Apple's full-page Earth Day advert jabs fun at copycat competitors

Apple has followed up yesterday's video and section on its commitment to the environment with a full-page ad in newspapers. This time around, Apple found time to take a jab at competitors who have copied its ideas and products like Samsung. Using the same image of solar panels but with the headline "There are some ideas we want every company to copy." Apple and Samsung are currently in a court battle over various patent infringement cases. The gist of the advertising is that Apple would like to see other technology companies commit towards l;esseing their impact on the environment. An area where Apple now leads the industry.

Source: Macrumors

Netflix announces price hike for new members in the US, no word on price increase in Canada yet

Netflix has announced its plans to raise prices for new members in the US by a dollar or two later in the quarter but they did not specify whether they would do so in other countries as well. Huffington Post Canada tried to reach Netflix for a comment but they have not gotten back yet. The company has previously raised prices in Ireland from €6.99 to €7.99 for new members earlier in the year so it won’t be a surprise if it makes its way here. 

The company aims to improve its offerings with the price increase. As stated in a letter to shareholders, "In the U.S. we have greatly improved our content selection since we introduced our streaming plan in 2010 at $7.99 per month. Our current view is to do a one or two dollar increase, depending on the country, later this quarter for new members only. Existing members would stay at current pricing (e.g. $7.99 in the U.S.) for a generous time period. These changes will enable us to acquire more content and deliver an even better streaming experience."

Microsoft and Nokia to complete merger on April 25

Mark the date. Microsoft has just announced the exact date when it will complete its acquisition of Nokia’s (or should we say Microsoft Mobile?) devices and services business. According to a blog post by Microsoft’s General Counsel Brad Smith, the merger will take place on April 25, Friday. All legal hurdles are said to be cleared at this time. After the merger, Microsoft will be in charge of Nokia’s website and social media presence for up to a year. Former Nokia CEO Stephen Elop will be in charge of the devices division at Microsoft, where he will also report directly to CEO Satya Nadella. 

Source: Engadget

Google Hangouts update creates single thread for text messages and chats from same sender

Google updated its Hangouts app to consolidate your text and chat messages from the same sender into a single thread. Just in case you get confused about what kind of message your contact sent you, Google has color-coded the messages. You can also reply using either method and separate the messages as well. Google has also split your Hangouts and phone contacts list to make it easier to search through them. The company has also updated video call quality and the home screen widget.  

Source: Google+