News Archive
From Wiki
[edit] Acquisitions
HotOrNot Gets Cold Cash - Avid Live Media buys "survey" site HotOrNot for $20 million. Originally published in Wired, February 11th, 2008.
AOL to Buy Global Social Media Network Bebo - AOL/Time Warner purchases social networking site Bebo for $850 million. Originally published in MSNBC, March 13th, 2008.
Yahoo! Buys Indextools: 80% of the Functionality of Omniture for FREE! - Yahoo purchases web analytic software maker IndexTools. Originally published in OX2 Web Analytics Blog, April 15th, 2008.
Interview With Barney Pell and Ramez Naam About Microsoft’s Powerset Acquisition: Integration By End Of Year - Microsoft buys search engine Powerset. Originally published in TechCrunch, July 2nd, 2008.
Twitter Buys Summize, Launches Twitter Search - Twitter buys Twitter search engine Summize for $15 million. Originally published in Download Squad, July 15th 2008.
Amazon Acquires Shelfari: Moves to Corner Book-Centric Social Networks - Amazon buys book-centered social network Shelfari. Originally published in TechCrunch, August 25, 2008.
MTV Networks Purchases Social Project – Viacom subsidiary MTV Networks purchases former online partner Social Project. Originally published in WebProNews, September 22nd, 2008.
Technorati Tests New Ad Network – Blog search engine Technorati purchases ad firm AdEngage in hopes of starting their own advertising network. Originally published in WebProNews, October 15th, 2008.
WordPress Acquires Irish Startup PollDaddy - WordPress developer Automattic purchases online polling concern PollDaddy. Originally published in TechCrunch, October 15th, 2008.
[edit] Best of '08
Twilight And PostSecret Top MySpace Lists For 2008. (Taylor Swift and Mobsters Do Okay Too) - The best and brightest on MySpace in 2008. Originally published in TechCrunch, December 15th, 2008.
Top 3 Twitterers of Each Country in the World based on Number of Followers - The most popular celebrities on Twitter in 2008. Originally published by Kid Tech Guru, December 15th, 2008.
Social Media Sites of 2008 (Facebook Still Rising) - A list of the most popular social sites in 2008. The winner? Blogger. Originally published in TechCrunch, December 31st, 2008.
Google's Top Ten Products (More or Less) - The ten most popular Google-centric services and programs in 2008. Originally published in TechCrunch, December 31st, 2008.
[edit] Celebrations
GNU’s Birthday – Free software advocates GNU turns ten. Originally published in the Software Freedom Law Center blog, September 2nd, 2008.
[edit] Controversies
Google takes Street View Snaps in Paris; Lawsuits May Follow - Google Maps Street View angers the French. Originally published in The Industry Standard, May 9th, 2008.
51 Places You're Not Supposed to See on Google Maps - 51 places in Google Maps Street View that are hidden from view. Blocked locations includes Dick Cheney’s House, nuclear facilities, and Europe. Originally published in Switched, July 16th, 2008.
Congress Considering Ban on MySpace and Facebook in Libraries - Congress attempts to ban social networks from public libraries. Originally published in Switched, July 28th, 2008.
Google's Favoritism Makes Knoll SEO Magnet - Google Knol articles appear higher that Wikipedia articles in Google searches. Originally published in WebProNews, July 30th, 2008.
Fixing Poor Journalism: iPhone "Kill Switch" Myths and Rumors - Jonathan Zdziarski, the man who originally found the iPhone kill switch, hates it. Originally published in Zdziarski.com, August 7th 2008.
Apple Sells 60 Million iPhone Apps, Jobs Confirms Kill Switch - Steve Jobs admits to the iPhone “kill switch." Originally published in Wired, August 11th, 2008.
The iPhone Kill Switch is Innovative - Author Tony Bove likes the idea of the iPhonekill switch. Originally published in Bove's Blips, August 12th, 2008.
[edit] Closings/Abandonment
Netscape: The Browser That Started it All Dies a Quiet Death - America Online announces that they are discontinuing the legendary Netscape web browser. Originally published in Wired, January 31st, 2008.
DRM Still Sucks: Yahoo Music Going Dark, Taking Keys With It - Yahoo closes down its music store. Originally published in Ars Technica, July 24th, 2008.
Yahoo!'s Social Network Aspirations Mashed - Yahoo closes its social networking test site, Mash. Originally published in WebProNews, August 29th, 2008.
Google is Slowly Killing Page Creator, Replacing It With Sites - Google kills Page Creator. Former Page Creator users are moved to Google Pages. Originally published in Download Squad, August 3rd, 2008.
Digg Cuts a Couple of Features - Digg shuts down the Digg Podcasts and Digg Spy subsites. Originally published in WebProNews, October 10th, 2008.
Stopping Our Broadcast… - Yahoo live video streaming service, Yahoo Live, shuts down. Originally published in the Y! Live Blog, November 3rd, 2008.
Future Dim for Yahoo's Jumpcut, Kickstart - Yahoo abandons both the Kickstart and Jumpcut projects due to budgetary concerns. Originally published in WebProNews, December 17th, 2008.
[edit] Domain Names
Google to Kill Domain Tasting - Google bans the practice of "domain tasting" from its search engine. Originally published in DomainTools, January 24th, 2008.
[edit] Environmental/Green
Apple's 'Green' Notebook Doesn't Impress Environmentalists - Greenpeace gives the Macbook Air laptop low marks. Originally published in Wired, January 16th, 2008.
[edit] Experiments
Picasa Refresh Brings Facial Recognition – Google uses Picasa to experiment with face recognition technologies. Originally published by the Washington Post via TechCrunch, September 2nd, 2008.
[edit] Failure
Yahoo Board Rejects Microsoft's $44.6 Billion Offer - Yahoo turns down Microsoft’s takeover bid. Originally published by Bloomberg, February 11th, 2008.
Cuil Fail: Traffic Nearly Hits Rock Bottom - Cuil, a one-time "Google successor," falls on some tough times. Originally published in TechCrunch, December 27th, 2008.
[edit] File Sharing
Lime Wire Wants to Play-to-Play By the Rules – Notorious peer-to-peer network Lime Wire attempts to “legitimize” file sharing by advertising lesser known musicians and record labels. Originally published in WebProNews, October 10th, 2008.
[edit] For Sale
Official: AOL on the Table for Deal - Time Warner attempts to sell America Online. Originally published in TechCrunch, March 11th, 2008.
Time Warner Ready to Unload AOL in Pieces, But at What Price? - Time Warner makes the decision to sell America Online "one piece at a time." Originally published in TechCrunch, August 4th, 2008.
[edit] Freeware
SoftMaker Releases Free Office Apps for Windows and Linux – Sofware house SoftMaker gives away copies of SoftMaker Office 2006 for free. Originally published in Download Squad, October 3rd, 2008.
[edit] Funding
WordPress.com Creator Raises $29.5M - Wordpress creator Automattic receives $29.5 million in funding. Investors include the New York Times. Originally published in GigaOM, January 22nd, 2008.
Google Invests in DNA Sequencing Project - Google funds Harvard’s search-based DNA database project. Originally published in TechCrunch, February 29th, 2008.
Velocity Finances Generate a Professional Studio for Online Video Content - Velocity Finances puts $6 million into online video studio Generate. Originally published in TechCrunch, March 8th, 2008.
Significant Backing for Mobile Streaming Service Qik - Former Netscape head Marc Andreesen and and HP business tech manager Ben Horowitz give money to video service Qik. Originally published in WebProNews, August 26th, 2008.
[edit] Interviews and Features
20 (Rare) Questions for Google Search Guru Udi Manber - An interview with Google search guru Udi Manber. Originally published in Popular Mechanics, April 16th, 2008.
What I've Learned: Vint Cerf - An interview with web pioneer Vint Cerf. Originally published in Esquire, April 24th, 2008.
The Future of Online Video - YouTube co-founder Chad Hurley talks about the future of the service. Originally published in The Official Google Blog, September 16th, 2008.
How Business Can Benefit From Social Networking – AMR Research analyst Jonathan Yarmis explains how social networking can be good for the corporate world. Originally published in PC World, September 21st, 2008.
Mozilla CEO John Lilly: “World Domination is Overrated” – A frank and intriguing interview with Mozilla’s John Lilly. Originally published by LinuxInsider via the San Jose Mercury News, October 5th, 2008.
Kevin Rose’s Top Eight Tips for Getting on the Front Page - Digg founder Kevin Rose explains how to get on news site’s front page. Tips include to “write lists” and name drop US Representative and former Presidential candidate Ron Paul as much as possible. Originally published in the London Times, October 9th, 2008.
Hulu CEO: More Global Moves Planned For '09 - Hulu CEO Jason Kilar discusses his company's planned worldwide expansion. Originally published in Online Media Daily, December 29th, 2008.
[edit] Law
Missouri Lawmakers Vote to Bar Internet Harassment - The Missouri Legislature contemplates a "cyber-bullying" bill. Originally published in MSNBC, May 16th, 2008.
Appeals Court Smacks Down Judge for Relying on Wikipedia - Wikipedia entries are not admissible as evidence in US courts. Originally published in Ars Technica, September 2nd, 2008.
“Three Strikes” Rules Inches Closer to Law in France – The government of France mulls over a plan that would revoke “Internet privileges” to illegal downloaders. Originally published in Ars Technica, November 2nd, 2008.
;-) trademark claim makes us go :-o and then >:-[ - Russian businessman Oleg Teterin trademarks the "wink" smiley face to prove a point about Russian copyright law. Originally published in Ars Technica, December 14th, 2008.
NY Gov Proposes Tax on Drinks, Downloaded MusicNew York state considers a bill that would tax digital downloads, among other things. Originally published by Yahoo News via the Associated Press, December 17th, 2008.
[edit] Lawsuits
YouTube: Viacom Challenge Threatens Internet Freedom - Viacom sues Google over YouTube. Originally published by the Associated Press, May 26th, 2008.
Judge Orders YouTube to Give All User Histories to Viacom - Viacom orders Google to hand over YouTube user information. Originally published in Wired, July 2nd, 2008.
Google to Mask Data Before Handover, YouTubers Now Safe From Viacom - Viacom receives records from YouTube. Google replaces all user information with an "arbitrary identifier." Originally published in Gizmodo, July 15th, 2008.
[edit] Medical
Google Health Begins Its Preseason at Cleveland Clinic - Google is storing medical records online. The program is backed by theCleveland Clinic. Originally published in the New York Times, February 21st, 2008.
[edit] Monetizing
YouTube Putting Commercials in Videos – YouTube adds short commercials to a few selected videos. Originally published by WebProNews, October 2nd, 2008.
[edit] New Ventures
Pizza Hut Serves Up Online Orders, Adobe Air Style – Pizza Hut created an Air-powered app designed specifically for ordering pizza. Originally published in Mashable, May 25th, 2008.
EMI Planning Own Music Service – Embattled record label EMI decides to start their own iTunes-like music service. Originally published in Wired, October 9th, 2008.
NBC Stations Launch ‘Locals Only’ Sites – NBC Universal start a series of “metro-area” sites dedicated to localized content. Originally published in Broadcasting & Cable, October 13th, 2008.
Yahoo Tries Social Media From a New Angle - Yahoo gives its Profiles page a distinct “social” makeover. Originally published in WebProNews, October 16th, 2008.
Yahoo Opens Up Big Time - Yahoo unveils their new “Open Strategy” , which enable the free flow of information in to and out of the service. Originally published in TechCrunch, October 28th, 2008.
Microsoft Office Embraces the Browser (Thank You Google) - Microsoft announces the creation of Office Online, an online productivity suite similar to Google Docs. Originally published in TechCrunch, October 28th, 2008.
Google to Publish Books Online - Google enters the publishing business. Unlike other “digital publishers,” the Google titles will not be compatible with eReaders. Originally published in Switched, October 29th, 2008.
CBS to Take Online Video Seriously - CBS considers turning their TV database TV.com into a Hulu-esque video service. Originally published in WebProNews, December 15th, 2008.
[edit] OpenID
Yahoo To Become an OpenID Provider, Giving 248 Million Users Web-Wide Identities - Yahoo pledges its support for the OpenID system. Originally published in Wired, January 17th, 2008.
MS, Google and Other Big Names Throw Their Weight Behind OpenID (And That's a Good Thing) - Microsoft, Google, and Verisign join the OpenID party. Originally published in Wired, February 7th, 2008.
Windows Live Adds Support for OpenID, Calls It De Facto Login Standard - Microsoft joins the OpenID party. Originally published in TechCrunch, October 27th, 2008.
[edit] Online Video
CBS Begins Adding Full Length TV Shows to YouTube - CBS begins to add “legacy programs” such as Star Trek, MacGuyver, and Beverly Hills, 90210 to YouTube. Originally published by Download Squad, October 11th, 2008.
[edit] Opinions
What Yahoo Should Do - Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban’ advice to Yahoo: Buy smaller services like crazy. Originally published in Blog Maverick, December 14th, 2008.
[edit] Partnerships
Comcast Investing in GridNetworks' Full-Screen Internet Video - Comcast makes a deal with P2P provider GridNetworks for the delivery of full-screen streaming video. Originally published in Philadelphia Business Journal, May 19th, 2008.
Opera Browser Integrates Haute Secure to Block Malware - Security Opera works out a deal with security company Haute Secure for in-browser malware protection. Originally published in TechCrunch, June 6th, 2008.
Digg Partners With Facebook to “Connect” Users - Digg and Facebook partner up for Facebook Connect. Originally published in Digg the Blog, July 23rd, 2008.
CNBC Socializes With LinkedIn - CNBC irons out a "content sharing" deal business social network LinkedIn. Originally published in Wired, September 4th, 2008.
[edit] Proposals
Google, Microsoft Bidding for Digg - Both Google and Microsoft try for Digg. Originally published in TechCrunch, March 3rd, 2008.
[edit] Research
It’s Official: Googling is Good for You – Research say that searching the Internet might be better for your brain than reading a book. Originally published by TechRadar, October 15th, 2008.
[edit] Robotics
Monkey’s Thoughts Propel Robot, a Step That May Help Humans - Scientists at Duke University uses a monkey's thoughts to control a robot. Originally published in the New York Times, January 15th, 2008.
[edit] Search Engines
Yahoo Flags Malware Sites in Search Results - Yahoo labels malware as a threat in its search results. Originally published in TechCrunch, May 5th, 2008.
Microsoft Scores Facebook Search Deal and May Get a Little Live.com Branding to Boot - Live Search becomes the search engine of choice for Facebook. Originally published in TechCrunch, July 24th, 2008.
Yahoo in Mobile Search Deal With AT&T - Yahoo oneSearch is now available on AT&T mobile phones. Originally published in WebProNews, September 8th, 2008.
[edit] Semantic Web
Yahoo Embraces The Semantic Web - Expect The Internet To Organize Itself In A Hurry - Yahoo now supports a variety of microformats. Originally published in TechCrunch, March 13th, 2008.
Digg Makes Official Its Adoption of a 'Semantic Web' Standard - Digg tries the semantic web and microformats on for size. Originally published in BetaNews, May 2nd, 2008.
[edit] Social Networking
Facebook to Punish Stupid Applications, Reward Good Ones - Facebook gives apps with high user ratings preferential treatment. Originally published in ReadWriteWeb, February 6th, 2008.
West Wing Writer Looks Into Facebook: The Movie - Aaron Sorkin to write a script based upon Facebook. Originally published in WebProNews, August 28th, 2008.
Pizza Hut Lets You Order Pies on Facebook - Pizza Hut adds a new ordering method – Facebook. Originally published in Switched, October 17th, 2008.
[edit] Success
MySpace Music Streams Its Billionth Song “A Few Days” After Launch - TechCrunch founder Michael Arrington weighs in on the unbridaled success of MySpacre Music. Originally published in TechCrunch, October 5th, 2008.
MySpace Music Streams a Billion Songs in ‘A Few Days’ - MySpece Music becomes an instant hit. Originally published by Switched, October 6th, 2008.
OpenOffice.org Upgrade Sets Download Record – The update for open source office suite OpenOffice is downloaded three million times its first week. Originally published in PC World, October 15th, 2008.
[edit] Twitter
Twitter Users Report on China Earthquake - A few American exchange students use Twitter to provide up-to-the-minute reports on the Chinese earthquake. Originally published in Switched, May 12th, 2008.
[edit] Updates
YouTube Enables Deep Linking Within YouTube - YouTube users can now dictate where they want a certain video to start playing. Originally published by TechCrunch, October 25th, 2008.
Finally: Qik Brings Its Live Video Streaming to Blackberry - Up-and-coming video service Qik adds Blackberry support. Originally published by TechCrunch, October 26th, 2008.
[edit] Virus Alert
Harmful or Not, iPhone Trojan Points to Danger - A Trojan designed for the iPhone has been found. Originally published in IT Business Edge, January 16th, 2008.
Social Engineering on Twitter - A Twitter virus has been found. Originally published by Virtulist.com, August 4th, 2008.
Researchers Build Malicious Facebook App - A group of researchers build a malicious Facebook in order to study the habits of users. Originally published in TechCrunch, September 5th, 2008.
America Still Hosts the Most Computer Viruses, Study Finds - Nearly 37% of all malware is found on US computers and servers. Originally published in Switched, December 27th, 2008.
