Techmeme: Firefox drops Google as default search engine, signs five-year deal with Yahoo (Russell Brandom/The Verge)

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November 20, 2014, 2:00 AM

Top News

Al Franken:

Sen. Al Franken asks Uber CEO Travis Kalanick for answers on privacy, God view tool, discipline for Emil Michael, and tracking journalists — Dear Mr Kalanick: — I am writing in regard to reports of recent comments and actions by top Uber executives concerning journalists.

More: Robert Scoble, PC World, USA Today, Haywire, Engadget, CNET, Wall Street Journal, The Next Web, TechCrunch, Business Insider, Mashable, VentureBeat, Bloomberg Politics, The Hill, PandoDaily, New York Times and Fortune

Tweets: @robhof, @tbiz, @dannysullivan, @isaach, @ktbenner, @qthrul, @declanm and @thecolonial

See also Mediagazer

BuzzFeed:

Uber investigating its New York GM Josh Mohrer for tracking journalist's location without consent; internal “God View” tool makes tracking customers easy

More: AVC, USA Today, ReadWrite, New York Times, The Verge, Digiday, VatorNews, The Next Web, PandoDaily, Politico, TIME, VentureBeat, CNET, Mashable, Business Insider, POPSUGAR, Washington Post, TechCrunch, Gawker, DailyTech, Gothamist, Re/code, Poynter, Raw Story and WebProNews. Tweets: @aplusk. See also Mediagazer

Russell Brandom / The Verge:

Firefox drops Google as default search engine, signs five-year deal with Yahoo — Today, Yahoo and Mozilla announced a five-year partnership that would make Yahoo the default search engine for Mozilla's Firefox browser on mobile and desktop. The agreement also sets the stage …

More: The Mozilla Blog, Re/code, Slate, ReadWrite, Engadget, BetaNews, ZDNet, The Technology Chronicles, GeekWire, Ubergizmo, 9to5Google, gHacks Technology News, VentureBeat, TechCrunch, internetnews.com, The Next Web, The Tech Report and CNET

Tweets: @dangillmor and @dannysullivan

Danny Sullivan / Marketing Land:

Default search engine for Firefox in Europe remains Google, Yandex in Russia, Baidu in China — Mozilla CEO: It Wasn't Money — Yahoo Was The Better Strategic Partner For Firefox — Mozilla CEO Chris Beard says when presented with deals of “equivalent economics” to power search in Firefox, Yahoo was the better partner.

More: The Mozilla Blog, Yahoo, Business Insider, The Register, Ars Technica, TechOne3, OStatic blogs, MacNN, PC Magazine, New York Times, Search Engine Land, Mashable, VentureBeat, SEO Book, PC World, TechSpot and Marketing Land

Cromwell Schubarth / Silicon Valley Business Journal:

Data virtualization firm Primary Data comes out of stealth, announces $63M funding, brings on Steve Wozniak as chief scientist — Primary Data emerges from stealth at Demo with Woz as chief scientist — The Los Altos company raised about $63 million in funding to help in their plan …

More: ZDNet, Gigaom, eWeek, Wall Street Journal, PE Hub Blog, VentureBeat and The Register

Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:

Apple Relabels “Free” Download Buttons On iTunes And Mac App Store To “Get” Following Pressure from EC — Across the iTunes and Mac App Stores today, a minor but also notable change is taking place with regard to how Apple is marketing its iOS and Mac applications.

More: 9to5Mac, Re/code, Six Colors, Ubergizmo, Pocketnow, InvestorPlace, TechnoBuffalo, The Verge, iMore and Mashable

Joshua Goldman / CNET:

Parrot's Bebop smartphone-controlled drone will be available Dec. in the US for $499 — Parrot Bebop drone lands in December for $499 — The company's new smartphone-controlled quadcopter, first announced in May, is finally flying into stores. — If you're dying for a more affordable …

More: Parrot news, TechCrunch, Yahoo Tech, Mashable, ITProPortal, RTTNews, Tom's Guide, PCMag Australia robotics …, SlashGear, Gizmodo and MacRumors

Jon Russell / TechCrunch:

Developers In China Can Now Make Money Via Google Play Apps (But Not In China) — Google has announced that developers based in China can now make money from apps listed on the Google Play Store. The update covers 130 international markets but not China itself, however.

More: Android Developers Blog, Android Police, The Next Web, Tech in Asia, New York Times, 9to5Google and VentureBeat

Andrew Grush / Android Authority:

Report: Google hopes to launch Play app store in China, moderating its approach with Beijing

More: The Information and Seeking Alpha

Joe Mullin / Ars Technica:

Cisco expects to pay $188M to Rockstar, the Apple-owned patent licensor — Cisco is preparing to dole out a serious chunk of cash to settle its patent lawsuit with Rockstar, a patent-holding company created out of the ashes of Nortel, a Canadian telecom. — The $188-million pre-tax charge …

Tim Higgins / Bloomberg:

Apple still committed to bringing jobs to Mesa, Arizona, plans to repurpose the sapphire plant — Apple Sticking With Arizona Plan After Supplier Falters — Apple Inc. (AAPL) has told officials in Mesa, Arizona, that it's committed to bringing jobs and manufacturing to the area …

More: Wall Street Journal, Reuters, Cult of Mac, MacNN, MacRumors, 9to5Mac, App Advice, iMore, AppleInsider, iDownloadBlog.com, PadGadget, MacDailyNews, iLounge, iPhone in Canada Blog and The Register

Jordan Kahn / 9to5Google:

Google acquires RelativeWave, makes its mobile prototyping software Form, normally $79, free for Mac — RelativeWave acquired by Google, makes its mobile app prototyping software free for Mac — RelativeWave, the company behind the mobile app prototyping software Form, today announced it's joining Google.

More: RelativeWave, TechCrunch, App Advice, VatorNews, VentureBeat and The Next Web

Josh Constine / TechCrunch:

Airware's Drone Operating System Gets Strategic Investment, Tech, Clients From GE Ventures — Dull, dirty, and dangerous. Those are the tasks robots are best for, but it also describes jobs with General Electric's Field Services division, inspecting wind turbines and oil pipelines.

More: Wall Street Journal, GE Ventures, bizjournals and SiliconANGLE. Tweets: @joshconstine. Thanks:@mayarahkonen

Mike Lennon / SecurityWeek:

Cloud security firm CipherCloud raises $50M Series B led by Transamerica Ventures — CipherCloud Lands $50 Million To Protect All Things Cloud — Cloud security firm CipherCloud today announced that it has closed a massive $50 million round of funding led by Transamerica Ventures.

More: silicontap.com, TechCrunch, The Diversity Blog, ZDNet, bizjournals, Financial Times, Reuters and Gigaom. Thanks:@wiredmike

Jessica Guynn / USA Today:

Facebook shuttle bus drivers vote to join Teamsters union — SAN FRANCISCO — Facebook shuttle bus drivers voted late Wednesday to join the Teamsters union. — The vote was 43-28. — The union drive was part of a growing campaign in Silicon Valley to secure better pay and working conditions for service workers.

More: Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, New York Times, San Francisco Chronicle, Bloomberg, Business Insider, CBS San Francisco and Valleywag. Tweets: @claudiakincaid

Jeffrey Burt / eWeek:

Qualcomm to Build ARM-Based Server Chips — Qualcomm, the world's top mobile chip maker, is ready to get into the crowded ARM-based server chip business. — At the company's annual analyst day Nov. 19 in New York, CEO Steve Mollenkopf said company engineers have been working on the technology “for some time.

More: ZDNet, Tech Trader Daily, Gigaom, Nasdaq, The Register and CNET

Eduard Kovacs / SecurityWeek:

Advanced Variant of “NotCompatible” Android Malware a Threat to Enterprises — Mobile security firm Lookout has been monitoring the evolution of the Android Trojan dubbed “NotCompatible”, and they say the latest version of the malware is sophisticated enough to pose a threat to protected enterprise networks.

More: The Official Lookout Blog, darkREADING, Infosecurity Magazine, CIO.com, Inquirer, The Register and Help Net Security

Eric Slivka / MacRumors:

Beats Music to Be Bundled Into iOS Early Next Year, Will Remain Paid Subscription Service — As part of Apple's revamp of its recently acquired Beats Music streaming service, the company plans to bundle Beats directly into iOS, reports Financial Times.

More: Financial Times, AppleInsider, 9to5Mac, PandoDaily, VentureBeat, MacDailyNews, BBC, Pocketnow, PadGadget, VatorNews, Ubergizmo, NEWS.com.au, TUAW, New York Times, Neowin, Engadget, Ars Technica, TechCrunch, The Verge, Gizmodo, Electronista and BGR

Tweets: @jbrodkin and @joshconstine

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