Techmeme
March 18, 2015, 4:45 AM

Top News

Terry Myerson / Blogging Windows:
Microsoft announces Windows 10 will launch this summer in 190 countries and 111 languages, partners with Xiaomi to test the OS on Mi 4 devices  —  Windows 10 Launching This Summer in 190 Countries and 111 Languages  —  Today at the renewed Windows Hardware Engineering Community (WinHEC) …
Emil Protalinski / VentureBeat:
Windows Hello and Microsoft Passport: Unlock Windows 10 devices and apps with your finger, iris, or face  —  Microsoft today announced biometric authentication is coming to Windows 10.  Windows Hello will let you unlock your Windows 10 device, whether it be a PC, tablet, or a smartphone, with your finger, iris, or face.
Tom Warren / The Verge:
Claire Atkinson / New York Post:
Sources: Apple offers to share viewer data with partners for online TV service to enable better ad targeting  —  Apple offers to share TV data to entice programming partners  —  Apple is offering to share data with programming partners to get them on board with its cable-like TV network package, The Post has learned.
Josh Constine / TechCrunch:
Facebook now offers free friend-to-friend payments in its Messenger app using debit cards, to roll out to Android, iOS, and desktop in US over coming months  —  Facebook Introduces Free Friend-To-Friend Payments Through Messages  —  When you chat with friends about settling debts or splitting the bill …
Steven Walton / TechSpot:
Fast Company:
Tim Cook talks about his friendship with Steve in an excerpt from “Becoming Steve Jobs”, available March 24  —  THE STEVE JOBS YOU DIDN'T KNOW: KIND, PATIENT, AND HUMAN  —  According to Apple CEO Tim Cook, he first learned about Steve's need for a liver transplant in January 2009.
Nathan Donato-Weinstein / bizjournals:
Apple leases 260K square feet of additional Cupertino office space in new mixed-use center near Campus 2  —  Apple snaps up Main Street Cupertino office buildings, and they're nothing like the spaceship  —  Apple Campus 2 might be grabbing all the headlines, but it's not the only real estate play for the Mac maker in its hometown.
More: AppleInsider and 9to5Mac.  Thanks:@svbiznate
Ron / WinBeta:
Bing Distill is Microsoft's version of Yahoo Answers, website is live and you can request an invite  —  At the beginning of this year, we reported that Microsoft was working on curating human answers in a new service called Bing Distill.  The word distill, for those curious, means …
Kate Kaye / AdAge:
Bitly launches deep links to help brands and marketers link directly to mobile apps  —  With New Feature, Bitly Links Can Now Open Apps  —  Company Considers Data Licensing but Privacy, Data-Protection Obstacles Remain  —  Bitly is best known as the firm that helps keep Twitter posts at or below 140-characters.
Kyle Russell / TechCrunch:
Ustream opening up its internal SDK and API to developers, enabling anyone to build Meerkat-like apps, by invitation only for now  —  Ustream's New Live-Broadcasting SDK Lets You Build Your Own Meerkat  —  Call it a sign of the times: hot on the heels of Meerkat's sudden boom …
Zack Whittaker / ZDNet:
Premera Blue Cross of Washington state, Oregon and Alaska hit by sophisticated hack this January, with up to 11M affected by breach  —  Premera Blue Cross hit by “sophisticated” hack, 11M affected  —  Summary:The multi-state health insurance company was attacked in January and is working …
Charlie Warzel / BuzzFeed:
Twitter Is Limiting Porn In Top Search Results  —  Users can still tweet adult images and links, but “Top” searches for terms like “#porn” and “#vagina” draw very few results.  Update: Twitter tells BuzzFeed News the limited search results seem to the be the result of a bug.
Thanks:@fwd

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Sarah Perez / TechCrunch: