WSJ.com: Technology
Technology
Japan Orders Apple to Explain iPod Problem
Thu, 29 Jul 2010 06:43:09 EDT
Japan wants Apple to explain why some of its iPod Nano music players overheat, after some cases have resulted in users suffering minor burns.
Snafus Plague New Zealand iPhone Debut
Fri, 30 Jul 2010 11:15:35 EDT
Hundreds of customers in New Zealand hoping to buy Apple's new iPhone 4 were turned away Friday, in what one frustrated would-be buyer called a "nightmare" for customers.
Australia Expands Fiber Internet Network
Fri, 30 Jul 2010 04:38:43 EDT
Australian PM Julia Gillard unveiled an expanded plan for a national high-speed fiber Internet network that will reach 93% of homes and businesses.
Tokyo Defends Search Deal
Wed, 28 Jul 2010 21:22:08 EDT
Japan's antitrust regulator defended its decision to greenlight a new Internet search agreement between Google and Yahoo Japan, a move that drew criticism from Microsoft and surprised antitrust experts.
Can Free Games Make More Money?
Fri, 30 Jul 2010 14:15:55 EDT
More videogame companies, angling for larger audiences for big-budget online games, are making their products free to play in the hopes they can make more money by charging players for virtual goods.
Mobile-TV Push Gets Fuzzy Reception
Wed, 28 Jul 2010 16:18:31 EDT
Chip maker Qualcomm last week signaled it may give up a costly six-year quest to bring broadcast TV to mobile phones and other devices in the U.S. But other entrepreneurs remain undaunted.
RadioShack Net Rises
Thu, 29 Jul 2010 07:53:03 EDT
RadioShack's profit climbed 8.6% as the electronics retailer continued to rope in wireless-device consumers.
SK Telecom Gains From Smartphone Boom
Thu, 29 Jul 2010 14:53:34 EDT
The increasing popularity of smartphones has helped Korea's SK Telecom post a 17% increase in its second-quarter net profit.
Intel Wins Ruling in Antitrust Class-Action Case
Fri, 30 Jul 2010 01:55:59 EDT
Intel won a key ruling in a suit against the company on behalf of computer buyers, which found no evidence that consumers have been hurt by the company's discounting practices in the market for computer chips.
Microsoft Pursues iPad Rivals
Fri, 30 Jul 2010 15:21:34 EDT
CEO Steve Ballmer said Microsoft needs to do better in the market for tablet computers that Apple has found success in with the iPad.
Panasonic To Buy Out Two Units
Thu, 29 Jul 2010 22:52:56 EDT
Panasonic said it will spend up to $9.4 billion to buy all remaining shares in Sanyo Electric and Panasonic Electric Works.
Alliance Aims for Apps Market
Tue, 27 Jul 2010 18:26:10 EDT
A global alliance of telecom operators said it will establish a corporate entity as part of its plans to set up an open platform for mobile applications.
Best Buy to Offer 4G Laptop Cards
Thu, 29 Jul 2010 12:59:30 EDT
Best Buy plans to use Clearwire's higher speed network to power its recently launched Best Buy Connect mobile broadband service, as the consumer-electronics retailer wades further into its wireless industry.
IAC Revenue Jumps
Wed, 28 Jul 2010 09:16:33 EDT
IAC/Interactive's profit dropped due to a year-earlier gain but revenue rose 18%, helped by growth its search and Match online dating businesses.
Contracts and Cost Cutting Boost BT
Thu, 29 Jul 2010 06:35:33 EDT
BT reiterated that it is in talks with the U.K. government over plans to slash public spending as it kept its outlook and posted solid results underpinned by contract wins and further cost cutting.
Sharp Swings Back to Profit
Thu, 29 Jul 2010 03:38:05 EDT
Sharp swung back to a net profit in the fiscal first quarter, benefiting from renewed consumer appetite for products like high-end TVs as the global economy picks up.
Yen Pulls Nintendo to a Loss
Thu, 29 Jul 2010 19:54:09 EDT
Nintendo reported its first quarterly loss in more than two years, as Japan's strong currency and a lack of major new products further pinched the videogame maker.
Cuomo Probing MetLife, Prudential Financial
Fri, 30 Jul 2010 19:46:52 EDT
Cuomo launched a fraud investigation into the life-insurance industry for practices that allegedly denied families of deceased military personnel and others from collecting cash from their policies.
DirecTV Plays Offense With NFL Ads
Thu, 29 Jul 2010 12:06:43 EDT
DirecTV is launching its biggest advertising campaign yet for its marquee property, NFL Sunday Ticket, as it faces mounting pressure from pay-television competitors increasingly offering rival NFL packages.
Intel Nears Chip Pacts
Fri, 30 Jul 2010 18:41:31 EDT
Intel is in advanced talks to acquire Infineon's wireless chip unit, whose products include cellular baseband chips used by Apple and other cellphone makers.
The Web's New Gold Mine: Your Secrets
Sat, 31 Jul 2010 17:20:51 EDT
A Wall Street Journal investigation finds that one of the fastest growing businesses on the Internet is the business of spying on American consumers. First in a series.
Panasonic to Buy Up Two Units
Thu, 29 Jul 2010 10:14:29 EDT
To bolster its green energy business, Panasonic plans to spend at least $8.4 billion to buy out the remaining shares of majority-owned subsidiaries Sanyo Electric and Panasonic Electric Works said.
Nokia Siemens in Deal Talks
Fri, 30 Jul 2010 19:39:03 EDT
Nokia Siemens Networks is talking to several buyout firms about a potential cash infusion of at least $1 billion in exchange for a minority stake.
Telefónica Gets Control of Vivo
Wed, 28 Jul 2010 20:09:44 EDT
Spain's Telefónica agreed to pay $9.75 billion to win full control of Vivo, a Brazilian wireless joint venture it had with Portugal Telecom.
Global Cellphone Shipments Rise
Fri, 30 Jul 2010 06:55:26 EDT
Global shipments of mobile phones continued to grow in the second quarter, but vendors' profit margins could be threatened by high-end price pressure.
Real-World iPhone 4 Test
Thu, 29 Jul 2010 09:39:05 EDT
The iPhone 4 did better than the 3GS in decent coverage, but still isn't a good bet for those in weak-coverage areas, writes Walt Mossberg.
Latin America Lifts Telefónica
Thu, 29 Jul 2010 22:19:09 EDT
Telefónica said net profit rose 16% as revenue growth in its Latin American business compensated for a weaker Spanish market.
Nvidia Warns of Sales Shortfall
Wed, 28 Jul 2010 19:12:42 EDT
Nvidia lowered its second-quarter revenue estimates, amid weak consumer spending that weighed on sales of its flagship graphics processing chips.
Adobe to Launch Tender Offer for Day Software
Wed, 28 Jul 2010 16:01:32 EDT
Adobe Systemshas signed a definitive agreement to launch a public tender offer to acquire all of Day Software's shares for about $240 million.
Fresh Kodak Concerns Surface
Wed, 28 Jul 2010 19:21:48 EDT
Struggling Kodak said its movie-film business is shrinking faster than expected, raising fresh concerns about the viability of the iconic company's turnaround.
Sprint Scrambles as 4G Race Tightens
Wed, 28 Jul 2010 21:09:39 EDT
Sprint Nextel's loss widened as overall subscribership fell and the company booked a $302 million tax-related charge.
Comcast's Profit Slips
Wed, 28 Jul 2010 11:23:11 EDT
Comcast posted solid revenue gains for the second quarter, but its earnings fell 8.6% on costs tied to its deal for a majority stake in NBC Universal.
Will Yahoo China Find a Search Suitor?
Fri, 30 Jul 2010 16:35:59 EDT
After Yahoo Japan's search deal with Google, the fate of Yahoo China is more unclear than ever.
Google Develops Facebook Rival
Wed, 28 Jul 2010 15:56:42 EDT
Google is in talks with several makers of popular online games as it seeks to develop a broader social-networking service that could compete with Facebook.
Sony Swings to Profit
Thu, 29 Jul 2010 18:43:43 EDT
Sony swung to a net profit in the April-June quarter, and raised its earnings forecasts despite the yen's strength that could undermine its competitiveness overseas.
Droid Sales Drive Motorola
Thu, 29 Jul 2010 23:43:32 EDT
Motorola reported higher profit and stabilized its long revenue decline, as the company's wager on smart-phones running Google's software began to pay off.
HCL Technologies Profit Up 3.6%
Thu, 29 Jul 2010 06:40:23 EDT
Indian software exporter HCL Technologies posted a better-than-expected increase in profit for the lateset quarter, on a rise in outsourcing orders.
Akamai Hires Former Publicis Executive
Wed, 28 Jul 2010 16:36:33 EDT
Akamai Technologies named David Kenny as its president, aiming to drive the growth of its early-stage media, cloud-computing and advertising businesses.
Kindle to Go 'Mass Market'
Thu, 29 Jul 2010 10:44:35 EDT
Amazon.com plans to release a cheaper Kindle e-reader next month, said CEO Jeff Bezos, laying out a strategy to go "mass market" with an inexpensive gadget designed to do just one thing: sell digital books from Amazon.
Motorola's Hopes Ride on the Droid
Mon, 26 Jul 2010 09:02:03 EDT
To get its stock back to 2007 levels, Motorola needs its Droid smartphone to ride to the rescue.
GameStop to Acquire Online Distributor
Tue, 27 Jul 2010 20:39:39 EDT
GameStop agreed to acquire online-games distributor Kongregate as part of the retailer's push to become a bigger participant in digital games.
Intel Advances Silicon-Based Laser
Tue, 27 Jul 2010 22:32:58 EDT
Intel said it has fashioned a communications device from silicon-based lasers that operates at an extremely high speed—a step that could change the way computers are designed.
Qualcomm in India Broadband Venture
Fri, 30 Jul 2010 08:12:42 EDT
Qualcomm is forming a joint venture with India's Global Holding and Tulip Telecom to build a network for offering wireless broadband services.
Tech Firms Lobby EU on Privacy
Thu, 29 Jul 2010 12:27:05 EDT
Microsoft, Google and other U.S. tech giants are pushing to streamline Europe's privacy rules in order to offer more remote computing and data-storage services. Some European governments are resisting.
Sanyo Returns to Profit
Wed, 28 Jul 2010 14:37:01 EDT
Sanyo said it returned to profit for the fiscal first quarter as its mainstay solar battery operations and cost-cutting are benefitting the bottom line.
Alcatel-Lucent Sticks to Forecast
Fri, 30 Jul 2010 04:27:09 EDT
Telecommunications-equipment maker Alcatel-Lucent reported a second-quarter net loss on Friday, but confirmed its full-year forecast.
Russia's DST Plans IPO
Wed, 28 Jul 2010 16:40:47 EDT
Russian Internet firm Digital Sky Technologies has hired investment banks to organize an initial public offering in 2011, a person familiar with the plans said.
Justice Department Sues Oracle
Thu, 29 Jul 2010 21:36:27 EDT
The U.S. Justice Department accused Oracle of defrauding the federal government on a software contract that involved more than $1 billion in sales.
Google Says China Remains Murky
Fri, 30 Jul 2010 19:37:43 EDT
Google CEO Schmidt said the company doesn't know if what now seems to have been a minor disruption of its availability in China was evidence of Beijing's power.
Essar, Vodafone Mull Joint-Venture IPO
Thu, 29 Jul 2010 08:41:24 EDT
The chief executive of Essar said the Indian conglomerate is in early talks with Vodafone Group about an initial public offering for their joint venture, Vodafone Essar.
Affordable 3-D Arrives
Fri, 30 Jul 2010 15:26:39 EDT
As 3-D software costs have dropped, more small consumer-product companies are finding it cost-effective to purchase sophisticated modeling tools.
Samsung's Results Jump
Fri, 30 Jul 2010 06:19:50 EDT
Samsung Electronics reported a record profit, but executives said that may have been the peak for the year as pricing pressures are likely to overwhelm sales growth in the second half.
Using the iPhone as a Remote Control
Tue, 27 Jul 2010 22:20:04 EDT
The L5 Remote and the FLPR allow you to control a host of electronic devices with your iPhone or iPad. But they each have quirks.
Hong Kong Privacy Chief Pushes for Regulation
Sat, 31 Jul 2010 03:44:54 EDT
Hong Kong's privacy commissioner recommended legislation to regulate service monopolies such as Octopus, after the operator admitted to selling personal data.
NEC Net Loss Widens
Fri, 30 Jul 2010 14:50:03 EDT
NEC said its net loss for the April-June quarter widened from the year-earlier period, partly due to special losses incurred by reorganizing its semiconductor operations.
Chip Demand Lifts Infineon Net
Wed, 28 Jul 2010 10:25:35 EDT
Semiconductor maker Infineon Said it swung to a profit due to growing demand for its logic chips, and raised its full-year guidance for the third time this fiscal year partly due to a stronger dollar.
France Télécom Calms Investor Fears
Thu, 29 Jul 2010 05:07:00 EDT
France Télécom said it will keep its current dividend over the next three years, calming investor concern that it might replace part of its cash dividend with a share buyback.
Goldman Bans Swearing in Emails
Fri, 30 Jul 2010 10:47:29 EDT
Goldman Sachs is telling employees that they will no longer be able to get away with profanity in emails.
Google: Service in China Operating Normally
Fri, 30 Jul 2010 11:06:06 EDT
Google said its Internet services in China are functioning properly after a minor overnight disruption.
PartyGaming, Bwin Merge
Thu, 29 Jul 2010 21:51:07 EDT
PartyGaming plans to merge with Austrian sports-book operator Bwin Interactive Entertainment, creating the world's largest listed online-gambling business.