TecTiles are a near field communication (NFC) application. They were developed by Samsung for use with mobile smartphone devices. TecTiles are low cost self-adhesive stickers with an embedded NFC Tag that are programmed before use. This is done simply by the user with a downloadable Android app.

cMEcompete, a social platform for endurance events such as triathlons, marathons or bike races, has become the first platform to issue equity through online crowdfunding to non-accredited investors. There are more than 35,000 such events in the United States each year.

Last year around this time ICANN put a stop on their "Digital Anarchy" lottery system for handing out the hugely needed suffixes as concerns grew about companies either gaming the system or being shut out with potentially catastrophic impacts on their brands. Having in their own minds addressed those problems, in late April of this year ICANN announced that it would push back the rollout data of gTLDs) from June to August. Speculation is that in the face of concerns raised not just by commercial entities and other organizations, such as law enforcement agencies and ICANN's own Government Advisory Committee (GAC), ICANN is not going to hit that August date either.

On the second day of the Google I/O event (click the link for first-day coverage), we sat in a huge room full of Google developers, during which time some of the key members of the Google Glass team held a Fireside Chat. Most of the developers were sporting their own pairs of Google Glass, and we confess that as TRON-dorky as they may have all looked we were a bit jealous not to have our own pair in hand and looking, well…TRON-dorky along with the rest of them.

But let’s leave aside how they actually look while on one’s face and let’s leave aside the constant reminder of Star Trek’s Captain Jean-Luc Picard once the Borg got hold of him (the reminders are eerie in a way). The truth is that the hardware design itself – which the Glass team admits is still in the early stages – is actually rather elegant and featherweight.

Spring is in the air in the Northern Hemisphere, and unfortunately almost like clockwork that means the ICANN (the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) is back in the news because of its continuing attempts to rollout as many as 1,400 new Top Level Domain (gTLD) web site suffixes. It seems like no good deed goes unpunished, and that this is turning out to be a lot harder than expected.

Last year around this time ICANN put a stop on their “Digital Anarchy” lottery system for handing out the hugely needed suffixes as concerns grew about companies either gaming the system or being shut out with potentially catastrophic impacts on their brands. Having in their own minds addressed those problems, in late April of this year ICANN announced that it would push back the rollout data of gTLDs) from June to August.

The multimedia over coax, or MoCA standard is enjoying a crest in North America thanks to operators rolling out advanced set-top functionality, like DirecTV’s Genie DVR.

Market research firm Infonetics Research finds in its latest semi-annual Home Networking Devices vendor market share and forecast report that sales of set-top boxes (STBs) with embedded MoCA technology grew 23 percent in the second half of 2012 while MoCA adapters, though still shipping in small amounts, soared into the triple digits, or upwards of 129 percent.

First there was “same day as DVD,” then there was “same day as cinema,” now there’s a “before theater” option for movie lovers that want to see a short list of non-blockbuster, relatively low-budget titles by renting them from Comcast Corp.’s video-on-demand (VoD) library.

The ability to rent movies before they hit cinemas represents a new and fresh wrinkle to VoD designs to help these libraries better compete with movie services in the areas of affordability and variety, without the expense of the in-theater experience.

cMEcompete has become the first platform to issue equity through online crowdfunding to non-accredited investors. It is a social platform for endurance events such as triathlons, marathons or bike races, involving participants, organizations, schools, businesses and sponsors. There are 35,000 such events in the United States each year.

The opportunity was allowed after state officials approved the Invest Georgia Exemption (IGE) in 2012, which makes it easier for companies to raise capital.

With over 6,000 developers on hand, along with a fairly sizable contingent of media, anticipation among all of us attending Google I/O 2013 was for updates on Google Glass, news of the Motorola X Phone (supposedly the next Nexus phone), a Spotify competitor, another Google TV iteration, details on Android Key Lime Pie, a smart watch, and then "the rest of the stuff" one would expect to hear about. Well, there was no new news on any of the things we've just noted (with a sort of exception to Spotify).

The promising but controversial field of cloning was advanced by researchers in Oregon after they converted human skin cells into embryonic stem cells. Researchers did not create a human clone - but the advancement could reignite the controversy surrounding the ethics of cloning.

This week NVIDIA announced the configuration and price for its Shield handheld gaming system and the $350 price, which appears high for the market, is giving some folks pause. However, this is because people are used to systems that are subsidized by their games and an Android-based gaming system doesn't fit that model. The closest comparison is an unlocked phone, though this is actually better because unlocked phones don't get the massive game discount that Shield will get.

Ah, Twitter-the social media platform where you can say anything that comes to mind as long as the message is 150 characters or less. According to Static Brain, currently around 58 million tweets per day are sent, the site receives 190 million unique visitors every month, and 135,000 users begin to leverage Twitter within a 24 hour period. While the company is doing extremely well, everything doesn't appear to be rainbows and lollipops over in Twitter land as we see with the recent news about Chief Executive Dick Costolo resigning as director of Twitter UK surfacing just last week.

Even just a year or two ago, the thought of Apple sales doing less than spectacularly might have been unthinkable, but Sharp, kicking off a three-year plan designed to ensure its own survival, has thought the unthinkable and is preparing a response, mostly geared toward increasing sales to Apple's major rival Samsung.

Cheryl Nelson reportedly filed some EIGHT police complaints about the stalking from the Facebook page, which she'd allegedly created in her ex-boyfriend's new girlfriend's name. Investigating police finally figured out that she was the one who was the actual stalker. Of herself. Nelson's been charged with felony filing of a false police report. And it sounds like her ex got out just in time.

Real-time entertainment (streaming video and audio) already is the largest traffic category on every network, according to Sandvine, with more than 68 percent of downstream bytes during peak period, compared with 65 percent at the end of 2012.

A short time after Apple delivered its map app and had to issue an apology for its perceived poor quality, Apple and map app maker Waze had a sit-down to figure out if it made sense for Apple to make an acquisition. But now Facebook and Waze are in supposed "deep" discussions for Facebook to make the buy and this is a deal with potentially huge positives for both companies.

It has been a troubling few days for Chinese communications equipment giant Huawei. A few days back its publicity-shy founder and president, Ren Zhengfei, broke years of silence in an interview in New Zealand where he stated, "Huawei has no connection to the cyber-security issues the U.S. has encountered in the past, current and future."

There is a lot of talk going on - chatter, we mean - that Facebook and mapping player Waze are in very serious talks for Facebook to acquire the company, possibly for as much as $1 billion - the same as for the Instagram deal Facebook pulled off last year. It's an interesting thought.

While there has been quite a bit of controversy generated by Congress lately--as is the case with most years--one of the biggest controversies emerged when the Library of Congress issued a set of new rules according to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act that essentially made it illegal, nationwide, to unlock a cell phone. This gave consumers a lot less choice in the market and, many thought, unduly tied consumers' hands on several fronts.

Comcast ranks first among providers of hosted IP telephony suppliers in the latest Infonetics Research ranking of the top providers in the hosted VoIP, unified communications (UC) and IP connectivity service markets. 8x8 follows closely behind Comcast.