FTC: 'Intel fell behind' against AMD, used unfair tactics to catch up
Clearly choosing the path of minimum compromise, the US Federal Trade Commission this morning voted to press antitrust charges against Intel, in an action that now parallels that of the European Commission, as well as the state of New York.
The principal charges are those we've covered here before, and which are also at the root of the EC's case, among them that Intel entered into near-exclusivity or exclusivity arrangements with Dell and Hewlett-Packard. According to the terms of those arrangements (which may or may not be legally considered "agreements" since they apparently were not entirely on paper), the OEMs promised to purchase mainly Intel parts in particular market segments, in exchange for preferential pricing and rebates (or programs that had the same effect as rebates).
Glide OS launches Internet Explorer plugin, BlackBerry app
With all the recent attention given to Google's Chrome OS, it is only natural that interest in other cloud-based environments should be higher than usual. However, interest in Webtop operating systems still remains relatively low.
Earlier this year, Ray Valdes of Gartner Research said, "From a long-term perspective, I don't see any change to current market trends, which are that Webtop ventures are not gaining market traction."
FCC could bypass CableCARD on the way to spurring broadband adoption
Is there something about set-top boxes that make consumers not want to subscribe to cable? In a sparsely covered request for public comments two weeks ago, the US Federal Communications Commission asked the general public for comments on several questions related to whether there's something wrong with the design or functionality of the set-top boxes to which customers subscribe, that make them reluctant to embrace cable and satellite TV.
Embracing cable and/or satellite, the FCC sees, is critical to embracing broadband, as the FCC's request indicated. But taking the matter one big step further, FCC Media Chief William Lake -- in a remark first noticed by Reuters' John Poirier -- suggested that regulation on the content of set-top boxes (STBs) themselves may be necessary in order to drive broadband adoption.
Bing continues to grow, staking its claim in mobile search
Microsoft's six-month old search engine Bing has been performing admirably, says market research firm comScore, and it grew to a 10.3% share of the search market in November.
During the month of November, core US search volume grew by 17.8%, but only Google's and Microsoft's sites increased in share. Yahoo, Ask, and AOL, on the other hand, all declined.
Live Poll: Is this the last we'll hear about IE stifling competition?
In January, a new European Commissioner for Competition takes his post: Joachín Almunia. His position on the global economy and Europe's role in it is crystal clear, but his take on the role individual companies -- including American firms such as Intel, Microsoft, and Google -- play in that economy, is an absolute blank slate at this point. Reliable news sources all over the European press (including those that don't publish centerfolds) openly state they are clueless as to which way Almunia will lean.
While the active pursuit of charges against Microsoft may at this point be closed, the investigation of the company by the European Commission -- and thus the case itself, at least on the books -- remains open. Given what we've seen before, what do you believe will be the next headline in this ongoing story, assuming there is one? This time around, you can add your own alternative and let others vote on it.
Satirical blog post may incite real AT&T protest on Friday
For the better part of three years, author Dan Lyons has run a popular blog under the nom de guerre "Fake Steve Jobs." It began as a satire of Apple culture and was written from the perspective of the Apple CEO, but its tone changed significantly when the real Jobs took ill. Since Jobs' return to work at Apple, "The Secret Diary of Steve Jobs," has become more of a straight up tech comedy blog.
In response to AT&T CEO Ralph de la Vega's dialogue about encouraging customers to consume less data on their mobile devices, Lyons crafted a satirical post about an "internal Apple e-mail" which encouraged iPhone users to consume even more data in a December 18 protest called "Operation Chokehold."
Consider this: Apple, the television network
The proposed USD$30 billion Comcast-NBC Universal deal has entered the labyrinthine process of winning Congressional approval from the antitrust gurus and the Federal Communications Commission. Small cable operators, which apparently still exist, fear that they will be driven out of business by the sprawling new company that would combine NBC's programming with Comcast's vast network of 24 million subscribers.
Those of us who remember the Frankenstein that was AOL Time Warner may shudder as we hear these words again: "It's great to own content and distribution!"
Resolved: EU 'Choice Screen' for Windows will show top 5 browsers first
European users of Windows 7, Vista, and XP who have Internet Explorer set as their default Web browser will very soon be given a choice of alternatives, and that choice will reveal itself to users by way of an important Windows update. The announcement came this morning from Brussels, where the European Commission has accepted the latest adjusted proposal from Microsoft, in response to the EC's Statement of Objections earlier this year.
The Web site which the EC is establishing for public review of the browser ballot -- now being called the Choice Screen -- was not available in Betanews tests Wednesday morning, though should soon appear at www.browserchoice.eu.
Europe gets off Microsoft's back -- ends browser antitrust case
Microsoft's Web brower antitrust troubles in Europe are essentially over. Starting in mid-March, European Windows users will have option to choose the default Web browser. Microsoft also will embark on a new interoperability initiative.
In a press conference today, the European Union's chief antitrust enforcer, Neelie Kroes, described the situation she sees about browser choice: "It is as if you went to the supermarket and they only offered you one brand of shampoo on the shelf, and all the other choices are hidden out the back, and not everyone knows about them. What we are saying today is that all the brands should be on the shelf."
Android Market climbs to 20K: The apps that make the platform
Because Apple forcefully pushes the quantity of apps in the iTunes App Store as a mark of superiority, other mobile application stores are tallied whether or not they want to be.
Unofficial Android Market Web portal AndroLib recently announced that Google's Android Market has hit the 20,000 app milestone, putting it a distant second behind Apple's App Store, but growing fast.
Do you want Bing for iPhone? There's an app for that
Earlier this evening, Microsoft formally announced a new search app for iPhone on the Bing Community blog. The Bing app is available now from the App Store, complete with voice search. I emphasize the now because the app has a December 16 release date on the 15th.
Based on a very quick, cursory look, Bing is a competent iPhone app, tapping into the kind of capabilities expected from the platform. Bing fits nicely into the App Store repertoire. I wouldn't call the features revolutionary -- Apple and Google are there already with advanced mapping and GPS -- but the packaging appeals, and Microsoft manages to offer a user experience that is fairly consistent with Bing Web search.
Are you a Net vet or a couch potato?
The question is worth your answer (in comments, please), following data released by Nielsen and NPD over the last 40 hours. According to Nielsen, U.S. Internet users spent an average 66 hours 24 minutes and 44 seconds on a PC in November. An average 6 hours 10 minutes and 6 seconds spent on the Internet went to Facebook.
But for all the talk about newer technologies -- whether Hulu and YouTube streaming or iTunes and iPods -- NPD claims that more Americans still consume traditional media. The data strangely juxtapositions with advertising spending trends.
Google URL shortening not ready for prime time in Firefox
Download Google Toolbar for Firefox version 7.0.2009.1214Wb1 from Fileforum now.
You know the global domain name system is not the perfect solution for today's modern Internet when an entire cottage industry evolves around masking it, removing the dot-com and making URLs more portable. TinyURL.com helped pioneer that market years ago, but since that time, bit.ly has become the official shortening service of Twitter, where small URLs are the most precious commodity. Competitor tr.im still struggles to compete there, as its trimmed URLs are automatically replaced with substitutes from preferred partner bit.ly.
Grey market devices boost declining 2009 mobile phone sales
Worldwide Mobile phone sales will nudge down in 2009 compared to 2008 rather than sharply decline. In forecast data released by Gartner today, global handset sales will reach 1.214 billion units, down 0.67 percent from 2008. Three months earlier, Gartner forecast a 3.7 percent year-over-year decline in sales. Gartner tracks actual sales to end users, not shipments to carriers or retailers.
While bloggers and other pundits like to talk up iPhone as the competitor that will unseat global market leader Nokia, the threat is elsewhere. "The grey market will affect Nokia's market share the most," Carolina Milanesi, Gartner research director, said in a statement. Grey market sales have increased throughout the year, with surprising tenacity, and they're spreading.
Betanews Live Poll: Would wireless carrier quality kill the iPhone?
As you may be already aware, a grass roots movement launched by blogger Dan Lyons calls upon iPhone users to...well, to congest the AT&T network for one hour, at noon Pacific Time this Friday. The cause? Recent comments made by AT&T CEO Ralph de la Vega, effectively blaming network users for network congestion and poor service quality.
That may not be the best ad for the iPhone -- AT&T's star product in the US -- as the holiday season progresses. But maybe that's not for us to decide, but for you. Here's the first of what we hope will be many regular Betanews Polls, made possible by our friends at PollDaddy.com.
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