• Meet Orb's Magical Video-Streaming Service
    We feel a lawsuit coming, and it will likely be directed at Orb Networks -- the makers of a new device designed to bring all of Hulu.com's premium content to consumers' TV screens for free, with no subscription required. "Orb TV, a small streaming unit with the form factor of a hockey puck, also offers access to content from ESPN 3, Netflix, Comedy Central and other cable networks -- but the company doesn't have agreements with any of them," reports GigaOM. For $99, Orb offers a small piece of software that users install on their PCs. Simply …
  • Senate Panel Passes Anti-Piracy Bill
    A Senate panel just passed a bill giving U.S. agencies and officials new powers to battle foreign websites that sell counterfeit goods, pirated music, movies and books. "The bill, which supporters hope will set the stage for action next year, targets 'rogue websites' in countries such as China that are outside the reach of U.S. law," Reuters reports. Not surprisingly, the so-called "Combating Online Infringement and Counterfeits Act" was vigorously backed by the likes of Disney, Nike, Merck and Time Warner, along with the Screen Actors Guild, the Motion Picture Association of America and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. …
  • Geeks Get In On Boutiques
    It was only a matter of time, many would say, before Google turned the fashion business on its head -- but who knew fashionistas would take it so well. Many, in fact, are participating in Google's new shopping hub, dubbed Boutiques.com, which lets anyone -- from Oscar de la Renta to the Olsen Twins to your kid sister -- operate working ecommerce sites. Looking at Google and its culture from an entirely unique perspective, The New York Times' queen fashion critic Cathy Horyn calls Boutiques "a deliberate collision between nerds and fashion mavens." Horyn, for her …
  • Indeed Takes Top Job Search Spot From Monster
    Overtaking longtime leader Monster.com, Indeed.com became the largest domestic job site in October, according to new comScore data. Overall, 12.3 million people visited Indeed in October -- up a healthy 19.6%. Monster.com, meanwhile, attracted 12.1 million people, followed by CareerBuilder.com with 11.3 million job seekers. "It is still pretty close, with Indeed just barely edging out Monster," notes TechCrunch. "But this could very well be a turning point for leadership of the online job search category." As TechCrunch notes, however, these numbers are only for the respective main sites, and do not include each property's larger networks. CareerBuilder and …
  • Twitter Turns Tweets Into $$$ With Gnip
    In other Twitter news, the top micro-blogging platform has entered into a partnership with social data streaming service, Gnip. Per the deal, Gnip will offer 50% of all the messages posted to Twitter for $360,000 per year, or 5% of all messages for $60,000 per year, ReadWriteWeb reports. "Customers will only be allowed to analyze the messages, not display them, and resale of the content itself will remain prohibited," according to the blog. Twitter and Gnip point out that this is the first time a structured, reliable arrangement has been available for the many customers interested in purchasing a …
  • Report: Twitter Eyes Capital, $3 Bil Valuation
    Twitter is about ready for another big round of financing, multiple sources tell TechCrunch. "The valuation is likely to be in the $3 billion range, and they'll likely raise more than the $100 million they took a little over a year ago at a $1 billion valuation," according to the blog's founder Michael Arrington. To date, Twitter has raised $160 million. The likeliest investors, according to Arrington, include Russian firm DST, which has invested in Facebook, Groupon and Zynga. Needless to day, venture firms are "frothing at the mouth" at the prospect of leading the round, Arrington writes. Meanwhile, …
  • Hulu Plus Debut Undercuts Netflix
    Hulu on Wednesday debuted is premium service Hulu Plus pay for $7.99 a month. As The Seattle Times notes, "The price is $2 less than originally planned and undercuts, by a dollar, the entry cost of Netflix, Hulu's biggest competitor in the market for streaming premium video content." What sets Hulu Plus apart from regular old Hulu is the availability of full seasons of current TV shows, including "Glee," "Modern Family" and "The Office," mostly provided by the networks that co-founded Hulu back in 2008. Presently, the service is stocked with more than 240 seasons of TV shows with …
  • Google Puts Places On Local Guide Map
    Striking fear into the hearts of local guides far and wide, Google just added a friend-driven, local business recommendation engine to Google Places. Quite simply, if users decide to share their business ratings with friends, they can then see the places their friends recommend. Dubbed Hotpot [not Hotspot!] the concept is pretty straightforward, writes VentureBeat, "but when connected with a business directory of more than 50 million places, it can be a powerful consumer tool." Notes Mashable, "Not only has Google beaten Facebook to the punch with its early release of …
  • AOL Euro Media Director Out
    Julian Downing is out as the director of the AOL Media division in Europe, paidContent is reporting. "It's thought Downing's role was made redundant, though AOL would not confirm," it writes. AOL had reportedly been bolstering the division since CEO Tim Armstrong and AOL Europe director Kate Burns refocused the former "Mediaglow" unit as "AOL Media." Along the way, David Shing became head of media and marketing, and later hired Downing. Previously, Downing spent four years at Hearst Digital, the female-focused digital arm of the National Magazines Company. According to paidContent, "Much of AOL Media's European work …
  • Sorry Facebook, Zynga Going It Alone
    Further separating its services from Facebook, gamemaker Zynga has launched two games on Yahoo's network of sites. Marking "the first major move by Zynga in some time," GamesBeat says it's all part of "Zynga's plan to generate more revenue from its popular social games by taking them beyond Facebook to web sites where it can find new audiences." Yahoo is clearly in favor of Zynga's strategy. Indeed, the two games -- Mafia Wars and FishVille -- have the potential to generate new interest and social activity on its various properties, including Yahoo Messenger, My Yahoo, Yahoo Toolbar, …
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