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When consumers buy software, they typically don't spend much time reading through the rather long, tortuous legalese that makes up the end user licensing agreement or terms of service agreement that users must agree to before getting access to a product or service. However, distributed applications,...

Satellite radio providers XM and Sirius will offer consumers the ability to choose small bundles of stations if their proposed merger is approved by regulators, the companies said Monday. They announced the plan a day before they are expected to formally respond to a request for information from the...

HP will buy Opsware, the data center automation software firm cofounded by Netscape creator Marc Andreessen, in a deal worth around $1.6 billion. HP will pay $14.25 per share in cash for Opsware, which it intends to fold into its Business Technology Optimization software product line. The purchase p...

The price war between movie rental companies Blockbuster and Netflix continued Sunday when Netflix slashed by $1 the price of two DVD rental subscription plans. The $1 reduction will benefit most of Netflix's 6 million customers because it affects two of its most popular rental packages, Netflix sai...

Automatic audio ads that co-opt the user's speakers to automatically play sounds and music are often intrusive and annoying and can even disrupt the workplace. The oft-cursed technique begs the question of whether advertisers can actually sell goods to a startled audience left leaping from their cha...

Mobile communications service provider Verizon Wireless and semiconductor maker Broadcom have announced a licensing agreement allowing Verizon to sell a group of mobile devices currently in legal dispute. Under the licensing terms, Verizon will pay Broadcom $200 million -- at increments of $6 per de...

Microsoft managed to post a 7.3 percent increase in earnings for its fourth quarter, despite a mammoth $750 million charge relating to fixes to its Xbox 360 product, as strong enterprise sales helped the company surpass the $50 billion revenue mark for the fiscal year. The Redmond, Wash.-based compa...

Google will bid $4.6 billion or more in the Federal Communications Commission's auction for the 700 MHz band of wireless spectrum, the company announced Friday -- but only if certain conditions are met. Specifically, Google wants the FCC to adopt rules for the auction that it outlined in a July 9 fi...

For just the second time in its history as a public company, Google disappointed investors with its earnings report, saying Thursday that sales and earnings were up but posting profits that were below Wall Street expectations. The Web search and advertising giant's gross revenue, which does not acco...

Since Europe enacted the euro as its common currency, there has been increased discussion about whether or not the world would benefit from a single global currency. At this point, the proponents seem to have a substantial edge; but like anything else, there are proponents and there are detractors.

A ruling by a federal court in a case involving an online roommate matching service will hamstring Web innovators, a civil liberties group argued this week in papers filed with the judicial panel. In a "friend of the court" brief submitted Monday to the U.S. Court of Appeals in California, the Elect...

Sales of personal computers around the world rose faster than forecast in the second quarter thanks to strong business sales, with HP retaining the title of global sales leader. PC shipments in the second quarter totaled 61.1 million, an increase of 11.7 percent over the same time last year, accordi...

After months of controversy and global outcry, Google's proposed $3.1 billion acquisition of DoubleClick will undergo congressional scrutiny later this year in a planned closed hearing before the House of Representatives' Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection Subcommittee. Rep. Bobby Rush (D-IL), ...

IBM continued its recent run of strong growth, posting a double-digit profit increase on strong sales fueled by service and software. Big Blue's net income rose to $2.26 billion, or $1.55 a share, from $2.02 billion, or $1.30, a year earlier, the Armonk, N.Y.-based company said Thursday. The company...

Google is expanding the size and scope of its newspaper advertising program to include users of its AdWords service. In the immediate term, the expansion will increase the number of marketers using Google's Print Ads service. In the long run, the move could help meld the once-disparate audiences to...