Headlines for December 7th, 2009
Posted on 07. Dec, 2009 by [modern media mom] in Lastest Headlines, Latest News, Links & Resources
- Can OpenID Be Commercialized? Investors Bet $3.25 Million On JanRain – "JanRain has always been on the forefront evangelizing OpenID, the decentralized authentication method for the new Web, as a founding member of the OpenID Foundation. But the company is not a non-profit, and aims to turn the deployment of online identification technology in enterprise environments into a viable business."
- Yahoo Ad Interest Manager More Confusing Than Helpful – "From the information it offers, users may have a hard time figuring out what information Yahoo has, what it does with it, and how that impacts the ads that a user sees. It also may or may not work with their browser.
The Ad Interest Manager page also admits that it isn't the sole control for what Yahoo presents its users, sometimes relying on "other inputs" such as "publicly available information or information provided by partners to help customize some of the ads we show.""
- Webmasters fume as Google profiles signed-out searchers – "Google is now "personalizing" results even when users have not logged into its web-dominating search site. And SEO types aren't too happy about it.
Personalization is a euphemism for a Google-controlled practice that involves tweaking your search results according to your past web history. Mountain View was already doing this with users who had signed in to a Google account so they could use non-search services like Gmail and Google Calendar. But now it's targeting results for all users – whether they're logged in or not."
- Microsoft Kills Windows Family Pack Discount Just Before the Holidays – "Is company playing the Grinch or just sticking with the gameplan — and is there still a chance the discounts could be reinstated?"
- Facebook forms board to improve safety – "Facebook is setting up a new advisory board to improve user safety on its social networking site, it said on Sunday.
Online safety organizations Common Sense Media, ConnectSafely, WiredSafety, Childnet International and The Family Online Safety Institute have all joined the Safety Advisory Board, according to Facebook."
- NY Times Takes a Long Look at iPhone, App Store – "This past weekend, the New York Times ran a lengthy article looking at the success of the iPhone and the monolithic presence of the App Store in the mobile market. “The iPhone will be remembered as the first true handheld computer,” analyst Craig Moffett said, calling the device’s 2007 introduction “a turning point in the industry.”"
- Apple’s Plans For Lala Music Site Remain A Mystery – "Published reports through the weekend said Apple had acquired Lala for an undisclosed sum. But as of Monday morning neither company had posted confirmation of an acquisition."
