Google chairman Eric Schmidt on Tuesday defended his company as a great innovator despite allegations from late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs that the Internet search giant stole ideas from Apple’s iPhone.
Schmidt also told reporters that he is still “very sad and recovering from the sense of loss” from Jobs’ death last month and does not think it’s right to comment on Jobs’ words in Walter Issacson’s biography.
The biography was released after Jobs’ death. In it, Jobs argues that Google Inc. stole from Apple’s iPhone to build many of the features in Google’s Android software for rival phones.
“I decided not to comment on comments that are written in the book after his death. I don’t think it’s right,” Schmidt said, describing Jobs as a “fantastic human being” who he “dearly” misses.
Jobs died Oct. 5, aged 56, after a battle with cancer. Schmidt served on the Apple Inc. board from 2006 to 2009 but quit as Google and Apple went head-to-head in smartphones — Apple with its iPhone and Google with its Android software.
“Most people would agree that Google is a great innovator, and I would also point out that the Android efforts started before the iPhone efforts. And that’s all I have to say,” Schmidt said.
Schmidt has been meeting with senior government and business officials, including South Korean President Lee Myung-bak on Monday, during his three-day trip here.
Marveling at South Korea’s Internet infrastructure, where 90 percent of households enjoy broadband access, Schmidt said he also told Lee that Seoul needs to trim down its Internet regulations.
“It is my view and, I think, Google’s view that the regulation of Internet in Korea could be more open, more modern,” he said. “Other countries had more liberal policies in some cases about the Internet, and they should examine them.”
Schmidt said he did not go into specifics with Lee. He also did not elaborate during the press conference.
Since 2009, Google has banned users from South Korea from posting videos on YouTube in protest of Seoul’s policy mandating the use of real names for sign-ups on websites. The South Korean government stands by that policy, saying it improves accountability.
Because of Google’s ban, many South Korean users fake their nationalities on YouTube to upload videos. They are not blocked from viewing video, even if they are registered as users from South Korea.
“I think that the next thing for you all as a country to think about is more than hardware and infrastructure, but really about openness,” Schmidt said.
Schmidt’s visit to South Korea is his first since 2007, according to Google.
Disney Pledges $15 million In L.A. Fire Aid As More Celebs Learn They’ve Lost Their Homes
The Pacific Palisades wildfires torched the home of "This Is Us" star Milo Ventimiglia, perhaps most poignantly destroying the father-to-be's newly installed crib.
CBS cameras caught the actor walking through his charred house for the first time, standing in what was once his kitchen and looking at a neighborhood in ruin. "Your heart just breaks."
He and his pregnant wife, Jarah Mariano, evacuated Tuesday with their dog and they watched on security cameras as the flames ripped through the house, destroying everything, including a new crib.
"There's a kind of shock moment where you're going, 'Oh, this is real. This is happening.' What good is it to continue watching?' And then at a certain point we just turned it off, like 'What good is it to continue watching?'"
Firefighters sought to make gains Friday during a respite in the heavy winds that fanned the flames as numerous groups pledged aid to help victims and rebuild, including a $15 million donation pledge from the Walt Disney Co.
More stars learn their homes are gone
While seeing the remains of his home, Ventimiglia was struck by a connection to his "This Is Us" character, Jack Pearson, who died after inhaling smoke in a house fire. "It's not lost on me life imitating art."
Mandy Moore, who played Ventimiglia's wife on "This Is Us," nearly lost her home in the Eaton fire, which scorched large areas of the Altadena neighborhood. She said Thursday that part of her house is standing but is unlivable, and her husband lost his music studio and all his instruments.
Mel Gibson's home is "completely gone," his publicist Alan Nierob confirmed Friday. The Oscar winner revealed the loss of his home earlier Friday while appearing on Joe Rogan's... Read More