Google Plus more about preserving online leadership than having social network
Google didn't build its new Plus service simply to have an online hangout like Facebook.
Rather, Google's new social-networking endeavour is about trying to gain valuable insights into people's lives and relationships. This could help the company do a better job of targeting ads so that advertisers would pay more and have less reason to spend their money on Facebook.
If it succeeds, Plus represents Google's best shot yet at muscling into a market that has threatened to topple the Internet search and advertising leader, as Facebook leads the way in making the online world social.
Plus is Google's carefully scripted venture into a territory where its previous efforts have been duds.
On the surface, Plus is reminiscent of Facebook — with a Google touch. It lets people share photos and status messages, chat with friends and acquaintances and follow news updates. A prominent feature called circles allows users to organize the people they interact with into groups, such as family, close friends or fishing buddies. Users can choose to share things only among certain circles.
Google Plus is still in a restricted, test phase, and invites to join are highly coveted. Only time will tell if it takes off among the broader public or if it's too little, too late to face off with Facebook and Twitter on the social front — just as Microsoft has failed to surpass Google in search with latecomer Bing.
Google Inc. has done quite well without its own social network. Its online search engine accounts for two-thirds of queries made in the U.S., and even more in parts of Europe. Its revenue is expected to surpass $36 billion this year, the bulk of it from text ads that appear alongside search results and other Web content. Google reports its latest quarterly results Thursday.Online behaviours are changing, though. People are spending more time on Facebook and other social networks. They are increasingly relying on their friends' recommendations when deciding where to eat and what movies to watch.
Google, meanwhile, has bungled past social media efforts. A sharing program called Wave was quickly killed off because users didn't know what to make of it. Buzz, a later venture, was the centre of a privacy fiasco. Google had been too aggressive about automatically creating circle of friends, which inadvertently revealed whom they've corresponded with on Gmail.
Early response to Google Plus has been positive. But that's no guarantee for broader success. As Google botched one social media effort after another, Facebook grew exponentially.
Today, half of Facebook's 750 million worldwide users log on to the site every day. That's roughly the entire population of the U.S. and U.K combined. More than 250 million people engage with Facebook in some form on outside websites each month around the world. They do this by clicking the ubiquitous “like” and “recommend” buttons on news and other sites or by logging on to websites using their Facebook passwords.
Google's chairman and former CEO, Eric Schmidt, has acknowledged that the company failed to respond to Facebook's threat fast enough. His successor, Google co-founder Larry Page, has made social networking one of his top priorities since he took over in April.
“We don't think it's a coincidence that (Google Plus) was introduced less than three months after Page returned to the CEO post,” said Standard & Poor's equity analyst Scott Kessler in a note to clients.
Facebook's greatest advantage is the immense trove of information that its users have shared about themselves through about 4 billion posts and connections they make collectively every day. Facebook knows what people are reading, eating and watching. It knows who's friends with whom, and which friends people trust for recommendations on what shoes to buy and which plumbers to hire.
Google can't index most of this information on its search engine because Facebook doesn't share it. Instead, Facebook has formed a search partnership with Google rival Microsoft Corp. In May, Microsoft's Bing search engine started to use information from people's Facebook preferences to tweak its search results. This means Facebook users who search for shoes or concert tickets on Bing might get results that are tailored to the interests they listed on the site. For people who aren't logged on to Facebook when they search, Microsoft's search engine might still emphasize links that other Facebook users have recommended.
That puts Google at a disadvantage. Unless it can get similar data through a social service of its own, Google is left with a formula that sorts through the pattern of Web links and other computer data to determine where a site should rank in its recommendation. The system has become increasingly vulnerable to manipulation by websites looking to rank higher than their rivals. As a result, Google search results might not be as useful as recommendations drawn from an analysis of what they have already signalled that they like by pressing a Facebook button.
There's another key way that social data can help Google.
On Facebook, companies can target their advertising with razor-sharp precision given all sorts of information that people willingly share, such as a preference for Coke over Pepsi or whether they've ever been married. For example, they can show a particular Cheetos ad only to single men aged 17 to 41 who live in New York, are Yankee fans and enjoy the “World of Warcraft” video game.
“That's Facebook's biggest calling card to marketers,” said Debra Aho Williamson, principal analyst with eMarketer.
Advertisers are typically willing to pay more for such targeting because they'd be pitching to consumers most likely to buy. Google does a good job already of targeting ads based on what people search for, write about in emails and watch on YouTube. Social data could help Google do even better.
Danny Sullivan, who follows Google closely as editor-in-chief of the website Search Engine Land, said that if Google Plus succeeds, Google would get “a good insurance policy” amid the rise of social networks.
The need for it became apparent when Google's deal to include Twitter updates in its search results expired recently, Sullivan said. Google has temporarily shut down its “RealTime” search feature, though it told users to stay tuned while it explores how Google Plus will figure into it.
That said, Google Plus doesn't necessarily need to be a Facebook clone.
“Google needs to have a social strategy that is relevant to Google and the way people use Google applications,” said Susan Etlinger, analyst at Altimeter Group. “That's very different from how people use Facebook.”
Facebook is, for now, an online hangout above all. People go there to scan status updates, chat with a friend or look at the latest photos, without necessarily having something specific in mind.
With Google, people usually have an objective, whether that's searching for a hair stylist or sending an email about an upcoming party. Google's task is to make its existing products social as “social” becomes the norm for online activity, she said.
“Eventually everything is going to be a social network,” Etlinger said. “Social capabilities will be in everything on the Web.”
Google chief defends investments
Larry Page, chief executive of Google, mounted a strong defence of the internet search company’s controversial investment priorities as it reported earnings for the second quarter that revealed an unexpected surge in revenues.His comments come in the wake of mounting concerns on Wall Street that costs have spun out of control this year as Google has launched a number of ambitious expansion plans, including its recently launched Google+ social networking service
Those fears were put aside on Thursday, however, as the company disclosed robust growth in its core search business in the three months to the end of June. Its shares jumped 12 per cent on the news in after-market trading, adding some $20bn to its stock market value.
Mr Page claimed early success for Google+, which was launched in a limited trial late last month. More than 10m people have joined the network and are sharing more than 1bn items a day on the system, he said.
Wall Street’s euphoric response to Google’s latest quarterly earnings marked a reversal from three months before, when a jump in costs wiped 8 per cent from its stock price. Costs continued to rise quickly in the latest period as Google added another 2,550 workers, though the news was outweighed by accelerating growth.
Net revenues grew 36 per cent to $6.92bn, ahead of the 29 per cent growth that had been expected. On the pro-forma basis on which Wall Street assesses the company, net income rose 37 per cent to $2.85bn, or $8.74 a share, up from $6.45 a share the year before.
Referring to controversial investments the company has made, such as its development of a driverless car, Mr Page said: “We’re very careful stewards of shareholders’ money – we’re not betting the farm on this stuff.”
The Google co-founder also went out of his way to appease Wall Street after appearing to give scant regard to its concerns on a cursory appearance on an earnings call when he took over as chief executive in April. “I understand the need to balance the short-term with the longer-term needs,” he said, adding that short-term revenues were the “engine” on which Google’s long-term plans depend.
Mr Page also claimed success for a management shake-up he pushed through, and which he said had ”substantially improved” the company’s operations. Google has faced mounting criticism from former employees in recent years over its growing bureaucracy, a charge levelled again this week by a product manager whose ideas played a key role in the development of Google+.
In the latest quarter, Google said its jump in revenues was underpinned by an 18 per cent increase in “paid clicks”, or the number of times users click on its adverts, along with a 12 per cent increase in the cost of each click. However, operating expenses rose by 49 per cent, partly because a company-wide pay rise led to fewer people leaving for other jobs than had been expected.
In unli text war, Globe calls Smart ‘copycat’
A day after Smart rolled out its “LahaTxt Unli 25” which allows Smart subscribers to send SMS to all networks a day for P25, the Ayala-owned carrier held a hastily arranged press briefing to announce its SuperUnli AllTxt25 offer, which essentially provides the same service but with an added one hour of free mobile Internet.
During the briefing, Globe senior advisor for consumer business Peter Bithos fired some potshots at Smart, which he said has been lavishly copying its voice and SMS offerings.
“We’ve rolled out our services with less hoopla compared to our competition even if they’re the ones who are copying us,” remarked Bithos. “But if imitation is the best form of flattery, then I guess we’re happy that Smart is imitating us.”The official also said that Smart’s advertising materials have been noticeably similar to Globe’s, particularly with its Touch Mobile (TM) collaterals. “Their ads are looking more like ours lately,” he said.
Globe, the executive said, pioneered the introduction of unlimited all-network SMS. In March this year, Globe offered through its TM prepaid brand an unlimited all-network SMS service to selected provinces. The company, he added, is also the first to offer an unlimited text messaging service under a postpaid plan.
Bithos said Smart could be envious of the fact that Globe has stolen two percent of the overall mobile share the Pangilinan-led operator in the second quarter of 2010.
As for its latest unlimited text offer, this is the biggest that Globe has implemented to date although Bithos said the company is ready to go head-to-head with Smart if the latter decides to take the fight even further.
With the SuperUnli AllTxt25, Bithos said subscribers would no longer need an extra phone or SIM because they can now send SMS to all 85 million mobile subscribers nationwide.
To avail of the service, subscribers must text UALL25 and send to 8888. The subscriber must maintain P1 balance to enjoy the service.
Meanwhile, Smart has also announced its latest unli offering for postpaid – the Unli Text Plan 299 and Unli Call & Text Plan 599.
For P299 a month, Unli Text Plan 299 is an entry-level postpaid package for heavy texters. Aside from allowing subscribers to send unlimited local texts, the promo also comes with a free Samsung E1080 GSM handset.
For those who are also into calling, the Unli Call & Text Plan 599 offers unlimited local calls and a more premium Nokia C1-01 handset.
Unli services for both plans, which available until October 7, are automatically activated upon availing the plan. No additional SMS or Web registration is required.
Source: http://newsbytes.ph/2011/07/15/in-unli-text-war-globe-calls-smart-%E2%80%98copycat%E2%80%99/
Pentagon hit by cyber-attack
A FOREIGN intelligence service stole 24,000 computer files from an American defence contractor in March in one of the largest-ever cyber-attacks on a Pentagon supplier, a top US Defence Department official has revealed.''It is a significant concern that over the past decade, terabytes of data have been extracted by foreign intruders from corporate networks of defence companies,'' Deputy Defence Secretary William Lynn said.
''In a single intrusion this March, 24,000 files were taken,'' Mr Lynn said in a speech at Washington's National Defence University outlining the Pentagon's strategy in cyberspace.
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Speaking after his speech, Mr Lynn said the theft of data from the unidentified defence contractor was one of the largest ever. ''It was large - 24,000 files,'' he said. ''It was data related to systems that are being developed for the Department of Defence.
''It was done, we think, by a foreign intelligence service. In other words, a nation state was behind it.''
China has been blamed for a number of probes of US corporate and military computer systems over the past few years but Mr Lynn declined to point the finger at any specific suspects in the March intrusion.
He said the data theft had ''compromised information relative to the design of military equipment'', but had not ''set us back in terms of the development of the system''.
In his speech, Mr Lynn said some of the data stolen by intruders was ''mundane, like the specifications for small parts of tanks, aeroplanes and submarines.
''But a great deal of it concerns our most sensitive systems, including aircraft avionics, surveillance technologies, satellite communications systems, and network security protocols.
''The cyber exploitation being perpetrated against the defence industry cuts across a wide swath of crucial military hardware, extending from missile-tracking systems and satellite navigation devices to UAVs [drones] and the Joint Strike Fighter.''
Mr Lynn said he did not believe the March intrusion involved the use of SecurID tokens that were stolen from US computer security company RSA Security in a sophisticated hacking attack in March.
RSA's parent company, EMC Corp, has acknowledged that intruders breached its security systems at defence contractor Lockheed Martin in May using data swiped from RSA.
Outlining the Defence Department's strategy in cyberspace, Mr Lynn said the Pentagon considered cyberspace an operational domain, like land, air, sea and space.
''Treating cyberspace as a domain means the military needs to operate and defend its networks, and to organise, train and equip its forces to perform cyber missions,'' he said.
''In the 21st century, bits and bytes can be as threatening as bullets and bombs. Keystrokes originating in one country can impact the other side of the globe in the blink of an eye.''
Mr Lynn said information technology had become so important to US military operations that it ''virtually guarantees that future adversaries will target our dependence on it.
''Our assessment is that cyber-attacks will be a significant component of any future conflict, whether it involves major nations, rogue states or terrorist groups.''
He said US military power served as a deterrent against cyber-attack from a nation state but ''if a terrorist group gains disruptive or destructive cyber tools, we have to assume they will strike with little hesitation''.
The thrust of the Defence Department's cyber strategy was defensive, he said, and ''it should come as no surprise that the United States is prepared to defend itself.
''Just as our military organises to defend against hostile acts from land, air and sea, we must be prepared to respond to hostile acts in cyberspace.
''Accordingly, the United States reserves the right, under the laws of armed conflict, to respond to serious cyber-attacks with a proportional and justified military response at the time and place of our choosing.''
Mr Lynn, who was accompanied by Marine General James Cartwright, vice-chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, declined to elaborate on US offensive cyber capabilities or what would constitute an act of war in cyberspace.
''It's a judgment,'' General Cartwright said of an act of war. ''It's subjective. It's in the eye of the beholder.''
Avid iPhone user wages privacy fight against Apple
The 36-year-old international trade and business attorney has already gotten Apple's Korean unit to pay him 1 million won ($945) over a lawsuit he took to a regional South Korean court in April.His complaint was that the iPhone's tracking of users' locations violated South Korea's constitutional right to privacy and also caused him “mental stress.”
That hasn't stopped him from continuing to use his iPhone 4 as well as an iPad.
“I like Apple,” Mr. Kim said in a phone interview from his office in the city of Changwon, located about 240 miles (380 kilometres) southeast of Seoul.
In fact, Mr. Kim says he is afflicted with “Apple mania.”
But he adds his legal fight is about “right or wrong.”
Apple spokesman Steve Park in Seoul could not immediately be reached for comment.
Mr. Kim said that he plans to file the class-action lawsuit in Seoul sometime during the first three days of August and that the targets will be both Apple Korea as well as Cupertino, California-based Apple Inc.
The suit will seek 1 million won in damages for each participant, he said.
Kim's fight comes as the iPhone has shaken up the South Korean mobile phone market since it went on sale in November 2009.
The phone has unleashed a smart phone war and prompted local companies Samsung Electronics Co. and LG Electronics Inc. to raise their games. Samsung has challenged the iPhone with its Galaxy line of Android-based smart phones while LG has been pushing its Optimus line.
Kim began his legal fight in April after reading that iPhones could store data which could potentially be used to track the movements of users.
He filed a lawsuit in the local Changwon District Court seeking damages.
Mr. Kim said the court ruled in his favour in May and awarded him the monetary damage he sought. The company did not contest the ruling and Apple Korea paid the money on June 27, Kim said.
A Changwon District Court spokesman confirmed the ruling and payment.
Mr. Kim said he believes the payment was the first Apple has made anywhere in the world regarding the tracking issue, which surfaced in April. South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported it was the first in South Korea.
Apple admitted that iPhones were storing the locations of nearby cellphone towers and WiFi hot spots for up to a year. Such data can be used to create a rough map of the device owner's movements.
Apple also faces another legal challenge in South Korea.
A total of 29 iPhone users filed a class-action lawsuit over the tracking issue in late April, Yonhap news agency reported.
Kobe, Yao & Basketball’s Asian Popularity
Speaking in Manila earlier this week, Bryant praised Yao’s role in helping popularize basketball in China and throughout Asia. “I think his contribution to the NBA cannot be overstated,” said Bryant. “You know, I mean what he did for the game and opening up the doors, the influence that he had … it’s such a huge magnitude.”
The huge magnitude of Yao Ming in opening up new Asian doors to basketball has been closely watched by the NBA, which saw its merchandise sales and TV ratings for games soar in China and other Asian countries after the Houston Rockets made him the top overall pick in the 2002 NBA Draft.But the retirement of Yao must also worry NBA marketing executives who push their product in Asia. Some Chinese say they will stop watching NBA games with the league’s tallest player no longer on the court.
When he was on the court, Yao brought out the best in Kobe Bryant and other NBA players. I like to think Kobe jumped just a little higher when he saw Yao in the paint.
PEP EXCLUSIVE: Azkals manager Dan Palami considers "rape" rumors "unfortunate and unnecessary distractions"
Initially, blogs and tabloids claimed the existence of this "sex video scandal" involving Neil Etheridge, Simon Greatwich, Jason Sabio, and Anton del Rosario.
The video never surfaced.
But come July 9, the rumor became a report claiming that what happened was rape.
An unconfirmed email sent by a Paul Weiler, who introduced himself as a former consultant of the Philippine Football Federation (PFF), was forwarded to PEP.ph (Philippine Entertainment Portal).
Weiler labeled the incident as "rape."
A portion of his email read, "I can not live w/ the hard facts that players raped a young Manila woman and that it will be 'okay' for everybody..."
MAJOR CLARIFICATION RE: THE INCIDENT. Two sources, who are friends with the team, categorically denied the "rape" allegations.
The first source, who narrated what he knew to PEP but refused to go on record, became firm in saying, "Of course, it was not true."
He added that the story got so heavily laden with exaggerations. "Una, threesome, 'tapos naging foursome, 'tapos naging rape."
ALL SET FOR KUWAIT. While this tittle-tattle is ongoing, the Azkals are focused on their upcoming match against Kuwait on July 23.
Dan Palami, the team's manager, considers these rumors "unfortunate and unnecessary distractions."
In a phone conversation with PEP yesterday, July 13, he said, "It will be very unfair to act based on the Internet and the claims of a certain German national [referring to Paul Weiler]."
He reiterated, "The person [again, referring to Weiler] who's been talking to media is not in any way related to the team. He's not."
They're leaving for Bahrain, where the football players will train, before flying to Kuwait.
In a text message sent today, July 14, he told PEP that his next move will happen after the investigation.
"It is unfortunate that as we prepare for one of the most important matches, issues that are based on sources that have been proven to be non-credible are being used to malign several members of the team.
"As manager, I will never tolerate actions such as those being alleged, and would certainly take disciplinary action on erring players.
"However, I need more than an internet blog, and a statement of a purported PFF [Philippine Football Federation] Consultant that has been officially disowned by the PFF itself, before i can take action."
Lastly, he's hoping that while the Azkals are out of the country defending the Philippines, the controversy will take a back seat.
Manny Pacquiao wins Fighter of the Year trophy at the ESPY Awards
The ESPY Award (short for Excellence in Sports Performance Yearly Award) is an accolade presented by American cable television network ESPN to recognizeindividual and team athletic achievement and other sports-related performance.
This is the second ESPY trophy for Pacquiao; he first won the award in 2009.
Pacquiao's competitors this year include Bernard Hopkins, Jon "Bones" Jones, Sergio Martinez, Manny Pacquiao, and George St. Pierre.
The current pound-for-pound king has won eight weight division titles, has ten world titles, and a record four lineal world championships in weight classes.
Pacquiao was not able to personally accept his award since he is currently busy with his political career in the Philippines and his upcoming game show on GMA-7,Manny Many Prizes.
Some of the celebrities who attended this year's ESPY Awards include Justin Bieber, Jason Bateman, Emmanuelle Chriqui, Brooklyn Decker, Chris Evans, Cee Lo Green, Jimmie Johnson, Kevin Love, Rachel Nichols, Danica Patrick, Ryan Reynolds, Aaron Rodgers, Amar'e Stoudemire, Justin Timberlake, and Serena Williams.
The awards night was hosted by Saturday Night Live's Seth Myers.
The list of winners in the 19th ESPY Awards:
Male Athlete: Dirk Nowitzki, Dallas Mavericks
Female Athlete: Lindsey Vonn, skiing
Team: Dallas Mavericks
Coach-Manager: Rick Carlisle, Dallas Mavericks
Breakthrough Athlete: Blake Griffin, Los Angeles Clippers
Game: Eagles rally to beat the Giants, 38-31
Record-breaking Performance: Rory McIlroy
Championship Performance: Tim Thomas, Boston Bruins
Play: Abby Wambach, U.S. women's national team
Moment: Roy Halladay's playoff no-hitter against the Cincinnati Reds
Upset: Virginia Commonwealth men's NCAA basketball tourney Sports
Movie: The Fighter
Male College Athlete: Jimmer Fredette
BYU Basketball Female College Athlete: Maya Moore, Connecticut basketball
Male Action Sport Athlete: Shaun White, skateboarding/snowboading
Female Action Sport Athlete: Stephanie Gilmore, surfing
Baseball Player: Roy Halladay, Philadelphia
NBA Player: Dirk Nowitzki, Dallas
WNBA Player: Diana Taurasi, Phoenix Mercury
NHL Player: Tim Thomas, Boston
MLS Player: Landon Donovan, Los Angeles Galaxy
Bowler: Jason Belmonte
Driver: Jimmie Johnson
Fighter: Manny Pacquiao
Male Golfer: Rory McIlroy
Female Golfer: Cristie Kerr
Jockey: John Velasquez
Male Tennis Player: Rafael Nadal
Female Tennis Player: Serena Williams
Track and Field Athlete: Tyson Gay
Male Athlete with a Disability: Anthony Robles, wrestling
Female Athlete with a Disability: Mallory Weggemann, swimming
NFL Strongest Performance: Arian Foster, Houston Texans
Comeback: Mark Herzlich
College Athletic Programs: Stanford Women's Athletics and Florida Men's Athletics Arthur Ashe Courage Award: Dewey Bozella, boxing
JIMMY V ESPY for Perseverance: Anthony Robles, wrestling
Viloria Bids for Third World Boxing Title
The now 30-year-old native of Waipahu not only represented the United States in the 2000 Sydney Olympics, but he’s also a former two-time world champion at the professional level.
But local fight fans tend to overlook Viloria’s many accomplishments because he hardly has competed on home turf.
That will change Saturday night as Viloria – the former IBF and WBC light flyweight champion – seeks to add the WBO flyweight belt to his collection when he faces title-holder Julio Cesar Miranda of Mexico at the Blaisdell Arena.
Viloria brings a career mark of 28-3 with 16 knockouts into the bout. He last fought in Hawaii in August 2000, earning a unanimous decision over Jesus Iribe. Viloria has won won back-to-back fights after losing the IBF belt in a 12th-round TKO loss to Carlos Tamara last January.The 31-year-old Miranda is 35-5-1 with 28 knockouts. He posted a fifth-round TKO victory over Richie Mepranum to win the belt last June.
Spain’s Sanchez wins 12th Tour de France stage
The Tour de France entered the Pyrenees on Thursday, and the Schlecks delivered a 1-2 punch with attacks at the end of the 211-kilometre Stage 12 from Cugnaux to the Luz-Ardiden ski station. By the finish, Contador was gritting his teeth.
Spanish climbing specialist Samuel Sanchez, whose team is based in nearby Basque country, gave the home crowd reason to celebrate. He won the stage after riding inspired through a sea of red, green and white Basque flags.
And the current darling of French cycling — Thomas Voeckler — surprised himself by keeping the yellow jersey on Bastille Day after scaling three punishing peaks.
Sanchez and Voeckler, however, aren't expected to be among the contenders for the title when the three-week cycling showcase ends July 24 on Paris' Champs-Elysees.
Thursday's leg showed that the once indomitable Contador, who had a dismal Tour start because of crashes and stumbles at his Saxo Bank team, can be vulnerable in the mountains.
Frank Schleck could be an ace-in-the-hole for his brother and Leopard Trek teammate, who was runner-up to Contador each of the last two years. Last year, Andy didn't enjoy any brotherly benefit: Frank crashed in a nasty cobblestone patch in Stage Three and dropped out of the race with a broken collarbone — missing the mountain stages.
On Thursday, the pack scaled the Hourquette d'Ancizan, an ascent making its Tour debut. Then came the fabled Col du Tourmalet pass and the ride up to Luz-Ardiden — both among the toughest climbs in cycling.
In Tour lore, the Luz-Ardiden climb is remembered as the place where Lance Armstrong tumbled in 2003 after his handlebars were caught on a fan's outstretched bag. The Texan got back up, rode like a man possessed and won the stage — on way to the fifth of his record seven Tour victories.
Thursday's drama also came on the finale up to Luz-Ardiden.
Sanchez, trailed closely by Belgian rider Jelle Vanendert, overtook a group of breakaway riders up Luz-Ardiden and mustered a final burst of speed to win their two-man sprint in the last few hundred yards.
Farther back, Frank — helped at times by Andy — repeatedly attacked the favourites on the 17-kilometre ascent to the ski station and came away with a third-place finish in the stage — 10 seconds behind Sanchez.
Andy trailed 20 seconds later, and Contador huffed and puffed through the finish another 33 seconds back of the elder Schleck.
The deficit wasn't enough to seriously dent Contador's ambitions for a three-peat — and he says he's not at his best yet — but the performance by the Schleck brothers did send a signal.
“I was a bit careful,” the three-time Tour champion said. “I saw the Schlecks were discussing together and that they were going to play their cards. Frank was the stronger — and both of them attacked.
“But I'm nevertheless happy with this first mountain stage,” Contador said. “Each day, I feel better ... I still don't have my best legs. I'm not riding with the same rhythm, but it's encouraging.”
Still, Andy Schleck sensed weakness from the Spaniard.
“I think today was a perfect day for us. ... For sure, this is not a decisive stage, but we showed we are here,” he said. “Contador is not unbeatable — he lost more time today.
“We had a discussion with Frank and we decided to attack. I attacked, Frank attacked, we played it like this. Then it was time for him to go all out,” he added. “If we keep going like this, we can win.”
More than halfway through the race, the seconds Contador has lost due to both mishaps and lack of luck are adding up: Overall, he trails Voeckler by four minutes, in seventh place.
With his strong showing, Frank Schleck vaulted to second, one minute 49 seconds back, while Australia's Cadel Evans — who crossed 30 seconds behind Sanchez — is third, 2:06 back. Andy Schleck is fourth, 2:17 behind.
Canadian Ryder Hesjedal did well on the tough climbs and finished 29th on the stage, moving up 13 places to stand 38th overall. He is 18:39 back of the leader.
After 11 stages on wind-swept flats and rolling hills that favoured sprinters and breakaway riders, the mountains were expected to separate the overall race contenders from the rest of the pack.
And up to billing, Thursday's punishing climbs whittled down the list of title hopefuls: Nine riders are now within five minutes of the leader — half as many as a day earlier. Some hopes of victory vanished on the first mountain day.
Voeckler had predicted — feared — that he'd lose the yellow shirt on Thursday.
“I'm glad I was wrong,” he said with a smile. “Keeping the jersey was far from expected as the stage started today. ... You have to believe that the yellow jersey gives you a bit of added inspiration on the Bastille Day.”
On the climb up the Col du Tourmalet, a string of better-known riders — including some potential title contenders — dropped behind the pack: Among them, Dutch rider Robert Gesink, Germany's Tony Martin, and Spain's Luis Leon Sanchez, who was second overall as the day began.
A few crashes marred the day's ride. Speeding downhill, Olympic pursuit gold medallist Geraint Thomas crashed right after the Welsh rider passed his national flag hoisted by one of the thousands of roadside fans.
Moments later, the Team Sky rider again lost control and skidded off the road. But in a show of grit, Thomas battled back to rejoin the breakaway group, and by midway up the Tourmalet, had briefly taken the lead alone.
By the end, however, the Welshman sputtered up the Luz-Ardiden climb and finished 36th — 5:20 behind Sanchez. He's 25th overall, 10:21 back of the French race leader.
RadioShack's Andreas Kloeden of Germany, who was already nursing back pain from a mass pileup in Sunday's stage in central France, fell again Thursday and was treated by a race doctor on both elbows during the stage. Kloeden finished 8:26 back of Sanchez, all but ending any title hopes that he might have had: He's 10:19 behind Voeckler in 24th place.
Two more gruelling Pyrenean stages loom on Friday and Saturday, starting with Stage 13's 152.5-kilometre ride from Pau to Lourdes featuring the Col d'Aubisque climb.
Heavy clashes erupt in western Libya
BIR AYAD, Libya (Reuters) - Heavy clashes between rebels and forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi broke out on Saturday on the front line in Libya's Western Mountains at the town of Bir Ghanam, as insurgents seek to push towards Tripoli.
Sustained gunfire and volleys of artillery could be heard from the village of Bir Ayad, 15 km (9 miles) south of Bir Ghanam. Rebels at Bir Ghanam hold the high ground on the outskirts of the town, their closest position to the capital, Tripoli, about 80 km (48 miles) away.
Ahmed, a rebel fighter in Bir Ayad, said a convoy of about 15 vehicles from Gaddafi's forces tried to approach Bir Ghanam, but the rebels fired at it and the convoy retreated after a about an hour of shooting.
Rebels in the Western Mountains have made steady progress in recent weeks after repelling assaults by Gaddafi's forces. Their target is the town of Garyan, which controls the highway south from Tripoli.
But the rebels have been hampered by divisions, ill-discipline and supply problems.
Rebel leaders won recognition as the legitimate government of Libya from the United States and other world powers on Friday in a major boost to the insurgents' campaign to oust Gaddafi.
Western nations said they also planned to increase the military pressure on Gaddafi's forces to press him to give up power after 41 years at the head of the North African state.
Recognition of the rebels, announced by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at a meeting in Turkey of the international contact group on Libya, is an important diplomatic step that could unlock billions of dollars in frozen Libyan funds.
The decision came as reports circulated Gaddafi had sent out emissaries seeking a negotiated end to the conflict, although he remains defiant in his public utterances.
In a speech on Friday evening broadcast as thousands of his loyalists rallied in street demonstrations, Gaddafi rejected international recognition of the rebels.
"Trample on those recognitions, trample on them under your feet," he told his supporters. "They are worthless."
He said he enjoyed the support of millions of Libyans who yearned for death, martyrdom and suicide.
The Istanbul conference attended by more than 30 countries and world bodies also agreed on a road map whereby Gaddafi should relinquish power and plans for Libya's transition to democracy under the rebel National Transitional Council, or TNC.
"Until an interim authority is in place, the United States will recognise the TNC as the legitimate governing authority for Libya, and we will deal with it on that basis," Clinton said.
The decision to recognise the rebels, who have been waging a five-month military campaign against Gaddafi, meant the Libyan leader had no option but to stand down, Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said.
The U.N. secretary-general's special envoy to Libya, Abdul Elah al-Khatib, will be authorised to present terms for Gaddafi to leave power, but Britain said military action against Gaddafi would be stepped up at the same time.
The political package to be offered Gaddafi will include a cease-fire to halt fighting.
In the rebels' stronghold of Misrata, the head of the local council, Khalefa Zawawi said, "What happened today at the conference in Turkey was a boost for the National Transitional Council."British Foreign Secretary William Hague told Reuters that at the same time as al-Khatib pursued a political settlement, "the military pressure on the regime will continue to intensify."
China and Russia, which have taken a softer line towards Gaddafi, were invited to the contact group meeting for the first time, but decided not to become involved.
U.S. officials said the decision to extend formal diplomatic recognition marked an important step towards unblocking more than $34 billion (21 billion pounds) in Libyan assets in the United States but cautioned it could take time to get cash flowing.
(Additional reporting by Souhail Karam, Andrew Quinn and Ibon Villelabeitia; Writing by Giles Elgood; Editing by Peter Cooney)
32 killed in Syria protests, Damascus moves: activists
It was the highest death toll in the central neighborhoods of Damascus since the uprising erupted four months ago in the southern Hauran Plain near Syria's border with Jordan."Tens of thousands of Damascenes took to the streets in the main districts for the first time today, that is why the regime resorted to more killings," said one activist by telephone from Damascus. He declined to be named for fear of being arrested.
The killings prompted the opposition to cancel their planned National Salvation conference in Qaboun neighborhood of Damascus on Saturday after security forces killed 14 protesters outside a wedding hall where the conference had been due to take place, opposition leader Walid al-Bunni told Reuters.
"Secret police also threatened the owner of the wedding hall. We decided to cancel the meeting to save lives," Bunni said by telephone from Damascus.
Bunni said prominent opposition figures and activists would still hold a separate conference in Istanbul on Saturday.
The rest of those killed in Damasacus were in Barzeh, where one protester had died, and in Rukn al-Din quarter of the city, where security forces fired protesters killing eight people.
Two protesters were killed in the southern suburb of Qadam, said the Local Coordination Committees.
Assad, facing the greatest challenge to 40 years of Baath Party rule, has sought to crush demonstrations that broke out in March. But although rights groups say some 1,400 civilians have been killed, the protests have grown.
"These are the biggest demonstrations so far. It is a clear challenge to the authorities, especially when we see all these numbers coming out from Damascus for the first time," said Rami Abdelrahman, head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
Activists and witnesses said police fired live ammunition and teargas in the capital Damascus and suburbs. They killed four in the southern city of Deraa, the cradle of the uprising.
Three protesters were shot dead in the northwestern province of Idlib, near the Turkish border, where troops and tanks have attacked villages, the witnesses and activists said. Two people were also killed in the city of Homs.
A witness in the Rukn al-Din district of Damascus said hundreds of young men wearing white masks resisted security forces with sticks and stones.
"Down, down Bashar al-Assad", they chanted.
In the city of Hama, scene of a 1982 massacre by the military, live video footage filmed by residents showed a huge crowd in the main Orontos Square shouting "the people want the overthrow of the regime".
At least 350,000 people demonstrated in the eastern province of Deir al Zor, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. Syrian forces shot dead two pro-democracy protesters there on Thursday, residents said.
ALLIANCE WITH IRAN
Assad, from Syria's Alawite minority sect, an offshoot of Islam, is struggling to put down widening demonstrations in outlying rural and tribal regions, as well as Damascus suburbs and cities such as Hama and Homs.
Mass arrests and heavy deployment of security forces, including an irregular Alawite militia known as shabbiha, have prevented demonstrations in central neighborhoods of Damascus and the commercial hub of Aleppo, which are generally better off than the rest of the country.
Activists estimate the number of secret police on the streets of Damascus has more than doubled since protests started but the economy has stagnated and the Syrian pound is coming under pressure, with the exchange rate rising to 53 pounds to the dollar, compared with 46 pound to the dollar before the uprising erupted.
To counter that, Syria's main ally, Iran, is considering offering $5.8 billion in financial help, including a three-month loan worth $1.5 billion to be made available immediately, French business newspaper Les Echos said, citing a report by a Tehran think-tank linked to Iran's leadership.
International sanctions are targeted at Syria's leaders, not at its banks and companies. But France and the United States are pressing for tougher penalties, and a United Nations Security Council resolution condemning the crackdown, following attacks on both countries' embassies in Syria.
(Additional reporting by Mariam Karouny and Oliver Holmes in Beirut and Andrew Quinn in Istanbul; Writing by Jon Hemming, Editing by Maria Golovnina)
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