February 26, 2007
Electronic Arts Gets New CEO
Electronic Arts announced today that John Riccitiello will become its new CEO. John was formerly the COO and President of EA before he left to co-found the Elevation Partners investment firm. Elevation had recently acquired both Bioware and Pandemic. The current CEO, Larry Probst, will remain as executive chairman of the board of directors.
I met Larry a few years ago. He's by far the most successful CEO in the history of videogames bringing EA out of Trip Hawkins' hands to the dominant force it is today after 16 years. Unlike many other executives in the industry, Larry truly knew his stuff and was a strategic visionary. He should be celebrated for all that he has done for the industry over the years. I've criticized EA for losing its way recently, but still recognize what Larry has done over his career. [Discuss]
Costco Changes TV Return Policy
According to this leaked memo, Costco has decided to change its generous TV return policy from forever to 90 days. The new policy starts on February 26th for California and then rolls out across the country over the next few weeks. Too many people have abused the previous policy, just like they did with computers in the past. The company decided enough was enough. [Discuss]February 21, 2007
Favorite Podcasts
Podcasting is still such a young medium. My iTunes podcast subscription list has already gone through many iterations. Here is my current list:
1UP Yours (1UP gang talking about the latest games)
1UP.com - Retronauts (1UP gang talking about retro classic gaming)
Comedy Central: Stand-Up (stand-up snippet videos)
Diggnation (Kevin Rose Digg podcast)
EGM Live (EGM folk talking games)
Gaming Steve (best gaming podcast, seems to be on hold)
GFW Radio (PC gaming)
iinnovate (podcast from Standford business school for entrepreneurs - good interviews)
Legendary Thread (1UP gang talking World of Warcraft)
Maximum PC's No BS (PC hardware enthusiasts)
Next Generation Podcast (another gaming podcast with good interviews)
NPR: Car Talk (funny Q&A of the week)
NPR: Driveway moments (best story of the week)
NPR: Motley Fool (good business interviews)
PC Gamer Podcast (PC gaming)
PIMCO Investment Outlook (Bill Gross)
Science Talk (Scientific American)
1UP Show (video podcast)
The Economist (magazine podcast)
This American Life (radio show)
Twit (one of the pioneers)
U.S. Senator Barack Obama (He wants to be President)
X-play Daily Video (videogame reviews)
Yale University (some lectures)
What are your favorites? Please let me know.
February 17, 2007
The Story of Sergey Brin
Read about the life story of Sergey Brin. If it wasn't for his parents leaving Russia, he would of never been the Google billionaire he is today. A good read. Makes you think about how lucky we are to live in the best country in the world in this time in history.February 11, 2007
Samsung iPhone Clone Ultra Smart F700
Samsung's prototype F700 will also have a slide-out keyboard. The phone will have a touch-screen, be able to browse the web, play music and videos, email, and take pictures (5 megapixel vs. iPhone's 2 megapixel). It will also use true 3G broadband access which will be faster than iPhone's 2.5G speeds. It sure didn't take long for Samsung to copy iPhone. The company will present the phone at a wireless show to gauge response. If I was Steve Jobs, I would not be happy, but that
is "par de course" on the mobile industry fast lane.
