THE BUSINESS OF TECHNOLOGY
Google released a test version of its iOS map app to a number of guinea pigs outside the company, the Wall St. Journal reported this week. The search engine is putting the finishing touches on the app ahead of submitting it to approval to Apple's iTunes app store. Yet those on older iPhones postponing their update to iOS 6 amidst widespread … [Read more...]
Chinese singles have just given American Cyber Monday shoppers a run for their money, or actually a double run. The Chinese ecommerce site Taobao reported earning $3 billion in a single day for China's “Double Eleven,” a Chinese holiday for singles similar to Valentine's Day that's celebrated on 11-11, according to Tech in Asia. That's more … [Read more...]
The Red Herring editorial team selected the Finalists for the 2012 Red Herring 100 Global Award. This group of companies is the short list for the Top 100 award. They are the most innovative and promising companies from a pool of thousands from across North America, Europe and Asia. The Finalists are evaluated on both quantitative and … [Read more...]
Netflix adopted a new “stockholder rights plan,” that protects the company's board from outside investors buying out enough shares to overpower the board and run the company outside of its “best interests.” Otherwise known as a “poison pill” plan, the preventative measure would kick in if an investor bought 10 percent, or in the case … [Read more...]
Known for being the first company to bring Flash video to iOS, Skyfire has raised $10 million in Series D funding to take its video data compression technology to a global scale. The round was led by new investor Panorama Capital. Previous investors Verizon Ventures, Matrix Partners, Trinity Ventures, and Lightspeed Venture Partners also … [Read more...]
Amazon and Google can breathe a sigh of relief. Apple unveiled its iPad Mini, a 7.9 miniature version of the iPad, for $329, a bit more expensive than the $250 analysts had expected. About 65 percent of the cost of a full size iPad, the new iPad is well above mini tablet competitors such as Amazon Kindle Fire and Google Inc's Nexus 7, priced … [Read more...]
Microsoft is seeing its Skype acquisition pay off in terms of usage increase, though it remains to be seen if that actually adds up to bona fide revenue. In its quarterly earnings report, the company announced that Skype's usage had grown to over 280 million users, adding more than 30 million users since late May. Microsoft did not mention, … [Read more...]
Facebook is proposing to settle a class action lawsuit related to its “Sponsored Stories” lawsuit for $20 million, offering up to $10 each for any of the 125 million affected users that apply, or 2 cents per user if everyone files a claim, Reuters recently reported. The proposal suggests that some of the funds go to charity, but only after … [Read more...]
by Anam Alpenia, Red Herring Japan's Softbank is purchasing 70 percent of Sprint for $20.1 billion to become the third largest company in the world in terms of revenues. Both companies agreed to the deal that would be the largest foreign acquisition ever by a Japanese company. About $12.1 billion will be paid to Sprint shareholders, while the … [Read more...]
A House Intelligence Committee report warns US firms against doing business with Huawei and ZTE, two prominent Chinese tech companies, because of the risk of espionage. The report recommends barring the two firms from any US mergers and acquisitions, citing concerns of influence by the Chinese government and its military, based on an 11 month … [Read more...]