I receive hundreds of tweets everyday on technology changes. The goal of this new column is to bring the top stories to you every week. The focus is on technology news that applies to Costa Rica.

Top Costa Rica News

• SUTEL stated that the maximum charge for calls, established in 2006, has not changed. The maximum full rate is 33.9 colones (roughly 6.8 cents US) per minute, and 25.9 colones (about 5.2 cents US) per minute for reduced rate. A complaint can be file with SUTEL against any company that violates these rate maximums.
• SUTEL announced that Internet Cafes have until September 8, 2012 to program their equipment to block harmful Internet content in accordance with law number 8934. The Internet Cafes are required to block all pages that contain violent content, obscene language, pornography, racism, xenophobia, sexual or physical violence, warfare or promote the construction of weapons or explosives. In addition, they must display signs warning children of the risks involved when they give private information in chat rooms, forums, social networking and other interactive media presented on the Internet.
• On April 26, Intel celebrated 16 years in Costa Rica. With over 2,800 employees, Intel exports more than $2 billion dollars of product from Costa Rica, and makes up 6% of the Costa Rica GDP.

Top Mobile Device News

• The Financial Times reported that Fitch Ratings dropped Nokia’s long-term debt rating to the “junk” status of BB+, from an investment grade status of BBB-. The rating drop is going to increase the cost of insuring Nokia’s debt.
• Google Docs is now Google Drive. In apparent challenge to the popularity of Dropbox, Google revamped Google Docs into file sharing app that allows you to share files across multiple devices. You are provided with 5 gigabytes of storage, with an option to purchase additional storage. When first introduced, bloggers focused on a clause in the terms of service that appeared to grant Google ownership of the content. However, Google was quick to point out that to share, or translate, a document, the user had to grant Google the right to perform those actions. Users still own their content.
• There were two Facebook app updates in one week. The first update was to fix bugs, and the second update changed the UI. The bug fix update appears to have fixed the security issue reported earlier. The second update made improvements to the UI, and merged Facebook Messenger into the Facebook app install. The Facebook Messenger icon merely opens the Facebook app to Facebook messages, while the main Facebook app opens to the News page. The new photo tab allows to you take a photo or video, or upload photos and videos from your mobile device’s gallery.
• The latest Dropbox update now allows you to enable automatic camera upload from your mobile device.
• According to iSuppli, Samsung replaces Nokia as the top cellphone manufacturer. In the 1st quarter of this year, Samsung shipped 92 million units versus 83 million units for Nokia. This marks the first time since 1989 that Nokia was not the number #1 cellphone supplier. As for smartphones, Apple still leads with 35 million units versus 32 million units for Samsung.

Other Top Technology News

• In a surprise move, the U.S. House of Representatives voted on the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA) H.R.3523 on Thursday, instead of Friday. In a fast moving session, with little floor discussion, an amended billed passed by a vote of 248-168. The Center for Democracy & Technology had worked with the House Intelligence Committee to introduce several amendments to insure protection of privacy. After the House leadership blocked several key amendments that limited the use of information not related to cypersecurity, CDT withdrew it support of the bill. In fact, amentment #6, introduced by Rep. Quale, expands the definition of cybersecurity to include: investigation and prosecution of cybersecurity crime, protection of individuals from death or physical injury, and protection of children from physical or psychological harm. The bill now moves to the Senate, which has yet to pass a bill of its own.
• NASA tests GPS monitoring as way to detect major earthquakes in the western United States. The Real-time Earthquake Analysis for Disaster (READI) network consists of 500 GPS monitoring stations throughout California, Oregon, and Washington. This is a prototype of a potential future system to monitor earthquakes around the Pacific “Ring of Fire.” The goal is to provide quick and accurate data regarding the earthquake’s location, magnitude, and details about the fault rupture.