Today,   is launching a location-based publishing platform to go along with its hyper-local business directory.  This move is designed to put MerchantCircle on the map with competitors like AOL’s local content network Patch, Facebook Places, and FourSquare. With this system, local merchants both make money off their expertise and also guide further customers to their stores via participation in the app. This is all part of a growing trend of hyper-local mobile applications and social networking. Earlier this week, a story ran about the release of a hyper-local travel content network released by Nileguide. A content system dubbed “Ask Locals”, which adds the participation of locals to their tourism and exploration guide.

AT&T and Verizon are teaming up to test a new payment option for consumers--skip the credit or debit card all together. The two service providers are hoping that the centralizing magic of your smart phone will carry over to payments as well--and they’re probably right. From BusinessWeek, The partnership, which also includes Deutsche Telekom AG unit T-Mobile USA, may work with Discover Financial Services and Barclays Plc to test a system at stores in Atlanta and three other U.S. cities that would let a consumer pay with the contactless wave of a smartphone, the people said. The carriers have been searching for a chief executive officer. “This is definitely a game-changer,” said industry consultant Richard Crone of San Car

Steve Jobs held an unexpected press conference today, addressing the public about the iPhone 4's antenna issues. Good thing--consumers were starting to get really pissed about the smart phone's mounting connectivity problems. At least, it should be a good thing. Jobs promised iPhone 4 buyers a free bumper case, which is known to minimize dropped calls, with refunds in order for those that had already purchased one. That doesn't go for third party bumper cases, and the deal ends September 30. During the Q&A session of the press conference Jobs also said he believed AT&T would let people out of their contracts if they want to return the phone, still unhappy with the service. Our own Mark Hopkins commented on the statement, saying "hop

When I originally saw this post that’s making the rounds today over at Boy Genius Reports, the responses that immediately sprung to mind were along the lines of “the Chris Brogan’s of the world are going to have a field day with this one.” In case you missed this whole thing, what you need to know is that the iPhone 4 has some serious problems relating to it’s antennae, most evident when held with your left hand, to the point where it’s almost impossible to use the phone as, well, a phone. To further add to the hilarity, you also need to know that Steve Jobs occasionally responds to emails personally addressed to him, and rarely does he ever respond with anything much longer than a sentence or two. Most Apple fans will say th

iPhone sales are gaining on BlackBerry's, according to a report by Forrester Research. While RIM's BlackBerry is still the most popular device for business users, the iPhone is closing the gap. In so many words, the iPhone is better than the BlackBerry, and RIM had better watch out, before it gets left in the dust entirely. Granted, RIM has taken steps to regain its footing, announcing plans for improvement around its OS and platforms, hoping to lure developers back to its camp. However, with market share suffering and the iPhone 4 hitting stores today, there's plenty of trouble for RIM to overcome if it hopes to keep BlackBerry the dominating phone for enterprise. All the while, Apple's been hard at work shaking the iPhone "toy" i

We like all the new smart phones coming out on the market, but how do the wireless providers feel about them? They're generally happy, too. I's opened up an entirely new business model for them, generating revenue hand-over-fist. All that data that's running through our app-ridden smart phones is big business for companies like AT&T and Verizon (and all the rest). But let's focus on AT&T and Verizon for a moment, because of the iPhone. AT&T is the only company in the U.S. that offers data packages for the iPhone, and its network has seen several burdens as a result. And who likes a burdened network? AT&T doesn't, and it's changed its data plan offerings as a result. No more unlimited package options, meaning it will cost more for c

How horrible is it when your security is so bad, an anti-semitic e-tard raver from the Pacific Northwest is able to find private data on hundreds of thousands of your customers? That’s the question AT&T and Apple must be asking themselves this morning, as news has broke that the AT&T / iPad data breach was not only worse than previously imagined, but done by some raver found to be in possession of a massive array of party drugs and a penchant for making anti-Semitic remarks. CNet painted the picture this morning: A hacker in a group that discovered the AT&T iPad-related flaw was arrested following the execution of an FBI search warrant of his home in Arkansas on Tuesday, authorities told CNET. Andrew Auernheimer, 24,

Howard Shultz has reached an epiphany that Starbucks, customers want an easily accessible and free Wi-Fi service in its stores.  Currently customers must purchase a Starbucks Card and sign up on AT&T’s Wi-Fi service, a laborious process at best, giving a 2-hour window of free access. To that end, Starbucks will begin offering free Wi-Fi Service through a partnership with Yahoo to its customers in Starbucks owned stores across the U.S. beginning July 1, 2010. See (Starbucks Newsroom) Being the first Coffee establishment to offer Wi-Fi service to its customers, originally through Sprint and then AT&T, which has the most widespread service; Starbucks created a trend which has now being surpassed by local coffee houses offering

HTC is quite the growing mobile company. It teamed up with Google Android to grand success, and is now becoming more central to the discussions around the expanding mobile industry. The latest HTC debut was the Aria, an exclusive handset offered only through AT&T. From the release: “Its unique combination of compact size and beautiful design instantly separates HTC Aria from the pack of ‘me-too’ smartphones,” said Jason Mackenzie, vice president of HTC America. “But what really differentiates HTC Aria from other smartphones is the acclaimed HTC Sense experience, which we are pleased to be bringing to AT&T customers. By putting people at the center of everything it does, HTC Aria organizes all of your communications in the

It's bad enough AT&T was shafted during Steve Jobs keynote at Apple's annual Worldwide Developer's Conference on Monday, when the slow network lead to heckling and a suggestion for the iPhone to move be available through Verizon (the grass is always greener). But a security breach at AT&T has revealed private information about some iPad users. The Washington Post reports that over 100,000 email addresses of iPad users were inadvertently made accessible through a security loophole, handing over the contact info for several high profile individuals. Celebrities, socialites, business and finance executives have had their email addresses compromised, but perhaps the most startling is that of White House Chief of Staff, Rahm Emanuel. Talk a