Minding The (Apple)Store  —  As I've written many times in the past, I'm part of the vast chorus that praises the Apple Store.  And not just for the uncluttered product displays, the no-pressure sales people (who aren't on commission), or the Genius Bar that provides expert help, but for the impressive architecture.

YouTube Preps Big New Round of Content Investments  —  Some Partners Will Get Another Check; Others May Quietly Go Away  —  Nearly a year after YouTube sprinkled $100 million across the online video ecosystem to create more than a hundred new “channels,” it's doubling down.

Skype Preview for Windows Phone 8 is now available!  Hands on video.  —  Oh what a weekend it has been.  With the launch of Windows Phone 8 on AT&T and Verizon and T-Mobile expected in the next week, it has been quite exciting but now it is coming to full steam with the release of Skype for Windows Phone 8.

Tweetro Slams into Twitter 100K Token Limit  —  Users of the very popular 3rd party Twitter app Tweetro just received this email from Atta Elayyan the UX Designer and Co-Founder of Lazyworm Applications Ltd. and it is not good news: … Included in the email was a graphic showing the downloads …

Why Apple and HTC settled their patent litigation  —  Sometimes it's easier to just pay the money  —  Apple and HTC just announced a surprise settlement to their ongoing patent litigation, which spanned multiple lawsuits in courts around the world.  The deal will see both companies drop …

More startups let employees sell shares on SecondMarket amid IPO uncertainty  —  Over the past few years on SecondMarket, the New York-based platform for trading shares in privately-held companies, the majority of sellers have been former employees of startups.

The Surface Of Mars: My Date With A Microsoft Kiosk  —  “What's the best feature of the Surface?”  —  “Um, everything.”  —  Thus began my experience at a local mall buying a Microsoft Surface.  —  Yes, I bought a Surface — me, the lover of all things Apple and perhaps the biggest fan of the iPad out there.

Where Did Spotify's Billion Dollars Go?  Ask Netflix.  —  Six months ago, Spotify was going to be worth $4 billion.  Now it looks like a new funding round will value the streaming music company at $3 billion.  —  Where did that billion dollars go?  —  The most obvious answer is that all sorts …

Is Dailybooth, THE original Web photo sharing service, closing down?  (Update: Yes)  —  Dailybooth, one of the first startups that helped bring online photo taking and sharing to the masses, is to close its doors, according to users who have received a shutdown note from the service.

Microsoft to use Jay-Z, Gwen Stefani, and other celebrities to promote Windows Phone 8  —  After an on stage appearance by Jessica Alba at Microsoft's Windows Phone 8 launch recently, the company and its partners are starting to use even more celebrities to promote Redmond's latest mobile OS.

The Problem With Measuring Digital Influence  —  Social media is a required avenue for brands to engage their customers.  However, social media engagement is primarily based on conversations and personalized interactions that are difficult to scale.  Influencer marketing provides brands …