Massive PC, Console Game Discounts Ring in Holiday Season

Black Friday, the day right after Thanksgiving, is normally the day associated with electronics sales. And while the proponents of “Cyber Monday” and “Small Business Saturday” have tried to get in on the action, it’s still common knowledge that Thanksgiving weekend is the best time to upgrade your PC or console game arsenal. Right?

Not according to online game retailers. Discounts of up to 80 percent off a game’s retail price are taking place across the web, especially in online stores which offer games in the form of digital downloads (which cost nothing to make extra copies of). Here’s a look at just a few of the sales going on right now, for Windows and Linux PCs, Macs, game consoles, and mobile devices.

Steam (Windows, Linux, Mac)

The annual Steam Holiday Sale is under way, and it’s not just blowing hot air. Complete collections of every Steam game from publishers including Valve are on sale for around the price of one retail title, and individual games can be bought from each bundle for only a few dollars. Each day new sales are available, and most of them are massive, percentage-wise. They’re tied to a personal Steam account (which will always be linked to the original name they were created with), but can be bought as gifts for others.

Also check out: Amazon.com’s PC download sales, many of which are fulfilled through Steam and are discounted about as much. Amazon’s lineup also includes many casual games, of the “$ 10 store discount rack” variety.

Humble Indie Bundle 7 (Windows, Linux, Mac)

The Humble Bundle crew has been offering cross-platform, name-your-own-price bundles of indie games for several years now, and their seventh numbered offering is timed right for the holiday season. Bundles are giftable, the games can be played on Steam, and you can choose how much of your purchase price goes to game developers and how much goes to select charities.

PlayStation Network (PS3, PSP, Vita)

Console gamers aren’t being left out. The PSN Holiday Essentials sale is putting “more than 40 titles” on sale over the next three weeks, with a new selection available every week and even lower prices available to PlayStation Plus members.

Also check out: The Xbox Live Countdown to 2013 sale, with a “Daily Deal” every day until the end of the year.

Other sales

Game publishers SEGA and Square-Enix are discounting many of their most popular titles. SEGA’s holiday sale includes PSN, Xbox Live, Android and iOS titles, with most of its mobile games selling for $ 0.99. Meanwhile, the Square-Enix Winter of Mobile sale page lists huge discounts on iPhone and iPad games, while Android Police blogger Jeremiah Rice has put together a list of which Square-Enix Android games are on sale.

Jared Spurbeck is an open-source software enthusiast, who uses an Android phone and an Ubuntu laptop PC. He has been writing about technology and electronics since 2008.
Linux/Open Source News Headlines – Yahoo! News

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Buzzmakers: New X Factor and Miss Universe Winners

What had ET readers buzzing this week?

1. 'The X Factor' Crowns A Winner!

And the $5 million recording contract goes to…

Tate Stevens! The 37-year-old country crooner beat out runner-up 13-year-old Carly Rose Sonenclar for the top prize Thursday night. 35 million votes were cast Wednesday to determine victory for L.A. Reid's mentee.

Near tears, the Raymore, Missouri native thanked his fans for their overwhelming support.

"This is the best day of my life," said an emotional Stevens.

Girl group Fifth Harmony, mentored by Simon Cowell, placed third in the competition. Earlier in the night, the holiday themed finale saw performances by One Direction and Pitbull.

Auditions for an all-new season of The X Factor USA have already begun online. In-person auditions will start on March 6, 2013 in Los Angeles.

The celebrity judging panel has yet to be announced, but L.A. Reid has already taken himself out of the running. Spears has expressed interest in returning to the show for season three, but nothing has been confirmed.

2. Miss Universe 2012 Crowned

Beauties from 89 countries strutted their stuff Wednesday night in pursuit of the Miss Universe crown, but only one woman would earn the coveted title.

In the end a panel of ten celebrity judges, including Cee Lo Green and U.S. Olympic gold medalist Kerri Walsh Jennings, appointed Miss USA Olivia Culpo the winner.

The 20-year-old Rhode Island native beat out Miss Brazil (Gabriela Markus) Miss Philippines (Janine Tugonon), Miss Mexico (Irene Sofía Esser Quintero), and Miss Australia (Renae Ayris) for the distinction.

Culpo follows in the footsteps of Miss Angola, Leila Lopes, who earned the crown in 2011.

The two-hour show was broadcast live from Las Vegas with musical acts One Direction and Train lending their talents to the annual extravaganza.

3. Exclusive: Arsenio on His Late Night TV Return

Break out the Woof! Woof! fist pump: Arsenio Hall is coming back to late night TV in the Fall of 2013 after a 17-year break from the game, and only ET is behind the scenes with the timeless talk show host as he shoots his first-ever promo for The Arsenio Hall Show!

"[This is] the first time America will see anything on television about the show," says Arsenio. "Instead of a commercial where I do something like say, 'I'm baaaaack' -- and everybody's, 'Ugh' -- they've come up with a real, unique, creative angle that -- actually, I looked at dailies, and it scared me. I looked at the dailies and I frightened myself."

The trailer-length promo from CBS Television Distribution pays homage to horror movies and begins airing today on all Arsenio Hall Show affiliate stations, kicking off the campaign for the new late night syndicated talk show that will be seen all across the country next year.

"I'm real excited about this; so many things have changed in pop culture since I left the air," says Arsenio about his return to late night. "I can't wait."

The Arsenio Hall Show premieres on 9/9/13. Look for much more with Arsenio between now and then, only on ET!

4. Claire Danes Gives Birth

It's a boy!

Homeland star Claire Danes and her husband Hugh Dancy welcomed their very first child together on Monday, December 17, her rep confirms to People Magazine.

The proud parents named their bouncing baby boy Cyrus Michael Christopher Dancy.

Danes, 33, wed Dancy, 37, in 2009 after two years of dating.

5. President Obama is Time's Person of the Year

For 2012, Time Magazine has selected President Barack Obama as their Person of the Year.

"For finding and forging a new majority, for turning weakness into opportunity and for seeking, amid great adversity, to create a more perfect union, Barack Obama is Time's 2012 Person of the Year," Time's Managing Editor Richzard Stengel explained.

He also cited both of the president's re-elections, snagging over 50 percent of the popular vote, as one reason he received this honor.

This is the second year Time has tapped Obama as their Person of the Year -- he previously was selected in 2008 for becoming the first black president of the United States.

Time previously named the eight finalists for 2012's Person of the Year. They included: Bill and Hillary Clinton, Apple CEO Tim Cook, Malala Yousafzai (the Pakistani girl who was shot by the Taliban for her crusade for better girls' education), Yahoo! CEO Marissa Mayer, Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi and the three scientists who discovered the Higgs Boson particle.

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Staten Island man killed in early-morning house fire

A Staten Island man was killed when an early-morning fire swept through his home, police and relatives said.

Jameek Champagne, 23, died in the third-floor attic of the home on Osgood Avenue in Clifton. His brother and grandfather escaped the blaze uninjured.

A neighbor reported the blaze after seeing flames erupt from the house at about 5:40 a.m. He banged on the door in a frantic effort to awaken its residents.

The fire was extinguished about an hour after it started, according to an FDNY spokesman. Fire marshals are investigating what caused it.

About ten cars full of grief-stricken relatives and friends came to the scene to mourn Champagne. His devastated girlfriend said that the two had a newborn girl and a 1-year-old boy.

G.N.Miller/New York Post

The Staten Island house after it was damaged by the fire

“We’re just trying to find out how this happened,” Champagne's uncle said, weeping.

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Time’s up for holiday shopping procrastinators

Last minute shoppers like Josette Tyne are in luck this year.

With a long weekend before Christmas, retailers want to make it easier for procrastinators to finish their gift buying. Macy’s for the first time is keeping all its stores open around the clock from Friday until Sunday at midnight. Toys “R” Us and Walmart Supercenters will be open non-stop until Christmas Eve.

Even those retailers skipping the all nighter still have added extended hours often as late as 11 pm or midnight. Coupled with a flurry of last minute promotions, they hope to lure shoppers, many of whom have been largely sitting on the sidelines since Black Friday.

Tyne, 33, just starting her shopping this week at Aventura Mall, armed with a list of about two dozen people and the presents they wanted. The list would have been longer if the Fort Lauderdale resident hadn’t limited it to the kids in her family.

“I’ll probably be shopping every day from now till Sunday,” said Tyne, as she wheeled the youngest of her three boys around H&M in a stroller before heading on to Game Stop, Urban Outfitters and BCBG. “Whatever catches my eye. Luckily the kids usually like everything I get. I’m the awesome Auntie.”

A Consumer Reports Poll released earlier this week found that with just five shopping days left until Christmas, a whopping 68 percent of shoppers — a projected 132 million Americans — have yet to finish their holiday shopping.

With an early Thanksgiving leaving an extra week until Christmas and a long weekend before Tuesday’s holiday, shoppers have felt little need to rush. They also haven’t found December deals to be quite as compelling as the November sales.

Based on disappointing sales trends earlier this month, ShopperTrak said Wednesday it was cutting its holiday sales forecast. The company, which counts foot traffic and its own proprietary sales numbers from 40,000 retail outlets across the country, now expects a 2.5 percent sales increase to $257.7 billion, down from the 3.3 percent growth it initially predicted. The National Retail Federation is sticking with its prediction of a 4.1 percent sales increase.

Online sales trends are more encouraging, up 13 percent to $35 billion from Nov. 1 through Dec. 16, according to comScore, an online research firm. But that pace is below the forecast of 17 percent for the season.

“It’s coming down to the wire,” said David Bassuk, managing director and co-head of the retail practice at AlixPartners, a global consulting firm. “It’s going to require retailers to be more aggressive with their promotions than they were hoping heading into the weekend.”

While the economy is certainly in a better position than it was during the recession, many consumers still feel uneasy this year about their financial future. Some are worried about the U.S. job market and others fear the stalemate between Congress and the White House over federal “fiscal cliff’’ that could lead to tax increases and less disposable income for shoppers.

That was the case for Latonya Jones, on the hunt for bargains at Aventura Mall, coupon-loaded iPad in hand.

“I wasn’t going to buy anything this year, because I wanted to save money,” said Jones, 39, of Miami Gardens, who was shopping with her daughter Richelle, 12, this week in Macy’s. “But then I changed my mind.”

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Stand Your Ground motion denied in Janepsy Carballo case

It will be up to a jury to decide if Janepsy Carballo was justified in the killing of the man she said killed her husband.

The Stand Your Ground motion filed by her defense was denied on Friday, based largely on Carballo’s inadvertent confession to a confidential informant who was wearing a police wire to investigate an unrelated drug charge at the pain management clinic where she worked.

“The inescapable conclusion is that the defendant lured the victim to the home and killed him,” said Miami Circuit Court Judge Beth Bloom, reading in court from a statement explaining her decision. “The taped conversation between the defendant and the disclosed confidential source is compelling, incapable of being ignored, downplayed or interpreted in any other manner but one of revenge.”

In May 2008, Carballo shot Ilan Nissim six times in the back and arm when she said he came to her house uninvited. Cellphone records show that she called Nissim three times that day, asking him to come over.

The shooting came one month after Carballo’s husband and toddler son were shot in front of her house. Her son survived; her husband did not. Nissim was a suspect in the murder.

Carballo said her 37-year-old husband, Orlando Mesa, was an “entrepreneur” who worked as a mechanic and was involved in drug dealing. Mesa and Nissim were involved in some business transactions including a $180,000 real estate deal, the defendant said.

Explaining her decision, Judge Bloom read from the transcript of Carballo’s 3 1/2-hour conversation with the confidential informant, quoting the 34-year-old defendant as saying, “An eye for an eye. I want his daughter to grow up without a father just like my son.”

Since the Stand Your Ground statute was passed in 2005, it has been used in “fake defenses” all over the state of Florida, Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle said in an interview.

The controversial law, which eliminated the duty to retreat when threatened, came under scrutiny in February when neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman shot and killed Trayvon Martin, an unarmed teenager in Sanford. Police initially declined to charge Zimmerman when he invoked the Stand Your Ground statute. Zimmerman now faces charges of second-degree murder.

In response to national outcry surrounding the Trayvon Martin case, Florida Gov. Rick Scott commissioned a 19-member task force to make suggestions about the law. Their findings, presented to the state Legislature in November, did not suggest major changes.

Other states have enacted similar laws, which are supported by the National Rifle Association.

Two days before the ruling on the Carballo case, Sen. Chris Smith of Fort Lauderdale introduced a bill in the state Senate to amend the Stand Your Ground statute by removing immunity from prosecution for someone who initiates a confrontation or pursues a victim.

Fernandez Rundle also made suggestions to change the law, specifying that immunity should be granted only to someone “who does not initially provoke the force,” according to documents from the state attorney’s office.

“A lot of people are trying to abuse the good intentions of the statute,” Fernandez Rundle said. Although she declined to comment at length on the pending Carballo case, she said she “appreciated the judge’s order validating our position and our interpretation of the facts of the case.”

Carballo has been charged with first-degree murder. She goes on trial in April.

Follow Anna Edgerton on Twitter @AnnaEdge4.

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RIM shares dive as fee changes catch market off guard

(Reuters) – Shares of BlackBerry maker Research In Motion Ltd dropped 20 percent on Friday on fears that a new fee structure for its high-margin services segment could put pressure on the business that has set the company apart from its competitors.

The shares were still more than 80 percent above the year’s low, which was hit in September. They started to rally in November as investors began to bet that RIM’s long-awaited new BlackBerry 10 phones, to be launched in January, would turn the company around.

The services segment has long been RIM’s most profitable and accounts for about a third of total revenue. Some analysts said there was a risk that the fee changes could endanger its service ecosystem and leave the Canadian company as just another handset maker.

The fee changes, which RIM announced on Thursday after the close, overshadowed stronger-than-expected quarterly results. The company said the new pricing structure would be introduced with the BlackBerry 10 launch, expected on January 30.

RIM said some subscribers would continue to pay for enhanced services such as advanced security. But under the new structure, some other services would account for less revenue, or even none at all.

Chief Executive Thorsten Heins tried to reassure investors in a television interview with CNBC on Friday, saying RIM’s “service revenue isn’t going away”.

He added: “We’re not stopping. We’re not halting. We’re transitioning.”

Since taking over at RIM in January, Heins has focused on shrinking the company and getting it ready to introduce its new BB10 devices, which RIM says will help it claw back ground it has lost to competitors such as Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics.

But the news of the new services pricing strategy came as a shock to markets, and some analysts cut their price targets on RIM stock.

RIM will not be able to sustain profitability by relying on its hardware business alone, said National Bank Financial analyst Kris Thompson, whom Thomson Reuters StarMine has rated the top RIM analyst based on the accuracy of his estimates of the company’s earnings.

Thompson downgraded RIM’s stock to “underperform” from “sector perform” and cut his price target to $ 10 from $ 15.

Forrester Research analyst Charles Golvin said the move was likely about stabilizing market share: “At the moment, they need to stem the bleeding.”

He said the tiered pricing might line up better with RIM’s subscriber base as it expands in emerging economies.

RIM’s Nasdaq-listed shares were down 19.8 percent at $ 11.32 on Friday afternoon. The stock was down 19.6 percent to C$ 11.21 on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

COUNTDOWN TO LAUNCH

The success of the BB10 will be crucial to the future of RIM, which on Thursday posted its first-ever decline in total subscribers. Heins said on CNBC that the company expected to ship millions of the new devices.

He cautioned that this will require heavy investment, which will reduce RIM’s cash position in its fourth and first quarters from $ 2.9 billion in its fiscal third quarter. He said, however, it would not go below $ 2 billion.

Still, doubts remain about whether RIM can pull off the transformation. Needham analyst Charlie Wolf said the BB10 would have to look meaningfully superior to its competitors for RIM to stage a comeback.

Canaccord Genuity analyst Michael Walkley said it was highly unlikely that the market would support RIM’s new mobile computing ecosystem, and he remained skeptical about the company’s ability to survive on its own.

“We believe RIM will eventually need to sell the company,” said Walkley, who cut his price target on RIM shares to $ 9 from $ 10.

Baird Equity Research analysts said BB10 faced a daunting uphill battle against products from Apple, as well as those using Google Inc’s Android operating system, and, increasingly, phones with Microsoft Corp’s Windows 8 operating system.

Baird maintained its “underperform” rating on the stock, while Paradigm Capital downgraded the shares to “hold” from “buy” on uncertainty around the services revenue model.

“RIM has gone from having one major aspect of uncertainty – BlackBerry 10 adoption – to two, given an uncertain floor on services revenue,” William Blair analyst Anil Doradla said.

RIM will have to discount BB10 devices significantly to maintain demand, Bernstein analyst Pierre Ferragu said.

The BlackBerry, however, still offers the security features that helped it build its reputation with big business and government, a selling point with some key customers.

Credit Suisse maintained its “neutral” rating on the stock, but not because it expected BB10 to be a big success.

“Only the potential for an outright sale of the company or a breakup keeps us at a neutral,” Credit Suisse analysts said.

Separately on Friday, ailing Finnish mobile phone maker Nokia said it had settled its patent dispute with RIM in return for payments. Nokia did not disclose detailed terms, but said the deal included a one-time payment to be booked in the fourth quarter, as well as ongoing fees, all to be paid by RIM. [ID:nL5E8NL22K]

($ 1=$ 0.98 Canadian)

(Reporting by Chandni Doulatramani in Bangalore and Allison Martell in Toronto. Additional reporting by Sinead Carew in New York; Editing by Ted Kerr, Dale Hudson, Janet Guttsman,; Lisa Von Ahn and Peter Galloway)

Wireless News Headlines – Yahoo! News

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Dexter Season Seven Finale Must Rewatch Moment of The Week

Every week, ETonline selects a scene that is so magical, it demands watching, and re-watching, from fans and non-fans alike. This week, that honor goes to Dexter!

SPOILER ALERT!!!

All season long, Jennifer Carpenter has been delivering career-best work as her character, Debra Morgan, grappled with the internal conflicts that arose from learning her brother was a serial killer. She was not only forced to come to terms with that unfathomable admission, but decide how to reconcile her position as Lieutenant, her moral compass and her feelings for Dexter given the knowledge of his Dark Passenger.

VIDEO - Jennifer Carpenter Talks Dexter & Love with ETonline

As if that wasn't enough emotion for one person to juggle, Debra was backed into a corner during the last half of season seven in attempting to keep Captain LaGuerta (played by Lauren Velez) off Dex's scent when her search for The Bay Harbor Butcher was renewed.

All of those plotlines came to a tension-filled head in the closing minutes of Sunday's season finale as Dexter embraced his serial killer instincts and set out to murder someone who didn't fit Harry's code. Debra, not knowing what emotional horrors awaited her, was forced to choose between her brother and her boss, delivering the pinnacle of Carpenter's season-long performance.

VIDEO - Last Week's Must (Re)Watch Moment: Parenthood

In the end, Debra took away Dexter's choice and murdered LaGuerta herself! That shock (for the audience, for Dexter and, certainly, for LaGuerta) was followed by a such a powerfully organic full-body breakdown from Carpenter that it should come as no surprise the moment wasn't scripted.

In a post-finale interview, Dexter producer Scott Buck revealed, "We did something very unusual, that we'd never done before. After the scene was essentially finished, we let the cameras roll. It was in that moment that Debra runs to LaGuerta after having shot her. That was not scripted. To me, that was the most overpowering moment. It was difficult to watch."

Difficult? Yes. Beautiful? Certainly. The week's most important TV moment? Without a doubt.

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WATCH: Celebs 'demand' plan to end gun violence in YouTube vid

While the NRA takes aim at Hollywood for promoting violence, more than two-dozen A-list celebs fired back today with a new YouTube video demanding a plan to reign in gun crime.

Actors and musicians from Beyonce to John Hamm and Jennifer Anniston star in the 80-second black and white clip titled “Demand A Plan,” that is sure to go viral.

Stars list the scenes of some of the worst shootings in US history including at Colorado’s Columbine High School in Colorado, the cinema shooting in Aurora CO and finishing at Newtown.

The celebs say Americans need to come together “as a mum,” “as a dad, “as human beings” to stop gun violence.

The Demand a Plan campaign is run by Mayors Against Illegal Guns, co-chaired by New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

Bloomberg has vowed to use his considerable wealth and star pulling power to change gun laws.

Other celebs featured include Jamie Foxx, Paul Rudd, Michelle Williams, Amy Poehler, Julianne Moore, Chris Rock, Reese Witherspoon, Kate Hudson, Gwyneth Paltrow, Will Ferrell and Steve Carell.

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After its sale to South Beach neighbors, Raleigh brand to grow

The Raleigh hotel, an Art Deco gem famous for its curlicue black-framed pool, has sold to new owners with plans to turn the hotel into a national brand.

But before Raleigh siblings pop up in locales around the country, new owners David Edelstein and Sam Nazarian will pour $2-$5 million into the 1940 property at 1775 Collins Ave.

They certainly have experience in that area. Edelstein developed and owns W South Beach, about four blocks north of the Raleigh. And Nazarian, who is based in Los Angeles, opened the SLS Hotel South Beach just south of the Raleigh on the same block earlier this year.

Brilla Group is the seller. The all-in price for the hotel, a parking lot nearby and the brand was $55 million, Edelstein said.

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Miami-Dade animal shelters reduce adoption fees for the holidays

To make sure that every animal at the shelter gets a home for the holidays, Miami-Dade Animal Services, the Humane Society of Greater Miami Adopt-a-Pet and The Cat Network are offering deep discounts on adoption fees through Dec. 31. Hundreds of cats, dogs, kittens and puppies are available, as are adoption gift certificates, so that the recipient can select the perfect pet.

Adopters get a free photo with their new animals.

Miami-Dade County Animal Services, 7401 NW 74th St., in Medley, is open seven days a week through the end of the year, except for Christmas Day when it is closed. Hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m., except for Dec. 24 and Dec. 31, when hours are 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Call 3-1-1 or visit miamidade.gov/animals for more information.

For information about hours and fees at the Humane Society, visit humansocietymiami.org or call 305-696-0800. The Soffer and Fine Shelter is located at 16101 W. Dixie Hwy., North Miami Beach.

For information about Cat Network, which holds adoption events at PetSmart stores, visit thecatnetwork.org.

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