The IEEE Standards Association plans an Internet of Things workshop Sept. 18-19 at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, California, to “provide an open, engaging platform to discuss opportunities, impacts and challenges around the convergence” of IoT technologies, the group said Thursday (http://bit.ly/1pMY3oH). A “special focus” at the workshop will be on the need for “more interdisciplinary approaches to the design of products and services for IoT markets,” it said. “From smart cities to smart homes to eHealth to cleaner transportation, standardization in IoT will provide economic opportunity to these areas and many more by increasing interoperability and fueling the economy of scale,” it said. The group “is one of the driving forces behind IoT standardization and will continue to contribute to the advancing of IoT by participating and hosting of IoT workshops, events and projects,” it said.

Hisense is sponsoring Lotus F1 for Grand Prix races in Italy, the U.S. and Abu Dhabi through the rest of the year, with cars sporting the Hisense logo on the side pod and air box of the Lotus E22 race car, the companies said Thursday. Lan Lin, Hisense vice president, said the company plans to use “proven partnerships that can deliver” as a way to grow brand awareness globally. Sports marketing is key to Hisense’s worldwide brand awareness strategy, it said, saying the company also recently sponsored German football club, FC Schalke 04.

Sprint began offering International Wi-Fi calling “back to the United States” at no additional cost, the company said Thursday. The Samsung Galaxy S 4 with Sprint Spark service will be the first smartphone from Sprint to get international Wi-Fi calling via an over-the-air software update, which will enable subscribers traveling abroad to make and receive calls with the U.S., U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico at no additional charge while connected to Wi-Fi, the carrier said. Additional Android phones will be compatible following software upgrades later this year, a Sprint spokesman told us. Other phones on the Sprint network equipped for Wi-Fi Calling include various HTC One models, the LG G3, LG G Flex, Samsung Galaxy S 4 Mini, Samsung Galaxy S 5, Samsung Galaxy S 5 Sport, Samsung Galaxy Mega, Samsung Galaxy Note 3 and the upcoming Sharp Aquos Crystal. The spokesman didn’t say whether iPhones or Windows Phone devices would be enabled for Wi-Fi calling, nor did he address whether U.S.-originated international Wi-Fi calling with no additional charges would be available in the future.

Global smartphone shipments jumped 50 percent last year to more than a billion units and are on track to top 1.2 billion in 2014, Futuresource Consulting said Thursday (http://bit.ly/1papCTC). Smartphones have seen a “steady move” toward larger screen sizes, and “phablets” with screen sizes 5.5 inches and larger are expected “to gain an increasingly significant share of the market, as smaller bezels and greater availability of mobile content will make the form factor increasingly appealing,” it said. Though “ongoing strong growth” is expected globally, smartphones are “increasingly nearing the saturation point in many developed markets,” where they already account for the majority of handset sales, it said. “However, in many developing markets there are still considerable growth opportunities for feature phones. Likewise, the universal appeal of the smartphone -- due to its role in allowing internet access coupled with rapidly falling prices -- will result in an unprecedented level of uptake even in extremely poor countries, where a smartphone will act as a primary device.” A separate IDC report Thursday (http://bit.ly/VPYLFE) closely mirrored Futuresource’s findings. IDC estimated more than 1.25 billion smartphones will be shipped worldwide in 2014, a 23.8 percent increase from 2013. It projected a 12.7 percent compound annual growth rate in smartphone shipments through 2018, when 1.8 billion units will ship. Emerging markets have been more than half of all annual smartphone shipments dating back to 2011, “so it is no question that they have been crucial to the growth of the overall market,” IDC said. “However, up until 2014, mature markets have consistently delivered double-digit year-on-year growth.” But this year, mature-market growth will slow to just 4.9 percent, with emerging markets “continuing to soar” at 32.4 percent, it said.

Pioneer and Sharp will “dissolve” their “capital alliance” after seven years (CED Sept 24/07 p1), though they'll continue running their “business alliance” through a five-year-old joint venture that combined their optical disc businesses (CED April 10/09 p3), they said Thursday. “Both companies have decided to dissolve the capital alliance as they have achieved the goals of the alliance, whose aim was to closely oversee the business alliance,” they said.

With its introduction Thursday of the Samsung Gear S “next generation smart wearable device,” Samsung is expanding “the smartphone experience to the wrist,” the company said (http://bit.ly/1C4GfKD). In wearables, it also marks Samsung’s return to its use of the Tizen platform. Last month, a DisplaySearch blogger complained that Samsung was sending mixed messages on its choice of operating systems for wearables, having alternated use of Tizen and Android Wear on previous introductions. However, Samsung defended its use of multiple operating systems in wearables because it has found consumers “care more about the user experience” than an OS preference (CED July 25 p7). With Thursday’s introduction of the Samsung Gear S, “people can seamlessly make and receive calls directly from their wrist, or get calls forwarded from their smartphones,” Samsung said. Its two-inch curved “Super AMOLED” display (360 x 480) lets users read messages and notifications “at a single glance” with features such as “conversation view” and “condensed font,” it said. Its “customizable screen options and changeable straps empower users to express their own taste and style,” Samsung said. The Gear S will debut globally in “phases” starting in October, Samsung said, pricing undisclosed.

Atlantic Technology bowed a Dolby Atmos-enabled speaker built to the precise frequency response and directional sound radiation characteristics specified by Dolby for its object-oriented surround-sound technology. Atlantic’s 44-DA speaker uses a 5.25-inch woofer and 1-inch silk dome tweeter in a concentric driver array that fires up from the top of the speaker enclosure at a set angle. Atlantic used “controlled acoustic scatter” to broaden the sweet spot of sound reflected from the ceiling to allow for placement flexibility within the room, it said Wednesday. Measuring 5 ½ x 8 3/8 x 9 ½ inches, the 44 DA was designed to fit on top of Atlantic’s 4400 LR speakers to create an integrated, “one-piece” look, Atlantic said. The modules also can be used as Dolby Atmos-enabling speakers on top of other speakers or as stand-alone height speakers as part of a complete Dolby Atmos system, the company said. The speakers are slated for a Q4 release at $499 a pair.

Apple and Chinese brands BBK, Huawei, Lenovo, Oppo and Xiaomi are forecast to account for 73 percent of all high-resolution LCDs using low temperature polysilicon (LTPS) and oxide TFT technologies for smartphones, a DisplaySearch report said. Among display types, LTPS and oxide TFT LCDs will be 26 percent of all mobile phone panel shipments this year, up 8 percentage points from 2013, while amorphous silicon (a-Si) LCD share will continue to fall, DisplaySearch said. Overall, 467 million LTPS and 42 million oxide LCD panels are forecast to ship this year, it said. Apple uses LTPS LCD exclusively in iPhones and is the largest user of the high-res form of TFT LCD, with expected purchases of 96 million iPhone 5 panels and 98 million iPhone 6 panels this year, DisplaySearch said. Apple will account for 37 percent of all LTPS and oxide smartphone LCDs, it said, while Chinese brands have expanded manufacturing of full HD-resolution smartphones, which has also boosted LTPS LCD volumes, it said. Chinese brands are 36 percent of all LTPS and oxide LCD panel shipments, according to data. Among suppliers looking to meet rising demand, Sharp has begun shipping oxide LCDs for smartphones to Chinese brands including Xiaomi, while JDI, through its Taiwanese subsidiary, is now targeting the Chinese market, DisplaySearch said. Taiwanese panel makers AU Optronics and Innolux are expanding LTPS LCD shipments as well, it said.

More than 100 actions have been filed in state courts throughout the U.S. -- and one action in Canada -- on behalf of guests, payment card issuing banks, shareholders or others seeking damages or relief arising from Target’s data breach during Q4 2013, said the retailer’s 10-Q SEC filing. During the six months ended Aug. 2, Target recorded $175 million of breach-related expenses, against expected insurance proceeds of $46 million, resulting in net expenses of $129 million, it said Wednesday (http://tgt.biz/1lvZgB0). Overall since the data breach, the company has incurred $236 million of cumulative expenses, offset by expected insurance recoveries of $90 million, for net cumulative expenses of $146 million, it said. State and federal agencies, including state attorneys general, the FTC and SEC are investigating events related to the breach, including how it occurred, its consequences and our responses, Target said.

The FCC Enforcement Bureau imposed an $819,000 penalty on T-Mobile for violating commission rules on making the requisite number of hearing-aid compatible handsets available to its subscribers in 2009 and 2010 (http://bit.ly/1qL3Oj0). The bureau noted it first proposed the forfeiture in May 2012. “T-Mobile does not challenge the Commission’s factual findings or legal conclusion that it willfully and repeatedly violated Sections 20.19(c)(2) and 20.19(d)(2) of the Rules,” the bureau said. T-Mobile asked for a substantial reduction in the proposed penalty, but the bureau declined to reduce the amount the carrier must pay the government, the bureau noted. “Given the fundamental importance of providing consumers with hearing loss access to advanced telecommunications services, the severity of T-Mobile’s violations, and the company’s ability to pay, the proposed forfeiture of $819,000 is equitable.” T-Mobile is reviewing the order, a spokesman said. “We provide a broad selection of handsets that are hearing aid compatible and we take seriously our commitment to meeting the accessibility needs of our customers,” he emailed. “This action relates to issues that first were raised by the Commission several years ago, and we are now in full compliance."