Techmeme: For Flipboard, Future is HTML5, RSS & New New Advertising (Om Malik/GigaOM)

12:00 PM ET, December 2, 2010

Top Items:

Zach Epstein / BGR:

RIM acquires The Astonishing Tribe (TAT), the SWAT team of UI design — RIM's upcoming QNX-based OS is about to get a swift kick in the UI, as the company announced its acquisition of The Astonishing Tribe on Thursday. Also known as TAT, the team is renowned for its stunning UI work …

Discussion: Engadget and Electronista

Research In Motion / Inside BlackBerry:

RIM welcomes TAT! — Today we are pleased to confirm plans for The Astonishing Tribe (TAT) team to join Research In Motion (RIM). We're excited that the TAT team will be joining RIM and bringing their talent to the BlackBerry PlayBook and smartphone platforms.

Amit Singhal / The Official Google Blog:

Being bad to your customers is bad for business — A recent article by the New York Times related a disturbing story. By treating your customers badly, one merchant told the paper, you can generate complaints and negative reviews that translate to more links to your site; which, in turn, make it more prominent in search engines.

Danny Sullivan / Search Engine Land:
Google: Now Using Online Merchant Reviews As Ranking Signal

Discussion: Search Engine Roundtable

Alexia Tsotsis / TechCrunch:
Google Changes Its Rank Algorithm In Response To DecorMyEyes Story

Discussion: Search Engine Land, Examiner, Social Studies Blog and Media Maverick

SAI: Silicon Alley Insider:

eBay Buying Milo.com For $75 Million — eBay is acquiring local shopping site Milo.com, we've learned from a reader. We confirmed it with a second source. The price tag according to our sources is $75 million in cash. Milo.com is shopping search engine that lets you find out what's in stock at local stores.

Discussion: TechCrunch, VatorNews, VentureBeat and Tech Trader Daily

Robert Andrews / paidContent:UK:

BBC Plans Subscription-Only U.S. iPlayer On iPad — This is huge. The BBC will launch the long-awaited global version of its iPlayer TV catch-up service on a subscription-only basis, and initially only on iPad. — The service, carrying BBC shows like Doctor Who on-demand …

Om Malik / GigaOM:

For Flipboard, Future is HTML5, RSS & New New Advertising — As traditional publishers struggle to find new business models centered on the iPad and other tablets, Mike McCue, the founder of Palo Alto, Calif.-based mobile media company, Flipboard, seems to have figured out a business model for his 20-person company.

Discussion: Business Week, SFGate, paidContent, ReadWriteWeb, Electronista and TeleRead, more at Mediagazer »

9 to 5 Mac:

Apple opens up new business with POS systems — Late last year there were rumors that Apple would release their EasyPay point-of-sale system as a commercial product to third parties. Last month Apple's first customer, Gap Inc's Old Navy subsidiary began piloting them.

Discussion: MacRumors, IntoMobile, AppleInsider, SAI, GottaBeMobile, iLounge, blogs.chron.com, everythingiCafe, Newlaunches.com, MacStories, PhoneArena, Tech Report, MobileBurn.com and iClarified

Kent Walker / Google Public Policy Blog:

Making Copyright Work Better Online — There are more than 1 trillion unique URLs on the Web and more than 35 hours of video uploaded to YouTube every minute. It's some pretty fantastic stuff - content that makes us think, laugh, and learn new things. Services we couldn't have imagined ten years ago …

Discussion: TechCrunch, YouTube Blog, CNET News and Epicenter

Rachel Slajda / TPMMuckraker:

How Lieberman Got Amazon To Drop Wikileaks — Early this week, after hacker attacks on its site, Wikileaks moved its operation, including all those diplomatic cables, to the greener pastures of Amazon.com's cloud servers. But today, it was down again and mid-afternoon we found out the reason …

Democracy in America: Missing the point of WikiLeaks

Peter Baldwin / Official Google Reader Blog:

The Android Google Reader app is here! — It's been a long time coming, but the official Google Reader app for Android is finally here. Let's jump into the features, shall we? — The app supports all the basics you'd expect like unread counts, friends, sharing, liking, and starring, but it also has a whole lot more, including:

Gmail Blog:

New in Labs: Smart mute and easier ways to unmute — If you subscribe to a lot of mailing lists and like to keep an empty inbox, muting (or preventing a conversation from re-entering your inbox) is an essential feature. We just made a few changes that should make muting even better.

Discussion: The Atlantic Online, Download Squad, Softpedia News, The Next Web and SEO and Tech Daily

MG Siegler / TechCrunch:

Gowalla 3.0 Unifies Check-Ins, Places With Facebook, Twitter, And Yes, Foursquare — This past March, I came home from SXSW with a problem. The so-called “location war” hadn't yielded one check-in service to rule them all. In fact, several new ones popped up just at that conference alone.

Discussion: Mashable!, VentureBeat, GigaOM, AppScout, USA Today and About Foursquare

Matt McGee / Search Engine Land:

Google Maps Image Sparks International Debate In Iran — Some in Iran are calling for the removal of a Star of David that's still sitting atop the Iran Air headquarters in Tehran, some 30+ years after Iran broke off relations with Israel. The image above shows the Star on the building's roof …

Discussion: Fox News

Walt Mossberg / Wall Street Journal:

Apple TV: Streaming and Renting From Devices — Of all the set-top boxes designed to bring online and computer content to your TV, perhaps the best known is Apple TV. But, unlike its maker's other products, Apple TV hasn't caught on in a big way. In fact, Apple CEO Steve Jobs calls it a “hobby.”

Ina Fried / Mobilized:

Verizon's 4G Network Is Windows-Only, for Now — Those who want to be among the first to rule the air on Verizon Wireless's new 4G network better have a Windows PC handy. — It turns out that the LG laptop modem that goes on sale Sunday-the only option at launch-is Windows-only, at least for now.

Discussion: Erictric, eWeek, Between the Lines Blog, Appolicious Advisor and 9 to 5 Mac

David Sarno / L.A. Times Tech Blog:
Verizon to switch on 4G network on Sunday, but not for smartphones

Discussion: Gizmodo, Forbes, Engadget, BGR, lalawag, Reuters, CNET News, 9 to 5 Mac, Wi-Fi Networking News, Examiner, GigaOM, Computerworld, TechFlash, Liliputing, Mashable!, Sidecut Reports, Techland, IntoMobile, AnandTech, LaptopMemo, The Next Web, The Tech Herald … and Digits

Taylor Wimberly / Android and Me:

Quad-core processors coming to Android devices in the near future — I'm not sure who coined the phrase first, but those “Chuck Norris quad-core processors” that everyone likes to joke about on Twitter could make their way into Android devices sooner than you think.

Discussion: GottaBeMobile, PhoneArena, pocketnow.com, Android Phone Fans and The Next Web

Josh Ong / AppleInsider:

Apple TV users reporting long rental wait times, HDMI issues — Early adopters of Apple's second-generation Apple TV are reporting issues with streaming HD rentals and problems completing “HDMI handshakes” between the new Apple TV and their HD TVs. — Several discussion threads …

Discussion: CrunchGear, O'Grady's PowerPage, SlashGear and Go Rumors

Mike Masnick / Techdirt:

Are Companies Scanning Open Source Commit Logs And Patenting What They Find? — It's funny how often we hear patent system supporters tell us that if you haven't actually gotten a patent for your invention, it's perfectly reasonable for someone else to go and patent it instead.

Erica Ogg / CNET News:

Apple patents glasses-less 3D projection — A diagram of how Apple's proposed 3D projection system would work. — It's not that much of a surprise that Apple thinks watching 3D content with plastic glasses is dumb. — And the company that's all about sleek, cool, and simple has actually …

Discussion: ZDNet, The Register, SlashGear, Gizmodo, TechCrunch and Electricpig.co.uk

Paul Graham / Paul Graham's Essays:

Tablets — I was thinking recently how inconvenient it was not to have a general term for iPhones, iPads, and the corresponding things running Android. The closest to a general term seems to be “mobile devices,” but that (a) applies to any mobile phone, and (b) doesn't really capture what's distinctive about the iPad.

Discussion: GottaBeMobile and Stowe Boyd

Evelyn M. Rusli / DealBook:

Google's Bid for Groupon Portrayed as a Bargain — As investors fret that Google's $6 billion bid for Groupon is too high a price to pay, new details about the company's sales and growth suggest that it might be more like one of Groupon's cut-rate deals. — An individual close to Groupon …

Discussion: Venture Capital Dispatch, Understanding Google …, MediaPost, Geeking with Greg and MediaFile

Kara Swisher / BoomTown:

Yahoo's M&A Head Andrew Siegel Is Departing the Company — Andrew Siegel-Yahoo's head of corporate development, who is in charge of its mergers and acquisitions strategy-is leaving the company, according to sources. — The former General Electric exec, who came to the Silicon Valley Internet giant …

Sinead Carew / Reuters:

Motorola eyes home streaming to mobile — (Reuters) - Motorola Mobility plans next year to sell a product that lets consumers stream video to mobile devices such as tablet computers and cellphones in their home, a top executive for the company said on Wednesday.

Discussion: VentureBeat, Electronista, SlashGear, PhoneArena, Android Phone Fans, IntoMobile and MobileBurn.com

Kara Swisher / BoomTown:

Password Manager LastPass Acquires Xmarks — LastPass, an online password manager and form filler, has acquired the social bookmarking and browser synchronization service Xmarks. — The San Francisco-based Xmarks has been in the midst of some tumult of late, as it closed down in September …

Discussion: Xmarks Blog, Mashable!, Techie Buzz, Lifehacker and MacStories

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