Wednesday, September 28, 2011

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Source: Google In Talks To Acquire Katango Top
katangofeatWe're hearing that Google is in talks to acquire Katango, the Kleiner-backed startup that uses algorithms to automatically sort your friends into different groups, with very little effort required on the user's part (see our full post on their launch here). Katango would be a very obvious fit for Google (in fact, we hear that Google has been interested in the company since they launched in July). Why? Because Google+ revolves around grouping your friends into different Circles, be it acquaintances, family members, and so on. But at this point, while Google+ is great at telling you who you might know, it doesn't suggest to you which of these Circles to put them in.
 
TCTV: Hands On With The Kindle Touch Top
kw-slate-03-lg-_v166950133_The first device Jeff Bezos showed off at today's Amazon event was the diminutive Kindle Touch, a $99 e-ink device that should be on everyone's Christmas lists this year. The Touch has an 6-inch, IR-based touchscreen and includes all of the features found in the ne Kindle models including the new X-Ray feature that adds research and information to any book downloaded from the Kindle store.
 
Microsoft Responds To Google's Extortion Claim: "Waaaah." Top
cashfinger-bigGod I love this stuff. Microsoft's head of communications, Frank Shaw, has just responded to Google's "extortion" claims — on Twitter, of course. This type of response is clearly Microsoft's M.O. And we thank them for that. I'm sure someone from Google will hop on Twitter to respond as well. These are serious claims, but neither side is clearly going to move on this. They both obviously think they're right. More importantly, both think the other side's stance is pure bullshit.
 
Hyperpublic Launches Free POI Database, Now Helps Developers Monetize Local Apps Top
placesplusNew York-based startup Hyperpublic has some big news today that should catch the eye of developers looking to do anything with local: they're opening access to a new Point of Interest (POI) database called Places+, and they're also giving developers a straightforward and easy way to start monetizing. All free of charge. Founder Jordan Cooper, who is also a Venture Partner at Lerer Ventures, walked me through each of the releases. He says that Hyperpublic has offered some location APIs before, but that they were small potatoes compared to what they're bringing to the table now. The Places+ product will be competing with the likes of Factual and Foursquare's location database (each database allows mobile apps to display which restaurants and other venues are near a given location). But Cooper says that Places+ contains a superset of its competitors' data — and he thinks that it has fresher data to boot.
 
Google On Microsoft's Android Patent Tactics: It's Extortion Top
extortion,%20selfEarlier today, Microsoft and Samsung disclosed that they reached a cross-licensing agreement over patents. The key point: it's a bad blow to the notion that Android is free. Instead, it's more like "free" with huge Android OEM partners like HTC and now Samsung agreeing to pay Microsoft to use Android. Google must be pissed off. And they are. Here's their statement:
"This is the same tactic we've seen time and again from Microsoft. Failing to succeed in the smartphone market, they are resorting to legal measures to extort profit from others' achievements and hinder the pace of innovation. We remain focused on building new technology and supporting Android partners."
 
mDialog Raises $5 Million From BlackBerry Partners Fund Top
mdialogmDialog, a video-advertising-as-a-service company, has closed a $5 million Series A round of funding led by the BlackBerry Partners Fund. The company says the investment will be used to expand its offerings across all mobile and connected devices such as the iPad and iPhone, as well as Android, Roku and other platforms.
 
"Plan Your Next Trip" Wins Foursquare Hackathon Top
foursquare-hackathon-badgeEarlier this month, Foursquare held its second hackathon, with 500 developers from around the world contributing. Today, the company is announcing the winners. The grand prize goes to Plan Your Next Trip, which uses the Foursquare API to help you plan out your upcoming 2-day trip to any city in the world using the recommendations from Foursquare's "Explore" feature. Several grand prize finalists were also named, including Sqavenger, Intersquares and sponsor-chosen winners Near.co and VenueMachine.
 
Cloud Storage Platform Box.net Raises $50 Million From Salesforce And Others Top
box-netCloud storage platform Box.net has raised a whopping $50 million in new funding with participation from CRM giant Salesforce.com. Past investors also participated in the round, as well as new 'strategic partners', who will be revealed soon. Box's past investors include Andreessen Horowitz, Draper Fisher Jurvetson, Emergence Capital Partners, Meritech Capital Partners, Scale Venture Partners and U.S. Venture Partners. This brings Box's total funding to $128 million. Box, which has 7 million users and stores over 300 million documents, is a cloud storage platform for the enterprise that comes with collaboration, social and mobile functionality. Box has evolved into more than just a fils storage platform, and has become a full-fledged collaborative application where businesses can actually communicate about document updates, sync files remotely, and even add features from Salesforce, Google Apps, NetSuite, Yammer and others.
 
Cloud Storage Company Box.net Launches Cross-Platform Sync; Salesforce Chatter Integration And More Top
boxAt the company's first customer conference today, cloud storage platform Box.net is revealing a number of new features and products. The company is debuting a cross-platform enterprise sync solution for both Mac and PC devices, additional security features as well as new social capabilities.   For background, Box, which has 7 million users and stores 300 million documents, is a cloud storage platform for the enterprise that comes with collaboration, social and mobile functionality. Box has evolved into more than just a file storage platform, and has become a full-fledged collaborative application where businesses can actually communicate about document updates, access the platform via the mobile web, and even add features from Salesforce, Google Apps, NetSuite, Yammer and others.
 
Jesta Labs Hatches Gush: Fetch, Store And Organize All Your Digital Photos Top
gushThe first startup to come out of New York-based incubator Jesta Labs is Gush, which launches today with a (currently invite-only) service that lets people put all their photos - no matter how many they have - privately in the cloud and organize them in a straightforward way. Gush, which is free of charge, aims to become a central repository for photos that people currently have scattered all over their computers and phones, Facebook profiles, Flickr and Instagram accounts and so on.
 
Video: Anonymous Calls On Protestors To "Occupy The Planet" Top
AnonymousIt wouldn't be utterly shocking to find that you are unaware of the Occupy Wall Street protests currently underway in downtown Manhattan. The mainstream media coverage of it has been shockingly minimal, but it's real, it's happening, and apparently it's spreading. And who, you might ask, has been the mouthpiece for this uprising? None other than the infamous hacktivist group Anonymous, who plans to expand the protest to the far reaches of the globe (or so says their new video).
 
New German Initiative Pools Ad Media To Take Stakes In Startups Top
Screen Shot 2011-09-28 at 18.05.23While startups in the US, especially in the Valley, tend to be able to find funding at different stages of their life-cycle, there remains significant funding gaps remains in Europe, a disparate market of multiple countries. While the seed stage is gradually being addressed by programmes like Seedcamp, SpringBoard, StartupBootcamp and others, the stage just before venture capital kicks in remains problematic. Often that first round of VC is designed for a significant marketing push or expansion. But a new German initiative looks like creating an exciting model for other countries to follow. It's really worth watching how this pans out. The newly created GMPVC German Media Pooltakes a "media for equity" approach.
 
3rd Generation Kindles Get A New Name, Discounted Prices Top
kindlekey2If Amazon's new slew of keyboard-less Kindles leaves you feeling frightened and confused, you've still got time to pick up one of their soon-to-be classic models. The 3rd generation Kindle (which has been retroactively renamed the "Kindle Keyboard") is enjoying a bit of a price drop on Amazon.com as we speak.
 
Make Facebook Look More Like MySpace With Timeline Cover Photos From FBCovers Top
myfbcovers-smallLast week, Facebook introduced one of the boldest makeovers to the Facebook profile page since the company's launch with the new Facebook Timeline. The updated profile provides a deeper look into your past, with navigation that lets you time travel back through the previous months and years spent on Facebook. The most noticeable and eye-catching change to your Facebook profile, however, is not the Timeline navigation - it's the large banner-sized photo that's displayed at the top of the page where, as of today, a series of smaller profile pictures appear. But what if you don't have a good photo to feature there? That's where the newly launched Cover photo resource at MyFBCovers comes in.
 
The Kindle Fire Pulls All Of Amazon's Cloud Media Onto A Tablet Top
Kindle FireToday, at an Amazon event in New York City (read our liveblog), Jeff Bezos unveiled the Kindle Fire, a new media tablet that pulls together all of Amazon's media services from the cloud. These include 18 million digital books, movies, songs, magazines, apps, and games. The $199 Kindle Fire is designed to tap into all of the digital media products and services Amazon has been building for the past few years: Amazon Web Services, Instant Video, Kindle Books, Amazon's MP3 music store, cloud storage, and Android app store. When Amazon was designing the Fire, CEO Jeff Bezos says they asked themselves, "Is there some way we can bring all of these together into a remarkable product offering customers will love?"
 
New Startup Accelerator Advise.me Increases Seed Funding, Adds 5 More To Its Team Top
adviseme-logoOne week after its launch, new startup accelerator and incubator Advise.me has received over 200 applications for its "Global Startup Initiative," a program that encourages companies from all parts of the world to apply. Several of those entrants are "pretty compelling," Solomon Engel, Advise.me Founder and CEO tells us. That may be one of the reasons why the program is now increasing the funding possibilities for its participants.
 
Samsung Taps Intel To Build A New Linux-Based Open Source Platform: Tizen Top
tizen-linuxIt's no secret (at least, not anymore) that Samsung is scrambling to diversify its mobile platform offerings. Bada, while smart, is kind of a bust, and Android is currently hanging in the balance until everyone figures out just what Googorola's plans are. In the meantime, Samsung's been a busy little bee, signing a deal with Microsoft to cross-license patents in exchange for Android royalties and collaboration on Windows Phone. But that's not all. In conjunction with Intel, Samsung is backing the launch of a new open source Linux-based OS called Tizen, which will inevitably replace the recently abandoned MeeGo platform.
 
Amazon Just Won The Android Tablet Wars With The $199 Kindle Fire Top
KO-aag-kid._V166939189_The Android tablet electoral races are done. There's a new mayor in Droidville. But this guy didn't roll into town with pomp and circumstance. He strolled down Main Street and simply offered more than any other candidate, extolling a plan based on down-to-earth sensibility and affordability. Meet the Kindle Fire. Amazon just unveiled the Kindle Fire, which will, without question, dominate the sub-iPad tablet market for years. Amazon did it right by copying Apple's formula: tablets do not sell on specs; Amazon barely touched on the Fire's hardware during its announcement. Instead, Jeff Bezos, doing his best Steve Jobs impersonation, stood tall on the stage and ran through a long list of features that makes the Fire an iPad alternative the world wanted.
 
IAB: Internet Advertising Reaches A Record $15B In First Half Of 2011; Up 23 Percent Top
Internet Ad RevenuesThe Internet Advertising Bureau just released its numbers of the first half of 2011, and it looks like internet ad revenue reached record highs during the time period. Internet ad revenues rose 23.2 percent — to a record $14.9 billion — in the first half of 2011. The rate of growth more than doubled year-over-year, as last year's first-half ad revenues were $12.1 billion (and represented an 11.3 percent increase over 2009) Internet ad revenues for the second quarter alone also reached new heights, increasing 24.1 percent to $7.7 billion. That's up from the Q2 2010 numbers of $6.2 billion, which is up 13.9 percent from 2009. Display ads totaled more than $5.5 billion in the first six months of 2011 and increased 27.1 percent over the same period in 2010.
 
Wheelz: Automotive Veterans Launch P2P Campus Car Sharing Platform Backed By Former Facebook VP Top
Screen shot 2011-09-28 at 3.21.40 AMKicking it into fifth gear and zooming out of stealth and into the public sphere today is Wheelz, a new person-to-person car sharing platform for campuses -- designed to connect students who have cars with student who need 'em. Granted, when I first heard the basics on Wheelz, I immediately thought, "gadzooks, another car sharing platform!?" What about RelayRides, GetAround, Zimride, and Zipcar? These are all by and large great young businesses, adding value to the space; sure they're not all targeting campuses, but I wasn't so sure we needed another one. Whether you feel the same way or not, Wheelz begs to differ. Launching initially at Stanford University, the startup is bringing campuses a technology and service platform that allows students and other campus dwellers to connect safely and easily -- through Facebook integration, a good-looking iPhone app, and its proprietary in-car hardware system, called DriveBox.
 

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