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AP Technology NewsBrief at 10:28 a.m. EDT(Associated Press Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Yahoo's board under fire after firing of CEO BartzSAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ Carol Bartz's firing as Yahoo Inc.'s CEO isn't going to be enough to placate a loudening chorus of shareholders who believe Chairman Roy Bostock and his fellow board members also should be ousted after years of questionable choices that raised doubts about their competence. The deepening disdain for Yahoo's board gained a potentially influential voice Thursday with the disclosure that successful hedge fund manager Daniel Loeb had bought a 5.2 percent stake in the company with designs on getting rid of Bostock and at least two other longtime directors. Oprah Winfrey chats on Facebook Live talk showNEW YORK (AP) _ Oprah Winfrey got plenty of `likes' on Facebook Thursday from fans who tuned in to watch a live online chat with the social networking site. The TV personality gave a one-hour interview to Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg at the company's Palo Alto, Calif., headquarters. The chat took place in front of an audience of Facebook employees who cheered and took photos on camera phones when she walked out. Court rules Samsung can't sell tablet in GermanyBERLIN (AP) _ Samsung Electronics cannot sell its new Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet computer in Germany after a court ruled Friday that its design "too closely" resembles Apple's iPad2. The ruling by a Duesseldorf state court, however, only applies to direct sales from the Seoul, South Korea-based company, meaning distributors who acquire the Galaxy Tab 10.1 from abroad could resell them in Germany. Twitter to show more ads, still biding time on IPOSAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ Expect to see more ads flowing through Twitter's stream of tweets in the coming weeks, but don't expect to read anything soon about an IPO from the online messaging service. Twitter CEO Dick Costolo delivered that message in a Thursday meeting with a group of reporters at the company's San Francisco headquarters. EW Scripps to stream live video to mobile devicesCINCINNATI (AP) _ The E.W. Scripps Co. said Thursday that it will become the first TV station group in the nation to deliver live video programming to mobile devices. The launch will occur in nine markets: Detroit, Phoenix, Tampa, Fla., Cleveland, Baltimore, Kansas City, Cincinnati, West Palm Beach, Fla., and Tulsa, Okla. Late 'Madden' saps August video game salesSAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ U.S. retail sales of video game hardware, software and accessories fell 21 percent in August to $649 million, according to market researcher NPD Group, partly because the popular "Madden NFL 12" released later in the month than usual. In its monthly report, the NPD Group said Thursday that video game software sales _ which refers to sales of the games themselves _ sank 34 percent in August to $265 million, compared with nearly $404 million in August 2010. Google buys restaurant review service ZagatSAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ This "iconic" publisher of restaurant reviews is "trusted" and "well-loved" by foodies. Customers love its "ability to innovate" and gush over its "tremendous insight." Google said Thursday that it is buying Zagat, maker of the slender guidebooks that offer one-paragraph reviews and numerical ratings of eateries, peppered with partial quotes from the people who love and hate them. Google reveals energy use to show search is greenNEW YORK (AP) _ Stung by concerns that using Google is bad for the planet, the Internet search giant has revealed exactly how much electricity the company uses and how much greenhouse gases it produces in an effort to show its business model is environmentally friendly. Experts say it's true: Watching a video on Google's Youtube site is indeed more energy-efficient than watching a DVD that had to be manufactured, packaged, shipped and purchased. Perplexing puzzle: Can Yahoo's luster be restored?SAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ Yahoo Inc. has gone through three different CEOs in five years. Whoever takes the helm now will face the same challenge: Solve one of the Internet's most perplexing puzzles. Why is a company that owns some of the world's most widely used online services unable to gain traction among Web surfers, advertisers and investors? Can the company that rode the Internet boom ever again be where the cool kids go? Possible CEOs to succeed Carol Bartz at YahooLOS ANGELES (AP) _ The search has now begun for a person willing to lead one of the world's most popular Internet properties, Yahoo Inc., whose problems have deepened under its three previous leaders. The challenge is to find someone who can bring a Web 1.0 property into the new digital world of mobile and social Internet. There's also the fact that the CEO job may not exist for long if the company looks to sell itself or break up. (c) 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |