Broadband use grows in Ohio. Connect Ohio said this week that the number of households in the state with computers rose 4 percent over last year and 9 percent compared to 2008. Broadband use grew even faster– up 6.5 percent over last year and 20 percent compared to 2008. [The Columbus Dispatch, ConnectOhio]

Indians use broadband to reach fans. The Cleveland Indians are using a new section of seats with Wi-Fi connections to reach out to fans who want to blog, Facebook and Tweet during games this season at Progressive Field. [(OH) Broadband in the News]

IT Martini Hour 11 Wrap-Up + PICS. [IT Martini]

Special Report: The end of Apple’s iPod era. After years of serving as Apple’s main source of revenue, the iPod’s influence on the company’s financial health has diminished to the point of being effectively irrelevant as a revenue driver, marking an end to the ‘iPod era.’ [AppleInsider]

Apple Speaks on the Matter of the ‘Death Grip’. [Gadgetwise (NY Times Blog)]

Letter from Apple Regarding iPhone 4. [Apple]

Facebook Changes App Permissions, But Critics Say It’s Not Enough. [Digits (Wall Street Journal)]

CallCopy chief wins entrepreneur award. Raymond Bohac, the CEO of CallCopy, is among the winners of Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year Awards for south central Ohio and Kentucky. [Business First of Columbus via TechLife Columbus]

Have a happy and fun Fourth of July!

A great story from Sunday’s Columbus Dispatch. Columbus Symphony president and chief executive Roland Valliere wants to reach out in new ways with technology:

The new leader of the Columbus Symphony has seen the future of classical music — and it’s streaming live on the Internet and through his iPhone.

Roland Valliere, president and chief executive officer since Aug. 3, is convinced that technology is the ticket for orchestras seeking to extend their reach beyond the concert hall.

“Orchestras have traditionally thought of themselves as being in the content- production business, but we’re actually in the content-distribution business,” he said during a recent walk-through of the Ohio Theatre, the orchestra’s home. “Our product has been delivered live and here in the concert hall, but, in my view, that’s too narrow a definition of who we are,” said the former percussionist and music entrepreneur.

…

Because today’s iPhones, Palms and BlackBerrys are capable of functioning much the same way as the Concert Companion, the need for a rental device has lessened, Valliere said. Now he’s collaborating with a start-up company in San Diego, InstantEncore, to develop software applications for Apple’s iPhone and iPod touch devices.

Valliere said the Columbus Symphony will be the first orchestra in the country to offer all the services InstantEncore is developing: downloadable concert notes and programs, sample music and the ability to buy music through Apple’s online iTunes store, pre-concert lectures by WOSU (89.7 FM) radio host Christopher Purdy and user blogs and chat.

Starting this month, he said, people will be able to download the applications to their mobile devices free, or use the service on a computer, with some content limited to ticket buyers.

From Apple.com:

Apple today announced that more than two billion apps have been downloaded from its revolutionary App Store, the largest applications store in the world. There are now more than 85,000 apps available to the more than 50 million iPhone and iPod touch customers worldwide and over 125,000 developers in Apple’s iPhone Developer Program.

“The rate of App Store downloads continues to accelerate with users downloading a staggering two billion apps in just over a year, including more than half a billion apps this quarter alone,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “The App Store has reinvented what you can do with a mobile handheld device, and our users are clearly loving it.”

House rejects Senate budget; conference committee next. The Ohio House rejected the Senate’s $53.5 billion version of the state budget, setting the stage for a House-Senate conference committee. [Dayton Daily News]

Columbus-based Brand Thunder announces agreement with Indianapolis Colts. First licensed custom web browser for an NFL team. [Brand Thunder via TechLife Columbus]

OWL event: How to Monetize LinkedIn. Ohio Web Leaders breakfast featuring speaker Lewis Howes. June 24, 7:30 a.m. at Hondros College. [Ohio Web Leaders]

Ohio Growth Summit 2009. TechColumbus’ annual summit kicked off with a Tweetup event on Tuesday. [smorty71.com and TechLife Columbus]

Apple Worldwide Developer’s Conference. Began on Monday with the announcement of several product upgrades, including the unveiling of the iPhone 3G S. [Ohio Tech Bits Blog]

Tech-friendly Statehouse Museum offers interactive, hands-on exhibits. [Ohio Tech Bits Blog]

JumpStart Wins Excellence in Economic Development Award. [Advance Northeast Ohio]

OhioHealth Project recognized by CIO magazine. 2009 CIO 100 Award winner. [TechColumbus]

IT Martini donating two scholarships for TECHie Camp. Click here for more info on scholarship donation opportunities. [IT Martini]

Ohio’s Commitment to Entrepreneurs. [Ohio Business Development Coalition Blog]

This Week Community Newspapers has profiled Nick Fala, an Ohio teenager who launched a novel technology business earlier this year, turning his hobby for fixing computers and gadgets into a profitable job.  

Fala, 16, got interested in tech hardware at a young age, fixing computers for friends and family, especially Apple products.  He kept up with advances in technology and new devices, becoming an expert at fixing the popular iPod, and later, the iPhone.  Eventually, he launched his own business.  From the profile, which ran in the Columbus Dispatch on Monday:

Business really took off when Apple introduced the iPod and Nick became an expert at fixing various models of the portable media player.

Then came the iPhone.

By the end of 2007, the year the Internet-connected mobile phone made its debut, Nick was so busy repairing Apple products that he no longer considered it a hobby. He decided to start a company.

More:

NF Technology Services, which operates out of Nick’s Westerville home, services Apple computers, iPods and iPhones for corporate clients or individuals. The company specializes in “mail-in” assistance. Simply put, customers ship their products to the company to be repaired and returned.

Nick predicts that the market share enjoyed by third-party repair companies such as his will grow exponentially as manufacturer and retailer warranties expire on the 100-million-plus iPods sold in the past seven years.

NF Technology Services, which operates out of Nick’s Westerville home, services Apple computers, iPods and iPhones for corporate clients or individuals. The company specializes in “mail-in” assistance. Simply put, customers ship their products to the company to be repaired and returned.
Nick predicts that the market share enjoyed by third-party repair companies such as his will grow exponentially as manufacturer and retailer warranties expire on the 100-million-plus iPods sold in the past seven years.

Besides servicing Apple products, Nick sells reconditioned Apple merchandise through his company’s Web site, www.nftechservices.com, which, of course, he designed.