Techmeme
February 21, 2014, 1:00 PM

Top News

Peter Kafka / Re/code:
Sources say Amazon readying an Android-based Web TV box competing with Apple TV and Roku, for March rollout  —  Amazon Gets Its TV Box Ready, Again  —  Amazon is gearing up to take on Apple and Roku, again.  —  Industry sources say Amazon is getting ready to launch a Web TV box …
Mike Isaac / Re/code:
Facebook's WhatsApp Deal Could Jumpstart Internet.org Plans  —  What's cooler than $19 billion?  How about changing the world? … Mark Zuckerberg took a step closer to realizing a dream to bring the Internet to everyone on the planet with Facebook's $19 billion acquisition of mobile messaging service WhatsApp on Wednesday.
Darrell Etherington / TechCrunch:
Google Acquires Spider.io To Help Spot And Stop Online Ad Fraud  —  London-based Spider.io has been acquired by Google, the company's DoubleClick advertising blog announced today (via Re/Code).  Spider.io is a startup that specialized in weeding out fraudulent clicks around online ads.
Matt Brian / Engadget:
New Google WiFi app could automatically log you into Starbucks and other private hotspots  —  Google is working on a new WiFi app that could take a lot of the drudgery out of accessing wireless hotspots.  According to our sources, the search giant has built Android and iOS versions of an app …
Don Clark / Digits:
Samsung to collaborate with UCSF in validating the effectiveness of medical sensors  —  Samsung Forges Medical Tie-Up in San Francisco  —  Samsung Electronics already has a smartwatch, and is positioned to play a broader role in the wearable device movement.
More: 9to5Google
Wall Street Journal:
Korea's dominant text messaging service Kakao preparing for IPO at $2B valuation  —  Kakao Close to Signing Morgan Stanley, Samsung Securities as IPO Advisers  —  Offering Possibly Poised to Value Text-Messaging Company at More Than $2 Billion  —  Kakao Corp. is close to signing Morgan Stanley …
More: TechCrunch and VentureBeatTweets: @wsjd
Ben Woods / The Next Web:
4G data: The USA is second-slowest while Australia is fastest  —  OpenSignal has released a report today looking at the state of LTE coverage and speeds around the world, revealing that, contrary to what you might expect, not all LTE networks perform comparably.
Timothy J. Seppala / Engadget:
Microsoft is hand-picking users to test Xbox One's next software update  —  Ahead of Xbox One's second spring update Microsoft is inviting a handful of gamers to test the patch's mutiplayer features.  As Major Nelson tells it, the invite process starts today and if picked, you'll be first in line to try future updates as well.
Kevin Fitchard / Gigaom:
Sprint launches Wi-Fi calling, turning the Galaxy Mega, S4 Mini into IP phones  —  In the next few weeks, Sprint customers with a Samsung Galaxy Mega or a Galaxy S4 Mini will get an over-the-air software update that will turn their devices into IP phones - at least when they're connected to Wi-Fi networks.
More: The Verge and Engadget
Adam Bryant / New York Times:
Satya Nadella, Chief of Microsoft, on His New Role  —  This interview with Satya Nadella, the new chief executive of Microsoft, was conducted and condensed by Adam Bryant.  —  Q. What leadership lessons have you learned from your predecessor, Steve Ballmer?
Pankaj Mishra / TechCrunch:
With $8M In Fresh Funding, Ezetap Is More Than Just A Square For Emerging Markets  —  There are almost 900 million active cell-phone users in India now, and from newer startups to some of the biggest companies in the world, everybody is chasing the next mobile disruption that could potentially result …
Sean Buckley / Engadget:
Tegra Note 7 tablet to get an LTE refresh, early adopters pick up KitKat update  —  Itching for a Tegra-powered gaming device, but insist on a slate with LTE support?  You're in luck: NVIDIA is building a tablet just for you.  Today the company announced the Tegra Note 7 LTE …
Carl Franzen / The Verge:
Steve Jobs will appear on a US postage stamp in 2015  —  Many of his creations reduced the need to send physical mail, but late Apple founder Steve Jobs will still get a fitting tribute from the US Postal Service: his likeness will appear on a postage stamp beginning in 2015, according to a document obtained by The Washington Post.
Salvador Rodriguez / Los Angeles Times:
Google creates ‘near-real-time’ deforestation tracking tool  —  Google and several partners have launched Global Forest Watch, a website that makes it possible for users to track global deforestation.  —  Google is bringing awareness to global deforestation with a new website that lets users …
Matthew Panzarino / TechCrunch:
Inside The Revolutionary 3D Vision Chip At The Heart Of Google's Project Tango Phone  —  At the core of Google's freshly announced experimental Project Tango smartphone platform is a vision processor called the Myriad 1, manufactured by chip startup Movidius and its CEO Remi El-Ouazzane.
Frederic Lardinois / TechCrunch:

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Jon Southurst / CoinDesk:
Tom Warren / The Verge: