"I personally believe that you cannot build a modern knowledge society with that kind of behavior, that is my opinion. [...] The natural next question is when [will China change], and no one knows the answer to that question. [But] in a long enough time period, do I think that this kind of regime approach will end? I think absolutely."
- Google's Chairman Eric Schmidt on the fall of China's firewall
Rapidshare, an online service that allowed users to share (often illegal) files with each other and the public, has reportedly fired some 75 percent of its workers after struggling to handle legal issues and a significant decline in popularity.
[Source: TorrentFreak]
YouTube has announced on its eighth birthday that over 100 hours — more than four days — of video are uploaded to its servers every minute. The company announced in March that it has more than 1 billion monthly active users, putting it in the same category as its Google (its parent company) and Facebook.
[Source: YouTube]
Yahoo’s board of directors has approved the acquisition of the Tumblr microblogging service for $1.1 billion, AllThingsD reports. The decision is said to have been unanimous, with no competing bids for Tumblr.
[Source: AllThingsD]
Yahoo Japan suspects that some 22 million user IDs have been leaked, Reuters reports. The associated accounts have not been otherwise compromised — passwords and information that might be used to reset them are said to be safe — and Yahoo Japan is said to have prevented someone from accessing its administrative system.
[Source: Reuters]
Autodesk has acquired Tinkercad, a startup that makes CAD files editable and ready for 3D printing for an undisclosed sum. Tinkercad’s technology and website will transfer to Autodesk, and the service’s free option has been “supercharged” to offer more functionality.
[Source: Tinkercad]
Valve engineers fired from the company in February have continued work on “CastAR,” a wearable augmented reality device that was cancelled at the same time, the Verge reports. The device is currently at an early stage; it will likely seek funding on Kickstarter in the future, according to the report.
[Source: The Verge]
“Does Yahoo make Tumblr into YouTube — a successful standalone network that can grow and prosper on its own — or does it become MySpace?”
— GigaOM's Mathew Ingram on the supposed Yahoo-Tumblr acquisition
The company’s board will meet on Sunday night to decide whether or not to approve a $1.1 billion offer for the blogging site, sources told AllThingsD. [Source: AllThingsD]
The press received invites to a product-related press event in New York on May 20. A source told Bloomberg that it is regarding updates to the photo sharing site. [Source: Bloomberg]
The streaming version of the red, DVD-dispensing kiosks will launch on Google TV in the next few weeks. Soon after, the company, which is a joint venture between Redbox and Verizon, will look to add support to Roku. [Source: GigaOm]
It may live in the shadow of Curiosity, but NASA’s older rover has driven further than any other object on the surface of another body in our solar system. It’s cruised 22.22 miles, but that’s still short of the 23 miles a Soviet Union rover drove on the moon in 1973. [Source: The Verge]
Bang With Friends (hidden slightly by the name BWF Official) has been removed from the App Store by Apple. So for the time being, iPhone users who want to hook up on the go are out of luck. [Source: CNET]
A new study looked at “the geography of Twitter” finds that, “There is a strong difference in the geographic profiles of Twitter and mainstream media and that the intensity of discourse mentioning a country does not necessarily match the intensity of discourse emanating from that country in social media.” [Source: Poynter]
It’s being reported that Sony is going to appoint Chief Executive Osamu Nagayama as the new chairman of the company. The appointment will be finalized at the next board meeting on June 20. [Source: Reuters]
Panasonic has decided to cut 90% of Sanyo’s 2,500 workforce over the next three years. In addition, it may decide to absorb the company it acquired in 2010 entirely. [Source: Reuters]
Rumors have been circulating about Yahoo’s possible buyout of Tumblr. Now CNBC has tweeted that Yahoo will hold a “product-related” event where CEO Marissa Mayer will speak. [Source: @CNBC]
At Google’s I/O 2013 today Google gave some statistics about Google Play’s revenue. One standout is that in-app purchases are rising significantly, going up 7 times as much as there were this time last year. [Source: TechCrunch]
“Commerce has become marketing and marketing has become commerce”
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US authorities launch their first attack on bitcoin
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For startups with university roots, an exit is priority number one
Give me that old bitcoin religion
Chartbeat crosses the Chinese wall with ad sales tools, focusing on quality over clicks
IPO candidate Plex Systems grabs Eloqua CMO Heidi Melin to grow its cloud ERP platform
Vessel launches its “command center” to help mobile developers kill faulty software
Ticketfly adds Fanbase customer analytics platform to help venue owners pack events
With Thirst’s Droplet, the vision for news on Google Glass becomes a little clearer
For Chris Dixon the next big thing might be bitcoin
The center of tech is shifting from Silicon Valley to “application towns” like New York and LA
Chris Dixon: The consumer Web has gotten too good, enterprise companies are cutthroat
Portland startup launches transit mobile ticketing service. Is this the future?
We are real people trying to do real things
With 2 million users, “secrets app” Whisper launches on Android
As venture capital becomes a commodity, it’s all about community
What CEOs could learn from comedians
How Microsoft, Google, and Square use hardware to market their software and services
A federal shield law for journalists would be virtually useless
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Scroll down: The future of online media is in the cards
Marqeta now powers Facebook Card loyalty and payments tech, announces $14M Series B round
Berg Cloud Sandbox: A tool to unite connected devices and the companies that make them
Two years of stealth and $11M in VC later, EdgeSpring launches a data analytics platform for the average man
Bitcoin is legal, but mainstream adoption will mandate playing by the rules
For the Internet of things, will it be verticals or horizontals?
A bitcoin bubble could be good for everyone
New Zealand-based Vend raises $8M without turning to the Valley
Hotseat: Gravity’s Amit Kapur defends the integrity of the MySpace mafia
PandoHouse Rock: A history of 3D printing, from prototypes to pistols
With the bleeding stopped, ShoeDazzle is in the market for a strategic acquisition or investment
Bitcoin’s consumerization continues with Perk, a rewards platform and Web browser for normal people
How to become a VC without leaving home
Gliph joins Boost.vc, launches bitcoin messaging and payments app
Zinio’s new subscription product only solves half a problem
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