News


Microsoft 4Q Profit Falls on Legal, R&D Expenses

Microsoft Corp. said Thursday that fiscal fourth quarter earnings fell nearly 24 percent in part because of a one-time legal charge but beat Wall Street estimates.

PC Market 'Healthy' Despite Weak Demand in Europe

Personal computer shipments grew roughly 10 percent in the second quarter despite soft sales in Europe, two influential research firms reported Wednesday.

Google 2Q Earnings More Than Double

Google's second-quarter profit more than doubled, maintaining the Internet search leader's penchant for topping analysts' high expectations and further underscoring the advantage the company has built over its chief rivals.

Intel Shuffles Top Executives

Intel Corp. is reassigning five top executives to new positions as part of a corporate restructuring designed to simplify the company's management, according to a memorandum circulated to employees late Wednesday.

Microsoft States 12 'Principles' of Fairness

Microsoft this week published a list of 12 "voluntary principles" of fairness that it says it will live up to in developing future products and dealing with competitors, consumers and partners after the U.S. Justice Department's oversight expires.

Microsoft To Update Hosting Solution

Microsoft will ship early next month an update to its Web hosting package that takes advantage of recently released products and technologies.

Microsoft To License 3-D Image Technology

Microsoft Corp. plans to license a technology for manipulating three-dimensional images as part of the company's efforts to make more money from its in-house research and development.

Microsoft and XenSource 'Cooperate' for Linux Support in Windows Server

Microsoft announced this week it will cooperate with a leading Linux open source developer to provide interoperability between Windows Longhorn Server and Xen virtualization technology for Linux.

Microsoft, Nortel Form Telecom Alliance

Microsoft Corp. and Nortel Networks Corp. have formed a four-year alliance to develop and sell products that aim to give people more sophisticated ways to communicate with each other.

Microsoft Acquires Winternals, Sysinternals

Microsoft announced this week it has acquired Winternals Software LP, a well-known vendor of enterprise systems recovery and data protection solutions for Windows, along with the company's associated freeware site Sysinternals.

Microsoft Pulls Private Folder Tool

Microsoft has abruptly pulled from its Web site a free folder encryption tool it recently released, saying the program's removal came about due to complaints from IT shops.

Microsoft Files 26 U.S. Piracy Lawsuits

Microsoft Corp. has filed 26 lawsuits accusing U.S. companies of selling pirated software, the latest move in its ramped-up efforts to boost sales by cracking down on illegal copies.

FBI Consultant Spared Jail in Password Case

An FBI computer consultant who pleaded guilty to hacking the secret passwords of Director Robert Mueller and others will not serve any time in prison, a federal judge has ruled.

McAfee Quietly Fixes Software Flaw

A leading computer security company quietly fixed a dangerous design flaw months ago, but did not warn businesses and U.S. government agencies until Friday.

Novell To Release Suse Linux 10

Novell Inc. will start shipping Release 10 of its Suse Linux on Monday, marking the first full new release of Suse Linux since August 2004, according to the company's president and chief executive officer.

Microsoft, Yahoo Test IM Partnership

Microsoft Corp. and Yahoo Inc. are beginning a limited test of plans to make their instant messaging systems work together.

VMware Ships Free Virtualization Server

VMware announced this week that it is now shipping the free version of its virtualization server platform.

Intel To Slash 1,000 Management Jobs

Intel Corp. plans to cut 1,000 management jobs worldwide in an effort to reduce costs and make its operations more efficient, the world's largest computer chip maker said Thursday.

Dell Revamps Pricing Structure

Dell Inc. outlined plans Thursday to simplify pricing and reduce the number of mail-in rebates for consumers and small business as part of the computer maker's recent $100 million initiative to improve customer service.

Microsoft Penalized Over Servers

At its core, the $357 million fine levied against Microsoft Corp. comes down to one simple contention: Microsoft's software for computer servers works faster and more efficiently with its ubiquitous Windows operating system than do rivals' offerings.