June 25, 2007
Welcome to the June 25 edition of the Startup Search Weekly Web Wrapup. Each week we summarize news and announcements affecting the web technology ecosystem. In this week's issue: sharing your slide deck, signing on to MySpace, finding long-lost relatives, and a financial planning site boosts its own finances.
Google acquires Zenter
Google announced the acquisition of Zenter, an online slideshow creator and sharing application. The company participated in Y Combinator's winter 2006 seed program but had yet to publicly launch. Zenter features support for PowerPoint importing, drag-and-drop editing, live slideshow broadcasts, and charting. The software collects live and archived viewer feedback via on-site comments, e-mail, SMS, or live site chat. Google acquired Tonic Systems in April, a company focused on back-end production of online presentation services.
MySpace alters authentication pages
MySpace changed their authentication behavior last week, changing the way third-party sites inject widgets and other content into the site's social networking profiles. Some viral and automatic posting features of MySpace widget sites were offline for a few days as product teams adjusted to the new changes.
Geni public search
Search outside your family tree with Geni's new public search feature. Genealogy site Geni now lets members opt-in to public profile sharing including member photos, geographic location, and family members. Geni members can now receive private messages from visitors hoping to get back in touch, researching a family tree, or any curious observer.
Digg launches new comment system
Social news site Digg.com introduced a threaded comment system on Thursday, redesigning one of the most active commenting communities on the Web. The new system takes advantage of Ajax technologies for loading additional comments and comment posting to create smaller initial page loads.
Wesabe raises $4 million Series A
Personal finance social network Wesabe announced a $4 million funding round led by Union Square Ventures. Union Square Ventures partner Brad Burnham joins the Wesabe board of directors.
Coming this week...
Apple's highly anticipated iPhone goes on sale this Friday, June 29, at Apple Stores and AT&T retail outlets across the country. Expect many announcements from startups over the weekend touting site and service compatibility with the iPhone's mobile Safari browser and its 320 by 480 pixel multi-touch display surface.
WebGuild hosts the Searchonomics conference this Wednesday, June 27, in Santa Clara. New product announcements are expected from search engines and web analytics companies presenting at the event.
Apple and Adobe are collaborating on new browser technology for the Windows platform. Apple announced the immediate availability of its
Mobile streaming site
Video comedy site 