Techmeme
December 20, 2013, 3:30 PM

Top News

New York Times:
N.S.A. Dragnet Included Allies, Aid Groups and Business Elite  —  Secret documents reveal more than 1,000 targets of American and British surveillance in recent years, including the office of an Israeli prime minister, heads of international aid organizations, foreign energy companies …
Steve Dent / Engadget:
BlackBerry teams up with Foxconn for budget smartphones as sales continue to plunge  —  Blackberry's new interim chief John Chen has got a rude awakening to his new job: it sold only 1.9 million smartphones in Q1 compared to 3.7 million last quarter and lost $4.4 billion.
Fred Vogelstein / The Atlantic Online:
The Day Google Had to ‘Start Over’ on Android  —  Google was building a secret mobile product to fend off chief rival Microsoft.  Then Apple announced the iPhone, and everything changed.  —  In 2005, on Google's sprawling, college-like campus, the most secret and ambitious of many …
Beth Kowitt / Fortune:
Warby Parker raises $60 million  —  Exclusive: The fashionable eyeglasses purveyor more than doubles its total investment.  —  FORTUNE — Warby Parker has raised $60 million in its latest round of venture capital funding, led by its biggest investor, Tiger Global Management.
Brian Krebs / Krebs on Security:
Cards Stolen in Target Breach Flood Underground Markets  —  Credit and debit card accounts stolen in a recent data breach at retail giant Target have been flooding underground black markets in recent weeks, selling in batches of one million cards and going for anywhere from $20 to more than $100 per card, KrebsOnSecurity has learned.
Gregory Ferenstein / TechCrunch:
Tim Draper Wants To Split California Into Pieces And Turn Silicon Valley Into Its Own State  —  TechCrunch has learned about noted technology investor Tim Draper's plan to split California into six separate states, including a Northern California slice appropriately named “Silicon Valley.”
Mark Gurman / 9to5Mac:
Apple seeds first OS X Mavericks 10.9.2 beta, brings FaceTime Audio to Macs  —  Just days after the first public release of OS X 10.9.1, Apple has seeded the first beta of OS X 10.9.2 to developers.  The update is available in the Mac App Store for registered developers …
Michael Dalder / Reuters:
Clock ticking for Google after EU rejects latest antitrust offer  —  (Reuters) - Google has been told it is running out of time to improve its offer to settle a European Union investigation into anti-competitive behavior or face formal charges that could lead to a hefty fine.
Ina Fried / AllThingsD:
T-Mobile Plans to Talk “Un-Carrier” 4.0 at CES  —  T-Mobile is ready to make another big move, announcing plans for a media event at January's CES to discuss the next step in its “un-carrier” strategy.  —  “This one you aren't going to believe,” T-Mobile says in an invitation to journalists.
Catherine Shu / TechCrunch:
Rocket Internet Partners With African Telecom Operator MTN To Invest $410M in Middle East Startups  —  MTN Group and Rocket Internet announced that they have formed a new joint venture to invest in startups in the Middle East, with a focus on e-commerce.  The two companies will each hold …
Lauren Hockenson / Gigaom:
In honor of Winamp, Spotify releases Spotiamp  —  After Friday, longstanding music player Winamp will fade from existence, as AOL discontinues support, shuts down the website and erases any possibility of downloading the software.  In honor of Winamp's departure, Spotify has released Spotiamp …
David Beren / 9to5Google:
Moto X for $350 off contract courtesy of the Today Show  —  Did you miss out on Motorola's $350 off-contract Cyber Monday deal for the Moto X?  If you did, here's another opportunity to score the device sans contract for that very same price.  The offer is “exclusive to Today Show viewers” …

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Earlier Picks

Jon Fingas / Engadget:
Mikey Campbell / AppleInsider:
Mark Gurman / 9to5Mac: