“Amazon” on The Daily Caller

A report by VentureBeat overnight quotes an anonymous source saying that Amazon.com is “in serious negotiations” to buy Palm from HP, acquiring assets including the well-regarded webOS software for smartphones and tablets. It’s getting a lot of attention in the tech media this morning. (more)

Okay, so it wasn’t much of a surprise, but Amazon finally has a tablet, and as expected its name picks up where the Kindle left off: Fire. Of course, rumors of an Amazon tablet date back to this time last year (if not before), but it seems that Jeff and co. have wisely chosen to get this thing out on the open market before having yet another wild and wacky holiday quarter. Bloomberg has curiously reported on some of the details before the event itself kicks off, noting that the 7-inch device will run a version of Android while acting much like a “souped-up Kindle.” The real kicker, however, is the price — at just $199, it’s bound to turn heads, regardless of whether you were interested in a slate before. Naturally, that bargain-bin sticker explains the lack of an embedded camera and microphone, though consumers will find WiFi (no 3G, sadly) and a 30-day trial of Amazon Prime. It’s also quite clear that Amazon’s hoping to make a bigger splash on the content side of things than has been made already by Apple, and with the deals flowing like wine, we wouldn’t be shocked if it does just that. (more)

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Gov. Jerry Brown signed legislation Friday that postpones new sales taxes rules that would have affected online purchases in California, granting more time for traditional and online retailers to lobby Congress for a national standard on the high-stakes issue. (more)

All eyes are on the California statehouse today. On the table is a deal between online retail juggernaut Amazon and California lawmakers to postpone a major tax increase until fall 2012. Unfortunately, the compromise would mark a turning point in the online sales tax wars and pave the way for higher taxes nationwide. (more)

Apparently Apple isn’t the only company running an App Store with a penchant for secrecy. (more)

California Governor Jerry Brown signed a bill into law Wednesday requiring online businesses to collect state sales tax, calling it “a common sense idea,” but Amazon and other large online retailers said they no longer see the business sense in staying in the Golden State. (more)

Amazon and Ebay, two of the biggest names in online retail, have staked out contrary positions in a debate over the taxation of U.S. Internet shopping, which enables many buyers to escape paying sales tax. (more)

The No. 1 book on Amazon.com isn’t “Bossypants” by Tina Fey or “Dead Reckoning” by Charlaine Harris — the top New York Times bestsellers this week. Topping the Amazon list is a picture book from a little-known publisher that won’t be available until June called “Go the F— to Sleep.” (more)

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Amazon.com Inc. is dropping the price on its Kindle e-reader, but the change comes with a trade-off: On-screen ads. (more)

If you can’t beat ’em, repeat ’em. (more)

The debut of the iPad a year ago was speculated to be the death knell for e-readers like the Kindle. But a new study by JP Morgan reports that the iPad is not actually a Kindle killer. (more)

Despite what many people seem to believe — including more than a few prominent politicians — capitalism cannot happen without capitalists. Put another way: the enormous benefits that come from free enterprise and free markets are not possible without those who have accumulated capital and are willing to place that capital at risk. (more)

Move over Harry Potter, the Kindle is even hotter than you. (more)

1.) Establishment Republicans conflicted over whose back to pat for busted omnibus bill — Majority Leader Harry Reid folded during last night’s high-stakes po(r)ker game. Now Beltway types are racing to cement a narrative for exactly what made the GOP so bold. “The defeat of a pork-laden $1.1 trillion ‘omnibus’ spending bill in the Senate Thursday night was the first serious indication after the Nov. 2 election that the Tea Party movement has staying power and will be a force into 2011,” writes The Daily Caller’s Jon Ward. “Some Republicans on Capitol Hill said Thursday night that GOP leadership played a pivotal role as well. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell was said to have pressured key GOP lawmakers to stand firm against the legislation, though some in leadership said the conference was fairly united against it from the beginning.” Less, uh, established folks, like Sen. Tom Coburn’s beard, were more willing to give all credit to the Tea Party: “It was 100 percent grassroots…The American people took it down,” said Coburn spokesman John Hart. Also, bitter Democrats, one of whom dejectedly chalked up the broke-down omnibus to Congressional Republicans being “a wholly owned subsidiary of the Tea Party.” (more)

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WikiLeaks lashed out at Amazon.com Wednesday after it was announced that the online shopping company, whose servers were hosting the whistleblower site’s activities, would stop working with the site. (more)

Taking a plunge in the Amazon – arguably the world’s most formidable river – is not for the faint-hearted. Piranhas, sharp-toothed sharks and deadly whirlpools are just a few of its perils. But they appear to have been no deterrent to Serbian Darko Novovic, who claims to have smashed the world record for swimming the South American river by 20 days. (more)

PUEBLO, Colo. (AP) — Police in Colorado are both investigating and protecting the author of a guide for pedophiles. (more)

NEW YORK (AP) — Amazon.com Inc. is selling a self-published guide that offers advice to pedophiles, and that has generated outrage on the Internet and threats to boycott the retailer. (more)

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuelan health workers say an epidemic that may be malaria has killed dozens of people, decimating three villages of the Yanomami Indians, whose struggle for survival in a remote part of the Amazon rain forest has attracted worldwide support. (more)