In a move that would surely have Steve Jobs — the man willing to go thermonuclear war against Android — rolling over in his grave, Apple has apparently offered licensing deals to Samsung and Motorola in an attempt to settle ongoing and future patent suits. According to sources speaking with Dow Jones Newswires, Apple has offered licensing deals in the tune of $5 to $15 per device or the equivalent of 1% to 2.5% of net sales per device. Interestingly enough, these fees are on par with what Apple deemed “unreasonable” after attempts to license patents from Motorola.
To kick off the new Google Play media hub, Google is hosting a slew of deals in their “7 days to play” promotion. For the next week, Google will be discounting various digital content from apps to music and some of the deals are incredible. You’ll find entire music albums or top selling apps for a mere $.25. We’ve scoured through the Play Store and compiled a list to get you on your way. Hit the links after the break to check out some of the great deals going on right now in the Google Play Store.
The patent saga continues with U.S. Circuit Judge Richard A. Posner in Chicago ruling that Motorola and Google must provide Apple with information regarding Android development as well as information about the impending merger. It’s unclear exactly what specific “information” must be provided and while everyone goes ahead and assumes it’s some sort of top secret documentation, I’m betting it’s nothing of the sort and Apple won’t be gaining any trade secrets out of this. It’s all ridiculous and will only end as all of these patent suits have ended, with nothing more than a software update.
Android and iOS users will now be able to quickly access the places they have searched for on Google thanks to Google’s new “Recent” icon on their mobile search page. Any user who has Web History enabled and is logged into Google when searching for a place will have that search saved and accessible via the “Recent” icon. Searches will be saved for approximately 24-hours and will give users the convenience of starting searches from their desktop and later pulling up that information while mobile.
If you’re new to Android you may be trying to figure out what all these tasty desserts have to do with your favorite mobile OS. Well, Google likes to name every major version of Android after a delicious treat and has been following alphabetically ever since Cupcake. We’re currently on the letter “I” and that’s why you’ll hear Android 4.0 referred to as Ice Cream Sandwich. Up next is “J,” and Google has all but confirmed Jelly Bean, but what if we told you they’ve also decided on a name for the OS after Jelly Bean? Hopefully you’d say “Woah, hold your cupcakes!” I mean seriously, only 1% of Android users even have Ice Cream Sandwich and you want to talk about an OS that probably won’t be out until 2014!? Rest assured we feel the same way, but if you’re still curious, a reliable source has told The Verge that Key Lime Pie will follow Jelly Bean.
