Archives: December 2009

The Most Anticipated Books of 2010

Posted by: Spencer Ante on December 31, Categories: E-books

As part of my research for a feature story on the future of books, "e-Books: Averting a Digital Horror Story," I reached out to book agents, publishers and other industry...

Wi-Fi Hotspot Use Shifts from Laptops to Handhelds

Posted by: Olga Kharif on December 23, Categories: wireless

More people are accessing Wi-Fi hotspots at cafes and airports via smartphones vs. laptops, according to a new study from In-Stat. While, last year, handhelds accounted for 20% of total connects to Wi-Fi hotspots, in 2009 that number jumped to 35%. And by 2011, smartphones should account for half of hotspot connects -- and challenge laptops' dominance of Wi-Fi hotspots, In-Stat estimates.

Nortel to Shed Yet Another Business Unit

Posted by: Olga Kharif on December 23, Categories: Nortel

Bankrupt gearmaker Nortel has just inched closer to becoming a gearmaker no more. On Dec. 23, the company announced a preliminary agreement to sell a unit that makes software and gear for making cheap Web calls to Genband for $282 million, a sum that is subject to adjustment.

Will Skype Follow In Jajah's Footsteps?

Posted by: Olga Kharif on December 22, Categories: VOIP

Traditional telcos are showing healthy appetite for Web calling start-ups. On Dec. 23, European carrier Telefonica acquired Jajah for $207 million. The acquisition comes on the heels of Google's November acquisition of Gizmo5 and British Telecom's 2008 purchase of Ribbit for $105 million. So, what does this mean for Skype?

White House Appoints Cybersecurity Czar

Posted by: Arik Hesseldahl on December 22, Categories: security

Now that the Obama Administration has named the person who will be charge of national cyber-security issues, the question will now turn to what that person will need to do...

Late Fees for Barnes & Noble's Nook

Posted by: Douglas MacMillan on December 21, Categories: E-books

Over the weekend, bookseller Barnes & Noble notified some customers who ordered the Nook e-book reader that the device wouldn't arrive in time for the holidays. Its consolation gift, $100...

Skype Talks Cooperation With Avaya

Posted by: Olga Kharif on December 18, Categories: Skype

Now that gearmaker Avaya and Web-calling service Skype share a private-equity owner, the two companies are discussing ways they can better work together. "We are having conversations with [Skype]," Avaya CEO Kevin Kennedy said in an interview today. Kennedy didn’t go into detail, but these talks most likely focus on how the companies can work together, as opposed to some sort of combination of operations.

Android: Catching Up to the iPhone

Posted by: Olga Kharif on December 17, Categories: Android

Consumer awareness of Android, an operating system for smartphones pushed by Google, is on a steep climb, which bodes well for vendors like Motorola and HTC. Of consumers expecting to shop for smartphones in the next three months, 17% are considering an Android-based device, according to comScore's new survey of 2,300 consumers. In fact, devices based on Android aren't far behind the iPhone.

Sorry, Kindle: WSJ Warms to Sony

Posted by: Douglas MacMillan on December 17, Categories: E-books

News Corp. chief Rupert Murdoch has made no secret of his disdain for the Amazon Kindle business model, punctuating recent earnings calls with remarks that the e-commerce giant pockets too...

Mary Meeker: Mobile Internet to Surpass PC Web

Posted by: Olga Kharif on December 16, Categories: wireless

More users will access the Internet via mobile devices than desktop PCs within five years, according to a Dec. 16 report from Morgan Stanley's Mary Meeker, one of the analysts who predicted the original Internet boom. "The mobile Internet is ramping faster than desktop Internet did," according to the report.

FTC Accuses Intel Of "Systematic Campaign" To Harm Rivals

Posted by: Arik Hesseldahl on December 16, Categories: Intel

The Federal Trade Commission has sued Intel, the world's largest manufacturer of computer chips, alleging that the company has "illegally used its dominant market position for a decade to stifle...

Apps: The Top Reason to Buy an iPhone

Posted by: Olga Kharif on December 11, Categories: Apple

While, initially, many consumers snapped up iPhones for their touch screens, that's changed. Nowadays, it's the apps that are the biggest driver of iPhone purchases, according to a new report from Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster.

Want a Job? Analytics is the Thing, Says IBM

Posted by: Douglas MacMillan on December 09, Categories: IBM

By Spencer E. Ante Mr. McGuire: I want to say one word to you. Just one word. Benjamin: Yes, sir. Mr. McGuire: Are you listening? Benjamin: Yes, I am. Mr....

Pico Projectors Gallore

Posted by: Olga Kharif on December 09, Categories: wireless

Long talked about, smartphone pico projectors -- small accessories that allow phones to project video and photos onto 40- to 60-inch screens -- have finally begun to ship.

Boxee Names First Hardware Partner: It's D-Link

Posted by: Arik Hesseldahl on December 07, Categories: digital media

There's a big party being held in Brooklyn tonight for Boxee, the Internet video service I wrote about in this story in May. One bit of news is the...

Google Gets Real-Time, Personalized Search

Posted by: Douglas MacMillan on December 07, Categories: Google

Even small changes to the world's most-used search engine inevitably affect how hundreds of millions of people use the Web. In the past few days, Google introduced two big features...

IDC: Apple App Store to Top 300,000 Apps in 2010

Posted by: Olga Kharif on December 07, Categories: Apple

The Apple App Store will balloon to more than 300,000 apps by the end of 2010, up from more than 100,000 games, calendars and other apps being offered today, according to a new forecast from consultant IDC.

Tandberg Shareholders Okay Sale to Cisco

Posted by: Peter Burrows on December 03, Categories: Cisco

So Cisco got its acquisition of videoconferencing leader Tandberg done--by a whisker. In fact, it didn't quite convince 90% of Tandberg shareholders to vote for the deal, which was the...

Tandberg Shareholders Okay Sale to Cisco

Posted by: Peter Burrows on December 03, Categories: Cisco

So Cisco got its acquisition of videoconferencing leader Tandberg done--by a whisker. In fact, it didn't quite convince 90% of Tandberg shareholders to vote for the deal, which was the...

Tandberg Shareholders Okay Sale to Cisco

Posted by: Peter Burrows on December 03, Categories: Cisco

So Cisco got its acquisition of videoconferencing leader Tandberg done--by a whisker. In fact, it didn't quite convince 90% of Tandberg shareholders to vote for the deal, which was the...

Yahoo: Now Accepting Facebook ID

Posted by: Douglas MacMillan on December 02, Categories: Yahoo

Conceding to the ubiquity of Facebook as the default form of identity on the Web while helping further it, Yahoo announced a partnership with the social network on Wednesday that...

Smartphone Use Drives Online Shopping

Posted by: Olga Kharif on December 01, Categories: wireless

As holiday shopping ramps up, an increasing number of consumers are using their smartphones to locate stores, to get coupons and to make purchases. More than 40% of 173 iPhone users surveyed by Sanford C. Bernstein reported a substantial increase in their online shopping, the result of greater use of smartphones, according to a Dec. 1 report. Nearly 30% of 187 BlackBerry users surveyed had reported to have experienced the same effect.

Farewell, BusinessWeek

Posted by: Rob Hof on December 01, Categories: BusinessWeek

After 21 years at BusinessWeek, I'm leaving today, the day Bloomberg's purchase of the 80-year-old magazine closes. It has been one heck of a ride. I've had the opportunity...

Cities Consider Backing Net Neutrality

Posted by: Olga Kharif on December 01, Categories: Net Neutrality

New York and San Francisco are mulling resolutions backing Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) efforts to enact tough Internet non-discrimination rules.

Steve Wildstrom Signs Off

Posted by: Stephen Wildstrom on December 01, Categories:

Today is my last day at BusinessWeek and this will be my last post on the Tech Beat. While I consider my next move, I'm starting up a new blog...

New Survey Highlights Part of Newspaper-dom's Problem

Posted by: Peter Burrows on December 01, Categories: video

This afternoon, I wrote about Attributor's retreat from the video fingerprinting business. Instead, it plans to focus on its core market: creating technology that lets newspapers and other text-based media...

Top Search Terms for 2009

Posted by: Douglas MacMillan on December 01, Categories: Search

We know that Google owns the lion's share of searches on the Web, followed by Yahoo! and Microsoft's Bing. But do the leading search engines attract different types of users?...