Top Items:
Melissa Harris / Chicago Breaking Business:
Sources: Groupon rejects Google's offer; will stay independent — The deal didn't tip after all. Chicago-based Groupon Inc. has eschewed an acquisition offer from Google Inc. and is staying independent, according to two sources with direct knowledge of the situation.
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Kara Swisher / BoomTown:
Groupon Annual Revenues Actually $2 Billion — According to sources close to the situation, Groupon's actual run rate for this year is clocking in at $2 billion in revenue, rather than the widely quoted $500 million. — Who knew hawking spa treatments and stripper-pole lessons could be so lucrative?
Discussion:
TechCrunch, VentureBeat, Screenwerk, Bloomberg, SAI and eMoney
Mario Queiroz / The Official Google Blog:
On demand is in demand: we've agreed to acquire Widevine — With rapidly improving broadband and wireless speeds, more powerful smartphones, and higher resolution screens on devices of all shapes and sizes, it's becoming easier than ever to watch video wherever you want, whenever you want.
Discussion:
L.A. Times Tech Blog, TechFlash, CNET News, Digital Daily, GigaOM, The Seattle Times, BetaNews, paidContent, Android Phones, Tips …, Xconomy, Erictric, Mobility Digest, SelectStart, Electronista, Light Reading and Pulse2, Thanks:chirag_mehta
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Alexia Tsotsis / TechCrunch:
Google Buys On Demand Video Service Widevine To Bolster Its Own TV Efforts
Discussion:
Widevine Technologies
Joanna Stern / Engadget:
Sources: Google-branded Chrome OS netbook to launch on December 7th — The headline pretty much reveals the brunt of it, but indeed, it looks like next week Google is going to start talking about how its Chrome operating system is coming along. Multiple sources have told us that Google …
Discussion:
Computerworld, SlashGear, internetnews.com, Fortune, The Next Web, Epicenter, Webmonkey, MediaMemo, Erictric, Pulse2, Liliputing, Gizmodo, TechSpot, Download Squad and Electronista
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MG Siegler / TechCrunch:
Google Begins Emailing Extension Developers To Get Ready For Chrome Web Store — Earlier today, we were tipped about this thread in the Chromium Google Groups area. Gregor Hochmuth, the Product Manager for the Chrome Web Store, responded to a question wondering if Google …
Discussion:
The Next Web and SAI
Guardian:
Julian Assange answers your questions — The founder of WikiLeaks, Julian Assange, answers readers' questions about the release of more than 250,000 US diplomatic cables — Fwoggie … Julian Assange: — I am an Australian citizen and I miss my country a great deal.
Discussion:
CNN, techPresident, Netcraft, The Nation, TechFlash, Digital Trends, ITProPortal, Tech Europe, virtualeconomics and News: News blog
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Matt Raymond / Library of Congress Blog:
Why the Library of Congress Is Blocking Wikileaks — The news media are reporting today, accurately, that the Library of Congress is blocking access to the Wikileaks site across its computer systems, including those for use by patrons in the reading rooms. — I wanted to provide …
Discussion:
TPMMuckraker and ResourceShelf
Guardian:
WikiLeaks fights to stay online after US company withdraws domain name
Discussion:
Examiner, Threat Level, The Firewall, Scripting News, techPresident, Techdirt, PC World, TechnoLlama, Netcraft, newsfeed.time.com, Techland, NewEnterprise, Datamation, BaltTech, Faster Forward, Computerworld, CrunchGear, rc3.org, Reuters, TechEye, Budi Putra, Domain Name Wire and LIVEdigitally, more at Mediagazer »
Ernesto / TorrentFreak:
Troubled Wikileaks Moves To Pirate Party Domain
Discussion:
GigaOM, BGR, Inquirer, VentureBeat, Gearlog, CNET News, Agence France Presse, Netcraft, Tech Europe, BBC, V3.co.uk, The Huffington Post and The Next Web
Mike Cohen / The Official Google Blog:
Can we talk? Better speech technology with Phonetic Arts — In Star Trek, they don't spend a lot of time typing things on keyboards—they just speak to their computers, and the computers speak back. It's a more natural way to communicate, but getting there requires chipping away at a range of hard research problems.
Discussion:
IntoMobile, Fortune, L.A. Times Tech Blog, paidContent, Between the Lines Blog, eMoney, SAI, Erictric, Download Squad, MacNN, WebProNews, Pulse2, Search Engine Watch, Computerworld and SiliconANGLE
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Jason Kincaid / TechCrunch:
Google Acquires Phonetic Arts To Make Robo-Voices Sound Human
Discussion:
ReadWriteWeb
Paul Miller / Engadget:
PlayStation Phone ‘Zeus Z1’ caught on video again, this time you can actually see it (update) — Wow guys, we just spotted a new video of the PlayStation Phone, codenamed Zeus Z1, and this time we get a long, loving look at the entire device — a refreshing contrast to last time's blurry tease.
Discussion:
Digital Trends, Android Police, LaptopMemo, Kotaku, The Next Web, Mobilized, Joystiq, MobileCrunch and Gizmodo
W.J. Hennigan / L.A. Times Tech Blog:
Google pays Pennsylvania couple $1 in Street View lawsuit — Google Inc. will pay $1 in damages to a Pennsylvania couple who took the company to court, saying the company's Street View service was an invasion of privacy. — Street View is a feature that lets users pick a point on a map …
Discussion:
Examiner, Techdirt, NPR, PittsburghLIVE.com, Techie Buzz, Pulse2, Telegraph, SlashGear, Associated Press and Vendors and Markets
Caleb Cox / The Register:
Sony sells Playstation-packing TV — All sorts of tech has been integrated into TVs from iPod docks to Blu-ray players, but now Sony has put a Playstation into one and it's available in the UK for under £200. — The Sony Bravia KDL-22PX300 is a 22in LCD TV with a built-in PS2 …
Discussion:
Engadget, CNET News, SlashGear, Pulse2, displayblog, CrunchGear, The Escapist, ITProPortal, Geek.com, The Toybox Blog, The Next Web, Softpedia News, TechSpot, Geekosystem, Joystiq and Electronista
John Ciancutti / The Netflix Tech Blog:
Why We Choose HTML5 for User Experiences on Devices — This is John Ciancutti, VP of Personalization Technology here at Netflix. As you know, last month we released a completely new user experience for Netflix on the PS3. I thought I would tell you about the technology choices we're using …
Erick Schonfeld / TechCrunch:
Angry Birds On Android Projected To Generate $1 Million Per Month In Advertising — One of the most successful mobile games right now is Angry Birds, which has been downloaded more than 30 million times across different mobile platforms, with 12 million of those being paid downloads on iPhones, iPads, and iPod Touches.
Discussion:
Mobilized, The Official Google Blog, SAI, PhoneArena, IntoMobile, Android Phone Fans, BGR and Eurodroid
Owen Thomas / VentureBeat:
Facebook's big move to Madison Avenue — The world's largest social network could soon be opening shop on Madison Avenue, the iconic address long linked to New York City's advertising industry. — Facebook has leased two floors at 335 Madison Avenue, according to a source …
Discussion:
All Facebook and WebProNews
Peter Kafka / MediaMemo:
Apple, Publishers Still Miles Apart on iTunes Subscriptions — Magazine publishers used to salivate over the iPad. Now they're a lot more reserved. They make hopeful noises about Google's Android tablets instead. — That's because Apple and the publishing industry haven't been able …
Discussion:
Digital Trends, VentureBeat, Electronista, MacRumors, iClarified, iLounge, Tech Trader Daily, MacDailyNews and everythingiCafe, more at Mediagazer »
Peter Kafka / MediaMemo:
LimeWire Makes It Official: It's All Over — It took a day, but LimeWire has responded to my request for comment on its imminent shutdown: It acknowledges that it's shutting down, imminently. Via email: “Given our current situation, plans to bring our separate, legal music service to market have been canceled.
Discussion:
Media Decoder, The Next Web, Electronista, ZeroPaid.com, Music Ally and Inquirer
Sam Oliver / AppleInsider:
Apple won't allow demos, trials, betas on Mac App Store — Apple this week provided more information to developers regarding its forthcoming Mac App Store, and informed them that, unlike on iOS, trial versions of software will not be allowed. — Apple issued a handful of updates via …
Discussion:
Macworld, BGR, MacStories, CrunchGear, MacNN, VentureBeat, PR Newswire, SlashGear, Notebooks.com, TUAW, GigaOM, Pulse2, App Advice and THINQ.co.uk
Chris Thompson / About Foursquare:
Foursquare revokes mayor editing rights — If a venue isn't offering a mayor special, there are very few advantages to becoming a foursquare mayor. Yesterday foursquare reduced those benefits even further by taking away the right for mayors to edit their venues, leaving bragging rights as the only positive for becoming a mayor.
Discussion:
Pulse2
Matt / Signal vs. Noise:
The creators of no-longer-with-us products explain what went wrong — Stuart Roseman shut down Verifiable, a crowdsourced charting and data analysis site, to start SaneBox, a product that automatically identifies important email and separates them in a user's inbox.
David Sarno / L.A. Times Tech Blog:
IPhones account for 23% of business smart phones to BlackBerry's 51%, ComScore says — Apple Inc.'s iPhone has earned itself close to a quarter of the business smart phone market, according to ComScore Inc., while BlackBerry-maker Research In Motion Inc. accounts for about 52%.
Terrence O'Brien / Switched:
Droid 2 Allegedly Explodes in Man's Ear — Cedar Hill, Texas resident Aron Embry claims that his brand-new Droid 2 exploded. Usually, when cell phones explode (and yes, they do explode from time to time), they're in a pocket where heat is easily trapped. Embry claims he was talking …
