national

Zynga Confirms It Is Seeking Partners for Online Gambling Initiatives

Tricia Duryee in Commerce on January 20 at 6:00 am PT

Operating the largest poker game on Facebook is not enough — Zynga has confirmed that it is exploring the prospects for real-money gambling, and is in active talks with several partners.

“Perplexed” by U.S. Ownership Rules, Alibaba’s Ma Yellow Lights Yahoo Buying Parade

Kara Swisher in News on October 4, 2011 at 2:28 pm PT

From “very, very interested” to a case of wanna-be-buyer’s remorse?

President Obama’s LinkedIn Town Hall: The Other Silicon Valley Jobs Event

Kara Swisher in News on September 26, 2011 at 10:09 am PT

Here’s an idea to get more jobs for the citizens of the U.S.of A.: Fantastic high-speed wireless access!

AOL Severance Deets (and Layoff Memo ATD Said Was Coming)

Kara Swisher in News on March 10, 2011 at 10:21 am PT

Here’s the skinny on the AOL layoffs for those employees impacted, most especially its editorial staff in the wake of the $315 million acquisition of the Huffington Post.

Another Yahoo Loves Group Buying, As Top Ad Sales Exec Mitch Spolan Heads to LivingSocial

Kara Swisher in News on March 7, 2011 at 10:16 pm PT

Yahoo has lost another one of its top advertising sales execs, Mitch Spolan, to a hot start-up of the moment–this time to LivingSocial. The move by Yahoo’s head of North American field sales is the second major loss by the Silicon Valley Internet portal to a social buying site. Another Yahoo sales lead, Lee Brown, left Yahoo late last year to head sales at Groupon.

Arianna Huffington on Her New AOL Job: "I Want to Stay Here Forever"

Peter Kafka in Media on February 7, 2011 at 5:55 am PT

“I want this to be the last act of my life,” says AOL’s new content boss. CEO Tim Armstrong’s translation: It’s a “multiyear contract”

Top Docs on Scribd in 2010: Prop 8, P ? NP, GOP Pledge

Liz Gannes in Social on December 19, 2010 at 10:00 pm PT

A gay-marriage court ruling, a buzz-worthy computer science proof, a political platform and some macaroni-and-cheese recipes were the most shared documents on Scribd in 2010.

From the Department of the Obvious: Poll Finds Parents Are Worried About Privacy on Social Networks

Kara Swisher in News on October 8, 2010 at 12:10 am PT

A national poll released today by Common Sense Media asking how well social networks protect kids online produced an answer that should come as a shock to exactly no one: Not very well, at least according to parents. A full 75 percent of them gave social networking sites such as Facebook a negative rating for the task.

A Hollywood Ending? The Timing of Zuckerberg's $100 Million Donation to Newark Schools Debated at Facebook

Kara Swisher in News on September 23, 2010 at 2:55 am PT

The question is: Which movie was Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg thinking about when he decided recently to fork over $100 million to public schools in Newark, New Jersey? Was it a bid to spiff up his image–with a splashy announcement on Oprah Winfrey’s popular television talk show tomorrow–on the very same day of the New York premiere of “The Social Network,” which casts Zuckerberg as the villain in his own creation myth? Or was it another film, “Waiting for Superman,” a just-released gripping documentary about the crisis in public education? Either way, Newark wins.

Zillow's COO Rascoff Becomes CEO; Co-Founder Barton to Exec Chairman

Kara Swisher in News on September 14, 2010 at 12:00 pm PT

In an interesting corporate move, the COO of online real-estate site Zillow, Spencer Rascoff (pictured here), has been promoted to CEO, replacing founding CEO Rich Barton. Barton will remain executive chairman of Zillow, a private company that is based in Seattle and has raised $87 million in funding since its founding in 2005.