Some Isley Brothers now.

Some Elvis Costello. Don’t know this one, though.

And…here’s Walt Mossberg and Kara Swisher.

Kara is wearing something that might have been bedazzled. Walt’s wearing Waltwear.

An update on the state of the ATD empire, which is getting much bigger.

Walt brings on Dean Hachamovitch.

Dean, by the way, is wearing a black long-sleeve shirt that says “private” in big white letters. Hope someone asks him about it.

Ah, and Dean has a “private” shirt for Walt, too. We’ll get to privacy in a bit, it seems.

DEAN: Working on IE 9, in beta, downloaded over 20 million times. Most important is its performance. It’s amazingly fast. Also, it blurs the boundary between Web sites and apps. And also, some talk about privacy.

WALT: Okay, that was a nice ad. But please talk about reports that you’ve been eclipsed in Europe by Firefox.

DEAN: Yes, we used to have 90 percent market share back in the ’90s. But now we look at how many people choose to use our most recent versions. “We are delighted that IE 6 market share is going down. We are delighted that IE 7 market share is going down.”

DEAN: And bear in mind how much the Internet is growing. “There are a lot of different factors. It’s a very complex situation.”

WALT: Okay, on to privacy. Safari used to have some kind of privacy feature, but that’s old. Then in IE 8, you introduced a new feature, not by default, which tried to extend that protection to other sites on the Web you traveled to.

DEAN: You were describing “over the shoulder privacy.” But we’re also concerned about tracking. There are two kinds of tracking: “Expected tracking” and “creepy stalking.”

Pandora and Amazon are expected tracking. You want them to know what you’re doing. But the important thing is that you have visibility and control, and you get benefits.

For instance, when I go to Amazon, they know that I bought Spice Girls and Fergie, and they tell me other stuff I should get.

WALT: Some of that tracking isn’t sophisticated enough.

DEAN: Anyway, creepy stalking is bad. Because consumers aren’t aware of what’s going on, and they don’t have control of it.

WALT: We don’t allow slides at our conferences usually, but we’re going to make an exception. Please show us some slides!

Dean is showing people a monitor that shows you what cookies were attached to a certain NPR page, which includes tracking info that comes from Facebook integration.

Now a Fox News page with similar info.

A reminder that cookies, by the way, aren’t the only tracking info involved here. Also pixels, etc.

But even once you root around and look at the pixels and tracking info, you might not really understand what you’re looking at or who is behind them.

WALT: Microsoft is a big Internet advertiser and publisher. Don’t you do some of this stuff?

DEAN: Yes, and in addition to us and Google, etc, there is an amazing ecosystem of information brokers. There’s a huge industry around this.

WALT: So what’s coming?

DEAN: With the new rev of IE 9, first quarter of 2011, you’ll be able to “go to a Web page, click on a button and you’ll be protected from tracking.” Any Web page can do this.

It will block content on that page. It will be an open publishing platform.

WALT: Why would a publisher want to do this? They have a legitmate need to want to know things about you, to serve you better ads, right?

DEAN: We have a lot of interest from a lot of different organizations that want to make lists. Publishers, government agencies, consumer advocacy, etc.

WALT: So, I have to download a list from someone I trust to make this work. Will you maintain this list?

DEAN: No. People will find these lists the same way that they find other things on the Web they like. From Facebook, or friends, or wherever.

We think it’s important to have people exercise judgment in making these lists. The most important thing is that you go off to the Web and find one you have confidence in.

WALT: But why do I have to hope that I go to sites that have these buttons?

WALT and DEAN are trying to explain how the list and button combination will work. Frankly, I’m confused. We’ll have to circle back to this.

WALT: A cynical journalist might suggest that you’re embracing privacy and wearing a shirt because Firefox et al are eating your lunch.

DEAN: Paying Windows customers want a great experience that includes privacy, including through their browser. But another way to view people who use browsers is that they’re objects to be boxed and sold. We don’t believe that. We believe Windows customers should have a great experience with their browser.

WALT: As opposed to?

DEAN: Well, Chrome, for instance, is funded by advertising.

WALT: So is The Wall Street Journal.

DEAN: I think advertising is great. But be careful about connecting advertising with tracking. We have advertising customers, and we want them to be delighted. And we have Windows customers, and we want them to be delighted. We have a unique position on this that gives us an opporunity to lead.

WALT: All the other browsers have a privacy mode.

DEAN: But that’s for “over the shoulder” privacy, not tracking.

WALT: Some of this tracking stuff is very hard to block. Can you really protect a user from all of it?

DEAN: Good question. Flash, for instance, enables tracking “Flash cookies” and they’re inherent in Flash. Only way to turn them off is to turn Flash off.

WALT: So this won’t block Flash cookies?

DEAN: It will if you tell it to.

WALT: But that’s pretty extreme.

DEAN: Yes. We’re touching on the ambiguity to the consumer about what actually is important and worthwhile tracking, and what isn’t.

We want to help consumers make progress being in control, but it’s a work in progress. It’s happening in Berkeley and in Brussels.

WALT: Let’s switch gears. Some people, not mainstream people, are debating whether the future of entertainment and progress and productivity will be on the browser and in the cloud. Google is pushing that via Chrome OS, and they also have Android apps that store local cloud on the device. Where do you come down on that?

DEAN: It’s a great case of “and”–you’ll have local apps and cloud versions. Like with Office mail, etc. We’re doing work on speed and safety so you can feel more comfortable in the cloud. “I think it’s the best of both worlds.”

WALT: So not a religious issue? Just practicality?

DEAN: Yes.

Questions and Answers

Q: What do you think of what the FTC says about privacy?

DEAN: The paper they put out in December is a good framework. And they’ve responded positively to what we’ve put out. They’re in favor of self-regulation, and we’re eager to work with them. I’ve had conversations with them, and what they say makes sense.

WALT: You’ve been talking to competitors about working together on this?

DEAN: We’ve been talking across the industry.

Q: Who is supposed to make banking, etc., more secure? This isn’t just about someone saying something on Facebook, but opening up the wrong window and having your bank account drained.

DEAN: We take it very seriously. “Security is an industry issue. I have to say it that way, because anything that we can talk about here has multiple parties involved.” if your Facebook is hacked, was it using your banking password?

Q: I’m talking about a national security issue.

DEAN: There’s a lot of working going on within the industry, working with law enformecement, to make things more secure.

WALT: But since you have the biggest market share, there’s a lot of responsibility on you. What do you do about that?

DEAN: Well, one thing we do is put out updates every eight weeks, because things change.

But really, “the best thing you can do to remain secure is to keep all your bits updated….That would make such a difference.”

Q: Firefox has plug-ins like AdBlock, that let you block ads. They seem to be effective at blocking things like beacons, too. Are they effective and can you do something analogous?

DEAN: Add-ins require installation, etc. You need a list, too. But we’re building that functionality into IE, so you don’t need to download anything else. We’re also working with people who make lists for AdBlock Plus, and they’re eager to work with IE 9 as well.

WALT: But AdBlock blocks ads, too. You’re not going to do that, right?

DEAN: It comes down to the list. If a list author lists sites that involve ads, then they’ll go away, too.

WALT: So you could surf the Web without seeing ads?

DEAN: It depends on the list.

WALT: I do think ads are good, by the way. [Me too!]

DEAN: Right. “Ads are great!”

But this is one of the reasons the ad industry wants to create lists for this. So they can distinguish tracking from nontracking.

Q: You’ve been talking about desktop browsers. Will these features come to mobile as well?

DEAN: “We’ll be talking about our mobile browser very soon, and I’ll just smile, and you can infer from that.”

Q: How much more value does tracking really add to advertising?

DEAN: Hard for me to answer that. Maybe the next time you have one of these things, you could have someone from the ad industry.

WALT: Good idea.

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]]> http://allthingsd.com/20110107/live-microsoft-browser-boss-dean-hachamovitch-at-dces/feed/ 0 http://allthingsd.com/20110107/dces-today-twitter-nvidia-microsoft-in-the-vegas-spotlight/ http://allthingsd.com/20110107/dces-today-twitter-nvidia-microsoft-in-the-vegas-spotlight/#comments Fri, 07 Jan 2011 18:00:12 +0000 Kara Swisher http://kara.allthingsd.com/?p=39276

First things first, for those emailing me frantically about getting into our D@CES onstage interview event later today at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas: We’re sold out and have a very long wait list.

That said, people in Sin City tend to flake out, so if you show up at the Marcello Ballroom at the Venetian Hotel at 3 pm, you might snag a seat, as people did last year at the same event.

No guarantees, but it’s a betting town, so you might want to do so.

And, if you throw craps, our crack All Things Digital staff will be posting photos, reports and video quickly.

I am hoping there will be some juicy news for them to chew on, as we interview three fascinating subjects:

Twitter CEO Dick Costolo, Nvidia co-founder and CEO Jen-Hsun Huang and Dean Hachamovitch, who heads the Internet Explorer browser team within the Windows unit at Microsoft.

Our latest event comes after our successful D: Dive Into Mobile conference, part of the D: All Things Digital juggernaut.

(Actually, it is more like a tiny red wagon, but it is really cool.)

This is our second D event at the CES, which is taking place this week.

Last year’s tech execs onstage were Palm CEO Jon Rubinstein, Netflix founder and CEO Reed Hastings and Google’s Android chief Andy Rubin.

As usual, our event will be focused on the consumer electronics arena, and the big trends impacting it.

The D@CES program is only this afternoon, with the new trio.

Costolo (pictured here), a longtime entrepreneur, took over from co-founder Evan Williams earlier this year and is charged with turning the microblogging service into a real, live boy, um, company.

Twitter is making a big push into the mainstream and also wants to be present for all the many devices shown at CES.

As noted before, I will be grilling Costolo. Well done, I hope!

Nvidia’s Huang (pictured here) is leading a big change for the company. Although known for its PC graphics chips, Nvidia is shifting an increasing amount of focus to other areas, such as mobile chips with its Tegra line.

Huang will be interviewed by Mobilized’s Ina Fried.

Walt Mossberg will take on Hachamovitch (pictured below), who heads the IE team at Microsoft.

Well known for sporting a different black shirt featuring a different saying made up of the IE logo and letters at every keynote speech, he has been at the software giant since 1990.

We thought bringing his voice was important, since Hachamovitch has been focusing on privacy using the browser, an increasingly key topic in tech.

So get ready for some fun–after all, it’s Vegas, baby.

]]> http://allthingsd.com/20110107/dces-today-twitter-nvidia-microsoft-in-the-vegas-spotlight/feed/ 0 http://allthingsd.com/20110106/remember-the-parrot/ http://allthingsd.com/20110106/remember-the-parrot/#comments Thu, 06 Jan 2011 11:30:55 +0000 Peter Kafka http://mediamemo.allthingsd.com/?p=27687 This is the gadget industry’s week of hope and promise. But if you’re a dark sort, you can invert all that and see nothing but doom.

Me, I’m a peppy, perky guy. Ask anybody! Still, if I were a gloomy Gus, I’d spend some time reminiscing about 2010′s Consumer Electronics Show, where I spent a bunch of time checking out:

• Hearst’s Skiff e-reader
• The Plastic Logic Que e-reader
• Palm’s new line of smartphones
• Keychest, a dizzingly dull rights-management scheme from Disney.

A year later, and they’re all gone: Either officially dead, or just pining for fjords, and very unlikely to perk up.

Not all of this stuff was vaporware, in the technical sense. Palm, at least, really did sell a few of those Palm Pre Pluses before it gave up and sold out to HP.

Still, an 0-for-4 experience like that is enough to make a humble media correspondent want to avoid checking out new technology altogether, and that’s basically what I’m going to do.

I might take a look at the UltraViolet media locker demo, but that’s about it. I’m headed to Las Vegas this morning* with the primary goal of talking to media people, many of whom live in New York, just like I do.

So yes, it might seem a little odd to head across the country to talk to people who live and work a few miles away, but there’s a logic to it. Trust me!**

And if you do want smart, incisive technology coverage, trust the rest of the All Things D team: Walt, Katie, Kara and Ina are on the ground already, and the rest of the gang is monitoring developments from their home bases. It’s good stuff!

*Not just because I enjoy being fashionably late, but because it was many hundreds of dollars cheaper to fly out today than earlier in the week. (And also because I’m old, and at my age every extra day you spend in Las Vegas is a dog year.)

**Totally not a boondoggle. Note the line about saving money on airfare, above.

]]> http://allthingsd.com/20110106/remember-the-parrot/feed/ 0 http://allthingsd.com/20110105/walt-and-katies-ces-plan-of-attack/ http://allthingsd.com/20110105/walt-and-katies-ces-plan-of-attack/#comments Wed, 05 Jan 2011 19:21:31 +0000 Beth Callaghan http://voices.allthingsd.com/?p=34813 As longtime CES veterans, Walt Mossberg and Katie Boehret approach the sprawling show with a practiced eye. In this video segment, Lauren Goode from The Wall Street Journal talks with them about their plan of attack, what they expect to be some of the larger themes of the show and the second annual D event at CES, which will take place Friday.

]]> http://allthingsd.com/20110105/walt-and-katies-ces-plan-of-attack/feed/ 0 http://allthingsd.com/20101215/dces-what-happens-to-twitters-dick-costolo-in-vegas-stays-on-atd/ http://allthingsd.com/20101215/dces-what-happens-to-twitters-dick-costolo-in-vegas-stays-on-atd/#comments Wed, 15 Dec 2010 12:10:14 +0000 Kara Swisher http://kara.allthingsd.com/?p=38521

After our successful D: Dive Into Mobile conference last week, the D: All Things Digital train keeps chugging away and is now headed to Las Vegas just after the new year.

There, we will do a second D event at the Consumer Electronics Show, which will take place from January 6 to 9, 2011.

It will, natch, be focused on the consumer electronics arena, and the big trends impacting it.

Unlike our other conferences, the D@CES program is only one afternoon, on Friday, January 7, at the Venetian’s Marcello ballroom, followed by a party at the hotel’s V Bar.

Last year’s tech execs onstage were Palm CEO Jon Rubinstein, Netflix founder and CEO Reed Hastings and Google’s Android chief Andy Rubin.

This year, the trio will be: Twitter CEO Dick Costolo, Nvidia co-founder and CEO Jen-Hsun Huang and Dean Hachamovitch, who heads the Internet Explorer team within the Windows unit at Microsoft.

Costolo (pictured here), a longtime entrepreneur, took over from co-founder Evan Williams earlier this year and is charged with turning the microblogging service into a real-live boy, um, company.

Twitter is making a big push into the mainstream and also wants to be present for all the many devices shown at CES.

BoomTown will be grilling Costolo. Well done, I hope!

Nvidia’s Huang (pictured here) is leading a big change for the company. Although known for its PC graphics chips, Nvidia is shifting an increasing amount of focus to other areas, such as mobile chips with its Tegra line.

Huang will be interviewed by Mobilized’s Ina Fried.

Walt Mossberg will take on Hachamovitch (pictured below), who heads the IE team at Microsoft.

Well known for sporting a different black shirt featuring a different saying made up of the IE logo and letters at every keynote speech, he has been at the software giant since 1990.

We thought bringing his voice was important, since Hachamovitch has been focusing on privacy using the browser, an increasingly key topic in tech.

D@CES is invitation only, but if you want to go, email me at Kara@AllThingsD.com and I will send an invite, as long as supplies last.

]]> http://allthingsd.com/20101215/dces-what-happens-to-twitters-dick-costolo-in-vegas-stays-on-atd/feed/ 0 http://allthingsd.com/20100111/yes-palm-ceo-did-say-he-never-used-an-iphone-and-more-video-from-dces-event/ http://allthingsd.com/20100111/yes-palm-ceo-did-say-he-never-used-an-iphone-and-more-video-from-dces-event/#comments Mon, 11 Jan 2010 16:00:04 +0000 Kara Swisher http://kara.allthingsd.com/?p=22803

At All Things Digital, our crack Web staff–go, Adam!–wants you to have total access to all the video clips you want to see, so here is a handy-dandy list of quick links to all that and more from our interview event at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas on Friday.

We did sessions with Palm (PALM) CEO Jon Rubinstein, Netflix (NFLX) CEO Reed Hastings and Google (GOOG) Android guru Andy Rubin.

And, yes, Rubinstein did say, “Actually, I’ve never used one…it’s the truth,” about the Apple (AAPL) iPhone mobile phenom–to which I expressed complete disbelief.

Not that having one would have helped him make any calls at CES, since the network connections were atrocious. Thanks for nothing once again, AT&T (T)!

But you can decide for yourself here if Rubinstein is speaking the truth or not–and check out the rest of our videos:

Jon Rubinstein | CEO, Palm

• Live Blog
• Highlights Video
• Full Session Video
• Slideshow

Reed Hastings | CEO, Netflix

• Live Blog
• Highlights Video
• Full Session Video
• Slideshow

Andy Rubin | VP of Engineering, Google

• Live Blog
• Highlights Video
• Full Session Video
• Slideshow

]]> http://allthingsd.com/20100111/yes-palm-ceo-did-say-he-never-used-an-iphone-and-more-video-from-dces-event/feed/ 11 http://allthingsd.com/20100108/live-from-las-vegas-google-vp-of-engineering-andy-rubin/ http://allthingsd.com/20100108/live-from-las-vegas-google-vp-of-engineering-andy-rubin/#comments Sat, 09 Jan 2010 00:06:26 +0000 John Paczkowski http://digitaldaily.allthingsd.com/?p=31996

Once an Apple (AAPL) engineer, Andy Rubin went on to co-found mobile computing outfits Danger Inc. and Android, Inc. He sold the former to Microsoft (MSFT) and the latter to Google (GOOG), where he is now now vice president of engineering. He’s also the guy quarterbacking development of the company’s Android mobile operating system and the Nexus One–the smartphone with which Google hopes to fundamentally change the way people buy cellphones.

In conversation with All Things Digital‘s Walt Mossberg today, Rubin talked about the mobile space, Google’s plan for an enterprise version of the Nexus One and its vision for the way phones should be bought and sold.

Video clip: Highlights from Andy Rubin’s interview.

Walt starts off by asking Rubin about just how involved Google was in the development of Nexus One.

Rubin replies, “We threw out crazy ideas to our partners at HTC and they were pretty good about plucking the good ones out of the air and building them into the device.”

Walt asks about the new business model Google’s launched in concert with Nexus One. Was this something the company planned all along?

“This is the next phase of Android–taking the newest versions of the product, placing them online and allowing consumers to purchase them directly,” says Rubin. “What we’ve learned is that there are more efficient ways of connecting consumers with the phones they’d like to purchase…easier ways.” Purchasing a Nexus One through Google, says Rubin, is a casual process. “No one’s breathing down your neck,” he says. “No one’s trying to upsell you. … The experiment here is to allow consumers to experience the phone with no pressure, no upsell, they get into a product that best suits their needs.”

Walt: “You have T-Mobile as a launch partner, and the Nexus One is soon going to be available at Verizon and Vodafone. But you convinced T-Mobile to offer a specific plan for this device. T-mobile people told me that. You wanted a specific monthly price.” Why would you get involved in that if you’re separating the phone from service?”

“We’re trying to give consumers the best experience of our services,” Rubin replies. We wanted to provide something simple. People get confused with the current process … I get confused. We wanted a simple way to do it. Like the Google homepage … Simplicity is a big part of this.”

Interesting. Rubin mentions that Google is working on an enterprise version of Nexus One. What would a enterprise version of Nexus One look like? Would it support exchange? It might, says Rubin. “An enterprise version might also have a physical keyboard … it might be a world phone…” But then it’s a different device,” Walt suggests. Rubin: “Yes, it would be a different SKU.”

Video clip: Andy Rubin talks Exchange support and future Nexus One devices.

Nexus One is aimed at consumers who love their Google services and live in the “Google world,” Walt notes. Yet, Google is encouraging developers to build new apps for Android and Nexus One. How do you reconcile that? Isn’t there something contradictory to saying “we’re an app platform, we’re open,” and then turning around and saying “we’re really a platform for people who love Google?”

Rubin obviously doesn’t think so. He stresses that an OS can’t be successful unless people are developing for it. “It reminds me of the accessory business,” he says. “The most successful phones have the most earbuds, car chargers, etc.”

Walt wonders if Rubin is at all surprised by the size of the apps revolution, by the fact that there are 100,000-plus apps in the iTunes Apps Store.

“I’m not surprised by it at all. This is what happens when you drop the barriers to entry,” he says, recalling how difficult it once was for developers to distribute their apps and how easy it is today.

This new purchasing model Google has created for the Nexus One puts the company at the center of the experience. People who purchase the Nexus One think of themselves as Google customers. Rubin says, “What we’ve done here is to offer a mobile platform where people don’t have to worry about the plumbing.”

Walt notes reports today about people unhappy the customer service Google is providing for the Nexus One; there is only e-mail customer service, and no phone support. “People are being told they’ll have to wait two days for service,” says Walt. “How is this a good experience for consumers.” Rubin concedes that there is no phone support and that there is sometimes a 3-day delay in response time. “We have to get better at customer service,” he says. “We have to close that three day gap to a couple of hours.”

Video clip: Andy Rubin comments on the Nexus One customer service issues.

“So how important to the future is this app ecosystem,” Walt asks. “The app thing is a reflection of how many phones you’ve sold,” Rubin replies. That’s what developers invest in. There was a time when Android had as many apps as Palm has now.” “So on what date will you have 125,000 apps,” Walt asks, referring to Apple’s App Store. Rubin: “Well I’m sure someone could map that out with the right algorithm.”

Moving on to the issue now of 3G network performance, which is been a very real issue at CES, especially for AT&T. Rubin says Moore’s Law applies to bandwidth — 4G is on its way, and after that 5G. Walt suggests that the addition of new phones like the Nexus One and the host of other superphones going to exacerbate the problem. Rubin says that doesn’t have to happen; if carriers were more on point and did what was necessary to maintain and upgrade their networks dropped calls etc. would not be as much of an issue as they are for some carriers today.

In his interview with Kara Swisher earlier, Palm CEO Jon Rubinstein–a former Apple engineer–said, “I don’t have an iPhone. I’ve never even used one.” In contrast, for those who may be wondering, Rubin says he does use an iPhone. “What do you expect? I’m a gadget guy.”

More Posts and Articles from CES

• Andy Rubin Highlights Video
• Andy Rubin Full Interview Video
• Andy Rubin Slideshow
• CES Full Coverage on AllThingsD.com
• Netflix CEO Reed Hastings interview with Peter Kafka
• Palm CEO Jon Rubinstein interview with Kara Swisher

]]> http://allthingsd.com/20100108/live-from-las-vegas-google-vp-of-engineering-andy-rubin/feed/ 0 http://allthingsd.com/20100108/all-things-digital-ces-netflix-ceo-reed-hastings/ http://allthingsd.com/20100108/all-things-digital-ces-netflix-ceo-reed-hastings/#comments Fri, 08 Jan 2010 23:34:32 +0000 John Paczkowski and Drake Martinet http://digitaldaily.allthingsd.com/?p=31989

The digital video revolution may be hastening the DVD toward its end, but there’s quite a bit of life left in the old format yet. Netflix CEO Reed Hastings said as much today when he remarked that the company’s DVD-by-mail business will likely continue until 2030. During a wide-ranging on-stage interview with All Things Digital’s Peter Kafka, Hastings discussed the deal Netflix cut with Warner Bros. earlier this week that will delay rentals of the studio’s films until 28 days after their DVD release and Comcast’s proposal to acquire a controlling stake in NBC Universal, a move that could impact Netflix’s Watch Instantly streaming service.

“When we first started years ago, we were literally going down to Best Buy and buying a bunch of DVDs and renting them,” Hastings said, reflecting on the Warner Bros. deal. He noted that Netflix (NFLX) is getting a better deal on DVD prices and that customers are going to see more streaming content as a result of its pact with the studio.

Video clip: Highlights from Reed Hasting’s interview

The future of the DVD was up for discussion as Netflix transitions into more on-demand, streaming content. “Pretty soon, we’re going to be a streaming business that rents some DVDs,” said Hastings.

He gave the DVD another 20 years though, projecting it will take that long for Netflix to get out of the disc-shipping business all together.

Hastings eschewed suggestions that Netflix might be looking to add a premium channel or sports to its services, but would instead focus on expanding the number of video game consoles on which you can currently steam Netflix content. Hastings said that streaming was the rocket Netflix wanted to ride.

Peter closed out the interview by asking Hastings about plans that go bump in the night, specifically wondering what Hulu or Comcast (CMCSA) might put together.

Hastings said, “Any time a competitor doubles in size, that’s capitalism, but not good for us. We’re movie-centric, and commercial-free. We license a lot of content. As we get more subscribers, we can write bigger checks to license more content.”

Subscribers = good, more subscribers = better.

What was better going to look like? Hastings laid it out in a closing remark.

“We’re about three things right now: Expanding the platform, expanding the content and expanding the user interface, making it better and better.”

More Posts and Articles from CES

• Reed Hastings Highlights Video
• Reed Hastings Full Session Video
• Reed Hastings Slideshow
• CES Full Coverage on AllThingsD.com
• Walt Mossberg interviews Google VP of Engineering Andy Rubin
• Peter Kafka interviews Netflix CEO Reed Hastings
• Kara Swisher interviews Palm CEO Jon Rubinstein

]]> http://allthingsd.com/20100108/all-things-digital-ces-netflix-ceo-reed-hastings/feed/ 0 http://allthingsd.com/20100108/rubinstein/ http://allthingsd.com/20100108/rubinstein/#comments Fri, 08 Jan 2010 22:52:53 +0000 John Paczkowski http://digitaldaily.allthingsd.com/?p=31984

If CES 2009 marked Palm’s rise-from-the-ashes rebirth, CES 2010 may well be the beginning of its resurgence, the inflection point at which the company really begins to gain traction in a market that nearly left it behind just two years ago.

“I think we’ve done really well this past year,” Palm CEO Jon Rubinstein said during an interview with All Things Digital‘s Kara Swisher at the Consumer Electronics Show.

Video clip: Highlights from Jon Rubinstein’s interview.

“We told everyone what our plans were and we really executed on those,” he continued, adding, “we said we’d deliver the Pre in the first half and launched it in June. We said we’d add more carriers and we did that as well….Throughout the year we’ve delivered a lot of over-the-air updates, improving the product, and then we launched the Pixi….I look at the last two years as a transitional period and the year ahead as a transformational one.”

And what of the year ahead? Further improvements, says Rubinstein: “We’re really, really focused on the consumer experience–the simple user interface, multitasking, synergy, seamless messaging applications…the gesture-based interface; these are all things that make our products stronger.”

The conversation shifts to the mobile space and the competition in it. How does Palm (PALM) view Apple (AAPL)?

“We don’t pay that much attention to Apple….I know it sounds really strange,” says Rubinstein.

“Really?” Kara replies. “You don’t worry about the iPhone?”

“No, I really don’t,” Rubinstein answers.

“I don’t believe you,” says Kara, telegraphing a sentiment I imagine is widely held among the audience. Rubinstein is sometimes referred to as “the father of the iPod.” Hard to imagine he doesn’t have at least a passing interest in the evolution of the device he helped create.

Rubinstein: “I don’t have an iPhone. Actually, I’ve never used one.”

Video clip: Jon Rubinstein says he’s never used an iPhone.

I think I just heard Palm’s entire PR team groan. If only Kara had an iPhone in her pocket that she could offer Rubinstein–”Come on, touch it.” No such luck, though. Too bad Rep. Joe Wilson’s not in the audience …

Dead end, here. I think.

Kara circles back to the Apple issue, recalling the iTunes synch feature Palm debuted at the All Things D conference last year. At the time, Rubinstein claimed Apple wouldn’t care. But Apple clearly did care. “We don’t think what Apple did is good for their customers,” says Rubinstein. “But Apple’s going to do what Apple’s going to do.”

So why not do your own synching app? Rubinstein says he’d prefer that the developer community create apps like this. Has Palm approached Apple about creating a joint solution? “I don’t really see the point,” he replies.

The conversation shifts to webOS and the developer community. Rubinstein says Palm sees strong interest in its development platform. “I think we have a very large potential developer pool for the product.”

Kara asks about the deal the company announced with Verizon (VZ) yesterday here in Las Vegas. How important is the deal to Palm? “We have high hopes for our partners,” Rubinstein says after a moment. “And we’re investing along with them.”

“What about that deal with AT&T?” Kara asks, noting that the carrier essentially announced it earlier this week

Rubinstein dodges: “We have nothing to announce at this time.”

Kara asks if Palm would like to do a deal with AT&T (T).

“More distribution is better,” says Rubinstein.

“Well, you might want to talk to AT&T, then,” quips Kara. “Sounds like they’re interested.”

One last question from Kara: Will Palm do a tablet?

“We’re a small company,” says Rubinstein. “But we designed webOS to scale and it could be used in different form factors.”

More Posts and Articles from CES

• Jon Rubinstein Highlights Video
• Jon Rubinstein Full Session Video
• Jon Rubinstein Slideshow
• CES Full Coverage on AllThingsD.com
• Google VP of Engineering Andy Rubin interview with Walt Mossberg
• Netflix CEO Reed Hastings interview with Peter Kafka

]]> http://allthingsd.com/20100108/rubinstein/feed/ 0 http://allthingsd.com/20100108/coming-up-at-330-pm-pst-walt-and-kara-live-from-las-vegas/ http://allthingsd.com/20100108/coming-up-at-330-pm-pst-walt-and-kara-live-from-las-vegas/#comments Fri, 08 Jan 2010 21:02:33 +0000 John Paczkowski http://digitaldaily.allthingsd.com/?p=32021 Later this afternoon we will be live-streaming a series of three interviews with tech luminaries Reed Hastings, CEO, president and chairman of Netflix (NFLX); Jon Rubinstein, chairman and CEO of Palm (PALM); and Google (GOOG) VP of Engineering Andy Rubin. Join us at 3:30 PM PT for streaming video and live coverage.

]]> http://allthingsd.com/20100108/coming-up-at-330-pm-pst-walt-and-kara-live-from-las-vegas/feed/ 0 http://allthingsd.com/20100108/ces-the-view-from-here/ http://allthingsd.com/20100108/ces-the-view-from-here/#comments Fri, 08 Jan 2010 20:08:11 +0000 Beth Callaghan http://digitaldaily.allthingsd.com/?p=32073 It may seem like the whole AllThingsD.com crew is in Las Vegas reveling in the nightlife/nerdlife, but some of us actually stayed behind to take advantage of reliable connectivity, good coffee and natural daylight. Oh, and also to hold down the fort in case of an earthquake or other natural disaster. Now that’s some good thinking.

Walt, Katie, Swisher, Kafka and Paczkowski, reporting from the floor of the show and from D’s own mini-conference, have what seem to be the major themes of the show–tablets/e-readers, 3-D and Natural User Interface–all covered. But there are bound to be a few other interesting things going on. Based on the first day and a half of coverage, here’s a short list of gadgets and apps that would be welcome back at ATD HQ, just to take them for a spin:

The Parrot AR.Drone

These videos have been all over the web for the past day or so–and with good reason. This thing looks incredible, and a little creepy, too. It’s controlled via an iPhone app, and live video from the drone’s onboard camera streams directly to the controller’s screen. The device’s AR capabilities could make it a real contender in the (expensive) gaming space, but its potential for real-world shenanigans are obviously interesting as well. As long as you’re the one flying the drone.

Immerz KOR-fx

Sometimes it’s not enough to just play the game or watch the movie. That’s the premise for the KOR-fx from Immerz. It sits over your shoulders and sends vibrations into your chest cavity based on the sound from your audio output and new “acousto-haptic technology” to create an immersive experience. Supposedly, for gamers, this can provide a “seventh sense”–and the edge needed to prevail in competitive gaming situations. Or, it could cause a panic attack. Video courtesy of Immerz.

Z Corporation’s Z printer 650

Shapeways, which utilizes Z Corporation’s “3-D” printers for its unique 3-D printing services, has been around for a while, but this year the company announced the new full-color capability of the Z printer 650. You can send a digital 3-D model file to Shapeways and they’ll print it into a solid model made of the Full Color Sandstone that the printer puts out. Then they’ll ship it to you anywhere in the world within 10 days. Not everybody has 3-D modeling software lying around, so it’s mostly useful to product designers, architects and 3-D modelers of all stripes. But after watching this video (warning: takes a while to load) of the printer in action, I think there should be a Z printer 650 at AllThingsD headquarters.
[correction: a previous version of this post erroneously stated that Shapeways manufactures the Z printer 650.]

Sanyo’s eneloop hybrid bike

It’s cooler than a moped, not as cool as motorcycle–but greener than both. Sanyo’s eneloop hybrid bicycle uses loop charging to charge its battery while you pedal, and two-wheel drive for a more stable ride. It’s not necessarily for those who ride a traditional bicycle regularly, but it offers a real option for folks who want to cut down on driving. Plus, it’s pretty nice-looking. Video interview courtesy of Treehugger.

Samsung’s transparent laptop

I don’t know what the appeal of Samsung’s 14-inch transparent laptop is, other than its obvious visual ties to the futuristic hardware shown in movies like Minority Report and Avatar. Must be hard to focus on your work, and who’d want to do their online banking using a transparent screen? What it needs is a two-way mirror screen. Then it might actually come in handy. Video courtesy of Engadget.

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