Verizon has bought AOL in a big media push by the telco giant. Google’s self driving cars drive 1.7M miles & get in 11 wrecks… But there is a twist!

Plus Ubuntu, GE & Microsoft team of for Network connect fridges & more!

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In Big Media Push, Verizon Buys AOL For $4.4B [Memo From AOL CEO Tim Armstrong] | TechCrunch

AOL will become a subsidiary of Verizon as part of the deal, overseeing a bigger push into content and mobile video by Verizon.

“Verizon’s acquisition further drives its LTE wireless video and OTT (over-the-top video) strategy,” the carrier said in a statement.

In addition to original content across different platforms like video and written word, and desktop and mobile, there are other assets that could be interesting fits for Verizon.

For starters, AOL has been building up a programmatic advertising business to build up how AOL monetizes alongside newer formats like video and mobile. Currently that business — which is the fastest growing operation at AOL in terms of revenues — is split between ads on AOL-owned sites and third-party sites. Verizon picking this up could potentially further build out both, with the company partnering with the likes of ESPN to develop content and also giving the AOL-owned properties potentially much bigger audiences.

Google’s self-driving car head says after 1.7M miles, just 11 minor accidents have resulted, none Google’s fault

Over the 6 years since we started the project, we’ve been involved in 11 minor accidents (light damage, no injuries) during those 1.7 million miles of autonomous and manual driving with our safety drivers behind the wheel, and not once was the self-driving car the cause of the accident.

Google Confirms Cops Can Wiretap Your Hangouts

Hangouts is encrypted “in transit” and that “there are legal authorities that allow the government to wiretap communications.”

Microsoft Investing In Submarine Cables In Support Of Cloud

Microsoft is investing in several submarine cables to connect data centers globally and in support of growing data network needs.

​Ubuntu jumps into Internet of Things with Acer, GE, and Microsoft | ZDNet

Old enemies are becoming new allies as technology shifts from the PC/desktop model to first mobile computing and now the Internet of Things (IoT). Canonical, Ubuntu Linux’s parent company, is partnering with Acer, DataArt, and Microsoft.