Top Items:
Tom Krazit / CNET News.com:
Report: Apple executives faked stock-option documents — update Apple Computer's stock took a hit early Wednesday after a report that company executives had made up details on stock-option administration documents to guarantee profits for certain executives.
Discussion:
Geek News Central, Monkey Bites, Blogging Stocks, Seeking Alpha, Macsimum News and Slashdot
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Charles Jade / Infinite Loop:
A cloud over Macworld Expo — In recent years, Apple Computer stock has risen as Macworld Expo approaches, and this year has been no different. Boosted by increasing sales of iPods and Macs, the exuberance of analysts' expectations, and rumors of iPhones and "true" video iPods, AAPL rose to over $91 a share at the end of November.
CNNMoney.com:
Apple sinks, then recovers after report — Web site says options documents may have been falsified by company officials; Jobs hires own lawyer. — NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Federal prosecutors are investigating stock option documents at Apple Computer that may have been falsified by company officials …
Nancy Weil / Macworld:
Report: Feds looking at Apple stock-option documents — U.S. federal investigators are "looking closely" at stock-option documents that former Apple officials allegedly falsified to boost their own profits, The Recorder legal newspaper reported late Tuesday in its online edition.
Robert Scoble / Scobleizer:
Full disclosure... I am sitting in an airport in Houston. I see a lot of people are wondering who is paying for the trip. I wasn't supposed to announce what I was doing until I got to New Orleans, but since news schedules have been moved up (John Edwards announced he's running for President today) I'm sure the campaign won't mind.
Discussion:
ScobleShow, Web Strategy, A View from the Isle, Naked Conversations, Alfred Thompson … and Michael Gartenberg
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Jessica Guynn / The Technology Chronicles:The secret Scoble mission revealed
Discussion:
The Blogging Journalist, The Next Net, Digital Common Sense, Naked Conversations and Scobleizer
Long Zheng / istartedsomething.com:
Microsoft hands out Ferrari's to bloggers — Microsoft together with AMD gave out some timely Christmas presents (which are officially review PCs) to a bunch of bloggers this year. Brandon LeBlanc got one, Scott Beale got one, Barb Bowman got one, Mauricio Freitas got one, Mitch Denny got one …
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Scott Gilbertson / Monkey Bites:
Microsoft Tries To Buy New Friends — It seems that Microsoft and AMD have partnered to hand out some nice Christmas presents to select bloggers. Microsoft has reportedly sent out new AMD-equipped Acer laptops in an effort to get prominent bloggers using Microsoft's new Vista operating system.
Marshall Kirkpatrick:
Now Microsoft Wants Its Laptop Back — Microsoft and AMD sent out a pile of very expensive (yet trashy looking) laptops to a number of bloggers over the past week. We were told we could keep them - now after a day of minor outrage by some people they are emailing us back with the following request that we not keep them after all!
Discussion:
Technically Speaking
John Liu / Bloomberg:
Google to invest in Chinese video Web site — Google Inc., owner of the world's most-used Internet search engine, will invest in Shenzhen Xunlei Network Technology Ltd., a Chinese Web site that helps users download videos from the Internet. — The investment will probably be disclosed next month …
Discussion:
GigaOM
Ryan Paul / Ars Technica:
Why piracy is still more common than legal video downloads — A recent study conducted by consumer and retail analysis group NPD claims that peer-to-peer (P2P) video downloads (which in the study are synonymous with illegal downloads) are outpacing purchases from legitimate video download services five to one.
Rob Bushway / GottaBeMobile.com:
The HP Pavilion tx1000 Notebook PC / Tablet PC — I received something very interesting in the mail yesterday: a Vista Launch Kit. Apparently, Microsoft is sending out 5000 numbered launch kits. I've got #2395. — It is mostly Vista launch material - dvd's, printed material …
Ryan Block / Engadget:
AACS DRM cracked by BackupHDDVD tool? — Can it be? Is Hollywood's new DRM posterchild AACS (Advanced Access Content System, see more here) actually quite breakable? According to a post on our favoritest of forums (Doom9) by DRM hacker du jour muslix64, his new BackupHDDVD tool decrypts and dismantles AACS on a Windows PC.
Discussion:
Slashdot
Gregg Keizer / InformationWeek:
Chess Player Banned 10 Years For Cheating With Bluetooth, Computer — The All India Chess Federation slapped the 10-year sanction on a player who had been using a Bluetooth device stitched into a cap he typically pulled down over his ears. — An Indian chess player was banned Tuesday …
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Thomas Mennecke / Slyck.com File-Sharing News …:
AllofMP3.com Responds to RIAA Lawsuit — The legal wranglings of various file-sharing developers has created several common response patterns from those unfortunate enough to face litigation from the RIAA (Recording Industry Associate of America.) If you're of the LimeWire ilk, your response may be to stay and fight.
Agence France Presse:
Quake cuts off much of Asia Internet — Internet and phone services have been disrupted across much of Asia after an earthquake damaged undersea cables, leaving one of the world's most tech-savvy regions in a virtual blackout. — From frustrated traders seeking in vain for stock quotes …
RELATED:
PR Newswire:
The Big Story for CES 2007: the Public Debut of eCoupled Intelligent Wireless Power — Fulton Innovation LLC and its Partners Debut Technology That Enables Intelligent Wireless Power Transfer — LAS VEGAS, Dec. 27 /PRNewswire/ — The 2007 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) …
USA Today:
Experts say Google will be No. 1 in visitors in '07 — Internet search giant Google, which defied gravity this year, is set to become the world's most visited Internet site in 2007. — Google's revenue hit $7.2 billion for the first three quarters of 2006. Its stock topped the $500-a-share mark (now at $468).
Discussion:
Alex Moskalyuk Blog
Michael Calore / Wired News:
Vaporware '06: Return of the King — Pull back the red curtain and dim the lights. It's the 9th annual presentation of the Wired News Vaporware Awards, our ode to the year's top technology products promised, hyped and scheduled, but not delivered. — The nominees were chosen by you, our readers, in November.
RELATED:
Techworld.com:
Disabling and degrading — Vista is disadvantaging high-end audio and video systems by openly disabling devices. The most common high-end audio output interface is S/PDIF (Sony/Philips Digital Interface Format) which doesn't have any content protection. It must be disabled in a Vista system …
