5 O’Clock Roundup: Comcast to buy NBC Universal; Apple and Psystar make peace
Here’s the latest action:
Comcast expected to complete mega media deal — In a complicated deal, Comcast is expected to win control of NBC Universal, creating an entertainment giant that could rival Disney. Under the terms, Vivendi is selling its 20 percent stake in NBC Universal to General Electric for $5.8 billion. And GE is expected to sell 51 percent of NBC Universal to Comcast in a deal that values the whole company at $30 billion.
Apple and would-be Mac clone maker Psystar settle — Ending a 17-month lawsuit, the parties have agreed that Psystar will stop pre-installing the Mac OS on its Intel-based computers, shifting the burden for that task from Psytar to its users.
Cyber Monday sales actually rose? — While Hitwise says the top 500 retailers saw a 9 percent drop in Cyber Monday traffic compared to a year ago, Coremetrics reports a 14 percent increase in sales revenue. The average order was $180, compared to $170 a year ago.
Ten predictions for eBooks — Paid Content has a piece predicting things such as E-Ink losing its 100 percent market share hold on the eBook market and dual-screen eBook readers gaining share in the market. But can anyone even predict when we’ll all agree on how to write an eBook?
Smart Grid hobbled by broadband — At an FCC field hearing at MIT, speakers say that the fate of the Smart Grid for saving electricity usage is tied to investments in broadband infrastructure. If broadband investments don’t keep pace, you can forget about the smart grid.
Why investors are drawn to social games – Jeremy Liew of Lightspeed Venture Partners writes that investors are drawn to companies that can focus on development, distribution and discovery.
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Displax plastic film can turn any surface into a touchscreen
about 6 days ago - No comments
Displax is revealing a new plastic film with multitouch sensing. It can be placed over any display or even non-display surfaces, making them into interactive devices.
Portugal-based Displax calls this a “multitouch skin” which can be thinner than paper. The company has been working on it for the [...]
Google tablet demo video
about 6 days ago - No comments
VentureBeat alumnus MG Siegler has posted mockup screenshots and video of a prototype Google tablet running the company’s Chrome OS operating system. Chrome OS basically boots Linux and then launches Google’s Chrome browser. The user does everything within the browser.
Google’s tablet may look like an iPad, but [...]
TOSHIBA NB300 SPECS EMERGE
about 1 month ago - 1 comment
The Toshiba NB300 showed up at the FCC website a few weeks ago. While the company hasn’t officially unveiled the laptop yet, some online retailers have started showing it among listings. As per the listings the netbook will have the following specs:
Display: [...]
New Alex e-reader starts with one million Google Books in its catalog
about 1 month ago - No comments
The two-screen Alex e-reader, from Cupertino, California startup Spring Design, is a new electronic book reader that runs Google’s Android operating system. One screen is for paper-like, black-and-white reading. The other is for looking at pictures and video, surfing the Web, or browsing for books.
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ACER, GATEWAY TABLETS VISIT FCC
about 1 month ago - No comments
Acer, it seems, is planning to bring its 11.6 inch convertible tablet to the US. The company has filed documents with FCC for an unnamed touch-screen tablet pc. Pictures released by FCC shows the laptop with the brand names Gateway, Acer and Packard Bell.
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FOXCONN LINUX NETBOOK HITS FCC
about 1 month ago - No comments
Taiwanese company Foxconn makes computer that would get rebranded and sold under different names in the west. So don’t expect the Foxconn SZ901P to hit the US and Europe under that name. Foxconn has, nevertheless, submitted documents with FCC for a netbook under that name.
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TWO MORE FOXCONN NETBOOKS HIT FCC
about 1 month ago - No comments
Foxconn, it seems, is pretty busy these days. The Taiwanese OEM has been churning out netbooks one after another. Close on the heels of the SZ901P netbook, two other Foxconn netbooks have hit the FCC. Other than a bunch of photos, not much information is available [...]
casual and social games
about 1 month ago - No comments
Chip Lange is the vice president and general manager within the EA Play label at Electronic Arts. He’s in charge of a wide variety of properties including the company’s games based on Hasbro brands from Monopoly to Nerf. Created in 2007, the EA Play label also includes [...]
Is ChaCha now #1 mobile search, ahead of Google?
about 1 month ago - No comments
For most of 2009, human-powered question-and-answer service ChaCha has made surprising leaps up Nielsen Mobile’s rating for SMS services. ChaCha, which uses low-paid freelancers to answer questions texted to it at 242242, has been the fastest-growing mobile search service all year, according to Nielsen. ChaCha shot from [...]
Arkadium CEO plans to adapt to social gaming’s popularity
about 1 month ago - No comments
It’s a time of big change in the game industry, but Kenny Rosenblatt is used to it. In 2001, he co-founded Arkadium with his wife Jessica Rovello. The New York-based company originally started as a casual game site. But that wasn't successful. Instead, Arkadium made money licensing [...]








