E-commerce

Computer visionary says he knows who invented Bitcoin

The inventor of Bitcoin has been shrouded in a mystery so complete, it's baffled even core developers for the virtual currency. Who is Satoshi Nakamoto, the pseudonym for the person or group of people who came up with the original idea for the electronic cash system in 2008?

After contributing thousands of lines of code and hundreds of posts on Bitcoin, Nakamoto sent a note to a developer in April 2011 saying that he had "moved on to other things." Later that year, the New Yorker and others tried to unravel the mystery, but came away empty-handed. … Read more

Former Groupon CEO shares 'business wisdom' through song

Ousted Groupon CEO Andrew Mason wants to drop some knowledge on the younger generation, so he recorded an entire album of songs about "business wisdom."

Mason is known for having a sense of humor so he's probably joking (let's hope he's joking). Otherwise prepare yourself for seven songs of "motivational business music targeted at people newly entering the workforce," according to his blog entry posted Thursday.

More importantly, Mason is ready to move on to a new gig. He's creating a startup and will mentor startup newbs at Y Combinator. He didn'… Read more

Amazon adds NBC shows like 'Grimm' to streaming catalog

Amazon on Thursday added several NBCUniversal titles to its Prime Instant Video streaming catalog, including "Grimm" and "Suits."

Prior seasons of "Grimm," an NBC fantasy drama based on the Brothers Grimm fairy tales, are available Thursday on Amazon, as is USA Network's "Suits" and "Covert Affairs." NBC's "Hannibal" psychological thriller will be available later this year, and Syfy's "Defiance" will be available early next year. USA Networks and Syfy are both owned by NBCUniversal.

All previous seasons are exclusive to Amazon, and Prime … Read more

Ticketfly lets venues, promoters customize loyalty programs

Ticketfly, a ticketing and marketing service, has launched an initiative aimed at giving venues and event promoters the ability to direct targeted rewards at their most loyal customers.

The impetus behind the Fanbase initiative, announced Wednesday, is that while 7 percent of ticket buyers generate 30 percent of the revenue brought in at the gate of events utilizing Ticketfly tickets, there has previously been no way to adequately identify, reward, and motivate those people.

While other ticketing and marketing services have rolled out other loyalty programs, San Francisco-based Ticketfly said its new program is the industry's most sophisticated effort … Read more

Amazon rolls out Cloud Player app for PCs

Amazon quietly released a Cloud Player app for PCs as an extension of its music streaming service.

While PC users could already use the player through the Web, the new app, noted by Mashable on Monday, also allows for offline storage. We've contacted Amazon for more details and will update if we hear back.

The app automatically syncs your music library with any files on your computer that you haven't added to the cloud yet and exports your Amazon MP3s to iTunes and the Windows Media player.

You also can upload an unlimited number of Amazon songs, plus … Read more

Peter Thiel leads $6M funding round for TransferWise

TransferWise, a London-based peer-to-peer currency exchange, announced Monday that it has closed a $6 million Series A funding round led by PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel's Valar Ventures.

The investment in the company, which seeks to use the Internet to make it easier to transfer funds among currencies, marks Valar Ventures' first foray into Europe. Thiel, who was Facebook's first outside investor, was joined in the round by SV Angel and previous investors IA Ventures, Index, Seedcamp, and early stage investment firm TAG.

Coupled with a previous seed round, the recent investment brings TransferWise's funds raised to $7.… Read more

Amazon Glass: The ultimate shopping experience

Amazon is a company with a huge appetite. It first remade the publishing industry and extended it to online shopping services, rivaling Walmart and Costco, scooping up Zappos (shoes), and Quidsi (Diapers.com, Soap.com, Casa.com) along the way. Founder and CEO Jeff Bezos then turned Amazon's technology infrastructure into a massive side business, Amazon Web Services, and is taking on Apple, Netflix, and Google with music, streaming video, and original programming.

Then there is the consumer hardware, led by the Kindle e-readers and tablets. Amazon doesn't release numbers, but Pacific Crest's Chad Bartley estimates Amazon … Read more

Google Wallet chief Osama Bedier leaves company

The head of Google Wallet -- the Web giant's mobile payments initiative -- has left the company, Google confirmed Wednesday.

"We can confirm that Osama Bedier has decided to leave Google this year to pursue other opportunities," Google spokesman Nate Tyler said in a statement. "He's achieved a lot during his time here and we wish him all the best in his next endeavor. Payments are a big part of what people do every day, and we're committed to making them easier for everyone."

Bedier joined Google in 2011, leaving eBay's PayPal … Read more

San Francisco hotels pricey? Van on Airbnb is only $92 a night

You can rent a castle on Airbnb and a treehouse. Boats are popular, and there are plenty of farmhouses. So why not a van?

As reported on the SF.StreetsBlog, an enterprising Airbnb user in San Francisco has started advertising a 1990 Chevy Conversion van, offering the vehicle (with just 45,000 miles!) for only $92 a night.

One might think the nightly rate (which is more if you consider the service charge) is a bit much to pay to sleep in a cramped space probably better suited for a Scooby Doo video. But, as everyone knows, real estate is … Read more