RUMOR: RIM CREATING APPLE TV COMPETITOR

Research In Motion is currently working on a media box codenamed “BlackBerry Cyclone” that will launch later this fall, BlackBerry news site NerdBerry.net reports. The rumored media hub is said to be similar to Apple’s iOS-based Apple TV box, which connects to a television and plays streaming video content from iTunes. The BlackBerry Cyclone’s purported capabilities include Netflix streaming, YouTube streaming and streaming from media devices connected to the same Wi-Fi network. The unit will also reportedly feature an HDMI-out port.

The move would be a peculiar one from RIM, as it does not have an iTunes competitor to speak of and even with the extremely popular multimedia market, the Apple TV has not been an overly successful device for Apple. The Cupertino-based company announced the million-unit milestone for its refreshed Apple TV late last year, but we haven’t heard much about it since that time. RIM is also in the midst of prepping its first QNX-powered smartphone for release in 2012, not to mention seven BlackBerry handsets due to launch later this year,

GOOGLE READYING GROUPON COMPETITOR

Just a month after being rebuffed in a buyout offer of Groupon, Google is preparing to launch its own social-buying competitor called Google Offers.

The venture "is a new product to help potential customers and clientele find great deals in their area through a daily email," according to a fact sheet first published by Mashable.
A Google spokesperson confirmed that the Internet giant was actively recruiting businesses for a daily-deals offering.

"Google is communicating with small businesses to enlist their support and participation in a test of a pre-paid offers/vouchers program," the company said in a statement. "This initiative is part of an ongoing effort at Google to make new products, such as the recent Offer Ads beta, that connect businesses with customers in new ways. We do not have more details to share at this time, but will keep you posted."

The social-buying model offers a "deal of the day" to users, usually at a significant discount on a sought-after product or service in their city or town. Google is interested because deals are geared around specifically targeted local markets, which is seen as a big source of future Internet advertising growth.

Google did not indicate when it expected to launch, but it is playing catch up in the sector after reportedly trying to buy market leader Groupon for as much as $6 billion before being rebuffed last month. Groupon, which is rumored to be doing $2 billion a year in revenue, has since increased its muscle by raising $950 million in financing, giving it a valuation of about $6.4 billion.

In addition to Groupon, Google will have to contend with a host of "Groupon clones," including Amazon.com-backed LivingSocial, which recently made headlines and fans by selling more than a million $20 Amazon gift cards for $10 each. LivingSocial said last month it is "currently booking revenues of more than $1 million a day on average and is projected to book well over $500 million in revenue in 2011."