EBay, PayPal , Max Levchin, Peter Thiel, Reid Hoffman (videos)

Levchin, Thiel Weigh In on EBay-PayPal Relationship: Video - Bloomberg:
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PayPal co-founder Max Levchin, PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel, former PayPal VPs Reid Hoffman and Keith Rabois, and former PayPal COO David Sacks comment on PayPal's relationship with EBay. (Source: Bloomberg--Sept 30)

PayPal Could Be $100B Company on Its Own: Sacks: Video - Bloomberg:
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David Sacks, former COO at PayPal, comments on EBay splitting off PayPal. He speaks with Emily Chang and Cory Johnson on "Bloomberg West." (Source: Bloomberg)

EBay, PayPal Split Unlocks Huge Potential: Scott Galloway: Video - Bloomberg:
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Scarlet Fu reports on EBay’s plans to separate EBay and PayPal in 2015. New York University Stern School of Business Marketing Professor Scott Galloway also speaks on “Bloomberg Surveillance.” (Source: Bloomberg--Sept 30)

EBay Spins Off PayPal: Why Didn’t it Happen Sooner?: Video - Bloomberg:
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Keefe Bruyette and Woods Technology Analyst Sanjay Sakhrani, Newco Chairman John Battelle and Bloomberg’s Cory Johnson discuss EBay spinning off its PayPal division. They speak on "Market Makers." (Source: Bloomberg--Sept 30)

EBay-PayPal Split: Carl Icahn Gets the Last Laugh: Video - Bloomberg:
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Bloomberg “Money Clip” Host Adam Johnson reports on the EBay-PayPal split. (Source: Bloomberg--Sept 30)

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Alibaba IPO, Too Aggressive in Price Boost? (video)

Bloomberg’s Paul Sweeney discusses a possible boost to the offering price of Alibaba’s IPO and compares it to the moves made by Facebook before it came to market. He speaks on “Market Makers.” (Sept. 15 Bloomberg) 

ABC News
How Silicon Valley sees Alibaba
Fortune
How Silicon Valley views Alibaba is another matter altogether. While respectful ofAlibaba's success in China and all that capital it shortly will have in ...
So What Exactly Is Alibaba? - Forbes
Alibaba Raises Fund-Raising Target for IPO to $21.8 Billion - New York Times
Alibaba IPO demand may be sinking tech stocks - USA TODAY

The Incredible Story Of How Alibaba Defeated eBay And Became...
Jillian D'Onfro
But one of the most crucial time periods in the company's history came in the early 2000s, when the still-newAlibaba battled out with the behemoth ...

The Official Twitch Blog Twitch On Chromecast Is Finally Here! » The Official Twitch Blog: Watching your favorite games and broadcasters on your TV just got a whole lot easier. Our new Chromecast support lets you send live Twitch video from your Android device, iPhone, iPad or laptop right to your TV. Getting started is easy:..."


Wall Street Journal
Microsoft Gets 'Minecraft' -- Not the Founders
Wall Street Journal
Microsoft said for now, the company is keeping Mojang's Stockholm office, which includes about 40 employees. Above, Mojang workers in 2012.
With Minecraft, Microsoft Buys A Doorway To Millions Of Players - NPR (blog)
Hey, Kids—Microsoft Is Buying Minecraft - Businessweek
12 Reasons Why Microsoft Bought 'Minecraft' - Yahoo Tech


CBS News
Apple's $100 million U2 debacle
CBS News
Apple (AAPL) had an impressive idea for the announcement of the iPhone 6, Apple Watch, and Apple Pay. Why not do a massive, exclusive giveaway ...
Apple Launches Tool To Remove Free U2 Album - Forbes
Apple creates tool for removing free U2 album from iTunes library after public reaction - 9to5Mac
Want to Delete U2's Free Album? Apple Created a Help Page for That - Mashable


ZDNet
With Android One, Google puts itself firmly back in the OS' driving seat
ZDNet
Google is bringing Android back under its control thanks to a new hardware and software combination. ...


Economic Times
Secret reason Amazon should fear Alibaba
USA TODAY
... Compare Alibaba’s tiny’s effective tax rate with other U.S.-based giants. Amazon paid a relatively whopping effective tax rate of 37% during the year ended December, says S&P Capital IQ. And over at eBay (EBAY), another U.S.-based e-commerce leader, the effective tax rate is 17.6%. “Many people don’t realize how low Alibaba’s tax rate is,” says Francis Gaskins, analyst at Equities.com. ...


Wall Street Journal
Apple Reports Record Preorders for New iPhone 6
Wall Street Journal
The company called the first-day preorders a record, surpassing the previous high of more than two million units set in 2012 when Apple released the ...

NFC on the iPhone 6 is limited to Apple Pay, at least for now
Jon Fingas
Apple has confirmed to Cult of Mac that the new iPhones' near field ... However, that doesn't necessarily mean the technology will go to waste in the ...

China Internet names tumble as Alibaba awaits - Alibaba Group Holding Limited (Pending:BABA) | Seeking Alpha: "... investors are dumping a wide swath of other Chinese internet names.Qihoo (QIHU -2.6%), Sohu.com (SOHU -5.3%), Baidu (BIDU -3.8%), Sina (SINA -4.9%), Renren (RENN -4%), Weibo (WB -11.3%), YY (YY -7.3%)."

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Apple iPhone 6, Unhappy Customers (videos)

Apple: Why Are iPhone 6 Customers Unhappy Campers?: Video - Bloomberg:
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Bloomberg “Money Clip” Host Adam Johnson reports on how the new iPhone 6 backlog and pre-loaded music are making for some unhappy customers. (Source: Bloomberg Sept 12)

Apple’s iPhone 6; What the Delay Means for Consumers: Video - Bloomberg:
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Bloomberg Intelligence’s Anand Srinivasan and Bloomberg’s Cory Johnson discuss Apple’s new product platform unveiled this week. They speak on “Taking Stock.” (Source: Bloomberg Sept 12)

Apple: iPhone 6 preorders set a record overnight - CNET: "A note on Apple's website Friday morning said the iPhone 6 Plus would be available to ship in three to four weeks, while the iPhone 6 would be available in 7 to 10 business days. Apple's bigger iPhone -- the 5.5-inch iPhone 6 phablet, or phone-tablet hybrid -- is believed to have manufacturing issues, limiting the initial supply that's available."

Google's Web-video ambitions bump into hard reality - CNET: "The company's technical prowess and free VP9 licensing haven't been enough to dent the fortunes of rival compression format HEVC. But Google's already moving on to VP10. "

EBay to launch an in-app mobile ad network in fourth quarter | Reuters: "EBay Inc will begin running advertisements on its mobile app in the fourth quarter, moving the e-commerce company into the fast-growing and lucrative market for ads on devices such as smart phones and tablets. EBay's users spend 150 minutes on its app per month, three times higher than its nearest rival, said Stephen Howard-Sarin, eBay's head of display advertising in North America."

Grandmas keep accidentally tagging themselves as Grandmaster Flash on Facebook - Lists - Weird News - The Independent: "Grandmas keep accidentally tagging themselves as Grandmaster Flash on Facebook"

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Tech Giant, But No Endless Free Perks (video)

The Tech Giant That Says No to Endless Free Perks: Video - Bloomberg: "Dec. 6 (Bloomberg) -- It's a perk-filled world in Silicon Valley, but at eBay you won't find bean bags or ping pong tables everywhere, and the food in the cafeteria actually costs money. So how does eBay keep up with the tech talent wars? Bloomberg's senior west coast correspondent Jon Erlichman reports."

More on Microsoft's SKU-morphic Windows vision | ZDNet: "A more traditional consumer SKU would be aimed at the current PC market. This SKU would include a desktop and be customized so that mouse/keyboard users will be able to continue to have some semblance of productivity and familiarity with Windows. This SKU also would be updated regularly and often through the Windows Store. There also will likely be some kind of traditional Enterprise SKU, according to my contacts, that would include all the usual business bells and whistles, like support for Win32 apps via a Desktop environment, support for group policy, device management and more. This SKU would be aimed primarily at traditional PCs, tablets and other devices and also allow users to run "Modern"/Windows Store apps."

This is Nokia's Android phone | The Verge: "Nokia has been building its own Android phone according to multiple sources familiar with the company’s plans. Codenamed Normandy, and known internally at Nokia under a number of other names, the handset is designed as the next step in low-end phones from the Finnish smartphone maker. We understand that Nokia has been testing “Normandy” with a special “forked” variant of Android that’s not aligned with Google’s own version, akin to what Amazon does with its Kindle Fire line ... It’s now unclear whether Nokia will release the handset before the Microsoft deal is finalized, or whether Microsoft will continue will the plans for the device."

"On a macro level, 'we need to track everyone everywhere for advertising' translates into 'the government being able to track everyone everywhere'... NSA uses Google cookies to pinpoint targets for hacking: "The agency's internal presentation slides, provided by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden, show that when companies follow consumers on the Internet to better serve them advertising, the technique opens the door for similar tracking by the government. The slides also suggest that the agency is using these tracking techniques to help identify targets for offensive hacking operations."

Google Chromecast Adds 10 Apps

InformationWeek
Presently, the Web-to-TV device is the top seller in Amazon.com's electronics ... much the way Apple's AirPlay technology can display an iOS or OS X screen on ...

Christian Science Monitor

Apple's Siri And Google Both Get C+ Grades From Gene Munster

Forbes
Gene Munster, Piper Jaffray's analyst for Apple Apple and Google Google, has run four sets of tests over the past eighteen months onApple's Siri and Google's ...

Opptrends

Google opening cultural center in Paris

San Jose Mercury News
PARIS (AP) -- Google (GOOG) is having trouble getting it right in France. France's culture minister snubbed the launch of Google's latest project, the Paris-based ...

The Guardian

Amazon's Drones Are Illegal In The United States

Forbes
When Jeffrey P. Bezos revealed to CBS's CBS's Charlie Rose thatAmazon.com Amazon.com was planning for a fleet of whirring octocopters to deliver ...

Treehugger

Apple Faces Harsh Terms in Its E-Book Defense

Businessweek
Fresh controversy over Apple's (AAPL) role in an alleged e-book conspiracy has raised questions about U.S. District Judge Denise Cote's handling of the case ...

Microsoft CEO Ballmer: Separating the man from myth

ZDNet
Summary: Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer & Co. talk about his legacy and lessons ... one as storied and controversial as Microsoft's Steve Ballmer, is a challenge.


ZDNet

Apple's iTunes Radio Hires Sales Exec From Cumulus Media

AdAge.com
Apple's iTunes Radio has poached a top radio ad exec as it prepares to offer the service widely to advertisers in 2014. Former Cumulus Media executive ...

ValueWalk

Microsoft's new Photosynth tools aim at a new artistic medium

PCWorld
But the new Photosynth formats that Microsoft has developed and published fuse ... Microsoft may be following in the footsteps of Googlewith its newfound focus ...

New York Times (blog)

Microsoft should make 'its widely disliked Windows 8' a free upgrade ...

ZDNet
Summary: According to analyst firm IHS, Microsoft should copy Appleand make its latest Windows 8.1 operating system free to all Windows users.

PC Pro

Amazon launches grocery business in San Francisco
USA TODAY
SAN FRANCISCO -- Amazon.com launched its grocery delivery business, AmazonFresh, in San Francisco Wednesday as the world's largest Internet retailer expands further into the giant consumer packaged goods sector. AmazonFresh offers more than ...

Microsoft eyes free versions of Windows Phone, RT, report says
CNET
The company also would try to convince more people to subscribe to SkyDrive, Office, and Skype. The move would be part of Microsoft's strategy to compete with Google, which offers Android for free to phone and tablet makers. Assuming the report is true ...

Google Pushes Android 4.4.2 To Nexus Devices
InformationWeek
Google began pushing Android 4.4.1 to the Nexus 4, 5, 7, and 10 last week. There was a small problem with the update, however, as it introduced several glitches. The 4.4.1 update was squelched, and Google replaced it with Android 4.4.2. Devices that ...

Antarctica sets minus-triple-digit Earth cold record
The Seattle Times
Antarctica sets minus-triple-digit Earth cold record. Feeling chilly? Here's cold comfort: You could be in East Antarctica which new data says set a record for "soul-crushing" cold. By SETH BORENSTEIN. AP Science Writer. Related. Local leaders planning for ...

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Google, eBay, Walmart, Same-day Delivery

Move over Amazon --

Google - http://www.google.com/shopping/express/about/

eBay - http://www.ebay.com/now/

Walmart - http://www.walmart.com/togo

Google puts pressure on eBay, expands same-day delivery - SiliconValley.com: "Google and eBay are jumping into the hypercompetitive brick-and-mortar retail industry to fend off Amazon, the retail colossus that is forging ahead with its own same-day delivery tests. By offering their services to struggling retailers and capturing shoppers who buy everything from cars to toilet paper online and want it delivered to their front door within hours, Google and eBay may corner one of the few retail markets Seattle-based Amazon hasn't already taken."

Amazon Pairs Print and Digital Books With New Program - NYTimes.com: "On Tuesday, the company plans to announce a new program, Kindle MatchBook, that lets its customers buy the electronic versions of books they have already purchased in print form for either $2.99, $1.99, $0.99 or free. That’s far less than the $11 or more that Amazon typically charges for standalone purchases of the latest Kindle titles."

HTML5, MongoDB, iOS Top List of Job Search Keywords: Indeed: "The keyword "HTML5" is apt to be golden on the resumes of job hunters versed in the technology. According to employment site Indeed.com's latest job trends report, "HTML5" is the fastest growing keyword found in online job postings. No mere buzzwords, the top 10 job search keywords on Indeed.com reflect the most popular trends in the industry right now and are related to Web development, mobility, big data and the cloud. Employers are looking anywhere and everywhere for talented individuals who are versed in big data technologies such as Hadoop and MongoDB."

Microsoft buys Nokia handset business for €5.4bn | Technology | theguardian.com: "Having started in 1865 with a pulp mill in the Finnish town of Tampere, Nokia reinvented itself repeatedly, shifting to rubber boot production early in the 20th century, and then making its first telephone exchange in the 1970s. Its first mobile phone appeared in 1981. Rumours that Microsoft intended to buy Nokia had been floated since Elop joined the company. Reaction to the deal was mixed. "Microsoft buying Nokia looks like doubling down on the current failing strategy, without changing the dynamics that are preventing success," cautioned Benedict Evans at Enders Analysis."

Apple sends out invites for September 10 iPhone event
CNET
It's unclear at this point if Apple will also be offering a live video stream of the event. It didn't do so at last year's iPhone press conference, but proceeded to run live video for its October iPad Mini event, as well as its Worldwide Developers ...

Amazon: Get cheap e-book versions of real books you already own
Washington Post
For those who like both hard copies and e-versions of books but don't want to spend twice the value of their libraries, Amazon has launched a new program that's aimed at giving you the best of both worlds — without stretching the limits of your book ...

ValueAct Hedge Fund's Huge Microsoft Victory
Forbes
Microsoft Microsoft called it a cooperation agreement and made the announcement late on Friday, just prior to the Labor Day weekend and some pretty big deal making news, but there is no masking the huge victory that hedge fund ValueAct has scored in ...

Microsoft's Nokia Deal Will Crush Licensing for Windows Phone
Businessweek
At a high level, it may sound as if Microsoft's (MSFT) $7.17 billion deal to buy Nokia's (NOK) devices and services business is similar to Google's (GOOG) $12.5 billion acquisition of Motorola in 2011. As such, Microsoft will still be licensing its ...

Microsoft swallows Nokia's handset business for $7.2 billion
Reuters
He is being discussed as a possible replacement for Microsoft's retiring CEO Steve Ballmer, who is trying to remake the U.S. firm into a gadget and services company likeApple before he departs, though it has fallen short so far in its attempts to ...

Apple tech uses specific gestures to unlock apps, device functions
Apple Insider
The technology, detailed in a patent awarded to Apple on Tuesday by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, deals with so-called "access inputs" that determine what apps, device services and functions can be accessed by a user. Apple's U.S. Patent No.

Android KitKat unveiled in Google surprise move
BBC News
The news comes as a surprise as the firm had previously indicated version 4.4 of the OS would be Key Lime Pie. The decision to brand the software with the name of Nestle's chocolate bar is likely to be seen as a marketing coup for the Swiss food and ...

Microsoft Seeks Stronger Hand in Phone Business
Wall Street Journal
Upon Steve Ballmer's resignation as Microsoft CEO, the new chief executive will face a company with a much different complexion with Nokia's cellphone business now in the fold. Joann Lublin reports. Microsoft Corp. made a case Tuesday for its $7 billion ...

Apple invites media to event next week, new iPhones expected
San Jose Mercury News
CUPERTINO -- Apple (AAPL) invited media members to a Sept. 10 event on Tuesday, which is expected to include the launch of two new models of the iPhone, the company's iconic smartphone. The media invitation included several differently colored ...

Zero hurricanes at midway point, but threat remains for busy Atlantic hurricane ...
Fox News
Nearly one year after superstorm Sandy devastated the Northeast, this year's hurricane season has reached its halfway point without a single storm forming. Still, federal forecasters are warning of an unusually active and potentially dangerous few months to ...

Frog once believed deaf hears with its mouth
Christian Science Monitor
When a Gardiner's frog wants to listen, it doesn't shut its mouth. It opens it. Skip to next paragraph. In Pictures Don't Fear the Leaper: A world of frogs. Related stories. Are you scientifically literate? Take our quiz · How efforts to save itty-bitty endangered frogs ...

Eastern Red Cedar Trees Recovered After Clean Air Act
Science World Report
It turns out that the Clean Air Act may have had more benefits than expected. Scientists have discovered that this piece of legislation helped red cedars recover from decades of sulfur pollution and acid rain. The findings spell hope for the future and show just ...

Deadly skin-eating fungus is wiping out fire salamanders
Science Recorder
An international team of scientists has identified a new and deadly species of fungus that has ravaged fire salamander populations in forests of the Netherlands since 2010. The fungus, called Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans, destroys the amphibians' skin ...

Industrial Age Soot Caused Glacial Retreat In Alps Despite Europe's 'Little Ice Age'
Headlines & Global News
Coal burning may during the industrial age may have caused glacial retreat in the European alps. (Photo : Wikimedia Commons). Soot from Europe's rapid industrialization in the last 1800s to 1900s most likely caused glacial retreat in the Alps. The rapid melt ...

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