News


BlackBerry Patent Battle Ends with $612.5 Million Settlement

Research In Motion Ltd., the maker of the BlackBerry e-mail device, Friday announced it has settled its long-running patent dispute with a small Virginia-based firm, averting a possible court-ordered shutdown of the BlackBerry system.

IT Weekly Roundup, March 3

From the business wires this week: a file transfer client/server for heterogenous environments, SQL Server and Exchange backup solutions, and a site for SOA resources.

Microsoft Asks U.S. Courts To Force Rivals To Surrender Documents

Microsoft Corp. is asking U.S. courts to compel Sun Microsystems Inc., IBM Corp., Oracle Corp. and Novell Inc. to hand over correspondence with EU regulators on Microsoft's antitrust battle in Europe.

'Sedna' CTP Out for Visual FoxPro Developers

Visual FoxPro developers got access to the first Community Technology Preview (CTP) of Microsoft's "Sedna" project this week.

Microsoft's Origami: A Paperback-Sized PC

Let's start with what the much-hyped Microsoft Corp. project code-named Origami is not. It's not a music player designed to take on Apple Computer Inc.'s mega-popular iPod. And it's not a portable version of Microsoft's Xbox videogame console. And it won't -- at least not yet -- replace your cellular phone or your regular computer.

MCP Program Certifies 1.6 Million

Microsoft's Learning Group updates MCP numbers on its Web site; new titles are not included in MCP census.

Microsoft Says EU Colluded with Rivals

Microsoft Corp. filed a formal complaint with EU antitrust regulators Thursday, alleging that the European Commission withheld documents and secretly colluded with Microsoft opponents shortly before the EU charged the company with failing to obey an earlier ruling.

U.S. Objects to Snort Purchase by Israel-Based Check Point

The same Bush administration review panel that approved a ports deal involving the United Arab Emirates has notified a leading Israeli software company that it faces a rare, full-blown investigation over its plans to buy a smaller rival.

Is Vista Rollout Gala Set for Early October?

Microsoft is calling "speculation" a report that the company will have its highly anticipated grand gala to roll out Windows Vista in the first week of October.

Deal Reached on .Com Domain Price Hikes

The board of the Internet's main oversight agency has approved a deal under which VeriSign Inc. must meet some conditions in order to raise fees for ".com" domain names.

Exchange 12 Begins Community Tech Preview

Microsoft began shipping the first community technology preview (CTP) of Exchange 12 on Wednesday, marking the beginning of its first widespread testing.

Microsoft Research Steps It Up

Do you have one of those wildly popular Dance Dance Revolution dance pads at home? Ever think of using it to do e-mail? That could happen if a technology demonstration at Microsoft on Tuesday escapes into the wild.

AOL Sues Groups Under Anti-Phishing Law

America Online is taking advantage of a first-of-its-kind anti-"phishing" law in Virginia to sue three international groups that allegedly stole information from unsuspecting AOL users by sending e-mail that appeared to be legitimate messages from the company.

Gateway Pays To Settle HP Patent Suits

Gateway Inc. has agreed to pay $47 million to rival computer maker Hewlett-Packard Co. to settle a series of lawsuits over patents.

Survey: VoIP Triples in 2005

Last year was a breakout time for Internet telephone services, with the number of U.S. subscribers more than tripling to 4.5 million and industry revenue surpassing $1 billion.

Microsoft Updates Web Search Offering

Microsoft Corp. unveiled several new online technologies Tuesday, including early versions of an Internet classified service and a local search function that provides extremely detailed pictures of local streets.

Apple Unveils New Intel Mac Mini; Microsoft Readies Origami

Reaching further into living rooms, Apple Computer Inc. on Tuesday introduced a revamped Mac Mini computer that will let users access music, video and photos across their home networks.

New Buyers of Small Business Server to Get R2 Upgrade

A Microsoft promotion to give customers who buy Windows Small Business Server 2003 a free upgrade to the Release 2 version kicks off on Wednesday.

Windows Servers Catching Up with Unix

Windows servers are beginning to make their move to take the lead in the worldwide server sales race, according to researcher IDC. But while Unix has been slipping lately, Linux is also making a strong move to come from behind, according to the researcher's latest Quarterly Server Tracker, which presents the firm's analysis of calendar fourth quarter 2005 factory revenues.

Microsoft Opens Bosnia Office

Microsoft announced Tuesday the opening of an office in Bosnia in order to promote its software on the Bosnian market.