trading

With the announcement of the iPad 3 right around the corner, a lot of people are going to be getting rid of their ancient iPad 2 to help fund their purchase of a pristine iPad 3. Rick Broida already told us how to get top dollar for the iPad 2 and Dan Ackerman filled us in on how to get the most for an iPad trade-in. (Remember to delete your personal data before selling an iPad.) But, what about those used electronics you have lying around that haven't been touched in days?

I rounded up five sites … Read more

With the anticipation of a new iPad being just around the corner, more people have been trading in their first- and second-generation Apple tablets, eBay says.

This afternoon, the company said it's generated more than 125,000 tablet trade-in offers this month, with 97.6 percent of those consisting of Apple iPad models. That number is up tenfold from the number of offers during the same month last year, eBay said.

Those offers are for the online commerce site's Instant Sale program, which differs from its auction services by giving gadget owners a way to trade in items … Read more

Consumer advocates say the Obama administration's blueprint for protecting consumers' privacy online is a good first step, but they will be watching closely to see how it's implemented.

The White House and the Federal Trade Communications today unveiled the "Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights," which will serve as a policy outline for future legislation and public policy that will work to protect consumers' privacy while online from a computer or mobile phone.

The administration also worked with online advertising associations, such as the Digital Advertising Alliance and others, to revive "Do Not Track" technology … Read more

The International Trade Commission today ruled in Apple's favor, saying the gadget maker does not infringe on a patent held by rival HTC.

The ruling (pdf), which was picked up by blog FOSS Patents this afternoon, comes exactly four months after an initial determination from the ITC's administrative law judge, who ruled in Apple's favor. That decision found Apple to be off the hook from HTC's complaint in early 2010 that accused Apple of being in violation of five HTC patents, a total that was later whittled down to four, then one, for review by the … Read more

In a report released today, the FTC said that when it comes to mobile applications aimed at kids there is "little, if any, information in the app marketplaces about the data collection and sharing practices of these apps."

The Federal Trade Commission said that its staff searched the Apple and Android app stores for apps using the word "kids," and "encountered a diverse pool of apps for kids created by hundreds of different developers," but that privacy disclosure was lacking.

The report, titled Mobile Apps for Kids: Current Privacy Disclosures are Disappointing (PDF), focused … Read more

Extended warranty service SquareTrade announced today it has secured a $238 million growth equity investment lead by Bain Capital.

Terms of the private financial transaction were not revealed.

The company, which sells warranties for consumer electronics and appliances directly and via more than 30 retailers and marketplaces, said its sales tripled in 2011 compared with 2010. It also expects to record "triple-digit" revenue growth in 2012, although the privately held company did not provide specific financial details.

"SquareTrade has been profitable and growing rapidly for several years," CEO and co-founder Steve Abernethy said in a statement. &… Read more

Google could face the maximum fine for allegedly obstructing a Korean investigation of its business practices, the head of the Korean Fair Trade Commission told that country's fourth-largest newspaper.

That antitrust official, Kim Dong-soo, made the comments in a recent interview with the paper, Hankook Ilbo (note: original article is in Korean), according to CNET's independent translation of the article. The paper reported that when the agency raided Google Korea's office in September, the company obstructed the investigation by deleting key files from PCs and asking its employees to telecommute from home, which had the effect of … Read more

A federal judge has denied Apple's effort to seal information related to its copyright infringement case against Psystar, ruling that information already publicly available on the Internet and in print is no longer protectable.

Apple had attempted to seal documents containing information about its Mac OS X operating system and computer products as a trade secret, presumably to keep others from modifying Apple's OS to run on unauthorized hardware. Apple argued that because it was not the source of the information that the trade secret protection still existed.

However, U.S. Federal District Judge William Alsup disagreed in … Read more

It's a booming holiday sales season for online merchants. As CNET contributor Don Reisinger reports, U.S. consumers spent $32 billion online from November 1 to December 18, according to research firm ComScore.

That's 18 percent more than they spent in the same period of 2010. While most online sales go smoothly, there's always a risk of a product you ordered from a Web site not arriving on time, or a product other than the one you purchased being shipped, among other possible problems.

A reader contacted me yesterday about an order he placed on Cyber Monday (… Read more