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10:05 AM ET, September 28, 2010

Techmeme

 Top Items: 
Om Malik / GigaOM:
AOL Close to Buying TechCrunch  —  AOL, the New York-based online media company, is on the verge of acquiring TechCrunch, the online blogging network started by former attorney, Michael Arrington.  The deal is at a sensitive stage and might fall apart yet, but I don't think so.
RELATED:
Peter Kafka / MediaMemo:
The Pros and Cons of a TechCrunch/AOL Deal  —  Could AOL buy TechCrunch-a possibility that both Om Malik and the Wall Street Journal say is on the table?  Sure.  —  Does that make sense?  Good question.  —  TechCrunch is a big, successful Web site, and big successful Web sites are very hard to build.
Robert Scoble / Scobleizer:
Techcrunch Disrupted by AOL: The end of an era in tech blogging?  —  The news/rumor that Techcrunch is up for sale quickly made the rounds at the Techcrunch Disrupt conference this afternoon.  GigaOm started it with a post that a sale to AOL is close at hand.
Discussion: Silicon Alley Insider and Bits
Nicholas Carlson / Silicon Alley Insider:
AOL Tried To Buy TechCrunch Twice Before
Discussion: The Huffington Post
Staci D. Kramer / paidContent:   Michael Arrington And TechCrunch Could Wind Up At AOL After All
Jason Kincaid / TechCrunch:
Apple Has Already Approved The Official Google Voice App For iPhone, Expect It Soon  —  The App Store review office at 1 Infinite Loop has officially frozen over: we've gotten word that the official Google Voice application is on its way to the iPhone in the next few weeks.
MG Siegler / TechCrunch:
Yep, Amazon Launching Their Own App Store For Android Too  —  Earlier today, after several tips, we guessed that Amazon may be close to launching its own app store for Android — yes, another Android app store.  Sources we reached out to weren't sure about what exactly Amazon was launching …
RELATED:
Todd Agulnick / Xmarks Blog:
End of the Road for Xmarks  —  As I write this, it's a typical Sunday here at Xmarks.  The synchronization service continues operating quietly, the servers chugging along syncing browser data for our 2 million users across their 5 million desktops.  The day isn't over yet, but we're on track to add just under 3000 new accounts today.
Dave Rosenberg / Software, Interrupted:
2010 acquisitions—Microsoft: 0 Google: 23  —  A recent blog post from information service provider CB Insights reveals a truly shocking piece of news—that Microsoft has announced zero acquisitions so far in 2010, while Google has acquired 23 companies, 75 percent of which are venture financed or angel-backed.
RELATED:
John Cook / TechFlash:   What Google, Facebook and others look for in M&A deals
John Paczkowski / Digital Daily:
RIM Unveils BlackBerry Playbook Tablet  —  Research in Motion co-CEO Mike Lazaridis had his “one more thing” moment today at the company's 2010 DevCon conference.  Near end of his opening keynote address today Lazaridis, after making a number of big announcements — in-app payments for BlackBerry apps …
RELATED:
Therese Poletti / MarketWatch:
RIM's tablet showcases new software
Discussion: Amazon.com and Engadget
Eric Zeman / InformationWeek:
First Impressions Of BlackBerry PlayBook
Discussion: Engadget, BB Geeks, techeblog.com and Pulse2
Josh Ong / AppleInsider:
Goldman Sachs says Apple planning thinner iPad with camera, mini USB  —  A team of analysts for investment bank Goldman Sachs said Monday that their sources lead them to believe Apple will introduce a second-generation iPad during the spring of 2011 that will feature a camera, mini USB and a lighter design.
Dharmesh Mehta / The Windows Blog:
WordPress.com and Windows Live partnering together and providing an upgrade for 30 million Windows Live Spaces customers  —  Over the last few weeks, we've spent a good bit of time talking about our approach to partnering with the web, and as part of that, how we're deeply integrating …
RELATED:
Mary Jo Foley / All about Microsoft Blog:   Microsoft makes it official: Windows Live is no longer a blogging platform
Alexia Tsotsis / TechCrunch:
Google Buys Schedule Management Startup Plannr  —  According to multiple sources familiar with the matter, Google has just bought Seattle-based mobile planning startup Plannr, which if you remember our coverage launched about two months ago as an Outlook for hipsters.
Boy Genius Report:
New HTC, full-QWERTY device destined for Verizon breaks cover  —  Hi there HTC Android fans, we have another present for you!  We've just been sent in a handful of images of a new, unseen HTC handset that is destined for Verizon Wireless.  This sleek, all-black, full-QWERTY Android 2.2 handset …
Daniel Emery / BBC:
Adult video-sharing list leaked from law firm  —  The attacks were in retaliation for action against file-sharing site the Pirate Bay  —  The personal details of thousands of Sky broadband customers have been leaked on to the internet, alongside a list of pornographic movies they are alleged to have shared online.
Gavin Clarke / The Register:
OpenOffice files Oracle divorce papers  —  Uncertainty breeds mistrust  —  Open sourcers have seized control of the OpenOffice project and product and declared their independence from database giant Oracle.  —  The OpenOffice.org Project has unveiled a major restructuring that separates itself …
Ogle Earth:
Beware: Chinese iPhone 4 comes with a crippled Maps app  —  The iPhone 4 officially landed in China yesterday, so I bought one from the new Apple Store at Xidan in Beijing.  In China, Apple sells its iPhones unlocked and without a contract (16GB = USD747, 32GB = USD895), so you can pretty much stick in any sim card and go.
Discussion: Shanghaiist and ReadWriteWeb, Thanks:atul
Vlad Savov / Engadget:
Sony Ericsson LiveView acts as a 1.3-inch remote control for your smartphone, requires Android 2.0  —  You've been asking for someone, anyone, to please kick out a tiny remote control display that can save you from having to whip your smartphone out for every little thing and Sony Ericsson, it seems, has listened.
Mike Masnick / Techdirt:
A Look At The Technologies & Industries Senators Leahy & Hatch Would Have Banned In The Past  —  The more I look at the “Combating Online Infringement and Counterfeits Act,” (COICA) bill proposed by Senators Patrick Leahy and Orrin Hatch (and co-sponsored by Sens. Herb Kohl, Arlen Specter …
Thanks:atul
RELATED:
The Huffington Post:
Stop the Internet Blacklist
Discussion: demandprogress.org and Boing Boing
Peter Kafka / MediaMemo:
AOL Officially Adds 5Min To Its Roster.  Next?  —  Here's the official press release announcing AOL's acquisition of 5Min Media.  Sources familiar with the transaction tell me it's an all-cash deal at the high end of the $50 million to $65 million range I reported earlier today.  So let's call it $65 million.
Spiegel Online:
WikiLeaks Spokesman Quits  —  Daniel Schmitt, who has revealed that his true name is Daniel Domscheit-Berg, says WikiLeaks has a structural problem.  “I no longer want to take responsibility for it,” he says.  —  In an interview with SPIEGEL, Daniel Schmitt — the 32-year-old German spokesman …
Discussion: Silicon Alley Insider and TechEye
Robin Wauters / TechCrunch:
Amazon Debuts “Kindle for the Web”, Which Is Pretty Much What It Sounds Like  —  Amazon.com today introduced the beta version of “Kindle for the Web”, which enables people to read and share digital book samples in their browsers without the need to install or download anything.
Leena Rao / TechCrunch:
OneTrueFan Is The Foursquare For Websites  —  The Foursquare model of checking into a location, earning badges and tapping into your social network to share that location has become one that has been able to be applied to other platforms.  For example, GetGlue allows users to check-in to shows …
James Hibberd / The Hollywood Reporter:
Another Twitter feed gets CBS comedy deal  —  Exclu: Call it “$#*!  My Roommate Says.”  —  CBS is developing two new comedies, including a project based off a Twitter feed produced by social-media master Ashton Kutcher.  —  Following on the successful launch of its Twitter-inspired comedy “$#*!
Peter Kafka / MediaMemo:
Exclusive: Want Twitter to Help You Find More Followers?  Pay Up For a “Promoted Account.”  —  Twitter is still working to get its first two ad products up and running.  But it's going to launch a third, anyway: Tomorrow the company will show off “Promoted Accounts” at an ad industry conference in New York.
 
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 More Items: 
Office For Mac:
Office for Mac 2011 Available October 26
Darren Murph / Engadget:
Verizon's Mobile Recovery: like ‘Find my iPhone,’ …
Sarah Perez / ReadWriteWeb:
Paid Android App Support Expands to More Countries
Discussion: Distimo Blog, TechCrunch and BetaNews
Nick O'Neill / All Facebook:
Facebook Ads Become Dramatically More Transparent
Alexia Tsotsis / TechCrunch:
Tweetmeme Founder's Datasift Helps You Find A Needle In A Tweetstack
Discussion: VentureBeat
Barry Schwartz / Search Engine Land:
Bing iPhone App Adds Flight Price Predictions & Better Maps
Discussion: IntoMobile, Search Blog and App Advice
Andrew Ross Sorkin / New York Times:
The Value of a Piece of Facebook
Discussion: TechCrunch
 Earlier Items: 
Chris Crum / webpronews.com:
Facebook Likes Just Officially Became More Important to Search
Paul Graham / Y Combinator:
What Happens At Y Combinator  —  (We realized recently that a lot …
Thanks:atul
MG Siegler / TechCrunch:
Qwiki Just May Be The Future Of Information Consumption.  And It's Here Now.
Discussion: VentureBeat
Ben / MailChimp Email Marketing Blog:
Going Freemium: One Year Later
Claire Cain Miller / Bits:
A Badge That Tells Consumers, ‘Trust This App’
 

 
From Mediagazer:

Peter White / Deadline:
Fox and Hulu extend their content partnership, including in-season streaming rights for Fox's programming; sources: the deal is worth $1.5B over four years

Peter Kafka / Business Insider:
A Q&A with Chris Balfe, CEO of Red Seat Ventures, which has helped Tucker Carlson and Megyn Kelly set up their podcast and streaming businesses and sell ads

Jonathan Stempel / Reuters:
A New York judge finds Sirius XM liable for a difficult subscription cancellation process; Sirius says it will appeal but abide by a new “click-to-cancel” rule
 
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