Local Search

PC World – Hello and welcome to the final Viral Views of 2010 (woo)! I know we weren’t with you the entire year, but I feel like we’ve developed a sort of internet bond. It’s either that or we have indigestion from all the holiday food we’ve been having. Regardless we hope you had a great year and are looking forward to seeing you again in 2011. Pull up a chair, get out that popcorn, and enjoy the YouTube videos that made our year.

[Read more →]

PC World – Android device makers around the world are anticipating great things from the next version of Google’s mobile software, and they need the boost. Apple has a strong head start with sales of its popular iPad, while the App Store and iTunes give it apps and content, to boot.

[Read more →]

Reuters – The popular Internet telephone service Skype could be dealt a major setback in one of the world’s largest markets as the Chinese government cracks down on what it called illegal Internet telephone providers.

[Read more →]

AFP – Facebook stole the thunder from Google this year as the most-visited website in the United States, according to a new study from Internet research firm Experian Hitwise.

[Read more →]

PC World – Being a nerd’s nerd, I of course put in my time running the gamut of MMORPG (Massively Multiplayer Online Roleplaying Games) titles, culminating in a 20-odd hour a week part time job raiding in World of Warcraft. 40 of us would spend long evenings night after night trying to kill various and sundry monsters for loot. Needless to say, this wasn’t a very healthy hobby.

[Read more →]

Mashable – We’ve certainly seen our fair share of clever social media costumes before, but if you plan to leave the house in web-themed attire, for the love of Google, know your audience.

[Read more →]

Mashable – Greg Meyer is the customer experience manager and listening post for Gist. Reach Greg online at @GregAtGist on Twitter, or at greg@gist.com.

[Read more →]

AFP – Nearly two-thirds of US Internet users have paid to download or access online content such as music, movies or news articles, a survey showed Thursday.

[Read more →]

PC World – Authorities in the U.S. and Germany have raided Internet Service Providers in hopes of tracking down the hackers who launched distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks against Web sites such as Visa.com, PayPal.com, and Mastercard.com earlier this month.

[Read more →]

Reuters – Facebook surpassed Google for the first time as the most visited website in the United States for most of 2010.

[Read more →]

AFP – Internet sensation Groupon, which specializes in dishing out local bargains, said Thursday it had raised 500 million dollars, just weeks after rejecting a multi-billion-dollar takeover bid by Google.

[Read more →]

Reuters – Web advertising firm Groupon Inc, considered one of the fastest growing Internet companies in history, has raised $500 million by selling an equity stake, a month after reports that it turned down a $6 billion takeover offer from Google Inc.

[Read more →]

NewsFactor – Industry observers report that the number of applications available for Android smartphones has risen dramatically since October, when more than 100,000 apps were available from the Android Market. According to the AndroLib web site, which tracks Android metrics, Google’s mobile platform gained more than 24,000 new apps in November and 26,000 this month.

[Read more →]

AP – Groupon Inc., the fast-growing Internet startup that offers local deals and discounts to members, has raised $500 million of the $950 million it is planning to collect in its latest financing round.

[Read more →]

Reuters – Online deal site Groupon is still privately held but retail investors might soon be able to own a piece of it, judging by other startups in which mutual funds run by T Rowe Price Group have invested.

[Read more →]

Reuters – Online discount coupon provider Groupon Inc is working toward a potential public offering of its common shares by the end of 2011, the New York Times said, citing people briefed on the matter.

[Read more →]

PC World – High-quality broadband access for all Europeans came a step closer this week when the second European satellite dedicated to delivering broadband Internet connections was launched.

[Read more →]

Reuters – Barnes & Noble Inc said that sales of digital books made through its website now exceed those of traditional books that it sells online.

[Read more →]

PC World – Facebook was the most visited website in the United States in 2010, and the world’s largest social network was also the year’s most popular search term, according to Experian Hitwise. Facebook accounted for 8.93 percent of all US visits between January and November, the metrics firm said in its year-end round up. Google came in second with 7.19 percent of visits with Yahoo Mail, Yahoo and YouTube rounding out the top five.

[Read more →]

PC Magazine – In the wake of the Federal Communications Commission’s vote to approve net neutrality rules, only 21 percent of people recently polled by Rasmussen said the agency should be handling Internet regulation.

[Read more →]

PC Magazine – In the wake of the Federal Communications Commission’s vote to approve net neutrality rules, only 21 percent of people recently polled by Rasmussen said the agency should be handling Internet regulation.

[Read more →]

PC World – Noisebridge is a San Francisco-based hackerspace and DIY community center–in other words, if you’re reading this blog and live in the Bay Area, the work it does would probably be right up your alley. But according to a report last week from San Francisco’s Uptown Almanac blog, Noisebridge is in financial trouble, and could close in the coming weeks.

[Read more →]

PC World – Noisebridge is a San Francisco-based hackerspace and DIY community center–in other words, if you’re reading this blog and live in the Bay Area, the work it does would probably be right up your alley. But according to a report last week from San Francisco’s Uptown Almanac blog, Noisebridge is in financial trouble, and could close in the coming weeks.

[Read more →]

PC Magazine – Web users have spent $30.81 billion online this holiday season, a 13 percent increase from last year, according to data from comScore.

[Read more →]

AP – China is going after Internet phone services such as Skype in a move to protect the country’s state-owned telephone companies, causing alarm among consumers who rely on cheap Internet calls.

[Read more →]

Mashable – A trio of researchers from MIT, the University of Southampton and Georgia Tech have put together an online study/app called “Who Gives a Tweet?” that aims to give people feedback on their tweets and gather info on what tweets people are likely to enjoy.

[Read more →]

Mashable – A trio of researchers from MIT, the University of Southampton and Georgia Tech have put together an online study/app called “Who Gives a Tweet?” that aims to give people feedback on their tweets and gather info on what tweets people are likely to enjoy.

[Read more →]

AP – China’s number of Internet users — already the world’s largest — rose to 450 million this year, more than a third of the country’s population, a senior official said Thursday.

[Read more →]

AP – China’s number of Internet users — already the world’s largest — rose to 450 million this year, more than a third of the country’s population, a senior official said Thursday.

[Read more →]

Reuters – Sears and Kmart are entering the digital-movie rental and sale industry with the new online video store Alphaline Entertainment.

[Read more →]

Mashable – Approximately two-thirds of Internet users — 65% — have paid to access or download digital content, according to a recent survey conducted by the Pew Internet and American Life Project.

[Read more →]

Appolicious – The dollar deals continue after the holiday in the iTunes App Store, with three more cool apps receiving the greenback treatment. We’ve got a stats-based business sim for you, plus a status update app and another addition to the social media race. Check them out below.

[Read more →]

AFP – China said Thursday the number of Internet users in what is already the world’s largest online market had jumped to 450 million — more than a third of the country’s 1.3-billion-strong population.

[Read more →]

Reuters – China shut down more than 60,000 pornographic websites this year, netting almost 5,000 suspects in the process, a government spokesman said on Thursday, vowing no let-up in its campaign against material deemed obscene.

[Read more →]

AP – A software glitch caused Skype’s major outage last week, the Internet calling and messaging service said Wednesday.

[Read more →]

Reuters – Sears and Kmart are entering the digital-movie rental and sale industry with the new online video store Alphaline Entertainment.

[Read more →]

PC World – Skype’s CIO Lars Rabbe on Wednesday offered a frank assessment of the recent 24-hour lapse in its Internet telephony service, in a blog post that also laid out what the company is now doing to make its network more robust.

[Read more →]

PC World – Skype’s CIO Lars Rabbe on Wednesday offered a frank assessment of the recent 24-hour lapse in its Internet telephony service, in a blog post that also laid out what the company is now doing to make its network more robust.

[Read more →]

Mashable – Facebook was not only the most searched item of the year, but it passed Google as America’s most-visited website in 2010, according to a new report from Experian Hitwise.

[Read more →]

Mashable – Facebook was not only the most searched item of the year, but it passed Google as America’s most-visited website in 2010, according to a new report from Experian Hitwise.

[Read more →]

AP – Dan Nainan can’t trust himself to work at his computer without clicking on distractions, so he uses an Internet-blocking program to shut down his Web access twice a day.

[Read more →]

AP – Dan Nainan can’t trust himself to work at his computer without clicking on distractions, so he uses an Internet-blocking program to shut down his Web access twice a day.

[Read more →]

Reuters – Groupon Inc, the fast-growing online coupon seller, has been authorized to raise up to $950 million in what would be the biggest round of equity financing by any company since Pixar in 1995.

[Read more →]

Reuters – Groupon Inc, the fast-growing online coupon seller, has been authorized to raise up to $950 million in what would be the biggest round of equity financing by any company since Pixar in 1995.

[Read more →]

AP – iTunes’ top 10 selling singles and albums of the week ending Dec. 27, 2010:

[Read more →]

AP – iTunes’ top 10 selling singles and albums of the week ending Dec. 27, 2010:

[Read more →]

AP – A company owned by billionaire Microsoft Corp. co-founder Paul Allen has refiled a patent infringement lawsuit against Facebook, Google Inc. and nine other companies.

[Read more →]

AP – A company owned by billionaire Microsoft Corp. co-founder Paul Allen has refiled a patent infringement lawsuit against Facebook, Google Inc. and nine other companies.

[Read more →]

Mashable – Mollie Vandor is the product manager for Ranker.com where she likes to make lists about reading, eating and bad-TV-watching. She’s also the media director for Girls in Tech LA. You can find her on Twitter @Mollierosev and on her blog.

[Read more →]

Mashable – Mollie Vandor is the product manager for Ranker.com where she likes to make lists about reading, eating and bad-TV-watching. She’s also the media director for Girls in Tech LA. You can find her on Twitter @Mollierosev and on her blog.

[Read more →]