Internet News
Historic Facebook debut falls flat
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - The historic initial public offering of Facebook Inc did not go as planned on Friday, as the social networking company's sky-high valuation combined with trading glitches left the stock languishing near its offering price at the market close....
Pakistan briefly bans Twitter access for "blasphemy"
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan banned access to Twitter on Sunday because of "blasphemous" material, a Pakistani official said, but normal service was resumed after 12 hours....
Pakistan blocks Twitter access over "blasphemous content"
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan on Sunday blocked access to Twitter in response to "blasphemous" material posted by users on the microblogging and social networking website, a senior government official said....
Alibaba buys back 20 percent stake held by Yahoo for $7.1 billion
SHANGHAI/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Chinese Internet entrepreneur Jack Ma is buying back up to half of a 40 percent stake in his Alibaba Group from Yahoo Inc for $7.1 billion, in a deal that moves the Chinese e-commerce leader closer to a public listing....
Mediaset fears internet challenge amid ad slump
MILAN (Reuters) - An executive at Mediaset said on Friday internet giants could challenge Italy's biggest commercial broadcaster's business model in coming years, while the advertising outlook remains grim....
Iran threatens to sue Google over dropping Persian Gulf
DUBAI (Reuters) - Iran's Foreign Ministry threatened on Thursday to take legal action against Google for dropping the name Persian Gulf from its Google Maps and leaving the waterway between Iran and Arab states nameless, state television reported....
GM ad move followed failed Facebook pitch: sources
DETROIT/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Facebook may only have itself to blame for why General Motors rained on its IPO parade this week....
Comcast trying out Internet usage pricing, dropping caps
(Reuters) - Comcast Corp said on Thursday it will introduce a trial for usage-based billing for its Internet subscribers in a move seen to pre-empt more complaints the cable company favors its own Web video service over rivals....
Insight: Who got Facebook IPO shares? Fairness may not come into it
NEW YORK (Reuters) - A lot of loyal Facebook fans and occasional investors are discovering a hard truth this week: Money and connections talk, especially when it comes to a hot deal handled by Wall Street....
Pinterest financing values company at $1.5 billion
(Reuters) - Silicon Valley startup Pinterest raised $100 million from a group led by Japanese online retailer Rakuten Inc, valuing the company at about $1.5 billion and underscoring the huge investor appetite for social-networking companies....