Business

Microsoft has been ordered to pay over $290 million for willfully infringing on a patent by Canadian firm I4i. The Redmond-based firm has also been told by a Texas judge to stop selling its Word program. The patent in question relates to the use of ... the XML programming language that makes files readable across different programs and allows the formatting of text. XML is an integral part of Microsoft's Word. (Source: bbc.co.uk ) XML Patent Filed by I4i in 1998 The $290 million fine and sales ban of Word are the result of Microsoft's use of Extensible Mark-up Language (XML) documents. Other word ... (view more)

It has been rumored for some time that netbooks, the slim-sized and under-powered notebooks sold for under $500, might not be able to handle Windows 7. Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer recently dismissed that, and went on to discuss exactly how certain ... hardware restrictions define which version of Windows 7 a netbook can manage. Ballmer outlined the special edition of Windows 7 for low-powered processors and small screens at Microsoft's annual financial analyst day. Netbook owners will receive a version of Win7 called Starter, which will not be sold directly to any consumers or businesses. Instead ... (view more)

Microsoft has been accused of failing to do enough to prevent rogue pharmaceutical ads on the results page of its new search engine, Bing. But the claim comes in a report from a group with a clear commercial interest and uses language which gives a ... misleading impression. The authors of the report searched Bing for ten pharmaceutical products, covering a mix of drugs for sexually-related conditions and drugs with the potential to be abused. They then looked at the "sponsored search results" which appear on the right-hand side of the screen. According to the authors, 89.7% of the drug providers ... (view more)

Microsoft is refuting reports today that a recently discovered bug in Windows 7 could cripple the operating system's much-anticipated October 22 launch. According to the Redmond-based company, the bug is not widespread and can be contained. The ... issue in question is not security-based, meaning it won't likely cause your computer to be overrun by malicious hackers, but it could seriously affect system performance. According to a report from several sites released earlier this week, a process in Windows 7 could in certain conditions use up a computer's maximum available memory in order to ... (view more)

Microsoft's Windows 7 may turn out to be "the best Windows yet," but a new poll reveals that 60% of corporations have no plans to roll it out any time soon. Part of the problem can be blamed on Windows Vista, but in their defense Microsoft has been ... working hard to improve their image and regain their credibility and by appealing to customers by making it easier and cheaper to upgrade. Economic Meltdown May Affect Win7 Deployment For businesses, Windows 7's deployment is low on the list of priorities right now because of the downturn in the global economy. According to a poll conducted by ... (view more)

Google CEO Eric Schmidt has quit the Apple board. His resignation came after the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) began investigating why Apple refused to carry a Google program in its app store. Schmidt's departure comes four months after ... another government agency, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), began probing his role on the board . A 1914 antitrust law bans people from sitting on the boards of rival companies if they compete with one another. That was becoming more and more problematic as Google moved into its own browser and being heavily involved in the open source operating ... (view more)

Late yesterday Microsoft revealed that it had made available Release Candidate software allowing Windows 7 users to operate a virtual edition of its still very popular Windows XP. The news is good for those of us still hesitant to make the upgrade ... to Windows 7. Although most of us won't know for sure how well 'XP Mode' will work until Windows 7 is released on October 22, many faithful XP users will be happy to hear that they can switch back in time if the Win7 interface isn't to their liking. CPU Virtualization Required Windows XP Mode Release Candidate is currently available for download ... (view more)

A British newspaper claims Apple ordered a customer whose iPod exploded to keep quiet about it. The Times says the company refused to refund the customer unless they signed a confidentiality agreement. Ken Stanborough one day found his daughter's ... iPod overheating to the point when he could no longer hold it. He threw it from his back door and within 30 seconds it exploded and flew "10 feet in the air." He contacted both the retailer where he bought the device, Argos, and Apple itself. Eventually he received a letter from Apple offering him a full refund but denying any liability. The letter ... (view more)

Microsoft announced a couple of weeks ago that some retail stores would be opening "right next door to Apple stores" this fall. At the time it wasn't clear if this was a deliberate strategy or merely a coincidence. That said, Microsoft has announced ... the locations for its first two retail stores: one will be located in The Shops at Mission Viejo, California and the other in Fashion Square in Scottsdale, Arizona. The California location already has an Apple store, though with two floors and more than a million square feet of store space in the mall, the Microsoft outlet won't necessarily be a ... (view more)

It's only been a few days since the Microsoft-Yahoo search agreement was finalized and already the new tandem is being criticized. Concerns were raised over the fact that the companies billed their union as a "global" partnership. The fact is that ... both companies were founded (and are currently headquartered) in the United States. According to some experts, this is a minor snafu -- but the technicality does raise a valid concern. What happens to the international Yahoo search affiliates? Yahoo China not Included in Deal It has now been made clear that the Microsoft-Yahoo search ... (view more)