Facebook Buys Mobile Discovery Service Glancee

Facebook, Mark Zuckerbergs

Facebook has scooped up another startup in its path toward mobile dominance. This time, it’s Glancee, an ambient location-based service that competes with Highlight.

From Glancee’s home page:

    “We started Glancee in 2010 with the goal of bringing together the best of your physical and digital worlds. We wanted to make it easy to discover the hidden connections around you, and to meet interesting people. Since then Glancee has connected thousands of people, empowering serendipity and pioneering social discovery.

    “We are therefore very excited to announce that Facebook has acquired Glancee and that we have joined the team in Menlo Park to build great products for over 900 million Facebook users. We’ve had such a blast connecting people through Glancee, and we truly thank our users for being a part of the Glancee community.”

Less than a month ago, Facebook acquired the mobile-based photo-sharing app Instagram for $1 billion, and the world’s largest social network has expressed its sights are set on mobile.

Glancee fits the bill. It was one of the hot passive location startups at SXSW this year, along with Highlight and Sonar.

Facebook’s just weeks away from an initial public offering. The company announced its shares would be priced at $28 to $35, putting the company at a valuation of $85 billion and $95 billion. Facebook did not disclose the terms of the Glancee acquisition.

How do you think Glancee’s service might change Facebook on mobile? Push notifications when you’re near friends? Would you like Facebook to be able to do that? Tell us in the comments.

News by Mashable

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Facebook launches patent counterattack against Yahoo

Facebook Vs Yahoo

(Reuters) - Facebook fired back on Tuesday in its legal battle with Yahoo by accusing the Web pioneer of infringing 10 of Facebook's patents, according to a court filing.

The counterclaim from Facebook, filed in a San Francisco federal court, comes after Yahoo a sued Facebook for patent infringement last month.

The dueling claims mark an expanding web of patent litigation that has already caught up the smartphone and tablet sectors and high-tech stalwarts such as Apple Inc, Microsoft Corp and Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc.

Yahoo's lawsuit against Facebook came at a delicate time, as the world's largest Internet social networking service is preparing for an initial public offering that could value the company at up to $100 billion.

Observers have said that companies are usually more vulnerable to patent suits when they are in the IPO process, as investors scrutinize the risks involved in the business.

But Facebook's counterclaim comes as Yahoo addresses its own challenges: the Web pioneer has seen declining revenue, and newly installed Chief Executive Scott Thompson is facing a contentious proxy fight with activist hedge fund Third Point.

Yahoo spokesman Eric Berman said Facebook's counterclaim is "nothing more than a cynical attempt to distract from the weakness of its defense."

Five of the patents asserted by Facebook target features related to Yahoo's online advertising business, which Facebook pegged at 80 percent of Yahoo's 2011 revenue, according to the counterclaim.

Yahoo's Flickr photo sharing service infringed various Facebook patents involving the ability to connect with other users on the online service, to identify people in a photo and to generate personalized news feeds, according to the filing.

At least one of the patents asserted by Facebook -- a method for tagging digital media -- lists its chief executive, Mark Zuckerberg, as one of the inventors, according to a U.S. government database.

Facebook General Counsel Ted Ullyot said the company had indicated that it would defend itself vigorously in the face of Yahoo's lawsuit.

"While we are asserting patent claims of our own, we do so in response to Yahoo's short-sighted decision to attack one of its partners and prioritize litigation over innovation," Ullyot said in a statement.

Yahoo has claimed Facebook infringed 10 of Yahoo's patents, including several that cover online advertising technology. In its lawsuit, Yahoo said Facebook was considered "one of the worst performing sites for advertising" prior to adapting Yahoo's ideas.

The case in U.S. District Court, Northern District of California is Yahoo Inc. v. Facebook Inc., 12-cv-1212.

Yahoo shares fell 2.4 percent to $15.09 in afternoon trading on Tuesday.

News by Reuters

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7 tips to make your profile picture professional

7 tips to make your profile picture professional

In previous articles, we've offered tips for using social media in your job search. That's because more and more recruiters and hiring managers are using social networks to learn about and even contact potential candidates.


While most know how to lock down their profiles through privacy settings on sites such as Facebook and Twitter, LinkedIn is a little different. The point there being that the information you're putting on the site is critical and relevant to your job search; therefore, your picture should also be professional and relevant to your job search. Even with your career transparency on LinkedIn, for all three sites (or however many you may be using), your profile picture is the one constant that's nearly always visible.

"Your image is conveyed through your photograph, and it's part of the first impression you make on others," says Barbara Pachter, a business communications and etiquette expert who's authored numerous books on social media professionalism. "You want to post a photograph that is professionally appropriate. You want to look like a credible, approachable person, not like you just came from the beach."

The beach would be a treat, honestly. Some of the photos I see? For shame, people, for shame. So let's go through some examples of what you should and shouldn't be doing in your profile picture.

1. Use a head shot. This means that it should be head and shoulders, highlighting your face. It should not be some weird photo from a party.

2. Your photo should be flattering. Who wouldn't want to be portrayed in the best light? However, this doesn't mean you should use butter on the lens to give that soft glamour-shot effect.

3. Your face is the focus, not the background. Again, this is a headshot. That means you posing near the Great Wall is probably not the best choice for a main picture. Is it cool? Absolutely. Professional? Not unless you're an ancient bricklayer. Keep your face in focus too -- nothing is worse than a blurry photo.

4. Be fully clothed. The number of people I've seen without clothes or who post images of others sans clothing is appalling. Remember, your profile is seen by everyone, so clean up your act and keep the more risqué photos for "Missed Connections."

5. Don't make any funny faces. Pachter says, "If you are frowning or scowling, why would someone want to hire or work with you?" This is equally true for those who try to use more suggestive pictures. What kind of work would an employer assume you're interested in? So while this ties in with No. 4, I still see photos of people with clothes on who are making weird, goofy faces. A smile will work nicely, thank you.

6. Keep your photo current. Make sure your photo actually looks like you. Stop using a photo that you love from five-plus years ago. Again, not only is this off-putting, but if people meet you and realize you're being deceptive, why would they trust you as an employee?

7. Find a photographer. Whether you pay or find a friend or student to take your photo, it'll be better than your mirrored self-portrait with your phone or a webcam shot. Trust me, the effort in having a professional shot will be worth the trouble of setting it up.

The moral of the story is this: If your account is locked down, put up any drunken/Halloween/inappropriate photos you want in your "Shameful Moments" gallery. But keep your profile image respectable, even if you are not using it as part of your job search. Search engines will pull in your profile images when recruiters or managers search your social profiles.

News by MSN

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Congress calls on Twitter to block Taliban

Joe Lieberman

American congressmen are calling on Twitter to block Taliban propagandists from the micro-blogging site.

Senators want to stop feeds which boast of insurgent attacks on Nato forces in Afghanistan and the casualties they inflict.

Aides for Joe Lieberman, chair of the Senate Homeland Security Committee, said the move was part of a wider attempt to eliminate violent Islamist extremist propaganda from the internet and social media.

The Taliban movement has embraced the social network as part of its propaganda effort and regularly tweets about attacks or posts links to its statements.

The information has ranged from highly accurate, up-to-the-minute accounts of unfolding spectacular attacks, to often completely fabricated or wildly exaggerated reports of American and British casualties.

Twitter feeds including @ABalkhi, which has more than 4,100 followers, and @alemarahweb, which has more than 6,200 followers, regularly feature tweeted boasts about the deaths of "cowardly invaders" and "puppet" Afghan government forces.

News by Telegraph


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