Facebook Drops Below $30 - Zuckerberg Loses Cash

According to the Forbes Real Time Billionaires site, Mark Zuckerberg lost $1.5 billion dollars yesterday, as Facebook's stock took another dip yesterday. So far this morning shares are up 2%, but an analyst I spoke with expects prices to bottom out at $23. At this point his guess is as good as any - so I will wait and see.

Badgeville raises $25M

Badgeville announced yesterday that it raised an additional $25 million to bring it total funding to $40 million, in a round led  by Interwest Partners. Many may dismiss "gamification", investors and its 165 corporate customers have been embracing. Its behavioral products "measures and influences user behavior across a business's customer- and employee-facing experiences."

Tim Cook opts out of $75M worth of company dividends

Cook has changed the culture at Apple since taking over the helm and his employees are giving him high marks. So when this popular and high earning CEO opts out of $75 M worth of company dividends - you immediately think - how amazing of him.
But why? Has Cook determined that he has been compensated enough? Or is this simply a tax play as was suggested by Tim Worstall @ Forbes.com.

"At Mr. Cook's request, none of his restricted stock units will participate in dividend equivalents," the company said in the filing, which was flagged by MacRumors. "Assuming a quarterly dividend of $2.65 per share over the vesting periods of his 1.125 million outstanding restricted stock units, Mr. Cook will forego approximately $75 million in dividend equivalent value."

A $74 Computer that Hangs From Your Key Chain

I wrote a piece a few years back where I compared the new generation of smart phones as super computers in your pocket, but how about a computer that hangs from your key chain. Chinese retailers are selling out of these miniature thumb-drive sized computers which are capable of running Android 4.0 and other ARM-compatible Linux platforms. The AllWinner has an HDMI port to allow users to connect to their TV, which is great because it outputs at 1080p.Take a look at the specs as reported by CNX.

Buy one here!

Specs:

CPU	AllWinner A10 @ 1.5GHz + Mali 400 GPU
Memory	512MB RAM
Storage	4GB Flash microSD slot (Up to 32GB)
Connectivity	WiFi 802.11b/g
USB	micro USB 2.0/OTG port USB 2.0 Host port
Keyboard	Android virtual keyboard or 2.4G wireless keyboard + fly mouse
Video output	HDMI (1080p)
Video Codecs	WMV/ASF/MP4/3GP/3G2M4V/AVI/MJPEG/RV10/DivX/VC-1/MPEG-2/ MPEG-4/H.263/H.264/1280*720P HD 30 fps, 1080P/720*480 D1 30fps
Audio Codecs	AAC, AAC+, eAAC+, AMR-NB, AMR-WB, QCP, MP3, WMA, WAV, MIDI, M4A
Operating System	Android 4.0 (ICS)
Power Input	5V/2A
Size	8.8*3.5*1.2cm
Weight	200g

Google Donates Office Space to Cornell for Temp Tech Campus

Google is donating 22,000 sq ft of NYC office space to Cornell University and Technion-Israel Institute of Technology for the next 5 years, while the CornellNYC Tech Campus is built on Randall's Island. Mayor Bloomberg, who led the Tech Campus initiative, believes it will generate as many as 600 spinoff companies and $23 billion in economic activity. The Tech Campus hopes to lure the best and the brightest to NYC.

Apple Goes with 4-inch Screen for Next iPhone

From the MSN tech blog, Apple has been placing orders for the new displays with suppliers in Japan and South Korea. This will represent a 30% increase in in viewable space and it evens the playing field with Android competitors.

Mark Pincus - Billionaire Once Again?

Mark Pincus, CEO of Zynga, and an early investor in Facebook has had a difficult few months. His total net worth has dropped significantly as Zynga shares hit a 52-week low yesterday ($7.34). At the moment, based on the value of his largest holding -  Zynga, Mark is no longer a Billionaire!
But that will change in a few days with the Facebook IPO according to http://whoownsfacebook.com/, who say that Pincus' .5% of Facebook has a value of $425 Million. So by Friday he should be back on the Forbes Real-Time Billionaires List with a new net worth of approximately $1.2 Billion. His financial situation may improve even more if Zynga can catch a virtual ride on the Facebook wave this week.

Saverin Renounces U.S. Citizenship Before Facebook IPO

With the Facebook IPO just around the corner, Eduardo Saverin, its co-founder, has renounced his U.S. citizenship. Saverin has reportedly been living it up in Singapore. The locals consider him one of its most influential technology figures. But the true question how will it impact  his tax bill after the IPO?
 

iPad Hits the Road, Again!

I remembering writing a blog about pairing your mobile devices to make life easier on yourself, and I told folks to buy an iPad if they had an iPhone, or if you had an Android phone - get the matching android tablet. But now the decision process can be influenced by the car you decide to purchase and I suspect not to far away the refrigerator you purchase as well. The new Cadillac XTS comes with an iPad, so owners can get an enhanced digital version of the Cadillac User Experience (CUE) - and learn all about their new vehicle. This might be overkill for reading your users manual - but it beats the heck out of the plastic water bottle I received when I purchased my car.

Do Youngsters Need a Break From Social Media?

Nestle's Kit Kat (of Singapore) brand seems to think so. They have developed Kit Kat Social Break, a social media auto pilot desktop widget that will help youngsters keep up with the social media obligations without consuming all of their time. Once installed users can set Social Break to auto-like photos on Facebook when they are tagged, auto-reply to tweets, and auto-share posts on LinkedIn.
While this widget seems to address a need - I wonder how it will avoid "Like"-ing negative posts. Let's say that a tragic event occurred or a picture is not relevant or inappropriate - Auto-liking might have put a user in the social dog house.

Kindle Fire Sales Cools Down

The Kindle was the HOT gift during the Christmas holiday - well if you didn't get an iPad that is.  Kindle Fire sales have dropped about 4 % in January-March (2012) period from 16.8 % in the fourth quarter, according to IDC. 
While Apple's iPad is still number one, the drop by Kindle allowed Samsung to slide into second position. The Nook was fourth. Let's see how Mother's Day will play out for Amazon.

Evernote Has a 1 Billion Dollar Valuation

Your online recollection app is all grown-up and is getting ready for the ball, its IPO.
CEO, Phil Linbin is preparing the company for its IPO. Linbin is keen on growth through acquisition. Wonderful idea. But can Linbin take this freemium company and make it a long term success. I've only
launched it once or twice, then I deleted it. I don't quite see the interest in it. 

The Washington Post is Hiring DIGG's Tech's

Peter Kafka post last night about the WP hiring the Digg technology team to work alongside its team on their Facebook app. And this raises the question, why buy a company if you can acquire its most valuable asset -their developers.
So take note, if you have developers on your staff who are talented, make sure that you keep them happy. Money, new computers and lots of Soda & Yoohoo!