Exclusive: Yahoo's Thompson Out; Levinsohn In; Board Settlement With Loeb Nears Completion  —  Yahoo's embattled CEO Scott Thompson (pictured here) is set to step down from his job at the Silicon Valley Internet giant, in what will be dramatic end to a controversy over a fake computer science degree …

Microsoft Funded Startup Aims to Kill BitTorrent Traffic  —  Hollywood, software giants and the major music labels see BitTorrent as one of the largest threats to their business.  —  Billions in revenue are lost each year, they claim.  But not for long if the Russian based startup “Pirate Pay” has its way.

Disruptions: Facebook's Real-Life ‘Spidey Sense’  —  Imagine if you had a superpower that would allow you to peer into the future of the Internet?  It's a pretty nerdy power compared to Spider-Man's web-slinging, but you could use this superhuman ability to see what would be popular soon, and in some instances, change the future.

German TV maker Loewe denies Apple acquisition rumour, says report has “absolutely nothing to it”  —  Following an AppleInsider report that hit last night stating that Apple was in talks to acquire the company, German TV maker Loewe has today officially denied rumours of a $113 million buyout …

HBO's ‘Game Of Thrones’ On Track To Be Crowned Most Pirated Show Of 2012  —  Brace yourselves, HBO.  The pirates are coming.  —  With its popularity swelling and no easy way to watch for viewers without cable, HBO's hit series “Game of Thrones” is inspiring massive levels of piracy …

Box: The Path From Arrington's Backyard To A Billion Dollar Business  —  It's no secret that many deals have been struck and key relationships formed at TechCrunch founder Michael Arrington's former house in Atherton.  In case you aren't familiar, Arrington threw epic parties at his home …

LiqhtSquared Moves Toward Bankruptcy  —  Hedge-fund manager Philip Falcone's LightSquared Inc. venture is preparing for a potential bankruptcy-protection filing, as negotiations with lenders to avoid a potential default faltered, according to people familiar with the matter.

Baidu to rival Android and iOS in China with cloud-centric smartphone platform  —  Chinese Internet giant Baidu is set to make a move to rival Google and others in China's smartphone market with the upcoming launch of ‘Baidu Cloud’, a smartphone platform that integrates with its cloud-based storage service and other Web products.

Expect a 6 month freeze on Facebook's Instagram acquisition  —  A former U.S. Department of Justice lawyer and antitrust expert says Facebook's purchase of photo-sharing site Instagram will take between four months and one year to clear regulatory hurdles.  In the meantime, the deal is effectively on hold.