David Lidsky's Blog, page 4571

Google's Washington Influence Is Spreading, Some Say Too Much

This man is Andrew McLaughlin. A former Googler--he was their Head of Public Policy--he's been hired by the Obama administration as the White House's Deputy Chief Technology Officer, invoking the wrath of a House Oversight Committee member in the process. Rep. Darrell Issa has written to Google to demand an explanation as to how McLaughlin could have "used his personal email account to engage in official business, including discussions on policy matters under his review with Google."

It's not...

GE Adds $200 Million "Ecomagination Challenge" to Its $10 Billion Eco-R&D Push

Got a bright idea? How about an energy-saving one? GE announced today a $200 million "open innovation challenge" that invites inventors, entrepreneurs, and startups of all stripes to compete to develop the next-generation of power grid technologies. Called the Ecomagination Challenge, this huge investment comes only weeks after GE announced a $10 billion injection into its own eco-R&D projects.

Along with four VC firms that have pledged half of the $200 million to the challenge, GE is...

RIM's iPad Competitor Starts Sounding Real, Has Flash Built In

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The iPad is selling like the proverbial hotcakes, and there's a distinct lack of competitors emerging to challenge its dominance right now ... but it's just been all but confirmed that RIM has a BlackBerry-based tablet on the way.

Rumors about the BlackBerry tablet aren't new, but the latest crop have been unusually detailed. The recent leak about an 7-inch design, with a 1-GHz processor, from Rodman & Renshaw analyst Ashok Kumar prompted BetaNews to chase one of their sources that's "close...

A Social Media Diva Reveals Her Formula for Winning The Influence Project

Visitors to The Influence Project have no doubt seen the tiara wearing, turquoise phone-wielding, beatific smile bearing Mari Smith. But who is she and how did she emerge as one of the front-runners in this project? Her bio says she's a "Social Media Speaker & Trainer, Chic Geek & Facebook Passionista!, author of @FacebookMktg and Spiritual Truth-Seeker." We spoke last week and discussed her YouTube tutorial for The Influence Project, Twitter hijackers, and how she went about dispatching her...

Venezuelans Facing Jail Time for Tweeting About Banks

Just days after Vice President Elias Jaua warned that generating rumors
about Venezuela's in-crisis banking system is a "crime punishable by
imprisonment from nine to 11 years," Luis Enrique Acosta and Carmen
Cecelia Nares were detained as a result of their tweets, the

L.A. Times reports.

A total of 12 banks in Venezuela have been seized
since December. Acosta (@leaoxford) warned his 225 followers to remove money from a bank he
suspected was facing takeover. (His Twitter...

RealD Will Certify Your 3-D Sunglasses, for a Price

When you saw Avatar, I'm sure you remember the clunky, coke-framed 3-D shades you had to wear--you know, the ones with the RealD label that pinched your nose throughout James Cameron's three-and-a-half hour epic. RealD, the company behind most theaters' digital projection technology, distributes these free plastic-wrapped shades before each showing. However, eyewear companies such as Look3D and Marchon are moving in on the 3-D glasses market, creating stylish shades for retail. But that's...

5 Deals That Defined George Steinbrenner's Career

George Steinbrenner, owner of the New York Yankees, died today of a heart attack. He was 80 years old. An icon of the sports world, Steinbrenner saw the Yanks win 11 pennants and 7 World Series. But it wasn't just about winning on the baseball diamond: Steinbrenner was also a shrewd businessman, whose dealings helped revive the struggling franchise financially. Here we present the five most noteworthy deals of Steinbrenner's career in chronological order.

1. New York Yankees...

5 Deals That Defined George Steinbrenner's Career

George Steinbrenner, owner of the New York Yankees, died today of a heart attack. He was 80 years old. An icon of the sports world, Steinbrenner saw the Yanks win 11 pennants and 7 World Series. But it wasn't just about winning on the baseball diamond: Steinbrenner was also a shrewd businessman, whose dealings helped revive the struggling franchise financially. Here we present the five most noteworthy deals of Steinbrenner's career in chronological order.

1. New York Yankees...

Venezuelans Facing Jail Time for Tweeting About Banks

Just days after Vice President Elias Jaua warned that generating rumors
about Venezuela's in-crisis banking system is a "crime punishable by
imprisonment from nine to 11 years," Luis Enrique Acosta and Carmen
Cecelia Nares were detained as a result of their tweets, the

LA Times reports.

A total of 12 banks in Venezuela have been seized
since December. Acosta (@leaoxford) warned his 225 followers to remove money from a bank he
suspected was facing takeover. (His Twitter account...

RealD Will Certify Your 3-D Sunglasses, For a Price

When you saw Avatar, I'm sure you remember the clunky, coke-framed 3-D shades you had to wear--you know, the ones with the RealD label that pinched your nose throughout James Cameron's three-and-a-half hour epic. RealD, the company behind most theaters' digital projection technology, distributes these free plastic-wrapped shades before each showing. However, eyewear companies such as Look3D and Marchon are moving in on the 3-D glasses market, creating stylish shades for retail. But that's...