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Square's Jack Dorsey reconsiders the term 'user'

One of George Orwell's famous rules of writing is "Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word, or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent."

It seems Square's founder and CEO Jack Dorsey was channeling the famous "Animal Farm" writer in a Tumblr blog he penned today. Known for ruminating on concepts and ideas, Dorsey called into question the tech world's use of the word "user."

"It's time for our industry and discipline to reconsider the word 'user,'" he wrote. "We speak … Read more

At Square, Jack Dorsey said to preach external code of silence

At Square, the white-hot mobile payments company, someone must take notes during any meeting involving more than two people, and then distribute them to the whole company. Yet despite that process, instituted by co-founder Jack Dorsey, the company is airtight, with few leaks, especially involving key news.

In a new Forbes profile of Dorsey -- who also co-founded Twitter -- we learn that despite this "astonishing" system, even the most sensitive news has remained safe inside the startup's posh San Francisco digs.

It doesn't matter what the meeting is about: bug fixes, new partnerships, pending contracts, … Read more

PayPal to cut several hundred jobs, say reports

PayPal is cutting 3 percent of its workforce, or from 300 to 400 jobs, as new President David Marcus looks to streamline operations and trim costs, according to reports.

Bloomberg cited an unnamed source in reporting the news, and Reuters followed with its own report later in the day, also citing an anonymous source.

PayPal's product and technology groups would be hardest hit by the cuts, which will occur in the next few weeks, Bloomberg said. PayPal currently employs about 13,000 people.

The company is facing competition in the online-payments market from startups like Stripe and WePay. It'… Read more

Tech dominates Fortune's 40 Under 40 list

Silicon Valley makes a good showing on Fortune's 40 Under 40 list, with the top five slots filled by tech execs like Larry Page.

Page, the CEO of Google, leapfrogged Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg for the No. 1 spot on Fortune's ranking of young business stars.

The publication notes that since Page returned to the CEO role last year, he has "been bent on proving Google still has its mojo." He closed Google's acquisition of Motorola, streamlined management and closed failing projects. All of that has pushed Google's stock to an all-time high.

Facebook … Read more

Starbucks to start taking Square Wallet payments next month

Next month, all you'll need is your smartphone and Square Wallet app to buy your latte at Starbucks.

The coffeehouse giant today said that customers will be able to use Square's mobile payment system in about 7,000 U.S. stores starting in early November. Customers will also be able to digitally tip their baristas using Square and Starbucks' existing mobile payment app beginning next summer.

The two companies in August formed an extensive partnership, as part of which Starbucks invested $25 million in the mobile payments company. Under the deal, Square agreed to process credit and debit … Read more

LightSquared tries to keep its 4G LTE dream alive

The hedge-fund backed LightSquared isn't giving up on its plan to build a nationwide 4G wireless network. But the path forward is likely to be a long one.

Last week, LightSquared, which was backed by billionaire Philip Falcone and his hedge fund Harbinger Capital, filed proposals with the Federal Communications Commission that would help it satisfy interference concerns and allow the company to build its nationwide 4G LTE wholesale network.

Specifically, LightSquared has promised to permanently vacate the upper 10MHz of its radio spectrum. And it said it wouldn't use the lower 10MHz of spectrum until the FCC … Read more

More rumors that Amazon eyeing move into mobile payments

It's not quite on the same plane as waiting for Godot but one of these days Amazon is finally going to confirm the swirl of rumors about a product to challenge mobile-payments companies.

Amazon has already tested out certain products in physical stores amid widespread speculation that it's seeking a bigger presence in the in-store or "physical" retail world. The latest hint that something's in the works comes courtesy of TechCrunch, which reports that Amazon is targeting smaller retail chains, dangling the prospect credit card processing fees as low as 1.9 percent.

The report … Read more

Groupon eyes Square with national mobile payments launch

Groupon Payments, the daily-deals provider's answer to Square, is going nationwide.

The company announced on its blog yesterday that its merchants across the U.S. will now be able to sign up for Groupon Payments. Upon doing so, they'll be able to accept major credit cards by simply popping the Groupon card swipe accessory into an iPhone or iPod Touch and installing the associated iOS app. According to Groupon, payments processed through its service are deposited directly into merchant accounts overnight.

Groupon Payments users might find cheaper rates than they would with Square. The latter takes a flat … Read more

Does iPhone damage rate suggest bathroom confusion?

The budget is a big topic this presidential-campaign season, but I've come across a solution to our fiscal woes that doesn't get enough press -- dealing with all the dollars flushed down the toilet (sometimes literally) due to the scourge of dropped, soaked, and otherwise damaged iPhones.

According to gadget warranty outfit SquareTrade -- which also recently informed us of the most dangerous states to be an iPad or iPhone -- damaged iPhones have cost Americans $5.9 billion since their introduction in 2007.… Read more