FDA, FCC to oversee health tech

The Food and Drug Administration and the Federal Communications Commission signed a memo of understanding this week committing the agencies to coordinated oversight of medical devices in view of the rapid convergence of network and healthcare technologies, reports Government Health IT.

The coming deluge of wireless medical devices may well be transformative for medical care, officials noted Monday and Tuesday in announcing the partnership at an unprecedented joint meeting on the subject.

From a “smart band aid” that would continuously communicate a patient's vital signs to systems that would allow specialty care from thousands of miles away, there's hope such devices will boost quality and cut costs.

The Korean government said yesterday it will inject 1.6 trillion won into industrial convergence technology research this year, states JoongAng Daily.

This is so Korea can become a global leader in cutting-edge manufacturing, information technology and digital service areas.

The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology said the sum to be invested into research and development is part of the larger five-year national convergence development plan ironed out in late 2008.

Motorola will release a 10-inch tablet in November running version 3.0 of Google's Android platform, according to a report on The Street.com, reveals Fierce Wireless.

The report, citing Rodman & Renshaw analyst Ashok Kumar, did not provide any specifications. The handset vendor has hinted in the past that it plans to jump into the tablet market.

Motorola CEO Sanjay Jha said the company is thinking about a "companion product" to a TV that would sport a seven- to 10-inch screen and that would allow users to walk around their house and watch TV.