The low-cost Raspberry Pi Linux computer is set to become available for purchase later this month for $35. The firm behind the budget computer announced on Monday that the first batch of boards will enter manufacturing on February 20th and will be available at the end of the month. The single-board computer is equipped with a 700MHz processor, 256MB of RAM, SD card support and both HDMI and RCA outputs. Despite the low cost and small size — which is roughly equal to a credit card — the Raspberry Pi computer is powerful enough to run games such as Quake III Arena and power 1080p video, however the company intends for the device to be used in schools to teach the basics of computer science. A second Raspberry Pi model with 128MB of RAM will be released for $25 at a later date.

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If you want to slay orcs and elves, there’s plenty of options, but the millions of car racing gamers out there have few places to chase the checkered flag. That’s going to change because today, Ignite Game Technologies closed a $5 million Series C round from private investors bringing it to $17.5 million in funding. It will use the cash to speed up development of its recently launched Simraceway freemium game, as well as its skill matching technology.

Ignite plans to hook users with high-profile licensed content, accurate physics, and addictive gameplay to get users paying to race or buy cars.

Simraceway is a free to play, downloadable PC client-based head-to-head racing game. It sits in the realistic driving game space, less hardcore than true simulations, but deeper than arcade racers. Most realistic racing competitors like Gran Turismo and Forza are disc-based where you pay up front. Simraceway is looking to fill the average revenue per user gap between casual, social racing games and these competitors with a high-end freemium model.

Racing games present a particular development challenge not found in massively multiplayer online role-playing games or first-person shooters. To be fun, gamers have to be extremely well-matched in terms of skill level, otherwise one person spends the entire race far behind and doesn’t want to play again.

Ignite is solving this problem with its proprietary skill quantification technology that eliminates mismatches. Ignite will use the new funding to refine the system, and CEO Jonathan Haswell tells me it might license the tech to other developers. Ignite has also found a way to let players race each other asynchronously. Its ghost lap system that could keep players engaged even when their favorite opponents are offline.

To attract auto enthusiasts, Ignite has secured licenses from 600 brands. These include the full car catalogs of manufacturers such as Bentley, McLaren, and Mitsubishi, with each car featuring simulation-grade driving physics. Four-time IndyCar Series winner Dario Franchitti is working with Ignite’s physics development team to do R&D at the Simraceway Performance Driving Center, a real-world racing facility based at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, California.

Users can play Simraceway with their keyboard, a full wheel and pedal set, or Ignite’s own S1 motion-controlled steering wheel that’s affordably priced to draw users into Simraceway. There they spend real cash to buy better cars and enter big online races where they can win real prizes such as driving lesson vacations to Infineon.

Auto racing is one of the most popular forms of sport, and its one where fans are accustomed to spending big money to attend races, trick out their own cars, and buy gaming controllers. If Simraceway can grow to host more match-ups than any other racing platform, network effect will kick in and keep in-game purchases flowing. One day, Ignite could become a gaming revenue powerhouse like Activision-Blizzard, whose World of Warcraft helped bring in $754 million in net revenues during Q3 2011.

26 models of Trendnet webcams have been identified as vulnerable to a bug that lets anyone tap into the video stream with just an IP address. The flaw was noted a month ago and the company has been working to alert people and patch the devices. Unfortunately, the company has no way of contacting non-registered webcam owners, and so the devices may remain accessible if the users never suspect anything.

It’s a bit scary, but certainly not unprecedented. Although it’s not quite the same thing, two years ago a school was accused of spying on its students via the webcams in school-owned laptops (the district later settled). This time, it’s hackers who found their way in, and randoms on the internet who spent long hours watching the feeds.

The security flaw was posted by Console Cowboys on January 10th; the susceptible devices were easily found, as they identify themselves in such a way that their IP can simply be scraped for. The result: hundreds of feeds being watched, some mundane things like cameras watching the front door, but others were trained on, say, a young mother in some state of undress watching over her baby.

Screenshots were taken and video recorded, naturally, and while some of the people on message boards, Reddit, 4chan, and other communities may have thought it creepy and inappropriate, many more must have considered it the opportunity of a creepy lifetime. Of the hundreds of devices known to have been watched, and perhaps thousands more worldwide (Trendnet estimates the total vulnerable, not to say breached, at “most likely less than 50,000″), how many had kids playing, or someone walking out of the shower, or anything you can imagine.

And the worst part is that many of these devices will never be updated. The users can’t be alerted directly, as the webcam runs independently as a networked device on some normal webcam broadcast software. Even a “call home” automatic check for updates, if it’s enabled, would probably be dismissed by most users. “The camera is working fine, why bother? Probably just have to configure it again.”

The company that created the webcams will likely be sued, and rightly so. They are absolutely liable for software they marketed as secure and private, and which appears to have been breached by one guy, who did it on his own for kicks. A security researcher would probably conclude that the protections on the cameras were totally inadequate. After all, the breach was done after updating the camera to the most recent firmware (from 2010, as it turns out). And while they issued an update on January 30th and knew about the flaw weeks before, there was no real announcement until yesterday.

And with all this comes the question of whether in a case like this a company should be able to force-update a device. It’s the “light side” version of Amazon sucking books off your Kindle, but it’s essentially the same action.

One also begins to wonder how many cameras are being accessed by people who don’t publicize their results or share on web communities. I’ve tipped my own webcam up in what I feel is justified paranoia, and things like hard disconnects or shutters will likely become popular features once the security risks (always extant) become more well-known.

The company has put up a warning and list of affected models here. Worth checking and perhaps sharing.

[additional info from BBC and The Verge]

Yahoo has its new CEO, Scott Thompson, and founder Jerry Yang stepped down from the company and the board a few weeks ago. But all along, people have been asking when is the rest of the Yahoo board going to resign?

Well, that day is today for four more directors, including chairman Roy Bostock. He was sticking around to try to oversee the disposition of Yahoo’s Asian assets. It doesn’t look like that is going so well. Today, in his letter to shareholders, Bostock disclosed that he would not be standing for re-election to the board, and neither would 3 other directors. Meanwhile, Yahoo elected two new board members: Maynard Webb and Alfred Amoroso. Webb was the chairman and CEO of LiveOps, and before that a well-regarded eBAy executive.

From the letter:

Finally, the board has concluded that in order to accelerate the Company’s transformation, the combination of a new Chief Executive Officer with an enhanced team of independent directors would provide Yahoo! with the expertise and perspectives necessary to drive innovation and growth going forward. Therefore, Mr. Joshi, Mr. Kern, Mr. Wilson and I have volunteered not to stand for re-election at the next shareholders’ meeting.

Furthermore, the board today elected two highly qualified independent directors, Alfred Amoroso and Maynard Webb, Jr. Mr. Amoroso served as President and CEO of Rovi Corporation until December 2011 and, among other positions, had previously served as the President, CEO and Vice Chairman of META Group, Inc., the President and CEO of CrossWorlds Software, Inc. and as a member of the world-wide management committee of IBM Corporation. Mr. Webb, the Chairman of LiveOps, Inc., served as that company’s CEO until July 2011. Prior to that, Mr. Webb was Chief Operating Officer of eBay and Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer for Gateway, Inc., in addition to management, leadership and board positions at several other companies spanning his 30-year career

That needed to happen. Now Yahoo can get a fresh start.

Enterprise software company Jive has just reported fourth quarter results, which represent the company’s first earnings report as a public company. Q4 total revenue came in at $22.5 million, up 53% year-over-year. The company continued to take losses in terms of profit, posting a net loss of $12.7 million for the quarter (GAAP), compared to a net loss of $6.8 million for the same period last year. Non-GAAP net loss for the fourth quarter was $9.1 million, compared to a net loss of $5.7 million for the same period last year. Analysts expected a loss of $0.39 per share and revenue of $21.01 million.

Within total revenue, product revenue was $19.2 million for the fourth quarter, an increase of 61% on a year-over-year basis. Professional Services revenue for the fourth quarter was $3.3 million, an increase of 21% on a year-over-year basis.

Founded in 2001, Jive has been at the forefront of blending social with enterprise software. Modeled to offer Facebook-like features to enterprises, Jive’s software combines computing with social collaboration to offer fully-featured social networks for businesses. Its suite of applications help businesses collaborate on a variety of tasks, including holding discussions, communication, sharing documents, blogging, running polls, and social networking features and more.

CEO Tony Zingale said in a release: “Jive is increasingly being adopted by large global organizations that are investing in social business to change the way work gets done. During the fourth quarter, we had a record number of wins with an annual subscription value of $1 million or greater, and more than doubled the average annual deal size for new relationships during 2011.”

The company saw record client billings in the fourth quarter of $36 million, up 40% year-over-year, with 2011 total billings of $104.9 million, up 46% year-over-year. The completion of Jive’s IPO contributes to a $180.6 million cash balance at end of 2011, says the company (the IPO brough Jive $131.4 million in net proceeds).

Although the company is still unprofitable, Zingale seemed optimistic when we spoke to him at the time of Jive’s public market debut in December. “We need to break even, then generate positive cash flow and generate a margin that is interesting to shareholders,” he told us. “We will get to profitability at a reasonable timeframe but we have to balance this with investment in the business and growth opportunity in the market.”

Apple has edged out IBM to become the top brand of 2011, according to an annual list from marketing strategy firm Davis Brand Capital. The Cupertino-based company ousted IBM, which topped the list in 2009 and 2010. Apple was previously ranked No.12 in 2009 and No.7 in 2010. Davis evaluates the top 25 brands annually using five categories that go beyond traditional marketing functions. “The annual 2011 Davis Brand Capital 25 ranking evaluates companies’ abilities to manage and balance the five key intangible categories that comprise brand capital: brand value; competitive performance; innovation strength; company culture; and social impact,” the company said in a press release. “The ranking does not aim to place a financial value on the brand capital of the companies. Rather, the list reveals the comparative strength and breadth of the companies’ brand capital.” As in previous years, the rankings were dominated by technology companies such as Google, Microsoft, HP, Cisco, Intel and Samsung. Read on for the complete list of Davis Brand Capital top 25.

Davis Names Top-25 Companies with Most Brand Capital in 2011
Top-performing Brand Capital Managers Best S&P 500 in 2011; Apple Takes #1 Spot on List Dominated by Tech Leaders; Toyota Reappears at #20 After Precipitous Fall

ATLANTA, Feb 06, 2012 (BUSINESS WIRE) — Davis Brand Capital today released the 2011 Davis Brand Capital 25 ranking, which evaluates brand beyond its traditional marketing function and considers it as a blend of key intangibles. It is the only annual ranking of companies demonstrating comprehensive and balanced approaches to managing the full spectrum of brand capital, which provides an indication of the strength and effectiveness of an entire business.

The top-performing companies on the Davis Brand Capital 25 outpaced the S&P 500 in 2011. A hypothetical stock portfolio consisting of these companies, with holdings proportionately allocated according to each company’s position in the ranking, outperformed the S&P 500 by 9.32 percent.

The annual 2011 Davis Brand Capital 25 ranking evaluates companies’ abilities to manage and balance the five key intangible categories that comprise brand capital: brand value; competitive performance; innovation strength; company culture; and social impact. The ranking does not aim to place a financial value on the brand capital of the companies. Rather, the list reveals the comparative strength and breadth of the companies’ brand capital.

“Brand now functions as the primary container of intangible value. Factors once viewed only internally by company management, such as company culture and innovation strength, are now broadcast to customers regularly through brand,” said Patrick T. Davis, chief executive officer of Davis Brand Capital, based in Atlanta. Studies by the Federal Reserve place yearly investment in intangibles by U.S. companies at more than $1 trillion. “We believe it is increasingly important to track the companies excelling in the management of these intangibles,” said Davis.

Apple (AAPL) tops the list for the first time, moving up from #12 in ’09 and #7 in ’10. The company’s rise in this year’s rankings was driven largely by its competitive performance and added brand value. Customers and investors alike continue to reward Apple for the transformative innovations it brings to the world through its marketing and business prowess.

IBM (IBM) ranks second this year, after holding the top spot for two consecutive years. Google (GOOG) enjoyed a meteoric rise from #11 in ’09 to #4 in this year’s ranking. Rounding out the top five, Microsoft (MSFT) remained at #3 again this year, and Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) dropped from the #2 spot in ’10 to #5.

As in prior years, the ranking is dominated by technology leaders, which comprise nearly 30 percent of the ranked companies. Intel (INTC) and Cisco Systems (CSCO) also make the 2011 ranking, placing #8 and #10 respectively.

“Technology is the infrastructure of our daily lives now, and these companies are exceptional at delivering value, building trust and creating culture. They also tend to be more transparent and use their technologies to convey their strengths,” said Davis.

Automakers also are well represented on this year’s rankings. Toyota Motor Corporation (TM) reappears at #20, signifying a rebound in consumer trust and financial performance after a wave of high-profile product recalls and related controversy. Last year, the company dropped from the ’10 ranking entirely, despite having a strong showing in ’09 at #8. BMW (BMW-DE) moves up one position to #11 this year, and Daimler (DAI-DE) debuts on the ranking at #15. Volkswagen (VOW-DE) moves down four spots this year from #21 to #17. Both Ford (F) and Honda (HMC) drop from the ’11 rankings after holding the #23 and #18 spots respectively in ’10.

Coca-Cola continues its steady climb up the rankings, moving from #16 in ’09 to #14 in ’10 and landing at #9 on this year’s ranking. Arch-rival PepsiCo narrows Coca-Cola’s lead in ’11 with its #12 ranking, moving up from #24 in ’09 (not ranked in ’10) and representing the largest two-year gain of any brand on the list.

After improving its ranking from #10 in ’09 to #5 in ’10, discount retailer Wal-Mart (WMT) drops the most of any other company in ’11 both in terms of its two-year and year-over-year performance, ranking #24. Samsung Electronics has the second-largest drop in year-over-year performance, falling from #8 in ’10 to #23 in ’11.

Though still dealing with the aftermath of the global economic crisis and forward-looking financial anxiety, several financial services companies do appear on the ’11 ranking. Citigroup makes its debut on this year’s list at #16. Wells Fargo also debuts on the ’11 rankings at #25, and Goldman Sachs drops two spots from #16 in ’10 to #18. Financial services firms JPMorgan and HSBC drop from this year’s rankings entirely, after holding the #11 and #22 spots respectively in ’10.

This year, the Davis Brand Capital Scores have a much tighter range than previous years’ rankings, indicating collectively stronger performance for the 25 brands included on the list. “More than ever, companies are realizing the importance of proactively managing their collection of intangibles,” said Davis. “The companies listed on the 2011 Davis Brand Capital 25 represent the best-of-the-best globally, and inclusion anywhere on the list is testament to their exceptional power and far-reaching influence.”

Many major consumer and packaged goods brands are notably absent from the list. “Excellence in traditional product brand management alone is no longer enough,” said Davis. “Big consumer brands build great value in the marketplace and with the consumer, but that is only one component of brand capital. And it does not necessarily mean the brands represent companies that excel in managing broader intangibles. A more holistic approach is needed to earn a place among the extraordinary companies on this list.”

The 2011 Davis Brand Capital 25 ranking is based on a study of 10 distinct data sets. It is a compilation and analysis of annual performance rankings published in industry-leading and specialized annual lists, plus Davis Brand Capital’s proprietary processes and analysis. Each of the five key areas of brand capital is given equal importance to achieve an integrated, balanced evaluation.

Prior to the Davis Brand Capital 25, annual brand performance rankings were not evaluated and aggregated to reveal the comparative strength of companies’ brand capital. “It is essential now for senior executives to understand that brand capital reflects a collection of key intangible attributes determining systemic success. Well-managed brand capital signals the overall health and effectiveness of a business today,” said Davis.

The ranking will be updated yearly, with the 2012 Davis Brand Capital 25 released in January, 2013.