Techmeme
February 2, 2012, 7:40 PM

Top News

Paul Thurrot / Paul Thurrott's SuperSite for Windows:
Windows Phone 8 Preview  —  Thanks to a recent leak which has revealed some interesting information about the next major Windows Phone version, I can now publicly discuss Windows Phone 8 for the first time.  —  Windows Phone 8, codenamed Apollo, will be based on the Windows 8 kernel and not on Windows CE as are current versions.
Evan Blass / pocketnow.com:
Exclusive: Windows Phone 8 Detailed  —  Microsoft has some major changes in store for Windows Phone 8, we've learned, which is the version of the platform currently being referred to by codename “Apollo” (the one scheduled for deployment after the upcoming Tango update).
New York Times:
From Founders to Decorators, Facebook Riches  —  David Choe was paid in Facebook stock for paintings at the company's first headquarters.  His payout may be $200 million when it goes public.  Some investors may make billions of dollars.  —  SAN FRANCISCO — The graffiti artist …
Jim Romenesko:
The graffiti artist who is about to become a Facebook millionaire  —  A front page story in today's New York Times mentions that graffiti artist David Choe took Facebook stock instead of cash for painting the walls of Facebook's first headquarters and that his shares are expected to be worth …
Andy Kessler / Wall Street Journal:
The Button That Made Facebook Billions  —  The power of ‘Like’ as an emotional sensor is driving the company's exorbitant valuation.  —  As bizarre as this sounds, one of the most valuable innovations in technology over the last several decades is Facebook's “Like” button.
More: SiliconANGLETweets: @joshconstine
Joseph Menn / Reuters:
Key Internet operator VeriSign hit by hackers  —  (Reuters) - VeriSign Inc, the company in charge of delivering people safely to more than half the world's websites, has been hacked repeatedly by outsiders who stole undisclosed information from the leading Internet infrastructure company.
Ernesto / TorrentFreak:
Feds Seize Sports Streaming Domains in New Super Bowl Crackdown  —  US authorities began another round of domain name seizures a few hours ago, targeting several sports streaming sites.  —  Thus far, neither the Department of Justice nor Homeland Security's ICE unit have officially commented …
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement:
Special agents and officers seize more than $4.8 million in fake NFL merchandise and seize 307 websites during ‘Operation Fake Sweep’  —  Michigan man also arrested for criminal copyright infringement, operated websites that distributed copyrighted sporting events INDIANAPOLIS …
Alex Leo / MediaFile:
Introducing Reuters Social Pulse  —  Today we launched Social Pulse, our new social media hub on Reuters.com designed to show you the most talked-about news, companies and influencers across the Web.  —  The first thing you'll see on the page is the news most popular in Reuters social network.
John Cook / GeekWire:
Exclusive: Amazon.com buys TeachStreet  —  TeachStreet founder Dave Schappell traveled from coast-to-coast over the past 12 months entertaining offers for his Seattle-based startup.  But, at the end of the day, he found the best fit right in his own backyard.
Jack Purcher / Patently Apple:
New Virtual Controls from Apple Point to a Future iMac Touch  —  On February 2, 2012, the US Patent & Trademark Office published a patent application from Apple that describes new virtual controls for a desktop with a touchscreen.  This once again illustrates that Apple may be working on an iMac Touch desktop computer.
Heather Dougherty / Hitwise Intelligence:
10 Key Statistics about Facebook  —  As Facebook Inc. filed for its initial-public-offering yesterday afternoon, now is the perfect time to examine the website's performance online and how its audience compares with that of other social networks.  Given the expected $75 billion …
Agam Shah / PC World:
Dell Forms Software Group, Names Former CA CEO as Head  —  Dell on Thursday said it is forming a Software Group, which will bring together disparate products under one roof as the company tries to sharpen its end-to-end enterprise offerings.  —  The software unit will be led by John Swainson …
Dominic Sacco / MCV:
Disney acquires majority stake in UTV  —  The Walt Disney Company has obtained a controlling stake in UTV including the media firm's games publishing arm UTV Ignition.  —  Disney will be complete the acquisition shortly via a delisting action which will see UTV's shares removed from local stock exchanges.
More: Reuters and Develop
Leena Rao / TechCrunch:
comScore: As U.S. Smartphone Usage Grows, Android Nears 50 Percent Market Share  —  comScore just released its monthly mobile numbers, which charts smartphone usage from U.S. consumers for the three month period ending in December 2011.  For the period, 234 million Americans age 13 …
Brent Csutoras / Search Engine Land:
StumbleUpon Kills Direct Links, iFrames Everything  —  StumbleUpon, who happens to be one of the more popular and successful social media sites with over 20 million users (doubling from 10 million in about a year and a half), recently launched one of the biggest redesigns I can remember …
ChangeWave Research:
ChangeWave Survey Shows Momentum for Amazon Going Forward  —  BETHESDA, MD - Despite investor disappointment at a surprising fourth quarter sales miss, a January consumer survey shows Amazon.com riding a wave of momentum in the new year, according to ChangeWave Research, a service of 451 Research.
E.B. Boyd / Co.Create:
With Super Bowl XLVI Shaping Up As Hashtag Sunday, Twitter Launches Ad Scrimmage Competition  —  When trying to drum up post-game buzz, brands are finding that the hashtag is the new URL.  —  If last year was the year that ads started incorporating Facebook addresses into their creatives …
Thanks:@noahr
Ed Doney / KFOR-TV:
Lawmaker proposes tax on violent video games  —  OKLAHOMA CITY — A new proposal at the state capitol would make a financial impact on Oklahoma gamers.  We're talking about a tax on violent video games.  State Representative Will Fourkiller has been a teacher, coach and even a registered nurse.

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Dieter Bohn / The Verge:
Matt Brian / The Next Web: