Sony's Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day; Tablet Sale Slump

Topping tech headlines on Tuesday was Sony, which had an eventful day on all fronts.

First, the FTC announced a settlement with Sony over deceptive PS Vita ads. As part of the agreement, Sony must provide affected Vita customers with the option of a $25 refund or $50 merchandise voucher for select games and services. The offer is only available to those who purchased a Vita during the launch campaign, or before June 1, 2012.

Meanwhile, Sony's motion picture division was hacked by a group called #GOP (Guardians of Peace). Workers on Monday were met with an ominous skeleton image on their PCs, alongside a message threatening to release "top secret" data if undisclosed demands were not met. #GOP leaked a large ZIP file with two lists detailing the extent of the doxxing. A number of Sony-related Twitter accounts also appear to have been breached. For more, see the video below.

This all comes amidst reports that Sony will consolidate its businesses and focus on the gaming division, not to mention reports of it dumping a FIFA sponsorship.

Meanwhile, the worldwide tablet market is poised for a "massive deceleration" this year, according to IDC. Tablet shipments will increase just 7.2 percent to 235.7 million units, compared to 52.5 percent growth in 2013. The main reason for the decline: A slowdown in iPad demand.

Be sure to check out a few other stories making headlines in the links below.

• Keep Tabs on Favorite Vine Stars With New Alerts: The move could help boost rising Vine stars like Jack and Jack, who have racked up 4.7 million followers.
• Samsung Reveals Eye-Tracking Mouse for the Disabled: EyeCan+ allows paralyzed people to play online games and surf the Web.
• Google Fiber Austin Pricing Revealed: The regular Fiber plan costs $70 per month; add 150-plus high-def TV channels for a total $130.
• How Much Do You Know About the Web?: When Pew tested people's Internet knowledge, only 21 percent could identify Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg.
• Report: Struggling Samsung Eyes Exec Shake-Up: Changes could mean a power shift between co-chief executives.
• BlackBerry Offering Up to $550 to Switch from iPhone: The Canadian phone maker is prepared to shell out some serious cash if you ditch your iPhone for a Passport.
• T-Mobile to Be More Transparent About Customer Data Throttling: T-Mobile will stop showing throttled users bogus speed test results and be more transparent.
• Google Shopping App Gets Pre-Black Friday Makeover: Google rolled out new mobile features to make your search a little easier.
• HTC Serves Up Half-Off Re Camcorder for Black Friday: Shoppers can purchase the periscope-shaped camera for just $99 through Cyber Monday.