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Tim Cook's $4.2M Compensation; Foxconn's Improving Conditions; EA Scrubs Gun Links

Topping tech headlines Thursday, Apple revealed that CEO Tim Cook took home "only" $4.2 million this year, China-based Foxconn factories are improving their conditions, and Electronic Arts shuttered links to browse and buy real weapons featured in its Medal of Honor game.

December 28, 2012

Topping tech headlines Thursday, Tim Cook's 2012 salary went public and it turns out he —much less than he's made in recent years.

Cook's annual pay has resembled a roller coaster over the last three years. He earned $59.1 million in 2010—when he last served as Apple's chief operating officer for an entire year—then took home a total of $378 million last year, before stepping into the role of CEO just weeks before Steve Jobs' death. In his first full year as the head of Apple, Cook got a boost in his base salary, but earned none of the bonuses or stock awards that inflated his pay in previous years.

Meanwhile, working conditions at factories run by Apple's manufacturing partner Foxconn , according to a New York Times story about an employee's new chair. The China-based plants have been criticized by global labor rights groups for abuses at its facilities, including overtime and "humiliating" disciplinary action. Now, the company has already carried out more than 280 of 360 changes recommended by the Fair Labor Association.

In other news, Electronic Arts to browse and buy real weapons featured in its war-based Medal of Honor game. The decision came in the wake of the recent Sandy Hook Elementary shooting. "We felt it was inappropriate and took the links down," an EA spokesman told the BBC this week. Medal of Honor is famously written in part by active-duty U.S. military personnel ranked as Tier 1 Operators who are deployed overseas.

Also making headlines Thursday:

  • : According to a report originating in China, Apple may be working on releasing a smartwatch in 2013.
  • : The South Korean tech giant is revving up for a record-breaking year, forecasting sales of 390 million smartphones and 120 million feature phones.
  • : A New York news website took a bold step this week by publishing an interactive map of all permit holders licensed to own a handgun in Westchester and Rockland counties.
  • : Chip designer Marvell Technology Group will reportedly appeal the $1.17 billion jury verdict against it in the patent-infringement case brought by Carnegie Mellon University.
  • : For the eighth year in a row, online retail giant ranks highest on ForeSee's annual Holiday E-Retailer Satisfaction Index with a record-setting score of 88 out of 100.
  • : Microsoft announced this week that it officially pushed more than 75,000 apps and games through its Windows Phone 8 marketplace this year.
  • : Amazon's Kindle Fire, Samsung's Galaxy tablets, and Google's Nexus devices all pick up small but meaningful Web traffic share relative to Apple's dominant iPad.
  • : The ebook reader population is on the rise, while printed books actually fell 5 percent this year, according to a recent Pew Research Center study.