Apple is now the world's No. 1 smartphone vendor, beating out both Nokia and Samsung, according to new findings from research firm Strategy Analytics. "Meanwhile, in a separate report, IDC noted that Apple's share of the overall handset market more than doubled in the second quarter rising to 5.6 percent from 2.6 percent a year earlier," notes All Things Digital. "That makes it the world's fourth largest manufacturer of all mobile phones after Nokia, Samsung and LG." And, as if that wasn't enough, Apple's $76 billion cash war chest is now greater than the U.S. government's …

Social media monitoring company Hearsay Social has raised $18 million in new funding led by New Enterprise Associates, along with existing investor Sequoia Capital. The brainchild of Facebook scholar Clara Shih, "Hearsay Social exists to keep corporations and their employees out of trouble on the Internet and turn social media into [a] source of brand engagement, not embarrassment," reports VentureBeat. "Because of the highly distributed nature of some companies that have local branches, managing social media pages for stores or offices that are still in compliance with a company's regulation is a challenging process," TechCrunch …

Come August 15, Fox Network plans to begin delaying Web access to many of its popular TV shows to give certain cable and satellite TV providers greater exclusivity with its programming. Only subscribes to participating video distributors -- limited to Dish Network at the moment -- will be able to view TV shows online the day after shows air, while everyone else will have to wait 8 days to watch new episodes of "The Simpsons," "Bones," and "Glee." "The limitations ... are a significant change to the online television system," writes The New York Times. "At least …

For the first time, Flipboard users should soon receive ads alongside the content of select Condé Nast titles, including The New Yorker, Wired and Bon Appétit. "Flipboard's new ad program is an outgrowth of the Flipboard Pages project, which highlights and converts magazine Twitter and Facebook feeds into specially-designed magazine-style pages," paidContent explains. All Things Digital's Kara Swisher calls the partnership "an important deal" for the iPad-based social reading app. Indeed, "Flipboard ... has been trying to create strong ties with big publishers as it seeks to dominate distribution in the fast-growing social reading arena." …

Leaving the online and entertainment industries in a tizzy over the implications, Apple is reportedly eying a Hulu buy. "Apple, the world's second-most-valuable company, is in early talks that may lead to an offer for Hulu," reports Bloomberg, citing sources. "It's no secret that Hulu is shopping itself around for a potential suitor," PCWorld writes, adding, "Any suitor would gain the rights to a significant amount of content in one fell swoop.""Hulu would give Apple a new subscription service and represent a possible challenge to Netflix," writes Bloomberg, which estimates that Hulu could ultimately sell for over $2 billion.According to recent …

That was fast. Google's new social network is still in limited release, but the search giant has already seen fit to bolster Plus with an acquisition. According to Business Insider, Google has gobbled up social group star-tup Fridge to help give Google+ a better chance at challenging Facebook. "It's an interesting move for Google+, whose signature feature is its Circles, which are managed by each user rather than as collaborative groups," writes All Things Digital.  "Starting next week, [Fridge founder Austin Chang's] four-person team will be working on Google+ from New York," BI reports. "Come …

Potentially boding well for Zynga -- and potentially not -- Facebook has committed to share ad revenue with the social gaming leader, and help it meet certain active user targets, according to an addendum to Zynga's S-1 filing with the SEC. "The fuller disclosures could be a positive for potential Zynga investors," All Things D reports. Yet, "It might not be a good sign that Zynga neglected to leave details of such a significant relationship out of its original and supposedly exhaustive financial disclosure packet. "It almost makes Zynga into a Facebook subsidiary," in the words of

How far will Facebook go to hinder Google's social media efforts? In line with its Terms of Service, Facebook has reportedly pulled a tiny ad only implicitly promoting Google+. As the story goes, Web developer Michael Lee Johnson was trolling for Google+ friends by running a Facebook ad asking people to add him to their Circles on Google+. "Facebook, apparently, did not like him using its site to build his own social network somewhere else," TechCrunch reports. "So it pulled his ads." Exposing its contempt for Google's new social network, however, Facebook didn't stop there. According to Johnson, …

The military must move from defending against major cyber-attacks to deterring assaults by letting enemies know the U.S. is willing to retaliate with its own virtual weapons or military force, says a top general. The Pentagon's new strategy to deal with hackers is to strengthen its computer systems and those of its military contractors. But Marine Gen. James Cartwright, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said that policy is just a start. He said that over the next decade the military would move beyond building better firewalls and make clear to adversaries that they will pay …

Cyber-security talks between the United States and China have exposed a wide gap over almost everything virtual: policing computer networks, moderating cyber warfare, even controlling information. Many of the digital attacks and cyber-snooping on U.S. technology firms and government agencies including the Pentagon, are believed to have been originated in or routed through China, which makes Sino-American talks difficult. While Beijing denies the charges, U.S. officials and experts suspect China's hand was behind the hacking and phishing of Google Inc. this year and last, as well as intrusions into Pentagon networks. Analysts say China's People's Liberation …