Business Wire:
AOL to Acquire Global Social Media Network Bebo  —  NEW YORK—(BUSINESS WIRE)—AOL announced today that it has entered into an agreement to acquire Bebo (http://www.bebo.com), a leading global social media network.  Together with its AIM and ICQ personal communications network …

Matt / Photo Matt:
WordPress is Open Source  —  Six Apart has recently decided that the best way to win back customers fleeing their platforms is to target WordPress, which is a new strategy they call competing.  (What have they been doing the past 7 years?)  A good example is this exchange between a commenter […]

Duncan Riley / TechCrunch:
The Future Of Voice May Be Voiceless  —  The above video is a little rough in terms of processing delay, but it’s staggering.  Voice without voice.  —  According to New Scientist, the neckband translates thought into speech by picking up nerve signals; “with careful training a person …

Elinor Mills / CNET News.com:
Google testing service to let publishers manage ads  —  Google is testing a new service called Ad Manager that will give Web site publishers more control over their ad sales and ad serving, The Wall Street Journal reported late on Wednesday.  —  Publishers can sell their own ads …

Tom Simonite / New Scientist:
Nerve-tapping neckband allows ‘telepathic’ chat  —  A neckband that translates thought into speech by picking up nerve signals has been used to demonstrate a “voiceless” phone call for the first time.  —  With careful training a person can send nerve signals to their vocal cords without making a sound.

Mark Raby / Tom’s Hardware Guide:
Blu-ray Player Prices Hit 2008 Highs As Competition Dwindles  —  Pricewatch - Blu-ray Disc players from Samsung, Sony and Sharp are now the most expensive they have been all year, presumably because HD DVD’s exit from the high-def disc arena has removed some of Blu-ray’s pricing pressure.

Steve Lohr / New York Times:
Video Road Hogs Stir Fear of Internet Traffic Jam  —  Caution: Heavy Internet traffic ahead.  Delays possible.  —  For months there has been a rising chorus of alarm about the surging growth in the amount of data flying across the Internet.  The threat, according to some industry groups … […]

Erick Schonfeld / TechCrunch:
Amazon’s Latest Product Launch is a Couple of Facebook Apps  —  Amazon has now officially joined the Facebook craze.  It has launched two of its own Facebook applications: Amazon Giver and Amazon Grapevine.  —  Amazon Giver shows your Amazon wishlist on your Facebook page.