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Thursday
Aug252011

Annie Speaks to LAUNCH: Her Citation, Airbnb Reaching out and More Encounters with Chicago Police


[ Annie's street in Chicago -- her house is across the street from Ogden Park (left). ]

Airbnb is consulting its legal team and has reached out to Chicago host Antionette "Annie" Wonsey after she received a citation Aug. 17 for operating a business without a license.

Annie tells LAUNCH that Airbnb said it will get back to her with information on how to prepare for her Sept. 22 court date. We have repeatedly asked Airbnb to comment on Annie's experience but have not received a response.

Chicago police officers cited Annie for "operating a hotel from her residence" without a business license at a rate of $130 a night. In fact, Annie rents just three rooms (hotels in Chicago are defined as seven or more) and Annie's most expensive listing on Airbnb is only $29 a night.

Annie, however, does not seem terribly concerned about the citation.

"I'm feeling fine. I don't need a business license to sublet my home," Annie tells LAUNCH. "I can do whatever I want." [ She may not be right about that - see our story ].

The Aug. 17 event that Annie taped and posted to YouTube [ see story ] started when police sighted three of Annie's guests, from Malaysia, in her Englewood neighborhood. The cops picked up the guests, took them to Annie's home and...

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Wednesday
Aug242011

What the Digerati Are Saying About Steve Jobs Stepping down


In the wake of Steve Jobs' resigning as Apple's CEO, the digerati and reporters who cover Apple of course tweeted their reactions (though we're still waiting to see what folks like @ev say). We compiled our favorites here. Hint: don't miss the link from Andrew Mason.

UPDATE: Better than a tweet is Path founder Dave Morin's Google+ post.

If you think we missed someone, tell us in the comments.

Click to read more ...

Wednesday
Aug242011

Apple Stock down Only 5% in After-Hours Trading on News Jobs Leaving CEO Post


Perhaps as a testimony to how strong a foundation Steve Jobs has built -- or an indication that shareholders saw this coming -- Apple stock (Nasdaq: AAPL) has declined only 5% in after-hours trading on news that Jobs is stepping down as CEO.

Softening the blow are numerous factors. Apple has a strong leader in COO Tim Cook, the company has been planning for this moment for some time, and...

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Wednesday
Aug242011

Steve Jobs Resigns


[ Steve Jobs at the Oscars in 2010. Photo by Zadi Diaz via creative commons license. ]

UPDATE: see our story Apple Stock down Only 5% in After-Hours Trading on News Jobs Leaving CEO Post

PRESS RELEASE
: Letter from Steve Jobs

August 24, 2011–To the Apple Board of Directors and the Apple Community:

I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple’s CEO, I would be the first to let you know. Unfortunately, that day has come.

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Wednesday
Aug242011

Artsumo: Awesome Reverse Auction Features Work from International Artists

[ Summertime by Cesar Mejia from Ecuador is down to $262 from $400 -- and has 89 Facebook shares. ]

Sharing on Facebook and Twitter drives the price of original art down. Why would artists from Indonesia and Ecuador give away their work on Montreal-based Art Sumo? We're guessing because they get...

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