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MMA star Simon Marcus whacks at Sonim's rugged Bolt

How do you get your ultrarugged phone some buzz?

If you're Sonim and the phone in question is the Sonim XP5520 Bolt for Bell, the answer is as easy as hiring Muay Thai mixed martial arts champion (and fellow Canadian) Simon Marcus to throw some punches and kicks on video (below).

In it, Marcus and pals tape the heavy-duty Bolt to their gloves before sparring, to demonstrate that the phone can take its knocks. At one point, Marcus lets loose at a Bolt at another man's ear, and knocks him to the ground. It's lights out for that guy, until he momentarily revives to tout Sonim's Bolt.… Read more

George Lucas' daughter tries to star in martial-arts wars

Who needs a lightsaber when you can kick, punch, and twist the living daylights out of your enemy?

This seems to be the charming ethos of Mixed Martial Arts. It is one that is being espoused by "Star Wars" creator George Lucas' daughter, Amanda.

I am grateful to the hard-working informants at Yahoo Sports, who have mined the depths of their metier to bring me news of Amanda "Powerhouse" Lucas' latest attempt to skywalk in the world of MMA.

It seems that she performed last night at a profound event called DEEP 55 in Japan. (I … Read more

Mobile industry group wants new privacy rules

A trade group for the mobile-phone industry is calling for new privacy guidelines to help address consumer complaints over how and what information is gathered through mobile apps.

Made up of mobile advertisers, publishers, and media companies, the Mobile Marketing Association said yesterday that it's working on a new set of privacy guidelines to supplement its current Global Code of Conduct. Created in 2008, the Code of Conduct established that mobile marketers must ensure that consumers can opt in and out of ads and that information gathered through ads be used responsibly.

But with ongoing concerns about online privacy, … Read more

Putting wind to work on farms

Financing company MMA Renewable Ventures is branching into wind energy, betting places like family farms are underserved.

The company on Wednesday is expected to announce the launch of its wind business, which will provide financing and project management for installations between 10 megawatts and 50 megawatts.

Its first customer is a planned 10-megawatt project, the PaTu Wind Farm in Oregon, which is expected to go up by 2009. MMA Renewable has a pipeline of deals worth 200 megawatts, said Moira Geraghty, vice president of wind finance at MMA Renewable Ventures.

In general, the deals will be structured so that MMA … Read more