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August 13, 2008

In This Update:

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Progress Partners client, Wavexpress, has partnered with NBC Sports and Microsoft to offer HD coverage of the 2008 Beijing Olympics in Windows Vista Media Center. To download the application and watch Olympics events,visit: http://www.tvtonic.com/olympics/install/?referrer=pp

Yahoo Unveils Platform for Location-Based Services
VENTUREBEAT
Yahoo has built a developer platform around location called Fire Eagle. The service began closed alpha testing in November of last year and it was formally unveiled the beta in March of this year. Since that time, over 50 services have used it as a switchboard between developers and location data. Fire Eagle isn’t involved in locating you itself, it serves as a middle-man between services that offer that capability and those that wish to use it. Fire Eagle also simplifies the growing number of location updates that come in from a wide range of services. It takes all of this data and serves up the most relevant location update.
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Best Buy Will Sell the iPhone 3G Nationwide
REUTERS
Best Buy Co will be the first national retailer to sell Apple Inc’s iPhone in the United States in a partnership that could help drive sales of a device expected to be one of the hottest gadgets this holiday season. Best Buy will announce on Wednesday that it will sell Apple’s newly-launched 3G iPhone at its 970 U.S. stores beginning on September 7. Stand-alone Best Buy Mobile shops will also sell the device, which requires a two-year contract with carrier AT&T Inc to operate.
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Facebook Users Get More Control Over Feeds
TECHCRUNCH
Facebook will tweak the user profile to let users fine tune the news items delivered to them on their home page. Currently users can filter news items to see top items, status updates, new photos and posted items from friends. With the changes, users can opt to see application-specific news items (events, movies, Causes, etc.) or just see all news items without any filtering at all. Specific friends or friend groups can also be selected.
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Vudu Creates Channel: 99 Movies for 99 Cents
ELECTRONISTA
VUDU today set out to best Apple TV and other competitors in the networked media hub field with two features meant to draw in more movie viewers. The company is the first to offer digital movie renewals and will let customers pay a discounted price to either finish watching a movie or to watch it again; any customer that has already started playing a title can pay 99 cents (standard-definition) or $2 within a week of first playing the movie to watch it again, even if their normal playback time has already expired.
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Movable Type Pro to Meld Blogging and Social Networking
ARS TECHNICA
Six Apart today announced Movable Type 4.2 and Movable Type Pro, major updates to its blogging and content management software with several significant new features. Observing a shift in blogging that emphasizes greater levels of interaction with readers, this release signifies a shift towards social features. Movable Type 4.2, or specifically the new Moveable Type Pro 4.2 version that Six Apart has created, hopes to usher in a new world of interactivity not just between publishers and their readers, but between the readers themselves.
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Report: Some Web Firms Say They Track Behavior Without Explicit Consent
WASHINGTON POST
Several Internet and broadband companies have acknowledged using targeted-advertising technology without explicitly informing customers, according to letters released yesterday by the House Energy and Commerce Committee. And Google, the leading online advertiser, stated that it has begun using Internet tracking technology that enables it to more precisely follow Web-surfing behavior across affiliated sites.
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Report: Broadband Growth Declines In the Second Quarter
WEBPRONEWS
The number of new broadband connections in the U.S. declined in the second quarter to the lowest level in seven years according to the Leichtman Research Group. There were 887,000 new connections in the quarter among the top 20 cable and phone providers. The top broadband providers now account for 65.1 million subscribers with cable companies having 35.3 million broadband subscribers, and telephone companies having over 29.7 million subscribers.Overall broadband additions in the quarter amounted to 51 percent of those in the second quarter of 2007 with cable companies having 85 percent as many additions as a year ago, and phone providers 23 percent.
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Mobile TV Chip Siano Raises $17.5 Million
PRIVATE EQUITY HUB
Siano Mobile Silicon Ltd., a Netanya, Israel-based mobile TV chipmaker, has raised $17.5 million in third-round funding. DFJ Tamir Fishman Ventures led the round, and was joined by return backers JVP, Star Ventures, Walden Israel, Bessemer Venture Partners and Inventec Appliances. Siano has now raised $52 million since 2005.
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VendAsta Raises $3 Million for Home Improvement Apps
VENTURE BEAT
VendAsta Technologies, a software consulting and development company, has raised $3 million to launch MyFrontSteps, a social software application focused on home improvement.The goal is to give users a way to share their home improvement experience and advice across their social networks. The first product will be something called StepRep, and will allow contractors, developers and other home improvement professionals to manage their reputations online.
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ELDR Media Raises $1.25 Million for Media On Aging
PAIDCONTENT
ELDR Media, a San Francisco based firm developing content for the “affluent elders”, has raised $1.25 million from various angels via the Bay Area Keiretsu Forum. The company offers original content in areas like health, travel and technology. Its CEO and founder Chad Lewis was previously the founder of AgeSong, a management company for elder housing communities. The funding will be used to hire a sales head and expand its reach.
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