Business

The once promising mobile virtual network operator market -- composed of major consumer brands like Disney, which repackaged the services of local cellular phone companies for its clientele -- is failing to live up to expectations and making a minimal impact on the mobile market. The niche, which on...

BetOnSports.com, the UK-based online gaming site whose CEO faces accusations of fraud, has shut down its U.S. operations. The site has become a flashpoint in the online gambling debate since the charges were initially filed almost a month ago. A note on the company's Web site says the firm made the...

Viacom's MTV Networks continued to make aggressive moves into the Web space, saying Wednesday it would buy Atom Entertainment, known for its gaming and short films sites, for US$200 million. MTV Networks said the buy is an extension of the company's "multiplatform strategy of building an engaging un...

Making its third software acquisition in a week, IBM said Thursday it would buy enterprise content management provider FileNet for US$1.6 billion in cash. Big Blue said it would use the FileNet technology to round out its "Information on Demand" efforts, which it launched earlier this year. The move...

Sprint Nextel plans to invest up to US$3 billion over the next two years to build a fourth-generation wireless network based on the WiMax wireless broadband standard, the company announced Tuesday. Sprint believes that by embracing the emerging WiMax standard, it can be the first to market with an u...

Making a bid for a greater share of the digital music space, mobile phone giant Nokia said Tuesday it had reached an agreement to buy music distributor Loudeye in a deal worth US$60 million. Finland-based Nokia said it would pay $4.50 per share for Loudeye, more than twice what the stock was worth a...

In the Web search world at least, the rich may continue to get richer. Google said late Monday it had signed a US$900 million deal to become the exclusive search provider for social networking giant MySpace.com and other Web properties owned by media mogul Rupert Murdoch, beating out its major riva...

For technology dependent companies, risk comes in many forms. While the traditional information security risks are often the first that spring to mind, businesses with extensive collections of software face additional risks, especially when those applications become numerous. Guy Hoffman, chief exec...

Google said it has no intention of entering the digital music space, squelching mounting speculation that it would use its role as a search player to become a competitor to Apple's iTunes Music Store and other music download offerings. With numerous initiatives feeding rumors that it would enter the...

The moves by the federal government to regulate social networking sites -- like MySpace.com and others -- may cause venture investors to look overseas, and lead to a drop in early stage investments among such sites in the U.S. The House of Representatives last month passed a bill, called the Deleti...

Apple said it has discovered additional irregularities in the past granting of employee stock options and as a result will likely be forced to restate some past earnings, including those as recent as the second quarter of this year. The move and the resulting restatement will delay Apple's formal qu...

Philips Electronics said Thursday it had reached an agreement to sell a majority stake in its semiconductor business to a group of private equity firms for US$4.4 billion. Philips said the sale would enable it to focus on its core business of producing consumer and industrial electronics devices. Ko...

There's no doubt about it, starting a business is no easy task. One of the first hurdles that you have to overcome is obtaining the necessary capital to get your company to the cash-flowing stage. Why are many lenders and investors so difficult to convince when it comes to obtaining loans or capita...

IBM on Thursday said it will buy MRO Software in an all-cash transaction worth about US$740 million, or $25.80 per share. The acquisition is expected to close in the fourth quarter of this year. MRO provides asset and service management software and consulting to manage the purchase, maintenance and...

AOL unveiled a bold plan to revitalize itself in the broadband world Wednesday, saying it would offer up virtually all of its Web services for free and all but abandon efforts to attract new subscribers. The move drew a range of reviews from analysts. Some said the move comes about three years too ...