In today’s Bulldog wrapup of technology news:

  • Google launches a new service for eyewitness video
  • EMC’s top exec in RTP is retiring
  • UP conference still coming to RTP
  • Sony plans a new phone linked to PlayStation
  • Yahoo’s CEO says its deal with NFL is a big boost

The details:

  • YouTube service to showcase news video fed by eyewitnesses

YouTube has started a video news service to showcase the most interesting clips recorded and posted by eyewitnesses at events unfolding around the world.

The service, called “YouTube Newswire,” is being compiled by Storyful, an Internet service owned by News Corp. that also recently started to package interesting stories posted on social networking leader Facebook.

YouTube is trying to make it easier to find the most compelling news clips amid the 300 hours of video posted on its site each minute. It says its visitors watch more than 5 million hours of news video each day.

Google Inc., YouTube’s owner, has been using an automated formula to highlight the top news stories in a section of its Internet search engine since 2002.

  • EMC’s top RTP exec is retiring

Veteran tech executive Bob Hawkins, who has led EMC operations in the Research Triangle for several years, is retiring. Hawkins also has been a leader in the North Carolina Technology Association.

Hawkins retires in September, reports the Triangle Business Journal.

EMC has some 1,400 workers in RTP and Apex.

Read details at: http://www.bizjournals.com/triangle/blog/techflash/2015/06/bob-hawkins-head-of-emc-rtp-to-retire.html

  • ExitEvent: UP Global Summit still coming to RTP

Techstars, the globally-recognized venture firm that runs the popular chain of accelerator programs, announced it has acquired the nonprofit UP Global and all of its programs—Startup Weekend, NEXT, Startup Week and Startup Digest.

Techstars says all UP Global programs will continue to operate independently, reports ExitEvent.

One guarantee in the announcement is that the UP Global Summit planned to happen September 16-19 in Raleigh and Durham is still on. More than 200 startup community leaders from across the Americas are expected to travel to our region for the annual event.

Read details at: http://exitevent.com/article/techstars-up-global-raleigh-durham-summit-150616

  • Sony has a new smartphone coming this summer

The new Xperia Z4v borrows camera and sound technology from Sony’s other products, and it offers integration with Sony’s PlayStation game console, including game play on the phone when away from the TV.

The new phone also sets itself apart from competitors in offering waterproof capabilities. Unlike past Xperia phones, there’s no need to keep the USB port covered to get the protection. Samsung had water-resistance features in last year’s Galaxy S5, but dropped that in more recent models.

Sony isn’t providing a price or a release date yet, but it says the phone will be available only through Verizon Wireless, the nation’s largest wireless carrier.

  • Yahoo’s Mayer sees boost from NFL

Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer believes a new deal to stream an NFL game live could turn into a defining moment for the Internet company.

If Yahoo is able to deliver the game over the Internet without major problems, Mayer believes it will prove her company’s greatest strength lies in its ability to straddle the technology and media industries.

“We might not be the biggest tech company, but we are the biggest tech company that gets media,” Mayer said during a Tuesday appearance at Bloomberg technology conference in San Francisco.

Yahoo is paying the National Football League for the right to stream the Oct. 25 game between the Jacksonville Jaguars and Buffalo Bills, though neither side has disclosed the amount. The NBC, CBS, ESPN and Fox television networks are currently paying the NFL an average of about $19 million per game, including the playoffs, under long-term contracts running through the rest of this decade.

It’s the first time that NFL has sold the rights to a game to an Internet company so it can be streamed in its entirety for free. The Bills-Jaguars game will still be televised, like all other NFL games, in the local markets of the two teams playing each other.

Mayer hailed the deal as “historic” opportunity for Yahoo to expand its audience and sell more advertising as the company tries to boost its revenue after years of little or no growth.

“We would like to do a beautiful job and have this lead to something bigger” with the NFL, Mayer said.