mobile apps

In February 2012, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a report titled Mobile Apps for Kids: Current Privacy Disclosures are Disappointing (PDF) that pointed out that there was "little or no" privacy information available to parents in the Android Google Play and Apple iOS app stores prior to download and scarce data in the apps themselves or on the app vendors websites.

And on Monday, the FTC issued a follow up report, Mobile Apps for Kids Disclosures Still Not Making the Grade that complains that "despite many high-visibility efforts to increase transparency in the mobile marketplace, little … Read more

It looks like a four-year-old industry is hijacking one that has been around for six decades.

According to mobile analytics firm Flurry, the time people spend on mobile apps is now nearly neck-in-neck with time spent watching television.

"With new content released via thousands of new apps each day, we expect this trend to continue," Flurry CEO Simon Khalaf wrote in a blog post today. "In fact, we ultimately expect apps on tablets and smartphones to challenge broadcast television as the dominant channel for media consumption."

Facebook really wants people to know that it's got its mind on mobile.

The company put out a blog post today detailing the work of its product teams since its mobile first transformation. Wall Street has been highly critical of Facebook in the past for not paying attention to mobile, which is where many users have moved.

But now, Facebook says, it's all about mobile. The company has been updating its main Facebook app frequently, and paying attention to standalone apps is key to that process, Product Manager Michael Eyal Sharon wrote in the post. He used the … Read more

Making good on her promise, California Attorney General Kamala Harris has continued her crackdown on mobile-app developers and companies for not doing more to ensure users' privacy. She announced today that she'll be sending letters to 100 app developers and companies to formally notify them that they're violating California's privacy laws.

"Protecting the privacy of online consumers is a serious law enforcement matter," Harris said in a statement today. "We have worked hard to ensure that app developers are aware of their legal obligations to respect the privacy of Californians, but it is critical … Read more

Samsung Electronics is on the lookout for mobile-software companies it can acquire to strengthen the content it offers customers beyond what's available on its popular mobile devices such as the Galaxy series of smartphones and tablets.

Reuters reported Thursday that the Korean electronics giant will be buying its way into a better competitive position with Apple, Google, and Amazon in the digital-content space, particularly in the music market, which is worth nearly $9 billion.

"The message we're getting from the top is to raise software compatibility, and buy rather than build, if needed," Kang Tae-jin, senior … Read more

eBay is reporting some pretty big numbers for mobile.

The San Jose, Calif., e-commerce giant says its mobile apps have been downloaded 100 million times since being launched in late 2008, while users have listed 100 million items on its auction site using mobile devices. The apps have been downloaded 25 million times in the last six months alone, the company said.

"We are taking a mobile first approach to the business, drawing on four years of leading mobile commerce, and continually making our experience more personalized and relevant to the customer," Steve Yankovich, vice president of eBay … Read more

Facebook has started testing a new mobile ad network that can place advertisements outside of Facebook based on user data.

That means some users may start seeing ads -- ones that may link to the Facebook app store or a mobile Web site -- on mobile apps outside of Facebook. The roll-out includes a small group of ad exchanges that will place ads on iOS and Android.

"We are working on a small test in which we'll be showing mobile ads in apps off of Facebook," a Facebook spokesperson said today. "We've been showing web … Read more

New images have hit the Internet and purport to show what could be the design for Mozilla's upcoming Firefox OS Marketplace.

Engadget published photos yesterday of what it claims is the app store for Firefox's mobile operating system. The images show a small listing of apps, including Solitaire and Word Wars. Several app categories are listed, including business, games, and books and reference.

According to Engadget, once users click on an application to get details, they'll find a rating and the option to submit a review to the community.

Mozilla gave Firefox OS its name back in July. … Read more

Friday's tech news roundup can ease symptoms of Gadget News Overload: