Brazil

Cheerleaders for Apple's iPad can get out their pom-poms (and perhaps their passports). As of this weekend, the new iPad will be available in 30 more countries, including Brazil, Botswana, Cambodia, Malta, Mauritius, and Qatar, according to MacRumors.

Apple's Web site lists 13 countries in the Caribbean and Latin America and says, "the new iPad is arriving in these countries on May 11th." MacRumors did some further digging on the tech company's country-specific store pages and found that 17 other countries will be selling the tablet as of this weekend (see full list of new … Read more

Around 2,500 workers at Foxconn's plant in Jundiai in the state of Sao Paulo in Brazil could choose to strike on May 3 if management refuses to meet their demands.

Employees have been complaining of severe shortages in food and water and overcrowding on the buses used for transportation, according to the Journal de Jundia (English translation).

A director of the local union told the Journal that food has had to be sent in but that the quality is poor, and the lines to wait for a meal are long. Travel to work is also a problem for … Read more

The small Brazilian city of Jundiai is one step ahead of Cupertino in paying tribute to Apple's late co-founder and CEO Steve Jobs. Jundiai's city council officially announced that one of its street is being renamed "Steve Jobs Avenue," according to Cult of Mac.

The avenue is the route that connects the small city to Brazil's largest city -- Sao Paulo. It also houses the proposed new address for Taiwanese-owned Foxconn's new iPad manufacturing factory. Nearby Sao Paulo is where Foxconn just opened a facility to produce iPhones.

Jundiai's city council presented the … Read more

WASHINGTON, D.C.--At Foxconn's plants in the the industrial town of Jundiai, Brazil, there haven't been any explosions.

Employees at the factory, which is ramping up production of Apple iPhones and iPads, never work beyond the 44-hour a week maximum set by Brazilian law. And those workers, when they first start on the factory lines, make twice as much as their Foxconn counterparts in China.

Labor activists point to Foxconn's record in Brazil to show that it and Apple can make products under lawful conditions while paying workers decent wages when the local environment requires it. … Read more

HANOVER, Germany--Google Executive Chairman is hopping from country to country on a European tour, but he said today the Internet is breaking down those national barriers.

"Loyalty is not just to a nation but to friends and interests," Schmidt said in a speech at the opening ceremony of the CeBIT technology show here today. "That will change everything for citizens, states, and society."

That may cause indigestion for any number of customs agents, tax collectors, and politicians, but it fits right in with Schmidt's optimistic view of the world: "It's a wonderful, wonderful … Read more

Twitter might have to decide quickly whether to start its new policy of removing tweets on a country-by-country basis.

Today, the attorney general of Brazil filed a preliminary injunction to block tweets and suspend the accounts of Twitter users who use the social-networking site to warn people about radar locations, speed traps, and DUI checkpoints in the Brazilian state of Goias, according to the news group O Globo.

The Brazilian government claims that these Twitter users are putting people in danger since police can't properly do their jobs and that the users are also breaking the country's penal, … Read more

Apple is making a move to break into South America--and Brazil is ready (and willing) to help.

According to a report from Brazilian newspaper Folha (via MacRumors), Foxconn will begin producing iPads in its Brazilian factory after being officially granted a batch of tax incentives from the Brazilian government.

As Tim Cook noted in his quarterly earnings call Tuesday, Brazil is one of the top four countries Apple is looking to break in to and is seen as the gateway to the rest of South America. With over 200 million people in a relatively stable economy that is growing its … Read more

Apple has significantly expanded iTunes availability across Latin America, it announced today.

The company singled out Brazil in its announcement, saying it will offer more than 20 million songs to customers in that country from every major music label. In addition, Apple says the service will include tracks from local artists, such as Ivete Sangalo and Marisa Monte.

Apple's App Store, as well as podcasts and iBooks, were already available in Brazil.

To further sweeten the pot, Apple is offering customers in Brazil access to "thousands of movies to rent or purchase" via iTunes. The available movies … Read more

Here at the epicenter of social networking, birthplace of Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, it's easy to lose sight of just how much the rest of the world loves our homespun social-media creations.

As it turns out, social networking is enjoyed overseas even more than here at home in Silicon Valley. Underscoring this notion is a newly released international study from Experian Hitwise tracking the top eight countries spending the most time on Facebook and other social networks.

Here's the lowdown: Singapore loves Facebook more than any other country. In August, people in Singapore spent the most time on Facebook 38 minutes and 46 seconds per session, while those in New Zealand spent 30 minutes and 31 seconds. Australians spent 26 minutes and 27 seconds; next, folks in the United Kingdom spent 25 minutes and 33 seconds; and the United States came in 5th place with 20 minutes 46 seconds, followed by France, India, and Brazil.

Not surprisingly, Facebook was the most visited social network in the United States in August, leading with 91 percent of all visits. Second place went to Twitter with 1.92 percent of all social-networking visits. San Francisco-based Tagged.com came in third place for the first time with 1.04 percent of all visits, overtaking MySpace. … Read more