Ed Oswald

Google has reached an agreement with Dell to have its software preinstalled on millions of new computers. Among the software included would be a customized version of the Google Toolbar, along with its Desktop Search product.

Additionally, new Dell owners will have their homepages set to a co-branded portal site. Google beat out Microsoft for the deal after Yahoo withdrew its bid, in which 100 million Dell PCs could ship with the Google software.

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Valance Media, the company which runs Torrentspy.com, has accused the Motion Picture Association of America of hiring a hacker to attempt to collect private information about the Web site. According to the complaint, the group paid a man $15,000 to steal e-mail and trade secrets.

A suit has been filed in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

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The lead plaintiff in the iPod Nano scratch lawsuits is now claiming that the suits were not his idea, and had been filed on his behalf without his authorization. In a letter posted to his Web site Monday, Jason Tomczak sought to set the record straight on the now infamous case.

"The truth is that I never sought out nor did I ever hire David P. Meyer & Associates or Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro to represent me in any case, much less the iPod Nano Class Action suit," Tomczak wrote.

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Cablevision was sued Wednesday by four Hollywood studios and the three major television networks, who accused the cable provider of copyright infringement through its planned on-demand service that would essentially replace the set-top digital video recorder.

The offering would allow subscribers to store and playback television off of Cablevision's servers. While personal copying has long been ruled legal, opponents of the new service say the cable provider is recording and retransmitting programming without the necessary license.

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Confirming Wall Street speculation, Yahoo and eBay on Thursday announced a multi-year deal that will combine the two companies' efforts in search and graphical advertising, online payments, a co-branded toolbar, and possibly "click-to-call" functionality.

Joint services are expected to be rolled out later this year, including a testing phase. Full implementation is slated for next year.

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Microsoft said Thursday that its MSN Spaces service is the most widely used blogging product worldwide, according to data from research firm comScore Networks. Nearly 101 million unique visitors came to the service, more than double the traffic from last year. According to comScore, nearly one out of every seven Internet users visited an MSN Space last month.

"Consumers are enjoying MSN Spaces in record proportions as they embrace the ability to more easily share their stories and stay in touch with the people they care about most," said Moz Hussain, group product manager at Microsoft. "As more people discover how easy this service is to use and how it enables them to share so many different things with the people they care about most, we're confident that MSN Spaces will continue as the world's most popular blogging destination."

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TiVo has filed an injunction in its continuing patent battle with EchoStar, which runs the DISH Network, asking the court to bar the company from manufacturing or selling digital video recorders. The Alviso, Calif., based company had won a jury ruling against EchoStar in April.

However, EchoStar shot back, saying in a statement that the Patent Office had overturned some of TiVo's patent claims. "We are pleased that the United States Patent and Trademark Office yesterday rejected many of TiVo's patent claims as invalid," the company said in a statement.

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The worldwide server market continued to cool during the first three months of 2006 according to research firm IDC, with revenues falling 1.9 percent year over year to $11.9 billion. This was the second quarter of revenue decline, and follows two and a half years of growth.

Volume server revenue grew 6.3 percent year over year, which was the slowest growth in more than three years. Revenue for mid-range enterprise servers declined by 16.2 percent, the second consecutive quarter of decline, and high-end servers by 3.2 percent, the sixth consecutive quarter.

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Microsoft has advised users of Word to run the application in Safe Mode in order to protect against "zero-day" attacks. The recommendation comes after the discovery of a serious flaw in the word processor that could result in code execution.

The vulnerability can be exploited after a user opens a specially crafted Word file with a malformed object pointer. The issue causes memory to corrupt, and opens a hole that allows for code execution. The flaw can also be exploited through e-mail or the Web, however it requires the opening of a malicious file.

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Dell plans to open up two brick-and-mortar locations in a pilot program to test the retail waters later this year, the company says. But don't expect it to be like an Apple store -- all orders would still be placed through the phone and Web.

The company has already made a small retail appearance through the opening of kiosks in about 160 shopping malls across the country. The Dell stores would build upon that approach, allowing for a more traditional store layout and a broader selection of products for customers to test.

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The FCC has declined to investigate whether telecommunications companies have broken consumer privacy laws by sharing phone call data with the NSA, saying the classified nature of the program prevents the agency from doing so.

Chairman Kevin Martin, a Republican, said that the FCC would be unable to investigate at this time due to the fact it would require the examination of highly classified information. According to Martin, the agency has no power in ordering the release of those documents.

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The creators of the peer-to-peer network Morpheus sued eBay earlier this week, claiming its Skype division broke an agreement that gave StreamCast Networks first right of sale to the FastTrack network protocol. The technology is the foundation of Skype's Internet calling, and was used for file sharing in Morpheus.

StreamCast first filed the suit in January, but Monday's filing adds eBay as a defendant. The company is asking for $4 billion in damages and an injunction that would stop the distribution of Skype VoIP.

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Software piracy worldwide increased five percent last year, costing the industry some $34 billion during 2005, research firm IDC reported on Tuesday. According to the study commissioned for the Business Software Alliance, one out of every three copies of software in 2005 was pirated.

The firm found that rates of piracy were fluctuating from country to country, but overall the global rate had remained pretty much steady over the past two years. The difference in the value had to do with more PCs and software being shipped in 2005 than in previous years, IDC explained.

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Apple and Nike have agreed to collaborate to offer iPod users both apparel and accessories compatible with the iconic device. The two companies have announced specially designed footwear that would allow the wearer to use their iPod nano to monitor time, calories burned and pace. Additionally, the shoes could give real time audible feedback when used with headphones. The Nike+ Air Zoom Moire will be the first shoe to be "iPod ready."

"We're working with Nike to take music and sport to a new level," said Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO. "The result is like having a personal coach or training partner motivating you every step of your workout." The Sport Kit will be made available by this summer for $29 and would be available through Apple itself or authorized resellers. The launch of the device would also be accompanied by specially-designed Nike apparel, the two companies said.

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AT&T has plans to expand its Internet TV service offering, the company said Friday. By year's end, AT&T will have the service available in 15 to 20 markets. Currently, a pilot service is only offered in the San Antonio market.

Senior vice president Lee Ann Champion told the Wall Street Journal on Friday that service would be launched next in Austin. That would be followed by additional launches in the third quarter in all of AT&T's regions, including the West, Southwest, Midwest and East Coast.

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