Even Google Not Immune in Downturn

Regulators cite Yahoo, AOL, and Microsoft as 'credible' competitors

(NEWSER) - Google acquired ad tracker DoubleClick today after EU regulators approved the $3.1 billion deal, the AP reports. Antitrust officials dismissed concerns about competition, saying Microsoft, Yahoo, and AOL also provide “credible” online ad services. The ruling ducked questions of how private data will be handled, an issue that riles privacy advocates on both sides of the pond. More»

'Google X' lab envisions future of technology

(NEWSER) - To Google is to search, but in the future it could mean much more. Google operates a secret lab in the Bay Area devoted to projects far beyond the cutting-edge: ideas like robots that go to the office for you and dinner plates that communicate with your social network, the New York Times reports. Google X, as the lab is known, employs some of the country’s top engineers and has a list of 100 projects in the works, including elevators that would travel from Earth to space. More»

Co-founder Larry Page will take over in April

(NEWSER) - Google made a surprise shuffle at the top today when announcing its quarterly results: Eric Schmidt is stepping down as CEO and will be replaced by co-founder Larry Page, reports MarketWatch . Schmidt will remain with the company as executive chairman, while Page's co-founder, Sergey Brin, will take a bigger role with a focus on "strategic projects." Schmidt plans to sell some of his Google shares, a move that would see him clear $334 million at today's prices, notes Fortune . See Google's official blog on the shuffle here . More»

Facebook founder tops Steve Jobs, Rupert Murdoch

(NEWSER) - Frighteningly enough, Mark Zuckerberg tops Vanity Fair 's list of this year's most influential people of the Information Age. The top 5 of its 100:

1. Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook: His company is valued at around $25 billion, has more than 500 million members, runs 176 billion banner ads a month, and is looking at $2 billion in revenue this year.
2. Steve Jobs, Apple: He's already saved the music business, now he's looking to do the same for the publishing industry with the iPad. And sales of his market-dominating iPhone will likely top $20 billion this year.

Buffett bumps Gates in redrawn rankings of world's wealthiest

(NEWSER) - The mortgage meltdown has certainly hit middle-class Americans hard but hasn't spared the uber-wealthy, Bloomberg reports. Las Vegas Sands CEO Sheldon Adelson’s net worth shed $4 billion between Aug. 29 and Oct. 1, for instance, while Warren Buffett overtook Bill Gates, whose net worth declined $1.5 billion, as the richest American. Other losers and their losses: More»