Techmeme
December 17, 2015, 11:15 AM

Top News

Apple:
Jeff Williams named Apple COO, Phil Schiller takes over App Store leadership  —  Apple Names Jeff Williams Chief Operating Officer  —  Johny Srouji Named to Executive Team; Phil Schiller Adds Ecosystem Responsibilities  —  Tor Myhren Joins Apple  —  Apple® today announced …
Hayes Brown / BuzzFeed:
Brazil imposes 48-hour block on WhatsApp for failing to cooperate in criminal investigation; rival app Telegram says it gained 1.5M+ users there in a day  —  Brazil Just Blocked WhatsApp Despite Almost Everyone In Brazil Using It  —  A court has blocked the app that 93% of Brazil's internet users depend …
Adi Robertson / The Verge:
Microsoft opens a HoloLens playground for developers at its New York store  —  Millions of people have seen Microsoft's astonishing HoloLens videos.  Far fewer have seen the limited, but still impressive, reality.  And that's something Microsoft wants to change.
Gabe Nelson / Automotive News Automaker:
Google says proposed DMV rules requiring steering wheel, pedals, and licensed drivers with special certification would inhibit progress  —  California DMV proposes ban on ‘driverless’ cars  —  Google ‘gravely disappointed,’ says rules would hold back progress
Wall Street Journal:
Blake Ross / Medium:
New York Times:
Facebook partners with Uber to let users in US request rides from within Messenger, first Uber ride's free; Facebook says more ride-hailing services to be added  —  Facebook and Uber Follow Asian Rivals in Plan to Enhance Messenger App  —  For years, Asia's technology giants have been one step ahead …
Katie Roof / TechCrunch:
Tastemade Raises $40 Million From Goldman Sachs To Make Food Videos  —  Tastemade, the maker of food and lifestyle videos, has raised a $40 million financing round led by Goldman Sachs.  Participating investors in the Series D round include, Redpoint Ventures, Comcast Ventures, Liberty Media and Scripps Networks.
Laura Kusisto / Wall Street Journal:
Sources: three of the nation's largest apartment landlords in talks with Airbnb on revenue sharing partnership  —  Rent Your Place on Airbnb?  The Landlord Wants a Cut  —  Revenue-sharing model would allow apartment dwellers to market rooms through lodging website
More: Fortune
Ashlee Vance / Bloomberg.com:
Early iPhone hacker George Hotz is building a self-driving system using off-the-shelf components that controls an Acura ILX  —  The First Person to Hack the iPhone Built a Self-Driving Car.  In His Garage  —  George Hotz is building a self-driving car by himself.
Daniel Bader / MobileSyrup.com:
Canada's Shaw Communications to buy Wind Mobile in deal valued at C$1.6B  —  Shaw Communications set to purchase Wind Mobile for $1.6 billion  —  Shaw Communications has announced that it plans to purchase Wind Mobile, which turned six years-old today, for $1.6 billion CAD.
Lance Whitney / CNET:
Spotify adds curated party playlists and a “mood tuner”, available now for Android and iOS  —  Spotify can play DJ at your next party  —  A new feature called Spotify Party plays a lineup of professionally picked tunes and lets you choose your music based on the mood you're hoping to set.
Ingrid Lunden / TechCrunch:
Flipboard Overhauls Publisher Pages With Verified Badges, ‘End Card’ Links And Ad Tech  —  Flipboard, the mobile and web app with some 82 million monthly active users who use the app to read content from around the web in a magazine-style layout, is today taking the wraps off a new version …

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More News

Joe Mullin / Ars Technica:

Earlier Picks

Dan Goodin / Ars Technica:
Russell Brandom / The Verge:
Alex Kantrowitz / BuzzFeed: