The International Trade Commission by a 5-0 vote (login required) agreed to open a Tariff Act Section 337 investigation into allegations that IP cameras and video doorbells from Arlo Technologies, SimpliSafe and Vivint Smart Home infringe seven communications and monitoring system patents from SkyBell Technologies, SB IP Holdings and EyeTalk365 (see 2012250001). The complainants seek an import ban on the allegedly infringing devices. The ITC assigned (login required) Administrative Law Judge Dee Lord to the case.

Futuresource forecasts 80% of CE in 2024 will have voice assistants, dominated by Amazon, Apple, Baidu, Google, Microsoft and Yandex. Qualcomm’s announcement Tuesday that it will integrate Alexa Custom Assistant with its Snapdragon Automotive Cockpit platforms will enable OEMs to equip each brand with unique wake words, voices and capabilities (see report, this issue). Voice assistants will soon break out of mere command and control-based functions and simple Q&A operations, Futuresource's Simon Forrest told us. Amazon Conversation, an extension of Alexa’s voice control capability that's due this year, “should be able to interact intelligently in a multi-person discussion,” and Google Duplex has shown levels of conversation attainable with sufficient artificial intelligence and compute performance, said the analyst. Assuming conversational voice platforms develop intelligently, Forrest emailed, "this should naturally elicit deeper and more meaningful interaction," which would allow virtual assistant vendors to learn more about users and personalize responses

LG Innotek developed a digital car key module that uses ultra-wideband wireless LAN spectrum to enable vehicle owners to unlock car doors or start the engine using a smartphone, said the tech subsidiary Monday. Strategic Analytics projects nearly 30 million vehicles globally will have digital key capabilities in 2025, compared with 6.3 million in 2020, said LG Innotek. Owners of the Galaxy S21 Ultra and S21+ can unlock compatible car doors via ultra-wideband, Samsung announced Jan. 14 (see 2101140067).

Intel continues dealing with challenges from surging demand and manufacturing issues amid its second CEO change in a few years, executives told investors on a Q4 call Thursday. The chipmaker made “tremendous progress” repairing “defects” in its 7-nanometer process technology, and new CEO Pat Gelsinger will have final say on 2023 CPU product introduction decisions soon after he joins Feb. 15 (see personals section, Jan. 14), said outgoing CEO Bob Swan. There's nothing nefarious in the board’s decision to replace Swan with Gelsinger, just part of its normal “succession planning process,” said Chairman Omar Ishrak. Gelsinger said he will share his “detailed perspective” on Intel after he assumes his new role: “Based on initial reviews, I am pleased with the progress made on the health and recovery of the 7-nanometer program. I am confident that the majority of our 2023 products will be manufactured internally.” PC demand in 2020 “was off the charts,” giving Intel Q4 share gains, especially in consumer entry-level and education laptops, said Swan. “Those two segments tend to be lower margin,” he said: “Real strong demand” taxed Intel’s ability to keep up with CPU supply. The stock closed 9.3% lower Friday at $56.66.

The U.S.-weighted average retail price of Apple’s latest smartphone series rose $64 in calendar Q4, said Consumer Intelligence Research Partners Thursday. The 12 series model mix resulted in US-WARP of $873 -- the highest in CIRP's iPhone buyer survey in nearly 10 years -- compared with $809 a year earlier. The four iPhone 12 models generated 56% of Apple phone sales, despite being available for only part of the quarter, with the 12 and 12 Pro Max each having 17% share, said the researcher. It surveyed 500 U.S. Apple customers who bought an iPhone, iPad, Mac or Apple Watch from October-December.

The Commerce Department Bureau of Industry and Security is experiencing significant delays to its Huawei licensing decisions due to telework amid the pandemic, BIS' Eileen Albanese said. Communication between agencies has been hampered, leading to lengthy license adjudications and a backlog of applications, Albanese, director of the Office of National Security and Technology Transfer Controls, told a Friday Massachusetts Export Center event. “COVID-19 really did have a significant impact on Huawei licenses, more so than any other group of licenses.” Kevin Wolf, an export controls lawyer with Akin Gump, said his clients have applications that have been “pending for months and months and months,” some to 2019. He said clients got a “flurry” of Huawei license denials. “It seemed as if the floodgates opened up" Thursday, he said. A BIS spokesperson said the agency is continuing to work through the applications. Huawei didn't comment Tuesday.

Growing use of biometrics in smartphones and tablets for authentication will help drive about 11% annual growth in the global biometric market to $11 billion in 2026, said Valuates Reports Friday. Other drivers are a growing need for surveillance amid heightened threats of terrorist attacks and increased automotive adoption of biometrics.

Taiwan-based Carkit AI introduced a voice-enabled plug-and-play karaoke kit at CES that pairs with a smartphone and works with music streaming apps. The Roxie car karaoke station has a processor for vocal effects, a pitch shifter and mixer for multi-person singalongs, said the company. The Bluetooth FM pod comes with an extended-range mic that plugs into a car’s cigarette lighter for power.

Aggressive trade-in and switcher offers accompanied the rollout of Samsung’s much-anticipated Galaxy S21 series 5G smartphones Thursday, led by the 6.8-inch flagship Galaxy S21 Ultra with a 120 Hz AMOLED display. The S21 Ultra phone can be used with Samsung’s S pen, allowing users to draw, take notes, edit photos and sign documents on the phone. Samsung and its carriers began taking preorders for the 5G trio Thursday, with phones due Jan. 29. Pricing starts at $1,199. Customers who order before Jan. 28 can get a $200 Samsung credit with a Galaxy S21 Ultra, said the company. For a limited time at Samsung.com, customers can get the phone for as low as $499, or $13.89 a month for 36 months, with an eligible trade-in value up to $700, said the company. At Samsung.com, a $250 instant credit on preorders includes an exclusive $50 credit.

Google, despite regulatory headwinds (see 2008040050), completed its $2.1 billion Fitbit buy, blogged Rick Osterloh, senior vice president-devices and services, Thursday. Google was “clear since the beginning” that it will protect Fitbit users’ privacy, he said. “We worked with global regulators on an approach which safeguards consumers' privacy expectations, including a series of binding commitments that confirm Fitbit users’ health and wellness data won't be used for Google ads and this data will be separated from other Google ads data.” Google also will continue “to allow Fitbit users to choose to connect to third-party services so you’ll still be able to sync your favorite health and fitness apps to your Fitbit account,” said Osterloh. Google will work with regulators around the world “so that they can be assured that we are living up to these commitments,” he said. Closing Google/Fitbit "will add competition to the wearable health device market," said Computer & Communications Industry Association President Matt Schruers. "This transaction stands to increase competition in wearables, which will benefit consumers on everything from prices to innovation.”