Don't fall for 'Eco-Bling': Turn down the AC before you spring for solar panels
I’ve added the term “Eco-Bling” to my vocabulary. According to the U.K. Guardian, Eco-Bling refers to any green technology or product that — while seemingly slick and cool — doesn’t actually do anything to help the environment. One prime example: That Prius in your neighbor’s diveway. It certainly looks good, but when it comes down to it, it doesn’t save energy or slash their carbon footprint. Here are three more Eco-Bling offenses to keep an … Continue Reading
Google launches answer highlighting: Google Squared without squares
Google said today that it’s going to be using technology from Google Squared, the interesting-but-flawed search tool that the company launched last year, to improve its regular search results.
The idea is to help users find the right answers when they’re asking factual questions. That’s a big part of why people search for stuff on the web, and I think most of us have had the experience of clicking on page after page trying to … Continue Reading
Dave Morin leaves Facebook to join Napster creator Fanning on new venture
Long-time Facebook employee Dave Morin, who helped build out the social network’s platform and later Facebook Connect, announced he’s leaving to start a new stealth venture with Napster creator Shawn Fanning. Fanning’s last company was the gaming startup Rupture, which he sold to Electronic Arts in 2008. Before that was Snocap, which was bought by Imeem under less than favorable circumstances.
Morin (pictured right) leaves Facebook on good terms and said that he’s always harbored … Continue Reading
Rambus wins decision against Nvidia in patent claim
Fresh from its $900 million legal settlement with Samsung, technology licensing company Rambus scored another victory today in a patent dispute with graphics chip maker Nvidia.
An International Trade Commission judge ruled that Nvidia had violated three of five patents in a case Rambus brought regarding its memory technology. Rambus filed the suit in November, 2008, seeking to stop the import of infringing products. Rambus wants Nvidia to pay royalties to license its patents. Rambus … Continue Reading
Google tries to lure game developers to Android with free phones
Looking to outdo games on the iPhone, Google is making a push to recruit game developers to make games for the Android operating system.
Google announced today that it will give away free Nexus One and Verizon Droid phones to thousands of game developers who attend the Game Developers Conference starting March 9 in San Francisco. (The developers have to register for the event by Feb. 4 to qualify).
This reminds me of the time … Continue Reading
Revenue from mobile apps set to quadruple from 2010 to 2013
According to a new report from Gartner, worldwide revenue from mobile applications will total $6.8 billion in 2010, an increase of 60% over the $4.2 billion spent in 2009. Growth in revenue from mobile apps can be expected to continue at a rapid rate, as more consumers purchase smartphones and more apps become available. Gartner predicts that in 2013, 21.6 billion apps will be downloaded, generating nearly $30 billion in revenue — more than a … Continue Reading
Aircell flies high with $176M for airplane Wi-Fi
Aircell, provider of internet service on planes that allow passengers to communicate even when they are airborne, has raised a huge $176 million in private placement equity, which it plans to use to further expand its network.
With more airlines offering in-flight internet service to keep up with customer demand and retain a competitive edge (Virgin America has even introduced electrical outlets to keep business passengers plugged in for hours), companies like Broomfield, Colo.-based Aircell … Continue Reading
Three ways the Apple tablet will save the Earth
Yes, my headline is a bit facetious. But even if Apple’s tablet doesn’t save the planet, its users will be cutting carbon in three major industries. Music, books & printers could all be, to some extent, displaced by lightweight mobile computing like the Apple tablet.
The iSlate is expected to be a touch screen computer with similar features to the iPod Touch but larger, about 10-11″. I say expected because everything is a rumor at … Continue Reading
Pyramid Screening scores $108K to rapid-screen job applicants
Pyramid Screening Technology, maker of software used to quickly screen applicants to engineering and information technology jobs, has brought in $108,000 of an anticipated $1.95 million round of equity, according to a filing with the SEC. Based in Pleasanton, Calif., the company has not disclosed any prior funding history.… Continue Reading
USA Network blends advertisers into TV show-based games
Yesterday, USA Network launched the first episode of seven-mission online game based on its Burn Notice, Covert Ops hit show on its TV network. The plot of the game, Covert Ops: Vegas Heist, ties in with the unfolding drama on the show and it integrates the show’s major advertiser, Hyundai.
And earlier this week, USA Network launched a similar game, White Collar: Chasing the Shadow, based on the plot of its White Collar TV show. … Continue Reading
How to be a better negotiator
Negotiation is a critical skill for anyone on the business world – but especially for entrepreneurs. Deepak Malhotra, associate professor of business administration at the Harvard Business School, offers several tips to improve your abilities in this lecture given at an emerging markets conference in 2007. A warning: The video quality here isn’t stellar (it’s worth bumping it to 480p if you have the bandwidth). The advice, though, is solid – and useful.
As Oracle-Sun deal gains approval, Oracle exec's affair gets splashed on billboards
In the chronicles of Silicon Valley, it doesn’t get weirder than this. Just as the European Union finally gave its blessing to Oracle’s acquisition of Sun Microsystem’s, Oracle’s co-president found details of his 8.5-year extramarital affair splashed on billboards around the country.
Oracle executive Charles Phillips acknowledged that he had the affair with YaVaughnie Wilkins and that he began divorce proceedings with his wife, Karen Phillips, in 2008. But he says that his relationship with … Continue Reading
Pakistani startup lets mobile developers outsource customer support
Life as a mobile developer can be tough. First, you’re hoping and praying your app will get noticed among the thousands in Apple’s App Store. Then, if you’re lucky, you hit the jackpot — your app’s downloaded by 10,000 users. But your excitement lasts only until you start getting tons of customer complaints and you have no money to pay a customer support staff.
Now, if you could outsource that customer support when you need … Continue Reading
5 o'clock round-up: YouTube profits soon, EA sticks with Tiger, Twitter phases in new suggested users
Twitter retools the maligned suggested users list: Twitter is phasing in a new way of finding interesting accounts for new users to follow. If you join the site today, Twitter will suggest users for you to follow that the company has picked algorithmically instead of by hand. The new system surfaces interesting Twitter users to follow based on whether they engage their audience and tweet regularly about a subject like food or business. Twitter employees … Continue Reading
2009 venture investments lowest since 1997, cleantech fell 52 percent (MoneyTree report)
Now that 2009 is over, we can add up the numbers on how much venture firms invested in startups during all of 2009 — and, well, it was a lot less than in the past. Over the course of the year, VCs invested a total of $17.7 billion in 2,795 deals, the lowest total since 1997, according to the MoneyTree Report from the National Venture Capital Association and PricewaterhouseCoopers.
On the bright side, the worst … Continue Reading
Crispy Gamer fries itself: staff fired, CEO quits in protest
Crispy Gamer, a game media company that raised $8.25 million, self-destructed today. The company’s board of directors fired all of the online game site’s editorial staff. Then its chief executive quit in protest, according to the game news site Joystiq.
Just a month ago, Crispy Gamer bought GamerDNA, a social networking service for gamers, to increase engagement with its community. But now the company has imploded. Staffers affected include writers Kyle Orland, Scott Jones, John … Continue Reading
OnLive gets a bad review from sneaky blogger, but it's off the mark
OnLive, the ambitious games-on-demand service that is in beta testing now, went through a bit of a media tempest today, and for no really good reason.
Blogger Ryan Shrout of PC Perspective managed to get a password from a friend of a friend and sneak into the closed beta test of the company’s games on demand service. And it turned out to be a bad experience. Shrout wrote about it, and a number of sites … Continue Reading
Apple tablet roundup: Who's going to use the thing?
Apple’s tablet has provided no shortage of rumors. Everything from design specs to pricing have flooded the internet from various media outlets and sources. As the mysterious January 27 “special event” comes closer, many wonder if the rumors will finally be answered. To gain a better perspective on the scope of rumors, we’ve put together a snapshot below of the most recent speculations.
I can’t think of anything more that defines a product like its … Continue Reading
iPhone app recommendation site Chomp collects 111,000 app reviews in first week
App recommendation site Chomp, which is like a Yelp for iPhone apps, took a big bite out of iTunes App Store in its first week, accumulating 111,000 reviews through its iPhone app since launching last Monday.
Chomp lets you make simple app recommendations and then studies your tastes to help you find other ones. The problem with the existing app store is that there are more than 100,000 different apps, making it overwhelming to find … Continue Reading
Rixty lets young users without credit cards make buys online
Rixty, maker of a payment app that lets people buy entertainment online even if they don’t have credit cards, has brought in $1.24 million in a seed round of funding. The San Francisco company, which lets people turn cash into online currency, is part of a slew of companies expanding the customer base for virtual goods, virtual worlds, and social networking purchases — particularly adding many younger users who don’t have bank accounts yet.
Rixty … Continue Reading
