sxsw

The uproar about privacy is only getting louder as companies of all sizes are doing more and more with all the data we all produce--not just on social networks, but via our cell phones and even our cars.

Your data is not only fueling companies like Google and Facebook but also an entire wave of startups. The question is at what cost?

Catch our live blog Sunday 3 p.m. PT/5 p.m. CT

Big Data: Privacy threat or business model?

Whether it's iOS apps like Path grabbing address books data without user permission, or Google changing default privacy settings … Read more

AUSTIN, Texas--Walking around the halls at the South by Southwest (SXSW) festival here this week, it seems that almost everyone is looking at their phones. But while plenty are reading the latest tweets, checking in on Foursquare, or updating their friends through GroupMe, there's a whole new category of services that has captured people's attention.

Known as people discovery apps, these tools are helping SXSW attendees make new connections. Tied to users' locations, the apps identify where they are and look for matches with others nearby, mainly by identifying common friends or interests on Facebook.

Leading the pack … Read more

Google+ is growing quickly, says Vic Gundotra, the engineering chief of Google's social network. In recent weeks, a number of publications have declared the service effectively dead. According to Gundotra, the reason it sometimes appears inactive is because the majority of its content is shared privately.

Not only is the service active it's also one of the fastest growing properties Google has ever released, Gundotra said. According to Gundotra, 50 million individuals use the service daily, and 100 million use it at least once per month.

If numbers like that are accurate, it's difficult to justify claims … Read more

Highlight, a passive location-sharing app, is poised to emerge as the big winner of South by Southwest, thanks to a wave of positive media attention. But will it be able to live up to expectations?

The SXSW music, film, and interactive-media festival is one of the most important and prominent launching pads for tech startups. The confab hosts one of the largest concentrations of techies and early adopters in the world (more than 20,000 will attend this year's festival), making it fertile ground for an app to quickly gain traction and go viral.

Don't underestimate the "… Read more

Don't mess with CNET in Texas because we're sending a stellar crew to the Lone Star State this weekend to cover the panels and tech goodness out of South by Southwest.

We'll be staking out a Recovery Lounge at SecondMarket House on Saturday and Sunday mornings, and you won't want to miss our Sunday night party featuring the hot band Delta Spirit.

Here are the CNET accounts to follow on Twitter:

Remember earlier this week when Samsung teased a special announcement at its South by Southwest booth in Austin, Texas? Well, it isn't the pink Samsung Galaxy Note.

Instead, Samsung says it will help Rovio launch the next wave of its blockbuster Angry Birds series, Angry Birds Space. Tomorrow at 4 p.m. CT, Samsung will offer hands-on demos of the game on the Samsung Galaxy Note.

The hope is clearly that lovers of the ornery ornithological critters will appreciate catapulting the squawkers on a large, 5.3-inch HD Super AMOLED screen, thus earning a secondary appreciation for the device … Read more

Turntable.fm, the service that allows users share music within virtual "rooms," is closing in on becoming a fully licensed service, CNET has learned.

A cross between Napster and radio, Turntable has already signed EMI to a recorded-music deal and is close to penning agreements with Universal Music Group and Sony, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the talks.

The music service is also still in talks with Warner Music Group. A spokesman for EMI declined to comment. Representatives from Turntable.fm and the other labels did not respond to interview requests.

A legal Turntable will potentially … Read more

First things first. Take a deep breath. And now repeat the process.

OK, you're off to Austin, Texas, for South by Southwest Interactive, a five-day bacchanalia of panels, keynotes, parties, barbeque feasts, beer-soaked networking, and maybe even a little sleep. Just remember, if you want to be taken seriously there, don't call it South by Southwest. It's "South-by," or, in written form, "SXSW."

If you've never been before, it's OK to be stressed about what you've gotten yourself into. I've been six times, and I'm totally overwhelmed. And … Read more

More than 20,000 people will roll into Austin, Texas, this week for the annual South by Southwest Interactive festival. The question is, besides copious amounts of free beer and barbecue, why are all those people--a broad mix of marketers, entrepreneurs, journalists, and social media junkies--showing up?

Over the years, SXSW has gotten bigger and has morphed from being an insular technology conference with a tight community of regular attendees to a mainstream event that appeals to everyone from those SXSW veterans to thousands of first-timers who want to get in on the action.

With that many people on hand … Read more