Linked List: November 6, 2007

Tuesday, 6 November 2007

Steven Frank:

A 34-company committee couldn’t create a successful ham sandwich, much less a mobile application suite.

Fake Steve: ‘It’s Not a Phone, It’s an Alliance’ ★

Fake Steve Jobs nails it on Google’s Android:

The only companies that join consortia are the ones who are too stupid or shitty to make a great product on their own. It’s like, Hey, we’ve got forty spazzo companies that can’t fuck their way out of a paper bag; let’s put them all together and maybe they’ll magically become some kind of big bad powerhouse. More likely it’ll just be some scary ass Frankenstein monster, walking around drooling and tripping over its own tongue.

And:

Also, whenever you see companies start talking about being “open,” it means they’re getting their ass kicked. You think Google will be forming an OpenSearch alliance any time soon, to help also-rans in search get a share of the spoils? Me neither.

Corbis Acquires Veer ★

Daryl Lang reporting for PDN:

Corbis announced Tuesday that it is acquiring Canada-based stock distributor Veer, which appeals to designers with fonts, illustrations and trendy merchandise in addition to high-quality stock photography.

Corbis will operate Veer as a separate brand, a change in strategy that echoes competitor Getty Images.

They’re popping corks at Veer, so congratulations, and good for them. I’ve been a happy Veer customer for a long time. Here’s to hoping Veer remains an independent entity, not just an independent “brand”.