Posts tagged with 'Microsoft'
When it comes to large tech companies and how they've fared with social networking, one could argue that Microsoft is the most successful.
Google has struggled to build viable homegrown social networks, Yahoo has largely done little of note, AOL purchased Bebo for $850m only to drive it into the ground, etc.
Microsoft's claim to success in the social space? A $240m investment in Facebook in 2007 which valued the social network at $15bn.
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by Patricio Robles
21 May 2012 17:00pm
4 comments
Windows 8 is coming, and Microsoft isn't the only company hoping that its newest operating system is a hit with consumers.
Chip giant Intel is betting big on ultrabooks -- thin, lightweight laptops similar to the MacBook Air -- and is investing big bucks to ensure that a slew of them hit store shelves as soon as Windows 8 is released later this year. The good news for consumers on a budget: some of those ultrabooks could cost as little as $699 if manufacturers have their way.
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by Patricio Robles
07 May 2012 18:26pm
7 comments
Following Microsoft’s acquisitions and “partnership,” palm greasing is getting more exciting by the hour.
The headlines have been coming fast since the end of Q3 11: $8.5b Skype acquisition. $250m quarterly infusion to Nokia. $24m in subsidies for Windows Mobile app developers. $1b Aol patent grab – now flipped to Facebook for $500m. Vague, behind the scenes dealing with Comcast. And now this: a $300m investment in Barnes & Nobles’ Nook division.
Something is up.
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by Sam Dwyer
02 May 2012 15:32pm
2 comments
Thanks to Amazon's dominance, it's easy to forget that traditional bookseller Barnes & Noble (B&N) has managed to build a decent digital portfolio of its own.
In the past, that has sparked speculation that B&N would eventually spin off its NOOK division, freeing its digital business from the baggage of its brick-and-mortar business.
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by Patricio Robles
30 April 2012 16:08pm
0 comments
After years of waiting, Google finally launched Google Drive this week.
Naturally, Google's entry into the online storage market raised questions about some of the companies that have established themselves in the space, such as Dropbox. Will Google make it harder for them to grow and thrive, or will it fail to gain traction?
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by Patricio Robles
25 April 2012 19:34pm
1 comment
That didn't take long. Just two weeks after Microsoft announced that it had purchased a major collection of patents from AOL for $1bn, Microsoft has turned around and sold 650 patents to Facebook, which is being sued by Yahoo for patent infringment.
Microsoft will retain a license to the patents, and as part of the $550m deal, Facebook will also receive licenses for AOL patents that Microsoft did not offer up for sale.
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by Patricio Robles
23 April 2012 21:55pm
0 comments
Microsoft’s broad portfolio of products means it has interests in search, gaming, smartphones and entertainment - as well as its dominant brand of office software.
As VP of Microsoft advertising for EMEA Laurent Delaporte is tasked with trying to coordinate a coherent ad sales strategy across all these diverse and evolving platforms, which is no mean feat.
Three of his portfolios - Xbox Live, MSN and Bing - have been revamped in recent months to make them more attractive to advertisers.
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by David Moth
13 April 2012 09:30am
0 comments
Ask mobile developers who work with both iOS and Android, and you'll probably hear from more than a few of them that the Android emulator is lacking. From poor performance to inconsistencies, there have been no shortage of complaints about the tool developers are provided with to test their Android apps prior to testing them on a real device.
So Google is doing what you'd expect it to do and trying to improve its emulator.
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by Patricio Robles
10 April 2012 15:28pm
3 comments
After last week's launch of the Lumia 900, all eyes are on Nokia and Microsoft to see if their new partnership is a game changer in the mobile industry.
Following on from our post on Nokia and Microsoft last week, we've asked a few industry experts what their views were on the future of the partnership and how it will affect marketers and their future mobile campaigns.
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by Heather Taylor
10 April 2012 14:29pm
0 comments
The patent wars continue.
Just weeks after AOL CEO Tim Armstrong was quoted as referring to AOL's 800-plus patent portfolio as "beachfront property in East Hampton" and reports surfaced that the company was shopping the collection, AOL sealed a deal with Microsoft worth just over $1bn.
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by Patricio Robles
09 April 2012 18:07pm
0 comments
