Steve Woda's blog

links for 2009-10-31

• A Campaign for Clothes by a Guy Not Wearing Any - NYTimes.com
  In about a dozen videos posted over the last two months to YouTube, a man claiming to be “the world’s fastest nudist” streaks through high-profile locations in New York City clad only in running shoes, tube socks, and a strategically positioned frontward fanny pack. “The first time you run by, they’re like, ‘Oh my god, that guy’s nude,’ ” he says in one video. “But the next time you run by, they’re like, ‘That’s the world’s fastest nudist!’ ” Popular blogs like Gothamist, The Huffington Post and Gawker featured the videos in September, with Gawker’s post drawing more than 25,000 views. On YouTube, the videos have garnered more than 60,000 views.
  (tags: marketing Zappos)
• For Facebook And Zappos, Two Divergent Views Of Its Employees - WSJ
  For fast-growing technology start-ups, there are many approaches to employee hiring and retention. Two of the more successful Internet start-ups, Facebook Inc. and Zappos Inc., have very different methods, each with different goals: Facebook wants to hire entrepreneurs even if that means they will eventually leave, while Zappos wants to hire the best people to fit its culture and figure out how to keep them. Mark Zuckerberg, chief executive of Facebook, said at a talk this past weekend at Startup School, a Berkeley, Calif., event organized by Y Combinator, that Facebook seeks to hire entrepreneurial “hackers” - people who want to build something new - even though they may not want to stay for long. The company is focused on technology and tilts its hiring towards engineers, even for people in non-technical roles such as marketing, he said.
  (tags: HR Entrepreneurship Leadership)

links for 2009-10-30

• Google Voice lets users keep phone number - washingtonpost.com
  Google Inc has introduced a new feature that will allow consumers to use its Google Voice service without switching to a special phone number, potentially broadening the appeal of the nascent, and controversial, service. Google said late Monday that new users of its service will be able to have the calls that they don't answer forwarded to a special Google Voice electronic mailbox, essentially bypassing the voicemail provided by their phone carriers. Google Voice offers a variety of voicemail management features, including unlimited storage and text transcription of voicemail messages. The service also allows consumers to make low-priced international calls by routing portions of the call over Google's infrastructure and the Internet.
  (tags: Google voice)
• Drifter suspected of murdering teenager he met on Facebook - mirror.co.uk
  he body of a 17-year-old girl was found in a ditch yesterday after she was lured to her death by a man she met on the internet. Ashleigh Hall told friends she had a date with a lad of 16 who had contacted her on Facebook. A 32-year-old who is believed to be on the sex offenders register was last night being questioned on suspicion of murder. He allegedly confessed after he was arrested for a minor motoring offence in Sedgefield, Co Durham.
  (tags: child safety security kidsafe)

links for 2009-10-29

• Verizon CEO: iPhone Deal 'In Apple's Court' - InformationWeek
  Does Verizon (NYSE: VZ) Wireless want Apple's iPhone, or does the iPhone want Verizon Wireless? Verizon chairman and CEO Ivan Seidenberg, pointing to his firm's strong wireless network infrastructure, said Monday that he hopes Apple "will decide to jump on the bandwagonthis is a decision that is exclusively in Apple's court." The issue takes on more resonance after AT&T (NYSE: T) signed up some 2 million wireless subscribers in its last reported quarter compared to Verizon's 1.2 million new customers. But AT&T has been victimized by its own success. Its exclusive deal with Apple to market the iPhone in the U.S., is straining AT&T's network because of the high rates of data usage by iPhone subscribers.
  (tags: att apple iphone Verizon Mobile)
• Google Gives HR Something New To Worry About
  When Dr. John Sullivan said last week that employers have lost control of their brand, he likely wasn’t thinking of Sidewiki. Why should he? When the article was published Monday Sidewiki was not even three weeks old; Google launched it on Sept. 23rd. But Sidewiki’s potential for deconstructing a brand is enormous. Unlike all the networking sites, Twitter posts, and job board forums where the disaffected go to vent their anger, Sidewiki makes it possible to post these comments directly to your site. Just imagine the mischief a disgruntled job seeker or employee can wreak by posting their story directly to your site. Side by side with your video of happy employees talking about the fun and interesting work they do is a post — or multiple posts — from current and former workers denouncing your message as bogus.
  (tags: Google sidewiki)
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links for 2009-10-28

• Americans Want Brands that Inform - eMarketer
  The top characteristic US consumers want from brands they like is to improve their knowledge—and the least desirable one is for a brand to “only be visible in store”—according to the “Global Web Index” from Lightspeed Research. Helping consumers keep up to date on topics that were important to them was also key, followed by being entertaining, becoming part of a daily routine, and informing consumers about the product and the company. Consumers were relatively uninterested in brands that tried to act like their friends.
  (tags: marketing)
• Does Social Media Work for Small Biz? - eMarketer
  Small businesses are not hitting it off with social media, according to an August 2009 study from Citibank. More than three-quarters of US small-business executives surveyed did not find social networks helpful for generating leads or expanding their business.
  (tags: social media)

links for 2009-10-27

• Great article... The problem with iPhone killers? - washingtonpost.com
  Here we are again. The hype leading up to a new mobile device is reaching a fever pitch. Motorola's Droid sounds, looks, and by some accounts, is impressive. As such, everyone's favorite superlative is being thrown out there once again: "iPhone killer." Of course, we've heard this before ? maybe a dozen times. The BlackBerry Storm was the iPhone killer, the Palm Pre was the iPhone killer, the G2, etc. Not only does the iPhone still survive, it thrives. Why? The answer is easy, but requires some explanation. Fundamentally, the problem with most iPhone killers is that they're not actually trying to kill the iPhone. They, as devices, may think they are, but most of them are playing a different game because of the OSes they run, and the companies behind them. One way to think about it is to compare smartphones and more precisely, their OSes, to religion (which we've done before). This is especially apt since the nickname for the iPhone is the "Jesus Phone."
  (tags: apple iphone Google Android droid Windows Mobile)

links for 2009-10-24

• Teens frequently mention risky behaviors on social networking sites
  About half of teens reference sex, substance use or other risky behaviors on their publicly available online profiles, according to a report in the January issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine. However, a second article reports that a brief e-mail from a physician shows promise in reducing mentions of sex on social networking Web sites. More than 90 percent of adolescents have Internet access and about half use social networking sites, according to background information in the articles. "MySpace, the most popular social networking site, regularly ranks among the world's 10 most popular Web sites and includes more than 200 million Web profile accounts, of which 25 percent belong to minors," the authors write. "Members of a social networking site create a personal Web profile that may contain images, text and audio. The social networking sites play an important role in adolescents' social lives as a place for identity exploration and peer group interaction."
  (tags: security kidsafe social networking)
• Pipelining and Real-time Analytics with MapReduce Online - O'Reilly Radar
  Most of the news related to the real-time web these days centers around the adoption of decentralized, push-oriented† protocols (pubsubhubbub, rsscloud) designed to reduce latency in web publishing. Less discussed are the analytic tools that can are capable of crunching through data in real-time. As more of the web moves towards these types of publishing tools, data-driven organizations will demand low latency analytic tools. Some organizations create their own real-time analysis tools, while others turn to specialized solutions††. The Huffington Post developed in-house tools that let editors optimize headlines in near real-time. In some domains, the need for real-time analytics isn't new and companies have moved in with targeted products: SF-based Splunk is a popular real-time analytic tool for IT organizations.
  (tags: Analytics datamining search it)

links for 2009-10-23

• Diapers.com Walking In Zappos’ Shoes - WSJ
  What Zappos.com did for shoes, Diapers.com is seeking to do for all manner of baby products. Red Bank, N.J.-based Diapers.com, which just raised $30 million in funding from several venture firms, is known for its over-the-top focus on customer service. Owned by Quidsi Inc., Diapers.com provides free shipping and delivers overnight to two-thirds of the country if an order is received before 6pm; the rest of the country gets orders within two days. The company also has a no-questions-asked return policy with free shipping on returns. “We empower our reps to take care of the customer at really any cost,” said Marc Lore, co-founder and chief executive of the company. “If we don’t have something in stock we’ll point to a competitor that does. We do just about anything to insure customers have a good experience with the Web site.”
  (tags: diapers.com mentortech)
• Ask The VC: When to Shut Down Your Company
  Last week we started the blog series (written by Roger Glovsky), How to Wind Down Your Company. The response and comments were great! Keep them coming. This week we tackle the hardest problem of all: deciding when to shut down your company. It is not easy an easy decision, especially for entrepreneurs. Starting a company is about creating a vision, persuading others to believe in the vision, turning an idea into reality, and pursuing a dream. The last thing an entrepreneur wants to do is to shut down his or her dream. So, how do you make the decision to shut down your company? When do you decide to shut down your company? The short answer is: When the company has no other alternatives. What are the alternatives?
  (tags: vc Entrepreneurship)

links for 2009-10-22

• SEO Link Building Using Delicious
  The more links to your site from quality websites, the higher you'll rank on Google. But obtaining quality links is getting harder. In my pursuit of quality links I often turn to the social bookmarking tool Delicious (www.delicious.com). It allows you to link to sites you like and then categorize these sites using keywords called "tags." You can also explore sites that others have tagged that might be related to your needs.

  Delicious is definitely worth getting acquainted with. You can use it to categorize your link building efforts as well as a discovery tool to find new ways to get links. Let's look at four strategies.

  
  
  (tags: seo marketing delicious)
  
  
• 
  
  Aztek Networks leads third-quarter VC
  
  
  Eight of the 13 companies in Colorado that received venture capital during the third quarter are based in the Boulder Valley.

  The eight private companies received a total of $35.7 million while the state collected $50.3 million on 13 deals in the quarter ending June 30, according to the MoneyTree Report compiled by PricewaterhouseCoopers and the National Venture Capital Association.

  Boulder-based Aztek Networks Inc., co-founded by J. Mark Elder and Pete Ruether, is a maker of voice-switching products for the telecommunications industry. The company led the way locally receiving $10,050,000 in a later-stage round of funding from several groups including Grotech Ventures, Kinetic Ventures LLC, Sequel Venture Partners, Telecommunications Development Fund and UV Partners.

  
  
  (tags: grotech vc aztek)
  
  
• 
  
  VC in DC: The 7 Troublemakers you meet in a start up
  
  
  One of the greatest adventures in life is working within a start up. The twists and turns across uncertain and unfolding landscape can make a veritable roller coaster. That uncertainty and potential tend to draw a cast of characters as participants. Some are memorable. Here is my list of 7 troublemakers (not all inclusive by any means but these are favorites) that you meet in a start up.
  
  
  (tags: vc grotech rainey Entrepreneurship)
  
  
• 
  
  Google Phone To Be A Reality - InformationWeek
  
  
  Here we go again. Long thought dead due to the presence of nearly a dozen Android handset models in the market, the Google (NSDQ: GOOG) phone rumor has reappeared. The Google-branded hardware will come with Android 2.0 and use Qualcomm's chips.

  The Google Phone rumor has been resurrected by Northeast Securities analyst Ashok Kumar, who recently issued a note to his investors. In it, he said, "Google is expected to launch a self branded smartphone by year end followed by netbook (sic) early next year."

  Kumar predicts that the device will run Android 2.0 (Eclair) and will use Qualcomm's wireless chipsets. Kumar doesn't specify which chips, but we can only hope the device will run on Qualcomm's SnapDragon processors (which are speedy).

  
  
  (tags: Google Android qualcomm)
  
  

links for 2009-10-20

• Preoccupations - Networks Too Big for Their Own Good - NYTimes.com
  IMAGINE a workplace where all the plum assignments, all the bonuses and all the promotions are steered to relatives, friends and other members of an executive’s inner circle. In any self-respecting organization, such a practice wouldn’t be tolerated. Most companies purport to be meritocracies, claiming to reward, recognize and promote employees based on workplace achievements, rather than on educational pedigree, political connections or other criteria not based on merit. In a meritocracy, advancement doesn’t hinge on who you know; it’s based on what you’ve accomplished.
  (tags: HR career networking)
• Fake security software in millions of computers: Symantec - washingtonpost.com
  Tens of millions of U.S. computers are loaded with scam security software that their owners may have paid for but which only makes the machines more vulnerable, according to a new Symantec report on cybercrime. Cyberthieves are increasingly planting fake security alerts that pop up when computer users access a legitimate website. The "alert" warns them of a virus and offers security software, sometimes for free and sometimes for a fee. "Lots of times, in fact they're a conduit for attackers to take over your machine," said Vincent Weafer, Symantec's vice president for security response.
  (tags: security)

links for 2009-10-19

• Android 2.0 Features Leak Out
  A run through of screen shots on a Motorola (NYSE: MOT) Android device show off what Android 2.0 has in store. The biggest features are integrated Facebook support, Exchange support, and a new user interface. I don't know how he does it, but The Boy Genius scored yet another exclusive look at unreleased hardware and software. This time it was a Motorola device with an early build of Android 2.0 on board. What do we learn about Android 2.0? A whole lot.
  (tags: Android Google)
• The Custom URL Shortener
  My first thought when I saw that the federal government had created its own URL shortener was: what a waste of time and effort. The more I think about it, the more I wonder why other large organizations with popular Websites haven't done this for their links. Last month, USA.gov started using new short URLs for its Twitter account, with links pointing to go.usa.gov. Now, it's urging all federal government agencies to come on board. Any government employee can sign up to use the service, which will (currently) shorten any U.S. government Website down to 14 characters.
  (tags: url shortener)

links for 2009-10-18

• Giving The Boss The Big Picture
  It was New Year's Eve, 2003, and Oracle Corp. (ORCL ) CEO Lawrence J. Ellison was on his honeymoon. He and his bride, romance novelist Melanie Craft, were relaxing on his 243-foot Katana yacht off St. Barts, the Caribbean island known as a haven for movie moguls and rock stars. But Ellison, for the umpteenth time, couldn't help himself. He climbed to his office on the upper deck of the Katana, fired up his computer, and logged on to the Web site of a small company called NetSuite Inc. It was the last day of the fiscal year, and Ellison, the co-founder of NetSuite and its largest investor, needed to know if the startup was going to meet its numbers.
  (tags: netsuite dashboards)
• Mobile and Internet Safety Workshop at Bishop Ireton High School
  Yesterday I had the opportunity to share an Internet & Mobile Safety Workshop for Parents with Bishop Ireton High School in Alexandria, VA. As a 1988 graduate of DeMatha, a cross-town rival, the last time I visited the school, I wasn’t exactly on the same team. A very special thank you to Mr. Tim Hamer, Principal and Ms. Erin O’Leary, Director of Counseling Services for hosting the event and welcoming me to the campus. As a fellow parent concerned with the well-being of our children, I felt very much a part of the same team on this visit. Thank you for your interest in this issue.
  (tags: Mobile internet security)

links for 2009-10-17

• Insider Trading Case Snares Six - washingtonpost.com
  Federal prosecutors on Friday unveiled a broad criminal case against billionaire hedge fund manager Raj Rajaratnam and five others accused of netting more than $20 million in profits by trading based on inside information about the stocks of Google and other companies. Prosecutors described the case as a new, aggressive phase in the government's pursuit of financial crime. It is the largest insider trading case ever involving a hedge fund, and the investigation for the first time used wiretaps to obtain evidence of insider trading.
  (tags: finance crime)
• Android Donut is Served: Tastes Pretty Good So Far - washingtonpost.com
  In the past few days many of T-Mobile's myTouch 3G and G1 handset customers were sent a serving of Donut, the newest version of Google's Android operating system for mobile phones. While a glance at the home screen of Android 1.6 doesn't reflect much of a difference over version 1.5, a look under the hood reveals a wealth of sweet surprises. In addition to a raft of minor fixes, Donut offers a new speech-synthesis tool, new GPS-enabled features, an enhanced search routine, a rebuilt Android Market and many other adjustments. The 57MB update that arrived on a myTouch 3G took just a few minutes to download with a fast data connection and just a few minutes to install, including a restart of the phone.
  (tags: Google Android donut)

links for 2009-10-16

• Paying To Pitch
  Jason Calacanis has taken on a new cause, outing angel groups that charge entrepreneurs to pitch. I agree with Jason that any angel group that charges an entrepreneur to pitch should be avoided. It suggests to me that the group is more about making money on pitch fees than investing. I've also seen "startup fundraising agents" out there that charge entrepreneurs upfront cash to make intros to potential investors. They should also be avoided. A basic rule of thumb for fundraising agents is that they must work on a success fee basis or you should not use them. Otherwise, they have no incentive to see you actually get funded.
  (tags: avc vc Entrepreneurship)
• Officials at GWU Are Ranked 'Most Active' for Twitter Use - washingtonpost.com
  A new study has confirmed what George Washington University students already knew: Their school officials are obsessive Twitterers. About 58 times a day, some university staff member sends a message in 140 characters or less, telling students about free depression screenings or flu shots, Foggy Bottom Metro closures, grant application due dates and upcoming lectures ("Jeb Bush coming to campus? You bet!"). Then last week, amid the dozens of GWU-sanctioned tweets, came this one from @GWTweets: "GW named most active college for Twitter use!"
  (tags: Twitter GWU)

links for 2009-10-14

• Meet the Mobile Web Audience - eMarketer
  As mobile Internet usage increases, men are losing their advantage in numbers. They still account for the majority of users, but women are catching up quickly. Mobile Internet visitors were up 34% year over year to 56.9 million in July 2009, according to The Nielsen Company. Growth among women outpaced the average rate by some 9 percentage points. Men still made up 53% of the mobile Web audience in July.
  (tags: Mobile)
• Technology Review: Verizon Wireless, Google in Android partnership
  Verizon Wireless said Tuesday it will put substantial resources into developing and selling phones that use Google Inc.'s Android software. Verizon Wireless had already said it would sell Android phones, but the announcement suggests that the carrier is positioning these "smart" phones as a main means of competing with Apple Inc.'s iPhone, which is exclusive to AT&T Inc. in the U.S. Verizon Wireless and Google said they plan to "codevelop" Android-based devices that will be pre-loaded with their applications. They will be made by major manufacturers, they said. The carrier now expects to sell the first Android phones in a few weeks, it said. It has already said it will be a carrier for a new smart phone from Motorola Inc., which is releasing several new devices based on Android software as a part of its turnaround effort.
  (tags: Verizon Google Android Mobile)

links for 2009-10-13

• The Difference Being a Mom Makes - eMarketer
  Having kids changes your life. It may also change your feelings about online marketing, according to the “What Women Want Consumer Survey” by Prospectiv. More moms than women without children said they did not mind seeing online discounts and coupons for products that interested them, and moms were less likely to report skipping over such offers. Mothers also reported trusting online coupons more than female Internet users without children. When asked what they would like to see in marketing e-mails, 45% of moms said they wanted information relevant to their lifestyle, and another 21% said they wanted to see “anything they send me.” Women without children were much pickier: 35% did not want any information at all, while 30% were interested in messages pertaining to their lifestyle.
  (tags: marketing parenthood moms)

links for 2009-10-09

• Americans Slow to Cut Spending on Kids - WSJ
  During the worst recession in decades consumers refused to cut back on one thing: their kids.

  Collectively, families spent about $9.7 billion less on apparel last year compared to a year earlier, yesterday’s Consumer Expenditure Survey from the Labor Department showed. But it wasn’t from making their children wear hand-me-downs: families spent almost the same amount on kids — boys and girls — younger than 16 last year. But they reined in their spending on apparel for men and women 16 years and older, shoes and other clothing items.

  Consumers didn’t pinch pennies on entertainment for their kids either. Families spent $2,835 apiece on entertainment last year, and a large chunk of that went to toys, hobbies, playground equipment and pets. Spending on that category climbed $144 in 2008, compared to a year earlier. Americans also spent nearly $50 more on audiovisual equipment and services last year.

  
  
  (tags: kids Economics)
  
  

links for 2009-10-08

• Ask The VC: How To Wind Down Your Company
  Of the most popular posts that Brad and I have created are our series on Term Sheets, Compensation, and Mergers and Acquisitions. One of the subjects that we've wanted to tackle has been the dissolution of companies. It's never fun to think about failure, but it happens a lot. Unfortunately, we haven't gotten around to it yet, so it was with great joy that my friend Roger Glovsky elected to write the series himself. This is post one of the series and I'm really excited to introduce Roger to our readers. Take it away, Roger.
  (tags: vc shutdown)
• Civilian, Military Officials at Odds Over Resources Needed for Afghan Counterinsurgency - washingtonpost.com
  In early March, after weeks of debate across a conference table in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, the participants in President Obama's strategic review of the war in Afghanistan figured that the most contentious part of their discussions was behind them. Everyone, save Vice President Biden's national security adviser, agreed that the United States needed to mount a comprehensive counterinsurgency mission to defeat the Taliban. That conclusion, which was later endorsed by the president and members of his national security team, would become the first in a set of recommendations contained in an administration white paper outlining what Obama called "a comprehensive, new strategy for Afghanistan and Pakistan." Preventing al-Qaeda's return to Afghanistan, the document stated, would require "executing and resourcing an integrated civilian-military counterinsurgency strategy."
  (tags: Politics afghanistan)

links for 2009-10-07

• Will Google's Wave Replace E-Mail—and Facebook? - BusinessWeek
  Google has big plans for Google Wave, its new online communication service—and they won't all come from Google. The Web search giant is hoping that software developers far and wide will create tools that work in conjunction with Wave, making an already multifaceted service even more useful. Google (GOOG) is even likely to let programmers sell their applications through an online bazaar akin to Apple's App Store, the online marketplace for games and other applications designed for the iPhone. "We'll almost certainly build a store," Lars Rasmussen, the Google software engineering manager who directs the 60-person team in Sydney, Australia, that created Wave, told BusinessWeek.com. "So many developers have asked us to build a marketplace—and we might do a revenue-sharing arrangement."
  (tags: Google wave)
• Comodo's Melih Abdulhayoglu - Practical eCommerce
  Internet commerce depends on safe and secure transactions. Because of that, we’ve asked a few questions to Melih Abdulhayoglu, an Internet security expert and CEO of Comodo, a leading provider of security software and encryption products for smaller ecommerce merchants.
  (tags: mehih Comodo security)
• Verizon Wireless, Google in Android partnership - washingtonpost.com
  Verizon Wireless and Google Inc. say they are teaming up to speed development of new mobile devices based on Google's Android software that will run on Verizon's cell phone network. Financial details were not disclosed. The companies say they expect the deal to produce its first new handsets in the next few weeks. They say the new phones will be available at Verizon Wireless retail and online stores.
  (tags: Verizon Google Android Mobile)

links for 2009-10-06

• U.S. Mobile Market Dialing Into Tween Population - Nielsen
  They don’t have expense accounts — or even their own income, but tweens (ages 8 to 12) are perhaps the hottest new target for U.S. cell phone operators, CNET and Forbes reported Wednesday. Both stories noted that 46% of U.S. tweens use cellphones, but only 26% own them, according to Nielsen Mobile. Instead, tweens are more likely to borrow their parents’ phones — when they go out with friends or take short trips. The borrowing typically starts at age eight-and-a-half; by age 10 or 11, many tweens have their own phones, according to Nielsen.
  (tags: Mobile demographics tweens)
• How to Google-Rank Your Way to a Recruiter's Heart
  During an average week, a recruiter reviews countless resumes, responds to hundreds of e-mails, conducts phone screens, video interviews and in-person interviews -- all to find one perfect candidate match. The sheer volume of work has been exacerbated by high unemployment and a down economy. As a result, many recruiters are casting a smaller net, relying on sources like social media, employee referrals and Boolean search to attract a smaller, more qualified set of candidates. For job seekers, this means a change in job-search approach. Rather than the "find a job" mentality, job seekers must focus on being found. Recruiters are holding the proverbial glass slipper -- looking for the perfect match to open positions. Are social media and web tools the digital fairy godmother that introduces you? Here are ways to make it easier for a recruiter to discover you:
  (tags: career social media)

links for 2009-10-04

• Watching Consumers Who Are Watching Themselves Get Watched
  You've probably read a bit about a new study/survey released this week titled "Americans Reject Tailored Advertising and Three Activities That Enable It." (Attention Marketers: The long version of the title is "Contrary to What Marketers Say, Americans Reject Tailored Advertising and Three Activities That Enable It.") It was the result of a collaboration between researchers at the University of Pennsylvania and the University of California, Berkeley; you can download a PDF (for free) here. The gist of the study: Two-thirds of Americans "do not want marketers to tailor advertisements to their interests" -- and the proportion goes up when people find out exactly what sort of behavioral-tracking stuff marketers and media companies have been up to lately (see abstract below).
  (tags: privacy)
• Venture Exits Might Be Down, But Total M&A Activity Is Definitely Picking Up
  The value of venture-backed exits (which is almost entirely M&A these days) might be down about 50 percent in the third quarter, but total M&A activity (including public companies) is seeing a noticeable uptick. We ran some numbers on Crunchbase, which keeps track of all announced acquisitions, and in the third quarter $31.8 billion worth of acquisitions were announced, double the amount from the second quarter and up fourfold from the $7.6 billion low in the fourth quarter. That number was even up 23 percent from the year before. Many of the bigger deals involved publicly traded companies, such as Xerox buying Affiliated Computer services for $5.75 billion, Dell purchasing Perot Systems for $3.9 billion, and Adobe picking up Omniture for $1.8 billion. There were also a lot of biotech and pharmaceuticals deals such as Abbott Labs swallowing Solvay Pharmaceuticals ($6.6 billion) and Dainippon Sumitomo eating Sepracor ($2.6 billion).
  (tags: vc Entrepreneurship)

links for 2009-10-03

• Michelle Obama's 'Personal Sacrifice' to Boost Chicago, but Cost the Environment - 1.4 million pounds of CO2 generated by Obama airplanes on this trip
  First lady Michelle Obama arrived in Copenhagen Wednesday to offer her support for Chicago's bid to host the 2016 Olympics. Her husband will leave shortly on Air Force One to meet her there and make his case. Thursday morning, Mrs. Obama thanked fellow Chicagoan Oprah Winfrey for joining her in the Olympic pitch saying: "We dropped everything — dropped everything — to be a part of this team." Praising the team work, the first lady said: "As much of a sacrifice as people say this is for me or Oprah or the president to come for these few days," the team has been working for years. She says her reasons for wanting to bring the games to Chicago, include the impact it could have on young people.
  (tags: environment Politics obama olympics)
• New Economic Reports Show We're Still Hurting
  The fragile economic recovery has relied heavily on government stimulus spending, but new data show that as the money runs out, a sustained rebound may be elusive. The dramatic decline in sales reported Thursday by the Big Three automakers suggested the extent to which the stimulus act has propped up the economy. The government's wildly popular "Cash for Clunkers" program drove consumer spending to its highest level in eight years in August. But after it ended, so did the growth in auto sales.
  (tags: Economics)

links for 2009-10-02

• Cyberbullying: Do You Know What To Look For? « Tim Woda
  Cyberbullying is when a child is tormented, threatened, harassed, humiliated or embarrassed using technology like text messaging, email, instant messaging, blogs, websites and online games. Unlike traditional bullying, there is no refuge for the victims because cyberbullying goes on 24-hours a day. It invades a child’s home. This isn’t the bullying we saw or experienced as a child. One third of American teens and one sixth of tweens have been cyberbullied – that’s 13 million kids!
  (tags: security cyberbullying Woda)
• Available All the Time: Etiquette for the Social Networking Age - Knowledge@Wharton
  After a long day at the office, imagine logging onto Facebook to see what your friends have been up to, only to have your boss or colleague message you about an urgent work matter. Aside from the fact that you are officially off duty, is it appropriate for your co-worker to reach out to you through a social networking forum? Was it wise to accept a colleague or higher-up as a "friend" to begin with? And -- perhaps more importantly -- in this day and age, when people are seemingly available around the clock because of smartphones and our endless appetite for all things online, is anyone ever really "off duty?"
  (tags: facebook social media etiquette)
• Google Wave Ridden By Cybercriminals
  Google (NSDQ: GOOG) Wave is being made available on Wednesday to 100,000 or so developers, early adopters, and Google Apps customers. Unfortunately, cybercriminals are making the most of the launch: They've rolled out a blackhat SEO poisoning campaign to turn interest in Wave into a computer infection.

  (As a gauge of that interest, consider that the price for a Google Wave invitation on eBay was bid up to $5,100 before the auction was suspended.)

  
  
  (tags: Google wave security)
  
  
• 
  
  Apple Genius says dropped AT&T calls in NYC 'consistent'
  
  
  A man who took his iPhone 3G in to a New York City Apple Store because of a large number of dropped calls was allegedly told that a 30 percent failure rate is average for a local AT&T customer.

  In a diagnosis issued by the Genius Bar, the proposed resolution for the issue was for the customer to contact AT&T, because "the problem is consistent with the service provided" by the wireless carrier. Not included in the report, however, is what a Gizmodo reader claimed he was told by the Apple Store Genius: That a 30 percent dropped call rate is average for the New York area.

  The man took his iPhone 3G to the Apple Store in SoHo, located at 103 Prince Street in New York City, to see if his dropped calls were as a result of the hardware. The man said that roughly a third of his calls disconnected.

  
  
  (tags: apple att iphone)
  
  

links for 2009-10-01

• iPhone apps help track sex offenders, spot crime - CNN.com
  Tracy Rodriguez of Houston, Texas, is not a trained private investigator or police officer. But with a gentle tap on her iPhone screen, the mother of three can access information revealing the sex offenders who live within a 10-mile radius of where her children practice sports or watch movies. Tracy Rodriguez, who is holding the iPhone, uses the device to locate sex offenders.

  Tracy Rodriguez, who is holding the iPhone, uses the device to locate sex offenders.
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  The information, provided by an iPhone app called Offender Locator, helps Rodriguez make more informed choices, she says. When the app pops open on her phone, there is an eerie sketch of a man's face. Then, the app asks for an address.

  
  
  (tags: iphone security kidsafe)