Top Items:
Michael Arrington / TechCrunch:
Counterstrike: Murdoch, DeWolfe Announce MySpace Platform and New Privacy Controls — Rupert Murdoch and MySpace co-founder Chris DeWolfe announced some of their plans around the MySpace Platform (rumored since last week) this evening at the Web 2.0 conference during a Q&A with John Battelle.
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Dean Takahashi / Tech Talk with Dean Takahashi:
Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg opens the Web 2.0 conference in Q&A with John Batelle — John Battelle and Tim O'Reilly opened the Web 2.0 asking a question, "Is this a bubble?" Few folks raised their hands in the ballroom of the Palace Hotel. But this is the land of the faithful.
BBC:
MySpace opens door to developers — Social network MySpace is to allow third-party developers to build applications for the site. — The move brings the website into line with rival Facebook, which has seen strong growth since it opened up to outside programmers.
Discussion:
Insider Chatter
Bruce Meyerson / Business Week:
Skype Goes Mobile — Skype's new cell phone will deliver mobile access to its service. The beleaguered carrier hopes to jump-start revenues overseas — Bit by bit, big names in the computing world are barging into the cell-phone business. First came Apple's (AAPL) game-changing iPhone.
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Matt / Gravatar Blog:
Automattic Acquires Gravatar — The best ideas are often the simplest. (At least in hindsight.) The idea of globally-recognized avatar, or Gravatar, struck me from the first time I heard it. Of course I should be able to have my avatar wherever I go! Of course email is a great way to key it!
Discussion:
Rev2.org, Blogcosm, The Marketing Technology Blog, Neomeme, TechCrunch, Forever Geek, CenterNetworks, Mashable!, Read/WriteWeb and Digg
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Om Malik / GigaOM:
Startups Should Team Up to Grow — Earlier this week, MeeVee, an online television guide, decided to acquire Top Ten Sources, a Boston-based social news and information site. Last night, Next New Networks bought BarelyPolitical.com, the production company responsible for Obama Girl, for an undisclosed amount of money.
Discussion:
Stealthmode Partners
Alex Pham / Los Angeles Times:
EBay posts $936-million loss — Its $936 million in red ink stems largely from a write-down of the online calling service. — EBay Inc. dialed up a steep third-quarter loss Wednesday, as the accounting effect of paying too much for the Skype Internet calling service offset strong growth …
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Chris Ziegler / Engadget:
Verizon lays out upcoming smartphone lineup; Samsung i760 comes first — No surprises in the mix here, but we're delighted to see that Verizon is finally getting official with four smart devices that have been rumored to be in its pipeline for ages. Of the four, only the i760 from Samsung's …
Thomas S. Mulligan / Los Angeles Times:
Viacom to offer all clips of 'Daily Show' online — Switching gears, it will provide free views of the program in a bid to generate ad revenue. — NEW YORK — Media giant Viacom Inc. is suing YouTube Inc., but it's also taking lessons from the online video service.
Interwoven Inc.:
Interwoven To Acquire Website Optimization Pioneer Optimost — Combination of Interwoven's Content Management Solutions with Optimost's Multivariable Testing and Optimization Solution Helps Organizations Maximize Online Business Performance — Interwoven, Inc. (NASDAQ: IWOV) …
Duncan Riley / TechCrunch:
Baidu Hijacking Google Traffic In China — Google has done it hard in China. Confined to acting within both local laws and US copyright laws it has failed to take the lead in a market that will have more broadband users that the United States in the next 12-18 months.
Discussion:
Search Engine Land, Digital Marketing SEO Blog, Search Engine Roundtable and Associated Press
Danny Sullivan / Search Engine Land:
Karen Wickre: Mother Of The Google Blog On Google's Official Blogging — When Google launched the Official Google Blog back in 2004, it started as sort of a ho-hum event. There wasn't anything particularly gripping, and some wondered if the company should be more edgy with its posts.
Discussion:
Google Blogoscoped
BBC:
Mobile use backed on planes — Passengers could soon be using their mobile phones on planes flying through European airspace. — Plans have been developed across EU countries to introduce technology which permits mobile calls without risk of interference with aircraft systems.
Tom Yager / InfoWorld:
Apple OS X Leopard: A beautiful upgrade — Finally, a PC Unix that everyone can love. OS X Leopard is a triumph of customer-focused engineering — Apple's announcement of the impending delivery of OS X Leopard (release 10.5 of Mac and Xserve operating systems) marks the public debut …
