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Google takes a shot at Russia’s anti-gay law with new doodle for Sochi Winter Games

Feb07
by on February 7, 2014 at 5:19 am
Posted In: Around the Web, Google, Olympics

Google has taken a shot at Russia’s controversial anti-gay law by expressing its support for LGBT olympians in its latest doodle commemorating the Winter Games.

Screen shot 2014 02 07 at PM 12.51.55 Google takes a shot at Russias anti gay law with new doodle for Sochi Winter Games The color of the doodle, which features images of athletes in various Winter Games events, is modeled after the Rainbow Flag — a symbol of LGBT pride. The doodle also quotes the Olympic Charter as saying that there should be no “discrimination of any kind” in the Olympic games — and is linked to search results for the set of rules and guidelines governing the Olympic games.

Thumbnail image via Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

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Bollywood streaming service Spuul now lets iOS app users sync movies for offline viewing

Feb07
by on February 7, 2014 at 4:08 am
Posted In: Apps, Around the Web, bollywood, India, spuul

Bollywood streaming service Spuul now lets iOS app users sync movies for offline viewingSpuul, the video streaming service focused on Bollywood and other content from India, has introduced syncing to its iOS app, allowing users to watch content offline. This brings the iOS app in line with the Android version, which received the feature last October.

The iOS update allows premium members — who pay $4.99 per month or $49.99 per year — to sync up to 10 movies to their devices at any given time. Each film has a 72-hour ‘lease,’ after which users must log in to Spuul to verify their membership.

Spuul for iOS also now allows users to upgrade to Premium Lite, the additional membership tier announced last year, from inside the app. For $1.99 a month, users can sync one movie and enjoy other premium features but their user experience still contains ads.

➤ Spuul for iOS

Thumbnail image via testing / Shutterstock.com

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Google sunk $750 million in Lenovo as part of Motorola deal [Updated]

Feb07
by on February 7, 2014 at 3:54 am
Posted In: Around the Web, Google, Investment, Shares

Google Logo 730x517 Google sunk $750 million in Lenovo as part of Motorola deal [Updated]

Update: While the deal was discovered on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange by media today, it was actually a part of the deal for Motorola which Google and Lenovo announced last week and was announced by the HKSE on January 30. Apologies for any confusion that reporting it today might have created.

The original post continues below…

It has been revealed in a disclosure to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange that Google bought a 5.94 percent stake in Lenovo for $750 million on January 30 this year, Reuters reports. In total, Google purchased 618.3 million Lenovo shares at $1.213 per share.

The move came right after Google announced it was selling Motorola to Lenovo for $2.91 billion — though the deal has yet to be reviewed by US and China regulators. Lenovo will be keeping Motorola’s brand, but Google will retain the majority of its patents that will be used to “defend the entire Android ecosystem.”

We’ve reached out to Google to see if it has anything further to say about its investment in Lenovo.

➤ Google bought $750 million Lenovo stake on January 30: Hong Kong exchange [Reuters]

Thumbnail image via Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

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Mozilla releases beta version of Firefox for Windows 8 Touch

Feb07
by on February 7, 2014 at 3:22 am
Posted In: Apps, Around the Web, firefox, Product Updates

Mozilla has finally released a beta version of its Firefox for Windows 8 Touch browser, which is ready for users to download, test and subsequently share feedback and file any bugs (hat/tip Engadget).

The beta has a new tile-based Firefox start screen with one-tap access to Top Sites, Bookmarks and History. It also supports Touch and Swipe gestures such as ‘pinch to zoom’ and one-touch swipe transitions, as well as the different viewing options on Windows — you can choose if you want to view an app full-screen, ‘snapped’ to a narrow area of the screen, or if you want it to ‘fill’ the remaining screen area.

Firefox for Windows 8 730x514 Mozilla releases beta version of Firefox for Windows 8 Touch

Typical Firefox features such as the ‘Awesome Bar’ will also be available for use in the beta.

First announced in February 2012, the streamlined browser was previously slated for a December 10 release alongside Firefox 26. It was then pushed back to January 21, to coincide with Firefox 27 — and Mozilla’s latest timing has the full version landing on March 18.

➤ Firefox for Windows 8 Touch | Beta

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