5 Predictions for Mobile Tech in 2013

If denial isn’t just a river in Egypt, then mobile isn’t just a city in Alabama. And if 2012 proved one thing, it’s that there’s no denying mobile is the present and future of technology.

Sales figures for mobile devices reached new heights in 2012. Market research firm Gartner predicted tablet sales would near 120 million, about doubling the total sold in 2011.

[More from Mashable: Would You Make Your Kid Sign a Contract to Use an iPhone?]

In addition, the number of active smartphones eclipsed 1 billion during the past year. That’s one for every seven people on the planet. And while it took almost two decades to reach 1 billion active smartphones, research firm Strategy Analytics projects there will be 2 billion by 2015, fueled by growth in developing economies in China, India and Africa.

It’s not just phones and tablets though. All sorts of smart mobile technology flourished in 2012, from watches and wristbands to glasses that can project video on the inside of the lenses. Speaking of glasses, in April, Google sent the tech world into a tizzy when it unveiled plans for a futuristic headset called Project Glass.

[More from Mashable: ‘Offensive Combat’ Brings Hardcore Gaming to Facebook]

Well, if you think mobile came a long way in 2012, this year could be even better. Here’s an outline of where we think mobile technology is headed in 2013.

Brand Wars Will Drive Innovation

In terms of smartphones, mobile in 2013 will be like an evening of boxing. For the main event, heavyweights Apple and Samsung will square off to see which can produce the world’s most popular device.

The Samsung Galaxy III recently dethroned the iPhone for that honor. While Apple went conservative with new features on the iPhone 5, Samsung went bold, equipping the Galaxy S III with an enormous 4.8-inch display, near field communication (NFC) technology (more on this later), a burst-shooting camera and a voice-enabled assistent akin to the iPhone’s Siri.

Apparently, Apple is preparing to counter-punch. There are already rumors that Apple is testing its next iPhone, identified as “iPhone 6.1″ which runs iOS 7.

Behind the iPhone and Galaxy a host of capable contenders are hungry for a shot at the belt, including devices from Motorola, HTC and Nokia.

There might even be some new players in the game. It seems likely that Amazon will debut a Kindle Phone sometime in 2013. There was even talk that Facebook was working on its own smartphone, but CEO and founder Mark Zuckerberg squelched those rumors in September.

What does this all this mean for us? It means better phones. Competition drives innovation. Look for these brands to consistently try to one-up one another with faster processors, better cameras and more innovative features.

That’s not the only battle that will play out in 2013. Another one to watch will be the fight for third place in mobile operating systems. Android is the undisputed number one with nearly 75% global market share. While Apple’s iOS is miles behind Android, it is still firmly entrenched at number two.

In 2013, the top two contenders for third place will be Windows Phone 8 and BlackBerry 10, which is expected to launch in the coming months.

A few dark horses are running in this race for third. Mozilla plans to launch a Firefox OS sometime during 2013. Then, there is Tizen, a Linux-based mobile OS. Samsung recently revealed plans to release Tizen-based devices in 2013.

Both Firefox and Tizen are open source mobile operating systems, but they won’t be the only ones. There are two other open source mobile operating systems to watch going forward. Jolla expects to release smartphones and possibly tablets running its Sailfish OS in 2013; and Ubuntu-based smartphones should hit the market by early 2014.

No NFC Mobile Payment, Yet

Before leaving the house, most will check to make sure they have three things: keys, wallet and cellphone. Well, thanks to NFC technology, cellphones might soon lighten the load by essentially replacing wallets with an “e-wallet.”

It seems like we have been talking about NFC for years now. Basically, it enables two devices to make a very short-range and secure connection through radio technology. If a smartphone is equipped with NFC, as are most newer-model Androids, and if a retailer has an NFC terminal, one could make a purchase by simply tapping the phone on the terminal.

NFC technology also has other applications, such as data transfer between phones, but mobile payments is the feature most often discussed.

Services like Isis and Google Wallet are already in place. They secure one’s payment information within a device.

The reason why mobile payment through NFC has not yet hit the mainstream is that device penetration is not at the point where it has prompted retailers to update their technology. Basically, not enough smartphones have the technology. Androids have started to adapt, but unlike iPhones, Android hardware is not uniform across the various devices.

While the wheels have been in motion for some time, they’re really spinning now that most new Androids, including the Galaxy S III, come with NFC. If Apple releases a new iPhone during 2013, and if Apple decides to include NFC this time around, it will probably tip the scales in favor of rapid adoption of mobile payment.

Even if all that does happen, however, there probably won’t be a new iPhone until later in the year, so odds are you’re not going to see NFC penetrate the mainstream during 2013. Maybe 2014 will finally be the year of NFC.

Flexible Smartphones

Here’s something you never knew you needed — a flexible smartphone. These devices will be lighter, more durable and the screen will be bendable. This feat is possible by making the display out of an organic light-emitting diode (OLED) and shielding it in plastic rather than glass. Samsung is reportedly moving forward with plans to start producing a bendable phone.

Samsung is not the only player in this game, however. Many companies are developing bendable screens. At Nokia World in London in 2011, Nokia showed off a device which not only bends but is controlled by bending. Check it out in the video below.

Since there are quite a few companies working on this, it seems likely that one will try to be first to market in 2013. There are rumors that the next model of Samsung’s Galaxy will feature a bendable HD display. We’ll find out much more about this at the Consumer Electronics Show, scheduled for next week. Stay tuned for updates.

The Future of Smartphone Cameras

Cameras and phones have been married for about a decade (they dated, previously). In that time, the relationship has been constantly improving in terms of specs, which has led to higher-quality photographs.

Nokia upped the ante significantly in 2012 when it released the 808 PureView, a smartphone equipped with a 41-megapixel camera. The iPhone 5 has an eight-megapixel camera. Granted, more megapixels doesn’t necessarily equate to better pictures, but it’s certainly one important element. The gallery below features pictures taken with the 808 PureView.

Nokia 808 PureView

The Nokia 808 PureView comes in several colors. It’s heavier than your average phone, with the camera lens protruding from the back. By far its most interesting feature is the 41-megapixel camera, which takes amazing photos.

Click here to view this gallery.

In 2013, we can not only expect more megapixels, and better sensors, flashlights and shutter speeds from smartphone cameras; there are also some futuristic developments in the works.

One most likely to hit the market in 2013: a sensor developed by Toshiba that will allow users to adjust the area of focus of a shot during post-processing, much like with a Lytro cameras.

Another development to anticipate is greater availability and lower cost for smartphone cameras that shoot 3D photos and video.

While all of these improvements are exciting, it’s not just smartphones that are getting better cameras. Better cameras are literally being turned into smartphones. In 2012, Samsung released a Galaxy Camera which Mashable’s tech editor Pete Pachal described as an “incredible device.”

Connected cameras might not become the norm in 2013, but they will definitely become more common.

Eventually, there could even be cameras that have the ability to penetrate objects such as thin walls, clothing or even skin. While the technology is in place, don’t look for it in 2013. The world probably isn’t ready for x-ray vision quite yet.

Wearable Tech

It’s not enough to carry technology anymore. Nowadays people want to wear it, too.

In April, the Pebble Watch, which integrates with both Android and iOS devices, received Kickstarter funding totaling over $ 10 million from nearly 70,000 backers. Pebble still has not shipped watches. It is currently accepting pre-orders, but has not announced a release date. It’s relatively safe to assume these watches will be available in 2013.

Although there are other smart watches currently available, Pebble may face some serious competition if the rumors about Apple producing a smart watch prove true. In fact, Apple recently received 22 patents that would enable the company to move forward with a range of wearable smart technology, including sneakers, shirts, skiing gear and more.

Patents alone mean very little. So unless you hear otherwise, don’t expect Apple smartpants (which, if they do happen, should definitely be called “smartypants”) anytime during 2013.

And speaking of extremely exciting wearable technology that probably won’t happen during 2013, let’s all re-watch this video for Google Glass while wistfully longing for the future to arrive.

On the bright side, since we survived the Mayan apocalypse, it looks like we might eventually make it to the future, after all. In case you hadn’t noticed, it seems pretty obvious that when we get there, glorious mobile technology will abound.

Images courtesy of Flickr, SETUP Utrecht, John Biehler and via Isis

This story originally published on Mashable here.

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Justin Bieber Weed Controversy Statement

After a photo of Justin Bieber allegedly holding a marijuana joint went viral on Friday, the singer took to Twitter in an attempt to clear the smoke.

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"Everyday growing and learning. Trying to be better. U get knocked down, u get up," he posted on January 5. "I see all of u. I hear all of u. I never want to let any of you down. I love u."

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While Bieber didn't directly address the photo, he went on to comment on his constant critics. "2013 ... new challenges. new doubters...Im ready. We are ready. see u all tomorrow and everyday after that," he wrote.

This was a rocky end to an already rough week for Bieber as a paparazzi attempting to get a photo of him was killed by a passing car. "While I was not present nor directly involved with this tragic accident, my thoughts and prayers are with the family of the victim," he said in a statement. "Hopefully this tragedy will finally inspire meaningful legislation and whatever other necessary steps to protect the lives and safety of celebrities, police officers, innocent public bystanders, and the photographers themselves."

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Stamford gun expo goes on in shadow of Sandy Hook despite mayor's pleas

REUTERS

Antique gun collector Dave Kleiner reviews paperwork during the East Coast Fine Arms Show in Stamford. The show is being held despite the mayor's plea that the event not be held so soon after last month's massacre at an elementary school in nearby Newtown.

Defiant gun dealers ignored protesters and put their wares on sale at a controvesial arms expo held today an hour's drive from the site of the Newton, Conn. elementary school massacre.

The eighth annual East Coast Fine Arms Show, held at the Stamford Plaza Hotel in Stamford, features about 250 tables and was held despite the objections of Stamford Mayor Michael Pavia, who called it “untimely and insensitive.”

Douglas Healy

Protesters demonstrate against a gun show at the Stamford Conn. Plaza Hotel.

Most of the weapons for sale are antiques -- though some recently-made arms are available, including Connecticut Shotgun’s A-10 models, which went for as much as $19,300.

“I don’t see it as a problem because it’s the person who did it, not the gun,” said vendor Stuart English, 51, who hawks antique guns made before 1899.

“No one shoots up places with antique guns. If it was a modern gun show, I’d say it was insensitive."

“I’m very comfortable being here,” added dealer Dave Kleiner, 70, who sells pricey antiques such as European dueling pistols, Kentucky rifles and Derringers. “This is primarily a collectors' event rather than a shooters' event.”

The show, which continues Sunday, is about 40 miles from Sandy Hook Elementary School, where psycho nerd Adam Lanza shot and killed 26 children and adults before killing himself. Lanza’s father, Peter Lanza, lives in Stamford.

A dozen protestors showed up at the hotel at around 1:45 p.m. — and were promptly booted from the premises.

“This was our opportunity to stand up and speak out and say that we’re not going to let the NRA get their way,” said Robin Druckman, 44, of Stamford.

And a relative of a survivor of the school shooting also blasted the show.

“It’s in very poor taste,” William Vollmer, husband of Sandy Hook Elementary teacher Janet Vollmer, told The Post.

Janet Vollmer locked her classroom door — saving 19 young lives — as Lanza rampaged through the school. She and her students survived the attack.

Since the Newtown bloodbath, gunshows have been canceled in the Connecticut cities of Danbury and Waterbury.

Twenty-eight people died in the Newtown attack -- 20 children and six employees of Sandy Hook Elementary, the mother of the shooter, and the shooter himself.

gbuiso@nypost.com

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Needle reaches the inner groove for Spec’s

In the end, even the almighty Adele and Taylor Swift could not hold back the inevitable.

Spec’s, one of the last great record stores, will close its flagship location in Coral Gables on U.S.1, thus joining once-favored chains like Virgin, Tower and Peaches, locally and abroad, that have withered from Internet shopping.

With the closing, sometime in January after the merchandise is liquidated, 64 years of history becomes memory for countless people who discovered a love of music in the home Martin “Mike” Spector built in 1948 when U.S.1 was but a two-lane road.

The original store, which sold cameras alongside 78-rpm records, was a few blocks south on the highway in South Miami and is now an Einstein’s bagel spot. The present location, opened in 1953 in Coral Gables, lived through the bobby sox era, Beatlemania, disco, punk, hip hop/rap, grunge, electronic dance music and all the format changes including 12-inch vinyl, 45-rpm, reel to reel, 8-track, cassette, compact disc and mp3.

After the first music industry recession in the late 1970s, Spec’s still managed to double in size by breaking through the walls of two restaurants in 1980 on its north side. The original room on the south side of the building would house, first, Spec’s’ VHS movie rentals and sales — Saturday Night at Spec’s! — and, later, one of the most expansive collections of classical music in town.

“It’s the soundtrack of our lives,” said store manager Lennie Rohrbacher, who spent 23 years of his life working at Spec’s, from Clearwater to Coral Gables

Music sales

At its peak, the Spec’s chain grew to some 80 stores in Florida and Puerto Rico. In 1993, annual sales exceeded $70 million. Spec’s went public in 1985 and, in 1998, the Spectors sold to Camelot Music Group, which was acquired by Trans World Entertainment Corp.

Trans World, which did not return several telephone messages, shrewdly kept the Spec’s name attached to the flagship store as goodwill even though, technically, it operated under the company’s retail subsidiary, F.Y.E. (For Your Entertainment).

But those are the cold, hard business facts.

Spec’s was “not like another Eckerd’s,” a drug store chain that also slipped into oblivion amid changing times, said Rohrbacher. “This was part of the community, part of my life. It’s not another store going under.”

Indeed, Spec’s was, first and foremost, a community gathering spot to share a love of music. In the ‘70s and ‘80s Spec’s resembled a makeshift camp site where people would sleep overnight in the parking lot to get the best shot at concert tickets in a pre-Internet world. Spec’s, a hop-skip from the University of Miami’s music school, served as its own music education outlet thanks to a knowledgeable sales staff.

Music education

“The proximity to the UM is prime real estate. Not to have it there will really be different. Even if they didn’t have what I was looking for, the staff was knowledgeable and you were sort of tapping into this knowledge base of people who could turn you on to new music. That’s what I’ll miss about it and the community around the store,” said Margot Winick, an employee at the Coral Gables Spec’s in the mid-1980s when she was a freshman at the UM.

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Miami foodies eagerly await Trader Joe’s in Pinecrest

Trader Joe’s grocery store’s whimsical ambiance charmed Kimberly Kurzweilt when she visited one in Los Angeles. Like a child in a candy store, she was attracted to the artisan cheese section, the “inexpensive wine,” and “the variety.” Now she can’t wait to have one close to home in Pinecrest.

If it all goes as planned, the new Trader Joe’s in Pinecrest will be swarming with employees wearing off-beat Hawaiian shirts sometime this year. Known for its specialty and organic foods at prices below those of other specialty grocers, Trader Joe’s has local foodies awaiting an opening date with cultish anticipation.

“The prices are always great,” Kurzweilt said. “The ambience is funky, ‘hippi-ish’ and retro in a good way.”

The California grocery chain is working with local officials to prepare for an opening this year at 9205 S. Dixie Hwy. Construction should begin early this year. There are no plans to demolish the 13,800 square feet building that used to house a Barnes & Noble bookstore, instead it will be remodeled, Pinecrest Planning Director Stephen Olmsted said.

“They submitted site plans in December and we already reviewed them,” Olmsted said. “Once the drawings are approved and building permits are issued construction will begin. I don’t anticipate any problems in the permitting process. It should be fairly soon.”

Jeannette Golindano can’t wait. When she moved to Miami in August from Charlotte, N.C., she missed the store, so she began to drive to the Trader Joe’s in Naples once a month to do her grocery shopping.

“It was during a friendly conversation with the cashier that we were told about Trader Joe’s opening in Miami in 2013,” Golindano said. “I can’t explain to you with words how we reacted to the news. Now, we can’t wait.”

Golindano began a petition on Facebook to get a Trader Joe’s in Miami. One of the Facebook fan pages she set up has more than 1,000 followers. Besides Naples, the chain also has stores in Gainesville and Sarasota, which opened last year, and another is planned for Tallahassee.

Fans usually flood in on opening day. The Naples Daily News reported that hours before the store’s opening last February, hundreds waited in a line that snaked around the entire back of the shopping center. Some people traveled from other cities and stood in line as early as 5:30 a.m.

Pinecrest officials believe parking won’t be an issue. The city requires the store to provide at least 56 parking spaces – and the store is planning to have 89, Olmsted said.

The store in Pinecrest is projected to generate about 70 jobs. The management team will come from existing stores around the country. As soon as the team is set, they will be hiring for “crew positions” to run registers, stock shelves, merchandise products, and chat with customers. The “Now Hiring” banner or sign will be placed outside of the store about one to two months before it opens.

According to the company website, the store will also have a food donation program coordinator. In 2010, Trader Joe’s donated more than 25 million pounds of food – that’s equal to almost 656 truckloads of food or 20 million meals, the company claims.

Bejamin Gutierrez, an architect who enjoys cooking for his family of five in Pinecrest, said he is looking forward to the opening. He said every one in the store in New York’s Upper West Side “was always friendly” and willing to offer samples of the food.

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EU says its Google case not affected by U.S. ruling

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – A decision by U.S. regulators to end a probe into whether Google Inc hurt rivals by manipulating internet searches will not affect the European Union‘s examination of the company.

“We have taken note of the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) decision, but we don’t see that it has any direct implications for our investigation, for our discussions with Google, which are ongoing,” said Michael Jennings, a spokesman for the European Commission, the EU executive.

U.S. regulators on Thursday ended their investigation into the giant internet company, which runs the world’s most popular search engine.

Other internet companies, such as Microsoft Corp, had complained about Google tweaking its search results to give prominence to its own products. But the FTC said there was not enough evidence to pursue a big search-bias case.

The European Commission has for the past two years been investigating complaints against Google, including claims that it unfairly favored its own services in its search results.

Google presented informal settlement proposals to the Commission in July. On December 18 the Commission gave the company a month to come up with detailed proposals to resolve the investigation.

If it fails to address the complaints and is found guilty, Google could eventually be fined up to 10 percent of its revenue – a fine of up to $ 4 billion.

(Reporting By Ethan Bilby; Editing by Sebastian Moffett and David Goodman)

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Mistresses First Look Exclusive Photo

This summer, Alyssa Milano returns to television with Mistresses, a complex ABC drama about four best friends and the controversial choices their hearts force them to confront.

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Featured in ETonline's exclusive first look photo are Yunjin Kim, Rochelle Aytes and Jes Macallan as the rest of Milano's foursome and Brett Tucker, Jason George and Erik Stocklin as the main men in their lives.

Inspired by the hit British drama, Mistresses promises to be titillating and thought-provoking in equal measure. Check out a sneak peek below!

Mistresses premieres this summer on ABC.

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Two shot cops set to leave hospital just one day after subway wild shootout

The tough-as-nails cop who was shot in both legs in a gunfight on Brooklyn train shrugged off his injuries just a half hour after his attack, his father told The Post.

"He said he got shot and he’s OK," said Stan Kozicki, of his son Lucasz.

The five-year veteran left Lutheran hospital in a wheelchair this afternoon and grimaced with pain as he was helped into an unmarked cruiser. Kozicki was shot in both legs by Peter Jourdan, 37, who has a record in California, including bringing a gun to court, drugs and intent to terrorize, law-enforcement sources said.

Benny J. Stumbo

NYPD Officer Michael Levay lflashes a "thumbs-up" sign as he leaves the hospital today.

Michael Levay, who shot dead Jourdan after he allegedly pulled a gun on the train, was released from the hospital this afternoon. "[It's] nice to be going home," he said.

"Right now I feel great," said his father, Bob. "I didn’t get any sleep last night, I’m so relieved it’s not even funny."

The super in Michael Levay's apartment said, "He's our hero now. We feel good about him. He's always very nice. I hope that he is going to be OK."

The third cop injured in Thursday's violence was Juan Pichardo, who bravely subdued a gunman after he was shot. The gunman and another man were allegedly trying to rob the car dealership where he worked.

Cops charged Jeffrey Okine, 22, of Mt. Vernon; Marquis Daniels, 23, of the Bronx; Tyquez Harrell, 22, of Brooklyn, and Rayshaun Jones, 25, of the Bronx with attempted murder, assault, robbery, among other charges.

Jason Marengo, 29, a yard manager at Boston Road Auto Mall, said he showed two of the alleged robbers a black 2001 Nissan Maxima.

"Once we got into the office, he tells me, 'this is not a joke, this is a stickup.' He told me to get on the floor," he said.

"He told me to sit on the floor, to give him my money, my cell phone, you know, everything that we had in our pockets, so I did."

One of the men ordered him and a customer to the floor, and ordered them to look at the floor, he said.

"He told me to get under my desk,” he said.

His accomplice found zipties used to tag car keys while rifling through drawers at the shop, and used them to bind Pichardo and the customer, he said.

"Once he ziptied Juan, he started going through the drawers next to my desk," he said.

Pichardo saw an opening to make a move -- and was able to bust out of the zip tie.

"Juan saw the opportunity to take him, because he told Juan, if he don't give him the combination for the safe, he was gonna kill him. That's when Juan grabbed the opportunity to grab him," he said. "When he tried to push him down, he shot Juan in the leg."

Marengo said the gunman's alleged accomplice was rifling through drawers and trying to open the safe. He ran out of the shop after the shot was fired.

Marengo said he gave chase, but he got away.

Marengo said he then ran to his car, grabbed a pair of handcuffs, and then returned to the office, and handcuffed the gunman that Pichardo was subduing.

"We told him, 'Listen, we law enforcement, you got the wrong people,'" he said

The Taurus 9-mm handgun used in the Brooklyn shooting was purchased in Allentown, Penn in 2011 and was not reported stolen, sources said.

The Bryco .380-caliber handun was reported stolen in Fayetteville, North Carolina in 2008, the sources added.

Additional reporting by Erin Calabrese and Joe Tacopino

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New Florida bill would speed up the foreclosure process

TALLAHASSEE --
A “faster foreclosures” proposal that sparked consumer outcry and protest last year has resurfaced in a more moderate form, with a new bill filed this week by Rep. Kathleen Passidomo, R-Naples.

The bill, HB 87, offers a slew of changes to the civil procedures governing foreclosures in Florida, where home repossessions are on the rise again.

Most of the provisions are aimed at speeding up and cleaning up the foreclosure process, which currently takes more 600 days to run its course in Florida.

“We need to make the sure the process is as efficient as possible while at the same time giving the borrower their due process rights,” said Passidomo. “Unfortunately, if you don’t have an income or you can’t afford to pay anything, the property can’t just sit in limbo forever.”

The bill — which proposes strict paperwork requirements for lenders, fast-track foreclosure procedures and a shield against some thorny legal scenarios — comes at a time when banks are beginning to rev up their foreclosure machines again after a two-year lull.

Foreclosure filings in Florida jumped 20 percent in the last year, and the Sunshine State now has the nation’s highest foreclosure rate. And even though the housing market is improving, there are plenty of foreclosures still set to take place in the coming years. One in five mortgages in the state are currently delinquent, and more than half of those have not yet entered the foreclosure process, according to Lender Processing Services.

Lenders spent two years cooling down their home repossession machines after news surfaced in 2010 that bank employees had been rapidly filling out foreclosure paperwork without properly reviewing it. The “robo-signing” scandal led to a landmark $25 billion national settlement between states and five major banks last year, clearing the way for a more streamlined foreclosure process.

But nearly a year after the settlement was announced, foreclosures continue to slog slowly through the court system in Florida.

Passidomo’s bill aims to speed things up. It requires mortgage lenders to certify that they have the correct paperwork proving they have the right to foreclose.

The measure also gives condominium associations the ability to speed up the foreclosure process when a bank is moving too slowly. Condo associations have been forced to shoulder significant maintenance costs while banks carry out foreclosures. Banks have been accused of purposefully slowing down the process in order to limit their costs.

For their part, banks get a bit of a gift in the bill as well. Currently, if a lender forecloses on a home and later is sued for doing so wrongfully, the lender can only be forced to pay monetary damages. That means the homeowner can’t get his or her house back — a proposition that could be especially difficult if the bank has sold the home to an unsuspecting third party. Passidomo’s bill would eliminate that awkward scenario, and free the bank from having to recoup a house it sold to another party after a faulty foreclosure.

Some consumer advocates are already speaking out against the bill. It’s the third attempt by lawmakers in the last three years to push for foreclosure reform — and each has led to consumer outcry, including a march on the state Capitol last year.

“Might be a good time to start contacting your Florida state representatives in the state House and Senate on this issue,” Lisa Epstein, a West Palm Beach foreclosure activist, wrote in an email to her followers. “The more Floridians who oppose this bill and the earlier they oppose it, the better.”

The bill sheds some of the controversial provisions of the 2012 proposal, which passed the Florida House but died in the Senate last year.

A provision that would have allowed for faster foreclosures on homes that appear to be abandoned has been scrapped from the new bill. The “apparently-abandoned property” measure faced backlash from consumer advocates who said people would be thrown out of their homes without proper notice.

The measure includes a provision that consumer activists supported last year to limit banks’ ability to go after homeowners for additional debt after a foreclosure.

Banks currently have five years to pursue a so-called “deficiency judgment” against a homeowner. The bill reduces that time-period to one-year.

“The bill has far more borrower protections than what is current,” said Passidomo.

Toluse Olorunnipa can be reached at tolorunnipa@MiamiHerald.com or on Twitter at @ToluseO.

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South Florida’s Little Moscow has lots to offer

The unfamiliar-sounding names can be seen along a stretch of Collins Avenue and East Hallandale Beach Boulevard: Matryoshka Deli Food, Tatiana Club & Restaurant, Kirova Ballet Academy. The owners of these businesses are Russian-speaking professionals catering to Russian-speaking customers.

Welcome to South Florida’s Little Moscow.

Among the most famous of so-called Russian residents in this region are NHL player Pavel Bure and tennis player Anna Kournikova, who own luxury waterfront villas on nearby Miami Beach.

But those who live in the district that stretches from Sunny Isles to Hallandale Beach, could hardly be called “Russian.” They consist of more than 20 nationalities: Ukranians, Belorusians, Jews, Lithuanians, Latvians, Moldavians, Uzbeks and Chechens, to name a few. The only thing that unites all of these people is the Russian language.

Russian speakers began to emigrate during former Soviet Union times when many were fleeing for political and social reasons. Among those relocating to South Florida was a significant Jewish population. Immigrants of the 1970-’80s adopted the United States as their new homeland, so they spent much of their time trying to adjust themselves and their children to American traditions, culture and way of life.

The second wave of Russian immigration came after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. For many, the desire to relocate was for economic reasons.

“These people didn’t ruin their Russian connection — they kept on developing businesses and investing in Russia while staying in Miami,” writes Vera Kishinevski in her book Russian Immigrants in the United States: Adapting to American Culture (New Americans).

The author adds that many of the immigrants from that era still call Russia their home and follow Russian news, politics and the economy. Many also hire Russian teachers for their children.

At the Russian-named shops, cafes and bars that dot the bilingual Sunny Isles/Hallandale Beach district, customers can find just about any service in Russian faster than in English. Lawyers, doctors, hair stylists, tourism managers and journalists are ready fulfill the needs of Russian-speaking clients.

Janna Kirova, founder of Kirova Ballet Academy of Miami, has spent about 10 years teaching classical Russian ballet to American, Russian and Hispanic children. A professional dancer trained at the prestigious Vaganova Academy in St. Petersburg, Russia, Kirova said she can’t imagine herself without endless ballet classes. She teaches Russian-style choreography to her 200 students.

“Ballet is undoubtedly one of Russia’s symbols,” Kirova said. “As opposed to other arts, it’s been cultivating in our country throughout its whole history, even in the Soviet times. So it’s literally our natural way to express feelings in motion.”

“When I watched a ballet performance for the first time in my childhood, I was fascinated by its airy beauty and symbolism,” she said. “Ballet has become my way of life, my language and my love.” While Kirova’s dance academy has survived, other businesses in the Russian-speaking district have struggled, and a few have closed over the years.

Matryoshka Deli Food, which opened in November 2012, has become a popular gathering spot for Russian-speakers in Sunny Isles Beach. According to store owner Tatyana Pugachova, “It is a supermarket and bistro with traditional Russian food and with the high level of service that the Americans are used to.”

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