Google is bringing in some extra help for its YouTube video service with the acquisition of another startup. The purchase of Episodic marks Google’s fifth acquisition so far this year. Terms of the deal announced Friday weren’t disclosed. Episodic, based in San Francisco, provides a platform for streaming live video on the Web. YouTube recently has been showing more live video alongside the more than 500 million clips that are continuously available on its site. Google has said it intends to buy at least one company per month this year as part of its effort to develop more products and import more talented engineers. The company is drawing upon its cash hoard of $24.5 billion to pay for the spending spree.
Government eases foreclosure rules
The federal government announced Friday that it is relaxing some rules to make it easier for communities to spend funds on redeveloping abandoned and foreclosed properties. The changes, effective immediately, will allow cities, counties and states to buy properties in mortgage default and uninhabitable homes with lingering code violations through the $4 billion Neighborhood Stabilization Program. The program was started in the midst of the nation’s foreclosure crisis, but a year later about a third of more than 300 local governments that got grants have barely made a dent in them, according to a recent government report.
Homes with Chinese drywall to be gutted
Thousands of U.S. homes tainted by Chinese drywall should be gutted, according to new guidelines released Friday by the Consumer Product Safety Commission. The guidelines say electrical wiring, outlets, circuit breakers, fire alarm systems, carbon monoxide alarms, fire sprinklers, gas pipes and drywall need to be removed. About 3,000 homeowners, mostly in Florida, Virginia, Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana, have reported problems with the Chinese-made drywall, which was imported in large quantities during the housing boom. The drywall has been linked to corrosion of wiring, air conditioning units, computers, doorknobs and jewelry, along with possible health effects.
Maker’s Mark seal ruled distinctive
The dripping red wax seal on a bottle of Maker’s Mark whiskey is not only distinctive, it’s now exclusive legal property of the bourbon company. A federal judge on Friday issued an injunction preventing a rival liquor company from using a dripping wax seal on its tequilas sold in the United States, ending a seven year legal battle over the bottle topper. The ruling comes in a long-running lawsuit between Maker’s Mark and competitors Diageo North America and Casa Cuervo over the trademark on the wax seal. “The Court considers the red dripping wax seal inherently distinctive, because it is a unique mark used in an unusual way to draw in the consumer,” Heyburn wrote.
From Herald news services
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