Tech News Stop - Sharing by Wasim Akhtar

::::Holy moly: Netflix clocks 42B API requests per month::::

<div class="custm_img_blk"><img src="http://www.techgig.com/files/photo_1337134927_temp.jpg" border="0" width="300" height="200" align="left" /></div> Netflix clocked close to 42 billion API requests per day in January, according to the company’s director of engineering Daniel Jacobson, who revealed the number as part of a presentation he recently gave to the Paypal engineering team. In his slides, Jacobson pointed out that the number of API requests has grown 70-fold in just two years, from 600 million in January of 2010 to 41.7 billion in January of 2012.<img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-521884" src="http://gigaom2.files.wordpress.com/2012/05/netflix-api-42-billion.jpg?w=604&h=440" border="0" title="netflix api 42 billion" width="604" height="440" />Providing an API that is resilient enough to handle these kinds of demands is not a small feat, and Jacobson’s slides reveal some of the principles behind the architecture used for the task. However, there’s an even bigger story to this: The sole reason that Netflix’s API has gotten so popular in the last two years is that the company’s service is seeing huge amounts of traffic from connected devices.Netflix originally built its API with third-party developers in mind, which used it to build websites and apps to manage one’s DVD queue and similar things. However, the Netflix engineering team eventually realized that it could use the very same API to bring Netflix to devices like the Roku, the PS3 and the Xbox. To see how much of an impact that decision had, check out where API requests came from in 2008:<img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-521889" src="http://gigaom2.files.wordpress.com/2012/05/netflix-api-requests-2008.jpg?w=604&h=456" border="0" title="netflix api requests 2008" width="604" height="456" />Compare that with API requests in 2011:<img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-521890" src="http://gigaom2.files.wordpress.com/2012/05/netflix-api-requests-2011.jpg?w=604&h=457" border="0" title="netflix api requests 2011" width="604" height="457" />Guess which segment Netflix is focusing on these days? Exactly:<img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-521891" src="http://gigaom2.files.wordpress.com/2012/05/netflix-api-emphasis.jpg?w=604&h=472" border="0" title="netflix api emphasis" width="604" height="472" />

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::::Developers begin seeing iOS 6 hits in App Store application usage logs::::

<div class="custm_img_blk"><img src="http://www.techgig.com/files/photo_1337134838_temp.png" border="0" width="300" height="200" align="left" /></div>Last week, we revealed Apple’s decision to drop Google Maps in iOS 6 in exchange for its own in-house solution branded simply as “Maps.” At the time, we told you many versions of iOS 6 have been floating around Apple’s campus, which indicated Apple is likely on track for a mid-June unveiling at this year’s World Wide Developers Conference. Shortly after, references to an upcoming iOS 6 beta were found in the code strings of the iCloud.com beta website.One app developer informed us today that it has recently noticed users running iOS 6 using its app. The developer observed the “iOS6″ string when collecting the OS version from analytics software. It has not been able to trace exactly when the iOS 6 users started appearing, but it was sometime over the past week. Other developers that we spoke to began seeing hits in late April. There is a good chance that this means Apple is amidst iOS 6 compatibility testing with higher-profile applications from the App Store. The process of next-generation versions of iOS appearing in developer usage logs occurred last year too.Although Apple’s new Maps app and its 3D mode will likely be pushed as a major feature of iOS 6, we noted previously that anyone anticipating major home screen changes or Android-style widgets will likely be disappointed. Yesterday, The Wall Street Journal reported Apple was preparing tounveil an upgrade to iCloud at WWDC that would include new sharing and commenting features for photos, as well as video syncing capabilities that will likely be the Video Stream feature we told you about last year.Apple is also set to unveil its new ultra-thin 15-inch MacBook Pro that we revealed earlier this week, and, according to reports, it will officially announce Mountain Lion’s release date. 

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::::Apple, Disney discuss bringing WatchESPN feature to Apple TV::::

<div class="custm_img_blk"><img src="http://www.techgig.com/files/photo_1337134732_temp.jpg" border="0" align="left" /></div>Bloomberg has updated its story to say that Disney and Apple are actually NOT in talks to bring the WatchESPN service to the Apple TV.No deal is imminent with Apple, said Amy Phillips, a spokeswoman for Bristol, Connecticut-based ESPN. “We’re not having conversations with Apple about authenticating WatchESPN,” Phillips said.According to a report from Bloomberg, which cites ESPN executive Sean Bratches, Apple is currently in talks with Walt Disney’s ESPN network to bring the WatchESPN app, currently available for iPhone and iPad and recently opened up to Comcast customers, to Apple TV:ESPN subscribers with AppleTV would gain access to the network’s Internet service on their sets. The sports network, which today announced programming for the TV season starting in September, said a deal isn’t imminent.Bratches spoke with Bloomberg in an interview today:“We’re a platform-agnostic content company… To the extent that in the future there’s an opportunity with Apple to authenticate through the pay-TV food chain as we’re doing with Microsoft, that’s something that we will participate in.” The WatchESPN iOS app currently provides access to live streaming for the majority of ESPN’s content to Bright House Networks, Comcast, Time Warner Cable, and Verizon FiOS TV customers. The app offers content from nearly every ESPN channel including ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, and ESPNU. A full list of features from the iOS app’s iTunes page is below:The WatchESPN app features:Live streaming access to the top events from the ESPN family of networks, including: * NBA Regular Season and Playoffs * Major League Baseball * The Masters, US Open and The Open Championships * College Football and Basketball * Barclay’s Premier League, Spanish Primera Division and Euro 2012 Soccer * All 4 Grand Slam tennis events …and thousands more live events airing on the ESPN networks 

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::::How to Share Your Business Photos Online - Discreetly::::

<img src="http://www.techgig.com/files/xphoto_1337134586_temp.jpg.pagespeed.ic.vDCyMWliop.jpg" border="0" alt="Image" width="300" height="200" align="left" />You have just returned from a corporate retreat or some other business event that was well-documented with several amateur photographers. Now you want to share all of these pictures amongst your co-workers. The challenge is that you want to keep them private to the participants and not plaster them all over the Internets. What to do?<div class="asset-body" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; clear: both; text-align: left"> </div><div id="more" class="asset-more" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; clear: both; text-align: left">Assume that your requirements are to satisfy the ultra-paranoid in the group and also find something that is dirt simple to use. You don't want to make everyone join a new social network just to see the photos; most of us have too many logins already. That leaves out most of the microblogging sites. And you don't want to have to worry that someone will click on the wrong button and inadvertently share the entire photo collection with the universe, including the press, competitors and so on.Facebook, Instagram, Google+ and many other social-networking sites aren't very good at setting up discrete group-privacy controls, so they are out of the running for our purposes. And while there are dozens of file-sharing sites such as Box.net and Evernote, the idea is to find something that is designed around uploading and sharing images.With that in mind, we looked at the following five services:<ol style="margin: 0px 0px 0.75em 30px; padding: 0px; list-style-position: outside; list-style-image: initial"><li style="margin: 0px 0px 7px 7px; padding: 0px">Shutterfly.com</li><li style="margin: 0px 0px 7px 7px; padding: 0px">Photobucket.com</li><li style="margin: 0px 0px 7px 7px; padding: 0px">Flickr.com (now part of Yahoo)</li><li style="margin: 0px 0px 7px 7px; padding: 0px">Zangzing.com</li><li style="margin: 0px 0px 7px 7px; padding: 0px">Posterous Spaces (now part of Twitter)</li></ol>None of these services is perfect, but they fall into two broad categories: those that have better privacy controls and those that are easier to use.Let's look at our requirements in more detail:First, we want a service that can create a private space that doesn't appear on search engines and can't be discovered by unauthorized users. Photobucket and Shutterfly both do this, by setting up a special URL (Photobucket.com/groupname or Groupname.shutterfly.com) for your group. In Photobucket, for example, you have three choices for each album's privacy controls: everyone can see them, no one else can see them, or you can password protect them by invitation only. The latter is perfect for this application, and you can set up an album password so that only those folks who know the password can see and download the photos. (See screenshot below.) Shutterfly has similar options with its Share Sites feature.<img src="http://www.readwriteweb.com/files/photobucket.jpg" border="0" />The problem with both Photobucket and Shutterfly is that you need to become a member to upload photos: That is fine if you have just a few shutterbugs in your group, but if everyone wants to be able to contribute images, it can become cumbersome.Flickr offers URLs for groups, such as http://www.flickr.com/groups/groupname. But Yahoo really wants you to sign up to its service, and you will need to do so if you want to post any photos. Flickr has a guest pass option, but it is designed to work with individual photos. And Flickr users have to make sure to set up its autoposting/notification features to keep your photos from showing up in your Facebook Timeline or other places.<img src="http://www.readwriteweb.com/files/flickrguestpass.jpg" border="0" />Zangzing (which we have written about previously) is easier to use but that comes at a privacy cost. You can set up individual albums that have their own URLs, such as http://www.zangzing.com/username/albumname. But because there is no password required, anyone who knows the URL can access the entire album. And you must join the service in order to upload pictures, you will need to join. On the plus side, you can also email pictures to albumname@zangzing.com, and they will be automatically posted to the album.Finally, Posterous is more of a blogging site than a photo collection, but it can be used for sharing photos, as well. Indeed, if you want to mix your photos with other business content, Posterous could be a good choice and could serve as the base for a simple low-end Web presence. Groups of photos can have their own URLs, but you do need to become a member to post content. You can also email your photos and have them posted to your site, like what Zangzing does.<h2 style="margin: 0px 0px 0.2em; padding: 0px">Recommendations: Start with Zangzing</h2>We recommend you start with Zangzing, especially if you require the simplicity of a shareable URL and don't want to mess with having each person sign up for the service. If you need the additional security that a membership site offers, then look at Photobucket. It has more granularity for the security options than Shutterfly. Steer clear of Flickr: Its interface is somewhat long in the tooth, and it is too easy to click on the wrong button and end up sharing your entire photo collection to Facebook or Twitter. If you have more confidence in your users' abilities, you can set up private groups in Facebook or Google+.</div> 

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::::[Infographic] Taking HTML5 to the Next Level for Mobile::::

<img src="http://www.techgig.com/files/xphoto_1337134495_temp.jpg.pagespeed.ic.Vc6sx6pPCw.jpg" border="0" alt="Image" align="left" />By 2013, there will be more than 1 billion HTML5-capable browsers in use throughout the world. Applications for those HTML5 browsers will be created by 2 million HTML Web developers, according to research from IDC. There is no question that HTML5 is going to be a major factor in mobile development during the next five to 10 years. The rise of HTML5 does not mean the death of native applications, but as the standard progresses, many developers will begin to incorporate more HTML5 into their apps than native code. <div id="more" class="asset-more" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; clear: both; text-align: left">By 2015, IDC predicts that 80% of all mobile apps will be based wholly or in part on HTML5. It makes sense: As HTML5 evolves, it gains access to many features that were once the sole domain of native code. Audio and video playback have been problems that are now beginning to improve, and several companies including Sencha, appMobi and Mozilla are working on ways to give HTML5 better device access to objects such as a device’s camera and accelerometer. It takes a village to raise a child - or, in this case, HTML5. During February's Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, a group of companies banded together to create the Core Mobile Web Platform Community (Coremob), a forum for “the global mobile developer and IT community to focus and accelerate the evolution of the mobile Web as a compelling platform for mobile applications.” Coremob includes several giants in the development and mobile worlds, including Microsoft, Facebook, Google, Mozilla, AT&T, Red Hat and Qualcomm’s Innovation Center (among many more; see infographic below). Like the browser wars and the Web before it, the mobile Web is not going to be completely developed by one company. For HTML5 to truly become a viable set of standards, the technology community at large will need to work together to share resources to make that possible. But the mobile universe is not quite ready for a full-fledged HTML5 ecosystem yet. This comes down to the status of mobile browsers. Applications that run in browsers do not have the capabilities that native apps have. You thought Android was fragmented? Ever since Microsoft trounced Netscape with Internet Explorer, browsers have been, almost by definition, the most fragmented aspect of Web technology during the past 15 years. That is no different for mobile browsers such as Apple’s Safari, Google’s stock Android browser or its mobile Chrome Beta, Firefox Fennec, Opera Mini, Dolphin, Skyfire, Internet Explorer for Windows Phone or BlackBerry. HTML5 is supposed to be able to cut through the differences of all these browsers, but they are not all created equal. This is where Ringmark comes in. Designed as an open source tool by Facebook for the Coremob community, Ringmark is a browser-testing suite that determines how well different browsers implement app functionalities. Ringmark determines what “ring” a browser is in and what type of capabilities an app can perform in that browser. For example, browsers that pass “Ring 0” can run “Level 0” apps, Ring 1 can run Level 1 apps, and so on. The infographic from IDC below shows an example of the capabilities in each ring, and which apps can run on which levels.We did a couple of Ringmark tests by visiting Rng.io on mobile browsers to see how well they stack up. Ring 0 has 97 different capabilities, which most of the browsers we tested passed. There are between 137-160 capabilities in Ring 1, which none of the browsers we tested passed. If a browser does not pass all the capabilities of a Ring, then it does not test the next Ring. (As browser versions advance and begin to pass Ring 1, Ringmark's developers will build out more rings to allow for further advances in expected browser capabilities.)Here are the results:Opera Mini/Mobile<ul style="margin: 0px 0px 7px 7px; padding: 0px; list-style-position: outside; list-style-image: initial; background-repeat: no-repeat repeat"><li style="margin: 0px 0px 7px 7px; padding: 0px">Android (Opera Mobile) -- R.0: 7 failed, 90 passed</li><li style="margin: 0px 0px 7px 7px; padding: 0px">iOS (Opera Mini) -- R.0: 32 failed, 52 passed</li></ul>Dolphin HD<ul style="margin: 0px 0px 7px 7px; padding: 0px; list-style-position: outside; list-style-image: initial; background-repeat: no-repeat repeat"><li style="margin: 0px 0px 7px 7px; padding: 0px">Android -- R.0: 97 passed -- R.1: 44 failed, 93 passes</li><li style="margin: 0px 0px 7px 7px; padding: 0px">iOS R.0: 97 passed -- R.1: 33 failed, 106 passed</li></ul>iOS Safari<ul style="margin: 0px 0px 7px 7px; padding: 0px; list-style-position: outside; list-style-image: initial; background-repeat: no-repeat repeat"><li style="margin: 0px 0px 7px 7px; padding: 0px">R.0: 97 passed -- R.1: 34 failed, 106 passed</li></ul>Stock Android Browser<ul style="margin: 0px 0px 7px 7px; padding: 0px; list-style-position: outside; list-style-image: initial; background-repeat: no-repeat repeat"><li style="margin: 0px 0px 7px 7px; padding: 0px">R.0: 97 passed -- R.1: 44 failed, 93 passed</li></ul>Android Chrome Beta<ul style="margin: 0px 0px 7px 7px; padding: 0px; list-style-position: outside; list-style-image: initial; background-repeat: no-repeat repeat"><li style="margin: 0px 0px 7px 7px; padding: 0px">R.0: 97 passed -- R.1: 17 failed, 143 passed</li></ul>Windows Phone Internet Explorer<ul style="margin: 0px 0px 7px 7px; padding: 0px; list-style-position: outside; list-style-image: initial; background-repeat: no-repeat repeat"><li style="margin: 0px 0px 7px 7px; padding: 0px">R.0: 11 failed, 86 passed</li></ul>Amazon Kindle Fire Silk<ul style="margin: 0px 0px 7px 7px; padding: 0px; list-style-position: outside; list-style-image: initial; background-repeat: no-repeat repeat"><li style="margin: 0px 0px 7px 7px; padding: 0px">R.0: 4 failed, 93 passed</li></ul>BlackBerry 6<ul style="margin: 0px 0px 7px 7px; padding: 0px; list-style-position: outside; list-style-image: initial; background-repeat: no-repeat repeat"><li style="margin: 0px 0px 7px 7px; padding: 0px">R.0: 97 passed -- R.1: 58 failed, 80 passed</li></ul>It appears that the browser with the most HTML5 capabilities at this point is Chrome Beta on Android. We noted when Chrome Beta was announced that it would be a good browser for HTML5 development. Yet, Chrome Beta’s performance does not help the bulk of the Android ecosystem. First, it is only available on Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich devices, which make up only 4.9% of all Android devices as of May 1. Second, when a mobile Web app runs an application through Android, it will choose the default browser of the device, which will be the stock Android browser, not Chrome Beta.  </div>  

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::::Googleâ€˜s Android gains share in smartphones - survey::::

<div class="custm_img_blk"><img src="http://www.techgig.com/files/photo_1337133887_temp.jpg" border="0" width="300" height="200" align="left" /></div>Google's (GOOG.O) Android smartphone software stretched its market lead in early 2012, helped by new models from handset makers like Samsung and HTC and piling the pressure on rivals like Research In Motion (RIM.TO) and Nokia (NOK1V.HE).Research from Kantar WorldPanel on Tuesday showed Android gaining share strongly in most of seven major markets - Australia, Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United States - in the 12 weeks to mid April.In Spain and Italy, its market share more than doubled year-on-year to 72 percent and 49 percent respectively, while it almost doubled to 62 percent in Germany.Strong demand for the iPhone 4S helped market No.2 Apple (AAPL.O) narrow the gap with Android in the United States and Britain, but its share slipped in continental Europe.Microsoft's (MSFT.O) Windows Phone began to show some signs of growth thanks to Nokia's decision to swap its legacy Symbian platform for Windows.Windows' share in Germany more than doubled to 6 percent over the past year, and climbed to 3-4 percent in Britain, France, Italy and the United States.These gains came at the expense of Nokia's Symbian platform and Canadian BlackBerry maker Research In Motion, the biggest market share losers. RIM's share in the U.S. market dropped to just 3 percent from 9 percent a year earlier.Kantar said HTC's One X model made a strong start in Britain, making the Top 10 list for the 12 week period even though it was on sale for less than a week.

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::::Facebook increases IPO range to raise $12.1 bln::::

<div class="custm_img_blk"><img src="http://www.techgig.com/files/photo_1337133778_temp.jpg" border="0" width="300" height="200" align="left" /></div>Facebook Inc (FB.O) increased the price range on its initial public offering an average of 14 percent to raise more than $12 billion, giving the world's No. 1 social network a valuation potentially exceeding $100 billion.The company, founded eight years ago by Mark Zuckerberg in a Harvard dorm room, raised the target range to between $34 and $38 per share in response to strong demand, from $28 to $35, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday.That would value Facebook at roughly $93 billion to $104 billion, rivaling the market capitalization of Internet powerhouses such as Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O), and exceeding that of Hewlett-Packard Co (HPQ.N) and Dell Inc (DELL.O) combined.Facebook also extended the time frame for its $1 billion acquisition of mobile app maker Instagram, projecting that the deal would close in 2012 instead of closing in the second quarter as it had previously indicated.Facebook provided no reason for the change, though a source familiar with the matter told Reuters last week that the U.S. Federal Trade Commission has reached out to Google Inc (GOOG.O) and Twitter as part of the agency's standard review for deals of that size.The price increase indicates intense market demand, which means Facebook's shares are likely to see a big pop on their first day of trading on the Nasdaq on Friday, analysts said."It's confounding but the evidence is that if companies raise the range, they will pop more," said Josef Schuster, founder of Chicago-based financial services firm IPOX Schuster LLC. "It signals that there is such a strong demand that it will create a momentum for other investors who want to jump on."For BREAKINGVIEWS - Facebook winning Keynesian beauty contest: click link.reuters.com/cyz28sFacebook said in its latest filing that it arrived at the higher IPO price range after one week of marketing the offering - part of a cross-country "road show" in which CEO Zuckerberg has occasionally taken the stage to lay out his vision for the company's money-making potential and its top priorities.The Facebook range hike, coupled with strong results from Internet and social media players Groupon Inc (GRPN.O) and China's RenRen Inc (RENN.N) overnight, contributed to a dotcom rally on Wall Street on Tuesday.Shares of Pandora Media Inc (P.N) were up 6.9 percent at $10.50 in afternoon trading, while Zynga Inc (ZNGA.O) was up 8.3 percent at $8.61. Groupon was up 13.7 percent at $13.33, while Renren gained 9.5 percent to $6.01. Yelp Inc (YELP.N) stock was up 7.5 pct at $21.55.In the biggest-ever IPO to emerge from Silicon Valley, Facebook will raise $12.1 billion based on the midpoint price of $36 and the 337.4 million shares on offer, or 12.3 percent of the company.At this midpoint, Facebook would be valued at roughly 27 times its 2011 annual revenue, or 99 times earnings. When Google went public in 2004 at a valuation of $23 billion, it was valued at 16 times trailing revenue and 218 times earnings. Apple Inc (AAPL.O), meanwhile, went public in 1980 at a valuation of 25 times revenue and 102 times earnings.Wall Street had expected Facebook to increase its price range, with investors eager to get a slice of a strong consumer brand. The IPO road show began last week and has drawn crowds of investors from coast to coast.Facebook plans to close the books on its IPO later on Tuesday, two days ahead of schedule, a source familiar with the deal told Reuters on Monday. It is scheduled to price its shares on Thursday and begin trading on the Nasdaq on Friday.The IPO is already "well-oversubscribed," which is why the company will close its books earlier than expected, the source said.Facebook's capital-raising target far outstrips other big Internet IPOs. Google raised just shy of $2 billion in 2004, while last year Groupon tapped investors for $700 million and Zynga raked in $1 billion.The IPO comes amid concerns from some investors that Facebook has not yet figured out a way to make money from an increasing number of users who access the social network on mobile devices such as smartphones. Revenue growth from Facebook's online advertising business has also slowed in recent months.Company executives met with prospective investors in Chicago on Monday and were slated to travel to Kansas City, Missouri, and Denver, before returning to Facebook's Menlo Park, California, headquarters.A host of Wall Street banks are underwriting Facebook's offering, with Morgan Stanley (MS.N), JPMorgan (JPM.N) and Goldman Sachs (GS.N) serving as leads. Facebook will trade on the Nasdaq under the symbol "FB."

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