Top News:
Danny Sullivan / Marketing Land:
Accelerated Mobile Pages Project, Backed By Google, Promises Faster Pages — Google, along with Twitter, is expected to announce a new open initiative aimed at making pages load more quickly on mobile devices, a counter to moves by Facebook & Apple. — Wouldn't you like to have stuff …
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Russell Brandom / The Verge:
Google's AMP code available on GitHub as of Thursday, The Guardian, Washington Post, Vox, and others already using it — Google has a new plan to speed up the mobile web. Today, the company announced a technical preview for a system called Accelerated Mobile Pages (or AMP) …
Discussion:
Fortune, CNNMoney, BuzzMachine, Journalism.co.uk, Official Google Blog, WordPress.com VIP, AppleInsider, Telegraph, @russellbrandom, @antderosa and The Next Web
Josh Kosman / New York Post:
Sources: Media General drops plans to buy Meredith for $2.4B — Media General drops bid to acquire Meredith — Media General's $2.4 billion agreement to acquire Meredith Corp. is dead, two sources close to the deal said. — One day after The Post reported exclusively …
Discussion:
USA Today, TVSpy, FishbowlNY, GoLocalProv.com, Talking New Media and Media Wire Daily
Ravi Somaiya / New York Times:
New York Times memo outlines plans to double digital revenue to $800M in 2020, says 12% of readers currently deliver 90% — Times Co. Outlines Strategy to Double Digital Revenue — The New York Times Company released a strategy memo to its staff on Wednesday outlining an ambitious plan …
Discussion:
Politico, Poynter, @austenhufford, @edmundlee and New York Times
TechCrunch:
Pandora Acquires Ticketfly For $450M To Sell Concert Tickets — Pandora has a new tool in its belt to fight against Apple Music and Spotify. The music streaming just announced it will purchase Ticketfly, a Ticketmaster-type site, for $450m in cash and stock.
Discussion:
New York Times, Business Wire, Re/code, TechnoBuffalo, CNET, Seeking Alpha, Business Insider, Radio Ink Magazine, Music Ally, Billboard, Fortune and The FADER
Lisa Campbell / Bookseller News:
Waterstones, the UK's largest book retailer, removes Kindles as sales continue to decline — Waterstones is removing Kindles from stores — Waterstones is removing Amazon's Kindle devices from many of it stores as sales “continue to be pitiful”. — The company's m.d James Daunt …
Discussion:
InvestorPlace, Guardian, Telegraph, Good E-Reader, Telecompaper, Ars Technica UK, @stuartdredge, TrustedReviews, Engadget, Bookseller News and Publishers Lunch
Alan Clendenning / Associated Press:
Digital news site El Español launches Wednesday in Spain, led by Pedro J. Ramirez, who was ousted from El Mundo last year — Legendary Spanish editor launching new digital publication — 4 photos — MADRID (AP) — The legendary Spanish newspaper editor is flush with 18 million euros …
Discussion:
euroweeklynews.com
William Turvill / Press Gazette:
Johnston Press announces closures of 11 free titles to focus on ‘digital offering’ — Johnston Press has announced the closures of 11 free newspapers. The regional publisher has axed eight free print titles in the Midlands and folded a further three into paid-for titles in the North West and South.
Discussion:
Johnston Press plc, @pressgazette, HoldTheFrontPage and Reuters
New York Times:
New York Attorney General opens inquiry into fantasy sports sites, asks DraftKings and FanDuel for internal data and details on how they prevent fraud — New York Attorney General Opens Inquiry Into Fantasy Sports Sites — The New York attorney general began an inquiry Tuesday into the prospect …
Discussion:
Forbes, VatorNews, Legal Sports Report, Business Insider, The Hill, Deadspin, SBNation.com, FSTA, CalvinAyre.com, BetaBoston, NBC News, FanDuel Newsroom and Engadget
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ProPublica:
Verizon merges its cellphone tracking supercookies with AOL's ad network, will be able to match users' online habits with personal details — Verizon's Zombie Cookie Gets New Life — Verizon is giving a new mission to its controversial hidden identifier that tracks users of mobile devices.
Discussion:
TechCrunch, Verizon FiOS & Custom TV, Consumerist, Marketing Land, Techdirt, The Next Web, SlashGear, Engadget and The Verge
Emily Nussbaum / New Yorker:
As TV evolves, viewers struggle with whether to embrace or resist its commercialism — The Price Is Right — Ever since the finale of “Mad Men,” I've been meditating on its audacious last image. Don Draper, sitting cross-legged and purring “Ommmm,” is achieving inner peace at an Esalen-like retreat.
Discussion:
The Awl, @freddiedeboer, @kbandersen, @pomeranian99, @michele866 and @sethdmichaels
Dan Rayburn / StreamingMediaBlog.com:
Amazon in talks with content owners about licensing content sources say, supports recent Elemental acquisition if company planning live OTT video service — Content Owners Say Amazon Is Considering A Live OTT Streaming Service — Over the past few months, multiple content owners have told …
Discussion:
Multichannel News, Light Reading and USA Today
Greg Howard / Deadspin:
Insiders say ESPN's black sports and culture site The Undefeated has failed to launch because of corporate fear of offending readers and lack of investment — How ESPN's Fear Of The Truth Defeated “Black Grantland” — Last month, The Atlantic published an 18,000-word article by Ta-Nehisi Coates called …
Discussion:
City Desk, @brownasthenight, @jamilsmith, @weareyourfek, @romenesko, @brfreed and @lukeplunkett