TechBits package

A loophole means unlimited data for AT&T iPhone

NEW YORK (AP) â€" Verizon Wireless will start offering the iPhone on Feb. 10 with a draw that AT&T Inc. no longer offers to new subscribers: a plan with unlimited data usage. But The Associated Press has learned that some AT&T iPhone users on limited plans won't need to move to Verizon for all-you-can-eat data.

In an unadvertised loophole, AT&T has allowed subscribers who have had an unlimited data plan in the past to switch back. That includes anyone who had an iPhone before June, when the limited plans took effect.

Jose Argumedo, of Brentwood, N.Y., says he and a friend were switched to an unlimited plan recently after they called AT&T's customer service. Both have iPhone 4s, and previously had earlier iPhone models.

AT&T spokesman Mark Siegel wouldn't confirm the option to return to an unlimited plan.

"We handle customers and their situations individually, and we're not going to discuss specifics," he said.

The company has allowed iPhone and smart-phone users with unlimited-data plans to keep them when upgrading directly to a new phone. It's the option to return to an unlimited plan after going limited that's been secret.

Another iPhone subscriber on a limited plan called AT&T to see if he could switch to the unlimited one, but was told he couldn't because he hadn't previously had the unlimited version.

The unlimited plan costs $30 per month. There are two limited plans: one that provides 200 megabytes of data for $15 per month, and another that provides 2 gigabytes of data for $25 per month. Above that limit, every gigabyte costs $10.

Two gigabytes of data per month is more than enough for most people.

Argumedo, 23, said he used 4 to 8 gigabytes per month, because he uses video and audio streaming services such as Pandora. He said AT&T restored the unlimited plan after he threatened to go to Verizon.

â€" Peter Svensson, AP Technology Writer

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Firefox, Google Chrome adding "Do Not Track" tools

NEW YORK (AP) â€" The Firefox and Google Chrome browsers are getting tools to help users block advertisers from collecting information about them.

Alex Fowler, a technology and privacy officer for Firefox maker Mozilla, said the "Do Not Track" tool will be the first in a series of steps designed to guard privacy. He didn't say when the tool will be available.

Google Chrome users can now download a browser plug-in that blocks advertisers â€" but only from ad networks that already let people decline personalized, targeted ads. According to Google Inc., these include the top 15 advertising networks, as rated by the research group comScore, a group that includes AOL Inc., Yahoo Inc. and Google itself.

The next version of Microsoft Corp.'s Internet Explorer browser, which is still being developed, will include a similar feature, though people will have to create or find their own lists of sites they want to block.

Google and Mozilla, however, are developing tracking-protection tools that will work automatically â€" once people decide to turn on that privacy feature, that is.

Microsoft, Google and Mozilla's promises of stronger privacy comes on the heels of government complaints that online advertisers are able to collect too much data about people in their quest to target ads.

Last month, the Federal Trade Commission recommended the creation of a "Do Not Track" tool that would invite consumers to restrict advertisers from collecting information about them, including the websites they visit, the links they click, their Internet searches and their online purchases.

Meanwhile, the Commerce Department last month called for guidelines that would require online advertisers to warn consumers what information about them they are collecting and how they plan to use it. Consumers, the department said, should be able to "opt out," or decline, some or all of that data collection. And if companies do collect information, they would be required to store it securely.

Google product managers Sean Harvey and Rajas Moonka said the new Chrome tool will allow for more permanent ad blocking. Before, opt-out settings were typically stored through small files known as cookies; when users clear cookies, however, the opt-out settings get erased, too. Another benefit is that the new tool allows users to opt out of all participating ad networks at once, rather than one at a time.

Google eventually hopes to develop a similar plug-in for other browsers as well, Harvey and Moonka added.

â€" Dana Wollman, AP Technology Writer

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LightSquared cleared to offer wireless broadband

WASHINGTON (AP) â€" Federal regulators have given a satellite start-up called LightSquared clearance to use its allotted airwaves to provide wireless broadband services that could compete with AT&T and Verizon Wireless.

The Federal Communications Commission is granting the Reston, Va., company a waiver from federal rules limiting the use of those airwaves to providing back-up wireless connections for satellite phone service. Without the waiver, LightSquared's network could only be used to provide ground-based broadband service if it can also connect to a satellite.

LightSquared, launched in July by private-equity firm Harbinger Capital Partners, has the spectrum because Harbinger already owns satellite company SkyTerra.

LightSquared is building a nationwide data network that can handle voice calls, but won't offer conventional cell phone service. The company also offers slower mobile satellite services.

"Having an extra player in the mobile broadband field increases competition and provides consumers with more choices," the FCC said in a statement.

LightSquared plans to sell its wireless broadband service on a wholesale basis to retailers, mobile device makers, Web content developers and even cable companies. They would then resell the service to consumers under their own brands. It's a 4G network, the super-fast variety that existing phone companies such as AT&T and Verizon are building.

LightSquared has pledged to reach 260 million users by 2015 to satisfy a requirement imposed by the FCC when it approved Harbinger's purchase of SkyTerra last year.

"We're very much looking forward to offering broadband services to all Americans," said Jeffrey Carlisle, LightSquared's executive vice president of regulatory affairs.

The FCC said it will require LightSquared to ensure that its new broadband service does not interfere with global positioning systems. Earlier this month, the Commerce Department warned that the service could create interference problems for GPS receivers, consumer navigation devices and satellite services used by government agencies.

â€" Joelle Tessler, AP Technology Writer