1) The FBI are allegedly using Skype logs as evidence in court against MegaUpload’s Kim Dotcom although the way the FBI managed to acquire such evidence is suspicious. The FBI say the evidence was obtained through search warrants which may lead you to believe that it was just a chat history file stored on Kim’s computer. When you look at Skype’s Privacy Policy they say no conversation logs are stored on their servers for longer than 30 days and the FBI was using history from conversations which occured as far back as five years ago as evidence. This information leads to the conclusion that the FBI injected Dotcom’s PC with spyware and it wouldn’t be the first time. A piece of spyware called CIPAV was injected on to a suspect’s PC under terrorism threats in the past.

2) Apple have hired former Dixons CEO John Browett to manage the expansion of their physical counterpart Apple Stores. Many would say the move is a strange hire by Apple seeing as Dixons no longer have a retail presence and the other group franchises PC World and Currys suffer from poor customer reputations. Apple have a reasonable street presence with 33 retail outlets in the UK although marketing associated for the brand is predominantly focused around Apple products rather than the stores to purchase them at. This is what I feel John will aim to do. You can expect more TV adverts promoting the reasons to visit an Apple Store and products paired with real store locations to let consumers know Apple Stores exist and they can purchase their new i devices from them.

3) The Twisted Metal demo hits the PlayStation Store today and will be available to play until 8th February. The full game is set for release on the 17th February and David Jaffe has confirmed European purchasers will also receive Twisted Metal Black for free with new purchases.

4) EA’s website was the victim of a new exploit yesterday as a hacker decided to “customize” the company’s home page. EA have confirmed they fixed the loophole which was the result of a recent security update and no user details were compromised.

5) THQ seem to be getting themselves into all sorts of trouble lately. The NASDAQ Stock Exchange has threatened to de-list the company from the market after THQ’s share price failed to rise above $1 since the start of December. They have given THQ a 180 day period until July 23rd to raise their share price above $1 and maintain the boundary for ten consecutive days.

6) Xbox Live Arcade game Trials Evolution has leaked on to torrent sites ahead of release. The leak is from an internal source as press haven’t even received their review copies yet. Red Lynx are known for leaking their original title to raise publicity although they have denied any such strategy this time around.

7) Beatles star Sir Paul McCartney mentioned in a recent interview that he is composing the soundtrack for an unannounced video game. He believes that “computer games sell better than CD’s these days.”

8) Capcom have announced that purchasers of Dragon’s Dogma will receive early access to the upcoming Resident Evil 6 demo. What is even more interesting is the dates and deals mentioned. Dragon’s Dogma is set for release on May 25th. Xbox purchasers will obtain access to the game on July 3rd almost 4 months prior to release. PS3 owners will gain access on September 5th, that’s a big difference. It’s worth noting the game releases on the 22nd November. It seems as though Microsoft are now purchasing exclusivity contracts for third-party demos from publishers. Another way this could be seen is that Xbox owners will have an exclusive Online Beta in July and both consoles will obtain a single player demo in September. Capcom are hoping that the incentive will boost sales of Dragon’s Dogma which it should.

9) PlayStation Plus subscribers are in for a few treats this month. For February, subscribers will receive a free copy of The Simpsons Arcade and a week early compared to normal users. In addition, Square Enix are offering a free copy of PS1 classic Final Fantasy V. Discounts this month are on titles such as House of the Dead 3, Sonic Adventure, Vandal Hearts and the Splinter Cell trilogy. As a special Valentines day treat, subscribers can get Far Cry 2 for free from the 15th to 22nd February.

10) Mozilla have released V10 of Firefox. It features a few subtle tweaks although has a bug with scrolling using browser GMail. Hold off a few days before updating.

11) US Homeland Security are rejecting entry to travellers who have made “suspective” comments regarding their trips on social network site Twitter even if they were “light hearted”. Read the full article at the BBC News link below.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-16810312

12) The best new videos today involve a 100 year old woman playing on a Nintendo handheld, the famous actors voicing Mass Effect 3 characters and a teaser for new Xbox cover based shooter Hybrid from the studio that brought us Scribblenauts.