BlackBerry 10 launches after long wait

Research In Motion Ltd unveiled the long-delayed line of smartphones it hopes will put it on the comeback trail on Wednesday but it disappointed investors by saying U.S. sales of its all-new BlackBerry 10 will start only in March.

Chief Executive Thorsten Heins also announced that RIM was abandoning the name it has used since its inception in 1985 to take the name of its signature product, signaling his hopes for a fresh start for the company that pioneered on-your-hip email.

"From this point forward, RIM becomes BlackBerry," Heins said at the New York launch. "It is one brand; it is one promise."

RIM, which is already starting to call itself BlackBerry, had initially planned to launch the new BlackBerry 10 smartphones in 2011. But it pushed the date back twice as it struggled to work with a new operating system.

Ahead of Wednesday's announcements, analysts had said that any launch after February would be a black mark for the Canadian company.

"The biggest disappointment was the delay in the U.S., that it will take so long before the devices get going there," said Eric Jackson, founder and managing Partner at Ironfire Capital LLC in New York.

Heins said the delays reflected the need for U.S. carrier testing, although carrier AT&T offered few clues on what that meant.

"We are very enthusiastic about the devices. We will announce pricing, availability, and other information at a later date. Beyond that, nothing to add," said spokesman Mark Siegel.

RIM launched its first BlackBerry back in 1999 as a way for busy executives to stay in touch with their clients and their offices, and the Canadian company quickly cornered the market for secure corporate and government email.

But its star faded as competition rose. The BlackBerry is now a far-behind also-ran in the race for market share, with a 3.4 percent global showing in the fourth quarter, down from 20 percent three years before. Its North American market share is even worse: a mere 2 percent in the fourth quarter.

RIM shares tumbled along with the company's market share, and the stock is down 90 percent from its 2008 peak.

The shares fell as much as 8 percent on Wednesday, although they are still more than twice the level of their September 2012 low, reflecting ever-louder buzz about the new devices.

TOUCH COMPETITION

The new BlackBerry 10 phones will compete with Apple's iPhone and devices using Google's Android technology, both of which have soared above the BlackBerry in a competitive market.

The BlackBerry 10 devices boast fast browsers, new features, smart cameras and, unlike previous BlackBerry models, enter the market primed with a large application library, including services such as Skype and the popular game Angry Birds.

The BlackBerry Z10 touchscreen device, in black or white, will be the first to hit the market, with a country-by-country roll-out that starts in Britain on Thursday.

A Q10 model, equipped with small "qwerty" keyboard that RIM made into its trademark, will launch globally in April.

The Z10 device won a lukewarm review from Wall Street Journal tech blogger Walt Mossberg, who complained of missing or lagging features and a shortage of apps.

But David Pogue, who writes for The New York Times, apologized for describing BlackBerry as doomed in the past. The Z10 touchscreen device was "lovely, fast and efficient, bristling with fresh, useful ideas," he said.

Announcements about pricing so far have been in line with expectations. U.S. carrier Verizon Wireless said the phone would cost $199 for a two-year contract, while Canada's Rogers Communications is quoting C$149 ($150) for certain three-year plans.

GLITZY LAUNCH

RIM picked a range of venues for its global launch parties, including Dubai's $650-a-night Armani Hotel, which occupies six floors of the Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest tower.

The New York event took place in a sprawling basketball facility on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, just north of the Manhattan Bridge. The BlackBerry has been "Re-designed. Re-engineered. Re-invented," RIM said.

RIM, which is splurging on a Superbowl ad to promote its new phones, also introduced Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Alicia Keys as its global creative director.

"I was in a long-term relationship with BlackBerry, and then I started to notice some new, kind of hotter, attractive, sexier phones at the gym, and I kind of broke up with you for something that had a little more bling," Keys said at the New York launch.

"But I always missed the way you organized my life, and the way you were there for me at my job, and so I started to have two phones - I was kind of playing the field. But then … you added a lot more features … and now, we're exclusively dating again, and I'm very happy."

RIMM data by YCharts

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Teen girl killed, boy wounded in shooting near high school

A 15-year-old girl was fatally shot and 16-year-old boy wounded about three blocks from King College Prep on the South Side this afternoon, authorities said.

The shooting occurred around 2:20 p.m. in the 4500 block of South Oakenwald Avenue, police said. A 16 year-old boy was shot in the leg and a 15-year-old girl was wounded in the back, police said, citing preliminary information.

The Cook County medical examiner's office has been notified that the girl died.

One of the teens was taken in serious to critical condition to Comer Children's Hospital, according to Chicago Fire Department spokesman Will Knight.

The other victim also was taken to Comer and police at first believed both victims' conditions had stabilized by a little after 3 p.m., said Chicago Police News Affairs Officer Veejay Zala.

Neighbors reported hearing shots about 2:20 p.m. Neighbors said students from King hang out at Harsh Park, 4458-70 S. Oakenwald Ave., and that students were there this afternoon before the shooting took place.

Desiree Sanders said she heard six gunshots and called 911 after a neighbor told her that some teens had been shot.

Chicago Police crime data show no serious crimes happened in the 4400 or 4500 blocks of South Oakenwald Avenue Dec. 19 to Jan. 20.

“It’s a great neighborhood. Nothing like this has happened since I’ve been here,” on the block, said Roxanne Hubbard, who has lived in the neighborhood for 19 years.

Tribune reporter Liam Ford contributed

chicagobreaking@tribune.com

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Amazon shares set record after strong quarterly profit

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Amazon.com Inc shares hit a new record on Tuesday after it reported better-than-expected quarterly profit, fueled by the growth of higher-margin businesses during the fiercely competitive holiday quarter.

The world's largest Internet retailer said that its cloud computing services, video content sales and its aggressive expansion in e-books helped increase profitability.

In addition, a growing network of warehouses or fulfillment centers closer to customers held down shipping costs as it vied with Wal-Mart Stores Inc and other major retailers for consumer dollars over the holidays.

Chief Executive Jeff Bezos highlighted the Kindle's e-book business, calling it a multi-billion dollar category that grew about 70 percent in 2012. Its traditional physical book business rose about five percent in the same period, he noted.

"We're now seeing the transition we`ve been expecting," Bezos said in the company's results statement.

Profits have shrunk in recent years as the company invested for longer-term growth, building massive fulfillment centers, developing a Kindle Fire tablet hardware business in competition with Apple Inc, and expanding into Internet-based cloud services.

The fourth-quarter profit results suggested that Amazon may be able to generate attractive returns from such spending, analysts said.

"The fourth-quarter operating income was up more than expected," said R.J. Hottovy, an equity analyst at Morningstar. "This supports the bull case that Amazon can monetize its growth over the longer term."

The Seattle-based company said operating income jumped 56 percent to $405 million in the fourth quarter, compared with $260 million in the fourth quarter of 2011.

Amazon's stock climbed 11 percent to $288 in after-hours trading. It hit a record of $284.72 on January 25.

The company also said fourth-quarter revenue rose 22 percent to $21.27 billion as it grabbed a big share of online spending during the holidays. But it was the profit that initially caught Wall Street's eye.

"It was a much better-than-expected gross margin, a strong forward indicator to drive margin expansion. What is really important is gross profit dollars and that line is stronger," said Ken Sena at Evercore Partners.

The gross profit margins were 24 percent in the fourth quarter, compared with Wall Street expectations of about 22 percent.

"Incredibly strong margins," said Jordan Rohan, an analyst at Stifel Nicolaus. Amazon generated the highest quarterly gross margin in its North America business in more than three years, he noted.

Amazon mainly operates as a retailer, buying products at wholesale prices, storing them and then selling at a slight mark-up to consumers online.

But the company has expanded into other businesses that are potentially more profitable, including cloud computing, digital content and acting as an online marketplace for other merchants.

These newer businesses are growing faster than the company's original retail operations, boosting profitability.

(Reporting By Alistair Barr; Editing by Bernard Orr)

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Ray Lewis avoids talk of report on deer spray

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Of all the topics Baltimore Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis might have been prepared to talk about at Super Bowl media day, deer-antler spray probably was not among them.

He declined to directly address a Sports Illustrated report that he sought help from a company that makes the unorthodox product to speed up his recovery from a torn right triceps. Lewis was the NFL's leading tackler in the playoffs after missing 10 regular-season games with the injury.

The company says its deer-antler substance contains a byproduct of human growth hormone.

Lewis dismissed the report Tuesday as "stupidity." He said: "There's never been a question of if I ever even thought about using" a banned substance.

The 37-year-old Lewis plans to retire after Sunday's Super Bowl. He was the MVP of the 2001 title game.

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Singer Frank Ocean wants Chris Brown charged over brawl

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Rising R&B artist Frank Ocean wants fellow singer Chris Brown prosecuted following a brawl over a parking space at a Los Angeles-area recording studio, authorities said on Monday.

Brown is serving five years probation for assaulting his on-and-off girlfriend Rihanna in 2009 and risks having his probation revoked should charges be filed.

In the incident on Sunday, sheriff’s deputies responded to a call about a fight involving six men in West Hollywood. The deputies cited witnesses as saying that the Grammy-winning Brown, 23, punched Ocean during the brief altercation.

No charges have yet been filed, but Ocean “is desirous of prosecution in this incident,” said Los Angeles County Sheriff‘s spokesman Steve Whitmore.

Ocean, 25, who is nominated for best new artist and best record for “Thinkin Bout You” at the Grammys in February, said on Twitter on Sunday night that he “got jumped by Chris and a couple guys.” He said this resulted in a cut finger.

A representative for Brown has yet to comment.

The “Look at me Now” singer has attempted to rebuild his career and public image since 2009, but his entourage and that of Canadian rapper Drake were involved in a June 2012 brawl in a New York nightclub. No arrests or charges were brought in that case.

Brown and Ocean are both nominated in the best urban contemporary album category at the Grammys, which take place on February 10 in Los Angeles.

(Reporting by Eric Kelsey and Colleen Jenkins; Editing by David Brunnstrom)

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Soldier with new arms determined to be independent

BALTIMORE (AP) — After weeks of round-the-clock medical care, Brendan Marrocco insisted on rolling his own wheelchair into a news conference using his new transplanted arms. Then he brushed his hair to one side.

Such simple tasks would go unnoticed in most patients. But for Marrocco, who lost all four limbs while serving in Iraq, these little actions demonstrate how far he's come only six weeks after getting a double-arm transplant.

Wounded by a roadside bomb in 2009, the former soldier said he could get by without legs, but he hated living without arms.

"Not having arms takes so much away from you. Even your personality, you know. You talk with your hands. You do everything with your hands, and when you don't have that, you're kind of lost for a while," the 26-year-old New Yorker told reporters Tuesday at Johns Hopkins Hospital.

Doctors don't want him using his new arms too much yet, but his gritty determination to regain independence was one of the chief reasons he was chosen to receive the surgery, which has been performed in the U.S. only seven times.

That's the message Marrocco said he has for other wounded soldiers.

"Just not to give up hope. You know, life always gets better, and you're still alive," he said. "And to be stubborn. There's a lot of people who will say you can't do something. Just be stubborn and do it anyway. Work your ass off and do it."

Dr. W.P. Andrew Lee, head of the team that conducted the surgery, said the new arms could eventually provide much of the same function as his original arms and hands. Another double-arm transplant patient can now use chopsticks and tie his shoes.

Lee said Marrocco's recovery has been remarkable, and the transplant is helping to "restore physical and psychological well-being."

Tuesday's news conference was held to mark a milestone in his recovery — the day he was to be discharged from the hospital.

Next comes several years of rehabilitation, including physical therapy that is going to become more difficult as feeling returns to the arms.

Before the surgery, he had been living with his older brother in a specially equipped home on New York's Staten Island that had been built with the help of several charities. Shortly after moving in, he said it was "a relief to not have to rely on other people so much."

The home was heavily damaged by Superstorm Sandy last fall.

"We'll get it back together. We've been through a lot worse than that," his father, Alex Marrocco, said.

For the next few months, Marrocco plans to live with his brother in an apartment near the hospital.

The former infantryman said he can already move the elbow on his left arm and rotate it a little bit, but there hasn't been much movement yet for his right arm, which was transplanted higher up.

Marrocco's mother, Michelle Marrocco, said he can't hug her yet, so he brushes his left arm against her face.

The first time he moved his left arm was a complete surprise, an involuntary motion while friends were visiting him in the hospital, he said.

"I had no idea what was going through my mind. I was with my friends, and it happened by accident," he recalled. "One of my friends said 'Did you do that on purpose?' And I didn't know I did it."

Marrocco's operation also involved a technical feat not tried in previous cases, Lee said in an interview after the news conference.

A small part of Marrocco's left forearm remained just below his elbow, and doctors transplanted a whole new forearm around and on top of it, then rewired nerves to serve the old and new muscles in that arm.

"We wanted to save his joint. In the unlucky event we would lose the transplant, we still wanted him to have the elbow joint," Lee said.

He also explained why leg transplants are not done for people missing those limbs — "it's not very practical." That's because nerves regrow at best about an inch a month, so it would be many years before a transplanted leg was useful.

Even if movement returned, a patient might lack sensation on the soles of the feet, which would be unsafe if the person stepped on sharp objects and couldn't feel the pain.

And unlike prosthetic arms and hands, which many patients find frustrating, the ones for legs are good. That makes the risks of a transplant not worth taking.

"It's premature" until there are better ways to help nerves regrow, Lee said.

Now Marrocco, who was the first soldier to survive losing all four limbs in the Iraq War, is looking forward to getting behind the wheel of his black 2006 Dodge Charger and hand-cycling a marathon.

Asked if he could one day throw a football, Dr. Jaimie Shores said sure, but maybe not like Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco.

"Thanks for having faith in me," Marrocco interjected, drawing laughter from the crowd.

His mother said Marrocco has always been "a tough cookie."

"He's not changed that, and he's just taken it and made it an art form," Michelle Marrocco said. "He's never going to stop. He's going to be that boy I knew was going to be a pain in my butt forever. And he's going to show people how to live their lives."

___

Associated Press Chief Medical Writer Marilynn Marchione in Milwaukee and AP writer David Dishneau in Hagerstown, Md., contributed to this report.

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Disney closing 'Epic Mickey' video game developer

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Disney is saying goodbye to the developer of "Epic Mickey."

The interactive division of the Walt Disney Co. announced Tuesday that it is closing Junction Point Studios. The Austin, Texas-based video game developer created 2010's "Disney Epic Mickey" and its 2012 sequel "Epic Mickey 2."

Disney says the closure is part of its "effort to address the fast-evolving gaming platforms and marketplace," and to align its resources with its key priorities.

Disney acquired Junction Point Studios in 2007. The studio was led by "Deus Ex" and "Thief" creator Warren Spector.

The original "Epic Mickey" was released for the Nintendo Wii, while "Epic Mickey 2" was available on all major consoles.

Disney unveiled plans earlier this month for a new franchise combining a toy line with a game called "Disney Infinity."

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Chicago home price recovery lags

The Chicago area's housing recovery continued to lag that of other cities and the nation, as prices in November fell 1.3 percent from a month earlier, according to a widely watched barometer of the housing market.

On an annual basis, home prices in the Chicago area rose only 0.8 percent in November, the smallest positive gain recorded among the 20 cities included in the S&P/Case-Shiller home price index, released Tuesday.

Nationally, home prices rose 5.5 percent annually for the 20-city composite. Much of that  can be traced to market improvements in once hard-hit places such as Phoenix, where home prices have risen 22.8 percent in 12 months. Other cities recording strong yearly increases included Detroit, up 11.9 percent; Las Vegas, up 10 percent; San Francisco, up 12.7 percent; and Minneapolis, up 11.1 percent.

"Housing is clearly recovering," said David Blitzer, chairman of S&P Dow Jones Indices' index committee. "Prices are rising as are both new and existing home sales."

Most cities saw prices decline in November from their October levels, which Blitzer tied to the market's typical winter weakness.

Nevertheless, Chicago turned in the worst monthly performance among the 20 cities. It was the third consecutive monthly decline for local home prices, which showed signs of strength earlier in 2012. Local prices are on par with their June 2001 levels.

Condominium values in the Chicago market also fell for the second consecutive month. In November, they were down 0.9 percent from October but rose 2.7 percent from November 2011.

Strong foreclosure activity, and the resulting sales of those properties at steep discounts, has held down local home prices and the market's recovery. In 2012, Illinois had the fifth highest state foreclosure rate in the nation, topped only by Florida, Nevada, Arizona and Georgia, RealtyTrac reported last week.

Also hindering the local market's recovery is the foreclosure process in Illinois, a judicial state where all foreclosures are processed by the court system. RealtyTrac said it took an average of 697 days to complete a foreclosure in Illinois last year, meaning those properties may not be listed for resale for two years. During that time, their condition can deteriorate, bringing down the value of that home as well as others in the neighborhood.

Another report issued Tuesday showed some improvement in foreclosure activity in the Chicago area, although mortgage delinquencies and foreclosures here continue to outpace those at the national level.

Housing data provider CoreLogic said that 5.57 percent of mortgages in the Chicago area were in some stage of foreclosure in November, compared with 5.7 percent in October and 6.37 percent in November 2011.

Also, 10.10 percent of mortgages in the Chicago area were considered seriously delinquent, meaning they were at least 90 days past due in November. That compares with 10.19 percent in October and 10.72 percent in November 2011.

The national foreclosure and mortgage delinquency rates were 2.97 percent and 6.45 percent, respectively, in November.

mepodmolik@tribune.com | Twitter @mepodmolik

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CO leak caused 2 deaths: 'They were very good people'

Police are investigating whether a carbon monoxide leak led to the deaths of two people in West Rogers Park.

The first sign of trouble came around 3 a.m. Sunday when Shabbir Ahmed's sister-in-law woke up feeling ill.

"It started from there," Ahmed said. "She was feeling dizzy."

Four hours later his 77-year-old mother, Rasheeda Akhter, was so ill she could not get out of bed. "They took her to Swedish Covenant Hospital but before she got there, she died," Ahmed said.

A short time later, relatives tried to wake his 18-year-old niece Zanib Ahmed.

"She couldn't wake up," Ahmed said of his niece.  She was rushed by ambulance to the same hospital where "they tried their best to save her life but she did not come back."

In the afternoon, paramedics returned again when Akhter's 74-year-old sister-in-law was also overcome and was taken to the hospital in critical condition but she survived, said her son Choudhary Noeman.

"She's doing excellent, she's recovered about 75 percent," said Noeman.

The family is planning a funeral for Akhter and Ahmed for Tuesday.

Ahmed's brother then gathered five children ranging in age from 5 to 12 and took them to a hospital for observation. "We figured out something was wrong," said Ahmed, 49. "They were OK, they were eating and playing around."

Akhter died from carbon monoxide intoxication from faulty heating equipment in an accident, the medical examiner’s office determined this afternoon.

Heart disease and diabetes were listed as secondary causes of death. Ahmed died from probable carbon monoxide intoxication from faulty heating equipment in an accident, the medical examiner’s office determined.

Fire officials and workers from Peoples Gas have determined there was a leak in the exhaust system of the boiler in the basement of the four-flat in the 2500 block of West North Shore Avenue. Fire Department spokesman Larry Langford said officials believe people in the building had been exposed to low levels of carbon monoxide over a long period of time.

When fire officials first responded to the address, they checked the carbon monoxide levels and found no indication of a leak in the building, according to Fire Department spokeswoman Meg Ahlheim said.

When paramedics were called back to the scene, they checked again and still found no evidence of a leak, Ahlheim said. A carbon monoxide detector in a room near the boiler had not gone off, according to Langford, but high levels were found in the boiler room. Officials said the carbon monoxide detector was placed near a windwo which was often left open.

Langford said the building had no other working carbon monoxide detectors, though there were smoke detectors. City code requires carbon monoxide detectors on every floor where there are bedrooms, Langford said.

Ahmed said no work was done recently on the boiler. Officials said the boiler was older. "It was the same boiler we had, it was working perfectly, then all of a sudden like a car, cars break down," he said.

The four-flat building is owned by his family and was purchased by his father more than 20 years ago. He said relatives live in each of the units.  Fire officials said the two deceased woman slept in bedrooms which were directly over the boiler on the first and second floors. "We owned the whole building, nobody else was living there."

Ahmed said his parents came to the United States from Pakistan. His father died about two years ago from a heart condition. He said his mother had three sons and a daughter and 11 grandchildren.

He called his mother a "beautiful person." He said the grandchildren would call her "Dadyji," which is Urdu for grandmother. He said most of the grandchildren lived in the building and she was a constant presence in their lives.

"All of the kids loved her and played with her all of the time, they are going to miss her very badly," Ahmed said.

He said his niece was a senior at St. Scholastica Academy High School and was scheduled to graduate this year. She was considering going to Northwestern University, where she wanted to go into premed.

"She had planned to go to medical school, she always talked about being a surgeon," Ahmed said.

She was the oldest of three children, and leaves behind a sister and brother, Ahmed said. "They were very close."

Another relative said the family "is going through a tough time, they were very good people."

St. Scholastica's Head of School Lynne Farmer said Ahmed was a good student who was planning on attending college next year.

"Her goal was to have this quarter be the best quarter she has ever had."

Ahmed was a well-liked student among the tight-knit group. She was participating in a mentoring program for middle school students at a neighboring charter school, Farmer said.

Ahmed is the second student to die recently. Last spring another student drowned in lake michigan.

"It's hard," said Farmer. "There's been a lot of trauma in a short period of time."

Most students learned about her death in school today, Farmer said. Students left early and grief counselors were on hand to help them, she added.

"She will definitely be missed because she was part of this little family that has learned to...support each other," she said.

asege@tribune.com

chicagobreaking@tribune.com

Twitter: @AdamSege

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Yahoo revenue rises on search advertising

(Reuters) - Yahoo Inc posted a 4 percent gain in net revenue to $1.22 billion in the fourth quarter, when an increase in search advertising sales offset weakness in the Web portal's display ad business.

The company forecast net revenue -- which excludes fees shared with partner websites -- of $1.07 billion to $1.1 billion in the current quarter, trailing the $1.1 billion that Wall Street analysts expect on average.

Shares in Yahoo, which is trying to stave off declines across much of its business and revive growth, were up 1.5 percent in after hours trade. They had risen 4.5 percent before the revenue projections were disclosed on an analysts' conference call.

"We got the revenue acceleration we were hoping for. Display was down, but search is doing better" said Sameet Sinha, an analyst at B. Riley Caris.

"As long as in the near-term things are not bad, I think the stock will generally act positively while we wait for Marissa Mayer to deliver," said Sinha.

The company said on Monday its fourth-quarter net income was $272.3 million, or 23 cents per share, versus $295.6 million, or 24 cents per share in the year-ago period.

Excluding certain items, Yahoo said it had earnings per share of 32 cents, versus the average analyst expectation of 28 cents according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Chief Executive Marissa Mayer is moving to revive the company's fortunes after several years of declining revenue. Yahoo's stock has risen roughly 30 percent since she became CEO, reaching its highest levels since 2008.

Yahoo said it repurchased $1.5 billion worth of shares during the fourth quarter. Shares in the company were up 1.5 percent at $20.61 in extended trading from a close of $20.31 on the Nasdaq.

(Reporting by Alexei Oreskovic; Editing by Phil Berlowitz)

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