Also: 30 is too old for web entrepreneurs | Porn.com | Tycoon | Liverpool Echo does taxi TV | Mail travel site | Google guy gets hitched | Download Dog in Second life
Another milestone day in the story of Internet Power: Apple lost $4bn off its share price yesterday after a bogus rumour that the iPhone launch is delayed.
As ably documented by Mike Arrington on TechCrunch, uber-blog Engadget published an email supposedly from an Apple insider. It said: "the iPhone launch is being pushed back from June to... October (!), and Leopard is again seeing a delay, this time being pushed all the way back to January. Of 2008."
Six minutes later, and Apple's stock had dropped from $107.89 to $103.42 - wiping $4bn off the company's value.
Engagdet insisted the email was from a "trusted source", but not so, say Apple. The quibble is here.
Whatever, I'm quite sure that will prompt Apple to make itself even more impenetrable to anyone trying to find out what really is going on. Like when can I get a 12" MacBook Pro? Grumble.
Officially over the hill
Thirty, it would seem, is too old for Silicon Valley. Valleywag has a rather depressing list of the 18 most illustrious web entrepreneurs, only four of which are older than 30. That cheeky scamp Mark Zuckerberg was just 19 when he founded Facebook - and isn't he holding out for some ridiculous acquisition figure? The gossip at the time was that he has variously turned down $750m and $1.4bn offers for the site, and is now holding out for $2bn. Nice work if you can get it.
Porn.com
Bad luck if you'd been waiting for this one to pop up for whatever nefarious reason, but the domain porn.com has sold for $9m. I haven't linked to it. (Domain Tools)
The Tycoon website
As is the fashion, tonight's new Tycoon TV show has its own fancy web offering, complete with video pitches from 150 of the also-rans that didn't quite make the TV show. The "big idea" from this (I learned that on the Apprentice last night) is that the web users are supposed to scan the runners up and try and buy and sell virtual stock in whoever they think has the best business idea. The web "investors" that earn the most cash get some prizes, but good to to them, choosing between the male panty liner idea or the photoframe made from your loved-one's ashes pitch. (Update: To clarify, the site is launched today, but not the TV show. That launches in June.)
Trinity launches cab TV in Liverpool
The Liverpool Echo is launching a digital TV channel to run in the city's cabs. Echo TV will include news, sport and entertainment and is basically a vehicle for Trinity Mirror's move into the outdoor ad market in the north west and north Wales. (Release)
Daily Mail's travel site
Did anyone notice that the Daily Mail snuck out a new version of its travel website, all softly softly like? This was picked up ahead of even the soft launch by the eagle-eyed Kevin May at Travolution, who was sent a few screen snaps by a tour operator. Associated then promptly called and asked who the source was, and proceeded to replace the new travel home page with a holding page. Party poopers.
Thing is, I throughly welcome the soft launch. It's the only sensible way to launch anything webby, as further proven by Times Online's Monday morning new website debacle. Will heads roll?
Romance in the Googlesphere
Here's someone with a good pre-nup: Sergey Brin, one half of the genius behind Google, married his long-term girlfriend Anne Wojcicki in the Bahamas yesterday. The ceremony was a mix of Jewish traditions and some rather less conventional stuff, like guests wearing swimsuits and getting saying vows on a tidebar. Brin is worth a not insubstantial $14bn - roughly the twelfth richest person in the US, according to Forbes. (Reuters)
Download dog in Second Life
The Download Dog music festival is doing something in Second Life, along with everyone else. This is a bit different though - the festival will take the form of a doggy avatar that wanders round Second life planting treasure hunt clues for SLers, and if they find the prize they win an Les Paul guitar signed by all the festival bands. (Download Dog)
