Business

The Federal Trade Commission this week urged Congress to impose new regulations on companies that collect consumer data related to Internet browsing habits. Under the policy the FTC suggests, data brokers, or the holders of personal consumer information, must allow consumers access to that informati...

Microsoft continued to expand its television offerings for members of its Xbox Live Gold service Monday by adding HBO Go, Major League Baseball video and Comcast's on-demand video service. Comcast Xfinity TV allows Xbox Gold members to access the cable carrier's expansive library of entertainment pr...

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission released a report Monday calling for greater privacy protections for online users, including increased transparency regarding the data companies collect from consumers. The report also addressed Do Not Track systems, which allow consumers to opt out of online behavi...

Microsoft, together with partners from the financial services industry, has hit the operators of a botnet running the Zeus Trojan. Escorted by U.S. Marshals, staff of the companies seized command and control servers in two hosting locations -- Scranton, Pa. and Lombard, Ill. -- and took down two IP ...

Why should you care about the Sarbanes-Oxley Act? If you are the CEO or another executive within a large public company, the answer is obvious: because you have to. If you don't, your business -- and you -- will face serious repercussions, including possible jail time. Not good. If you are an execut...

The Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit against telecommunications giant AT&T, claiming that the carrier allowed scammers to use a calling service for the hearing-impaired and then stuck U.S. taxpayers with the bill. While many Internet scams have originated from Nigeria, this case reporte...

Facebook has reportedly purchased 750 patents from IBM in an effort to build its portfolio for better defense against patent suits. The social network giant, which plans to kick off an IPO in a matter of weeks, is in an especially vulnerable position against intellectual property suits. Earlier in t...

The ecosystem for digital distribution is complex, with unique nuances for each category of content. In a broad sense, the ecosystem includes the creation of content, the availability of services that deliver content and services to consumers, and the deployment of technologies that enable delivery ...

Cyberattacks carried out by hacktivists -- hackers motivated by political reasons -- shot up in 2011, accounting for 58 percent of the data stolen in cyberbreaches, according to Verizon. The company's 2012 Data Breach Investigations Report also stated that 79 percent of the attacks were opportunisti...

Executives from Verizon and Comcast went before a U.S. Senate judiciary subcommittee Wednesday to defend Verizon's plan to purchase $3.6 billion worth of spectrum from cable industry joint venture SpectrumCo. They were met with opposition from other wireless providers and consumer advocacy groups. V...

Zynga has inked a deal to acquire OMGPOP, maker of the wildly popular "Draw Something," as well as 35 other social games. When it joins the Zynga fold, OMGPOP will focus on building new mobile products for Zynga. The purchase price is estimated at $200-$250 million. Based on what is known about OMGP...

We have watched the wireless industry grow rapidly and change over the last decade. As we now know, competitors in the industry have suddenly been backed into a corner with limits to wireless data spectrum and growth. This is a growing problem and a real challenge that both Verizon Wireless and AT&a...

One of Yahoo's major investors, hedge fund Third Point, is calling upon shareholders to elect four of its nominees to the company's board. This is just the latest round in what could become a very nasty fight. "There are a couple of things happening," said Charles King, principal analyst at Pund-IT....

Oracle released its fiscal third-quarter earnings Tuesday, coming out ahead of Wall Street expectations in regard to profits and new license sales. The database software maker saw revenue rise 2.2 percent from a year ago, going from $8.81 billion to $9.04 billion. It posted adjusted earnings at 62 ...

In a sweeping reorganization of its operations, HP is merging its Imaging and Printing Group with its Personal Systems Group, the unit that makes the company's computers. The news delivered a jolt to the industry when it leaked on Tuesday. Although HP's star has dimmed somewhat since its high-flying...