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via allthingsd.com

Yahoo Promises Not to Screw Up

Lauren Ashburn | May 20th, 2013

$1.1 Billion. That’s what Yahoo is paying to bring blogging site Tumblr into its fold. To tout the partnership, Yahoo wrote what has to be the best second sentence of any press release ever:

“Tumblr announced today that they have reached a definitive agreement for Yahoo! to acquire Tumblr. Per the agreement and our promise not to screw it up, Tumblr will be independently operated as a separate business.”

Yahoo Promotes Twitter Updates on Front Page

Daily Download Team | May 20th, 2013

Yahoo has long tried to ensure that its homepage is packed with current news. Headlines from the AP abound, but these days that’s no longer enough. The newswires aren’t usually breaking news any more; it’s Twitter.

To adapt to this new reality, Yahoo recently announced a partnership with Twitter to allow tweets to directly appear on Yahoo’s homepage. As Emil Protalinski from The Next Web explains:

Scary Movies Coming to an iPad Near You

Daily Download Team | May 20th, 2013

Want to watch a horror movie? Well, there’s now an app for that.

Filmmaker Neal Edelstein has made a horror film called Haunting Melissa that has been released as an app for the iPad 2. As Lucas Shaw describes it for The Wrap, it brings the concept into the 21st century:

“Horror films are all about surrendering control, as the viewer yields to the filmmaker for every twist, turn and fright.”

Facebook Studies Marriage Decisions

Nikki Schwab | May 18th, 2013

As a twentysomething woman, I’m always interested to see–when female friends get married–if they make the name change or keep their maiden name.

These days, that decision is usually announced by making it “Facebook official,” by simply changing the relationship status, or changing the last name along with it.

Using these data points, and women’s birth dates, Facebook analyzed what percentage of women from different age groups are taking their husbands’ last names, hyphenating their names or keeping their maiden names. The results were announced on the Facebook Data Science page this week.

Tumblr to Yahoo: Make My Day

Daily Download Team | May 17th, 2013

Is the social blogging site Tumblr about to sell out?

Ad Week’s Mike Shields has the story that Tumblr has been having negotiations about being acquired by Yahoo.

As Shields reports, a deal could make sense for both companies:

“Yahoo is in serious talks with Tumblr to acquire the social blogging site, according to multiple sources familiar with the talks. The deal is not done, but could reach as high as $1 billion, Adweek has learned. Allthingsd.com was first to report on the talks between the two companies.”

Trial By Facebook: A Dangerous Virtual Path

Nikki Schwab | May 17th, 2013

I’m a criminal for being a woman, a journalist and someone with the temerity to walk into a bar.

In a fascinating study of both Facebook and freedom, Amnesty International New Zealand launched “Trial by Facebook,” which examines your profile, scours your timeline and “interrogates” yourfriends to find out what you’d be punished for posting, all around the
world. The app came out several months ago, but it’s been making waves
online this week.

Using my own Facebook page as a guinea pig, I found myself convicted 161 times, in 73 countries, for 13 crimes. Literally dodging a bullet, the
contents of my profiles weren’t tawdry enough to get me beheaded or shot dead, but I would be killed by extremists 22 times, sexually assaulted 16 times, imprisoned 58 times and beaten 73 times–and that’s just the beginning of the terror.

Google Plus Pointers, Twitter Fools

Lauren Ashburn | May 16th, 2013

Tatiana Aders of Social Media News has made my day. If you don’t quite get how to use Google Plus, help is here:

“Google Plus has some of the most robust posting & sharing capabilities of any social network. From rich snippets to photo editing to individual circles, there are so many features that can make your post stand out from the pack. Here are some highlights from a cheat sheet that I built to get the most out of Google Plus posts.”

LinkedIn’s Latest Edict: Hookers Not Welcome

Nikki Schwab | May 16th, 2013

Attention ladies of the night and other interested parties: LinkedIn is taking a harder stance against prostitution.

As Mashable noted this week, the job-networking site has altered the language of its user agreement to expressly prohibit people from promoting escort services or prostitution on its pages.

Amy’s Baking Co. Social Media TIRADE

Lauren Ashburn | May 15th, 2013

Amy should have stuck to baking.

The owners of Amy’s Baking Co. suffered what can only be described as an online meltdown after being pummeled on social media sites. And we’re normally sympathetic to anyone who gets beaten up by the mob.

But Amy and Samy Bouglazo poured kerosene on the digital fire.

Google Play Rocks Music World

Daily Download Team | May 15th, 2013

Google, which dominates much of our online life, is now expanding into the music business.

As Greg Sandoval reports for The Verge, the online giant now has Spotify in its sights:

“Google plans to add separate music subscription services to YouTube and Google Play, the entertainment hub for the Android operating system. Earlier this year, Fortune magazine reported that Google had already struck similar licensing agreements with Warner Music Group, the smallest of the top three record labels. But landing Universal Music and Sony gives Google access to the two largest record companies, home to such acts as Bob Dylan, Alicia Keys, Lil Wayne, Rihanna, and Jay-Z. Spokespeople from Sony and Universal declined to comment.”

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