Archive

Not very long ago, both social media and e-commerce were new and innovative. Now, they're simply elements of today's marketing mix -- part of the fabric of how you reach your customer engagement and revenue objectives. During the slow economic recovery, it has become business-critical to conduct mor...

iPod, iPhone, iPad and soon we will have iCloud? Mobile operators are working feverishly to determine how best to tap their network resources and offer not just bits and bytes but content, applications and other forms of value-added services. They know their future cash flow depends on successful de...

HP is proving relentless in its bidding war with Dell over data storage company 3Par. Within hours after Dell matched HP's offer of $1.8 billion, HP countered with $2 billion. The battle for the company broke out in earnest in mid-August with the first public offer from Dell, for $1.15 billion. HP p...

The Digital Millennium Copyright Act -- enacted in the waning days of the 20th century -- contains provisions designed to make it evolve over time. The idea was that as technology fostered new ways of creating and distributing copyrighted material such as music, movies and software programs, the law...

It has been a roller-coaster week for 3Par, a company whose shares were trading at $9.65 when Dell first tried to acquire it in mid-August, with no sign that the ride will be ending any time soon. Since that event, HP made a counteroffer, which Dell has now topped -- but only slightly. Dell's latest...

Amazon says the latest version of its Kindle e-reader -- which began shipping to customers on Tuesday -- is outselling all of its predecessors. The company also says the Kindle has been the hottest-selling item on the Amazon site for the past two years. It's difficult to put those statements into an...

This is one of the times of the year that wireless and telecom CEOs invite me to speak at an upcoming meeting of directors or executives or employees or customers. Over the years, I have learned they have one of the toughest jobs. First, they have to accurately see the changing industry. Second, the...

Google has rolled out a new service that allows Gmail account holders to make voice calls to any traditional phone number from their Gmail account. It will require the installation of a voice and video plug-in, but users won't need to have a special phone number assigned to them. Google already has ...

BlackBerry maker Research In Motion has purchased Cellmania, whose products drive mobile ecosystems for mobile operators, infrastructure providers and content operators. "Cellmania has joined RIM and is bringing their expertise in application storefront development to the BlackBerry platform," Maris...

The United States' largest trading partner and direct neighbor to the north recently made the bold statement that the Ontario government will be entering the online gambling business. Following moves by other Canadian provinces, including British Columbia and several Maritime Provinces, the Ontario ...

Virgin Mobile is making an aggressive move in the mobile broadband arena, going head-to-head with the likes of AT&T and Verizon Wireless. Beginning Wednesday, the carrier is offering a $40 unlimited mobile broadband plan without a contract. Similar offerings from competitors are priced at $60 pe...

New generations of cellphones may be offering a feature that is a throwback to the analog age: FM radio. If they do, it will be because a controversial proposal gaining traction in Washington includes this functionality as part of the horse-trading. The National Association of Broadcasters has propo...

A lawsuit that is moving forward in the state of Hawaii adds another dimension to the ongoing debate over Internet addiction -- while prompting more than a few cynical guffaws from tort reform advocates. The suit, filed by plaintiff Donald Smallwood against the company NCSoft, claims that he became ...

Consolidation is a common theme in the IT sector, with IBM's purchase of Unica, Dell and HP's pursuit of 3PAR, and Intel's planned acquisition of security specialist McAfee standing as the most recent moves. Do such deals have anything in common? Sometimes. Large IT vendors tend to grow in two way...

HP has made an eyebrow-raising counterbid for a data storage company that Dell is trying to acquire. Last week, Dell made a play for 3Par, offering $1.15 billion. HP has topped that offer with its own bid of $1.6 billion -- a 33 percent premium on Dell's $18 per share bid, and a huge premium for 3Pa...