Staci D. Kramer / paidContent:
Apple Approves Real’s Rhapsody iPhone App; First Look  —  Maybe it was the anti-trust patrol looking over Apple’s shoulder or the memory of the RealNetwork settlement with Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT), but the Rhapsody iPhone/iTouch app—the first in the U.S. to offer on-demand streaming music …

Arnold Kim / macrumors.com:
Apple’s Focus on Games: Madden NFL 10, Nova, Assassin’s Creed, Riddim Ribbon  —  At today’s “It’s Only Rock and Roll” media event, Apple focused on games for a significant portion of the event.  Apple’s Phil Schiller even directly compared the iPod touch to the Sony PSP and Nintendo DS.

Clint Boulton / eWeek:
Google Voice, Skype Are on a VOIP Collision Course  —  News Analysis: Why would Google want to acquire Skype when it already has a VOIP application?  The fact is, Google Voice and Skype are not yet direct competitors, but Google is enriching its application and could put it on a collision […]

David Pogue / Bits:
Steve Jobs on Amazon and Ice Cream  —  Steve Jobs at an Apple music event on Wednesday. … Wednesday in San Francisco, I attended Apple’s annual iPod Show, its holiday-season kickoff of new iPods and iTunes Store developments.  —  I’ll have a look at what’s new in a post on Pogue’s […]

David Pogue / Bits:
Q&A: Steve Jobs Snipes at Amazon, Praises Ice Cream  —  Q&A: Steve Jobs Snipes at Amazon, Praises Ice Cream  —  Steve Jobs at an Apple music event on Wednesday. … Q.  —  Will there be a break in new products as a result of your absence?  —  A.  —  There were […]

David Pogue / Bits:
In Q&A, Steve Jobs Snipes at Amazon and Praises Ice Cream  —  In Q&A, Steve Jobs Snipes at Amazon and Praises Ice Cream  —  Steve Jobs at an Apple music event on Wednesday. … Q.  —  Will there be a break in new products as a result of your absence?  —  […]

Erica Ogg / CNET News:
Jobs makes it clear he’s back in charge at Apple  —  SAN FRANCISCO—Though technically he returned to work two months ago, it was as the host of Wednesday’s Apple music event that Steve Jobs publicly retook the reins of the company he founded.  —  Jobs was the first person to […]

MG Siegler / TechCrunch:
Google Rolls Out The Mother Of All Updates: A Larger Search Box  —  Google is continually updating its search experience via the algorithms and the way results are displayed.  But when it comes to the search box itself, it has largely left it alone.  Sure, it has added drop downs for […]

MG Siegler / TechCrunch:
Google Appears To Be Testing The Mother Of All Updates: A Larger Search Box  —  Google is continually updating its search experience via the algorithms and the way results are displayed.  But when it comes to the search box itself, it has largely left it alone.

Zachary M. Seward / Nieman Journalism Lab:
Google developing a micropayment platform and pitching newspapers: “’Open’ need not mean free”  —  Google is developing a micropayment platform that will be “available to both Google and non-Google properties within the next year,” according to a document the company submitted to the Newspaper Association of America.