10 Hottest Domains: 1996 vs. Today

Eolas Technologies patent claims interactive web is its brainchild

(NEWSER) - A case is being tried in Tyler, Texas, this week that could determine the future of the Internet. On one side: The world's top web companies, including Google, Amazon, Yahoo, and Apple. On the other: A tiny company called Eolas Technologies that claims it patented the "interactive web." In its telling, a program by Chicago biologist Michael Doyle allowing doctors to view embryos, developed in 1993, was the first to allow users to interact with images in a browser, Wired explains. More»

New set of standards could make email more trustworthy

(NEWSER) - A new anti-phishing effort, backed by the big email service providers as well as banks, PayPal, social networks, and other companies, could dramatically reduce the number of scam emails you get in your inbox. Google, Yahoo, Microsoft, and AOL are backing the new plan; 15 companies in total have come together to create DMARC.org, which officially launches today and will promote standard technologies to authenticate email. The hoped-for end result? If you get an email that claims to be from paypal.com, you could trust that it is actually from paypal.com. If it works, companies would be able to communicate with customers in new ways, the Wall Street Journal reports. More»

Microsoft co-founder refiles suit after judge's dismissal

(NEWSER) - Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen has re-filed his mammoth patent lawsuit targeting a host of major web companies including Apple, Google, Facebook, Netflix, eBay, Aol, and Yahoo. Allen’s original lawsuit, filed in August, was dismissed because it was too vague, failing to name specific products or services. The refiling, which you can see at the Seattle Times , rectifies that, in part by including 40 exhibits, most of which consist of website screenshots with the allegedly offending module highlighted. More»

Paul Allen targets Apple, Google, Yahoo

(NEWSER) - Paul Allen’s licensing company is suing a who’s who of the biggest forces in tech—including Apple, Google, eBay, Facebook, Netflix, Yahoo, and Aol—over a handful of patents filed by a now-defunct startup he funded during the Internet bubble. The four patents in question seem to encompass technology that is integral to pretty much any e-commerce site or search engine, the Wall Street Journal reports. More»

(NEWSER) - Microsoft, Amazon, and Yahoo are ganging up against Google Books, trying to quash its settlement with publishers and authors, the Wall Street Journal reports. The settlement, which still needs court approval, would allow Google to offer works scanned off library shelves online for free, provided publishers get a cut of the ad revenue. Now its rival tech giants are joining with some library associations to try to block the deal on antitrust grounds. More»