High-tech hot topics in the blogs: WikiLeaks Cablegate, Google-Groupon deal, Microsoft TV

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Hot topics in the tech blogs for the week ending December 3 include the release of US embassy cables on WikiLeaks, Google's rumored social buying site acquisition, suggestions RIM's mobile and tablet user interface will get a "sexy" Swedish upgrade, Microsoft in talks to launch its own TV service, and Goggle getting investigated by the European Commission.

WikiLeaks "cablegate"
250,000-odd leaked United States embassy cables were published on whistle-blowing website WikiLeaks providing "unprecedented insight into US Government foreign activities." Bloggers discussed the implications of the leaks while also focusing on the denial-of-service attacks that took the WikiLeaks website down. Amazon was also criticized for "booting" the WikiLeaks website from its hosting services.

Google-Groupon buyout
Google is rumored to be paying $5.3 billion dollars for American group buying discount site Groupon. If the deal goes through "it will move the search giant instantly to the top spot in local commerce online and give it huge troves of data about consumer buying habits and merchant information across the globe," comment's All Things Digital's Kara Swisher.

RIM acquires The Astonishing Tribe
RIM welcomed Swedish mobile user interface (UI) design company The Astonishing Tribe (TAT) into its open arms, sparking a series of articles about how a UI revamp might drastically enhance RIM's forthcoming PlayBook tablet and future mobile phones. "[A]s any BlackBerry user will tell you, RIM needs a lot of help in that department" says BGR on the issue.

Microsoft to launch its own TV service
Reuters revealed Microsoft Corp. had been talking to TV networks in the hope of launching its own subscription-based TV service to rival the likes of Netflix, Apple TV and Google TV. TechCrunch called it "A Bold Move That May Blow Up Broadcast" while Business Insider said "You'd think Microsoft would have learned its lesson by now. It's almost impossible for a technology company to change TV distribution in a meaningful way and make money."

European Union investigates Google
The European Commission opened an "antitrust investigation into allegations that Google Inc. has abused a dominant position in online search," placing search results from competitive European search-related companies lower down the page in its search results. "Surprisingly, Google is not vigorously contesting the charges, suggesting that it may be prepared to make some concessions," writes Information Week's Thomas Claburn.