22
June
2007
|
00:58 AM
America/Los_Angeles

Newswatch 6.22.07: YHOO board next for makeover?

YHOO censoring open source

[Slated] Yahoo seems to have developed a policy of censoring answers in their "Yahoo! Answers" service, if that answer contains a suggestion to use Open Source alternatives to Microsoft software. The gist of it is, that a fellow Yahoo'er posted a question about what to do with a PC that had run into unsolvable Windows problems, since that user did not have a Windows install disc. Amanda suggested, quite amiably, that the hapless user should simply install Ubuntu Linux, since it looked like they'd need to start over from scratch anyway. Amanda was subsequently rewarded with a warning from Yahoo that her answer was "in violation of our Community Guidelines or Terms of Service.", and they promptly deleted her answer.


EU widens data storage probe beyond GOOG

An investigation set off by concerns over how long Google stores user information has widened to include all Internet search engines.


CFO leaving TiVO for mystery Valley company

[AP] Steve Sordello has resigned as chief financial officer to take the same role at an undisclosed Silicon Valley company.

YouTube to stream to iPhone

[AFP] Apple said it tailored iPhone software to receive content from the superstar video-sharing website and play it on the device's 3.5-inch wide display. iPhones go on sale at US Apple and AT&T stores on 29 June.


Will YHOO board get makeover too?

[News.com] "They just furnished a massive compensation package to Terry and then turned around and terminated his tenure. It begs the question about whether there's some intelligent design behind the program," said Patrick McGurn, executive vice president at ISS. "Problems on the compensation front can be a window into the boardroom," McGurn added. "A second part of the process could be in looking at succession among the directors."

YouTube meets craigslist in new classifieds site

[News.com] There's a new Web site called Real People Real Stuff where anyone can post a classified video. As expected, there are plenty of bad-quality clips and boring infomercial-type stuff, selling real estate, cars and even Shih Tzu puppies. But there are also some hidden gems. For instance, some guy in Alexandria, Va., wrote a song about his company's "Dog Guard" invisible pet fence. "We keep your hound aroundddd. We keep your hound aroundddd," he croons as he strums his guitar.

eBay to re-enter Chinese auction biz

[NYT] It is eBay’s second attempt to break into the Chinese market after the collapse of the company’s EachNet venture, and the first with a local partner.


General decries Google Earth

[Computerworld] Lt. Gen. David Deptula, head of U.S. Air Force intelligence and surveillance, is decrying the commercial availability of data available through software such as Google Earth, saying it poses a danger to security but can't be shut down.


Zepplin may bring riche tourists to CA


[USA Today] Start-up plans to offer zeppelin rides and rentals over the San Francisco Bay Area if the government and investors come through.


Yahoo/eBay Merger Case Strengthened By Semel Departure

[Seeking Alpha] I believe all the turmoil around Yahoo! (YHOO) following CEO Terry Semel's resignation fortifies the case for a merger with eBay (EBAY), which I defended before. — Keep in mind that Google (GOOG) is the perennial enemy to both.

Appeals court limits photogs' copyright claims

[Law.com] In a decision called "curious" by an intellectual property expert, a federal appellate panel in Atlanta has reversed its circuit's 6-year-old opinion in a major copyright case, declaring the ruling's mandate on behalf of freelance photographers to be "moot."

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