Google

On the first April Fool's Day to fall on a weekend in five years, there was less opportunity to trick people surfing the web at work. But that didn't stop Google from posting a slew of clever and very bogus tech-related stories. The company ... unleashed at least seven different gags, many of which were gathered together in a "promotional video". It seems as if Google was using a scattergun approach in the hope that even people who spotted most of the jokes would get caught out by at least one. Google Maps Gets Major Downgrade Rather naughtily, Google's first gag came before the day of ... (view more)

Google is currently getting grilled by French officials over the way it handles customer privacy. At the same time, the search giant is also facing stern criticism from British politicians regarding the way it deals with complaints involving illegal ... websites. The French authority that governs data handling in the country, the Commission nationale de l'informatique et des libertes, (CNIL) has even slapped the company with a deadline of April 6, by which it must answer to the Commission. The CNIL is currently leading a Europe-wide probe into Google's recent changes to its privacy policies. ... (view more)

France's National Commission for Computing and Civil Liberties (CNIL) claims Google's new privacy policy violates European Union law. CNIL is an agency charged with protecting citizens' private information, and reporting to the European Commission. ... Last January, Google announced its new privacy plan, scheduled to take effect this Thursday, March 1, 2012. The plan claims to allow for more convenient tracking of its privacy initiatives across Gmail, Google Docs, and about 60 other online services, while clarifying those policies for its users. Critics Say Advertising, Monetization Drives ... (view more)

Google has unveiled a major overhaul of its online user tracking system, claiming to make its services more useful. However, critics fear the changes, set for March 1, 2012, will allow for more effective snooping of user data and online activities. ... The changes center around the way the company keeps track of activity data, and the way it's then used. Google Pools Online Tracking to 'Improve' Advertising, Search Under the old system, someone who receives a lot of emails about football will see advertisements for football. Someone who watches a lot of comedy clips on YouTube will see lots of ... (view more)

Google says it was "mortified" at word that its staff have been using misrepresentation to win business in Africa. Employees of the US search firm have been accused of using a Kenyan company's business listings to contact customers and pitch a ... competing service. The victimized firm is known as "Mocality," a company that tries to help businesses of all size benefit from the Internet. Mocality is paid to index details of Kenyan companies, creating an online directory of more than 170,000 firms. Last year, the company began receiving phone calls from companies asking about ... (view more)

Twitter has accused Google of fixing its search results to boost to its own social networking service, Google+. Twitter says the move produces results that don't accurately reflect the latest news. The dispute involves search engines (like Google) ... that once merely scanned and indexed static web pages, but now factor in a variety of sources, including online networking posts. In the past, Google included Twitter posts in its main search results, including messages that had been re-tweeted (reposted) frequently. Unlike Google's main results list, this "Real-time search" would regularly refresh ... (view more)

In a recent interview with a European newspaper, Google executive chairman Eric Schmidt let slip that his company is planning to manufacture its very own tablet PC, with a release date pegged about six months from now. Although Google's Android ... mobile operating system (OS) is currently running on a number of tablets manufactured by other hardware companies (including Motorola and Lenovo), until now Google has not positioned itself as the manufacturer. The report comes after Schmidt's interview with Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera. During the exchange, the prominent chairman revealed ... (view more)

Google has renewed its deal to be the default search engine for the Firefox browser, providing Mozilla a major financial boost. But some suggest Microsoft bargained for that same slot, and ponder the implications for the search market. Google's ... contract for Firefox's default search engine position was worth $89 million in 2009 and $103 million in 2010, about 85 per cent of Mozilla's revenue. Experts believe Mozilla's other licensing deals, grants, and donations from users would produce nowhere near enough income to keep the browser well supported and updated. That may explain why it is asking ... (view more)

Google has unveiled the final version of its much-anticipated music download service, Google Music, instantly positioning itself to butt heads with Apple's iTunes, Spotify and Rdio. Google Music will be fully integrated with the company's new social ... networking platform, Google+, allowing users to share music publicly or only with specific individuals. In addition, the new music service is available, with millions of songs, on the Android Market. Google Music: Pricing Similar, Storage Cap Higher Like iTunes, the price is about one buck per song, and between $8 and $12 for an album. Of course, ... (view more)

Google is now taking its popular (though sometimes controversial) Google Maps Street View off the sidewalk and right into the brick-and-mortar of prominent businesses. Right now, a number of establishments have allowed the search giant to post ... pictures of their business environment on the web. Google Maps Street View is a handy little search tool that extends the basic Google Maps experience. It allows users to see the actual location from the street. It's extremely useful when you're unfamiliar with an area and need to know exactly what the destination looks like from a street level. Privacy ... (view more)