Techmeme: Exclusive: Facebook Will Announce 500 Million Users Next Week With … (Kara Swisher/BoomTown)

12:35 PM ET, July 17, 2010

Top Items:

Official statement from Research In Motion in response to Apple's iPhone 4 Antennagate propaganda! — I hoped this was coming. Here it is. A joint statement from RIM Co-CEOs in response to misleading comments from Apple made Friday by Steve Jobs at the iPhone 4 press conference:

Joshua Topolsky / Engadget:

Inside Apple's ‘black lab’ wireless testing facilities — It's not surprising that after Apple finished explaining the iPhone 4 antenna issues to the press today, the company wanted to go one step further and say “yes, actually, we do test the hell out of these phones before we release them to the public.”

Discussion: Gizmodo, Gadget Lab, Macworld, MacRumors, iClarified, Daring Fireball, Bits, Laughing Squid, App Advice, IntoMobile, Unwired View, techblog.dallasnews.com, eWeek, TechFlash and AppleInsider

Paul Miller / Engadget:

Apple to give away free cases to iPhone 4 users — Apple's not really ready to say it's sorry about the iPhone 4 antenna design, but it is willing to give all you darn squeaky wheels free cases for your trouble. Since Apple can't build its own Bumpers fast enough, it will give you a few options …

Michael Arrington / TechCrunch:

A Raging, Rambling Debate About Antennagate, Followed By A Fanboy Intervention — I had a theory about today's Apple iPhone 4 Press Extravaganza. Apple was just too eager to get all the press that cares about Apple stuff into one room at the same time on one day's notice.

Discussion: MacStories and Daring Fireball

Chris Ziegler / Engadget:

Nokia: ‘we prioritize antenna performance over physical design if they are ever in conflict’ — Nokia's looking to ride the mojo of any negative fallout from today's Apple press conference, slipping out a rather fascinating statement this afternoon. The gist of it is that Espoo's keen …

Donald Melanson / Engadget:
Apple posts iPhone 4 press conference video, ‘smartphone antenna performance’ page

Discussion: Computerworld, Daily Mobile, The Next Web, TheAppleBlog, Appletell, PC World, Fone Arena, IBD Click, Babbage, Yahoo! News, The Nokia Blog, LiewCF.com, TiPb, The Huffington Post, TUAW and AppleInsider

Mark Gurman / 9 to 5 Mac:
Apple has ‘Verizon cell sites on campus,’ Heavily testing Verizon iPhone?

Discussion: Electronista, Gizmodo, Macworld, Silicon Alley Insider, Cult of Mac, PC World, Digital Trends, Phones Review, I4U News, AppleInsider, ChannelWeb and MacRumors Page 2, Thanks:atul

Erick Schonfeld / TechCrunch:
Steve Jobs: “We're Not Perfect.”

Discussion: Inquirer, VentureBeat, ZDNet, Associated Press, GeekSugar, MacNN, internetnews.com, Mobile Entertainment, Black Web 2.0, Local Media Watch, BlogsDNA and Silicon Alley Insider

Cleve Nettles / 9 to 5 Mac:
Apple shipping redesigned iPhone in October?

Discussion: Slide To Play, Pocket-lint, Engadget, Daring Fireball, Geek.com, iClarified, AppleInsider, TechCrunch and iPhone Download Blog

Tricia Duryee / paidContent: That Thunk You Heard Was The iPhone Falling Off Its Pedestal

Vivek Wadhwa / TechCrunch:

Why I'm Craigslisting My iPads — You can definitely call me an Apple fanboy: I've bought practically every device that Steve Jobs has made since 1985—when I got my first Macintosh. I own an Apple TV, several iPods, a Macbook Pro, a Macbook Air, an iMac, two iPhones, and two iPads (one was a gift).

Discussion: pluGGd.in, Thanks:rawmeet

Kara Swisher / BoomTown:

Exclusive: Facebook Will Announce 500 Million Users Next Week With “Facebook Stories” — Facebook confirmed that it expects to announce its 500-millionth user next week, and will mark the occasion with new consumer marketing initiative called “Facebook Stories.”

Discussion: Softpedia News, Pocket-lint, Neowin.net and TechCrunch, Thanks:sameerpatel

Kim Zetter / Threat Level:

Gawker Media Deals Its Way Out of iPhone Search Warrant — A California court has granted the request of local prosecutors to withdraw a controversial search warrant against an editor for the tech site Gizmodo over its scoop about the iPhone 4G. — Prosecutors reached an agreement with Thomas Nolan …

Discussion: PC World, Electronic Frontier Foundation and Silicon Alley Insider, more at Mediagazer »

Janet Novack / Forbes:

Academic Study: eBay Sellers Shirk Sales Tax Law — Economists' findings come as states and Congress look for new ways to collect tax on Internet sales. — Sales tax collection compliance among eBay sellers is “alarmingly low,” says a new academic study published as states look for ammunition to bolster tax-collection laws.

Matt Hamblen / Computerworld:

Wi-Fi available on 1 in 3 U.S. planes — No longer rare, the service is gradually being added on more passenger jets, but VoIP a no-no — Computerworld - Wi-Fi service is offered on more than one-third of the nation's passenger planes, so it's no longer rare to see travelers connecting to the Internet in midflight.

Matt Brian / The Next Web:

OAuth and OpenID Authentication Vulnerable To “Timing Attack” — Authentication systems employed by large websites such as Twitter and Digg could be at risk after researchers have discovered a basic flaw that could crack a large number of open-source software libraries wide open leaving …

Discussion: Computerworld and Techie Buzz

Marshall Kirkpatrick / ReadWriteWeb:

The Pioneer Behind @ComcastCares, Frank Eliason, Resigns — Frank Eliason, the man behind the ballyhooed Twitter account @comcastcares, announced his resignation from giant cable and internet provider Comcast this afternoon. Companies interested in social media, and that's just about all companies …

Discussion: Comcast Voices, MediaPost and Time Warner Cable Untangled

Jack Menzel / The Official Google Blog:

Deeper understanding with Metaweb — Over time we've improved search by deepening our understanding of queries and web pages. The web isn't merely words—it's information about things in the real world, and understanding the relationships between real-world entities can help us deliver relevant information more quickly.

Barry Schwartz / Search Engine Land: Google Buys Metaweb To Bolster Answers, Google Squared & Rich Snippets

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