Motorola And Blockbuster Team Up For Mobile Movie Downloads [Silicon Alley Insider]
Blockbuster is partnering with Motorola to offer direct streaming of their content on mobile. The move comes after Blockbuster has announced a deal to offer streaming on Samsung TVs and DVD rental machines to compete with Redbox.
Ringing Cell Phone Turns On Oven, Spooking Owner [textually.org]
A man in Brooklyn has discovered that when his cell phone is called, his oven turns on. The glitch has yet to be fixed, as technicians are trying to understand how this new functionality works.
eSPIN and United Sample Partner to Launch Surveys4Teens [Yahoo! Finance]
Hearst's online teen network eSPIN and United Sample have teamed up to launch a new social networking portal survey4teens.com, a place for teens adn yougn adults to take surveys and share opinions.
Mobile App Ads Cause Concern for Advertisers [mad]
The Central Office for Information in the U.K. has called on mobile ads to link back to mobile friendly sites. It is estimated that only 5% of mobile ads actually link back to a mobile site, a poor user experience that hurts a brand's image according to advertisers.
Survey: Two-Thirds of Mobile Users Guilty of Drunk Texting [Mashable]
Research from Buzzd has found that 68% of mobile users drunk text. Other findings include 85% of respondents relying on word of mouth for places to go and things to do.
Dangerous QR Code Advertising for District 9 [PSFK]
Last year we noticed the QR codes on posters for Notorious in the NYC subway. Now for the promotion of District 9, criminal-like yellow tape strips with QR codes have been spotted in major cities. One in NYC is actually on subway stairs, though, perhaps not the best location to stop, take your cell out, and read the QR code.
Window Phone Concept Mixes Transparency with Weather Forecasting [Unwired View]
Seunghan Song has designed a Windows phone that changes according to the weather forecast--the screen becomes wet when it rains, white when it snows, and goes to writing mode when blown on it.
How Smartphones Are Making Wi-Fi Hot Again [GigaOm]
According to Om Malik, the presence of PC-quality browsers on smartphones and webkit-based browsers, as well as the growing popularity of social-networking services such as Twitter and Facebook as communication tools, have boosted the demand for wireless data. These tools demand data connectivity, and people want to check them while on the go. This spurt in usage has left the carriers that long saw themselves as Wi-Fi’s enemy coming around and embracing the insurgent technology.
Lombard Street To Become Giant Candyland Game Today [The Alley]
To mark the 60th anniversary of Candyland, a life size version of the board game will take place today in San Francisco.
Europe Examines Reports of Exploding iPhones [NYTimes]
Reports of a few exploding iPhone/iPods in France and Britain have led the European Commission to launch an investigation.
North Koreans Love Their Spotty Cellphone Service [engadget]
A year after North Korea launched its own 3G network, reports are estimating that almost 30% of Pyongyang residents have one. The devices are obviously under tight government control but even an isolationist dictatorship cannot prevent the rise of mobile.