Technology Top Stories from Associated Press (AP)

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) , Google's executive chairman is preparing to travel to one of the last frontiers of cyberspace: North Korea. Eric Schmidt will be traveling to North Korea on a private, humanitarian mission led by former New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson that could take place as early as this month, sources told The Associated Press on Wednesday.

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) , Microsoft began the new year harping on a favorite theme: The software maker is arguing that government regulators need to crack down on Google to preserve fair competition in the Internet and smartphone markets.

SEOUL , Google's executive chairman is preparing to travel to one of the last frontiers of cyberspace: North Korea. Eric Schmidt will be traveling to North Korea on a private trip led by former New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson that could take place as early as this month, sources told The Associated Press on Wednesday.

LOS ANGELES (AP) , Shares of media companies rose Wednesday as fears of an advertising slowdown based on slower economic growth abated somewhat due to a deal to avert the so-called "fiscal cliff." Movie studio owners could also benefit from a one-year extension of certain film and TV tax credits in the budget deal passed Tuesday.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) , LG Electronics Inc. started taking pre-orders on Wednesday for the world's first big TVs that use an advanced display technology promising startlingly clear images on wafer-thin screens.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) , Making his first New Year's speech, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un called Tuesday for his country to focus on economic improvements with the same urgency that scientists put into the launch of a long-range rocket last month.

CHICAGO (AP) , More than four years after crushing debt and plunging advertising sales forced it to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, Tribune Co. has emerged with a new television-focused board and over $1 billion in new financing.

LOS ANGELES (AP) , A tiny hobbit has a mighty hold on the box office, staying on top for a third-straight week and wrapping up a year that saw a record-breaking $10.8 billion in total annual grosses. The Warner Bros. fantasy "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" remained at No. 1 with $32 million for a total of $221.7 million, according to final studio figures Monday.

PASADENA, Calif. (AP) , Since captivating the world with its acrobatic landing, the Mars rover Curiosity has fallen into a rhythm: Drive, snap pictures, zap at boulders, scoop up dirt. Repeat. Topping its to-do list in the new year: Set off toward a Martian mountain , a trek that will take up a good chunk of the year.

NEW YORK (AP) , A new Pew study reports that around 13 percent of Americans aged 16 and older used a mobile device to visit a library website during the past year. Patrons ages 18-49 were the most likely to use a mobile device for the library, while those 65 and older were the least likely.

PALO ALTO, Calif. (AP) , Engineer Dallas Goecker attends meetings, jokes with colleagues and roams the office building just like other employees at his company in Silicon Valley. But Goecker isn't in California. He's more than 2,300 miles away, working at home in Seymour, Indiana.

LOS ANGELES (AP) , Netflix CEO Reed Hastings' pay will double to $4 million next year, after he took a pay cut due to management missteps this year. Hastings' annual salary will rise to $2 million in 2013 and he will get $2 million in stock options, according to a securities filing Friday. That's up from a salary of $500,000 and $1.5 million in stock options for 2012.

LOS ANGELES (AP) , "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" continues to rule them all at the box office, staying on top for a third-straight week and capping a record-setting $10.8 billion year in moviegoing. The Warner Bros. fantasy epic from director Peter Jackson, based on the beloved J.R.R.

LOS ANGELES (AP) , Netflix CEO Reed Hastings' pay will double to $4 million next year, after he took a pay cut due to management missteps this year. Hastings' annual salary will rise to $2 million in 2013 and he will get $2 million in stock options, according to a securities filing Friday. That's up from a salary of $500,000 and $1.5 million in stock options for 2012.

Monstropolis' top scare team, James P. "Sulley" Sullivan and Mike Wazowski, returned to movie theaters in December in a 3-D version of their classic Disney/Pixar adventure. The pair also recently debuted on the iPad for youngsters to read about their animated exploits in Monsters, Inc. Storybook Deluxe (Disney Publishing, rated 4+, reviewed with iPad 3, $6.99).