The U.S. Postal Service has launched a new ad campaign, indirectly targeting businesses who have moved from snail mail to online statements. How are they doing this indirectly? Click "Read More..." below to find out.

Sprint’s launch of the iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S helped them make company history. From Sprint’s Press Release:

“Sprint today reported its best ever day of sales in retail, web and telesales for a device family in Sprint history with the launch of iPhone 4S and iPhone 4. We reached this milestone at approximately noon CT/1pm ET. The response to this device by current and new customers has surpassed our expectations and validates our customers’ desire for a truly unlimited data pricing plan.”

I wonder what percentage of Sprint’s iPhone customers are existing iPhone users coming from either AT&T or Verizon for the “truly unlimited data pricing plan.”

Samsung lost in its attempt to ban all Apple devices that use 3G in the Netherlands. From the Reuters article:

“A win for Apple but also relief for the industry because the judge upheld widespread understanding of fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory (FRAND) terms in the use of patents,” independent intellectual property expert Florian Mueller said.

We’ve discussed Samsung’s use of RAND patents against Apple before. Now it appears that the next battles in Italy and France could also play in Apple’s favor.

“Apple will be taking French and Italian translations of the Dutch ruling with it. This makes it a long shot for Samsung that it could win an injunction in the EU based on its 3G patents,” Mueller said.

Imagine if capturing a panoramic image of your surroundings was as simple as tossing a ball in the air. Computer Graphics Group, TU Berlin appearantly had the same vision, and created the Throwable Panoramic Ball Camera, a ball with 36 cameras, accelerometers and software to stitch it all together.

The ball will be demonstrated this year at SIGGRAPH ASIA 2011, but you won’t need to wait until December to see it in action. Below is a video demo the group published on their page:

The first thought that came to mind after watching the demo was HDR lighting using a sphere. This could make it incredibly easy for 3D designers to overlay models in real-world scenarios with realistic lighting.

Five-months after first being announced, Microsoft closed its acquisition of Skype for $8.5 billion. A couple of interesting points from the Press Release:

Skype CEO Tony Bates will assume the title of president of the Skype Division of Microsoft immediately, reporting directly to Ballmer.

[…]

The acquisition remains under review in a few countries, and will be completed in those countries when such reviews are closed.

I can only hope Skype’s new owner puts the breaks on ads playing while on a call. The ad bar at the bottom doesn’t bother me on the iPad, but if my call is interrupted mid-way with an in-call audio/video ad, I will be forced to retire my Skype account.