Altair Semiconductor said it's sampling FourGee-1160 and FourGee-1150 Category-1 and Category-0 chipsets for Internet of Things applications with plans to deploy commercially later this year. The company said carriers, device makers and module vendors have “shifted gears” in recent months to prepare for an “aggressive introduction” of smart IoT applications when LTE CAT-1 and CAT-0 chipsets become available. CAT-1 and CAT-0 are lower speed/lower power versions of the LTE standard that expand the addressable market for carriers and chip makers, enabling targeted IoT features, extended battery life and a lower cost entry point for LTE connectivity, said Altair Wednesday.
Delta Air Lines chose Gogo to upgrade 250 planes from ATG-4 (air-to-ground) in-flight connectivity to 2Ku technology, Gogo said in a news release Wednesday. Gogo will begin the upgrade in 2016, it said. The 2Ku technology will deliver speeds of 70 Mbps, it said.
Civis Analytics and Discovery Communications are forming a partnership to explore the implications of big data and predictive analytics to optimize performance in the current data-driven culture, Discovery said Wednesday in a news release. The partnership will focus on issues including predictive targeting and data infrastructure to ratings forecasting and marketing spending optimization using the Civis Media Optimizer platform, it said.
Google is now automatically converting Flash advertisements to HTML5 when those ads are uploaded through AdWords, AdWords Editor and other third-party tools, said a posting on Google Ads Wednesday. It said the move gives advertisers better access to those users that don't support Flash, such as mobile devices. The change is one of a number of mobile ad formats Google announced in September.
CEA’s index of consumer expectations, which measures consumer outlook about the U.S. economy as a whole, increased 3.3 points from January to reach 181.2, the association said Tuesday. This month’s index also is 13.6 points higher than that of February 2014, reaching its highest February level since CEA launched the index eight years ago, it said. “U.S. economic growth is poised to sustain a run of above-trend growth over the next few quarters,” said Shawn DuBravac, CEA chief economist. “Desirable financial conditions continue to develop with improved household net worth, strengthening income and consumer spending growth. Employment gains are also adding to the jump in consumer confidence.” CEA’s separate index of consumer technology expectations, which measures consumer intentions on tech spending, jumped 6 points in February from January to reach 94.9, CEA said. This month’s index is 10.7 points higher than in February 2014, also setting a record high for the month, it said. “While consumer sentiment is prone to seasonal variation during this time of the year, the February 2015 levels are extremely strong,” DuBravac said. Ultra HD TVs are among the “key tech categories” that continue to show “better-than-expected strength,” he said.
Online advertising analytics company Metamarkets raised $15 million in a funding round, said a company blog post Tuesday. Data Collective led the round, which included City National Bank, Khosla Ventures, True Ventures and Village Ventures. Metamarkets said it plans to use the financing to “expand our product’s use cases in mobile video and native.”
Online marketing company YP launched ypSearch for improved search ad delivery, said a company news release Tuesday. YP has a monthly audience of more than 80 million visitors on web and mobile, it said.
Steps the government can take to ensure converged technologies aren't “tremendously disruptive” but benefit government’s ability to communicate, cooperate and address the “nation’s most significant issues” were outlined in a report to the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. “The power of convergence affects the nature of the relationship between individual citizens, the United States as a nation, and the United States and the world,” said Dave Zolet, co-chairman of the TechAmerica Convergence Commission and CSC executive vice president and general manager, Americas Region. The Federal Technology Convergence Commission Report released Tuesday was created by the philanthropic arm of CompTIA, Creating IT Futures, and was called the “first collaborative step between industry and the government to advance the adoption of emerging technologies” by CompTIA CEO Todd Thibodeaux. “This report provides insights and ideas about how key connectivity technologies used in combination can help our government improve mission delivery at home and abroad,” said Kay Kapoor, co-chairman of the TechAmerica Convergence Commission and president of AT&T Government Solutions.
An iOS app for the TiO home automation system is available from the iTunes store, parent company Anuva Automation said Tuesday. The app opens control of the TiO system to iPad tablets using iOS 8 or later, the company said. An Android app has been available for some time. “It has been our goal to perfect the system on the Android platform, and then migrate the app to iOS,” Anuva President Mike Anderson said. The apps enable users to create and control scenes for audio, lighting and multimedia environments.
The Bluetooth Smart Mesh working group was formed to "build the architecture for standardized mesh networking capability for Bluetooth Smart technology," the Bluetooth Special Interest Group said Tuesday. "As Bluetooth Smart sensors proliferate in the home, mesh networking will become an integral component to ensure consumers’ Bluetooth-enabled smart locks, lights, HVAC systems, and even appliances work together to deliver a seamless smart home experience," it said. The working group expects to have specifications ready for prototype testing later this year, followed by the adoption of official "profiles" in 2016, it said. A recent ABI Research report called mesh networking capability a critical omission from the latest Bluetooth 4.2 spec (see 1502200025).