Thursday, March 8, 2012

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Clover Raises $5.8M From Andreessen Horowitz; Launches As A One-Click Mobile Payments Platform Top
Clover-1A new mobile payments startup is entering the market. Clover is exiting from stealth today as a fast, simple mobile payments technology that aims to allow consumers can checkout from a mobile site or app in under five seconds with one-tap. The company is also announcing that it has raised $5.8 million from Andreessen Horowitz and Sutter Hill Ventures. As CEO Bryan Lamkin explains, Clover is trying to build the fastest, simplest and most secure payment network for mobile and tablet devices. The startup believes there is still a tremendous amount of friction in mobile checkout and payments, resulting in shopping cart abandonment and low conversion rates for merchants, retailers, and developers.
 
Post PC Indeed: Gartner Says 2012 PC Shipments Will Only Grow 4.4% To 368M Units Top
old computerAt yesterday's Apple event, CEO Tim Cook ran through some big numbers that underscored just how strongly the iPad is pacing against PCs when it comes to consumer interest. Today, Gartner released some forecasts that underscore how that story is not set to change any time soon. The analysts say that PC shipments are on track to grow by just 4.4 percent in 2012 -- to 368 million units, as consumers continue to prioritize purchases of new tablets, and smartphones, ahead of buying new laptop or desktop computers. But at least this is a slight improvement on 2011, when Gartner said that shipments were essentially flat on 2010.
 
SeedTable Is A Stunning New Way To Interrogate CrunchBase — And Find Investors Top
Screen Shot 2012-03-08 at 10.22.40I have a love/hate relationship with CrunchBase. On the one hand, it has great information about startup tech companies. On the other hand, it relies on a wiki-like structure which means it is sometimes not updated as frequently or as accurately as old-style databases which used to employ people go over the data regularly. However, its wikiness means it can be free - pretty useful for the entrepreneur! Perhaps the real unsung hero of CrunchBase is its API which means third party developers can whip up new things with the data. The latest is SeedTable, a new project from Imran Ghory, a founder of CoderStack. Ghory has built a brand new interface to CrunchBase which exposes a few things CrunchBase itself can't right now due to the limitation of its interface. And it really is very good. A quick tip: start typing in the name of a city in the search box.
 
Social Marketer Buddy Media Hires Salesforce Exec Susan St. Ledger As New President Top
Buddy Media SusanAnother big move for Buddy Media as it continues to build out its social media marketing business: the company has hired sales supremo Susan St. Ledger as its new president. She joins Buddy Media from Salesforce.com, where she had been for the past seven years in a number of key roles. They included (most recently) SVP of industry verticals, where she was in charge of relationships with Salesforce.com's biggest clients in technology, financial services, insurance, media and telecoms. Before that, St. Ledger had been SVP of global platform sales for the company.
 
Founders Fund Holds (Free) Conference For People Who Want To Invent The Future Top
Screen Shot 2012-03-07 at 10.18.59 PMWhat do you do if you've got $625 million lying around and the ambitious goal of propelling the world faster towards the future? Founders Fund, which has invested in world-tilting companies like Facebook and Palantir, is putting some of its most recent raise towards an especially unorthodox sort of conference.
 
Major Changes In Facebook's Amended S-1: Mobile Ads, Zynga, Yahoo Patents, Credit Top
Facebook S-1Facebook today filed an amended S-1 to IPO that describes new risks based on its launch of ads for mobile, Zynga's standalone gaming platform, and a patent dispute with Yahoo. It also explained how its concentrated voting structure would impact investors, and listed additional underwriters. Here are the major revisions to the S-1 compared to the original Facebook filed at the beginning of February.
 
iPad Top
tcIt's sort of funny that the only major thing those in the rumor business got wrong was the name of the new iPad. It's not the previously presumed "iPad 3", nor is it the "iPad HD". It's just the iPad. And that's what it will be from now on. This was surprising because our expectations were set for a new name. But it really shouldn't be all that surprising. My iMac is not the "iMac 11". My MacBook Air is not the "MacBook Air 4". The iPod line changes, but the name remains the same. This will undoubtedly happen to the iPhone line as well. Just as the spec is dying (more than partially ushered to the grave by Apple), the ascending number naming race is dying too. It's about simplicity. Apple can pull this off because they have so few products and they're in complete control of all of them. Their software isn't licensed to other OEMs. The iPad doesn't have to be called the "iPad 3X HD S" just to beat the "iPad 3X Turbo" made by a competitor. There are no real competitors. Not yet, anyway. The naked "iPad" name alone is enough to win.
 
How To Find And Engage A-Listers Before SXSW Top
sxswLet's face it, many of the big players in the tech scene are headed to SXSW this year. The question is, how do you connect with them? You want to leave SXSW feeling like you've accomplished something aside from just getting drunk. Finding the right A-listers beforehand and connecting with them at the event is a sure way to make the most of your time there. Don't have your eyes set on someone specific? Here are some tips and resources to get you started on scoping out the most influential tech stars making a grand appearance at SXSW.
 
Facebook Becomes Location Backbone That Lets Apps Import Checkins From Each Other Top
Facebook Location APIsFacebook has confirmed with me that its new location APIs let any third-party app import and display the checkins as well as location-tagged posts published to Facebook by other apps. This turns Facebook into a location backbone that can power serendipitous meetups and other geo-functionality no matter which apps you and your friends use. Bliss -- soon you won't have to use every location app simultaneously, you'll just pick your favorite.
 
iPad Innovation: Diminishing Returns, Or Exceeding Expectations? Top
img_0025Are you having fun yet? We're in the process of winding down from another Apple Event Day, which means recovering from a day full of iFanpeoples eagerly clicking on every iPad-related article on the Web, a day in which blogs lap up the ad revenue, and trolls eagerly proclaim their indifference to whatever this iHubbub is all about, sneering at the army of iClones marching in lock-step to the nearest Apple Store. Let this wash over you, as it's clearly a unique display that only the tech industry -- and, really Apple -- is capable of inspiring. During the new, new iPad/iPad 3/iPad 2S announcement today, Apple CEO Tim Cook told those gathered that Apple is "redefining the category that [it] created with the original iPad." Personally, I've become a bit wary of Apple's near-constant claims that it is re-defining itself, or language that implies anything along the lines of "we've done it, again," or "look at this miracle of gadget wizardry and fear our command of your wallets."
 
With Channel Daily Uniques Up 60%, YouTube Brings New Layout To All Channels Top
Screen shot 2012-03-06 at 10.04.56 AMRemember that big redesign YouTube launched in December? Granted, you've probably seen it several times today already, but in case not, YouTube redesigned its homepage so that its overall look would reflect the design changes that have been rolled out across Google products. More specifically, the update brought tighter integration with Google+, more personalized video discovery and viewing, and a whole mess of updates to channels. Based on the results YouTube shared today, it thinks the redesign is having the desired effect, as daily unique visits to channels have increased by 60 percent and daily net subscriptions are up 50 percent since December. With channel engagement and subscribing on the up and up, YouTube says that its ready to take the next step in the redesign process it began in December.
 
TCTV Live: The Wrap-Up On Apple And The New New iPad Top
IMG_5857At 4pm PT, TechCrunch's Devin Coldewey and I will be going live on TechCrunch TV to talk about all the news that came out of Apple's event in San Francisco today: The new iPad; upgrades to iCloud, Apple TV, and iOS 5; and of course the tech world's reactions to it all.
 
Gillmor Gang Live 03.07.12 (TCTV) Top
Gillmor Gang test patternGillmor Gang - Danny Sullivan, John Taschek, Robert Scoble, and Steve Gillmor. Recording has concluded.
 
Chartbeat's New Features: Up With Engagement, Down With Linkbait Top
avc1mainChartBeat is going to be launching a new version of its real-time analytics service in a few weeks, and I got a sneak peek earlier today. The big theme: looking beyond pageviews. You can see a screenshot of the main ChartBeat dashboard above. Specifically, it's the ChartBeat page for VC Fred Wilson's blog, because apparently he doesn't mind sharing. Elements of the interface might change (ChartBeat's Lauryn Bennett and Alex Carusillo kept telling me, "Don't fall in love with anything.") but if it does, the basic functionality will remain the same. So what's new?
 
Google Voice Founder Sets His Sights On VoIP Once Again Top
craig-walkerIs Google Voice (previously GrandCentral) co-founder Craig Walker getting back into the VoIP game? According to a recent tweet he sent out, it looks like Walker and his team at incubator Firespotter Labs is cooking up something in the VoIP space. As Walker writes, "Starting to play around with a bunch of VoIP ideas...time to take this incubator thing into hyperdrive:)." For background, Walker co-founded GrandCentral, a phone management service that first launched in 2006 and was acquired by Google for $50+ million in 2007. Grand Central was relaunched as Google Voice.
 
Heyzap Launches An API, Uses It To Build A Mobile Gaming Map Top
san francisco game check insHeyzap, a startup that allows users to check in as they play their favorite mobile games, is now releasing its data through an API. The API focuses on two types of information — games and players. Through the API, a developer can see which games are trending based on usage, or they can bring up a list of who has checked in to each title. Heyzap says developers could also look up information about individual players, such as their profile and check-in history.
 
The Apple Store Is Back Up Top
backnowSo I've been pressing refresh on the Apple Store every second for the past hour. It's really fun, by the way. I've seen it cough up the "We'll be back soon" page, a 404 error page, and even a really cute "Oops!" page. Who knew Apple could be down in such varied formats? So I'm refreshing, and I'm refreshing, and I'm refreshing yet again... And then suddenly, as though I was seeing it for the very first time, with brand new eyes, it appeared.
 
iOS 5.1 Update: Siri Speaks Japanese; Voice Dictation Comes To New iPad Top
ios 5Today, Apple unleashed the "new new iPad," or iPad 3, or 2S, or whatever you want to call it. It'll cost you $499, has a new retina display, with an A5X processor complete with quad-core graphics. The iPad 2 is also getting a price drop, to $399, and Apple announced a slew of new updates to existing products, including movie support for iCloud, iPhoto is coming to iOS, along with an update for iOS 5. Yes, iOS 5.1 will be available for download starting today, according to Apple, with some new updates to Siri.
 
This Reblog Of This iPad Article Will Also Generate Thousands Of Dollars In Ad Revenue Top
Sometimes I wish I wrote for The Onion and not TechCrunch so I could write funny shit like this all day instead of repeatedly getting attacked publicly for expressing myself or not being smart enough to be a SERIOUS TECH JOURNALIST WITH SERIOUS THOUGHTS ABOUT SERIOUS THINGS. Or whatever.
 
Hands On With The New iPad Top
header1I've just gotten out of a quick hands-on session with the new iPad (and yes, it's just called the iPad), and have come away with exactly the feeling I expected to have: that I need to buy one. The first thing you should know, and also the reason there aren't many pictures, is that as far as weight and shape, it's almost exactly the same as the iPad 2. They wouldn't allow comparison shots — probably because the new iPad is a little thicker — but the dimensional differences are minor and the overall feel is near-identical. Let me tell you why I'm going to buy the new iPad. Or rather, let me show you.
 

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