With MtGox effectively dead, Bitcoin can now enter the third stage of evolution, explains BitGo CEO Will O'Brien in an extensive essay. More »

Erik Voorhees, a respected Bitcoin entrepreneur who created SatoshiDice and now runs Coinapult, shares his views about MtGox and the future of Bitcoin. More »

Hollywood could learn a lot from Silk Road 2 about heightening stakes and creating suspense in this epic whodunnit thriller where 4000 bitcoins were stolen! More »

In this extensive video, Bitcoin Leah interviews Brock Pierce, Alan Meckler, Sam Cole, and companies including BitGo, GoCoin, Lamassu and more. More »

 

Bitcoin Week: GlassPay, China, Grilled Cheese, BitDazzle, Baidu

Bitcoin News

Here is a  roundup of the top Bitcoin news from October 14 to 20.

The price of Bitcoin jumped late in the week thanks to activity in China. Baidu, the “Google of China”, started accepting Bitcoin for services.

Other merchants who became new adopters of Bitcoin included a grilled cheese sandwich food truck in Seattle and a new marketplace called BitDazzle.

Finally, a New York company announced GlassPay, a way to checkout at retail using Google Glass and Bitcoin.

 

btcchina activity increases bitcoin price

 

Monday, October 14

Wednesday, October 16

Thursday, October 17

Friday, October 18

Saturday, October 19

Sunday, October 20

 

Top 10 Countdown: Most Popular Bitcoin Stories in September 2013

Black Arrow Bitcoin Mining Prospero X3

Here are the top 10 most popular stories On Bitcoin brought you in September 2013.

10. TradeRush Expands Exclusive Bitcoin Trading on Options Platform

Based in London, TradeRush is the net’s fastest growing binary options platform, launched in 2011 and with expanded Bitcoin trading capabilities.

9. CoinDesk Launches Bitcoin Price Index to Consolidate Exchange Spread

The CoinDesk index represents an average of leading global Bitcoin exchanges.

8. RoboCoin Bitcoin ATM Kiosks Coming to Canadian Retail Store Bitcoiniacs

Last month, RoboCoin ATM Kiosks officially went on sale for $20,000 per unit. Now, a retail store in Canada plans to deploy them across Canada. 

7. Bitcoin Mining, An Infographic

This infographic describes Bitcoin mining, what it takes, and the impact it has on the Bitcoin economy and beyond.

6. Bitcoin Experts Winklevoss Twins and Naval Ravikant at TechCrunch Disrupt

A panel of Bitcoin experts, the Winklevoss twins, Naval Ravikant, and Balaji Srinivasan, shared incredible ideas about the future of Bitcoin.

5. Croatian-Based BitKonan Launches Bitcoin Trading Platform

With incumbents like Mt.Gox, Tradehill, and TradeRush, is there room for another  Bitcoin trading platform? Croatian-based BitKonan thinks there is.

4. SecondMarket Launches Bitcoin Investment Trust

SecondMarket announced the launch a new investment vehicle called the Bitcoin Investment Trust (BIT).

3. The House Doesn’t Always Win in Bitcoin Gambling

One Bitcoin gambler had a rollercoaster ride of a gambling session and ended up on top of the casino.

2. German Artist Creates Bitcoin Art Inspired by Andy Warhol

The Dollar was painted many times, including a famous work by Andy Warhol. Now a German artist has created a Bitcoin work called 200 Bitcoins.

1. Black Arrow Offers Pre-Orders for New Bitcoin Mining Hardware

Black Arrow has launched and is taking pre-orders for its Prospero Bitcoin Mining Machines and its Bitcoin ASIC codenamed “the Minion”.

 

Thanks for reading in September!

Bitcoin Price Starts Soaring Again Thanks to Chinese Activity

Today, the price of Bitcoin is around $165 per BTC, up from $125 per BTC a week ago. What’s causing this dramatic price increase? There are a number of factors at work which we highlight in this article.

The dust settles on Silk Road

Just a few weeks ago, the major news running through the Bitcoin community was the seizure by federal authorities of Bitcoin drug marketplace Silk Road. Silk Road’s operator, Ross William Ulbricht, was arrested for drug trafficking, attempted murder, and other felonies.

Read our full coverage of the Silk Road seizure and Ulbricht’s arrest

Ross William Ulbricht Silk Road

Immediately after this news broke the price of Bitcoin dropped nearly 15%, but recovered quickly as people realized that the largest bad actor int he Bitcoin ecosystem was taken out of play.

Baidu, the “Google of China” starts accepting Bitcoin

This week, Baidu, the #1 website in China, started accepting Bitcoin for some of its services. This is a great move in broader acceptance of the digital currency Bitcoin, especially considering China’s previous stances on virtual currencies.

Baidu Accepts Bitcoin

Increased volume on BTCChina

Trading activity dramatically increased on BTCChina, China’s first Bitcoin exchange. See the chart below for evidence of that.

btcchina activity increases bitcoin price

 

All in all, these factors, especially the activity in China, have made Bitcoin feel like a more secure and intriguing investment, therefore increasing the price in the short term.

 

Checkout Using Bitcoin and Google Glass with GlassPay

What’s Hypier Than Bitcoin and Google Glass?

Mainstream tech media is having trouble splitting its time between the amazing Bitcoin stories and the emerging excitement behind Google Glass. So why not combine the two into one?

GlassPay is a mobile app that enables both shoppers and merchants to enjoy frictionless and economical sales transactions. Created by New York consulting firm RedBottle Design, the glassware lets users scan items at retail, assemble a shopping cart, and pay using Bitcoin.

GlassPay Google Glass Bitcoin Retail

RedBottle Design is located in Rochester, NY and was founded in 2007. “We provide software development, web development, and graphic design services, and specialize in mobile app and Google Glass development,” said the firm.

GlassPay Benefits

For customers, GlassPay is taking self-checkout to a whole new level. Like with self-checkout, Google Glass users can avoid waiting in lines for a store clerk to scan their items. But moreover, by integrating Bitcoin payments, customers can pay without ever pulling out their wallet or credit card.

For retailers, the key economic benefits come from Bitcoin, low fees and higher margins. But also, GlassPay offers merchants both large and small an opportunity to build an interactive shopping experience via Google Glass that could be a differentiator for the tech crowd.

“The full platform, including GlassPay for Android and Google Glass, is expected to be in the Play marketplace and Glass Boutique respectively, in the second quarter of 2014,” said RedBottle Design.

Retailers who are interested in using the GlassPay platform should contact RedBottle Design to discuss installation and integration options and pricing.

Baidu, “Google of China”, Now Accepts Bitcoin

Baidu is a Chinese powerhouse, ranked the #1 website in China and commonly referred to as the “Google of China”.

According to the San Francisco Chronicle, Chinese site Baidu is now accepting Bitcoin.

“At this point, Baidu is only taking bitcoin for Jiasule, a security service that provides firewalls and helps fend of distributed denial of service attacks,” reports the Chronicle.

Baidu Accepts Bitcoin

This is a great move in broader acceptance of the digital currency Bitcoin, especially considering China’s previous stances on virtual currencies.