosses and Narendra signed a settlement valued at $65 million, part in cash and part in Facebook stock.

But the trio later tried to pull out of the deal, alleging that Facebook had misrepresented the value of its stock. A judge ruled against them and forced the settlement to go through, but the Winklevosses and Narendra took the case to an appeals court.

In April, Judge Alex Kozinski, chief judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in San Francisco, attempted to put the kibosh on the case. "At some point, litigation must come to an end," Kozinski wrote in his decision. "That point has now been reached."

In June, the twins abandoned their plans to appeal to the Supreme Court for an unwinding of their 2008 settlement, and followed up a day later with a new motion in Boston federal court.

Man’s name in sand visible from space

Here's a big idea: Writing your name in the sand so large that it can be seen from space. Of course, you're much better position to carry off this sort of vanity project if you're Hamad Bin Hamdan Al Ahyan, a super-rich Arab sheikh who is the president of the oil-rich United Arab Emirates. He also happens to own an island--an ideal canvas for what is essentially the world's largest self-referential graffiti tag.

The letters were crafted by a crew who worked for weeks to create them. The inscription measures half a mile high and two miles long--and the letters are dug so deep that they form waterways. The writing won't be immediately washed away, but even Hamad--whose fortune is only surpassed by his monarchial rival in the region, Saudi King Abdullah--can only defy the elements for so long.

Did we mention his name can be seen from outer space?

Hamad, according to Forbes, is a guy who lives large. A member of the Abu Dhabi ruling family, the man known as the Rainbow Sheikh owns 200 cars that are stored in a giant pyramid. (What, you use a garage?) Forbes also noted that Hamad also hand-built a motor home in the shape of a giant globe "one-millionth the size of the Earth."

It should also be noted that the 63-year-old sheikh also has deep pockets when it comes to philanthropy. But don't worry about thanking him -- it seems he's come up with a perfectly good way to give himself a shout-out.

Atlantis has landed, ending NASA's shuttle era

CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida (Reuters) - The space shuttle Atlantis glided home through a clear moonlit sky on Thursday to complete a 13-day cargo run to the International Space Station and a 30-year odyssey for NASA's shuttle program.

Commander Chris Ferguson gently steered the 100-ton spaceship high overhead, then nose-dived toward the swamp-surrounded landing strip at the Kennedy Space Center, a few miles (km) from where Atlantis will go on display as a museum piece.

Double sonic booms shattered the predawn silence around the space center, the last time residents will hear the sound of a shuttle coming home.

Ferguson eased Atlantis onto the runway at 5:57 a.m. EDT (0957 GMT), ending a 5.2 million-mile (8.4 million-km) journey and closing a key chapter in human space flight history.

"Mission complete, Houston," Ferguson radioed to Mission Control.

Astronaut Barry Wilmore from Mission Control answered back, "We'll take this opportunity to congratulate you Atlantis, as well as the thousands of passionate individuals across this great space-faring nation who truly empowered this incredible spacecraft, which for three decades has inspired millions around the globe."

Atlantis' return from the 135th shuttle mission capped a 30-year program that made spaceflight appear routine, despite two fatal accidents that killed 14 astronauts and destroyed two of NASA's five spaceships.

The last accident investigation board recommended the shuttles be retired after construction was finished on the space station, a $100 billion project of 16 nations. That milestone was reached this year.

Details of a follow-on program are still pending, but the overall objective is to build new spaceships that can travel beyond the station's 250-mile (400-km) orbit and send astronauts to the moon, asteroids and other destinations in deep space.

Wipro Q1 net up 1.23% at Rs 1,334.9 crore; beats estimates

Mumbai: The country's third largest software exporter Wipro Wednesday reported a growth of 1.23 percent in consolidated net profit for the quarter ended March 31, 2011, to Rs 1,334.9 crore.

Last year, the company had posted a net profit of Rs 1,318.6 crore for the fourth quarter, as per international accounting standards.

Net income from sales during the reporting quarter stood at Rs 8,564 crore, as against Rs 7,236.4 crore in Q1 FY'11, up 18.34 percent.

"We are seeing early signs of positive momentum after the re-organisation. Clients continue to focus on optimising operations, creating new products and getting access to newer markets. We will continue to make investments that bring superior value to our clients as they try to win in this market," Wipro Chairman Azim Premji said in a statement.

IT services, which contributed 75 percent to the company's revenues in Q1, FY'12, stood at USD 1,408 million, a sequential increase of 0.5 percent and a year-on-year increase of 16.9 percent.

The company said it expects its revenues from the IT services business to be in the range of USD 1,436 million to USD 1,464 million for the second quarter ending September 30, 2011.

The IT services division hired 4,105 new people this quarter, taking its total headcount to 1,26,490 employees as of June 30, 2011. It added 49 new customers during the reporting quarter.

"Our investments in client mining are starting to show results, with four customers contributing more than USD 100 million of revenues. We have maintained our operating margins in the current quarter despite one month impact of salary revision," Wipro Executive Director and Chief Financial Officer Suresh Senapaty said.

On a standalone basis, the company has reported a net profit of Rs 1,219.3 crore for the quarter, a growth of 9.84 percent from Rs 1,110 crore in the same period last year.

The company's cash and cash equivalents stood at Rs 5,075.2 crore as of June 30, 2011.

Sales of IT products accounted for 12 percent of total company revenue in Q1 FY'12, at Rs 1,006 crore, a growth of 21 percent year-on-year.

Wipro's consumer care and lighting business recorded revenues of Rs 755 crore in Q1, FY'12, an increase of 18 percent y-o-y and accounting for 9 percent of Wipro's total revenues during the quarter.

PTI

Yahoo profits rise but sales dip as rivals dent market

Yahoo has reported a dip in its revenue for the second quarter due to weaker-than-expected advertising sales.

The company said it generated $1.08bn (£670m) in revenue in the three months to June, a 4.6% decline compared to the same period last year.

The data comes as Yahoo has been facing increasing competition from rivals Google and Facebook.

However, despite a drop in revenue, Yahoo said its profits rose by 11% from a year ago to $237m.

Carol Bartz, the chief executive of Yahoo said the second quarter was a "mix of good, encouraging and, at the same time, unsatisfactory" developments.

"The issue was we did not have enough sales people in front of the big clients," she said.

Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez Crash Malibu Wedding!

While not everyone can say their wedding was the best day of their lives, for one lucky couple, it will ring true even if things don't work out. This past weekend, pop sensation Justin Bieber and singer girlfriend Selena Gomez decided to crash Rob and Jeanine McCool's wedding, and it's caught on video! Most brides would be more than miffed to let anything or anyone outshine her on her wedding day, but I'm sure this bride took exception.

According to a cousin of the new couple who posted the video below, Bieber overheard the reception karaoke-ing his song "One Less Lonely Girl" (appropriate wedding song) while driving by and pulled over to see what the scene was about. In true form, he caused a riot among the flabbergasted guests and happily posed for pictures with guests and the bride and groom. Gomez, playing patient girlfriend, stayed to the side during the commotion and waited for Bieber by his car. The appearance only lasted about ten minutes, but like all weddings, the memories will last a lifetime.

Now this makes us think: Was Justin in need for a little fan pick-me-up? Why would he take the time to actually stop his car, park, get out and search the venue, following the sweet sound of his own melodies? Seems a little tedious for this writer, but whatever the reason, it was a very sweet gesture from the popstar and the McCools now have one of the greatest wedding stories ever to tell. So Beliebers across the world, break out your karaoke machines and start singing. Like a siren's song luring fishermen to the sea, your rendition of your favorite Bieber song might just catch Justin himself.

Check out Justin Bieber's wedding pandemonium:

Baidu signs deal with music labels

Chinese search engine Baidu has struck a deal with leading music labels ending years of legal wrangling over rights.

Baidu signed an agreement with a joint venture owned by Universal Music, Warner Music and Sony Music to distribute music through its mp3 search service.

Baidu, China's biggest search engine, will pay the owners of the music rights on a per-play and per-download basis.

China is the world's biggest internet market with close to 470 million users.

Baidu has been involved in legal tussle with the music labels. It has been accused of steering consumers to third-party websites where pirated material is hosted.

However, the company said that all outstanding litigation between the parties involved had ended as part of the deal.

Blast rips Mumbai, Minister enjoys fashion show!

New Delhi: “We should continue doing whatever we are doing”, said India’s Tourism Minister Subodh Kant Sahay yesterday, while the financial capital of India reeled under a terror jolt yet again and the Minister brazenly attended a fashion show in the capital.

Possibly, the national leader was only trying to lead by example! About how we can continue to live it up even under the shadow of terror.

So when Mumbai was burning, the elected representatives of our nation were busy watching models wearing sequinned dresses and gowns.

Along with the tourism minister also present at the fashion gala was Delhi’s former mayor Aarti Mehra. Apparently, they had assembled at Hotel Grand, on insistence of Ashok Kumar Pradhan, former Union minister and senior BJP leader, whose daughter, a fashion designer, was presenting her debut collection of classic romance.

It was also learnt that some Mumbai celebs including, Suresh Oberoi, Madhur Bhandarkar, Mugdha Godse and Anushka Sharma, were having gala time with their Delhi friends.

When a journalist tried to speak to Aarti Mehra, she said, “I am feeling sad about it (the Mumbai blasts). But again, life must go on. Ashok is like a big brother to me. I am here only for him."

"Even after incidents like these, life doesn`t come to a standstill. We should continue doing whatever we are doing," said a gung-ho Subodh Kant Sahay.

Now, that’s quite a statement Mr Sahay, considering your position and the ‘occasion’.

Gold hits record, extends gains to 9th day

Singapore: Spot gold hit a record high above USD 1,589 on Thursday, buoyed by a sharp drop in the dollar after Moody's warned the US may lose its top credit rating, the possibility of more Federal Reserve stimulus and Europe's deepening debt crisis.

Spot gold rose to a record of USD 1,589.56 an ounce, before easing to USD 1,584.51 by 0609 GMT. Gold was on course for its ninth consecutive day of gains, matching a similar winning streak in 2006.

US gold also hit a record at USD 1,590.80 an ounce. It was trading at USD 1,585.30, little changed from the previous close.

Sovereign debt concerns spread from the euro zone to the United States, as Moody's threatened to cut the US sovereign credit rating as debt talks stalled in Washington.

"There is a lot of capital flight," said a Singapore-basedtrader.

"Lacking a really reliable destination, a lot of the funds leaving the bonds market are going into precious metals on the notion that their value will be retained even if policymakers are pressured to go to further extremes to work against contagion."

Uncertainties around the US debt talks, together with Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's comment on the potential for further monetary easing, battered the dollar, helping support commodities.

The ongoing euro zone debt crisis added to gold's lustre. Fitch Ratings on Wednesday downgraded Greece deeper into junk territory, citing the absence of a new and fully funded financing program for the country.

"Gold flourishes when there is uncertainty on the macro side, and across the globe there are quite a few problematic hot spots," said Xinyi Chen, an analyst at Barclays Capital.

Gold prices are likely to refresh the record highs in the short term, with the immediate target at USD 1,600 within a stone's shot, traders and analysts said.

"There is so much disquiet about bond market that it is likely to keep investors interested in precious metals," said the Singapore-based trader, while warning that a price breakout could trigger greater volatility.

The Relative Strength Index, or RSI, on spot gold hovered around 70, seen as a technical sign that the market is overbought.

Technical analysis suggested a bullish picture. Spot gold is likely to rise to USD 1,613 an ounce, said Reuters market analyst Wang Tao.

Spot silver rose to USD 38.61 per ounce, the highest since May 31, before trading up 0.7 percent at USD 38.52, tracking gains in bullion and extending the 5.6 percent rise in the previous session.

US silver gained 1 percent to USD 38.56.

Hackers crack Vodafone’s network, can listen to all calls

The Hacker's Choice (THC), a group of computer security researchers, released surprising news about cellular carrier Vodafone UK. Using standard consumer hardware, THC was able to access Vodafone's internal network and customer equipment. This unprecedented hack was made possible by Vodafone's Sure Signal, a femtocell (think tiny cell tower) customers plug into their home internet connections for better cell reception.

THC began researching femtocells in 2009. The technology has become popular with cellphone companies like AT&T, which offers a 3G MicroCell, because the home access points mean better service for customers in areas with spotty coverage. THC purchased its femtocell from Vodafone UK and examined how the device communicated to Vodafone's core network. They discovered that because of a flaw in how Vodafone implemented its system, it gave full access to the network to the femtocell, a device the hackers had full control of. Vodafone also used the same 'newsys' administrator password across all devices.

Vodafone says only a limited number of registered phones are allowed to access each customer's femtocell. The hackers were able to uncap this and let any Vodafone customer phone automatically connect to their device. Once a phone connected, THC was able to eavesdrop on phone conversations, place calls as the customer, and even access their voicemail. With phone hacking in the news every day, we wonder what other security flaws are still waiting to be discovered.

Ex-Cameron aide, Andy Coulson, arrested in UK hacking scandal

London: London police on Friday arrested Andy Coulson, the former News of the World editor who also served as the prime minister's former communications chief, in relation to Britain's tabloid phone-hacking scandal.

London police said a 43-year-old man was arrested Friday morning over allegations of phone hacking and police bribery and was in custody at a London police station. They did not name him but offered the information when asked about Coulson.

The Murdoch media empire on Thursday shut down the 168-year-old muckraking tabloid. The paper has been engulfed by allegations its journalists paid police for information and hacked into the phone messages of celebrities, young murder victims and the grieving families of dead soldiers.

It comes just as media baron Rupert Murdoch is seeking U.K. government clearance for a euro12 billion ($19 billion) bid for full control of British Sky Broadcasting, a prize far more valuable than his British stable of newspapers.

Earlier Friday, Prime Minister David Cameron admitted that British politicians and the press had become too cosy and promised to hold two full investigations into activities at the News of the World tabloid and into future media regulation.

Cameron said press self-regulation had failed and a new body, independent of the media and the government, was needed to properly enforce standards

"The truth is, we've all been in this together," Cameron said at a news conference a day after the announcement that the News of the World was closing down. "Party leaders were so keen to win the support of newspapers that we turned a blind eye to the need to sort this issue. The people in power knew things weren't right but they didn't do enough quickly enough."

Cameron said his friend Rebekah Brooks, a former editor of the tabloid, should have resigned as chief executive of News International, the British unit of Rupert Murdoch's News Corp.. He also said there were questions to be answered by James Murdoch, the heir-apparent to his father's media empire.

"I want everyone to be clear: Everything that has happened is going to be investigated," Cameron said.

He said a judge will be appointed to lead a thorough investigation of what went wrong at the News of the World, including alleged bribery of police officers, and a second inquiry to find a new way of regulating the press.

Two employees of the tabloid were sent to prison in 2007 after being convicted of hacking into royal telephones, but the police investigation of the activity at the time has been slammed as incomplete or compromised by new bribery allegations.

Cameron also suggested that a decision on Murdoch's BSkyB takeover is likely to be delayed.

"Given the events of recent days, this will take some time," Cameron said.

The prime minister refused to apologize for hiring Coulson as his spokesman, a move that opposition Labour Party leader Ed Miliband described Friday as an "appalling error of judgment."

Cameron said Coulson, who resigned from his government post in January, remained a friend.

The prime minister referred to reports that Brooks had offered her resignation. "In this situation I would have taken it," Cameron said.

A reporter asked whether James Murdoch was a fit and proper person to run a company, following his admission on Thursday that regretted authorizing out-of-court payments to some hacking victims.

Murdoch's statement "raises lots of questions that need to be answered," Cameron said.

The scandal exploded this week after it was reported that the News of the World had hacked the mobile phone of 13-year-old murder victim Milly Dowler in 2002 while her family and police were desperately searching for her. News of the World operatives reportedly deleted some messages from the phone's voicemail, giving the girl's parents false hope that she was still alive.

That ignited public outrage far beyond any previous reaction to press intrusion into the lives of celebrities, which the paper had previously acknowledged and for which it paid compensation.

Dozens of companies pulled their advertising from the paper this week, fearing they would be tainted by association. James Murdoch then announced Thursday that this Sunday's edition of the tabloid would be its last and all revenue from the final issue, which will carry no ads, would go to "good causes."

News International, the British unit of Murdoch's News Corp., has not said whether it will move quickly to put another paper into the Sunday market which had been dominated for decades by News of the World. But according to online records, an unnamed U.K. individual on Tuesday bought up the rights to the domain name "sunonsunday.co.uk."

Shares in BSkyB, which have fallen all week because of doubts whether the takeover will go ahead, were down more than 4 per cent Friday in London trading at 779 pence ($12.40).

Shares in News Corp. rose 1.6 per cent on the Nasdaq index in New York after Thursday's announcement.

The British government on June 30 already gave its qualified approval allowing News Corp. to purchase the 61 per cent of British Sky Broadcasting that it doesn't already own, on the condition it spins off Sky News as a separate company. News Corp. made an initial offer of 700 pence per share, valuing BSkyB at 12.3 billion pounds ($19.8 billion). Analysts believe News Corp. may have to go as high as 900 pence per share to persuade shareholders to sell out.

Analysts expect the BSkyB deal approval to be delayed now until at least September.

Despite the public outcry, many analysts think Britain will still sanction the takeover, since officials have already said that threats to competition will be resolved with Sky News' spin-off.

Obama's father weighed adoption: Book

Boston: US President Barack Obama's father had intended to put his unborn son up for adoption as the senior Obama tried to appease US immigration officials who raised concerns about him having two wives as well as his "playboy ways", a new book has revealed.

Details about Obama senior have emerged in a book by Boston Globe reporter Sally Jacobs.

Titled 'The Other Barack, The Bold and Reckless Life of President Obama's Father,' the biography is slated for release next week.

"In the spring of 1961, President Obama's father revealed a plan for his unborn son that might have changed the course of American political history," Jacobs said in an article in the Boston Globe.

The elder Obama, who was at the time a sophomore at the University of Hawaii, had come under scrutiny by federal immigration officials who were concerned that he had more than one wife.

When questioned by the school's foreign student adviser, the 24-year-old Obama insisted that he had divorced his wife in his native Kenya.

Although his new wife, Ann Dunham, was five months pregnant with their child 'Barack Obama II', Obama declared that they intended to put their child up for adoption.

"Subject (Obama senior) got his USC (United States citizen) wife 'Hapai' (Hawaiian for pregnant) and although they were married they do not live together and Miss Dunham is making arrangements with the Salvation Army to give the baby away," according to a memo describing the conversation with Obama senior written by Lyle Dahling, an administrator in the Honolulu office of the US Immigration and Naturalization Service.

The Salvation Army had operated nearly a dozen residential maternity homes throughout the US and made arrangements for adoption through local agencies.

Dunham, who died in 1995, was 18 years old when she gave birth to Barack Obama.

While neither Obama nor his wife put their baby up for adoption, it is unclear whether the young couple actually considered such a step, or the elder Obama made the story up in order to appease immigration officials who at the time were considering his request for an extension of his stay in the United States, Jacobs said.

"But his statement provides a unique glimpse into the relationship between the president’s parents and the fragility of his connection to the father whom he would little know," Jacobs added.

PTI

Idea Cellular dips 4% on bourses on HC order

Mumbai: Shares of Idea Cellular dipped by 4 percent in early trade on the bourses after the Delhi High Court ruled that six telecom spectrum licences held by Spice Communications, a company acquired by the Aditya Birla group firm in 2008, would not be transferred without DoT permission.

Shares of the company opened on a weak note at Rs 77, then lost further ground and touched a low of Rs 75. The company was later trading at Rs 76.50, down 2.80 percent at 1057 hours on the BSE.

The court said the six licences of Spice Communications would not be transferred to Idea as the company did not comply with licence and merger guidelines at the time of acquisition in 2008. It directed Idea Cellular to handover the overlapping licences and spectrum to the Department of Telecom (DoT) till it received permission to utilise them.

The court also slapped a fine of Rs 1 crore on the company for not giving the correct information to the court.

A similar trend was witnessed on the National Stock Exchange, where the scrip fell to a low of Rs 75.90 after opening at Rs 78.25. It was later quoted at Rs 76.50, down 2.98 percent on the NSE.

Passing judgement on the merger application of Idea and Spice, the high court said Idea did not place on record the rejection letters written by the DoT on the proposed merger of licence or other relevant documents.

Idea Cellular, however, asserted that it has not suppressed any information from the Delhi High Court, where it had moved an application for the merger of Idea and Spice.

"Idea stands upright, has not suppressed anything at all, let alone willfully, and will appeal for what it believes is right," the company said, reacting to the Delhi High Court order.

PTI

Thousands give Djokovic hero's welcome

Belgrade: Some 100,000 Serbian tennis fans gave Novak Djokovic a royal reception in central Belgrade on Monday after the 24-year-old arrived home to celebrate winning his first Wimbledon title.

Djokovic, who leapt to the top of the ATP rankings in the process, was greeted by a deafening roar as he arrived in an open-top bus which took hours to reach the Serbian parliament square from the airport.

Traffic on the main motorway ground to a halt as fans got out of their cars to salute Serbia's most popular athlete, whose entire family paraded alongside him on a giant stage where rock bands entertained the crowd.

"This is absolutely unbelievable and I owe all of you eternal gratitude for this reception," an elated Djokovic said as he held aloft the trophy he won with an emphatic four-set win over Spaniard Rafa Nadal in Sunday's final.

"The time has come to bare all my emotions to you and all I can say is that you are the best in the world because only Serbian fans can throw a party like this.

"You have made the happiest day of my life even better and I dedicate this trophy to you," said Djokovic, who will lead Davis Cup holders Serbia in their quarter-final tie away to Sweden next weekend.

"We have a soul that is second to none and with the team event coming up, I can promise you we will do everything in our power to win it all again," he added.

Djokovic and his two younger brothers then joined rock, pop and folk bands on stage in singing local chartbusters, as fans lit flares and waved Serbian flags.

Some of them produced banners taunting Nadal, who relinquished the world number one spot to his fierce rival.

"Are you watching this from Madrid, Rafa, and keep practising that backhand of yours," said one of them.

The frenzy culminated when Djokovic and his family engaged in a traditional Serbian folk dance as fireworks lit the skies above Belgrade on a warm evening.

"Young people are here in droves because they look up to this extraordinary young man and draw inspiration from his accomplishments," said former Davis Cup coach Radmilo Armenulic.

"He is a role model and a true champion, finding the strength and willpower in his family and close friends, which is the best way to keep your life on the rails.”

"As for his game, I am in no position to give him any advice because he is so superior on the court," said Armenulic.

Former handball international Igor Butulija added: "As a former top-level athlete I know how much more difficult it is to reach the top as an individual, hence Djokovic's triumph must stand as the most remarkable achievement in Serbia's history."

Muslim veil no excuse for discrimination: NZ PM

Wellington: New Zealand Prime Minister John Key on Tuesday said Muslim women wearing veils should not face discrimination, after two Saudi women were reportedly ordered off buses due to their attire.

Saudi diplomats in New Zealand had raised concerns with the government after two separate incidents in Auckland where women were told to get off buses because they were wearing full-face veils, the Dominion Post reported.

In one case, a Saudi Arabian student was left crying on the street after the bus driver shouted "Out!" then shut the doors on her and drove off, the newspaper said.

Key said he was comfortable with women wearing veils, adding: "It doesn't offend me. It's part of people's beliefs."

He described New Zealand as a tolerant and inclusive society, saying he saw no need to ban Islamic veils in public, as France has done.

"I think where practical, and on both sides, people should respect others' culture and cultural beliefs," Key told reporters.

"There are practical reasons why sometimes a burqa won't be applicable -- banks for example, for security reasons from time to time they will enforce that.”

"But for the most part we are a multi-cultural society and we should respect other's cultural beliefs."

In April, France became the first country in Europe to apply a ban on the wearing of full-face coverings, including the Islamic niqab and the burqa.

The country's largest bus operator, NZ Bus, which was involved in both Auckland incidents, said two drivers had been sent on counselling programmes but were not dismissed because their actions were not religiously motivated.

"Both drivers... claim it's not religious... but they genuinely have a phobia of people wearing masks, hence why we have not dismissed them," NZ Bus general manager Jon Calder told the Dominion Post.

The Saudi Arabian consul-general in Auckland declined to comment.

3G hype doesn't meet ground reality

Siddharth Tak/Zee Research Group

Seven months into its much publicized launch in India, the 3G service in the country is yet to create any waves. Analysts say inadequate infrastructure, linear tariff models, and less than enthusiastic consumer experience threaten to derail the gen-next breakthrough in the Indian telecom story.

An independent 3G survey by Bangalore-based IT and Telecom consulting firm, Knowledgefaber suggested a modest uptake so far for the service.

Said Jayant Kholla, telecom practice leader at Knowldgefaber, “As per our estimates, as of mid-April there were three million to 3.5 million subscribers (voluntary 3G upgrades by users) as compared to 5 million to 6 million claimed by operators.”

This rather lowly figure assumes importance in the context of the estimated total number of 3G handsets in circulation in the country. “There are about 80mn to 100mn 3G enabled mobile handsets installed base in India.” 3G handsets have been available as early as 2005-06 in India.

Although there hasn't been much change in the average selling price of 3G handsets post the launch of 3G services, about 65 3G enabled handset models have been launched in two quarters starting October 2010, as compared to about 50 in the two quarters leading up to October 2010, said Kholla at Knowledgefaber.

The ground situation on infrastructure hosting 3G is also said to be sparse. As per Knowledgefaber estimates, there were just over 40,000 3G base transceiver station (BTS) installed by end of March 2011 as compared to 3,50,000 2G BTSs pan India (all operators combined).There are close to 300,000 mobile towers (passive infrastructure) for supporting the existing 2G active infrastructure. The operators can potentially use the available tenancy on these towers to deploy their 3G antennas.

Indian carriers (especially incumbent carriers) currently face multiple structural challenges such as inadequate infrastructure and limited available spectrum (5MHz) to offer 3G enabled data optimized services at launch.

Also, carriers’ “walled garden” approach to value added services and prevalent piracy and Indian consumers’ lack of willingness to pay for such services pose a huge challenge for immediate uptake of 3G services, the study argued. However, once the 3G device prices decrease and the tariffs stabilize in the first two years, Knowledgefaber believes that the 3G uptake will rise in 2013 and reach over 90 million by March 2014.

Shobhit Agarwal, managing director, Protiviti Consulting said, “Key would to be keeping pricing low and have good customer experience – as there is no single killer application. Operators will continue to bundle and have aggressive pricing to induce people to try more and more of data services.”

Top operators like Bharti Airtel, Vodafone, Reliance and Tata Communications are offering various services including video based services, high definition gaming, high speed mobile internet browsing and app stores on their 3G networks.

Knowledgefaber cited poor end-user experience as the other reason for poor uptake. “Many consumers (early adopters) who have opted for 3G services offered by some of the leading carriers are facing issues with services and network coverage. A single block of 5MHz spectrum is insufficient to offer dedicated data & video services on 3G,”its study said.

“Video becoming more popular and as the base of customer using 3G expands, operators will have to keep innovating/optimizing as they have limited 3G spectrum – this would be an important factor to ensure good customer experience; if initial experience continues to be good, adoption will be accelerated which will help 3G realize its potential in India – a country with a significant unmet data demand,” Protiviti’s Agarwal added.