Washington

News Byte

Google’s 2011 Lobbying Expenses Climb to $9.68 Million

John Paczkowski in News on January 23 at 3:50 pm PT

Google’s interests in Washington these days are quite a bit broader than they once were: Competition, privacy, patent reform, copyright, H1-B visa reform, renewable energy — the list goes on. No surprise, then, that the company doubled its federal lobbying spending in 2011. According to the latest numbers from the Lobbying Disclosure Act Database, the search sovereign spent $9.68 million in 2011 on federal lobbying — 88 percent more than it spent in 2010.

“Nerd Lobby” Shows Muscle in Debate Over Piracy Bills

Jennifer Valentino-DeVries, Reporter, The Wall Street Journal in News on January 18 at 3:51 pm PT

Late last fall, a select group met in the White House Situation Room to discuss U.S. Internet security and how it might falter if two anti-piracy bills being debated in Congress were to pass.

News Byte

More Internet Heavy Hitters Speak Out in SOPA Saga

Lauren Goode in News on December 15, 2011 at 8:53 am PT

In an open letter to Congress this morning, a group of prominent Internet engineers has spoken out against the Protect IP Act (PIPA) and the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), which are under consideration in the House and Senate. The group argues that censorship of Internet infrastructure will cause network errors and security problems, and points to China and Iran as examples. The letter comes on the heels of yesterday’s opposition in an Open Letter to Washington from other tech heavyweights, including Sergey Brin, Jerry Yang, Reid Hoffman and Jack Dorsey.

Carrier IQ: We Volunteered to Be Grilled by the Feds

John Paczkowski in Mobile on December 14, 2011 at 4:16 pm PT

The mobile analytics company says if there’s an official FTC investigation, it doesn’t know about it.

As Skype Skips Through Approvals — What’s the Deal With the Deal?

Kara Swisher in Media on October 11, 2011 at 12:50 pm PT

As the deal officially closes, what’s next?

Crowdsourcing Deficit Reduction

Amir Efrati, Reporter, The Wall Street Journal in News on August 31, 2011 at 11:59 pm PT

Can the Internet help balance the budget? Amid the conflict in Washington over how to reduce the deficit, two heavyweight computer scientists in the Bay Area have launched a website that aims to find politically palatable solutions, in part by giving ordinary citizens a voice on the matter.

Liveblogging Microsoft Q4 Earnings: I’m So Excited and I Just Can’t Hide It

Kara Swisher in News on July 21, 2011 at 2:49 pm PT

Microsoft had a solid fourth quarter, which is why the conference call with Wall Street analysts should be relatively short and sweet. Or sweet, at least.

Exclusive: Zynga About to File for IPO

Kara Swisher in News on May 24, 2011 at 3:32 pm PT

Zynga is poised to file for its initial public offering, according to sources close to the situation, as early as this week, or next week at the latest. The San Francisco-based online gaming company’s valuation in its last round of funding was $10 billion, but it is likely to price itself higher in an offering, given the recent series of strong IPOs for Internet companies.

Liveblogging Microsoft 3Q Earnings: Office-Tastic and Kinect-Able (But PC-Frown)

Kara Swisher in News on April 28, 2011 at 2:48 pm PT

You’d think there would be a party in Redmond, Wash. today, as software giant Microsoft soundly beat Wall Street expectations in its third-quarter earnings released today. But there are shadows too, as results were dragged down by weaker revenues for its flagship Windows unit. The report comes as Microsoft’s stock continues to lag, declining 14 percent for the year. Buzz kill!

Thanks, Kinect! Microsoft Q3 Earnings Soundly Beat the Street, So Will a Stock Rise Finally Follow?

Kara Swisher in News on April 28, 2011 at 1:13 pm PT

Software giant Microsoft soundly beat Wall Street expectations in its third-quarter earnings released after the markets closed today. Microsoft said it had revenue of $16.43 billion for the quarter ended Mar. 31, 2011, which was up 13 percent from a year ago. Net income was $5.23 billion, or 61 cents per share, a rise of 36 percent.