Techmeme: Get a ticket, get a free gadget (Holly Jackson/CNET News.com)

6:00 PM ET, June 30, 2008

Top Items:

Katie Marsal / AppleInsider:

AT&T memos detail iPhone 3G unbricking tool, crowd planning, more... A recent series of internal memos from AT&T to its Mobility staffers reveal a variety of preparatory measures ahead of next month's iPhone launch, including the deployment of an iPhone 3G unbricking tool, ongoing 3G network optimizations …

Discussion: One More Thing, GMSV, CrunchGear, O'Grady's PowerPage and iLounge

Dan Frommer / Silicon Alley Insider:

‘Unprecedented Pent-Up Demand’ For Apple iPhone 3G, RBC Says — More good news for Apple (AAPL) ahead of the 3G iPhone launch, scheduled for next Friday, July 11. Consumers have “unprecedented” demand for Apple's phone, according to new data from RBC's Technology Adoption Panel.

Discussion: Digital Daily, 9 to 5 Mac, AppleInsider, Electronista, Macsimum News, FierceWireless and MacDailyNews

Jan Libbenga / The Register:
iPhone will ship in green packaging

Discussion: Computerworld and Cult of Mac

Jay Yarow / Business Week:
Surge of New Software for the iPhone

Discussion: localmobilesearch.net

Michael Arrington / TechCrunch:

CBS Finishes Acquisition Of CNET; Leslie Moonves, Quincy Smith And Neil Ashe Address The Troops — CBS announced the closing of its acquisition of CNET today. The deal, first announced last month, will bring CNET under the control of Quincy Smith's CBS Interactive division …

Discussion: paidContent.org, Contentinople, CNET News.com and AppScout

cbscorporation.com:

Quincy Smith Named Chief Executive Officer and Neil Ashe Named President of CBS Interactive — CBS Corporation (NYSE: CBS.A and CBS) announced today that it has completed its acquisition of CNET Networks, Inc. and merged its operations into a newly expanded CBS Interactive division.

Discussion: HipMojo.com, paidContent.org and NewTeeVee

Michael Learmonth / Silicon Alley Insider:
Quincy Smith Named CEO Of CBS Interactive, CNET

Discussion: paidContent.org and HipMojo.com

Apple:

About the Mac OS X 10.5.4 update — The Mac OS X 10.5.4 Update is recommended for Mac OS X 10.5, 10.5.1, 10.5.2, and 10.5.3 Leopard. It includes general operating system improvements that enhance the stability, compatibility, and security of your Mac. — For information about security updates, please see this article.

Discussion: MacRumors, CNET News.com, PC World, TechBlog, The Mac Observer, MacDailyNews, MacFixIt and Gizmodo

RealNetworks.com:

RHAPSODY LAUNCHES “MUSIC WITHOUT LIMITS” INITIATIVE ACROSS WEB, SOCIAL NETWORKS AND MOBILE — New Rhapsody MP3 Store Opens Virtual Doors with 100,000 Album Giveaway — Rhapsody to Power Full-Song Playback and MP3 Sales for iLike, MTV Networks' Music Group Sites and Yahoo!

Renay San Miguel / E-Commerce Times:
Rhapsody Tries to Drown Out iTunes

Discussion: last100, The Register and The Apple Core

Henry Blodget / Silicon Alley Insider:

Yahoo (YHOO): Yes, We Blew Microsoft Deal, But Please Don't Fire Us — As Yahoo's shareholder meeting looms and Yahoo's stock continues to drop, Yahoo (YHOO) management is pulling out all the stops to try to persuade you not to fire them. — The pitch? This detailed slide show, filed with the SEC.

Discussion: WebProNews, Tech Trader Daily, Yahoo! Finance and Deal Journal

Dawn Kawamoto / CNET News.com:
Yahoo unveils timeline of failed Microsoft talks

Discussion: TG Daily

The Register:

An iPhone with a keyboard? — It is an article of faith, of course, that whatever Steve Jobs does is right. And so, since the iPhone currently has no keyboard on it, it must logically follow that it is wrong to have a keyboard, and therefore that Steve Jobs will never produce a version that does have a keyboard.

Discussion: VentureBeat

Kevin Rose / Digg the Blog:

Recommendation Engine rolling out this week! — We're launching the Digg Recommendation Engine beginning this week. The feature will be in beta and presented to registered Digg users first, based on a random sampling of logged-in users. Look for the red beta flag on your Upcoming tab …

Discussion: Silicon Alley Insider, Webware.com, TechCrunch, VentureBeat and Media Bullseye

Erick Schonfeld / TechCrunch:

Google Launches Affiliate Advertising Network, Courtesy of DoubleClick — Amazon, watch out. Earlier today, Google launched an affiliate ad network. Or, rather, it rebranded Performics, the affiliate ad network that came along with its purchase of DoubleClick, as the “Google Affiliate Network.”

Discussion: Silicon Alley Insider, ReadWriteWeb, DoubleClick Performics …, ReveNews and CostPerNews

Tamar Weinberg / techipedia:

Twitter versus Plurk: Not Even in the Same League — Earlier this month, Plurk was discovered and has had social media addicts abuzz with the “new Twitter clone,” especially as a result of Twitter downtime. — After using both closely, the comparison to Twitter shouldn't even be the case.

Discussion: The Social Times, Conversational Media Marketing and The Social Networker

Michael Arrington / TechCrunch:

Marc Andreessen Joins Facebook's Board Of Directors — Marc Andreessen, founder of Netscape, Opsware and Ning and the former CTO of AOL, is adding a new notch in his belt: he has joined the board of directors of Facebook, two sources close to the company confirmed to us …

Discussion: Webware.com, VentureBeat, Search Engine Land, Digital Daily, RexBlog.com, Silicon Alley Insider, All Facebook, WebProNews, TomsTechBlog.com, Valleywag, Wikinomics and Coop's Corner

Larry Dignan / Between the Lines:

AOL's Platform A: We'll pay Bebo, Facebook developers top pennies — AOL's Platform A said Monday that it will offer Bebo and Facebook application developers “a guaranteed CPM” for U.S. traffic and says the ad rate is one of the highest in the industry. — However, there are a few caveats …

Discussion: GigaOM, AOL Corporate, Search Engine Watch Blog, Silicon Alley Insider, paidContent.org, Mashable!, The Social Times and Valleywag

Hilary Goldstein / IGN:

Rock Band 2: The Opening Act — We blow the lid off one of the biggest sequels of 2008. — Rock Band is ready for a comeback tour. Today, Harmonix announced Rock Band 2 is set to ship for Xbox 360 this September and PS3 later in the year. However, the official announcement of Rock Band 2 …

Discussion: Engadget, Kotaku, CrunchGear, Destructoid, AppScout, Joystiq, Court Ordered Therapy, Opposable Thumbs, Xbox 360 Fanboy and Gizmodo

Microsoft:

More Than 1 Million Entrepreneurs Have Made Microsoft Office Live Small Business One of the Fastest Growing Web Services — More small-business owners are recognizing the need for a Web presence in today's digital world. — Microsoft Office Live Small Business (http://www.smallbusiness.officelive.co m) …

Discussion: One Microsoft Way, LiveSide and Bink.nu

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