The Wall Street Journal has reported that Apple has rejected allegations by the U.S. Justice Department’s that it had colluded with publishers over electronic book pricing, saying that the charges were “simply not true.”

Apple spokeswoman Natalie Kerris told the Journal, ”The launch of the iBookstore in 2010 fostered innovation and competition, breaking Amazon’s monopolistic grip on the publishing industry.”

In an antitrust lawsuit filed on Wednesday, the Justice Department alleged that CEOs of book publishing companies met regularly to discuss how to respond to steep discounting of their e-books by Amazon, a practice they did not like

The executives allegedly worked with each other to come up with a solution to what one of them called a “wretched $9.99 price point,” according to the suit.

The publishers and Apple then put together  an agreement that lifted the price of many best-selling e-books to $12.99 or $14.99, according to the Justice Department. The publishers then banded together to force that model upon Amazon, the government alleged.

Three of the publishers have reached a settlement with the Justice Department, that agrees to let Amazon and other retailers resume the discounting of e-books. Settlement of a separate lawsuit brought by other U.S. states could lead to tens of millions of dollars in restitution being paid to consumers who bought e-books when they had higher prices.

Amazon called the settlement a “victory for consumers and users of its Kindle e-reading device.” The company promised to renew discounting, which could put pressure on its rivals, like Barnes & Noble.

“We look forward to being allowed to lower prices on more Kindle books,” Amazon said in a statement on the matter.

Unlike last night, where false news of Penn State’s longtime football coach Joe Paterno’s death spread across social media like wildfire, the story today is much more sobering. Paterno has died due to complications from lung cancer.

Around 8:45 yesterday evening, false news from Onward State, a student run news blog covering Penn State, was catapulted through Twitter and Facebook, saying Paterno had died. CBS jumped on, and it took off from there. About 20 minutes later, the news was proved to be false, and in the aftermath, Onward State’s managing editor, Devon Edwards, resigned.

News about Paterno’s death:

• Ex-Penn State coach Joe Paterno dead at 85
• Legendary Penn State coach Joe Paterno dead at 85

No, he’s not dead.

At least not according to a family spokesperson, who went on the record just before 9:00 PM tonight to say that ex-Penn State football coach Joe Paterno was not dead.

Paterno, who is in the hospital for complications from lung cancer, is the latest victim in the quick spread of false death news via social media. Last month it was Jon Bon Jovi, who had to send out a picture of himself holding a sign that read, “Heaven looks a lot like New Jersey” before fans would believe the truth.

Some outlets are still showing headline of Paterno’s death on Google news – see the Allentown Morning Call below:

Beginning around 8:35 PM, Twitter became, well, all atwitter with news of his death. Popular news outlets, including several right in State College reported on the news. The AP appeared to be the first to correct the news, and tweet out that the death was false, and they did so around 9:15.

Did you get a new iPhone for the holidays, or just pick one up after your old contract expired? You’re not alone – many are finding themselves with a new piece of technology in their hands these days, and in a quandary when they look at all of the case choices available. We’ve talked to many iPhone 4 users, and put together this list of our top 5 finds.

1) SmallWorks BrickCase – $19.99
This cute iPhone case actually doubles as a base for building with LEGO® bricks! Build, modify, play, then take your own creations with you. In addition to being a fun conversation piece, the case provides protection against bumps, scratches, chips and dirt.

2) Etch A Sketch Hard Case – $24.00
LEGOs not your thing? Here’s another fun case that takes you back to your childhood days – Etch A Sketch! Made of impact resistant plastic, this iPhone case is durable and strong. No, the buttons aren’t real, they don’t do anything, but it will be the envy of your co-workers and friends. And a bonus, it’s available for iPad, too!

3) Geometric Facets Case – $7.95
This funky-looking case is constructed from smooth, treated plastic, and resists dirt, stains and it is also anti-static. Triangles connect to form linear patterns, which adds depth and dimension to the urban case. The slim fit ensures the iPhone won’t feel bulky in your pocket. Available as shown in white, or red and black, too.

4) Otterbox Defender Series- $27.99
This rugged tough case provides heavy duty protection from harsh treatment in the worst environments. Otterbox is well known for their quality electronics cases, and the series for iPhone 4S is no different.

5) CaseMate’s Quartet Case – $24.99
Connect four different, interchangeable colored pieces for a contemporary look for your iPhone. The multiple color combinations groove together for unique customization from bright to dark hues. Slide the pieces together to interlock and ensure protection.

Now we’ve been as guilty as any blog or press outlet to jump on the hype and rumors behind Apple’s third-generation tablet – but this time, we might just be right on.

Bloomberg news is reporting that three sources familiar with the new iPad say that Apple is getting its supply chain into high gear for a March delivery. Foxconn, Apple’s main assembler is said to be operating its factories 24 hours per day to reach the shipping deadline. Bloomberg’s sources are also providing credibility to the long-standing claim that the iPad 3 will boast a quad-core chip under the hood.

As for the display, back in November, Digitimes, reported that iPad display manufacturing partners, including Samsung, LG, and Sharp, were set to ship three million high-res panels in the fall – two million of those in November alone. Shortly after the Digitimes news, CNET weighed in with a prediction of a screen resolution of 1600 x 1200.  More recent leaks point to something even better – perhaps even 2048×1536.

Connectivity-wise, the new iPad will likely be the first Apple product to launch with support for both the 3G and the LTE network. Apple is obviously looking to provide a fast data pipeline to its users, and this move will allow them to take advantage of both Verizon’s and AT&T’s LTE networks.

A newly released application for the Android mobile platform provides a quick way to check whether that product you’re about to buy is made by a company that supports SOPA, the controversial Stop Online Piracy Act.

The app, called Boycott SOPA, can scan bar codes to help identify if products are either created by or intimately related to SOPA supporting companies. There are currently over 800 brands/companies in the free app’s database.

According to the developers’ website, the app is written by “two college kids that are unimpressed with the current SOPA bill and want to discourage it from getting passed in any way possible.”

Although the app is free, the authors are asking for donations, to be used towards “webhosting, pizza, and beer.” It is available in the Android Marketplace.

Spotify, the Internet streaming music service that took the U.S. by storm this summer is about to cast a black cloud over its loyal user base. No more free music.

Starting in one week, early Spotify adopters will be informed that the days of unlimited tracks are coming to an end. A ten hour per month limit will be imposed on free accounts, and those users will also only be allowed to play an individual song five times per month.

Now to be clear, this was the plan all along. Free accounts were given a six month period of unlimited use in the hopes that users would become addicted and be more than ready to pony up the fees to move to a paid account. Plans run $4.99 per month for ad-free streaming to your desktop, and $9.99 for access to Spotify’s mobile application.

When Spotify launched in the States on July 14th, many people gravitated to the service because of the inherently social nature of the Spotify platform – users could easily share tracks, playlists and new artists with their friends on Facebook. The service was built from the ground up to integrate with social networks.

One cannot help but wonder if users will cough up the cash to keep the tunes playing, or turn to the social networks to voice their displeasure with the upcoming changes and fees to their formerly free service. It could be in this case, that the social network Spotify depends on will come back to bite them in the rear end.

Rock on.

The Chinese company In Icons has released an unauthorized and unlicensed Steve Jobs action figure that is eerily realistic in its small-scale resemblance to the recently departed tech entrepreneur.

In Icons says that their goal was to “honor the American icon and great visionary Steve Jobs.”

The 1:6 replica of is wearing Jobs’ trademark outfit of blue jeans (with black belt), New Balance shoes and the familiar black turtle neck. Accessories include two pairs of glasses, an apple, three extra hands, and socks. No iPhone or iPad included.

Apple Inc. and the Jobs estate have not signed off on this model, so it is likely to be a very limited run before Apple’s legal department gets their hands on the company producing them.

Photos? Why of course – see below.

Yahoo has named the 54-year-old president of PayPal, Scott Thompson, as its next CEO.

Thompson will take the helm of the struggling tech company on January 9th, and will immediately set to work addressing issues around its core online-advertising business, as well as finding a way to attract new talent to the one-time web superstar business.

In an analyst conference call, Thompson said that the company’s “core business assets are stronger here at Yahoo than people believe,” and that the technology and data that Yahoo has access to has the ability to provide better services to advertisers than the company has in the past.

Thompson will also focus on mobile devices at Yahoo, saying that “mobile is a wave that is bigger than people even imagine it to be. How people interact online has changed. Devices take all shapes and sizes. You’d better have a great experience on any device the customer has.”

Yahoo’s former CEO, Carol Bartz, was shown the door in September, after being unable to increase revenue during her tenure of two-and-a-half years.

TweetDeck, now owned by Twitter, recently released its newest version since the takeover, and in general, it seems not to be well received, especially by long-time power users of the older versions.

Twitter did not officially announce the release, and has completely changed how the program works.

The cross-platform program built on Adobe’s AIR has been abandoned, along with many of its features. Twitter has instead built two brand new programs that function natively in the Windows and Mac environments.

The functionality of the new programs more closely mirrors Twitter’s efforts on its other applications and the web version.

However, some features that die-hard TweetDeck users relied on are gone, or hard to find. For example, TweetDeck now defaults to Twitter’s URL shortener and photo services. Users can still choose to use their own services, but TweetDeck now keeps this choice hidden behind a menu choice, making it very difficult to find.

Annoyed by a spammer tweeting at you? You can still block and report the offense, but it is no longer removed from your column, as happened with the old version.

A sampling of a search for “New TweetDeck” yielded these results:

So if you’re unhappy with the new TweetDeck, what do you do?

Well, download old versions of TweetDeck, of course!