Samsung is going to host an $800,000 contest for developers to build apps for the Galaxy S4 smartphone. As part of the ”Smart App Challenge 2013,” developers will need to utilize the Samsung Chord SDK. The Chord software interface is used for creating wireless connections between Samsung smartphones without using an online server or mobile phone network. The competition will have 10 winners and the prize money will be distributed between them.
Dell Inc. (NASDAQ:DELL) has sent a letter to Carl Icahn and Southeastern Asset Management that they will not be providing more information about the company unless the board has determined that their proposal is “superior” to the one being offered by founder, Michael Dell. Carl Icahn and Southeastern partnered to offer $12 in cash per share or additional shares to existing investors for Dell earlier this month. That offered countered Michael Dell’s $24.4 billion bid.
LG Display will be at the Society for Information Display’s Display Week annual conference in Vancouver this week where they will be showcasing a flexible and indestructible OLED screen. The 5-inch screen will be bendable and made out of plastic, which could make mobile phones less vulnerable to scrapes and cracks.
Vista Equity Partners has acquired Websense Inc. (NASDAQ:WBSN) for around $1 billion. Websense is known for developing software to protect companies from hackers. Websense’s TRITON security solutions unifies web security, e-mail security, mobile security, and data loss prevention (DLP). Websense has tens of thousands of customers that utilize their software to stop targeted attacks and malware.
Reebonz, a website for buying and selling luxury products, has raised $40 million from a Singapore-based media company called MediaCorp. This deal values Reebonz at around $200 million. This is the first time that MediaCorp has invested in an online retailer company.
Pinterest, a social network that promotes content sharing through the use of virtual pinboards, announced a couple new features over the weekend. Pinterest has launched Pins with more information about various subjects like products, recipes, and movies. Another feature that Pinterest launched is a “Pin It” button across 9 mobile apps.
Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ:YHOO) has confirmed in a blog post that they are acquiring Tumblr. As we reported earlier, the deal is worth approximately $1.1 billion, mostly in cash. Tumblr will operate independently with David Karp as the CEO. The deal is expected to close towards the second half of the year.
Earlier this year, Google decided to discontinue the social streaming media player known as the Nexus Q. However, a new Google media player gadget has been spotted in FCC testing documents with the product name H840. The product code is the H2G2-42, which is a play on the The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.
