Techmeme
December 17, 2014, 2:15 PM

Top News

Hugh Langley / TechRadar.com:
Netflix: offline viewing is ‘never going to happen’  —  Well damn … For some time now, services like BBC iPlayer and 4oD have offered the ability to download shows for offline viewing, yet Netflix hasn't  —  And despite the pleas of the masses (or maybe it's just us) …
Shane Dingman / Globe and Mail:
BlackBerry Classic review: old-fashioned phone that won't please traditionalists or new users  —  Review: BlackBerry Classic is a trip back in time  —  The BlackBerry Classic is a curmudgeonly phone.  —  That's not entirely pejorative: a curmudgeon can be a beloved figure with a kind of …
January Machold / Purch:
Purch, owner of Tom's Guide and Laptop Magazine, acquires AnandTech months after founder Anand Shimpi leaves for Apple  —  Purch Acquires AnandTech, Dominates Tech Expert and Enthusiast Market  —  Leading content and commerce company adds respected mobile, computing, and IT reviews site to its brand portfolio
Peter Kafka / Re/code:
Former Hulu CEO Jason Kilar opens Creator Preview for YouTube rival Vessel to lure stars; $2.99/month service includes ads, offers up to $50 CPM for creators  —  Former Hulu CEO Jason Kilar Pulls Back the Curtain on Vessel, His YouTube Rival  —  Six years ago Jason Kilar made a big splash in Web video when he launched Hulu.
Mike Shields / Wall Street Journal:
21st Century Fox to Acquire Ad Tech Firm TrueX for $200 Million  —  21st Century Fox Inc. has agreed to acquire the online advertising technology company TrueX Media, people familiar with the matter said.  —  21st Century Fox is paying a sum approaching $200 million for TrueX, said a person familiar with the deal.
Tom Warren / The Verge:
Microsoft's Xim app now shares photos to Apple TV, Chomecast, and Xbox One  —  Microsoft's Xim photo sharing app debuted in October from the company's research labs, and today it's getting a big update.  Available across Windows Phone, iOS, and Android, the latest version of Xim lets …
Jeff John Roberts / Gigaom:
Netflix's streaming app now available on Dish's Hopper DVR in first big pay-TV partnership  —  Netflix now on Dish's Hopper in first big pay-TV partnership  —  Subscribers to Dish's satellite TV service can now access Netflix right on their set-top box, the companies announced on Wednesday.
Ben Thompson / stratechery:
Wearables, Bitcoin, or messaging may underpin the next consumer computing epoch, after the PC, internet, and mobile  —  The State of Consumer Technology at the End of 2014  —  While the modern computing era in many respects began with the IBM System/360 mainframe and further expanded with the minicomputer …
More: AVCTweets: @tuckershouse
David Meyer / Gigaom:
Sony previews smart glasses module that attaches to existing glasses, targets sports and work use cases  —  Sony's smart glass uses regular glasses, aims for sports and work  —  Sony Single-Lens Display Module  —  Sony Single-Lens Display Module  —  Sony has announced its own take on the smart glass concept.
Reuters:
Uber faces tough rivals, regulatory glare in China  —  (Reuters) - Deep-pocketed Chinese rivals and tough regulators stand in the way of U.S. car-hailing service Uber's plans to conquer one of the world's biggest transportation markets, even after it signed a tieup with domestic internet giant Baidu Inc.
Dean Takahashi / VentureBeat:
Brandwatch buys top-influencer analytics firm PeerIndex  —  Brandwatch, the maker of technology for acquiring social intelligence, has purchased PeerIndex, an analytics firm that finds and measures social influencers.  —  Above: Giles Palmer, CEO of Brandwatch.

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More News

Vikas SN / MediaNama:
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Earlier Picks

Brendan Sasso / National Journal:
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Josh Constine / TechCrunch:
Silke Koltrowitz / Reuters: