Techmeme
March 4, 2014, 6:15 PM

Top News

John Gruber / Daring Fireball:
iOS 7.1 to ship in time for next week's iTunes Festival, will be needed to stream event  —  iOS 7.1 and the iTunes Festival at SXSW  —  Apple's first iTunes Festival in the U.S. starts a week from today at SXSW in Austin.  Apple is going to stream the performances to iOS devices using an app …
Alvin Wong / UnleashThePhones:
Video shows setup process for Cortana on leaked build of Windows Phone 8.1  —  Exclusive: Cortana Voice Assistant on Windows Phone 8.1 [VIDEO]  —  Building on the videos showing off various brand-new features in the upcoming Windows Phone 8.1 update that we have brought you …
Matt Brian / Engadget:
Hands-on with Apple's CarPlay: when Siri met Ferrari (video)  —  Apple's in-car infotainment system has been a long time coming.  After it was announced at the company's annual WWDC conference in June last year, “iOS in the Car” flew under the radar, only to undergo a rebrand and launch publicly yesterday under a new moniker: CarPlay.
TechCrunch:
Facebook in talks to buy Titan Aerospace for $60M, plans to use solar drone tech for providing internet access  —  Facebook In Talks To Acquire Drone Maker Titan Aerospace  —  Facebook, one of the primary backers of the Internet.org initiative, which aims to bring affordable Internet access …
Alexia Tsotsis / TechCrunch:
Intel buying health-tracking wristwatch maker Basis for around $100M  —  Basis Goes To Intel For Around $100M  —  With $96.7M In Funding, Powa Technologies Debuts PowaTag For Mobile And Audio-Triggered Commerce  —  Intel has won the Basis auction, we're hearing, at a price of around $100 million according to one source.
Terrence O'Brien / Engadget:
Roku's new Streaming Stick works with most TVs, drops price to $50  —  When Roku released its first Streaming Stick in late 2012, it was a tough sell.  It cost $99 (as much as the highest-end Roku box), only worked with TVs that were certified as “Roku Ready,” and it didn't even ship with a remote.
Nikkei:
Japan to regulate Bitcoin trades, impose taxes  —  TOKYO — The Japanese government will set rules for trading bitcoins, defining the virtual tender not as a currency but as a commodity akin to gold.  —  Gains from trading bitcoins on online exchanges, and purchases made with them will be subject to Japanese tax.
More: Gigaom, Reuters, VentureBeat and ValueWalkTweets: @kashhill
Jacob Kastrenakes / The Verge:
Apple CFO Peter Oppenheimer retiring after 18 years, to be replaced by VP of finance Luca Maestri  —  Apple CFO Peter Oppenheimer retiring after 18 years  —  Apple's chief financial officer Peter Oppenheimer will retire at the end of September, after 18 years at the company.
Alex Hern / Guardian:
Bitcoin bank Flexcoin closes after hackers steal 896 bitcoin worth £365,000, Poloniex loses 12.3% of reserves in separate hack  —  Bitcoin bank Flexcoin closes after hack attack  —  Bank admits it does not have resources to cover loss of 896 bitcoin worth £365,000 stolen in raid
Joan E. Solsman / CNET:
Scoop: Spotify hires Beats Music former head of product  —  Fredric Vinna, part of Beats Music's early team of creators, recently left the streaming music service and will soon begin work at its main rival, Spotify.  —  The rivalry between Spotify and Beats Music, two key streaming music services, is deepening.
Robin Wauters / Tech.eu:
Belgian judge considers forcing ISPs to block Apple websites over ‘misleading’ product warranties  —  A Belgian magistrate is reportedly considering forcing ISPs to block Apple websites in the country, following a complaint about the company ‘misleading’ consumers on EU-wide product warranty …
Reuters:
Ukraine hit by cyberattacks: head of Ukraine security service  —  (Reuters) - Ukraine's telecommunications system has come under attack, with equipment installed in Russian-controlled Crimea used to interfere with the mobile phones of members of parliament, the head of Ukraine's SBU security service said on Tuesday.
Mary Jo Foley / ZDNet:
Microsoft releases Windows 8.1 Update 1 to manufacturing  —  Summary: Microsoft's Windows 8.1 Update 1 is done and heading towards general availability in April, according to various sources.  —  Microsoft has released Windows 8.1 Update 1 to manufacturing, according to my sources, as well as the known Windows leaker WZor.
Ben Fox Rubin / Wall Street Journal:
RadioShack to Close Up to 1,100 Stores  —  Lower Traffic, Increased Promotions Hurt Holiday Sales at Electronics Retailer  —  RadioShack Corp. said Tuesday that it expects to close up to 1,100 U.S. stores, or about 20% of its footprint, while also reporting its fourth-quarter loss widened significantly.
Om Malik / Fast Company:
Today's tech companies must build what they can't buy or risk losing control of their fate  —  Masters of Their Own Destiny  —  Like clockwork, apple introduces an upgrade to its iconic iPhone each year.  Sometimes it's thinner or less curved, but much like a new Porsche, you can look at it and think nothing's changed.

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