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<title>Haaze.com / Poereelsoprip / Published News</title>
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<pubDate>Wed, 18 May 2011 07:10:59 +0000</pubDate>
<language>en</language>
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<title><![CDATA[Gates: 'Decade of Vaccines' can save 10 million lives by 2020]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=gates-decade-of-vaccines-can-save-10-million-lives-by-2020</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=gates-decade-of-vaccines-can-save-10-million-lives-by-2020</comments>
<pubDate>Wed, 18 May 2011 07:10:59 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Poereelsoprip</dc:creator>
<category>Social</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=gates-decade-of-vaccines-can-save-10-million-lives-by-2020</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Bill Gates gives keynote address at the 64th World Health Assembly in Geneva.(Credit:Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation)The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is pushing harder than ever for government leaders around the world to increase vaccination investments. In a keynote address yesterday to the 64th World Health Assembly in Geneva, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates spoke for nearly half an hour to health ministers from 193 countries about the importance of &quot;seeking good health care for every human being.&quot;&quot;I believe we have the opportunity to make a new future in which global health is the cornerstone of global prosperity,&quot; he said.A child receiving oral polio vaccine from a house-to-house vaccination team in Africa.(Credit:Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation)Gates called on the assembly to make this &quot;the Decade of Vaccines,&quot; with some basic goals: eradicate polio early in this decade' build a system capable of delivering vaccines to every child' make five or six new vaccines available to all children around the world. With these investments, Gates said, the world &quot;can save 4 million lives by 2015 and 10 million lives by 2020.&quot;Another challenge Gates cited was lowering the cost of antigenic materials, such as pentavalent, pneumococcus, and rotavirus vaccines. The Gates Foundation is working with vaccine manufacturers to cut prices of those inoculations in half by 2016. Lower costs would be beneficial to many countries around the world that are reeling from budget woes.During the keynote speech, Gates also called on:&amp;183' donor countries to increase their investment in vaccines and immunization, even though they're coping with budget crises--he cited the GAVI Alliance pledging meeting in London on June 13 as an opportunity to show their support'&amp;183' pharmaceutical companies to make sure vaccines are affordable for poor countries' specifically, they must make a commitment to affordable pricing--Gates said he was confident that the combined price of the pentavalent, pneumococcus, and rotavirus vaccines can be cut in half by 2015'&amp;183' all 193 member states to make vaccines a central focus of their health systems--Gates said they must pledge to meet vaccine coverage targets of 90 percent at the country level with no district below 80 percent, and ensure that all children have access to existing vaccines and to new ones as they become available.The Gates Foundation is also set to reward individuals/organizations that make &quot;the most uniquely innovative contribution to the Decade of Vaccines. This could be innovation in the science, delivery, or funding of vaccines,&quot; said Gates. The winner will be announced every January in an annual letter.Read the entire transcript of the &quot;Decade of Vaccines&quot; speech or watch the full 28-minute video of Gates' address (streaming .WMV) to the WHO.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Sony: PS3 hacker GeoHot fled to South America]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=sony-ps3-hacker-geohot-fled-to-south-america</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=sony-ps3-hacker-geohot-fled-to-south-america</comments>
<pubDate>Wed, 23 Mar 2011 07:10:47 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Poereelsoprip</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=sony-ps3-hacker-geohot-fled-to-south-america</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Update, 7:01 p.m. PT:with Hotz saying he is on a long-planned vacation.If you've been following the drama between Sony and hacker GeoHot (aka George Hotz) then you're in for a fun twist today: Sony is accusing Hotz of fleeing the country, but Hotz says he's just enjoying spring break.Sony makes the allegation in a court filing (PDF, see page 2, line 24) dated Friday.After news stories began appearing today, Hotz wrote a blog post to set the record straight.&quot;Actually, it's true I'm in South America, on a vacation I've had planned and paid for since November. I mean, it is spring break' hacking isn't my life,&quot; he writes. &quot;Rest assured that not a dime of legal defense money would ever go toward something like this. And of course [Sony-employed law firm Kilpatrick Townsend &amp; Stockton] loves the idea of painting me as an international fugitive. I have been in contact with my lawyers almost every day' I would not let the case suffer.&quot;George Hotz telling Sony how he feels.(Credit:YouTube)Hotz is well known for reverse-engineering the multi-digit code that allows the installation and execution of non-Sony-recognized code onPlayStation 3s, essentially allowing anyone with a PS3 to run homebrew software, or even pirated games.A federal magistrate a couple weeks ago OK'd Sony's request for Hotz to hand over his hacking gear--his PS3 consoles, computers, and other equipment--untouched. It seems that before turning the stuff in, he allegedly made edits, deleting key evidence that Sony likely planned to use against him.What's more, Hotz was allegedly caught lying about having a PlayStation Network (PSN) account. But Sony says it was able to prove that in February of last year, Hotz allegedly purchased a new PS3 and, tracing the serial number, Sony says it concluded that he had set up a PSN account under the screen name &quot;blickmanic,&quot; which is also a name Hotz used on previous Web forums oniPhone jailbreaking.Besides jailbreaking PS3s for non-sanctioned use on PSN, Hotz was a very vocal and active member of the iPhone/iOS jailbreaking community, bringing several key userland jailbreaks to the devices, including blackra1n and limera1n. While Apple consistently moved to patch the exploits Hotz used in its software, it never went overtly litigious as Sony has.It's unclear what will happen in this case next. It's not publicly known where in South America Hotz is staying, what gear he has with him, and what assets he has access to. Recently, a court granted Sony access to Hotz's donation-based PayPal account, so that cash source may well be totally unavailable.Whatever the case, we expect this to be far from over. There are egos, weird and obscure copyright laws, and potentially millions of dollars still at stake. If you're like me, you might want to make some metaphorical popcorn as well.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Agua Caliente Solar gets $967 million loan guarantee]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=agua-caliente-solar-gets-967-million-loan-guarantee</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=agua-caliente-solar-gets-967-million-loan-guarantee</comments>
<pubDate>Fri, 21 Jan 2011 08:10:53 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Poereelsoprip</dc:creator>
<category>Eco</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=agua-caliente-solar-gets-967-million-loan-guarantee</guid>
<description><![CDATA[The U.S. Energy Department said on Thursday it awarded a $967 million loan guarantee to an NRG Energy subsidiary to help pay for the world's biggest solar power plant using photovoltaic panels.The loan guarantee will support the construction of the 290-megawatt Agua Caliente Solar generating facility in Yuma County, Ariz., that will use thin solar panels.The facility will help the Obama administration meets its goal to double the amount of U.S. electricity generated from renewable energy sources like solar and wind power.&quot;Solar projects like this are helping the U.S. to compete globally for the clean energy jobs of today and the future,&quot; said U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu.&quot;Together, we will create hundreds of jobs and reduce the nation's fossil fuel dependence and carbon intensity,&quot; said Tom Doyle, president of NRG Solar.Pacific Gas &amp; Electric will purchase power generated at the solar plant and deliver it to its customers in California. The plant is expected to be built by 2014.Story Copyright (c) 2010 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Don't expect Spotify in U.S. this holiday season]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=dont-expect-spotify-in-u-s--this-holiday-season</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=dont-expect-spotify-in-u-s--this-holiday-season</comments>
<pubDate>Tue, 07 Dec 2010 08:10:48 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Poereelsoprip</dc:creator>
<category>Marketing and advertising</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=dont-expect-spotify-in-u-s--this-holiday-season</guid>
<description><![CDATA[commentary Daniel Ek says he can't commit to a launch date for Spotify USA. Spotify CEO Daniel Ek(Credit:Ian Phillips-McLaren)Too late. Ek, Spotify's founder and CEO, did commit. Maybe he forgot that he and his underlings have repeatedly said the launch of a U.S. version of Spotify, a popular European music service that offers free streaming music in addition to a subscription offering, would open in the United States before the end of the year. What Ek knows and isn't saying is that Spotify will miss that deadline, just as it has missed launch dates. As of last week, Spotify had yet to sign a single licensing deal with a major label, after spending more than a year negotiating, multiple music sources told CNET. The way things are shaping up, all U.S. music fans can expect from Ek this Christmas is spin.On the surface, a missed launch deadline doesn't sound like much. We've seen only a few hundred thousand of those. But look into the company's predicament a little, and something more troubling starts to appear. Spotify is a hugely popular business, with lots of potential that it will may never fulfill. The company simply hasn't demonstrated a means to pay for the music it gives away to users--or said another way, the company's business model appears to be broken. If it's not broken, it is certainly unconvincing.The major music companies are not going to allow Spotify to jump to the United States without knowing how they are going to get compensated, and Spotify appears unable to tell them--at least to the labels' satisfaction. For that reason, the labels want Spotify to pay a premium because of the risks the company's service poses to other revenue streams, insiders say. The most important of those financial tributaries flows from Apple's iTunes. There's no doubt that Spotify's service is clever and easy to use--and that it would attract a U.S. audience. There is, however, plenty of doubt about whether enough people will pay to use it. There is also a fear in the music industry that by offering users free music streams, Spotify could cut into sales at iTunes and elsewhere. Spotify says not to worry because the company also sells subscriptions, and at a conference held by All Things Digital today, Ek said the company now has 750,000 people paying the equivalent of $13 a month to access it. The problem there is that Spotify has 10 million total users. That means that the rate at which the company is converting users of the free service to the paid service is 7.5 percent. Some music executives have said they want to see twice that amount. The labels also don't need Spotify in the U.S. Google is working on a music service, and there's no doubt which company the labels believe stands a better chance of mounting a serious challenge to Apple's dominance. The top recording companies have long hoped to see the rise of another strong digital-music outlet so the industry's dependence on Apple might be reduced. Then throw in Spotify's report that it lost $26 million in 2009 and that it spoke to Google about a possible sale, according to a report in TechCrunch. Was Ek just testing the waters, or does he lack confidence in the company's ability to generate money That kind of news is likely to give some in the music industry pause. Spotify is starting to remind me of SpiralFrog and Qtrax. Those companies were led by managers who also made lots of big promises but failed to deliver. Both services said they would help answer the music industry's piracy problem. Qtrax, which billed itself as a legal peer-to-peer service, once threw a huge party in France to celebrate a U.S. launch, but it didn't own the rights to any music. Later, the company made at least two other promises to enter the U.S., and we've yet to see it. Some pundits suggested that SpiralFrog could be an iTunes killer. The company managed only to license music from two of the four major labels and was also undermined by a plethora of management problems. It closed down last year. Neither of those companies managed to build the kind of following that Spotify has in Europe. But we've seen popular services with loads of customers fail before. Imeem had 17 million users. Lala was popular, as was Project Playlist. Not one of them ever turned a profit. It's a sad fact of life, but having lots of users doesn't always add up to profits. <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Ion's 'double-lens' Twin Video camcorder ships]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ions-double-lens-twin-video-camcorder-ships</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ions-double-lens-twin-video-camcorder-ships</comments>
<pubDate>Tue, 30 Nov 2010 08:10:30 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Poereelsoprip</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ions-double-lens-twin-video-camcorder-ships</guid>
<description><![CDATA[The Ion Twin Video mini camcorder can be had for $99.99 in online stores.(Credit:Ion)We saw an early mock-up of Ion's dual-lens Twin Video mini camcorder at last year's CES. Now, almost a year later, the product is finally shipping, and it doesn't really look like the mock-up. However, it still has two lenses that allow you to shoot rear and front video feeds with the touch of a button.What's the purpose of that Well, the idea is that the person shooting the video can easily--and smoothly--get in on the action. Ion's billing the Twin Video as perfect for &quot;blogging, interviewing, and creating videos with an easy-to-use, live-editing feature.&quot;Alas, the resolution is only 640x480 and not &quot;HD&quot; and it comes with no memory (you must supply an SD/SDHC card). But the unit is pretty affordable. It lists for $119.99 but we've seen it for $100 online. Hopefully, we'll get our hands on a review sample in the next few weeks.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Facebook's new in-box brings MS Office support]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=facebooks-new-in-box-brings-ms-office-support</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=facebooks-new-in-box-brings-ms-office-support</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 15 Nov 2010 08:10:20 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Poereelsoprip</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=facebooks-new-in-box-brings-ms-office-support</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Facebook&amp;39's new messaging system, which will have support for Microsoft Office attachments. (Credit:Facebook)Confirmation arrived this morning for earlier reports of Microsoft's Office Web apps product being integrated into Facebook's new in-box product.At Facebook's San Francisco press event this morning about the overhaul of its messaging service, the company detailed how users can now view and share attachments on the service. Included on that list is Microsoft's Office Web Apps service, which means Facebook users will be able to open up Word, Excel, and PowerPoint attachments without having to have Microsoft's software installed locally. The &quot;view on Office.com&quot; feature appears below each file attachment as an option, and opens up documents within Microsoft's Office Web App viewer in a new browser tab. Presumably more partnered services will be added to this list as time goes by, but for now this is the only option on these file types.Last week, Microsoft pushed out support of its Docs.com service within Facebook's recently introduced Groups feature, adding sharing for MS Office docs and PDF files within groups. Facebook began rolling out its new messaging system to select users and members of the press earlier this morning, and intends to bring it to the rest of its users over the next few months.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[The Smithsonian welcomes Microsoft's Surface]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=the-smithsonian-welcomes-microsofts-surface</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=the-smithsonian-welcomes-microsofts-surface</comments>
<pubDate>Tue, 09 Nov 2010 08:10:19 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Poereelsoprip</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=the-smithsonian-welcomes-microsofts-surface</guid>
<description><![CDATA[As part of a new, permanent exhibit, The Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., has implemented Microsoft's Surface computer as a hands-on learning aid.Microsoft worked with The Smithsonian to put together seven applications for the Surface with which visitors can interact. Each app is related to the exhibit's &quot;The Wonder of Light: Touch and Learn!&quot; theme, letting users do things such as zoom in and out of photos, rub sticks on the surface to create virtual fires, and shine a real flashlight onto the Surface's screen to light up an underwater scene. The Surface hardware was donated to the museum by Microsoft, and as CNET was told, it did not require any modifications to handle heavy use by the crowds, who can poke and prod at it with some of the included tools. The Smithsonian's implementation of Surface joins other educational institutions, such as The British Library and the Ellis Island Museum, which featured the table-size computing device in exhibits introduced earlier this year. Below is a video of The Smithsonian's implementation.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Skype finally brings video chat to the iPhone, one-ups Apple&'s FaceTime]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=skype-finally-brings-video-chat-to-the-iphone-one-ups-applersquos-facetime</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=skype-finally-brings-video-chat-to-the-iphone-one-ups-applersquos-facetime</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov -001 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Poereelsoprip</dc:creator>
<category>Latest News</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=skype-finally-brings-video-chat-to-the-iphone-one-ups-applersquos-facetime</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Video chat on the iPhone 4 just got a lot more useful. Skype tonight announced its latest iPhone app update, bringing with it the ability to make video calls to other iPhone OS devices, as well as to Skype users on Mac and Windows computers.The feature has been a long time coming, as Skype is pretty much synonymous with video chat on computers. Skype&amp;'s iPhone video chat even manages to one-up Apple&amp;'s own Facetime chat by working over 3G connections, in addition to WiFi.The app supports two-way video chat on the iPhone 4 and fourth-generation iPod Touch, both of which feature front and rear-facing cameras. Surprisingly, it also allows for two-way video chat on the iPhone 3GS, even though that device only has a rear camera. The iPad and third-generation iPod Touch will be able to receive video only &amp;8212' which may not sound like much, but it&amp;'s still more than Apple offers with Facetime. Unfortunately the app isn&amp;'t yet native for the iPad, so you&amp;'ll still be looking at a blown-up version of the iPhone app.I haven&amp;'t had a chance to try out the new app yet, but the folks over at 9to5 Mac report that the video chat &amp;''looks very smooth on both ends&amp;'' &amp;8212' even over a 3G connection. The site also ran some data tests and noted that video chat uses around 3.4MB of data per minute. That means iPhone users with AT&amp;amp'T&amp;'s low-end 200MB monthly data plan will need to be particularly careful.But while iPhone users revel in Skype&amp;'s new video calling capabilities, Android owners are still left behind. Historically, Skype hasn&amp;'t really spent as much effort on Android as it has on the iPhone. Once it brings out a video chat capable Android app though, Skype will certainly be the cross-platform mobile video chat solution to beat.Check out a video of Skype&amp;'s new iPhone app in action below:Previous Story: SEC takes aim at venture capital rules in 2011PrintEmailTwitterFacebookGoogle BuzzLinkedIn      DiggStumbleUponRedditDeliciousGoogleMore&amp;8230'          Tags: FaceTime, iOS, iPhone, video chat, voipCompanies: Apple, Skype          Tags: FaceTime, iOS, iPhone, video chat, voipCompanies: Apple, SkypeDevindra Hardawar is VentureBeat's lead mobile writer and East Coast correspondent. He studied philosophy at Amherst College, worked in IT support for several years, and has been writing about technology since 2004. He now lives in Brooklyn, New York. You can reach him at devindra@venturebeat.com (all story pitches should also be sent to tips@venturebeat.com), and on Twitter at @Devindra.VentureBeat has new weekly email newsletters.  Stay on top of the news, and don't miss a beat.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[When Will China&'s Internet Giants Open the Acquisition Wallet&nbsp'(TCTV)]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=when-will-chinarsquos-internet-giants-open-the-acquisition-walletnbsptctv</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=when-will-chinarsquos-internet-giants-open-the-acquisition-walletnbsptctv</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov -001 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Poereelsoprip</dc:creator>
<category>Latest News</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=when-will-chinarsquos-internet-giants-open-the-acquisition-walletnbsptctv</guid>
<description><![CDATA[The biggest difference between the Internet scenes in Silicon Valley and China this year We&amp;'re all still asking when Facebook will go public, while Chinese companies are filing left and right. Part of this is an investor demand to get a chunk of that 400 million person strong and growing Chinese Internet market.But part of this is cultural. American Internet entrepreneurs are more likely to want to sell their companies these days. But in China, it&amp;'s like the late 1990s: Success equals an IPO. On the other side of the bargaining table, American companies like to buy technology, engineers and potential competitors and aren&amp;'t afraid to potentially overpay to get what they want. Chinese Internet companies have the cash and the stock currency: Tencent is the third largest Internet company in the world by market cap and Baidu is the fifth. But so far, they&amp;'ve been loathe to do big acquisitions that would dilute the corporate culture.That has to change at some point&amp;8230' doesn&amp;'t it We ask DCM&amp;'s Ruby Lu about the implications of this IPO-only culture, especially the talent war it&amp;'s creating among big companies and startups in China&amp;'s hotspots. Video below.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[The Daily Show Tears Into Sarah Palin&'s Tweets&nbsp'[Video]]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=the-daily-show-tears-into-sarah-palinrsquos-tweetsnbspvideo</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=the-daily-show-tears-into-sarah-palinrsquos-tweetsnbspvideo</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov -001 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Poereelsoprip</dc:creator>
<category>Latest News</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=the-daily-show-tears-into-sarah-palinrsquos-tweetsnbspvideo</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Last time we checked in Former Alaskan Governor Sarah Palin was using Twitter to contest Gawker over the leak of her book America By Heart, bypassing the &amp;''lamestream&amp;'' media. And she&amp;'s managed to catapult herself into the Internet spotlight yet again by using 140 characters to glom off the attention heaped onto the Wikileaks story, see below.Inexplicable: I recently won in court to stop my book &amp;quot'America by Heart&amp;quot' from being leaked,but US Govt can&amp;039't stop Wikileaks&amp;039' treasonous actReplyThe Daily Show&amp;'s John Stewart calls her out on this, her tweeting and the media&amp;'s extensive coverage of her tweeting in general in the video above, &amp;''Like a teenage boy with a crush on the stuck up girl who hates him, the media is fascinated by everything Sarah Palin tweets.&amp;''&amp;''I tweet that&amp;'s the way I roll,&amp;'' Palin responded to critics of her over-reliance on social media, not doing herself any favors actually. Watch the video until the end for Stewart&amp;'s brilliant reference to Lincoln&amp;'s &amp;''Twittersburg Address.&amp;''h/t Danny SullivanCrunchBase InformationTwitterInformation provided by CrunchBaseTipTweet<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Zamzee fights childhood obesity with activity meters and Omidyar funding]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=zamzee-fights-childhood-obesity-with-activity-meters-and-omidyar-funding</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=zamzee-fights-childhood-obesity-with-activity-meters-and-omidyar-funding</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov -001 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Poereelsoprip</dc:creator>
<category>Latest News</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=zamzee-fights-childhood-obesity-with-activity-meters-and-omidyar-funding</guid>
<description><![CDATA[eBay founder Pierre Omidyar and his wife Pam have gotten most of the attention for their do-gooder efforts through their investment firm the Omidyar Network. But back in 2001, Pam Omidyar also founded a nonprofit research group called HopeLab, which is announcing a new project to try to reduce youth obesity.Specifically, HopeLab has spun off and invested $1 million into for-profit company called Zamzee, which is supposed to launch a limited beta test of its product in the first half of 2011 followed by a full launch later that year.You can watch HopeLaba4a4s Richard Tate describe Zamzee in this video, which was recorded at the Health 2.0 conference. On a conceptual level, it sounds similar to Fitbit, a device that adults clip to their clothes to automatically track calories burned through exercise and daily activity. But Zamzee tries to tailor the concept to young teens, who probably don&amp;'t spend hours at the gym, and who need a little more incentive to exercise.As Tate explains, the Zamzee activity meter includes a three-axis accelerometer designed to track any kind of activity, so teens can get their exercise in whatever form they prefer, and it can come from increased activity throughout the day, rather than a focused workout. (Not that Fitbit is limited to treadmills or whatever.) To encourage teens to exercise, Zamzee will offer them both physical and virtual goods as rewards.Frankly, I have a hard time imagining my teenage self being willing to wear a fitness device all day &amp;8212' I felt nerdy enough already. But Zamzee says early tests show that the program increases physical activity by 30 percent.Next Story: iPad beats back first Android tablet &amp;8212' what does it all mean Previous Story: The latest in the hunt for HP&amp;'s CEO: Pssst. Hey Larry, Leo is hiding out in Palo AltoPrintEmailTwitterFacebookGoogle BuzzLinkedIn      DiggStumbleUponRedditDeliciousGoogleMore&amp;8230'          Companies: FitBit, HopeLab, Omidyar Network, ZamzeePeople: Pam Omidyar, Richard Tate          Companies: FitBit, HopeLab, Omidyar Network, ZamzeePeople: Pam Omidyar, Richard TateAnthony is VentureBeat's assistant editor, as well as its reporter on media, advertising, and social networks. Before joining VentureBeat in 2008, Anthony worked at the Hollister Free Lance, where he won awards from the California Newspaper Publishers Association for breaking news coverage and writing. He attended Stanford University and now lives in San Francisco. Reach him at anthony@venturebeat.com. (All story pitches should also be sent to tips@venturebeat.com) You can also follow Anthony on Twitter.VentureBeat has new weekly email newsletters.  Stay on top of the news, and don't miss a beat.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[A Pivotal&nbsp'Pivot]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=a-pivotalnbsppivot</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=a-pivotalnbsppivot</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov -001 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Poereelsoprip</dc:creator>
<category>Latest News</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=a-pivotalnbsppivot</guid>
<description><![CDATA[By all measurements, the new picture sharing service,&amp;nbsp'Instagram, is exploding. A week after their launch, they had 100,000 users. A week later: 200,000. A week after that: 300,000. And then they were made Apple&amp;'s App of the Week in the App Store. So yeah, basically they&amp;'re likely far past a half a million users already. Not a bad first month at all.But did you know that Instagram almost wasn&amp;'t Instagram at all I detailed some of their transformation from the location-based HTML5 app Burbn to Instagram in my initial preview of the app. But co-founder Kevin Systrom gave more insight a few weeks ago on Quora.Systrom revealed that he and co-founder Mike Krieger actually put in about a year&amp;'s worth of work into Burbn, finally culminating in the building of a complete native iPhone app. But&amp;nbsp'it just wasn&amp;'t very good in their estimation. So they basically threw the entire thing out and started over. Again, after a year of work. The result, just 8 weeks later, was Instagram.A huge risk. Ballsy.&amp;''We actually got an entire version of Burbn done as an iPhone app, but it felt cluttered, and overrun with features. It was really difficult to decide to start from scratch, but we went out on a limb, and basically cut everything in the Burbn app except for its photo, comment, and like capabilities. What remained was Instagram,&amp;'' Systrom wrote.That element to their story is fascinating to me. I was actually one of the initial users of Burbn after I got a tip about it and was able to sign up before Systrom realized who I was (he quickly emailed me later and asked me not to write about it until he was ready to show something off). I found Burbn interesting because location was getting red-hot at the time, and this was a completely-HTML5 approach that was pretty slick.But I wasn&amp;'t sure how such a service was ever going to take off. The reality right now is that we live in a world of native apps in the mobile space. And Burbn would have been coming very late to the game with an HTML5 gamble and with rivals like Foursquare, Gowalla and others already battling for users.But it turns out Systrom and Krieger were thinking the same thing. &amp;''Once he [Krieger] joined, we took a step back and looked at the product as it stood. By this time, we had built Burbn into a (private) really neat HTML5 mobile web app that let you: Check in to locations, Make plans (future check-ins), Earn points for hanging out with friends, post pictures, and much more,&amp;'' Systrom noted on Quora. That all sounds great, but again, a crowded-space that was quickly getting more crowded.&amp;''We decided that if we were going to build a company, we wanted to focus on being really good at one thing. We saw mobile photos as an awesome opportunity to try out some new ideas,&amp;'' Systrom continued.And so the pivot happened.It&amp;'s important to note that Systrom and Krieger had already secured $500,000 in funding prior to the pivot, so they had some cash to gamble with. But not all investors would be happy with such a turn. But as Systrom described it,&amp;nbsp'Baseline Ventures and Andreessen Horowitz basically told them that they had some good ideas and to figure out the company they wanted to build from those ideas. They decided that Instagram, and not Burbn, would be that company.Startups pivot all the time. Some are forced to, some are not.&amp;nbsp'Want another good example Twitter.The podcasting startup Odeo (where, incidentally, Systrom was an intern back in the day) was more or less going nowhere when Evan Williams told his employees to break into teams to brainstorm some crazy new ideas. One of those teams had Jack Dorsey in it, and Twitter was born.Speaking of Twitter, Seesmic started as the &amp;''video Twitter&amp;'' before they pivoted to become a Twitter client. Now they&amp;'re sort of pivoting again to cater more directly to the enterprise crowd. It&amp;'s something that very well could work.Meanwhile, the Y-Combinator-backed Fliggo earlier this year pivoted away from being another kind of video for Twitter and became Treehouse, an Instagram-competitor. Funny how it all comes around. Will they catch on like Instagram has Who knows, but if not, the entrepreneurs behind it will undoubtedly be back at it with another idea.Instagram&amp;'s story is a testament to the fact that pivots can and do work a4&quot; even if it means tossing much of what you had poured your life into for a year or more. It&amp;'s all about timing, and learning, and vision, and a hell of a lot of courage.CrunchBase InformationInstagramInformation provided by CrunchBase<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Redwood Systems wins title of most innovative company at GreenBeat 2010]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=redwood-systems-wins-title-of-most-innovative-company-at-greenbeat-2010</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=redwood-systems-wins-title-of-most-innovative-company-at-greenbeat-2010</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov -001 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Poereelsoprip</dc:creator>
<category>Latest News</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=redwood-systems-wins-title-of-most-innovative-company-at-greenbeat-2010</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Intelligent lighting system provider Redwood Systems was voted by judges to be the best of 10 companies presenting in the Innovation Competition today at VentureBeat&amp;'s cleantech conference, GreenBeat 2010, at Stanford University. Judges have decided that Redwood Systems will have the biggest impact on making more efficient power grids a reality, the main theme of GreenBeat 2010.Rather than power lights with typical AC voltage, Redwood Systems wants to put its lights on a network a4&quot; much like a broadband network a4&quot; to control lighting and make the systems easier to tune and monitor. Redwood Systems uses light-emitting diode (LED) lighting, which is more energy-efficient than typical incandescent lighting.The companies presenting at GreenBeat 2010 ranged fromweb-based thermostats, tonew ways to track power consumption in homes, and even knowledge bases that baffled experienced judges.Judges rated each startup according to the impact it could have on making the smart grid a reality. They ranked each on a scale of one to ten and then averaged their scores. One judge, who was an investor in Redwood Systems, abstained from voting for the company.The judges also gave high scores to runners-up ECOFactor and Enbala. EcoFactor is a web-based home climate control startup, and Enbala helps large energy users manage their electricity. The judges said they rated both companies almost as highly as Redwood Systems.As the winner, Redwood Systems gets the opportunity to present at DEMO Spring 2011, which takes place at the end of February next year. Last year&amp;'s people&amp;'s choice winner at DEMO, credit card innovator Dynamics, won $1 million in free advertising with IDG media outlets like PC World magazine at DEMO Fall 2010. Dynamics also recently scored a deal with Citi to work on anew product that will make it easier to redeem the credit card companya4a4s reward points.Next Story: Enbala taps big power users to make the grid more predictable Previous Story: Gridbot builds an electric vehicle charger that wona4a4t break the gridPrintEmailTwitterFacebookGoogle BuzzLinkedIn      DiggStumbleUponRedditDeliciousGoogleMore&amp;8230'          Tags: GreenBeat, GreenBeat 2010, innovation competitionCompanies: Redwood Systems          Tags: GreenBeat, GreenBeat 2010, innovation competitionCompanies: Redwood SystemsVentureBeat has new weekly email newsletters.  Stay on top of the news, and don't miss a beat.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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