microsoft

As Research in Motion (RIM) stock continues its free-fall, speculation about a possible acquisition of the Canadian company by Microsoft persists. RIM insists it remains a profitable firm; however, recent criticisms of the company's strategy have ... experts wondering if the firm needs a little help moving forward. "RIM's business is profitable and remains solid overall with growing market share in numerous markets around the world and a strong balance sheet with almost $3 billion in cash," said Jim Balsillie, RIM's co-CEO, in a recent presentation. "We believe that with the new products ... (view more)

Mike Delman, Microsoft VP of Global Marketing for Interactive Entertainment Business, recently revealed to the Seattle Times that Xbox Live will soon be integrated with Windows 8, making it available to users via PC for the first time. The Xbox Live ... offering for PCs falls in line with Microsoft's new plan to begin live television , expected to make its way to Xbox 360 consoles this fall. "Live has been successful on the Windows Phone and Live will be built into the PC. It will be the service where you get your entertainment," said Delman. (Source: latimes.com ) Billions of Entertainment Hours ... (view more)

According to a new report, Microsoft Security Essentials has been downloaded 30 million times and is ranked as one of the most widely-used, free antivirus programs for Windows. The report comes from OPSWAT, a San Francisco-based software security ... firm. In the study, 43,000 computer users were surveyed. Of those surveyed, just under 11 per cent were running Microsoft Security Essentials free antivirus software. Coming in second place was Avira Antivir Personal at 10.18 per cent, followed by AVAST! Free antivirus at 8.66 per cent. (Source: planetinsane.com ) The report, however, is not without ... (view more)

Last week the Supreme Court put an end to Microsoft's long-running attempt to avoid paying a hefty $290 million decision over its use of XML technology found in Microsoft Word, which also affects the Microsoft Office Suite. The court ruling marks ... the end of a long journey for the Redmond-based software giant, which has been trying desperately to overturn the decision since last year . (Source: reuters.com ) This decision is said to have a major impact on future cases involving similar conflicts. Microsoft Supported by Apple, Google Surprisingly, both Apple and Google supported Microsoft in ... (view more)

Microsoft has failed in a Supreme Court bid to overturn a $290 million patent violation ruling. Not only is it the largest such award ever upheld, but this final ruling has significant consequences for patent law. The case involves XML documents, an ... advanced version of the HTML webpage code that allows data to be tagged to designate its content rather than just the way it appears on screen. The code makes it much easier to organize document content (for example, in a database). Microsoft Office XML Support Began with Office 2003 Microsoft built support for reading XML documents into the 2003 ... (view more)

It's rumored Microsoft may soon launch its own iPad-style tablet device. The gadget would run Windows 8 and be specifically marketed as a Microsoft machine. Such a measure would be a major change in Microsoft's business strategy. In the past it has ... steered clear of producing its own computers, the polar opposite of Apple's strategy of having a monopoly on its hardware and software. According to Digitimes, a Taiwan-based technology newspaper, the device would be made in association with Texas Instruments and hardware manufacturers based in Taiwan. Their report is based on sources from the " ... (view more)

It's rumored that Microsoft will unveil a subscription-based TV service for its Xbox 360 video game console at the upcoming Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) at Los Angeles' Convention Center. Word of the possible unveiling comes from Winrumors, ... which suggests that Microsoft is currently in last-minute discussions to secure critical agreements giving the TV service its go-ahead. It's believed the subscription service would be called Xbox LIVE Diamond and would act like a "virtual cable operator." (Source: pcworld.com ) Diamond Offers Remain Unclear It's unclear precisely what that means, but ... (view more)

Some third-party developers have expressed concern with what they see as a lack of direction on the part of Microsoft in designing Windows 8. Many feel it's not clear how applications will be developed for the upcoming operating system. Current ... Windows software developers are most concerned with a new web standards-based development platform Microsoft says it will deploy for Windows 8. Rumors suggest that the main focus will be on HTML 5 and JavaScript because these languages are platform independent, meaning that it can run on virtually any hardware or operating system. "The new [ ... (view more)

Android smartphone sales are considerably stronger than those for Windows Phone 7 -- but does it spell disaster for Microsoft? Perhaps not. A new report shows that the skyrocketing Android sales are a blessing in disguise for Microsoft, with ... projected figures indicating that the Redmond-based software giant is actually making more money off Android than they are with Windows Phone 7. Microsoft Gets $5 for Every HTC Android Sold Citi analyst Walter Pritchard revealed that Microsoft gets five times more money from Android than it does from Windows Phone 7 due to an intellectual property (IP) ... (view more)

On Thursday, Microsoft gave its first major public demonstration of Windows 8, and showed how it would be used to bridge the gap between PCs and mobile devices. To the surprise of many guests attending the event, Microsoft says that the new ... operating system's hardware requirements will actually be less than the requirements to run Windows 7. Windows 8 Optimized for Varying Screen Sizes and Processors Microsoft recently confirmed that Windows 8 would run on the ARM processor : a low-powered CPU (central processing unit) commonly used on mobile devices such as tablets, and mobile phones. In ... (view more)