Samsung Electronics defeated Apple in the latest spat in the rivals’ patent wars when a British judge ruled Samsung’s Galaxy tablets did not infringe the U.S. company’s designs for the iPad because they were “not as cool.”
In Monday’s High Court judgment Judge Colin Birss said that Samsung’s Galaxy tablets belonged to the same family as the Apple design when viewed from the front, but the Samsung products were “very thin, almost insubstantial members of that family with unusual details on the back.”
“They do not have the same understated and extreme simplicity which is possessed by the Apple design. They are not as cool,” he said. “The overall impression produced is different.”
READ MORE: Samsung wins court case against Apple because it’s “not as cool”
Defeat disguised as victory.
» The spike in donations has put the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee on track for a historically-high month, only a few weeks removed from a record-breaking $5.6 million in donations during May. The donation numbers also add legitimacy to Democratic claims that the ruling galvanized the left every bit as much as it galvanized the right. Though, even when combined with the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee’s similarly high $2.3 million in donations, the numbers seem small compared to the more than $5.5 million raised by Mitt Romney in the first 24-hours after the decision.
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According to police, they got a call from a man saying he was going to commit suicide. Police have shut down Benson Highway in both directions in the area and are working to peaceful end the situation.
The SWAT team is on scene.
A developing situation in Arizona…we hope everyone is able to stay safe, and the man who made the call is able to get the help that he needs. (edit: thanks to bobbycaputo for pointing out our accidental state-swap)
(Source: twitter.com)
We demand, on behalf of all the seniors, poverty-stricken and children, that Pepco immediately begin investing their profits in improving our power and implement a long term solution to these unacceptable delays.A new Change.org petition against Pepco, a mid-Atlantic energy company • Demanding that the electric company change its business practices, in order to put an end to regular power outages in the DC area. Think that’s bad enough? The power company also wants to stick its own customers with the cost of a public relations campaign that argued it did a good job keeping up the quality of its utility service. This is despite the fact that this campaign was unsuccessful. Pepco’s service has been in the news recently after millions of customers lost power over the weekend after a heavy storm, most in the Washington DC region. source (via • follow)
Congressman Jackson’s medical condition is more serious than we thought … Recently, we have been made aware that he has grappled with certain physical and emotional ailments privately for a long period of time.Frank Watkins, Spokesman for Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. • In a statement, given to the Chicago Sun-Times, explaining the Illinois Democrat’s extended absence from the House of Representatives. Prior to the announcement, Rep. Jackson (whose father is who you think he is) was set to take over multiple subcommittees should the Democrats take control of the House of Representatives in November. There’s no word yet from Rep. Jackson’s office on whether or not this will lead to his resignation and/or an end to his bid for reelection. source (via • follow)
» The previous record holder, Jamie Gold, won approximately $12 million during the 2006 World Series of Poker’s $10,000 “Main Event” tournament. More than ten thousand players, both amateur and professional, entered the tournament that year. By comparison, Esfandiari bested 48 other players for his most recent win, including second-place winner Sam Trickett, and Greenlight Capital Inc. co-founder David Einhorn who came in third. The charity tournament was for Big One for One Drop, which received $5.5 million from the tournament.
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The Associated Press is reporting that former Secretary of Commerce John Bryson will not face charges related to two hit-and-run accidents that took place in California last month.
Professor Mike Lean, from Glasgow University’s human nutrition department, has partnered with businessman Donnie Maclean to create and market a truly healthy frozen pizza. By modifying traditional recipes with some modern ingredients — like using seaweed in the dough to cut down on sodium — Professor Lean says the two have perfected a recipe which is safe to eat three meals a day. Every day. Forever. Of course, the two don’t recommend doing so, but they stand behind the claim and say their pizzas taste just as good if not better than their competition. It’s worth noting, though, that their competition is named “Tombstone.” (Photo via BBC News) source
SFB is getting poll-itical: At ShortFormBlog, we love hearing from you guys — you know, the folks that read our stuff. (You guys rock!) So, with that in mind, we’re asking for your help. Head over to our Facebook page, and make your voice heard. Our photo album, “The Pitch,” will be updated each Monday with new story choices. The story our followers (you guys) give the most Facebook likes by Friday afternoon will be written over the weekend. Choose your favorite! source
I’m moving back to New York in a few days. Unlike past...
OMG. I got so...
In this week’s Newsweek, a little...
Tumblr this morning. [h/t anne]
#@#$%!.tumblr.com
Here’s a hidden feature that shipped in...
Watch: PCB gets a visual shout out on GMA’s Yahoo/Tumblr...
In May, Twitter sought to quash a subpoena for Occupy Wall Street protestor Malcolm Harris’s tweets, location, and other data over a 90-day period flanking his October 1st arrest for disorderly conduct on the Brooklyn Bridge. On Saturday, Judge Matthew Sciarrino Jr. upheld an earlier ruling that Harris himself had no standing to contest the subpoena, ruled that Harris had no expectation of privacy in a public tweet, and denied Twitter’s claim that the subpoena constituted an unreasonable burden on the company.
In short, only Twitter can fight a criminal court subpoena for user information, and for most requests for once-public information, the company will be expected by the court to hand it over. Unlike a privately sent email, “[t]here can be no reasonable expectation of privacy in a tweet sent around the world,” writes Judge Sciarrino Jr.
Sciarrino also makes it clear that in his opinion, the logic and implications of the ruling are not limited to Twitter alone, but all forms of social media.
It’s not the first time Twitter fought against giving away its users’ data in court.
The Daily Mail is reporting that actress Katie Holmes’ recent decision to divorce husband Tom Cruise was due largely to his desire to enroll their daughter Suri in the Church of Scientology’s highly-controversial Sea Org. While celebrity gossip isn’t typically our bag, Holmes echoes complaints previously made by director Paul Haggis and other former members of the church. Most notably, mysterious vehicles — clearly too expensive for the paparazzi — have been spotted outside Holmes’ New York apartment consistently in recent days. The actress says their monitoring is meant as an intimidation tactic. If true, Holmes is certainly not the first person to be harassed by the Church, but could the light shed by her high-profile divorce make her one of the last? (Photo via FunAlso, chosen because Suri Cruise is much cuter than Paul Haggis) source
ATLANTA and SAN FRANCISCO –July 2, 2012 – The Weather Channel Companies (TWCC) today announced an agreement to acquire Weather Underground, a leading provider of Web based weather data. The transaction, terms of which were not disclosed, was announced by TWCC chairman and CEO David Kenny and Weather Underground president Alan Steremberg and is expected to close in several weeks.
“Everyone in the weather space is familiar with the strength of Weather Underground and its innovative method of presenting weather data. Weather Underground will add a great complementary, brand to our portfolio, a brand with a distinct, loyal, and active user base that will enable us to reach a unique segment of users,” said Kenny. “Most importantly, this acquisition will grow the weather expertise that is central to everything we do and will result in better forecasts and weather data for users on all of our platforms.”
“Becoming a part of The Weather Channel Companies will enable us to strengthen what our users love about wunderground.com, our apps and our blogs,” said Steremberg. “We see this as a great opportunity to grow.”
Looks like someone’s having a sunny day.
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