ZDNet has a worthwhile discussion of a research note recently issued by a Bernstein analyst who warned of the dangers of acquiring Internet “pre-businesses” – companies that have large user bases and have created lots of buzz but have no real revenue model.
The San Francisco Chronicle reports that “[t]he U.S. and Germany signed an agreement Monday to share science and technology research in an effort to improve the security of both nations. U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said after signing the agreement with German Research Minister Annette Schavan that the countries would pool resources in developing analytical tools and other technological and scientific research pertaining to security issues. ‘Homeland security is not about walling ourselves off from other countries, it is about cooperating with our allies,’ Napolitano said.”
The Financial Times writes that, according to a recent warning by the UN, “[t]he planned introduction of multiple new web domains – adding to the likes of .com and .net – will spark trademark rows, confuse consumers and undermine public trust without tough new rules to curb abusive practices by ‘cybersquatters’ and domain registrars. The World Intellectual Property Organization [raised] its concerns in a letter to Icann (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers), the non-profit US-based group that manages the internet addressing system. Its plans to allow companies and public sector organizations to create their own top-level domains, such as .pepsi or .worldbank, could result in hundreds of such domains compared to the 21 now authorized. This would present a ‘nearly unmanageable task’ for trademark owners to monitor abuse, says Francis Gurry, Wipo director-general.”
The Mercury News has an interesting (if slightly depressing) article on the high-tech auctions crowding Silicon Valley as start-ups are bowing to a punishing economic environment.
In more uplifting news, SFGate.com reveals that “President Barack Obama on Monday offered a fresh package of aid to small businesses — ‘the heart of the American economy’ — in an aggressive push to get big banks that got federal bailout money to do more lending to these struggling entrepreneurs. […] The White House announced a series of moves to get credit flowing to small businesses. The measures include boosting bank liquidity with up to $15 billion aimed at unfreezing the secondary credit market, reducing lending fees and increasing loan guarantees, and easing the tax burden. The administration also announced that the 21 largest banks receiving government money must report monthly on how much lending they do to small businesses.”