Gawker
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nerdspotting
First Sighting of Steve Jobs Officially Back at Work
Apple won't say whether Steve Jobs was at the office today as part of his official return to the company. But a Valleywag spy spotted the CEO on his company's Cupertino campus. Jobs apparently left early:
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By Ryan TateComment by atlasfugged: He still looks pretty frail to me (and still sporting the black turtleneck - in summer?). 6 Responses | Other threads
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rumormonger
Layoffs Rumored at Mrs. Google's Genetics Company
Genetics company 23AndMe can purportedly help you predict your health in decades to come, but we're hearing the three-year-old company can't even forecast its own near-term needs: A tipster tells us the company laid off seven employees. More »
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By Ryan TateComment by the_k_record: Maybe they should hire Camille from NYC Prep. 1 Responses | Other threads
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valley spawn
Google's Naughty Heir Lusts for New York
Philippe Dauman Jr. can't stop flouting taboos. Friends remember his Park Avenue orgies. Family members note he joined Google when his father's Viacom sued it for $1 billion. Even San Francisco, we hear, is too tepid for him. More »
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By Ryan TateComment by TallulahSkankhead: This Father's Day, I'll be giving thanks that my dad talks like a regular human being. 1 Responses | Other threads
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books
Facebook Tell-All Released Into Wild
Facebook's creation myth has left the building, or so we hear: Fortune is said to be readying an excerpt of Ben Mezrich's tell-all book and movie about the social network. And another publication is, naturally, trying to ruin the scoop. More »
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By Ryan TateComment by Niko Bellic: Apparently, our entire future depends on men who need to make a billion dollars just to get laid. 2 Responses | Other threads
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rumormonger
Google's 'Darth Vader'
In flusher times, Google geeks set the agenda for company sales executives; distracting sidelines were encouraged. The recession — assisted by a new sales chief who apparently doesn't mind his diabolical reputation — foreclosed on such coddling. More »
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By Ryan TateComment by Nyarlathotep: Google places sponsor links above natural search results, which AOLers click, generating Google revenue. You're probably a Firefox user running Customise... 1 Responses | Other threads
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rumormonger
Could Apple Buy Twitter?
Facebook tried to buy Twitter. Google and Microsoft have been giving the red-hot Internet-messaging startup the eye. But we hear it's Apple that's closest to sealing a deal, possibly for as much as $700 million.
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By Owen ThomasComment by babyjesus: mission hipsters build websites? i thought they were all chillin in smoke shops waiting for the 1st and the 15th... 4 Responses | Other threads
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the internet
How Long Before the NYT Shuts Down Its Scandalous Twitterers?!
In January, the New York Times' standards editor issued guidelines about how editorial staffers are allowed to use Facebook and other scary online tools. Is reporter Twittering making a mockery of those guidelines? Let's explore! More »
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Comment by SultanaEleusis: Name me two people who wish The Times ill! Okay, name me two million, along with their middle initials... 1 Responses | Other threads
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rumormonger
New AOL CEO Wants to Buy Twitter's Web Cool
An AOL tipster tells us incoming CEO Tim Armstrong, the Google sales veteran, wants to buy Twitter, the hot message-broadcasting startup. One problem: He hasn't even started at AOL yet. More »
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By Owen ThomasComment by Kaskaad Splash: <------ re = camaro ad to the left ... is Bah the new Meh? was there a memo? 2 Responses | Other threads
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rumormonger
Who's Leaving Facebook Next?
The wheels seem to be coming off at Facebook after the ouster of CFO Gideon Yu. We hear another executive is leaving the social network to spend more time with his family. More »
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By Owen ThomasComment by Pope John Peeps II: Where do these photos keep coming from? It looks like all the Facebook senior staff had their pictures taken at... 12 Responses | Other threads
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rumormonger
Ars Technica Slammed in Condé Nast Digital Layoffs
The layoffs at Condé Nast Digital Wednesday included not only Wired.com but also Ars Technica, the website known for its in-depth, computer-related technical articles. We're told fully seven of roughly 17 staff were cut. More »
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By Ryan TateComment by Shadowlayer: Ars rocks, the amiga articles were great. 1 Responses | Other threads
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rumormonger
News Corp's Internet Wunderkind May Be on the Outs
Former AOL CEO Jon Miller hasn't officially joined News Corp. yet, but we hear that Jeremy Philips, the 36-year-old executive vice president in charge of Internet strategy, is panicked at the prospect of his hire. More »
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By Owen ThomasComment by robmorsexxx: Wait....NewsCorp has an internet strategy? So that would imply that trailer parks and white-supremecist compounds have internet access and that... 10 Responses | Other threads
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book deals
HarperCollins Paid $50,000 For Book of Re-Tweets: Source
We'll concede that former Valleywag Nick Douglas is, in our limited experience, among the wittiest Twitter users out there, and an entertaining chronicler of internet culture. But, really, $50,000 for his book of re-tweets? More »
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By Ryan TateComment by MrInBetween: A $50,000 advance is better than nothing, but it's not much when you think about it. After the agent's cut... 3 Responses | Other threads
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rumormonger
Is Chris DeWolfe on His Way Out at MySpace?
Bad days for MySpace CEO Chris DeWolfe: A tell-all book about the lowbrow social network's shady origins is hitting the shelves as a Wall Street analyst predicts layoffs. How long will he last? More »
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By Owen ThomasComment by Nick Denton: Why exactly is it such a scandal that the founders were involved in porn and spam? Where else were they... 1 Responses | Other threads
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rumormonger
More Job Cuts at Apple?
Something's going on at Apple. Normally a leak-proof ship, the S.S. Steve Jobs has been taking on rumors of layoffs. The latest: Cuts in Mac hardware and software units, says a tipster: More »
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By Owen ThomasComment by Jim Topoleski: Jesus give me a break already. Even if there are layoffs (of which you are the ONLY blog on the... 5 Responses | Other threads
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rumormonger
Apple Layoffs Today?
One tipster tells us there are "major layoffs" at Apple. Another writes that "all sales teams have mandatory meetings today" and that "HR booked conference rooms in Cupertino." Is Apple cutting salespeople loose? More »
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By Owen ThomasComment by scroll_lock: Only Apple's core employees shall remain. 13 Responses | Other threads
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rumormonger
Penthouse Magazine Closing? CEO Says No, COO Says Yes
Internet porn has devastated old-fashioned smut rags. We now hear a top executive at FriendFinder Networks, the publisher of Penthouse, wants to close the money-losing magazine down. But his boss denies it.
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By Owen ThomasComment by TedSez: So other than going to a liquor store and surreptitiously asking the sleazy guy behind the counter for a creepy... 5 Responses | Other threads
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rumormonger
Huffington Post Bidding On Local News Site?
We hear the Huffington Post is trying to buy Outside.in, the local news aggregator from supremely smug literary Park Sloper Steven Johnson. HuffPo embracing the local news business as promised? Bizarre. More »
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By Ryan TateComment by BooWahBabe: I have NEVER heard of them and am once again confused as hell as to how something like this or... 5 Responses | Other threads
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books
When is the Steve Jobs Autobiography Coming Out?
"Steve Jobs has started writing a book," a plugged-in tipster tells me. It's the barest of rumors, but the book industry is already eagerly anticipating the Apple CEO's autobiography. More »
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By Owen ThomasComment by Ken Elwell: Stop. This is the same Steve Jobs that said people don't read anymore. Who is the audience for this, then? Why... 1 Responses | Other threads
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rumormonger
Intel's Secret Geekfest to Kill the iPhone
Apple's got the iPhone. Google's got Android. Even Amazon has the Kindle. After flirting several times with the ooohs-and-aaaahs gadget business, Intel convened a brain trust last week to work on their own mobile phone. More »
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By Owen ThomasComment by Figaro: I'm willing to wager that this thing will flop. Intel just doesn't get consumer products and design. Every one of... 3 Responses | Other threads
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rumormonger
Google Engineers Fear 1,000 or More Layoffs
A tipster is hearing from inside the Googleplex that the company, which is set to report earnings today, could lay off 5 percent of its engineering staff. More »
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By Owen ThomasComment by Psychicsword: Although layoffs are never a good thing, I am just glad Google is a company that knows how to avoid... more » | Other threads
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rumormonger
The craziest Yahoo layoff stories
Did you hear Yahoo CEO Jerry Yang had his house lined with Kevlar before he laid off 1,500 employees? No idea if that's true, but that's the best rumor I heard all week.
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By Owen ThomasComment by BambalinaCoronus: Reading gripes from bitter layoffs victims is so boring. It's like listening to someone whose going through a divorce trash... 4 Responses | Other threads
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rumormonger
Zune-phone rumor refuses to die
The Inquirer is convinced that Microsoft will launch a Microsoft-branded Zune phone in February. Not some other brand's phone running Windows, but an actually iPhone-wannabe Microsoft Zune phone. The Inq cites a geek detail to make it real: The phone will use Nvidia's Tegra mobile CPU chip, not unlike this Nvidia prototype CNET handled. In theory, that means it can do most of what a desktop PC can do. In practice, that means it'll probably be hated on as just much as Vista.
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By Paul BoutinComment by Pragmatic: No they will not. What will happen though is they will feature prominently the Windows Mobile 6.5 with Zune play... 2 Responses | Other threads
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rumormonger
Apple analyst gossip rollup
How to fill a slow holiday week for gossip about the Only Brand That Matters? Analyst firm Piper Jaffray has the cure: 12 unanswered questions about everything from Chinese iPhones (next year for sure) to netbooks (never, because "Apple doesn't do cheap.") Of course, the fun part about Apple predictions is they're always 100% wrong.
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By Paul BoutinComment by Churchill: Apple has miniaturize the iPod to a ridiculous level! It's even hard to see anymore! more » | Other threads
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rumormonger
Henry Blodget wants you to think Eric Schmidt will quit
Two weeks after Valleywag stopped believing that President-for-Change Obama might steal Eric Schmidt from Google, Silicon Alley Insider editor Henry Blodget has weighed in with the same speculation. His bullet list of reasons Schmidt might quit isn't crazy, but here's the six-word version of Blodget's post: "We have no inside knowledge here. " I have enough inside knowledge to say this: true Googlers don't see Google as a stepping-stone to a government job. Government is part of the problem. Google is the solution. (Photo by Reuters/Carlos Barria)
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By Paul BoutinComment by ghunda: No but seriously, in that picture is Schmidt photoshopped in because it kind of looks like the ghost-of-Google-CEO haunting Obama.... more » | Other threads
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rumormonger
Google to lay off 10,000?
"Up to 10,000 jobs could be on the chopping block according to sources," writes Daya Baran. Can I just say it? No. Google will not dump 10,000 of its roughly 30,000 workforce. "Sources" are wrong, although Baran's tales of Google shuffling its so-called temporary employees around to game SEC rules are true. Google's most likely action will be a stealthy attrition of maybe around 2,000 underperformers. That'll be bad enough.
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By Paul BoutinComment by SudhamayiMarten: Goog is not laying off anyone. It's inaccurate of VW to sell the story this way. How can contractors who... 1 Responses | Other threads
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rumormonger
Music community Buzznet lays off 10 out of 89
"15 people laid off there today," says a tipster via email. "On a FRIDAY... Ouch. Have confirmation it’s across the board (sales, product, development etc.)" Our tipster didn't get it quite right — a company official says it was actually 10 out of 89 employees — just above the fashionable 10-percent cut high-profile VC firm Sequoia Capital established with its doom-and-gloom memo. Dear Buzznet employees: Please email us.
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By Paul BoutinComment by Paul Boutin: New email: "Yeah, it's a sad Friday here at Buzznet. "Company was downsized by 8%, according to execs, who held a staff... more » | Other threads
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rumormonger
Google heir born? Sergey Brin spotted at maternity ward
What to expect when you're expecting a billionaire? A tipster reports seeing Google cofounder Sergey Brin running into a hospital, orange Crocs and all. Here's what that means: His wife, Anne Wojcicki, is nine months pregnant with the couple's first child — who will be born into a fortune still worth $10 billion or more, even with Google shares plummeting. The spot where Brin was sighted, El Camino Hospital, has one of the Bay Area's best childbirth practices, and is close to Google headquarters in Mountain View, Calif. When we last saw Wojcicki, she was on Oprah talking about 23andMe, her genetics-testing startup, with the TV host herself begging Wojcicki to give birth already. It's possible that Brin was just there to tour the hospital, a common practice before birth, but his haste suggested otherwise, our tipster claims: More »
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By Owen ThomasComment by dingdongditch: El Camino Hospital, not Stanford Hospital? 4 Responses | Other threads
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rumormonger
Google CEO pulled over for driving with a cell phone
No man is above the law — not even multibillionaire Google CEO Eric Schmidt. At least that's what we hear from a well-placed tipster, who says Schmidt recently confessed to having been pulled over by the cops last month in Los Angeles for talking on his cell phone while driving. (California law recently changed to require the use of a headset.) Oh, but it gets worse for Schmidt. More »
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By Owen ThomasComment by MissVolare: Don't dial & drive: like the CHP needs more crap laws, besides "driving while minority," to enforce. I've started asking... 6 Responses | Other threads
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rumormonger
Walmart to kill iPhone's cool on December 28
I'm skeptical, but Boy Genius Report has what's supposed to be an internal document from Walmart. It details the launch timeline to begin selling iPhones at Walmart on December 28. Here's what nags at me: Why not start the day after Thanksgiving, instead of three days after Christmas? It's not because unprepared staff and long lines would be a problem. Please explain to me how this is all part of His Steveness's master plan.
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By Paul BoutinComment by godospoons: This makes complete sense--his Steveness wants as much foot traffic in his Apfel stores as possible during the fourth quarter. If... 1 Responses | Other threads
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rumormonger
Is Apple COO Tim Cook gay?
Tim Cook, Steve Jobs's second-in-command, may be up for the top job at Apple should anything happen to the company's iconic founder. Indeed, he's already subbed in once when Jobs was recuperating from surgery to treat pancreatic cancer. But who is this guy? Even Fortune's in-depth profile gives few clues: Cook, 48, is a Southerner who's "intensely private," a "fitness nut," and a "lifelong bachelor" who rents a house in Palo Alto. Outside interests? "When he isn't working he tends to be in the gym, on a hiking trail, or riding his bike." Come on. What is this — a Fortune profile, or a men-seeking-men personals ad in Craigslist? More »
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By Owen ThomasComment by TrumanBabcock: I don't see the point of even bringing this up... 2 Responses | Other threads
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rumormonger
Has Obama already picked his CTO?
Eric Schmidt said he won't be heading to Washington as President Obama's chief technologist. A tipster who claims inside info tells us that America's CTO of Change has already been chosen. Not surprising, but who? Who who who? More »
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By Paul BoutinComment by Rachel Marsden: Already this guy is bloating up government for no reason. 1 Responses | Other threads
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rumormonger
Yahoos, stock traders wish Jerry Yang rumor were true
When will Yahoo CEO Jerry Yang figure out that everyone wants him to leave? Matt Marshall at VentureBeat aired a rumor that a memo had gone out at 8 a.m. to Yahoo's workforce to expect some kind of "historic announcement" later today — a coded way of saying Yang was on his way out. Marshall wondered if it was true, or just an attempt to manipulate Yahoo's stock price. We called some Yahoos we know, and, alas, no such email exists. Even debunked, the rumor is telling: Sentiment against Yang is so strong that people are willing to believe a rumor he's leaving. (Photo by Yodel Anecdotal)
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By Owen ThomasComment by your creepy uncle: I hate to say it, but I'm thinking about buying Yahoo. You're telling me all those market-leading properties aren't worth... more » | Other threads
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rumormonger
LinkedIn to start layoffs today?
A tipster reports high drama at LinkedIn, the business-networking site. The company is funded in part by Sequoia Capital, the Valley's new high priests of doom and gloom — and, our source claims, Sequoia has told all of its portfolio companies to cut costs by 10 percent. LinkedIn's big-hearted chairman, Reid Hoffman (shown here), reportedly doesn't want to lay people off, but he and CEO Dan Nye are said to be engaged in a power struggle over this and other issues. Layoffs could come today — possibly an exercise in cleaning house rather than a reaction to the economy, though we hear LinkedIn has been missing financial milestones. Here's the tip: More »
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By Owen ThomasComment by sggrf: they should stick to being a recruitment site. most of their new things are gimmickly and unwelcomed. more » | Other threads
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rumormonger
Second Life maker swings layoff ax
A tipster reports that Linden Lab, the maker of virtual world Second Life, is laying off its business-development department, which had cultivated ties with software makers. The move affects "9 or 10" employees," he says. A wise move, if tardy: Don't you need to have a business worth developing before hiring someone in business development? -
rumormonger
iPhone production off 40 percent
Friedman Billings Ramsey analyst Craig Berger claims his industry contacts know that Apple's Q4 iPhone production will be more than 40 percent lower than Q3. So, even though poor people are the iPhone's largest growth market, overall sales are expected to be off because rich people stop buying gadgets when the Nasdaq drops. I'm getting tired of this global-downturn talk. Where's my reality distortion field? (Photo by otakuchick)
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By Paul BoutinComment by Migrant Blogger: Rich people stop, but poor people keep spending? Not when they hit their credit card limits ... more » | Other threads
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rumormonger
If Scott Moore leaves Yahoo, does that mean it's buying AOL?
Scott Moore, the head of Yahoo Media Group, is leaving the company, reports BoomTown's Kara Swisher. A bad sign for the company: Moore ran some of Yahoo's most successful operations, including its news, finance, and sports websites. Why is Moore leaving now, having survived most of Yahoo's annus horribilis with his charm unruffled? The first conclusion I'll jump to: Talks with Time Warner to sell AOL to Yahoo are advancing, and Moore does not like his position in the merged entity. Update: Swisher writes: "Dead wrong guess as usual. Talks are slower than ever. He had the top job over Bill Wilson." Well, why didn't you say so in the first place, Kara?
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By Owen ThomasComment by karaswisher: I forgot you were in remedial reading, Owen. I said it here: "With high-ranking Yahoo execs like Moore gone, it will... 2 Responses | Other threads
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new york times
Times Said Shopping About.com
The troubled New York Times Company is running out of options. It owes more than $1 billion, close to half of it coming due in the next two years. But it just ruled out layoffs for the foreseeable future and will probably try to avoid cutting the $132 million annual dividend, since doing so could spark a boardroom revolt by high-living Sulzberger family members. So it would make sense if the company has been trying to sell About.com, as Jason Calacanis, CEO of search engine company Mahalo, said on the This Week In Tech podcast last week. (Audio of his remarks lies after the jump.) More »
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By Ryan TateComment by belltolls: Call me a stupid but who uses about.com or for that matter Mahalo? 3 Responses | Other threads
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rumormonger
Washed-up Hollywood star going to wrong parties
Blind items are the gossip world's equivalent of the mathematical puzzles that keep engineers entertained. Try your hand! They're easier than a Rubik's Cube. CNET News reporter Caroline McCarthy has posed the following one: More » -
rumormonger
Google secretly investing in zeppelins?
Zeppelins went out of style when the Hindenburg went down in flames over New Jersey. But Airship Ventures, a startup backed by quirky angel investor Esther Dyson, is trying to bring them back. With a little help from Dyson's friends. Airship's Zeppelin NT, the first to fly over the U.S. in 70 years, has just completed a transatlantic journey and is scheduled to touch down this afternoon at the Nasa-operated Moffett Field, where it will be permanently stationed, operating aerial tours of the Bay Area. Curious — a private enterprise making use of public lands. Nasa's excuse for hosting the zeppelin: It will be used for scientific investigations and other public-spirited purposes. Where have we heard that before? More »
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By Owen ThomasComment by WagCurious: Am I the first one to notice that the array of armaments that Google has assembled in Santa Clara could... 2 Responses | Other threads
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Spencer Greene
Juniper Networks No. 2 on his way out?
We hear Spencer Greene, long the right-hand man of Juniper Networks chairman Scott Kriens, is on his way out. Not entirely surprising, since Kriens was recently replaced as CEO by Kevin Johnson, a former top Microsoft executive. Our source tells us Greene is currently on a two-month "vacation" — the source used scare quotes — overseas.
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By Owen ThomasComment by dingdongditch: Any bets he might go join andy bechtolsheim? more » | Other threads
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Fri Jul 10
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