Terms of Service

As Amazon Cuts Off WikiLeaks, Sen. Joe Lieberman Claims a Pointless Victory

Arik Hesseldahl in Enterprise on December 2, 2010 at 5:20 am PT

WikiLeaks, the site infamous for exposing America’s diplomatic dirty laundry, has confirmed via its Twitter feed that it is no longer hosting its files on Amazon’s servers. The move comes as Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut–who was a onetime vice-presidential nominee and who is also chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee–had called for Amazon to cut its ties to Wikileaks.

Voices

Teen Fashion Blogger's Site Blocked

Rachel Dodes, Reporter, The Wall Street Journal in News on April 26, 2010 at 3:15 pm PT

Just four days after celebrating her 14th birthday, fashion blogging phenom Tavi Gevinson got the smackdown from Blogger, Google’s blog publishing tool that she uses for her site, “The Style Rookie.” A click on the site reveals that it is “under review” due to possible terms of service violations, and currently only accessible to its author.

YouTube Says Popcorn Hour Is Over

Peter Kafka in Media on November 20, 2009 at 12:53 pm PT

Want to watch YouTube on your TV? There are plenty of devices and services that let you do that, with more on the way. But starting next month, at least one gadget is getting its YouTube feed shut down: Syabas, which makes a line of set-top boxes called “Popcorn Hour,” says Google’s video site has told it to remove YouTube content from its offering beginning December 2.

Twitter Gives Spam Apps a Thumbs Down, Ads a “Maybe”

Peter Kafka in Media on September 11, 2009 at 3:00 am PT

It’s one of those mysteries that are so deep, so mysterious, they may never be solved: When Twitter co-founder Biz Stone says the company would “like to leave the door open for advertising,” what exactly does he mean? My guess: Twitter would like to leave the door open for advertising. Meanwhile, the company cracks down, a bit, on spammy apps.

Who Rejected Google Voice for iPhone? AT&T: Not Us. Google: REDACTED. Apple: We're "Studying" It, Not Rejecting It.

John Paczkowski in News on August 21, 2009 at 4:26 pm PT

“Contrary to published reports, Apple has not rejected the Google Voice application, and continues to study it.” So begins Apple’s response to the FCC’s inquiry into its rejection of the app and of its App Store approval process. Seems Google Voice was withheld from the App Store not because of any ill feeling toward Google or a nefarious request from AT&T, but because it too closely mimics the iPhone OS.

Who Rejected Google Voice for iPhone? AT&T: Not Us. Google: REDACTED. Apple: We’re “Studying” It, Not Rejecting It.

John Paczkowski in News on August 21, 2009 at 4:26 pm PT

“Contrary to published reports, Apple has not rejected the Google Voice application, and continues to study it.” So begins Apple’s response to the FCC’s inquiry into its rejection of the app and of its App Store approval process. Seems Google Voice was withheld from the App Store not because of any ill feeling toward Google or a nefarious request from AT&T, but because it too closely mimics the iPhone OS.

Insert Bad "Tagged, You're It" Pun Here

John Paczkowski in News on July 10, 2009 at 5:55 am PT

Tagged.com claims it is the third-largest social network in the U.S., in terms of total monthly visits. And now, perhaps, we know why: Tagged lured new members to its site by tricking users into providing it with access to their personal email contacts. The company then spammed those contacts with promotional emails disguised as invitations to view personal photos. And when they registered with Tagged to view those photos, the company spammed their contacts as well. An interesting variation on the “membership drive” and one that’s gotten Tagged in hot water with New York Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo, who intends to sue the company.

Insert Bad “Tagged, You’re It” Pun Here

John Paczkowski in News on July 10, 2009 at 5:55 am PT

Tagged.com claims it is the third-largest social network in the U.S., in terms of total monthly visits. And now, perhaps, we know why: Tagged lured new members to its site by tricking users into providing it with access to their personal email contacts. The company then spammed those contacts with promotional emails disguised as invitations to view personal photos. And when they registered with Tagged to view those photos, the company spammed their contacts as well. An interesting variation on the “membership drive” and one that’s gotten Tagged in hot water with New York Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo, who intends to sue the company.

AT&T: We Crippled SlingPlayer TV App

Peter Kafka in Media on May 13, 2009 at 3:55 am PT

Mystery solved, sort of: AT&T is taking the blame for crippling the SlingPlayer iPhone app. The company’s rationale: The iPhone’s too powerful, and our network isn’t powerful enough.