October 30, 2008

Information Technology

7:03PM

Federal Court Limits Patents · A federal appeals court ruled that pure software or business method patents that are neither tied to a specific machine nor change something into a different state cannot be patented, possibly invalidating a great number of existing patents. (Techdirt)

8:53AM

Verizon Gets Fed Backing On Alltel Deal · The Justice Department signed off on a proposed merger between Verizon Wireless and Alltel, which will create the nation's largest wireless company. The approval is contingent on Verizon divesting itself of radio spectrum assets in 22 states. (Washington Post)

6:14AM

Sprint Disconnects Cogent, May Slow Web · Cogent Communications, the worldwide broadband provider, claims Sprint severed the connection between their networks. Cogent alleges that Sprint is in “violation of a contractual obligation" to allow "peering." (GigaOM)

6:19AM

Sony Laptop Batteries Recalled Again · HP, Dell and Toshiba issued a recall of Sony-made batteries because of a risk they may overheat and catch fire. The recall is on a smaller scale than a similar recall of Sony batteries two years ago. (Computerworld)

6:17AM

Virtualization Saves Insurer $2.2M · Nationwide says it has cut the number of servers it uses in half, amounting to $2.2 million in savings, thanks to the use of virtualization software from VMware, and can also delay data center expansion for an extra 3 years. (Computerworld)

6:56PM

Google Extends Service Level Agreements · Google extended its Gmail service level agreement (SLA) to customers of Google Apps Premiere Editions in order to dispel doubts about the reliability of its cloud computing services, and posted reliability metrics for Gmail in a blog post. (InformationWeek)

6:24AM

Analysts Take Grim View Of Motorola’s Plans · Motorola outlined plans to streamline costs through layoffs and reorganize the way it does business during an earnings call, but analysts say in so doing, Motorola may lose the scale it needs to compete with bigger rivals like Nokia. (BusinessWeek)

1:48PM

Informatica Offering Salesforce.com Integration Service · Informatica will announce a Web-based integration service for synchronizing data between on-premise databases and applications hosted by Salesforce.com, and is designed to be easy enough for use by a tech-savvy employee or Salesforce administrator in a business division. (InformationWeek)

6:59PM

Microsoft Slimming Future Windows · Microsoft will ship a slimmed-down Windows in the future, replacing much of the software previously included in its OS with Web-based services. Software chief Ray Ozzie says Windows will be used to optimize hardware performance rather than to add software. (InfoWorld)

6:47AM

SAP Retrenching In Face Of Recession · SAP will focus on its traditional licensed software applications business, scale back the roll-out of its Business ByDesign SaaS ERP initiative, and transition its hosted computing business to business partners such as AT&T, Accenture, and British Telecom. (InformationWeek)

6:44AM

Google Delays Data Center Construction · Google will delay the construction of a data center it had planned to build in Oklahoma until "the economy improves." The move, which belies the idea that the recession will not effect IT, also stalls the creation of 100 jobs. (Silicon Alley Insider)

7:05PM

Outsourcing Boosted By Recession · Demand for outsourcing is outstripping investment in hardware and software as customers focus on cost-cutting in the short term. Forty percent of 200 outsourcing service suppliers surveyed, including Accenture, Capgemini, IBM, Infosys, and Wipro, reported increased demand levels. (InfoWorld)

6:52AM

Recession Will Be Mild For Tech [OPINION] · Tech will suffer from a slump in GDP growth, but unlike during previous recessions, technology has become too ubiquitous to be cast aside, especially since many organizations will use the downturn to implement change that requires IT. (George F. Colony)

1:01PM

HP To Offer Service Bundles for Netbooks · HP plans to bundle wireless services with netbooks, stripped-down laptop computers that rely on the Web for most functionality, copying a model used by European and Asian wireless carriers who offer discounts on computers in exchange for long-term service contracts. (WSJ)

6:41AM

Asus, Intel Crowd-Source PC Design · Asus and Intel launched WePC, a Web site where users can introduce design and technical specifications for new netbook and notebook models; the companies say their developers will monitor the site and incorporate useful ideas into their models. (Engadget)