AT&T to buy T-Mobile USA for $39 billion

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Corporate News, Wireless / WiFi,

AT&T has just announced that they've come to agreement with Deutsche Telekom to purchase T-Mobile USA for $39 billion in cash and stock. Here in the USA, AT&T and T-Mobile are the two GSM wireless carriers, and combined, they currently serve 130 million customers. The deal still needs to be approved by the various regulatory agencies, and the companies have said they expect it to take just about a year before all is said and done. We're sure it'll al go smoothly, and we'll soon be left with just three major carriers in the US. Full press release after the break.

Click to continue reading AT&T to buy T-Mobile USA for $39 billion

Bill Blackbeard: Eisner Hall of Fame

Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Editorials,

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, I worked a lot with Bill Blackbeard and his San Francisco Academy of Comic Art. We never met -- it was all phone and mail.

You can find him credited in a couple dozen comics and collections that I put together on behalf of Malibu Comics. Everything from squarebound collections of Spicy Mystery Tales and Spicy Detective Stories to comic book reprints of The Shadow and Sherlock Holmes newspaper strips.

Without his guidance, his help and access to his massive collection of organized material, those books wouldn't have existed, and I wouldn't have learned as much as I did.

Click to continue reading Bill Blackbeard: Eisner Hall of Fame

Comic Books Jobs: CBS Interns! MTV! Video Games!

Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Conventions, Editorials, Television,

Hey, you wanna go to Comic Con International on CBS’s dime? Of course you do. Showtime Networks, a division of CBS based in New York, has an intern program that’s running from June 6-July 29.

You’ll be working in the “Program Marketing and Advertising” group and one of your main functions will be “daily tasks and organization leading up to Comic Con, assisting with the advertising tactics in print, tv, online and outdoor and components of the marketing plan.” I'm only assuming that they'll take you to the Con to see your hard work payoff, so you might want to get that included if you get the gig.

Click to continue reading Comic Books Jobs: CBS Interns! MTV! Video Games!

Comic Book Jobs: Marvel Comics

Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Conventions, Editorials, Marvel Comics,

Kapow!

Y’know, it’s always hard to get a job writing and drawing for Marvel Comics. But coming in April, Marvel is making it a little easier to get their attention at the Kapow Comic Con.

According to Down The Tubes, the Cartoon Museum will be “hosting portfolio review sessions with Marvel Comics talent scout CB Cebulski.” David Lloyd (V For Vendetta) will be there, too.

It’s a nice opportunity to get your work in front of a good guy who can help, if only by giving you some honest pointers about your art.

The downside? It’s all taking place in England.

Good luck, job seekers!

[Artwork: Captain Britain, © Marvel Comics]

Comic Book Jobs: British Comics

Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Editorials,

Toxic, one of the wacky British comics magazines (that competes with Dandy and The Beano) is looking for an "Experienced sub-editor/writer."

What's a sub-editor, you may ask? Well, in the US, it means copy editor, but here it means you'd be the acting assistant editor.

Toxic is published by Egmont, the huge Scandanavian publishing conglom. The mag is for boys aged 7-12, and in addition to articles and such on sports and movies and pop culture, they also feature jokes, comics and competitions. As they say, "anything and everything that’s in a boys life. Especially if it makes him laugh."

Egmont UK is seeking a "creative and experienced person with a proven track record in sub-editing & writing & general." Experience in digital and online "would be an advantage," but above all they want someone "enthusiastic about children’s publishing!"

If you're interested, then you'd better hurry. The listing closes on March 25.

Good luck, job seekers!

[Artwork: Toxic, © Egmont]

Read More | Egmont

Weekend Reading: Borders, Bruce Jones, Dick Tracy And Alan Moore

Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Editorials, Interviews, Movies, Reviews, Television, DC Comics, Marvel Comics,

Can you believe another weekend is already here? I can't, so I'd better post a few links and then hit the liquor store!

Let's see what's out there on the interwebs for those of us not already enjoying C2E2:

Borders: The bookstore chain just didn’t drop into bankruptcy overnight. Here’s a list of a half-dozen balls they dropped that you’d think they wouldn’t have.
[Link: Making Light]

Bruce: Comic book writer (remember his run on Hulk?) and novelist Bruce Jones ponders the future of fiction.

Return: John Zipperer at Weimar World Service reports that editorial cartoonist Lyle Lahey is back from his sabbatical, and in top form as he makes fun of Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin.

Dick: For those of you who don’t already know, there’s a new creative team on the venerable comic strip, Dick Tracy. It’s writer Mike Curtis and artist Joe Staton, and the whole thing is 3 daily panels of awesome. Hogan’s Alley interviews Staton about his new job.

Click to continue reading Weekend Reading: Borders, Bruce Jones, Dick Tracy And Alan Moore

AT&T warns users they’ll be charged if the continue unauthorized tethering

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Smartphones, Corporate News,

AT&T confirmed Friday that it has contacted a small number of its smartphone users and ordered them to stop tethering their phones without paying for AT&T's tethering service or the carrier will automatically add tethering to their monthly bills.

"We are sending emails, letter and text messages to a small number of smartphone customers who use their devices for tethering but aren't on the required tethering plan. Our goal is fairness for all of our customers," an AT&T spokesman said in an email.

The alerts give users the option to stop tethering and continue on their current plan, call AT&T and add tethering to their plan, or risk having AT&T automatically bump them to a tethering plan.

AT&T said the warnings impact a "small percentage of our smartphone customer base."

According to Ars Technica, users have until March 27 to make their choices, after which the automatic tethering plans will go into effect.

AT&T smartphone users have the choice of 200MB for $15 per month or 2GB for $25 per month. A DataPro plan adds 2GB for $20 extra per month for a total of 4GB for $45 per month.

Click to continue reading AT&T warns users they’ll be charged if the continue unauthorized tethering

Soul by Ludacris headphones ship in May, pricing detailed

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Accessories, Music,

Signeo's Soul by Ludacris series headphones are slated for release this May, the company said Wednesday. There are five headphones in the series, three over-ear and two in-ear headphones with prices ranging from $300 for the high-end SL300 to $69 for the entry-level SL49.

The SL49 in-ear headphones are your average sub-$100 cans. Priced at $69, the SL49 offers high-definition quality audio and has a tangle-resistant cable. Also included are three extra ear tips: small, medium, and large for an ideal fit. For $99 the SL99 offer nearly identical features as the SL49s with the exception of the construction of the ear buds, which are bigger.

For those who prefer over-ear headphones, Signeo and Ludacris offer three different models. The SL100, which retail for $149, are the smallest of the over-ear headphones and come in two different colors, with red/black and blue/black tones. All are compatible with iPhone 4, 3GS, iPad, and iPods, and they include standard and iPhone detachable cords with an in-line remote. The detachable cords are compatible with most devices with 1/8 or 1/4 headphone jack. For an additional $50, the SL150 offers the same features as the SL100 but are bulkier with bigger ear cups and come in two-toned black/white and white/black.

Click to continue reading Soul by Ludacris headphones ship in May, pricing detailed

HTC to offer Thunderbolt extended battery to double power

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Accessories, Smartphones,

The HTC Thunderbolt has the fastest Internet speeds I've ever seen on a cell phone, but using the 4G LTE network really kills its battery life.

In our tests, I got eight hours of 3G talk time with the Thunderbolt, six hours of video playback time, and only 2.5 hours of LTE streaming. So what's an Internet fan to do?

HTC and Verizon will offer a very high-capacity extended battery, the companies told me. The 2750 mAh battery is nearly twice the capacity of the Thunderbolt's built-in 1400 mAh unit. The big battery will cost $49.99 and will be available very soon, said Pat Bucci, Verizon's director of accessory products.

The new battery makes the phone about an ounce heavier than its existing 6.5 ounces, and it comes with a new back that makes the phone deeper as well, Bucci said.

"We want customers who are power users, that are going to have the hotspot on all day, to just go," he said.

Click to continue reading HTC to offer Thunderbolt extended battery to double power

Five critical iPad 2 components at risk after Japanese earthquake

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Corporate News, Handhelds,

The effects of the Japanese earthquake may affect Apple's production of the iPad 2, according to market researcher IHS iSuppli.

The firm said it believes that Apple's iPad 2 uses components from several manufacturers affected by the earthquake, as well as the reactors in the area which workers are attempting to keep intact, if not functioning.

Apple representatives were not able to be contacted after hours. The company has already delayed the iPad 2 launch in Japan following the earthquake in Japan a week ago, which has not been rated magnitude 9.0 by the U.S. Geological Service. The iPad 2, which went on sale in the U.S. last Friday, was scheduled to launch in Japan on March 25.

iSuppli said it had identified five parts sourced from Japanese suppliers whose supplies may be affected by the quake: NAND flash from Toshiba, dynamic random access memory (DRAM) made by Elpida Memory, an electronic compass from AKM Semiconductor, the touch screen overlay glass likely from Asahi Glass Co. and the system battery from Apple Japan Inc.

Click to continue reading Five critical iPad 2 components at risk after Japanese earthquake