App Store 'dominated by zombies'

10 July 2013 Last updated at 11:22 ET By Dave Lee Technology reporter, BBC News

Apple's App Store is populated by many "zombie" programs which get next-to-no downloads, new research suggests.

Figures seen by the BBC from tracking service Adeven indicate over two-thirds of apps in the store are barely ever installed by consumers.

However Apple has said that 90% of all apps in the marketplace - which is marking its five-year anniversary - are downloaded at least once a month.

Apple boss Tim Cook said the store had "fundamentally changed the world".

Speaking to app developers at the firm's recent developer's conference, the chief executive said: "Customers love the buying experience and they love your incredible apps. And they have now downloaded 50 billion apps.

"That's a lot of zeros and a truly staggering number."

'Very small'

But according to Adeven the size of the US firm's app store, which has about 900,000 products, has left many developers struggling to get noticed.

"579,001 apps out of a total of 888,856 apps in our database are zombies," the analytics firm said.

It defines zombies as apps which never appear in any of the thousands of charts published by Apple which are tracked on a daily basis. These cover different categories, price and other criteria for each country's version of the store.

"We call the apps that hold no position anywhere in the world zombies because they do not generate a significant amount of downloads to sustain their further development," explained Paul Muller from Adeven.

"We can't say exactly how many downloads they have - Apple doesn't reveal this - but it is very small.

"They may still receive a couple of downloads every day - maybe even up to 100 or so - but that is not going to be enough for a developer to capitalise on or draw motivation from to support the app."

Continue reading the main story

The App Store's most popular paid-for iPhone apps ever are:

1. Angry Birds
2. Fruit Ninja
3. Doodle Jump
4. Cut the Rope
5. Angry Birds Seasons
6. WhatsApp Messenger
7. Camera+
8. Words with Friends
9. Tiny Wings
10. Angry Birds Space

The most popular free iPhone apps are:

1. Facebook
2. Pandora Radio
3. Instagram
4. YouTube
5. Skype
6. Words With Friends Free
7. The Weather Channel
8. Twitter
9. Temple Run
10. Google Search

Source: Apple

Adeven's research follows on from another survey conducted by Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project.

It indicated that some 68% of smartphone owners used five or fewer apps on a weekly basis, with many of their other "impulse" buys losing their appeal almost instantly.

App developer Malcolm Barclay told the BBC that the amount of "zombie" apps was not a surprise - but argued that there was "safety in numbers".

"There's a lot of apps in the store that are not downloaded for good reason, they're awful.

"It's about making yourself attractive. If you have an attractive application that does what it sets out to do, Apple will help it get noticed."

Paolo Pescatore, director of apps and media at CCS Insight, said developers faced visibility issues across all platforms, not just with Apple's store.

"We track the top apps being downloaded from all the major app stores and it's always the same names.

"We very rarely see new players breaking through. They face a monumental challenge."

Influence

Zombies aside, the launch of the App Store in 2008 is widely regarded as a game-changing moment for how we consume technology.

It has inspired other companies to follow suit, with Google, Microsoft and Blackberry among those to have launched their own stores.

Apple says it has paid out $10bn (£7bn) to app developers - three times more, it boasts, than all the other app stores combined.

The "app economy", as it has become known, has also been responsible for disrupting the video games industry.

Companies such as EA have shifted to offering downloads of many of their titles for free, and make money through in-app sales of power-ups and other add-ons.

Those that do charge an upfront fee are still relatively cheap.

In particular, the popularity of Rovio's Angry Birds - which has made millions through franchising and merchandise sales - has made some games publishers consider if the established model of charging £30 or more for console and PC titles could become a thing of the past.

Even so, the development has not been without controversy.

Apple, which takes a 30% cut of all sales through its online marketplace, was recently forced to offer refunds to parents who had found themselves facing unexpected bills as a result of in-app purchases by their children.

Follow Dave Lee on Twitter @DaveLeeBBC

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Apple guilty of e-books price fixing

10 July 2013 Last updated at 12:04 ET

Apple conspired with publishers to fix the price of electronic books, a US judge has ruled.

Manhattan Judge Denise Cote said the iPad maker "conspired to restrain trade".

But the firm's spokesman, Tom Neumayr, said Apple would appeal against the ruling and fight "false allegations".

Five publishers that were originally named as defendants alongside Apple have already reached settlements, including Penguin.

The judge ordered a new hearing to determine damages to be imposed on Apple.

The US Department of Justice said the conspiracy was designed to challenge online retailer Amazon's dominance of the fast-growing e-books market.

Penguin settled its case for $75m (£49m). Hachette, HarperCollins and Simon & Schuster created a $69m fund for refunds to consumers, while Macmillan settled for $26m.

Judge Cote said: "The plaintiffs have shown that the publisher defendants conspired with each other to eliminate retail price competition in order to raise e-book prices, and that Apple played a central role in facilitating and executing that conspiracy.

"Without Apple's orchestration of this conspiracy, it would not have succeeded as it did in the spring of 2010," she said.

Fight continues

US Assistant Attorney General Bill Baer called the ruling "a victory for millions of consumers who choose to read books electronically".

He said the judge agreed with the Justice Department and 33 state attorneys general that executives at the highest levels of Apple orchestrated a conspiracy with five major publishers to raise prices.

"Through today's court decision and previous settlements with five major publishers, consumers are again benefiting from retail price competition and paying less for their e-books,'' Mr Baer said.

Consumer groups in the US cheered the news.

"If we let companies get away with this type of price fixing, consumers will be denied a substantial part of the benefits of the digital revolution," said Dr Mark Cooper of the Consumer Federation of America, which had filed a supporting brief in the case.

But after the ruling, Mr Neumayr insisted that Apple had brought innovation and competition to the market, not restricted it.

"Apple did not conspire to fix e-book pricing and we will continue to fight against these false accusations,'' he said. "We've done nothing wrong."

Warning to others

Previously, Apple's attorney, Orin Snyder, had told the court that Judge Cote would set a "dangerous precedent" if she concluded that Apple manipulated e-book prices.

However, Columbia University law professor Scott Hemphill said today's ruling was narrow and would be unlikely to set any legal precedent.

"It may send some signals to tech companies about what they can and can't do," said Prof Hemphill.

"But the precedential value is limited because the ruling is by a district court."

However, he added that the judge in this case took particular pains to anticipate a challenge from Apple - something that chief executive Tim Cook hinted at earlier this year, when he dismissed the idea of a settlement.

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Solar headphones can charge mobiles

9 July 2013 Last updated at 08:16 ET

A Glasgow designer has unveiled a prototype pair of headphones which he claims can harness solar power to keep mobile devices charged.

Andrew Anderson launched the OnBeat headphones on crowdfunding site Kickstarter and hopes to have them on sale by early 2014.

The headphone band is fitted with a flexible solar cell with a charge capacity of 0.55 watts.

The energy generated is stored in two small lithium batteries.

Concealed within both earpads, the batteries charge the device they are plugged into as it is playing.

Mr Anderson hopes to raise £200,000 to get the headphones into production.

"We are still working on the design and prototype," he told the BBC.

"We need to improve the headphones - people want to know about noise cancellation."

He admitted that his father Frank had come up with the idea.

"It's really simple - you would think it had already been done," he said.

"You can buy solar chargers for phones but the thing is it's like you're carrying two phones around."

The idea of using renewable sources to charge devices is proving popular among developers.

While you walk

A number of inventors have looked at harnessing the energy generated by walking. One project seeking crowdfunding via Kickstarter in the US is a shoe insole that can be used to charge batteries.

A walk of between 2.5 - 5 miles is required to charge an average iPhone battery, says the team at Solepower, which developed the prototype at Carnegie Mellon University.

"We developed a proof-of-concept prototype for lighting up shoes so students could easily see where they were walking at night," say its website.

"We quickly realised that the power generation concept was more universal than small lights.

"We're inventors at heart and our goal is to solve problems using cool technology. Plus, we'd reeeaaallly like our phones to stop dying."

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Vodafone under fire over new charges

9 July 2013 Last updated at 09:20 ET

Vodafone will soon charge its pay-as-you-go customers by the minute rather than the second - a move that will raise the cost of most calls.

It means a call lasting one minute and one second will now be charged as two minutes - costing 50p instead of 25p.

The phone network said the change - which comes into force from 1 August - would "simplify" charges for its customers.

Other networks, such as T-Mobile and Orange, also apply this billing method.

Vodafone sent text messages to its pay-as-you-go customers notifying them of the change.

"No more complicated pricing by the second," read a statement on the Vodafone website. "Just clear, straightforward per-minute charges.

"So if your call is a minute and 37 seconds long, it'll be charged as two minutes. That way, you'll always know exactly how many minutes you have left."

Some customers described the message as "patronising".

'Lead balloon'

Posting on Vodafone's support forum, user Funboy said: "This is being introduced to make more money for [Vodafone] pure and simple.

"It doesn't make anything simpler other than the fact that PAYG customers will essentially pay more for calls."

Calls for pay-as-you-go customers on Vodafone currently cost 25p per minute - with a minimum of one minute's charge for each call.

Telecoms expert Adam Kirby from uSwitch.com added to the criticism.

"While simpler and clearer pricing is always welcomed, it shouldn't come with the sting in the tail of increased bills," he said.

"But the real gripe is the way the message was communicated. Sending a text may be a quick, simple and cheap way to communicate with your friends, family and even your boss, but Vodafone breaking the news about price changes this way may be a bit of a stretch.

"The short and sharp nature of a text may explain why the message failed to tell the whole story - and so went down like a lead balloon with some customers."

'Generous allowance'

Vodafone has defended the change, saying in a statement: "We believe that by offering propositions with a generous allowance of minutes, we continue to offer our customers great value.

"Many of our competitors already offer price plans charged in this way."

Customers with Orange or T-Mobile are already charged on a per-minute basis.

However, O2 and Virgin Mobile still have a per-second model, with a one-minute minimum charge.

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Emergency broadcasts 'can be hacked'

9 July 2013 Last updated at 12:06 ET By Dave Lee Technology reporter, BBC News

The system used to broadcast to the United States in times of national crisis can be hacked, researchers have warned.

The Emergency Alerting System (EAS) was set up to allow the president to talk to the entire country within 10 minutes of a disaster.

Security specialists IOActive said one TV network's output "was interrupted by news of a zombie apocalypse".

Lead researcher Mike Davis said the system needed to be re-engineered.

IOActive has released a guidance sheet for concerned broadcasters looking to protect their system.

'Extremely dangerous'

In February, weaknesses in the system - which was introduced in 1997, replacing an older set-up - were exposed by hackers.

"Earlier this year we were shown an example of an intrusion on the EAS when the Montana Television Network's regular programming was interrupted by news of a zombie apocalypse," said Mr Davis.

Continue reading the main story

Bodies of the dead are rising from their graves and attacking the living"

End Quote Fake public service announcement

"Although there was no zombie apocalypse, it did highlight just how vulnerable the system is."

The message, which was also played out on a radio station in Michigan, said: "Civil authorities in your area have reported that the bodies of the dead are rising from their graves and attacking the living.

"Follow the messages onscreen that will be updated as information becomes available.

"Do not attempt to approach or apprehend these bodies as they are considered extremely dangerous."

Station bosses later apologised for any alarm or distress to listeners brought on by the unexpected alert.

UK testing

In the UK, no such emergency broadcast system is in place.

"We don't have an alerting system similar to that in this country at the moment," a Cabinet Office spokeswoman told the BBC.

However, the government is set to launch trials later in the year of a new "public emergency alert system".

Mooted plans include alert systems which span a variety of platforms, including the internet and mobile.

Social media will also be key, according to consultation documents published on Gov.uk.

"The popularity of social media makes it an ideal platform for communication with people and for disseminating additional information in the aftermath of an emergency," the document reads, before remarking that security must be a high priority to prevent false alarms.

If a national emergency were to take place today, broadcasters such as the BBC have contingency plans to ensure broadcasts can continue even if key locations are inactive.

Follow Dave Lee on Twitter @DaveLeeBBC

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Hackers use publicly posted bug info

10 July 2013 Last updated at 07:33 ET

An Internet Explorer bug publicised by a Google engineer has been exploited by hackers, according to Microsoft.

The firm flagged "targeted attacks" in its latest security bulletin.

It did not, however, draw a direct link to researcher Tavis Ormandy, who revealed the flaw in May without discussing it first with Microsoft.

Microsoft released a fix several days after the revelation. It was not the first time Mr Ormandy had gone public with Microsoft bugs.

The engineer's most recent post on the Full Disclosure site was criticised by a security expert, because he not only mentioned the existence of the bug but actually provided technical details of the vulnerability in Windows 7 and Windows 8 that could be exploited by hackers.

"Microsoft is aware of targeted attacks that attempt to exploit this vulnerability through Internet Explorer 8," the software maker posted on its Security Bulletin page.

Microsoft explained that the vulnerability could allow an attacker to "gain the same user rights as the current user", permitting a hacker to change their target's PC settings.

Acting in his own personal capacity and not as a Google employee, Mr Ormandy initially revealed the flaw on 17 May.

He then asked for help in dealing with the issue. "I don't have much free time to work on silly Microsoft code, so I'm looking for ideas on how to fix the final obstacle for exploitation," he wrote on the site.

Three days later, the engineer posted on Full Disclosure again, this time offering the full demonstration code.

"I have a working exploit that grants system on all currently supported versions of Windows," he wrote. "Code is available on request to students from reputable schools."

Irresponsible behaviour?

In a blog post shortly before the disclosure, Mr Ormandy wrote that Microsoft was "often very difficult to work with".

He also advised researchers to use pseudonyms when dealing with the software giant, adding that Microsoft treated "vulnerability researchers with great hostility".

In 2010, Mr Ormandy also posted publicly about a flaw in Windows XP - just five days after informing Microsoft about it.

Graham Cluley, an independent analyst who previously worked for security firm Sophos, said back then that the revelation had left people "wondering whether this was a responsible way for a Google employee to behave".

"I'm sure, however, that they would rather have fixed this vulnerability behind closed doors, without exploit code circulating in the wild, and would have preferred if this Google engineer had acted responsibly," he added.

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Pirate Bay plans 'secure messenger'

10 July 2013 Last updated at 08:05 ET

One of the Pirate Bay file-sharing site's founders has announced plans for a "totally secure" rival to WhatsApp and Apple's iMessage services.

Hemlis, which means secret in Swedish, will use end-to-end encryption so messages are seen only by the sender and recipient.

Peter Sunde said it was a response to governments spying on users' data.

The iOS and Android project is quickly approaching its $100,000 (£149,133) funding target.

However, Apple and WhatsApp say communications using their services are already "fully encrypted".

Blackberry is also planning to extend its BBM chat service - which can be made fully secure - to other mobile operating systems.

The team behind Hemlis said their service would be more beautiful and user-friendly.

'Secure, fun and sexy.'

Hemlis is being crowdfunded by users who can opt to pay either in the virtual online currency Bitcoin or PayPal.

In return for a $5 donation, they are being offered free access to all the premium features regular users would normally have to pay for, such as picture-sharing.

In contrast, other apps are often funded by selling adverts or user data - a model the app's developers want to steer away from.

"We're interested in helping, not selling users", said the developers.

"No-one can spy on you. Not even us."

The move by the Pirate Bay co-founder comes after recent revelations that the US government's National Security Agency has been using a system called Prism to tap into data stored by US-based technology giants including Google, Facebook and Apple.

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CPS worker 'friended' accused online

10 July 2013 Last updated at 08:25 ET By Dave Lee Technology reporter, BBC News

An employee working for the Crown Prosecution Service added a defendant on Facebook, a Freedom of Information request has revealed.

The member of staff had been given a written warning after an internal review, the CPS told the BBC.

Other social media incidents at the department included employees discussing a case online.

Nine CPS employees have been involved in recorded instances of social media "misuse" in the past five years.

"The CPS code of conduct references personal use of social media and is clearly set out to all staff reflecting best practice across the civil service," a spokeswoman said in a statement.

"We are satisfied that in the nine reported instances of misuse of social media by CPS employees over the last five years, the appropriate disciplinary action was taken."

The incidents, which all happened on Facebook, were:

• An employee became "friends" with a defendant
• Three employees made derogatory comments about staff who did not go on strike
• Two employees discussed a case
• An employee made derogatory comments that could have been in reference to their manager
• An employee made comments about having been detained by police
• An employee made comments regarding drug taking

'Uncovered swiftly'

The CPS added: "These incidents led to one final written warning and action short of dismissal, one final written warning, five first written warnings and two no warnings following disciplinary hearings."

The CPS told the BBC that the staff member who "friended" a defendant was "was in no way involved with the defendant's case" and that the case "was not compromised in any way".

Aside from becoming "friends", no further attempt had been made to contact the defendant.

"This incident was uncovered swiftly," the spokeswoman said, "and resulted in formal disciplinary action being taken, in the form of a written warning.

"These mitigating factors were taken into account in accordance with our established employment policies."

The Freedom of Information request was made by think tank Parliament Street.

Its director of technology, Steven George-Hilley, said: "It appears that the CPS is stumbling towards social media meltdown, with employees breaching every code in the online rulebook and putting the integrity of the organisation at risk.

"It's vital that public sector organisations train staff to use sites like Twitter and Facebook responsibly, to deliver more effective digital services to the public."

Follow Dave Lee on Twitter @DaveLeeBBC

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France ends three-strikes net bans

10 July 2013 Last updated at 08:51 ET

France has halted an anti-piracy policy that threatened persistent offenders with internet bans.

A law passed by the previous government had let local courts suspend copyright infringers' connectivity for up to a month if they were caught three times.

It was supported by the entertainment industry, but France's current culture minister had said that she thought the penalty was "disproportionate".

File-sharers still face fines of up to 1,500 euros ($1,923; £1,292).

The government added that it would now focus its efforts on sites that made money from offering illegally copied content rather than individual users.

One suspension

Under the previous scheme, a state agency, known as Hadopi, sought out individuals guilty of illegally copying content and sent them warning emails and letters.

If the first two messages were ignored, the agency could summon the suspected offender to an interview - and if it still was not satisfied it referred them to a judge.

A report published in February revealed 1.6 million first warnings and 139,000 second warnings had been sent out and 29 cases had been passed to the courts.

However, to date the judges have only ordered one person's net access to be suspended - a 43-year-old accused of copying music by Rihanna, the pop group Collectif Metisse and the French movie Heartbreaker.

The ruling said he should be cut off from the net for 15 days.

A government-commissioned study last year recommended that Hadopi be scrapped altogether and its powers transferred to another regulator to help save costs.

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Subtitle translation site raided

10 July 2013 Last updated at 12:44 ET By Leo Kelion Technology reporter

A website that allowed users to share subtitles has been taken offline after the Swedish police raided two properties used by the service.

Undertexter had provided fan-made translations of film and TV show dialogue, which could be merged with video files to provide on-screen text.

A spokesman for the police told the BBC they had acted after investigating a complaint by copyright holders.

Undertexter's managers insisted they had not broken the law.

Critics have suggested the raid marked an escalation in Hollywood's efforts to protect its intellectual property.

However, the Rights Alliance - the organisation that prompted the police to act - said it was not the first case of its kind in Europe.

Forensic tests

The national co-ordinator of the intellectual property crime division at the Swedish Police Service said that it had carried out the raid after tracking computers using Undertexter's internet addresses to buildings in Stockholm and Helsingborg.

"Our copyright law doesn't allow people to make a transcript from a film that is copyright-protected without the copyright owner's permission and certainly not to make it public," said Paul Pinter.

"The investigation is still in its early stages. Our forensic experts will now go through the material on the seized computers and there will be follow-up interviews."

He added that potential penalties ranged from fines to up to two years in jail.

The Rights Alliance said its members had been concerned that Undertexter had "a lot of" adverts on it, suggesting the owners were profiting from "the work of others".

"There were several reasons for us to act against the site," said Sara Lindback, a lawyer for the group.

"The movies they put subtitles on have often not yet reached Sweden or are still in cinemas. The translations have not been cleared by the rights-holders."

She added that the move followed the trial of a man in Norway last year who had run Norsub, a similar service.

A judge fined the 26-year-old 15,000 kroner ($2,450; £1,640) after hearing he had not profited from the site and had shut it down shortly after being warned he was breaking the law.

'Free country'

A post on Undertexter's Facebook page indicated its managers intended to fight on.

"Hollywood... we will never give up, we live in a free country and Swedish people have every right to publish their own interpretation of a movie/series," they wrote.

They added that they had never charged for the service.

Rick Falkvinge, a civil rights blogger and founder of Sweden's Pirate Party, has come out in their support.

"Fan-subbing is a thriving culture which usually provides better-than-professional subtitles for new episodes with less than 24 hours of turnaround, whereas the providers of the original cartoon or movie can easily take six months or more," he wrote on his site.

"What's remarkable about this raid is that the copyright industry has decided to do a full-out raid against something that is entirely fan-made."

Ernesto van der Sar - editor of the Torrentfreak news site - also questioned the wisdom of the move.

"These subtitles are created by the most passionate fans the industry has and they are not in any way out to make a profit," he told the BBC.

"These sites exist because they offer a service to the deaf and foreign language audience that's often lacking through legal channels."

However, the Rights Alliance defended its actions.

"See the movies, but make sure that the ones that created them are the ones that get paid, not the pirates," said Sara Lindback.

"That way new movies can be made, which benefits everyone."

She added that her organisation now intended to act against other subtitle services including Swesub.

The Swedish Police Service was not able to provide comment about other sites.

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