DRESDEN, Germany (AFP) ― North Korea’s women’s football coach Kim Kwang-min claimed several players had played in the opening 2-0 World Cup loss to two-time champions United States on Tuesday still suffering from the effects of being struck by lightning at a pre-tournament training camp.“Frankly speaking, when we were having training and test matches before we left for this tournament, five of the

SINGAPORE (AFP) ― More virtual livestock looks set to be traded and petulant fowl hurled at targets as social gaming takes hold in the booming mobile phone market, industry experts say.Social gaming, made popular by titles such as “Farmville” and “Angry Birds,” was one of the closely followed topics at last week’s CommunicAsia trade fair in Singapore, where telecom executives meet annually to chec

SINGAPORE (AFP) ― BlackBerry maker Research in Motion is banking on Indonesia and other populous markets for growth in Asia, while it faces intensifying competition worldwide from rivals like the iPhone.The Canadian firm had one of the most prominent stands at the CommunicAsia telecom fair that ended Friday in Singapore, where industry executives gather annually to check out new technology and sea

SINGAPORE (AP) ― Mobile phone maker Sony Ericsson unveiled two new Android models Wednesday in a bid to grab more of the burgeoning smartphone market.The company, a joint venture between L.M. Ericsson and Sony Corp., plans to launch the Xperia ray and Xperia active models during the third quarter, Chief Marketing Officer Steve Walker announced in Singapore. A staff member submerges the Xperia Acti

Nokia Oyj unveiled mobile phones at both ends of its range to fend off competition from cheap unbranded handsets and smartphones powered by Google Inc.’s Android. The C2-03 model will target consumers in emerging markets by making it easier to switch between different phone numbers, Mary McDowell, the executive vice president who runs low-end phones, said in Singapore Tuesday. Nokia also showed th

Takaki Kawatsu, a 33-year-old real estate agent, says he’ll be among Nintendo Co. customers who will pass on the company’s next Wii game console. “I bought the original Wii because it was popular, new and seemed like a great item to have at a party,” said Kawatsu, who owned the game console for four years before selling it three months ago. “This time, there is nothing surprising or fresh.” Kawats

SINGAPORE (AFP) ― The Internet is poised for potentially one of its biggest shakeups in years as an industry body prepares to vote on Monday on a proposal to open up new domain suffixes for private companies.Under the changes to be decided at a meeting in Singapore, businesses would no longer be restricted to the list of generic top level domains that include .com, .net and .org when they apply to

Falling energy costs temper price rises; Americans pay more for cars, clothing and hotelsWASHINGTON (AP) ― Falling energy prices cooled overall inflation in May, offering some relief to consumers who have been coping for months with high gas prices.Consumer prices rose 0.2 percent, the smallest increase in six months, the Labor Department said. It was the first drop in energy costs in nearly a yea

NEW YORK (AP) ― Google is making its largest investment yet in clean energy in an effort to help private homeowners put solar panels on their rooftops.The $280 million deal with installer SolarCity is the largest of its kind. SolarCity can use the funds to pay for a solar system that it can offer to residents for no money down. In exchange, customers agree to pay a set price for the power produced

DETROIT (AFP) ― With its turnaround in North America essentially finished, Ford Motor Co. is looking to the next act in its comeback by building its business in Asia’s emerging markets.Ford plans to grow global sales by 50 percent over the next four years with a strong push into markets such as China and India, chief executive officer Alan Mulally said last week. A Ford Motor Co. Mondeo at the Aut

Japan’s machinery orders fell for the first time in four months in April, an indication that companies are reluctant to spend after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami. Factory orders declined 3.3 percent in April from March, when they rose 1 percent, the Cabinet Office said Monday in Tokyo. Orders, an indicator of capital spending in three to six months, were projected to increase 1.7 percent, ac

LOS ANGELES (AP) ― Nintendo has introduced the world to the Wii’s touchy new big brother: the Wii U.The Japanese gaming giant on Tuesday unveiled the Wii video game console’s successor, which will broadcast high-definition video and feature a touchscreen controller that can detect motion and interact with what appears on a television display. Satoru Iwata, president of Nintendo Co., introduces the