Nevada school shooting: Teacher killed by 'nice kid' who was bullied, girl says

No one knows why he picked this day, this time, these victims.

It was the first day back from fall break at Sparks Middle School. Students milled about, waiting to hear the morning bell.

Within moments, two 12-year-old students were wounded. A beloved teacher and military veteran lay dead. And the young shooter -- armed with his parents' gun -- took his own life, silencing any way of understanding what he was thinking.

'I think he took out his bullying'

Before Monday morning, the young gunman seemed like the antithesis of a school shooter.

"He was really a nice kid," schoolmate Amaya Newton told CNN. "He would make you smile when you were having bad day."

But for whatever reason, the boy, whom authorities have not identified, took his parents' handgun to school, a federal law enforcement source said.

"I believe it was because I saw him getting bullied a couple of times, and I think he took out his bullying," Amaya said.

Amaya said she thought the two students at the Nevada school were friends of the shooter.

"It's too early to say whether he was targeting specific people or just going on an indiscriminate shooting spree," Reno police Deputy Chief Tom Robinson said.

Surviving Afghanistan, but not school

True to his character, Mike Landsberry rushed to help others when chaos erupted.

The retired Marine, a popular math teacher at Sparks Middle School, tried to help when the two wounded students were shot.

A witness told the Reno Gazette-Journal that Landsberry was trying to intervene when he was killed by the shooter.

"That was the kind of person that Michael was," his brother, Reggie Landsberry, said. "He was the kind of person that if somebody needed help, he would be there."

Sparks Mayor Geno Martini remarked at the irony.

"It's very unfortunate that (the life of) someone like that, who protected our country over there and came back alive ... had to be taken at his work, at a school," Martini said.

Landsberry joined the Marine Corps in 1986, attained the rank of corporal and served as a field wireman, Marine spokeswoman Maj. Shawn Haney said.

On his school website, the teacher posted pictures of himself hiking in the wilderness and standing with a weapon beside an armored vehicle.

"One of my goals is to earn your respect while you earn mine," he wrote in a message to students. "I believe that with mutual respect that the classroom environment will run smoothly."

A Facebook memorial page for the teacher had more than 10,000 "likes" by early Tuesday morning. Thousands more honored him on a "Rest Easy Mr. Landsberry" page.

Reigniting the national debate

Both of the wounded students were hospitalized in stable condition Monday night, Sparks Deputy Chief Tom Miller said.

Authorities have not released their names.

Sparks Middle School will be closed for the rest of the week as the shooting reignites the national debate over gun violence and school safety.

Last week, a student at an Austin, Texas, high school killed himself in front of other students.

In August, a student at a high school in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, shot and wounded another student in the neck.

Another shooting took place at an Atlanta middle school in January, though no one was hit.

That same month, a California high school student wounded two people, one seriously.

The Nevada shooting also comes almost a year after a gunman killed 26 people at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, igniting nationwide debate over gun violence and school safety.

Since the Newtown shootings last December, proposed school security plans across the country have included arming teachers, adding armed security guards and bringing bulletproof backpacks and whiteboards.

Some teachers have even started taking self-defense and combat classes in case a shooter enters their school. One class teaches how to escape or take cover but focused most of its four hours on how to fight and disarm an attacker -- something few educators have ever considered how to do.

Teachers train to face school shooters

The mother of a student killed in Newtown said Monday's shooting reinforces the need to find solutions to keep students safe.

"The unthinkable has happened yet again, this time in Sparks, Nevada," Nicole Hockley said in a statement. " It's moments like this that demand that we unite as parents to find common sense solutions that keep our children -- all children -- safe, and prevent these tragedies from happening again and again."

But what those solutions are will remain fuel for perpetual debate.

Builders of Obama's Health Website Saw Red Flags

Crammed into conference rooms with pizza for dinner, some programmers building the Obama administration's showcase health insurance website were growing increasingly stressed. Some worked past 10 p.m., energy drinks in hand. Others rewrote computer code over and over to meet what they considered last-minute requests for changes from the government or other contractors.

As questions mount over the website's failure, insider interviews and a review of technical specifications by The Associated Press found a mind-numbingly complex system put together by harried programmers who pushed out a final product that congressional investigators said was tested by the government and not private developers with more expertise.

Project developers who spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity — because they feared they would otherwise be fired — said they raised doubts among themselves whether the website could be ready in time. They complained openly to each other about what they considered tight and unrealistic deadlines. One was nearly brought to tears over the stress of finishing on time, one developer said. Website builders saw red flags for months.

A review of internal architectural diagrams obtained by the AP revealed the system's complexity. Insurance applicants have a host of personal information verified, including income and immigration status. The system connects to other federal computer networks, including ones at the Social Security Administration, IRS, Veterans Administration, Office of Personnel Management and the Peace Corps.

President Barack Obama on Monday acknowledged technical problems that he described as "kinks in the system." He also promised a "tech surge" by leading technology talent to repair the painfully slow and often unresponsive website that has frustrated Americans trying to enroll online for insurance plans at the center of Obama's health care law.

But in remarks at a Rose Garden event, Obama offered no explanation for the failure except to note that high traffic to the website caused some of the slowdowns. He said it had been visited nearly 20 million times — fewer monthly visits so far than many commercial websites, such as PayPal, AOL, Wikipedia or Pinterest.

"The problem has been that the website that's supposed to make it easy to apply for and purchase the insurance is not working the way it should for everybody," Obama said. "There's no sugarcoating it. The website has been too slow. People have been getting stuck during the application process. And I think it's fair to say that nobody is more frustrated by that than I am."

The online system was envisioned as a simple way for people without health insurance to comparison-shop among competing plans offered in their state, pick their preferred level of coverage and cost and sign up. For many, it's not worked out that way so far.

Just weeks before the launch of HealthCare.gov on Oct. 1, one programmer said, colleagues huddled in conference rooms trying to patch "bugs," or deficiencies in computer code. Unresolved problems led to visitors experiencing cryptic error messages or enduring long waits trying to sign up.

Congressional investigators have concluded that the government's Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, not private software developers, tested the exchange's computer systems during the final weeks. That task, known as integration testing, is usually handled by software companies because it ferrets out problems before the public sees the final product.

The government spent at least $394 million in contracts to build the federal health care exchange and the data hub. Those contracts included major awards to Virginia-based CGI Federal Inc., Maryland-based Quality Software Services Inc. and Booz Allen Hamilton Inc.

CGI Federal said in a statement Monday it was working with the government and other contractors "around the clock" to improve the system, which it called "complex, ambitious and unprecedented."

The schematics from late 2012 show how officials designated a "data services hub" — a traffic cop for managing information — in lieu of a design that would have allowed state exchanges to connect directly to government servers when verifying an applicant's information. On Sunday, the Health and Human Services Department said the data hub was working but not meeting public expectations: "We are committed to doing better."

Administration officials so far have refused to say how many people actually have managed to enroll in insurance during the three weeks since the new marketplaces became available. Without enrollment numbers, it's impossible to know whether the program is on track to reach projections from the Congressional Budget Office that 7 million people would gain coverage during the first year the exchanges were available.

Instead, officials have selectively cited figures that put the insurance exchanges in a positive light. They say more than 19 million people have logged on to the federal website and nearly 500,000 have filled out applications for insurance through both the federal and state-run sites.

The flood of computer problems since the website went online has been deeply embarrassing for the White House. The snags have called into question whether the administration is capable of implementing the complex policy and why senior administration officials — including the president — appear to have been unaware of the scope of the problems when the exchange sites opened.

Even as the president spoke at the Rose Garden, more problems were coming to light. The administration acknowledged that a planned upgrade to the website had been postponed indefinitely and that online Spanish-language signups would remain unavailable, despite a promise to Hispanic groups that the capability would start this week. And the government tweaked the website's home page so visitors can now view phone numbers to apply the old-fashioned way or window-shop for insurance rates without registering first.

The House Energy and Commerce Committee was expected to conduct an oversight hearing Thursday, probably without Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius testifying. She could testify on Capitol Hill on the subject as early as next week.

Uninsured Americans have until about mid-February to sign up for coverage if they are to meet the law's requirement that they be insured by the end of March. If they don't, they will face a penalty.

On Monday, the White House advised people frustrated by the online tangle that they can enroll by calling 1-800-318-2596 in a process that should take 25 minutes for an individual or 45 minutes for a family. Assistance is also available in communities from helpers who can be found at LocalHelp.HealthCare.gov.

Kelly Clarkson ties the knot with Brandon Blackstock

She tweeted the news.

Kelly Clarkson is celebrating a big moment!

The singer married fiancé Brandon Blackstock Sunday, and she reported the happy news on Twitter Monday afternoon. Clarkson also shared an adorable picture of Blackstock planting a sweet kiss on her head. And she looks stunning in her long-sleeve lace wedding dress by Temperley (she tweeted thanks to the designer).

The ceremony took place at Blackberry Farm in Walland, Tenn.

Clarkson had said in August that the two had scrapped their big wedding plans because of their busy schedules, instead opting to elope. It seems like they stuck with the low-key plan.

The Stronger singer, 31, is now stepmom to music-exec Blackstock's two children.

Eyes on Apple for new iPads at US event

Apple is on Tuesday expected to show off slick new iPads to take on rival tablet makers during the prime year-end holiday shopping season. 

The culture-changing California company has revealed little about an invitation-only event in San Francisco, but analysts believe a spotlight will shine on the iPad line.

"Job One for Apple is to get something out there on the large-size iPad that gets people excited, then obviously from a specification focus, the Mini needs to catch up with what everybody else has done," NPD analyst Stephen Baker told AFP.

"There are a lot of other things happening in that large-size tablet space and there is a huge amount of choice in smaller devices."

Industry tracker Gartner on Monday forecast that global tablet shipments will reach 184 million units this year in a 53.4 % rise from last year.

The high-end of the market, where iPads dominate, has seen people opting for small tablets which cost less than full-sized models, according to Gartner.

"Continuing on the trend we saw last year, we expect this holiday season to be all about smaller tablets as even the long-term holiday favorite - the smartphone - loses its appeal," said Gartner research vice president Carolina Milanesi.

The iPad remains the largest-selling tablet, according to surveys, but its market share is being eroded by rivals using the Google Android operating system.

Apple is also under pressure to adapt to the popularity of premium tablets with high-quality screens in the seven- to eight-inch (18- to 20-centimeter) range where the Mini competes.

This has analysts confident that Apple on Tuesday will show off a Mini with screen quality on par with that of its full-sized iPad.

Emailed invitations to the Apple event revealed little other than the time and place, and bore the message: "We still have a lot to cover."

A graphic in the shape of an iPad showed Apple's iconic logo under a shower of colorful leaves.

Unconfirmed reports are that Apple unveilings will include a full-size iPad that will be thinner than its predecessor and boast improved capabilities.

Scrutiny of Apple's supply chain has industry trackers thinking the new iPad will get "narrower, thinner, and lighter" and possibly be built with processors at least as powerful as those used in the freshly-launched iPhone 5S.

Some analysts will be watching whether new iPad models have 64-bit processors as engines in a significant boost that would enable tablets to handle more heavy weight programs and games.

And analysts agreed that top-end, full-size iPads may also get the fingerprint recognition security feature that has been a hit in the iPhone 5S.

"It sounds jaded, but tablets are a maturing market," said Forrester analyst Sarah Rotman-Epps.

"We expect few surprises in this category that Apple kickstarted only three years ago," she continued.

"It will be difficult for Apple to move the needle on new tablet sales, as the strongest growth is coming from emerging markets where customers are more price-sensitive."

Apple was also expected to discuss its latest computer operating system and its Mac Pro desktop work station at the event.

Eyes on Apple for new iPads at US event

Apple is on Tuesday expected to show off slick new iPads to take on rival tablet makers during the prime year-end holiday shopping season. 

The culture-changing California company has revealed little about an invitation-only event in San Francisco, but analysts believe a spotlight will shine on the iPad line.

"Job One for Apple is to get something out there on the large-size iPad that gets people excited, then obviously from a specification focus, the Mini needs to catch up with what everybody else has done," NPD analyst Stephen Baker told AFP.

"There are a lot of other things happening in that large-size tablet space and there is a huge amount of choice in smaller devices."

Industry tracker Gartner on Monday forecast that global tablet shipments will reach 184 million units this year in a 53.4 % rise from last year.

The high-end of the market, where iPads dominate, has seen people opting for small tablets which cost less than full-sized models, according to Gartner.

"Continuing on the trend we saw last year, we expect this holiday season to be all about smaller tablets as even the long-term holiday favorite - the smartphone - loses its appeal," said Gartner research vice president Carolina Milanesi.

The iPad remains the largest-selling tablet, according to surveys, but its market share is being eroded by rivals using the Google Android operating system.

Apple is also under pressure to adapt to the popularity of premium tablets with high-quality screens in the seven- to eight-inch (18- to 20-centimeter) range where the Mini competes.

This has analysts confident that Apple on Tuesday will show off a Mini with screen quality on par with that of its full-sized iPad.

Emailed invitations to the Apple event revealed little other than the time and place, and bore the message: "We still have a lot to cover."

A graphic in the shape of an iPad showed Apple's iconic logo under a shower of colorful leaves.

Unconfirmed reports are that Apple unveilings will include a full-size iPad that will be thinner than its predecessor and boast improved capabilities.

Scrutiny of Apple's supply chain has industry trackers thinking the new iPad will get "narrower, thinner, and lighter" and possibly be built with processors at least as powerful as those used in the freshly-launched iPhone 5S.

Some analysts will be watching whether new iPad models have 64-bit processors as engines in a significant boost that would enable tablets to handle more heavy weight programs and games.

And analysts agreed that top-end, full-size iPads may also get the fingerprint recognition security feature that has been a hit in the iPhone 5S.

"It sounds jaded, but tablets are a maturing market," said Forrester analyst Sarah Rotman-Epps.

"We expect few surprises in this category that Apple kickstarted only three years ago," she continued.

"It will be difficult for Apple to move the needle on new tablet sales, as the strongest growth is coming from emerging markets where customers are more price-sensitive."

Apple was also expected to discuss its latest computer operating system and its Mac Pro desktop work station at the event.

Herpes virus genome traces the ancient path of human migration

To confirm the theory that humans spread out from Africa tens of thousands of years ago, all you have to do is follow the cold sores. Or, to be more precise, follow the mutation patterns encoded in the genome of the virus that causes those cold sores.

That's what researchers at the University of Wisconsin at Madison did: In the journal PLOS ONE, they describe how they sequenced the genomes of 31 samples of herpes simplex virus type-1 to reconstruct how it hitchhiked on humans as they dispersed around the world.

The results match the pattern proposed by the "Out of Africa" theory, which has become the most widely accepted scenario for ancient human migration. The analysis showed that African strains of the virus contained the most genetic diversity — suggesting that they had the oldest roots.

“The viral strains sort exactly as you would predict based on sequencing of human genomes. We found that all of the African isolates cluster together, all the virus from the Far East, Korea, Japan, China clustered together, all the viruses in Europe and America, with one exception, clustered together,” senior author Curtis Brandt, a professor of medical microbiology and opthalmology, said in a UW-Madison news release.

“What we found follows exactly what the anthropologists have told us, and the molecular geneticists who have analyzed the human genome have told us, about where humans originated and how they spread across the planet,” he said.

The findings reflect the view that a small human population passed through a "bottleneck" to get from Africa to the Middle East, then went their separate ways to Europe and Asia, and eventually to the Americas.

Almost all of the samples from the United States were linked to European strains, but one sample from Texas was more closely linked to Asia. Brandt and his colleagues said that particular sample may have come from someone who picked up the virus during a trip to the Far East, or perhaps from someone with Native American heritage whose ancestors passed over a "land bridge" between Asia and North America.

“We found support for the land bridge hypothesis, because the date of divergence from its most recent Asian ancestor was about 15,000 years ago," Brandt said. “The dates match, so we postulate that this was an Amerindian virus.”

The researchers said HSV-1 strains are ideal for tracking long-term migration patterns because they're easy to collect, usually not lethal, and capable of forming lifelong latent infections. Because the virus is spread by close contact, through kissing or exposure to saliva, it tends to run in families. And because the viral genome is so much simpler than the human genome, it's cheaper to sequence.

"While preliminary, our data raise the possibility that HSV-1 sequences could serve as a surrogate marker to analyze human migration and population structures," the researchers say.

Horror abuse of child stars

A famous 1980s child star has published a tell-all book about the sexual abuse he suffered at the hands of older men in Hollywood, warning parents of the underground horrors of the child actor industry. 

Corey Feldman appeared in movies Stand By Me, The Lost Boys, Gremlins and The Goonies.

He recalls in his new book, Coreyography, how he and fellow child star Corey Haim were told by adults they trusted in the industry that it was normal for older men and young boys to have sexual relations.

Feldman first met Haim on the set of The Lost Boys when they were just 14: they soon realised they were both being abused by Hollywood power players.

Feldman reports that Haim told him he had been sodomised when "innocent and ambitious" and just 14 by an older male on the set of the 1986 film, Lucas.

This man who abused Haim now "walks around, one of the most successful people in the entertainment industry, still making money hand over fist," Feldman writes in the book.

Feldman said he sought out adult role models at work due to a dysfunctional home life, with his mother dying his hair blonde at age four and torturing him about his weight, the Daily Mail reported. He was his family's breadwinner at age seven. 

These 'role models' took advantage of their power: Feldman says he was abused by an assistant hired by his father when he was in his early teens. He says the man, who was in his early 20s, took him out on the town and gave him a cocktail of pills.

He writes that the man he refers to as "Ron" put a hand on his thigh and ended up having oral sex with the "petrified" and "revolted" Feldman that night. 

The relationship with Ron lasted several years, but Feldman also formed relationships with other men during this time, many of whom turned out to be paedophiles.

In one especially sad moment in the book, which is being released on October 28, Feldman reflects on a picture taken at his 15th birthday of him and Haim with five older men - he says all five men were paedophiles, and all of them had abused them.

"Slowly, over a period of many years I would begin to realise that many of the people I had surrounded myself with were monsters," he writes of his early career in Coreyography.

The two child actors went on to make nine films together, they also partied heavily, their increasingly damaging antics driven by the horrors of their abuse.

Feldman developed a dependence on drugs after discovering his mother's cocaine stash, and snorted 3.5 grams every two days, before later moving onto heroin.

Haim's dependency was even worse - relapsing several times before dying of pneumonia in 2010 aged just 38.

Feldman relapsed in 1995, but he said since then he's been clean. He now works on low-budget horror films and, with ex-wife Playboy model Susie Sprague,  has a 9-year-old son - who he will not be encouraging into child acting.

"People always ask me about life after childhood stardom. What would I say to parents of children in the industry?' he writes.

"My only advice, honestly, is to get these kids out of Hollywood and let them lead normal lives."

Feldman says Michael Jackson was one of the few people who treated him with respect. As a teenager desperate for normalcy, Feldman called Jackson, who he had been introduced to by Steven Spielberg.

"I was shattered, disgusted, devastated. I needed some normalcy in my life. So, I called Michael Jackson," he recalls.

"Michael Jackson's world, crazy as it sounds, had become my happy place. Being with Michael brought me back to my innocence. When I was with Michael, it was like being 10 years old again."

He insists in the book that Jackson never abused him or tried to touch him sexually.

Baldness treatment a 'step closer'

Scientists say they have moved a step closer to banishing bald spots and reversing receding hairlines after human hair was grown in the laboratory.

A joint UK and US team was able to create new hairs from tissue samples.

Far more research is needed, but the group said its technique had the "potential to transform" the treatment of hair loss.

The study results were published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

There are baldness therapies including drugs to slow the loss of hairs, and transplants, which move hair from the back of the head to cover bald spots.

The scientists at the University of Durham, in the UK, and Columbia University Medical Centre, in the US, were trying to actually grow new hairs.

Their plan was to start with material taken from the base of a hair and use it to grow many new hairs.

Tricky feat

But human hair has been tricky to grow despite successes in animal studies.

Whenever human tissue was taken from the dermal papillae, the cells which form the base of each hair follicle, the cells would transform into skin instead of growing new hairs.

However, the group found that by clumping the cells together in "3D spheroids" they would keep their hairy identity.

Tissue was taken from seven people and grown in 3D spheroids. These were then transplanted into human skin which had been grafted on to the backs of mice.

After six weeks, new hair follicles formed in five out of the seven cases and some new tiny hairs began to form.

Prof Colin Jahoda, from Durham University, told the BBC a cure for baldness was possible but it was too soon for men to be hanging up the toupee.

"It's closer, but it's still some way away because in terms of what people want cosmetically they're looking for re-growth of hair that's the same shape, the same size, as long as before, the same angle. Some of these are almost engineering solutions.

"Yeah I think it [baldness] will eventually be treatable, absolutely."

He added: "It's hard to say exactly how long that would take, but the fact that we've done it now should reawaken interest."

Any future therapy would involve transplanting cells which have been grown in the laboratory so safety is a concern.

There would be a risk of infection and the cells could become abnormal, or even cancerous, while being grown.

Baldness cures may not be the first application of the research. Prof Jahoda believes the findings will be used to improve the quality of skin grafts used after severe burns.

Prof Angela Christiano, from Columbia University, said: "This approach has the potential to transform the medical treatment of hair loss.

"Current hair-loss medications tend to slow the loss of hair follicles or potentially stimulate the growth of existing hairs, but they do not create new hair follicles.

"Our method, in contrast, has the potential to actually grow new follicles using a patient's own cells."

Las Vegas nightclub shooting kills 1, injures 2

A man who wanted his money back after paying to enter a Las Vegas nightclub shot three people, killing one, when the club management refused to make a refund, police said on Monday.

The suspect, who was wounded when several patrons and club employees wrestled him to the ground during a resulting melee, was hospitalized early Monday but will be taken into custody as soon as he was released, said Jose Hernandez, an officer with the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department.

"Right now he is facing several charges, including murder," said Hernandez.

Police did not identify the gunman.

The incident began about 5:30 a.m. when the suspect entered an after-hours club at the Bally's resort on the Las Vegas strip. After initially hesitating over whether to pay the cover charge required for entry, the man did pay and entered the club, but he quickly became dissatisfied and asked club employees for a refund, police said.

An argument ensued and the man pulled out a handgun and began shooting. A club manager, a club security officer and a club patron who tried to tackle the gunman to the ground were all shot.

Hernandez said one of the three men shot died after being taken to the hospital.

Netflix customer gains reinforce growth hopes, shares jump

Netflix, with over 100,000 Irish customers, gained more subscribers than expected with help from original series like "Orange is the New Black.”

The news sent its shares up 11pc, to a record high.

Netflix quadrupled profit in the third quarter as it added a higher-than-expected 1.3 million customers to its subscription video streaming service in the United States.

The company, which has invested heavily in original series such as political satire "House of Cards," said it had 31.1 million U.S. streaming users from July to September.

For the last three months of the year, Netflix said it expects to add about the same number of US. streaming customers it signed up a year earlier, and will end 2013 with 32.7 million to 33.5 million users.

"That keeps the view alive that this company has a larger subscriber base and has pricing leverage in its corner to extract more value," said Janney Montgomery Scott analyst Tony Wible, who rates Netflix a "buy."

Shares rose 10.6pc after-hours to $392.50, up from their close of $354.99 on the Nasdaq. The stock has racked up successive highs since September, as investors bet on its growth prospects.

During the quarter, Netflix released critically acclaimed prison drama "Orange is the New Black," part of its push into original programming to attract customers to its $8-a-month movie and TV streaming service.

Its original series slate generated buzz during the quarter, with 14 Emmy nominations and three wins for shows including "House of Cards."

The company said it will double investments in original programming in 2014, when it will air second seasons of both "House of Cards" and "Orange is the New Black." Spending on original shows will remain below 10pc of its global content expenses.

Netflix was added in September as an option on cable set-top boxes through two companies in Europe. CEO Reed Hastings, in a webcast after the earnings release, said he was "hopeful" Netflix could reach a similar deal with Comcast Corp or other U.S. cable operators.

MOMENTUM

Wall Street also singled out the company's growth abroad. It added 1.4 million customers in international markets, bringing its reach in foreign territories to 9.2 million, and said it will launch in unspecified new countries next year.

Netflix reported earnings-per-share of 52 cents, beating the average of 49 cents projected by Wall Street analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Net income for the quarter reached $32m, up from $8m a year earlier, Hastings and CFO David Wells said in a letter to shareholders.

Standard & Poor's equity analyst Tuna Amobi said Netflix appeared to be gaining traction in some of its newest markets, and noted that "Orange is the New Black" will end the year as the company's most-watched original series.

"There is not a whole lot not to like. There is a whole lot of momentum behind the story," Amobi said. "They appear to have turned an important corner for potentially sustained subscriber growth."

Amobi said he had a "hold" rating on Netflix shares because of their valuation after the year's stock run-up. Before the earnings release, Netflix shares had gained 283pc this year, far exceeding the 23pc gain in the S&P 500.

Twenty-three of 35 Wall Street analysts had a "hold" rating prior to Monday's earnings release. Six rated Netflix a "buy" and six recommended "sell." Skeptics question whether Netflix can grow quickly enough to justify its high share price and pay the cost of movies and TV shows, original programming, and its push into foreign territories.

Ten years ago, Netflix was the highest-performing stock on the Nasdaq when it was delivering video only through DVDs mailed in red envelopes, a business from which it is now moving away.

At that time, "we had solid results compounded by momentum-investor-fueled euphoria," Hastings and Wells said in their letter. "Some of the euphoria today feels like 2003."

Obamacare's rocky start: Hiccup or sure sign of failure?

In the eyes of some Republicans, one of the cruelest ironies of the recent government shutdown was its overshadowing of the rollout of Obamacare's insurance exchanges - an inauspicious, glitch-ridden debut that even the law's most ardent supporters were hard-pressed to defend.

The circus that attended the shutdown prevented the public and the media from focusing more completely on the website problems that stymied thousands who tried to explore the online insurance marketplace on healthcare.gov. Stories about privacy concerns and technological glitches that might have led evening newscasts, for example, were pushed to the back-burner by the fiscal food fight.

But now, with the budget war abated, at least temporarily, Obamacare's clumsy debut is again front-and-center on the political stage. And for Democrats, that could be a big problem.

It's clear they're trying to get out in front of the growing controversy. A senior administration official tells CBS News that President Obama is very upset with the problematic rollout, and that he finds the glitches with the website unacceptable.

On Monday, Mr. Obama will host an event at the White House to "to discuss how the health care law is strengthening health benefits and coverage for Americans," according to a White House official. He will be joined at the event by people who are already benefitting from the law, including some who have already managed to sign up for health insurance through the exchanges.

Democrats in the White House and Congress insist that, despite the rough beginning, the law will eventually accomplish exactly what it set out to do. The administration has announced that nearly half a million people had already completed applications - only the first step in the process, but a substantial one.

"The product - quality, affordable insurance - is good, and if anything, the interest and demand at the launch of HealthCare.gov proves just how urgently Americans want and need access to these new health care options," the White House official explained.

"The number one worry before we started was: Are people going to be interested? Will people sign up?" recalled Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., Sunday on NBC's "Meet the Press." And based on the number of applications submitted, he explained, "the answer to that is, overwhelming, yes."

"I think the computer glitches are being used by a good number of people who never wanted Obamacare in the first place as an excuse to just sort of bash it," he said.

The technological problems have "to be fixed," added House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., on ABC's "This Week." "But what doesn't have to be fixed is the fact that tens of millions more people will have access to affordable, quality health care."

The administration has vowed to redouble its efforts to induct consumers into the exchanges, taking the website offline at various intervals for repairs and expanding the availability of offline options - like call centers or paper applications - to allow people to sign up for insurance in the absence of a functioning website.

But Republicans, with the shutdown only just past, are already having a field day with the lingering problems surrounding the Obamacare rollout. Some are openly demanding the resignation of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius.

"Absolutely she should resign," said Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, on CNN. "Why? Because the program she implemented, Obamacare, is a disaster. It's not working. It's hurting people all across this country." Cruz joined Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kansas, a long-time friend of the Sebelius family, and others demanding her ouster.

Some Republicans, including Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz., Marco Rubio, R-Fla., and Roy Blunt, R-Mo., struck a more circumspect tone, saying the problems are unacceptable but adding that Sebelius should answer to Congress for them. Even Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., a close ally of the administration, predicted on "Fox News Sunday" that the secretary would eventually testify before Congress.

One concern voiced by conservatives is that an insufficient number of people might sign up - or that only unhealthy people would summon the patience to work through the glitches and purchase insurance - which could send insurance premiums skyrocketing on the exchanges.

"if enough people don't sign up for these exchanges, the rates on these exchanges are going to be astronomical and they're going to undermine the entire private health insurance industry in the country," said Rubio on "Fox News Sunday."

In light of concerns about cost and technology, some Republicans are vowing to continue trying to dismantle the law. Cruz pointedly refused to rule out a second government shutdown aimed at undoing Obamacare when the current spending bill expires in January. "There are a lot of politicians in Washington that want to put Obamacare behind us, say OK, fine. No more. No more discussing Obamacare. And you know what? The American people are not satisfied with that," he said. "And my view, we need to keep as our priority providing real relief for the people who are hurting because of Obamacare."

But others are content to assume the law will eventually collapse under its own weight, portraying the technological glitches as just the first of many fiascoes to come.

"This is just the beginning of the problems associated with a massive restructuring of one fifth of our economy, and there's going to be a whole lot more problems associated with this before it's done," said McCain on CNN.

"Obamacare is going to fail on its own right," predicted Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., on NBC's "Meet the Press." "The fact is that the sick people are signing up, the healthy aren't. And they're not going to because the deductibles are so high and the cost is going to be high."

As midnight strikes, same-sex couples wed across New Jersey

The black tuxedo had been rented. The blue dress had been bought. The red tape had been cleared.

At 12:01 this morning, dozens of gay couples were joined in matrimony as New Jersey became the 14th state to allow same-sex marriage.

From city hall in Newark to the boardwalk in Asbury Park, pairs of brides and grooms tied the knot in joyous ceremonies that celebrated love while mindful of their newly granted legal status.

"It’s a historic day," said Amy Quinn, an attorney and councilwoman in Asbury Park who married her partner, Heather Jensen, on the boardwalk just after midnight. "To be able to get married in my home state, in a town that I adore, to be able to get married by friends, with friends, around friends, it’s such an amazing experience."

Quinn and Jensen, who have been together 10 years, were married in New York in June. At the time, Quinn said, she wasn’t certain she’d ever have a chance to wed in her home state.

But on Friday, their path was cleared when the state Supreme Court denied an attempt to delay a lower court’s order that New Jersey begin allowing same-sex couples to wed Oct. 21. 

That decision, however, does not settle the issue. The state’s top court only ruled that weddings could take place while an appeal of the lower court’s order is considered. The state Supreme Court could prohibit gay marriage after it hears oral arguments on the case in January, though legal experts say last week’s decision makes that outcome unlikely.

Around 9 last night, another legal hurdle was cleared for many couples when Essex County Superior Court Judge Patricia Costello signed waivers that allowed them to skip the mandatory 72-hour waiting period between obtaining a marriage license and getting married. Couples who had been married in another state did not have to wait because they already had a license, said Troy Stevenson, executive director of Garden State Equality, a group that campaigns for gay rights.

Gabriela Celeiro and Elizabeth Salerno said they sought a waiver because they did not want to wait one moment longer than absolutely necessary.

"I want to get something in paper that this actually happened," Salerno said before heading to Newark’s city hall with her partner where they were to be married by Mayor Cory Booker.

Booker was marrying the first of several couples when someone attempted to disrupt the ceremony.

The mayor had asked if anyone had reason to object to the marriage and a protester screamed: "This is unlawful in the eyes of God and Jesus Christ."

Booker, who was elected to the U.S. Senate last week, called for the person to be removed and police dragged him out.

As Booker continued speaking, "...not hearing any substantive and worthy objections," thunderous applause erupted.

David Gibson and Rich Kiamco, who have been together for 10 years, attended the rally earlier in the day and were among the first Jersey City couples to be married. Their City Hall ceremony was officiated by Mayor Steve Fulop.

Earlier in the day, the two men — who have been married in New York state — marveled at how fast gay marriage had turned from being a political liability into a benefit — at least in New Jersey, where polls show strong support.

"If you dial the talk back for a decade, gays and lesbians were used as an issue in the Bush campaign in 2004. I think gay issues — and maybe it was gay marriage — became a wedge issue that helped get him victory," Gibson said.

Last-minute preparations

About four hours before their wedding ceremony, Marsha Shapiro and Louise Walpin, two of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit at the center of the Supreme Court ruling, were in the kitchen of their Monmouth Junction home eating simple meals before they got dressed, doing their best to remain calm.

"We are absolutely crazed," Shapiro said, giggling with her partner of 24 years.

On Saturday, they did "the impossible," Shapiro said: In one afternoon, each bought a dress, stockings, shoes and accessories at Lord & Taylor department store at the Quaker Bridge Mall in Lawrenceville.

"We performed a miracle," she said. "For me, it would normally take three weeks to pick out a blouse."

Shapiro picked out a "gorgeous black dress, a little above the knee, with a silver floral pattern … a scallop neckline, sheer from the chest up," she said. "It’s so sexy!"

Walpin went with a "very slinky" midnight blue cocktail dress with a scalloped neckline that reminded her of 1940s fashion.

"As soon as we told all the salespeople, we are getting married — they had heard about (the ruling) on the news — they were so excited for us," Walpin said. "It was like having personal shoppers."

The key was using the word "marriage," she added. "If we had gone in there saying we were getting a civil union, they would have asked us, ‘What’s a civil union?’ That word — it’s amazing to see the difference."

The couple have raised four children and have one grandchild, but it wasn’t until Oct. 12 that Walprin gave Shapiro a sapphire and diamond ring.

"I just about fell off the bed," Shapiro said.

Their ceremony began at 11 p.m. at the Elizabeth home of Sen. Raymond Lesniak, a sponsor of the gay marriage legislation. The ceremony was officiated by Roselle Mayor Jamel Holley.

"Marriage is not a 50 percent sharing, but rather a 100 percent giving," Holley said. "If each partner will contribute a full share, then each will receive a full measure in return."

The couple exchanged vows shortly before midnight.

"We didn’t want to wait. This is the entrance to the promised land. We want to be there at 12:01," Walpin said. "This is something we want to share with the community. All those little kids and teenagers out there, we want them to know they can grow up and fall in love and get married. It’s about them, too."

The big moment

At the Lambertville home of Beth Asaro and Joanne Schailey, who were among the first to join in a civil union in New Jersey in 2007, flowers rested on a dining room table in front of a picture of that civil union.

Their family sat in the living room sharing stories and laughing while hair and makeup were done in the kitchen.

"You know I think we are going to completely burst at the seams," Asaro said. "At the civil union, it was almost too many to fit and I think it’s going to be twice that tonight. What’s going through our minds is to not faint when it all comes down because we really don’t know how we are going to feel at that moment. It’s so huge, you know it really is. It’s almost like the first time I looked at my daughter."

Greek police appeal over mystery blonde girl

Greek police are trying to discover the identity of a young blonde girl who was found living on a Roma settlement with a family she did not resemble.

DNA tests revealed the child, called Maria and aged about four, was not related to the couple she lived with.

The little girl is now being looked after by a charity. Her photo has been released to help find her family.

Officials believe she may have been a victim of abduction or child trafficking.

Police are appealing internationally as the girl looks like she might be from northern or eastern Europe.

The charity, Smile of the Child, told the BBC that the girl was frightened and neglected when she arrived in their care but that in overall good health and was now more relaxed.

It said it had received many calls since the appeal was launched.

A spokesman for the British couple Kate and Gerry McCann, whose daughter Madeleine went missing in Portugal in 2007, said the case gave them "great hope" that she would one day be found alive.

Raid

Police raided the Roma camp, near Farsala in central Greece, to search for drugs and weapons.

They noticed the lack of resemblance between the blonde-haired, green-eyed, pale-skinned little girl and her parents, and found further discrepancies when they investigated the family's documents.

The couple had registered different numbers of children with different regional family registries.

The woman claimed to have given birth to six children within a 10-month period.

When questioned about how they came to have Maria, the couple gave "constantly changing claims," Thessalia Province Police Director Vassilis Halatsis said.

"The girl might have been abducted from a hospital, or given up by an unmarried mother," the officer said.

"So far we do not have a declared disappearance of a child of this age in Greece. Through Interpol, we will request assistance from the other European countries."

The 39-year-old man and his 40-year-old wife have been arrested on suspicion of abducting a minor.

The president of Smile of the Child, Kostas Yannopoulos, said the girl was being used to beg on the streets.

How did the Colts win? Beat up on Peyton

So every team in the AFC will want to find out what magic formula the Colts used to throw off Peyton Manning’s practically perfect offense and hand the Broncos their first loss of the 2013 NFL season on Sunday right.

Looking back on everything Indianapolis did right in a 39-33 victory— and it was a lot—there was nothing special about it: just simple, aggressive, physical, defensive football buoyed by a talented quarterback, Andrew Luck, who could stand just as tall as Manning.

There were no exotic blitzes or fancy coverage. The Colts manned up against Manning’s receivers and plastered them so they would struggle to get separation. They trusted their best 3-4 edge rusher, NFL sack leader Robert Mathis, to lead the charge on hitting Manning. They dared Denver to run, and their linebackers and safeties showed their quickness in plugging the holes in run support.

There’s no doubt Colts coach Chuck Pagano and his defensive coaching staff watched tons of film of Manning playing his best football. They should have noticed the Jaguars had a similar approach last week in making him look like a mortal passer again.

The difference is, the Colts are much more talented AFC team, with a stronger physical identity. There are no superstars in their secondary, just well coached, disciplined cover men who don’t mind mixing it up.

For the first time this season, Manning lost control of the game, and with their leader frustrated, the Broncos’ bigger issues of a porous pass defense and some undisciplined play came to light and prevented Manning from completing one of his classic comebacks.

The Broncos got a monstrous challenge two weeks ago from the Cowboys, but that was a pure shootout where Manning was never quite slowed. The Jaguars could hang for only a half before fading quickly. On the road facing Pagano’s pressure scheme, Denver saw its first true test against an above-.500 opponent that could stand in its way in getting to the Super Bowl.

Looming on the regular-season schedule are a couple of dates with the only undefeated team left in the AFC, the solo West-leading Chiefs. The Chargers, who beat the Colts last week, are also playing some improved defense under another Pagano, John, and have a red-hot QB, Philip Rivers. And as Manning knows, the Patriots (Bill Belichick) and Texans (Wade Phillips) have schemers who have gotten the better of him and his supporting cast with similar in-your-face defensive plans in the past.

Put Kansas City and New England right up with Indianapolis as significant obstacles to making this the dream late-career, second ring for Manning. That’s before mentioning that young, well-rounded, passing/pass-rush team that keeps growing confidence in Cincinnati.

The Broncos hadn’t lost a game going into Indianapolis, but it was clear they were far from perfect, and the Cowboys and Jaguars exposed cracks in the Super Bowl window; a window the Colts just smashed to pieces. Given how the receivers, offensive line and defense let Denver down just as much in Week 7, it will take a lot more than Manning to pick them all up.

Buying the ‘Boys

The Cowboys look like a middling NFC team on the surface, but they should be considered as dangerous as the other division leaders—Seattle, New Orleans and Green Bay.

Dallas didn’t embrace any kind of “moral victory” after a 51-48 loss to aforementioned Denver, but there’s no doubt they have played with a different swagger in taking down division foes Washington and Philadelphia the past two weeks. If you’re keeping score, the 17-3 road dominance of the Eagles made Dallas just 4-3, but 3-0 in the NFC East.

Skeptics will say this is Dallas, and it will still come down to the Week 17 rematch with the same Eagles for the East title. But in a disappointing division, the Cowboys haven’t been disappointing at all, considering their three losses have come against three strong teams in the AFC West (Denver, Kansas City and San Diego are a combined 18-3).

The remaining slate isn’t exactly easy. The Saints and the entire strong NFC North are ahead. But the Eagles, Redskins and Giants have a lot more problems in contrast, and have to deal with similar scheduling obstacles. Although Tony Romo, as usual, is getting too much of the credit/blame for everything good/bad the Cowboys do, there’s a new sense of resiliency. They’re finding ways not to blow games and fight through injuries (see no DeMarcus Ware and DeMarco Murray on Sunday).

Backup plans

Three starting quarterbacks who were on the upswing from last season got knocked out on Sunday. While the Eagles saw Nick Foles (head) join Michael Vick (hamstring) on the shelf and may need to give a rookie the start in Week 8, more concerning injuries to Jay Cutler (groin) and Sam Bradford (knee) may require the Bears and Rams to go with their No. 2 for the longer term.

Here’s breaking down whether the backups give their team any chance:

— Josh McCown, Bears. Two seasons ago, Chicago was 7-3 when Cutler broke his thumb, but freefell with Caleb Hanie playing awful in relief. Although they found McCown too late in 2011, they saw his value behind Cutler. He can keep Marc Trestman’s offense humming with both his arms and legs in defeat at Washington. The real question is, just how much does he need to produce vs. Green Bay, Detroit and Baltimore the next three weeks with the defense  struggling?

— Kellen Clemens, Rams. Let’s start with the good news. Clemens has plenty of experience in Brian Schottenheimer’s offense dating back to their days together with the Jets.  The bad news, the team’s offensive supporting cast has been inconsistent in helping Bradford, and will offer even less chemistry with Clemens.

— Matt Barkley, Eagles. Don’t judge the 2013 fourth-rounder on the situation he was put in, down 17-3 in one-dimensional desperation mode against Dallas. The two interceptions didn’t look good, but if better prepared to start with a more balanced game plan (the Eagles didn’t run LeSean McCoy enough), Barkley has the potential to make a lot of the opportunity.

Game balls

Andy Dalton, QB, Bengals. Dalton (24-of-34, 372 yards, 3 TDs) outdueled the Lions’ Matt Stafford (28-of-51, 357 yards, 3 TDs) in a pass-happy affair in Ford Field, and most important, got Cincinnati its second last-second road victory, 27-24. It helped that Dalton’s explosive big-play receiver, A.J. Green, matched Stafford’s, Calvin Johnson, with 155 of those yards.

Tamba Hali, OLB, Chiefs. Hali made it two consecutive games with 2.5 sacks, this time terrorizing Texans first-time starter Case Keenum with half of Kansas City’s total in the second half. His second forced fumble on Houston’s final drive locked up the Chiefs 17-16 victory.

Le’Veon Bell, RB, Steelers. There weren’t many pretty offensive stats as Pittsburgh edged archrival Baltimore 19-16 in the typical defensive struggle, but Bell kept grinding out the tough yards (93 on 19 carries) as his team had a rare, strong rushing performance against the Ravens’ defense (141 in all).

Harry Douglas, WR and Jacquizz Rodgers, RB, Falcons. Douglas played the part of a No. 1 wideout for Matt Ryan with both Julio Jones and Roddy White out, burning Tampa Bay’s secondary for 7 catches and 149 yards, including a 37-yard TD. Rodgers caught Ryan’s other two scores in a much-needed 31-23 post-bye win.

Captain Munnerlyn, CB, Panthers. Munnerlyn set the early tone of a physical, 30-15 beatdown of the Rams with a 45-yard pick-six of Sam Bradford on the quarterback’s initial pass attempt. Later in the quarter, he recovered a fumble from wide receiver Tavon Austin to set up a field goal.

Smog Puts Focus on Air Outside Beijing

Although Beijing’s air pollution has somewhat abated since earlier this month, parts of northern China on Monday were covered in thick smog.

Although Beijing’s air pollution has somewhat abated since earlier this month, parts of northern China on Monday were covered in thick smog, forcing the closure of some schools, airports and highways in the region.

The conditions are a stark reminder that while Beijing gets most of the attention when it comes to China’s poor air quality, neighboring industrial zones contribute a significant share of the region’s air pollution.

The start of the winter heating season has created a blanket of heavy smog over the northern provinces of Heilongjiang, Jilin and Liaoning, China’s official Xinhua news agency reported.

For example, in the Heilongjiang capital of Harbin, the density of small, health-threatening particulates known as PM2.5 exceeded the maximum level of 500 micrograms per cubic meter, leading to the closure of a major airport, the suspension of all primary- and middle-school classes and the halting of some bus services, Xinhua said. The news agency added that visibility in Harbin was less than 50 meters.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says those readings are “extremely rare” in the U.S. and typically occur during events such as forest fires.

A wide gap in temperatures between day and night, and the beginning of winter heating season are the reason for the smog, Xinhua reported, citing meteorologists.

Last week, the Beijing municipal government outlined a plan to control pollution-intensive local industries by 2017. Although the plan is aimed at controlling the expansion of local cement, steel and refining industries, it also includes coordination with neighboring areas of Hebei and Tianjin, which are major hubs for these industries. Beijing’s plan calls for its neighboring regions to also control their industrial capacity and set pollution-reduction targets.

Apple to Debut New IPads as Tablet Rivals Crowd Maturing Market

Oct. 21 (Bloomberg) -- Apple Inc. is upgrading its iPad lineup to fend off a growing list of competitors, which are introducing their own tablets at lower prices with snazzier features.

Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook will debut a high- definition iPad mini and a thinner iPad at a San Francisco event tomorrow, people with knowledge of the plans have said.

Facing two straight quarters of declining profit and a stock that’s down by more than a quarter from a September 2012 record, Apple is facing a similar challenge with the iPad as it has with the iPhone, battling lower-cost rivals and proving that incremental changes to existing products are enough to draw customers. The iPad is Apple’s second-best selling gadget after the iPhone and the new models will be critical as the company seeks to reignite growth.

“Tablets are a maturing market,” said Sarah Rotman Epps, an analyst at Forrester Research Inc. in San Francisco. “It will be difficult for Apple to move the needle on new tablet sales, as the strongest growth is coming from emerging markets where customers are more price sensitive.”

Apple saw its share of the tablet market contract to 32 percent in the second quarter from 60 percent a year earlier, according to researcher IDC. While iPad sales more than doubled every quarter since the 2010 debut, growth of the devices hasn’t topped 66 percent since mid-2012.

Trudy Muller, a spokeswoman for Apple, declined to comment ahead of the event. Cook has said market-share data alone isn’t the best way to judge success.

“Customers continue to love their iPads,” Cook said in July, citing data from analytics firm Chitika Inc. showing that that the iPad makes up 84 percent of Web traffic from tablets.

Industry Shift

Samsung Electronics Co., Asustek Computer Inc., Lenovo Group Ltd., Acer Inc. and other competitors are challenging Apple, offering devices with prices starting at less than half of the iPad mini’s $329. Amazon.com Inc. introduced a new Kindle Fire lineup last month with higher-resolution screens at prices starting from $229.

While tablet shipments doubled to 166 million globally in 2012, Counterpoint Research projects that the growth rate will slow to 28 percent in 2014, to 301 million units.

Apple is upgrading its top-selling products ahead of the holiday shopping season. The Cupertino, California-based company introduced the iPhone 5s and 5c last month, selling more than 9 million in its opening weekend. The iPad and iPhone accounted for about 70 percent of Apple’s revenue last year.

The company will also show new Mac software and a new Mac Pro high-end desktop computer at tomorrow’s event, a person with knowledge of the plans has said.

Tablet Era

Even as tablet sales growth slows, the industry shift that’s been under way since Steve Jobs unveiled the iPad in 2010 shows no signs of abating. Microsoft Corp., Intel Corp., Hewlett-Packard Co. and Dell Inc. are grappling with shrinking demand for their computer software and hardware as consumers and businesses move more day-to-day tasks to handheld devices.

“The tablet market is going to be bigger than the traditional computing market,” said Horace Dediu, a market researcher who runs Asymoco.com. Customers prefer an iPad to browse the Web, send e-mail and watch online videos, he said.

Schools, pharmaceutical sales forces and insurance companies are among those using iPads instead of personal computers. Nintendo Co. and other video-game companies have also seen weaker sales as people use the tablets to play games.

“When the iPad first came out, people saw it more as a consumption device for watching movies or reading books, but now people are actually using them as laptop replacements, like a real computer, and that’s just going to continue,” said Giri Cherukuri, head trader for OakBrook Investments LLC, which manages about $3.5 billion, including Apple shares.

Android Challenge

The tablet market is “nowhere near maturing” and there’s pent-up demand for new iPads, Cherukuri said. Even if Apple’s market share declines, the company is the “clear winner” because it makes more profit on each device.

With more consumers buying tablets, PC shipments fell 8.6 percent in the third quarter to 80.3 million shipments, Gartner said Oct. 10. That’s the lowest level for the period since 2008.

Apple’s success in navigating the trend it triggered with the debut of the iPad will depend on whether it can fend off the growing number of tablets based on Google Inc.’s Android mobile operating system, similar to how Android smartphones chipped away at iPhone’s lead, according to Neil Shah, research director at Counterpoint Research.

“Apple is getting into exactly the similar situation as with iPhone for its iPad,” Shah said. “It’s Apple against thousands of Android vendors.”

Obama to call healthcare website glitches 'unacceptable' as fix sought

President Barack Obama will declare the glitches in a new healthcare website "unacceptable" on Monday and outline ways for consumers to sign up for insurance while his team scrambles to fix problems that have tainted the rollout of his signature healthcare law.

Fresh from two weeks of budget battles that have consumed Washington, Obama will hold an event at 11:25 a.m. (1525 GMT) in the White House Rose Garden with consumers, small business owners, and pharmacists who have been affected by the new law.

The move is the highest-profile step in a broad damage control effort that the administration has launched since technical problems with the website, healthcare.gov, have prevented Americans nationwide from signing up for a program that will largely define Obama's domestic policy legacy.

"The president will directly address the technical problems with HealthCare.gov - troubles that he and his team find unacceptable - and discuss the actions he has pushed for to make it easier for consumers to comparison shop and enroll for insurance while work continues around the clock to improve the website," a White House official said on Sunday.

The president will say the product itself and the goal behind it - insuring millions of uninsured Americans - are good despite the problems that have plagued its rollout.

Meanwhile, the Department of Health and Human Services said in a blog post it was bringing in a "tech surge" of people from inside and outside government to help iron out glitches in the online insurance exchanges that are a central part of the program known as "Obamacare," which launched on October 1.

Obama's event, the HHS blog, and comments from Democrats on Sunday television news shows demonstrated a full-on push to offset criticism from Republicans and opponents of the law who say its rollout is representative of wider issues.

Republicans in Congress have chastised Obama's top health adviser, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, for declining their invitation to testify about the glitches to an oversight panel on October 24.

Officials stressed on Sunday that the problems were being addressed.

"I think that there's no one more frustrated than the president at the difficulty in the website," Treasury Secretary Jack Lew said on NBC's "Meet the Press."

Obama told aides in a recent Oval Office meeting that the administration had to take responsibility for the fact that the website was not ready on time.

Administration officials are expected to travel the country in the coming weeks to encourage people to sign up on the exchanges, targeting areas where there are high percentages of uninsured, according to one official.

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is expected to provide private health coverage to an estimated 7 million uninsured Americans through the new online marketplaces that opened for enrollment in all 50 states on October 1.

But the website, the administration's online portal for consumers in 36 states, was hobbled by problems including error messages, garbled text and delays loading pages.

COMMITTED TO DOING BETTER

Administration officials blame the problems partly on an unexpectedly high volume of visitors in its first 10 days. According to HHS, there were more than 19 million visits to the website.

"We are committed to doing better," the department said in its blog post on Sunday.

Despite the problems, it said, other parts of the system were functioning well.

"Individuals have been able to verify their eligibility for credits, enabling them to shop for, and enroll in, low- or even no-cost health plans," the department said.

"We have updated the site several times with new code that includes bug fixes. Our team has called in additional help to solve some of the more complex technical issues we are encountering."

Late on Saturday the White House reported nearly half a million Americans had applied for health insurance through the federal and state exchanges provided by Obamacare.

Many Republicans were criticizing the program long before its rocky launch. A 16-day partial government shutdown that ended last week was precipitated by Republican demands to delay or defund Obamacare.

Republican Senator Ted Cruz, who led that campaign, vowed on Sunday to step-up his opposition, even though his tactics have been called a mistake by members of his own party.

"I would do anything, and will continue to do anything, to stop the train wreck that is Obamacare," Cruz said on ABC's "This Week."

Lew said the program's test would be in January, when the actual coverage starts for people who have enrolled by December 15.

"I think that if we get that right, everyone will regret that the early weeks were choppy on the website. But the test is: are people getting coverage and are they getting the care that they need? And we're confident we're going to be on track to do that," Lew said on NBC.

Nancy Pelosi, the Democratic leader in the U.S. House of Representatives, acknowledged problems with the Obamacare launch, but said they should be understood in the context of the program's size.

"Any system that deals with that many millions of people frequently does have a glitch," Pelosi told ABC News' "This Week."

"It has to be fixed, but what doesn't have to be fixed is the fact that tens of millions more people had access to affordable quality health care and no longer will have a pre-existing condition bar you from getting affordable health care."

Obama said in an interview with National Public Radio on October 1 that he was prepared for some problems in the early months of Obamacare as healthcare exchanges were launched.