a couple of laughzillas on a blue diamond background

Ovivo, the UK operator that offered free services in exchange for ads, closes for ‘reasons beyond our control’

Mar20
by on March 20, 2014 at 6:57 am
Posted In: Around the Web, Mobile, UK

Ovivo Mobile, a virtual operator in the UK that offered a free mobile services in exchange for serving advertising, has closed down abruptly due to “reasons beyond our control.” A notice on the company’s website — first spotted by the BBC — announces that the service shut down on March 19 with no prior warning. Although it doesn’t elaborate on the reasons behind its shuttering, it does provide a way for users to port their number to another mobile network. Ovivo users were provided with a free SIM and mobile services in return for making themselves available for targeted advertising….

This story continues at The Next Web

└ Tags: ,
a couple of laughzillas on a blue diamond background

Mongolia cracks down on online media with a list of over 700 (amusing) banned words

Mar20
by on March 20, 2014 at 5:53 am
Posted In: Around the Web, Asia, mongolia

mongflag2
Asian Internet censorship isn’t just limited to China. Near-neighbour Mongolia is showing the whip to online media after releasing a new blacklist of over 700 forbidden swear words that, if found on a website, could result in censorship, prosecution or shut down. The list of terms — published on local news site Shuum — includes a mixture of Russian, Chinese and English words, ranging from vulgar terms to more amusing entries like ‘ass-hat,’ ‘hell,’ ‘drunk,’ ‘dumbass’ and other misspelled variants. While the list makes for funny reading here and there, there is a very serious side to the Mongolian government’s…

This story continues at The Next Web

└ Tags: ,
a couple of laughzillas on a blue diamond background

Chat app Tango raises a $280m mega round led by Alibaba, as it reaches 70m active users

Mar20
by on March 20, 2014 at 4:00 am
Posted In: Alibaba, Around the Web, Asia, messaging, Mobile, Tango

Alibaba logistics
It seems that 2014 is shaping up to be the year of mobile messaging. Hot on the heels of Facebook’s $19 billion deal to acquire WhatsApp and Rakuten’s $900 million acquisition of Viber, Tango — a free messaging and calling app for iOS and Android — has announced a $280 million funding round led by Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba. Alibaba — which generates more revenue than Amazon and eBay combined — is providing $215 million towards the round in exchange for an undisclosed, “minority” stake and board seat — existing investors are covering the rest of the round. The fresh…

This story continues at The Next Web

└ Tags: , ,
a couple of laughzillas on a blue diamond background

Xiaomi confirms its Redmi Note phablet will start at $129, go on sale outside of China from May

Mar20
by on March 20, 2014 at 3:54 am
Posted In: Around the Web, Asia, Mobile, xiaomi

Redmi-1
Xiaomi last week took the wraps off its upcoming first phablet — the interestingly named Redmi Note — and now the company has revealed that the device will cost upwards of $129 and go on sale outside of its native China — initially in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore — in May. It will be available in China first, launching on March 26. The new details were communicated via a Google+ post from Xiaomi’s Hugo Barra, who says the device will retail at $129 for a 1.4GHz/1GB version, and $159 for a higher-specc’ed 1.7Ghz/2GB model. That pricing is line with the cost of its…

This story continues at The Next Web

└ Tags: , ,