Amazon acquires shoe retailer Zappos.com

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Ahleen
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Amazon has announced yesterday that they will be acquiring Zappos and the deal will be expected to close this fall.

Amazon has been offering shoes in their main site, and has even introduced a separate site in 2007, Endless.com, to sell shoes and handbags but they still couldn’t compete with Zappos.com. According to comScore, Zappos received 4.5 million visitors in June, while Endless.com only got 777,000.

Now for you guys who don’t know what Zappos is, it’s a decade-old private company who has become the largest player in the online shoe market.

This acquisition is by far, the largest in Amazon’s history, offering Zappos 10 million shares of Amazon stock worth nearly $900 million at its current level.

Amazon also said it would give Zappos employees an additional $40 million (whew!) in cash and stock to keep them on board and preserve the Zappos culture which has endeared it to many consumers.

Zappos has been known for its personalized service, free overnight shipping and a policy to allow buyers to return any pair of shoes free.

“We plan to continue to run Zappos the way we have always run Zappos — continuing to do what we believe is best for our brand, our culture, and our business,” Mr. Tony Hsieh, Zappos chief executive wrote in a blog.

Well, what can say? If you can’t beat em’, buy ‘em!

That might not be your usual saying or proverb or whatever it is, but it sure does work for Amazon. 🙂

Source:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/23/technology/companies/23amazon.html?_r=1

AT&T to power Plastic Logic eReader

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Ahleen
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0

AT&T has announced that it will power the upcoming Plastic Logic electronic reader via its 3G network to connect to the web so users can browse, buy and download ebooks instantly.

Glenn Lurie, AT&T’s head of emerging devices said that they are looking forward to empowering the electronic reading device as there is a tremendous market potential for it.

The Plastic Logic electronic has previously revealed a partnership with Barnes & Noble with the latter’s eBookstore integrated into the reader. The eBookstore was launched last Monday and now offers 200,000 for sale titles as well as 500,000 free public domain books from Google.

A price for the ebook reader has not yet been released. However, in terms of sizes, it is expected that the device will be larger than most of its competitors with measurements comparable to an 8.5 by 11-inch notepad.

The ebook reader will be available to the public by 2010.

Source:

http://www.pcworld.com/article/168868/atandt_to_power_new_plastic_logic_ereader.html

10-Finger Tracking in touch screens available soon

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Ahleen
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0

If you were amazed with iPhone’s multitouch interface with its two-finger sensor, get ready for the multitouch-sensor Clearpad 3000 Series from Synaptics.

The transparent sensor tracks up to 10 simultaneous finger touches making possible complex multifinger gestures. According to a CNet article, the Clearpad 3000 Series features an accuracy of plus/minus 1mm, is 0.3 mm thick and is available up to 8 inches diagonally.

The sensors use capacitive technology which is considered to be more sensible to fingers than resistive sensors and are also more transparent.

It is speculated that perhaps this is what Apple’s been waiting for to launch its much-rumored tablet.

Synaptic is also introducing a more down-to-earch model, the ClearPad 1000 Series. This model supports single-finger gestures such as tapping, pinching, pressing and flicking.

Can’t wait? No need to fuss. Synaptics said that manufacturers already have the sensors in hand, so you can expect products containing them by the end of the year. Wohooo! 🙂

Source: http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-10293342-1.html

EBay profit plunges in the latest quarter

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Ahleen
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0

People might not be as keen as before when it comes to shopping online.

EBay Inc. reported yesterday that its profit plunged to 29 percent in the latest quarter. This was due to the strength of the US dollar, and of course, a drop in its online Marketplaces business.

Last year, their net income for the fiscal quarter ending on June 30 was 460 million dollars or 35 cents per share. At present however, it dropped to just 327 dollars or 25 cents per share of stock.

The company’s Marketplaces unit includes electronic commerce websites: eBay, Shopping.com, StubHub and Kijiji. These sites had a 14 percent drop from the same quarter last year, logging in at just 1.26 billion dollars in revenue.

EBay attributed the drop to “the stronger dollar and the impact of challenging macroeconomic conditions.”

It’s not all that bad for EBay Inc. though.

Internet telephony service Skype, and online financial transaction service PayPay, which are both owned by the company, had a strong growth in the same period.

“We are managing our business with focus and discipline, delivering on our commitments while investing in our growth priorities.” eBay chief executive John Donahoe said. “ I’m pleased with our pace, our progress and our performance.”

Source:

http://tech.yahoo.com/news/afp/20090722/tc_afp/usitinternetretailearningsebay

Yahoo acquires Xoopit

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Ahleen
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0

Yahoo has confirmed yesterday that it has acquired Xoopit which is a start-up that helps people share content from their inboxes with social-networking sites like Facebook.

Xoopit has also announced in their website that they are joining Yahoo to “to make the world’s best email even better.”

It was not revealed exactly how much Yahoo paid for the site but earlier reports suggest that it could be around $20 million.

The acquisition is in tune with Yahoo’s plan to add new photo features to Yahoo Mail.

Bryan Lamkin, Yahoo’s senior vice president wrote in a company blog posting:

Why is this such a big deal? Yahoo! Mail is actually home to one of the largest online photo repositories in the world. And every day, millions of you use Yahoo! Mail as your primary way to share the photos of important moments in your lives. While social networks and community sites are great for sharing photos with everyone you know, we realize it’s not for everyone or every occasion. For many, email is still best for sharing photos among a more select group of friends or family. And now we’re making it all that much easier for you.

Want some piece of trivia?

Xoopit is interestingly, originally a GMail Firefox plugin that scours the user’s email for all media and organizes it neatly for users to browse and share. 🙂

Source:

http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-10293555-93.html

BlackBerry Desktop now on Mac OS

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Ahleen
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0

Rejoice Mac users!

Research In Motion (RIM), the makers of BlackBerry, has announced last yesterday that a version of its smartphones’ desktop software will be available for Apple computers on September.

Users can now sync their iTunes playlists, calendars, contracts, notes, and tasks from their Mac. Adding applications on your BlackBerry is also allowed and multiple handsets can now be managed on their computers.

There’s a catch though. RIM said that only Mac OS X versions 10.5.5 and up will be supported, so those Mac users who haven’t updated Leopard or those running Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger likely won’t be able to run the software.

Aw, the unfairness of life. 😉

Source:

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-10291074-37.html

The “Twitter Effect” on movies

By
Ahleen
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1

While instant publicity through social networking services like Twitter can help a movie boost its power in the box office, it can also drag it down, making it a box-office bomb.

This micro-blogging service allows audiences to quickly voice-out their critiques on the movies – even while they are still sitting in the theater watching it – and reaching many people instantly.

Paul Dergarabedian, president of tracking firm Hollywood.com Box Office said that if people don’t like a just-released movie on Friday night, the film can die by Saturday night.

A good example would probably be the summer comedy “Bruno” whose audiences reacted quickly and twittered about the raunchy scenes which scared people away. It fell 39% on its 2nd day, from earning $14.4 million in the US and Canada, to just $8.8.

Source:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ibd/20090720/bs_ibd_ibd/20090720trends;_ylt=Aj.GuQZ6dpOCX5fKRr6r44EjtBAF;_ylu=X3oDMTJrc2Fxdmk3BGFzc2V0A2liZC8yMDA5MDcyMC8yMDA5MDcyMHRyZW5kcwRwb3MDNgRzZWMDeW5fYXJ0aWNsZV9zdW1tYXJ5X2xpc3QEc2xrA3RyZW5kc2FtcGlubg–

Warner Music Group and YouTube still in negotiations

By
Ahleen
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0

Warner Music Group isn’t ready to renew their deal with YouTube as they are still in negotiations to license its artist’s music videos in the video sharing site.

Their major rivals have already renewed their deal earlier. EMI Music, the smallest of the four, has renewed its deal with YouTube in February after Sony Music Entertainment and ahead of Vivendi’s Universal Music Group, as Reuters reports.

Because both sides were unable to agree on financial terms for the licensing rights, videos from Madonna and Green Day (Warner artists) were pulled off YouTube last December. A source says that while talks are still ongoing, an announcement cannot be expected in the next few weeks.

Oh well, better hurry up you guys. People here need their daily dose of Madonna. 😉

Source:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090720/media_nm/us_warnermusic_youtube;_ylt=AthiAyaDSleYtNcOrcmcPGEjtBAF;_ylu=X3oDMTJybWZydWVrBGFzc2V0A25tLzIwMDkwNzIwL3VzX3dhcm5lcm11c2ljX3lvdXR1YmUEcG9zAzgEc2VjA3luX2FydGljbGVfc3VtbWFyeV9saXN0BHNsawN3YXJuZXJtdXNpY2E-

The Yahoo homepage makeover

By
Ahleen
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0

The newly revamped Yahoo home page, which will debut today in the US, is supposed to make it easier for users to see what’s happening in other popular sites.

The move is part of an overhaul aimed “at recapturing some of the buzz that Yahoo has lost to increasingly popular online hangouts like Facebook, MySpace and Twitter,” AP reports.

The retooled page will be available in United Kingdom, India and France later this week. It will be introduced to the rest of the world during the next year. This is the biggest change to Yahoo’s front page since its launching fifteen years ago. The last time the Yahoo homepage was overhauled was in 2006.

The new home page will now feature a “My Favorites” section which allows users to plant a variety of apps from other Web sites. Some of the 65 apps initially available on Yahoo’s new page include email services from Google Inc. and AOL, Facebook and MySpace. A Twitter app will soon be available too.

With these apps, users can now get a glimpse of what’s happening in the sites without having to leave Yahoo.

What’s even more better is that the preferences that are set in a user’s computer can also be transferred to appear on mobile phones and other handheld devices.

Cool eh?

Source:

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5g_jbYpP8ZL2b3-8uRRgZgi7T4HWgD99IHE1O1

Need a medical Marijuana? Check your Apple app.

By
Ahleen
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0

Apple’s App Store never ceases to amaze its fans and users, from useful and educational apps to the more er- controversial ones, such as shaking babies and explicit contents. Now a new app has surfaced, guaranteed to earn some raised-eyebrows from the more conservative set.

The application Cannabis assists users in finding the nearest available marijuana supply. Uhm, convenient eh?

The “Cannabis lifestyle” folks over at Ajnag who developed the app insist that it should be used for medicinal purposes only. The app only shows locations of legal dispensaries, not the location of illegal dealers. Ajnag also claims that they do not promote the illegal use of the drug.

The app isn’t all for marijuana though. In addition to sharing where users can find Cannabis, users can also locate local doctors, clinics, attorneys and others. J

Source:

http://www.pcworld.com/article/168740/need_medical_marijuana_yep_iphones_got_an_app_for_that.html

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