Techmeme
February 26, 2014, 5:55 PM

Top News

Matt Warman / Telegraph:
Google never offered to acquire WhatsApp, says SVP Sundar Pichai  —  Google did not bid for WhatsApp  —  Claims that Facebook outbid Google in its $19 billion acquisition of WhatsApp are untrue, a top executive has said.  —  Google did not bid for WhatsApp, the company revealed yesterday.
Emily Flitter / Reuters:
U.S. attorney subpoenaed Mt Gox, other bitcoin businesses: source  —  (Reuters) - Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara's office is seeking information from businesses dealing in bitcoin on how some of them handled cyber-attacks that hamstrung several exchanges in recent weeks, a source familiar with the probe said on Wednesday.
Liam Spradlin / Android Police:
This Is An Early Prototype Of The Google Watch Made By Motorola Last Year [Update: One More Image]  —  A few days ago, we published a story about Google's possibly upcoming smartwatch.  Current rumors suggest that the watch may be ready in time for Google I/O, and that it might be made by LG.
Tatiana Siegel / Hollywood Reporter:
David Fincher in Early Talks to Direct Steve Jobs Film for Sony (Exclusive)  —  Based on Walter Isaacson's best-selling biography, the film would reteam Fincher with “Social Network” writer Aaron Sorkin and producer Scott Rudin.  —  David Fincher already has tackled one Silicon Valley billionaire in Mark Zuckerberg.
Marc Andreessen / Andreessen Horowitz:
The Future of the News Business: A Monumental Twitter Stream All in One Place  —  I am more bullish about the future of the news industry over the next 20 years than almost anyone I know.  You are going to see it grow 10X to 100X from where it is today.  That is my starting point for any discussion about the future of journalism.
Jason Del Rey / Re/code:
eBay Leads Giant $133.7 Million Investment in Indian Shopping Site Snapdeal  —  EBay is leading a $133.7 million investment in online shopping website Snapdeal that could result in a buyout of what is viewed as the eBay of India.  —  EBay contributed a large majority of the total investment …
Jeff John Roberts / Gigaom:
Google must remove all “Innocence of Muslims” videos from YouTube, appeals court rules  —  A California appeals court on Wednesday ordered Google to take down all copies of a controversial anti-Islamic movie, granting an injunction to an actress in the film who had filed a copyright claim after being subjected to global death threats.
Bloomberg:
Rolls-Royce Drone Ships Challenge $375 Billion Industry: Freight  —  In an age of aerial drones and driver-less cars, Rolls-Royce (RR/) Holdings Plc is designing unmanned cargo ships.  —  Rolls-Royce's Blue Ocean development team has set up a virtual-reality prototype at its office in Alesund …
Jeff Atwood / Coding Horror:
App ecosystems reinvent everything hateful about the software industry before the web blew it up  —  App-pocalypse Now  —  I'm getting pretty sick of being nagged to install your damn apps.  —  XKCD helpfully translates:  —  Yeah, there are smart app banners, which are marginally less annoying …
Ron Amadeo / Ars Technica:
“Google Now Launcher” hits Play Store, brings Google homescreen to GPE & Nexus devices  —  When KitKat launched, Google made the odd decision to make one of the headline features, a brand-new launcher, exclusive to the Nexus 5.  The new launcher was actually a merging of the standard home screen with the Google Search app.
Laura Hazard Owen / Gigaom:
As Barnes & Noble Nook revenues slide 50%, the company says it's launching another tablet  —  Barnes & Noble is cutting jobs and revenues fell again in the third-quarter earnings report released Wednesday, with the Nook segment once again taking a particularly large hit …
Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
Google Becomes A “Second Screen,” Teams Up With FOX To Offer Online Voting Tools For “American Idol”  —  Blippar Introduces Image Recognition And AR Advertising On Google Glass  —  So much for Twitter as the “second screen” and all its TV partnerships - Google announced this morning …
Frederic Lardinois / TechCrunch:
OpenID Connect Identity Protocol Launches With Support From Google, Microsoft & Others  —  Signing users in to a mobile or web app isn't necessarily hard, but keeping their credentials safe is something that's often best left to specialists.  The OpenID Foundation today announced the launch …
More: OpenID, OpenID and ZDNet
Associated Press:
Apple files appeal in e-book antitrust case  —  Apple asks federal appeals court to overturn finding in antitrust case, or award new trial  —  NEW YORK (AP) — Apple filed papers on Tuesday telling a federal appeals court in New York that a judge's finding it violated antitrust laws …

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Juan Carlos Torres / Android Community: