Contentinople - Erin Barker - News Bits: Why Google Android Doesn't Use Multi-Touch

Written by Erin Barker

Tuesday, February 10. 2009 at 11:30 AM EST Post a comment

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We finally know why Google (Nasdaq: GOOG) opted not to use multi-touch technology (which allows for a phone's screen to accept multiple points of contact as simultaneous input) on its Android phone: simply because Apple asked it not to.

Frankly, the Android team was relieved to be off the hook, VentureBeat reports. Multi-touch has been a source of contention lately between Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL), which has been using the technology on its iPhone, and Palm Inc. , which is using it on its upcoming Pre smartphone.

The decision not to use multi-touch could smooth the way for these "frenemies" to continue doing business together. Despite the fact that Apple and Google have competing mobile phone platforms, they share a common rivalry with Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT), and Google CEO Eric Schmidt sits on Apple's board.

Apple is also somewhat dependent on some Google's apps -- like Maps and YouTube -- that are tailored for the iPhone.

But how long will Google be able to resist multi-touch? Already one of the bigger complaints about T-Mobile USA 's G1 is that it lacks the technology.

In other news:

In its ongoing quest for a revenue strategy, Twitter Inc. may begin charging for commercial accounts. Twitter co-founder Biz Stone told Marketing magazine that the company is "noticing more companies using Twitter and individuals following them. We can identify ways to make this experience even more valuable and charge for commercial accounts," but, in typical super-secret Twitter style, he didn't go into detail.

Reports from ValleyWag have claimed that Yahoo Inc. (Nasdaq: YHOO) is in talks to buy blogging startup Tumblr for as much as $50 million. However, David Karp -- the startup's 22-year-old founder with, let's be honest, great hair -- told the Silicon Alley Insider that these claims are false.

And finally, The Onion News Network does a fantastic job of pointing out everything that's wrong with Sony (and the consumer electronics industry in general) in today's tech news report, "Sony Releases New Stupid Piece Of S*** That Doesn't F***ing Work." (Warning: video contains strong f***ing language.)

Tags: Acquistions, Apple, Business, Google, iPhone, Social Networks, Technology, Yahoo

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