Consumer content

People who write fan fiction could find a paying market for their work courtesy of Amazon.

Unveiled Wednesday, Kindle Worlds is a new publishing venture from Amazon that promises to reward both writers and the original rights holders for new fiction based on existing stories and characters.

Authors who create works of at least 10,000 words in length will receive 35 percent of the net revenue based on the actual sales price, with royalties paid each month. Those who write shorter pieces between 5,000 and 10,000 words will receive a digital royalty of 20 percent of the sales price.… Read more

One of perennial questions about Yahoo has been, "What is Yahoo." As the pioneering Web brand slid downward, rebuffed Microsoft's generous acquisition offer and was overshadowed by the likes of Google, Facebook, Twitter and Amazon, the question morphed into  "Is the beleaguered Yahoo going to fade away?"

Marissa Mayer, the fifth Yahoo CEO in five years, seems to have a clear view of what Yahoo is, and a plan remove the word "beleaguered" as an adjective preceding its name.

The stock price is up over 70 percent since Mayer took over in … Read more

Web site Comics Alliance, a three-time winner of the Eisner award -- went mysteriously silent toward the end of April, to the distress and consternation of comics fans.

No word -- official or otherwise -- was heard from either parent company AOL or any of the Comics Alliance staff members. However, the lack of updates on the site since April 29, where it usually updated several times a day, seemed to confirm that Comics Alliance was being shelved and archived. This apparent move was puzzling, as the site was not losing money; quite the contrary, in fact.

A new post on the Web site, however, seems to indicate that perhaps the whole thing was merely a hiatus.… Read more

Twitter has won a new patent that it hopes to use as an example to stem the tide of patent lawsuits.

Granted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office today, the patent named "User interface mechanics" refers to a way of refreshing the screen by pulling it down, a feature found in Twitter's mobile app as well as a host of other apps for smartphones and tablets.

In this case, though, the patent itself may be less important than the way it which Twitter plans to use it.

Under a new assignment known as the Innovator's Patent Agreement, … Read more

Will gamers bite at a Wii U console that costs $239 instead of $299?

Target is now selling Nintendo's diminutive console at a 20 percent discount off the full retail amount. The $239.99 price is for the 8GB white version of the console; the 32GB black version will still run Target customers the full $349.99.

Target's price may mark a new low for the basic edition of the Wii U. Most retailers charge the full $299.99. Amazon offers a small discount, selling it for $279.

Target's discount may be in order as sales of … Read more

Many Flickr users seem none too happy about the new layout, at least according to a heavy dose of comments posted on the site's help forum.

On Monday, Flickr's parent Yahoo unveiled a slew of changes to the photo-sharing site, revamping the familiar style of the home page, photo page, and photo stream page. The company also increased the free storage space per user to a hefty 1TB and updated its Android app. So, what's the problem?

Several users chiming in on the forum say the photos are now too big and "in your face." Others say the large layout makes it difficult to interact with their fellow Flickr users. And some say they just find the new look confusing and messy. Many of them are asking Yahoo to at least offer them an option to use the old layout.… Read more

AT&T is trying to do its part to help victims of the Oklahoma's massive tornado.

The carrier will bring in extra telecommunications resources to the affected area and will waive overage charges for affected customers through June 30.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with those affected by the tornado," the company said Tuesday. "We are coordinating with local authorities and bringing in additional resources. We recommend text messaging for communications with family, friends, and loved ones given heavy call volumes."

AT&T subscribers who want to aid the Red Cross in its … Read more

Nokia is out with another promo showing off the camera of its new Lumia 928 smartphone.

A spot posted on YouTube reveals a series of videos and photos taken by the phone under low-light conditions. One sequence shows a man dancing along a sidewalk at night. A second reveals a group of people in a dark dance hall. And another shows a girl on a swing in the evening hours.

Of course, no Nokia ad is complete without a dig at the competition. So, the spot ends with a simple comment that the Lumia 928 is better than the iPhone … Read more

More customers are satisfied with Apple's phones than any other handsets, but they're not as happy as they were last year, a new report said.

According to an American Customer Satisfaction Index report issued today, Apple received a score of 81 (on a scale of 100) in terms of customer satisfaction. But the company dropped 2 percent from its 2012 position, and the iPhone lags the customer satisfaction rating of 86 for Apple's desktop, laptop, and tablet business.

At the same time, satisfaction with Motorola phones jumped 5 percent from 2012 to 77, and Nokia grew 1 … Read more