'new york'

Facebook becomes gang's stomping ground -- and demise

Two rival gangs have battled in the streets of Brooklyn over the past three years -- leaving several dead and scores of others wounded. They may have kept on like this if cops didn't get savvy to their activities and whereabouts on Facebook.

Now, 49 alleged gangsters are locked up facing murder charges.

"Detectives used social media as well as good old fashioned police work to track these killers," New York City Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said in a press conference today, according to the Village Voice.

The war started when a member of the "Rockstarz&… Read more

Toys 'R' Us takes on tablets with Tabeo

This Monday tech news roundup doesn't want to grow up:

Toys "R" Us has created it's own tablet designed for kids, called Tabeo. It goes on sale in stores Oct. 21 for $150, but the store is now taking preorders online. This kid-safe tablet comes with 50 apps pre-installed for games, education, reading -- even apps for cooking and editing photos. And there's 7,000 more apps available in an app store. It comes with 4GB of memory, but is expandable with a memory card slot. And Toys 'R' Us won't be sharing this … Read more

New York City puts the brakes on new Uber cab-hailing app

A day after private car-summoning service Uber announced it was expanding into the cab-hailing business in New York, the city's Taxi & Limousine Commission issued an industry notice today that it had not authorized any apps for calling for taxis or paying for rides for use in New York City cabs.

"The T.L.C. is eager to pave the way for taxi riders to take advantage of the most up-to-date technology, including smartphone apps that may help passengers locate available taxicabs more quickly," David S. Yassky, the commission's chairman, said in a statement. "However, … Read more

Uber changes lanes in New York by hailing cabs too

Private car service Uber is veering off its usual course by offering its service to taxi drivers in New York City.

Starting tomorrow, Uber Taxi will allow New Yorkers to use the smartphone app to hail a cab in much the same way it's been used to summon private cars in cities around the country.

"This is the first time in three decades that New Yorkers can get a taxi without going to the street," Uber CEO Travis Kalanick told CNET. He also touted the service as offering greater accessibility in neighborhoods where taxis don't normally … Read more

New York Times Co. to sell About.com to Barry Diller's IAC

The New York Times Co. is expected to announce soon that it has reached a deal to sell the About Group, which includes Web site About.com, to Barry Diller's InterActiveCorp, a source with knowledge of the deal told CNET.

IAC is expected to pay $300 million in cash for the struggling information site, with the deal closing in the next couple of weeks, the New York Times Co. confirmed in a statement late Sunday.

"About's early expertise in search engine optimization, expert content and revenues from cost-per-click and display advertising made it a valuable component of … Read more

Barry Diller gets into bidding war for About.com, report says

Barry Diller, one of the premiere dealmakers in media, has bid $300 million for struggling About.com, The New York Times' information Web site, according to Reuters.

The offer from Diller's holding company, IAC/Interactivecorp, is about $30 million higher than a rival bid from Answers.com, Reuters reported.

The Times announced on August 8 that it was in discussions about selling its About Group but didn't identify the interested parties. Answers.com President Peter Horan is the former head of About.com.

About.com is designed to be a guide for Internet users and offers tips, advice, … Read more

Surveillance city? Microsoft, NYPD team on crime fight system

Microsoft and the New York Police Department have jointly developed a data aggregation and analysis system that allows officers to tap into live video camera feeds, 911 calls, mapped crime statistics, and license plate readers to fight crime.

Based on Microsoft technologies, the Domain Awareness System will be available to law enforcement and intelligence agencies around the world, with the city of New York receiving 30 percent of the revenues, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly announced today.

The system, launched today, can help alert authorities to potential terrorist activities as well as fight everyday crime, … Read more

Fake WikiLeaks op-ed targets New York Times' Bill Keller

An opinion piece that appears to be by former New York Times editor Bill Keller on what appears to be the New York Times Web site is a fake.

The editorial urges Visa, Mastercard, and American Express to take a "stand against the use of financial embargos to prohibit supporters from contributing or subscribing to media organizations protected by the First Amendment and free speech laws." The fake op-ed was drafted as a follow up to a February 2012 op-ed by Keller titled "Wikileaks, A Postscript."

The URL for the fake column was a giveaway to … Read more

Is Apple taking a financial interest in Twitter?

Is Apple planning to spend some of its $117 billion cash hoard on an investment in Twitter? The New York Times reports that the two companies have talked in recent months, but that they are not in talks at this time. Apple could potentially invest several hundred million dollars into Twitter, which has already gathered close to $1 billion in funding.

Twitter has plenty of cash and is expected to generate about $300 million in mostly advertising sales this year. CEO Dick Costolo has said that an IPO doesn't occupy his thoughts much. "I just don't worry … Read more

NYT dumps BlackBerry app

The New York Times has decided to stop supporting its current BlackBerry app because of a decrease in users, Reuters reported today.

The newspaper cut off support to the apps for BlackBerry and the DealBook BlackBerry Reader on Monday, directing BlackBerry users to use the NYT mobile site instead.

"Currently, our mobile Web site offers a more complete New York Times experience than the NYTimes app native to your device," the NYT wrote in an announcement to its customers. "We've made the decision to consolidate our efforts and concentrate on delivering you the best possible experience … Read more