It’s a Bird, It’s a Plane … or Just Google Loon – Daily Linkfest (June 20)

by Aaron Levitt | June 20, 2014 9:57 am

Google (GOOG[1]) is back in the news because of its ambitious project to use balloons to bring Wi-Fi Internet to all. Except this time, the news wasn’t about how innovative the technology is, or even about how it’s ultimately doomed to failure or something like that. No, as Lucy Craymer explains over in The Wall Street Journal, Google is making headlines because it sparked a panic when one of its Loons was “mistaken for a crashing plane.”

Time (Eliana Dockterman): When it’s not scaring New Zealand residents with descending aircraft, Google is investing $50 million in Made With Code, an initiative to encourage more young women to explore their passion for coding.

CNN Money (Gregory Wallace): Killswitch engage: Google and Microsoft (MSFT[2]) are following the lead of Apple (AAPL[3]) and Samsung (SSNLF[4]) by allowing users to disable their devices in case they’re ever stolen.

The Verge (Tom Warren): Maybe you won’t have to use that killswitch to keep the NSA from spying on you. The U.S. House of Representatives passed a proposal to limit NSA spying.

Bloomberg (Gwen Ackerman): Hard to say whether this is a sign of the times, or just a harbinger of the tech apocalypse, but Israel now has Bitcoin ATMs.

Forbes (Jim Gorzelany): Now you can ride the highway like an environmentally friendly leather-clad badass. Harley-Davidson (HOG[5]) is now making electric motorcycles.

Ars Technica (Casey Johnston): If you were running out of things to binge watch on Netflix (NFLX[6]) … A) we recommend some time outdoors, and B) Netflix has you covered. The service will be adding talk shows in 2016[7].

The Verge (Rich McCormick): Robert Morris University is radically expanding its sports program by adding “e-sports” and offering substantial scholarships to League of Legends players[8].

Aaron Levitt is an investment journalist living in Ohio. With nearly two decades of experience, his work appears in several high-profile publications in both print and on the web. Also likes a good Reuben sandwich. Follow his picks and pans on Twitter at @AaronLevitt[9].

Endnotes:

  1. GOOG: /stock-quotes/GOOG-stock-quote/
  2. MSFT: /stock-quotes/MSFT-stock-quote/
  3. AAPL: /stock-quotes/AAPL-stock-quote/
  4. SSNLF: /stock-quotes/SSNLF-stock-quote/
  5. HOG: /stock-quotes/HOG-stock-quote/
  6. NFLX: /stock-quotes/NFLX-stock-quote/
  7. talk shows in 2016: http://arstechnica.com/business/2014/06/netflix-brings-a-talk-show-into-its-original-programming-mix-for-2016/
  8. substantial scholarships to League of Legends players: http://www.theverge.com/2014/6/19/5826158/college-athletic-scholarships-for-league-of-legends-players
  9. @AaronLevitt: https://twitter.com/AaronLevitt

Source URL: https://investorplace.com/2014/06/google-loon-landing/