Sex and the City

Teeny-Tiny Pixi Phone From Palm Tries Killing Giant Hype for Apple Event Today

Kara Swisher in News on September 9, 2009 at 1:53 am PT

Oh, BoomTown fears this is not going to end well for the weensy little smart phone Palm is debuting today on–what an amazing coincidence!–the very same day Apple is throwing its big product bash in San Francisco, at which Mac fanboys fervently hope that Supreme Leader Steve Jobs might even appear. You don’t step on Superman of Silicon Valley’s cape, of course, but the device with the aggressively cute name of Pixi is apparently attempting just that. Thus, this fairytale might have a not-so-happy ending.

The Entire D6 Demo of evri

Kara Swisher in News on September 10, 2008 at 11:16 am PT

We’re posting all the interviews from the sixth D: All Things Digital conference that took place in late May. Unfortunately, due to issues too complicated to go into, we have to post all the D6 interviews in several 15-minute parts (I know, I know). But–as many readers have requested–they will all be available in their entirety in this column. In the less contentious spirit of DEMOfall and TechCrunch50, two demo conferences taking place simultaneously this week, we’re happy to bring you all the demos we had onstage at the D6 conference. Next up is evri, the semantic Web guide start-up, which is backed by billionaire techie Paul Allen and founded by former Amazon exec Neil Roseman.

How Much for AOL? (Not-So-Much) Fun With Numbers!

Kara Swisher in News on August 7, 2008 at 6:00 am PT

How much is AOL really worth? Well, its own owner, Time Warner, has been trying to put a big, shiny $10 billion price tag on the much-beleaguered online unit for months now, as it dribbles out tiny leaks about its hot-and-cold-running acquisition talks with both Yahoo and Microsoft. But after yesterday’s less-than-impressive results for AOL, which dragged down the crowing Time Warner CEO Jeff Bewkes could deservedly do over its “Dark Knight” and “Sex and the City” film successes, can it even hope to get that much?

YouTube to Mediaset SpA: Va' All'Inferno!

John Paczkowski in News on July 30, 2008 at 10:22 am PT

Looks like Google has updated its arrogance algorithm again. Having dismissed Viacom’s $1 billion copyright infringement suit over video clips on YouTube as a “mistake,” the company is taking the same tack with a similar suit brought against it by Italian TV company Mediaset SpA.

YouTube to Mediaset SpA: Va’ All’Inferno!

John Paczkowski in News on July 30, 2008 at 10:22 am PT

Looks like Google has updated its arrogance algorithm again. Having dismissed Viacom’s $1 billion copyright infringement suit over video clips on YouTube as a “mistake,” the company is taking the same tack with a similar suit brought against it by Italian TV company Mediaset SpA.

HBO to Apple: iWin

John Paczkowski in News on May 13, 2008 at 12:12 pm PT

Steve Jobs has apparently accepted the unacceptable: Things don’t always go Steve’s way. The mercurial Apple CEO has been notoriously intransigent when it comes to matters of variable pricing on iTunes, arguing that charging higher prices for more popular content might backfire, sending customers off to the file-sharing networks.