Tag: Balita-news

A computer screen in Hong Kong on January 18, 2012 shows the Wikipedia homepage. ©AFP PHOTO/Philippe Lopez

Wikipedia, Google protest Internet bills

(WASHINGTON-AFP) – Wikipedia went dark, Google blotted out its logo and other popular websites planned protests on Wednesday to voice concern over legislation in the US Congress intended to crack down on online piracy. Wikipedia shut down the English version of its online encyclopedia for 24 hours to protest the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) [...]

2012/01/18 | 0 Comments More
Shoppers queue to enter a shop of French luxury brand Louis Vuitton in a shopping mall in Shanghai. Louis Vuitton was the favored brand among wealthy Chinese for gift-giving. ©AFP PHOTO/PHILIPPE LOPEZ

China’s wealthy favor French brands for gifts

(HONG KONG-Relaxnews) – Gift-giving has long been an integral part of life in mainland China — regardless of the murky area of motives when it occurs in the world of business — and now a new survey has lifted the lid on just what it is the country’s rich have been handing out. The “Top [...]

2012/01/17 | 0 Comments More
When complete, Japan's future navigation system will be ten times more precise than the one currently in use. ©Rafal Olechowski/shutterstock.com

Japan plans enhanced GPS system

(TOKYO-Relaxnews) – Japan is working on a new global positioning system that will be 10 times more accurate than the system that is currently in use and will be able to pinpoint a location down to just one meter. At present, Japan uses an American-made system for GPS devices, but Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda has [...]

2012/01/17 | 0 Comments More
oard at 2012 CES A woman touches the screen on Sharp's 80-inch touch screen TV set Aquos Board, an Interactive Display System, on the opening day of the International Consumer Electronics Show on January 10, 2012 in Las Vegas, Nevada. ©AFP PHOTO / Frederic J. BROWN

‘Smart TVs’ offer new windows onto the Internet

(LAS VEGAS-AFP) – Goodbye boob tube. Hello smart TV. The world’s obsession with tapping into the Internet is being played out on the biggest screen in the house, with software startups, TV makers, and technology titans such as Google and Microsoft adding momentum to the trend. Even the beloved firm behind iPads and iPhones is [...]

2012/01/16 | 0 Comments More
48.7 percent of China's web users -- or nearly 250 million people -- have now used weibos, compared to just 63.1 million at the end of 2010. ©AFP PHOTO/GOU Yige

China’s Internet population hits 513 million

(BEIJING-AFP) – The number of Internet users in China rose last year by nearly 56 million to more than half a billion, nearly half of whom used weibos, or microblogs, according to official figures released Monday. China’s online population — the world’s largest — hit 513 million in 2011, a 12.2 percent increase on the [...]

2012/01/16 | 0 Comments More
A customer shows two iPhone 4S phones he just brought at an Apple store in Shanghai on January 13, 2011. Die-hard fans in China, which has the world's largest online population with more than 500 million users, have been known to line up for days to get their hands on the latest Apple products. ©AFP PHOTO/Peter PARKS

Apple suspends iPhone sales at China stores

BEIJING-AFP) – Apple said Friday it was suspending sales of the new iPhone at its China stores after fans desperate to get their hands on it fought with security and threw eggs at an official outlet. Police detained at least two people outside the Beijing shop on Friday when angry crowds who had queued for [...]

2012/01/14 | 0 Comments More
The 2012 Toyota Prius C hybrid is introduced during a press preview at the North American International Auto Show at the COBO Center January 10, 2012 in Detroit, Michigan. ©Bill Pugliano/Getty Images/AFP

Popular gas-hybrid remains Japan’s top-selling car

(TOKYO-Relaxnews) – The hugely popular Prius gas-electric hybrid was the best-selling car in Japan again in 2011, with the Toyota Motor Corp. vehicle holding the top spot for the third straight year. A total of 252,528 units of the Prius were sold over the year, thanks in large part to the growing environment-friendly attitude among [...]

2012/01/13 | 0 Comments More
Mormons believe US ready for first Mormon president

Mormons believe US ready for first Mormon president

WASHINGTON, January 12, 2012 (AFP) – Most Mormons believe Americans are ready to elect the first Mormon president in the upcoming election, according to results of a Pew Research Center survey announced Thursday. The Pew Research Center, a public policy research foundation, conducted the survey independently from the Mormon church at a time Republican front-runner [...]

2012/01/12 | 0 Comments More
Toll gate

San Miguel buys busiest Philippine toll road

MANILA, January 11, 2012 (AFP) – San Miguel Corp., one of the Philippines’ top conglomerates, said Wednesday it had taken control of the country’s busiest toll road system after buying into Malaysian and Indonesian operators. The company told the stock exchange that it had bought a majority interest in the firm that owns the concession [...]

2012/01/12 | 0 Comments More
Bourne begins Philippine filming amid terror alert

Bourne begins Philippine filming amid terror alert

MANILA, January 11, 2012 (AFP) – The latest instalment of the Jason Bourne Hollywood spy franchise began filming in the chaotic Philippine capital Tuesday amid heavy security with the city on alert over a feared terrorist attack. Police officers with bomb sniffing dogs scoured a warren of Manila alleyways where British actress Rachel Weisz and [...]

2012/01/12 | 0 Comments More