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1:05 PM ET, January 5, 2009

Techmeme

 Top Items: 
Apple:
Letter from Apple CEO Steve Jobs  —  For the first time in a decade, I'm getting to spend the holiday season with my family, rather than intensely preparing for a Macworld keynote.  —  Unfortunately, my decision to have Phil deliver the Macworld keynote set off another flurry of rumors about my health …
RELATED:
Apple:
Statement by Apple's Board of Directors  —  It is widely recognized both inside and outside of Apple that Steve Jobs is one of the most talented and effective CEOs in the world.  —  As we have said before, if there ever comes a day when Steve wants to retire or for other reasons cannot continue …
Discussion: PC World, Guardian and 9 to 5 Mac
Nicholas Carlson / Silicon Alley Insider:
Steve Jobs Admits Health Caused Him To Skip Macworld (AAPL)  —  Apple (AAPL) sources told CNBC's Jim Goldman (over and over) that the reason CEO Steve Jobs would not give his usual keynote at this year's Macworld was for “political” reasons.  —  Now, in an open letter, Steve admits that's not true …
Aaron Smith / CNNMoney.com:   Jobs: Hormone imbalance causing weight loss
Charles Cooper / Coop's Corner:
Now Apple's credibility really is in the balance
Discussion: GigaOM and Time
New York Times:
Blu-ray's Fuzzy Future  —  The biggest news at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas last January was not the birth of a new product but the death of one.  —  A decision by Warner Brothers to withdraw support for the HD DVD video disc format sent shock waves through the electronics industry …
Peter Kafka / MediaMemo:
For Sale at the New York Times: The Front Page  —  The New York Times (NYT) is already trying to mortgage its headquarters and unload assets like its stake in the Boston Red Sox.  —  So what's left to sell?  The front page.  —  Today's edition of the Times features the first display ad the paper has ever sold on its front page.
RELATED:
Richard Pérez-Peña / New York Times:
The Times to Sell Display Ads on the Front Page
Discussion: Screenwerk
Michael Arrington / TechCrunch:
Celebrity Twitter Accounts Hacked (Bill O'Reilly, Britney Spears, Rick Sanchez)  —  My guess is this has nothing to do with the phishing attacks that started on Twitter a couple of days ago.  But a few minutes ago the official Fox News Twitter account posted “Breaking: Bill O Riley is gay” …
Wall Street Journal:
TV and Web Marry After Long Courtship  —  After more than a decade of disappointment, the goal of marrying television and the Internet seems finally to be picking up steam.  —  A key factor in the push are new TV sets that have networking connections built directly into them, requiring no additional set-top boxes for getting online.
RELATED:
Tom Krazit / CNET News:
Apple's last Macworld beginning of new era  —  Apple CEO Steve Jobs' absence from Macworld 2009 could be a prelude to a new communications strategy.  —  (Credit: Corinne Schulze/CNET Networks)  —  Even though CEO Steve Jobs will not be playing his customary role, the last Macworld Expo …
RELATED:
Claudine Beaumont / Telegraph:
Macworld: Analysts expect Apple's evolution not revolution
Discussion: MacRumors
Larry Dignan / Between the Lines:
Lenovo shows off 16-inch thin laptop; Launches all-in-one PC, dual-screen mobile workstation  —  Ahead of the Consumer Electronics Show this week, Lenovo unveiled new consumer laptops and a debuted a dual-screen mobile workstation.  —  Lenovo, which began to target consumers a year ago …
RELATED:
Intel:
Intel and Adobe to Extend Flash Platform to TVs  —  Optimizing Adobe Flash Technology on Intel® Media Processor CE 3100 Will Enable Rich and Seamless Web Content on TV  —  Adobe® Systems Incorporated (Nasdaq:ADBE) and Intel Corporation today announced plans to collaborate …
Leo Lewis / Times of London:
Sony on brink of upheaval as analysts back British chief  —  Sony, the embattled Japanese electronics group, is on the brink of a corporate upheaval that could see job cuts and sweeping changes to management and manufacturing processes.  —  Company sources have told The Times that operations across …
Michael Arrington / TechCrunch:
2009: Products I Can't Live Without  —  At the beginning of each year I traditionally publish a list of my favorite startups and products.  This is the fourth year I've done this - previous lists: 2006, 2007, 2008.  You guys get to pick the winners of the Crunchies - this list is all mine.
Discussion: TechCrunchIT, CloudAve and Tony Bain
Robert Palmer / TUAW:
NRK offers free podcast containing every Beatles song  —  The Beatles could have all their songs on iTunes, but not the way you might think: via a podcast describing the story behind each song, released by a Norwegian broadcasting company.  —  NRK is podcasting its segment called …
Discussion: NRKbeta and Insanely Great Mac
Chris Mellor / The Register:
Iomega aims at TVs with home server  —  Backs up PCs and plays digital media files  —  Iomega has announced a home storage and media server that backs up files on connected PCs and plays digital media content to connected output devices.  —  The Home Media Network Hard Drive (HMNHD) …
Discussion: Gizmodo
Ken Barnes / USA Today:
Music sales boom, but albums fizzle for '08  —  Americans bought more music in 2008 than ever before, but album sales — the music industry's main source of revenue — dropped for a fourth year.  —  According to the Nielsen Co.'s year-end figures, music purchases — CD, vinyl …
Discussion: TECH.BLORGE.com and Gadgetell
John Biggs / CrunchGear:
Exclusive: New Palm phone to have slide-down keyboard, large touchscreen  —  We have information from a trusted source that the latest Palm smartphone running the Nova operating system will be launched Thursday.  The new phone will have a full QWERTY keyboard that will slide down under a portrait-oriented touchscreen.
Claire Cain Miller / New York Times:
In Silicon Valley, Venture Capitalists Turn Cautious and Focus on the Short Term  —  MENLO PARK, Calif. — Venture capitalists make their fortunes, or lose them, on the strength of their predictions.  As they hunt for barely hatched ideas and nurture them with money and advice …
Discussion: The Open Road and BloggingStocks
Philipp Lenssen / Google Blogoscoped:
As Lively Goes Down, NewLively Springs Up  —  Google's 3D world Lively, as announced last year, was stopped on January 1st after being live just a couple of months.  Their homepage is now displaying a good-bye message, and if you were among the (not so lucky) early adopters …
 
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 More Items: 
Simon Dumenco / AdAge:
Digg This, HuffPo: What's $200 Million Divided by 2009 Reality?
Joseph Tartakoff / The Microsoft Blog:
Goldman Sachs: Microsoft lay offs would be “good” for stock
Discussion: TechFlash
Chris Snyder / Epicenter:
Al Jazeera To Come Pre-Installed on Some Sony Phones
Discussion: FierceMobileContent
John Mahoney / Gizmodo:
Exclusive Movie Trailer: The World's Best Gadget Designers Speak in Objectified
Discussion: Silicon Alley Insider and Core77
TechRadar.com:
Stallman: “we still have a fight on our hands”
Times of India:
Finance Ministry recommends double the minimum price for 3G spectrum
Discussion: mocoNews.net and Engadget Mobile
Michael Masnick / Techdirt:
Trying To Understand: Facebook's Lawsuit Against Power.com Makes No Sense
 Earlier Items: 
Michael Learmonth / AdAge:
As Tracking Proliferates, Web Publishers Are Left Out
Discussion: Digital Destiny
Tania Branigan / Guardian:
China targets Google and Baidu in crackdown on ‘vulgar’ websites
Discussion: WebProNews
Lewis Page / The Register:
Windows for Warships™ reaches Royal Navy frigates
Joseph L. Flatley / Engadget:
Suzuki Xbox dashboard mod for the undignified gamer on the go
Discussion: Newlaunches.com and CrunchGear
Motoko Rich / New York Times:
Google Hopes to Open a Trove of Little-Seen Books
 

 
From Mediagazer:

Manish Singh / TechCrunch:
Indian streaming service JioCinema launches an ad-free subscription plan with the lowest tier costing $0.35/month for a single device, undercutting rivals

Murray Stassen / Music Business Worldwide:
Warner Music Group sells Uproxx, HipHopDX, and other assets to a new company, Uproxx Studios, formed by Jarret Myer, Rich Antoniello, and will.i.am

New York Times:
Sources detail NPR's struggles with declining audiences, falling sponsorship revenue, internal conflicts over turning things around, and a diversity push

 
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