Your Wednesday Tech News Round Up!

Steve Jobs gets his own action figure,  Yahoo finally has a new CEO, Google Chrome and Internet Explorer are battling for the place of top browser, and Netflix members collectively watch 2 billion hours of streamed content. All this and more in this Tech News Round Up!

1. The Miniature Steve Jobs doll is so popular it manages to crash the manufacturer's website. For $99 you can have your own action figure of the Apple genius, complete with Jobs' signature black turtleneck and New Balance shoes. [Washington Post]

[Photo via The Washington Post]

2. Google Chrome appears to be a formidable opponent the browser war according to data from StatCounter for 2011. While Microsoft's Internet Explorer still holds the title of most popular browser (with a 39% market share), Chrome beat out Firefox (25%) for the second place slot, coming in at 27%. Explorer started off the year with a lofty 46% market share, but lost customers to Chrome as its popularity increased. [Mashable]

3. 20 Million members streamed 2 billion hours of content on Netflix. While these are impressive numbers, Netflix still had a rough year. CEO Reed Hastings spooked investors back in October by announcing projected losses going into the next year, resulting in a 37% decrease in stock shares overnight.  [Tech Crunch], [Tech Crunch]

[Photo via Tech Crunch]

4. Paypal President, Scott Thompson, is chosen as the new CEO of Yahoo. After four months with no leadership, Thompson will officially take over on January 9th. [CNN]

[Photo via CNN]

5. China gets the iPhone 4S along with 21 other countries n ext Friday, January 13th. China Unicom will launch the  smartphone, just in time for the Chinese New Year. [Engadget]

[Photo via Engadget]

6. Google undergoes a transformative advertising campaign, marking a shift in strategy for the new year. Google co-founder and chief executive, Larry Page, will lead the company into new waters, as it has finally begun to advertise itself. Last year Google began a focused national television campaign and hosted Google-themed conferences, all with the hope of representing itself in the tangible off-line world. Page believes in the products' integration with each other. [New York Times]

[Photo via The New York Times]

7. Due to much conspiracy theory, Chicago launches a snowplow tracker using GPS technology. With the population in constant speculation of which streets, towns, and neighborhoods get plowed  first (or last), Mayor Rahm Emanuel's administration will put all questions to rest by announcing the launch of ChicagoShovels.org next Tuesday. This site allows people to track the city's 300 snowplows in real time from their homes. [New York Times]

[Photo via The New York Times]