by Eric Savitz, Blogger and Columnist, Barron's, Tech Trader Daily
Deutsche Telekom, parent of U.S. mobile operator T-Mobile, is holding talks about gaining access to spectrum controlled by Clearwire and MetroPCS as a way to build out 4G wireless service, according to Bloomberg, which cites “two people familiar with the matter.”
by Eric Savitz, Blogger and Columnist, Barron's, Tech Trader Daily
Facebook plans to grow headcount by as much as 50 percent amid a surplus of engineering talent, CEO Mark Zuckerberg told Bloomberg. “No one else has been hiring,” he said. “It’s been a great environment for us because the economy has helped out.”
by Joshua Benton, Director, Nieman Journalism Lab at Harvard University
We all know that The New York Times and other papers have been thinking hard about finding ways to charge readers for the news on their web sites, and there’s evidence that the decision-making process is moving along.
by Eric Savitz, Blogger and Columnist, Barron's, Tech Trader Daily
Not a good day for eBay shares, which are down 23 percent for the year to date, and now sit at their lowest level since 2001.
Highlighting the problem of counterfeit merchandise sold on the site, Bloomberg reports that the company provided a tip to German police that triggered the seizure of 20 tons of knock-off designer clothing last month. While it is certainly good to see eBay taking an aggressive posture on fake goods, the company clearly has an issue to resolve here.
by Eric Savitz, Blogger and Columnist, Barron's, Tech Trader Daily
Could Intel drop into the red in the March quarter?
In a memo to employees, Bloomberg reports, Intel CEO Paul Otellini wrote that after 87 quarters of profits, the first quarter is “too close to call.”
by Tiernan Ray, Blogger, Barron's, Tech Trader Daily
As initially reported over the past week, Qimonda–the troubled Munich-based maker of DRAM–announced yesterday that it has obtained an investment of 605 million euros from a combination of investors, including parent Infineon Technologies and the Federal Republic of Germany.
by Eric Savitz, Blogger and Columnist, Barron's, Tech Trader Daily
No joke: National Lampoon CEO Donald Laikin is being sued by the SEC for allegedly planning to manipulate trading in the company’s stock. Trouble is, one of the recipients getting Laikin’s kickbacks was a witness cooperating with the FBI.
by Eric Savitz, Blogger and Columnist, Barron's, Tech Trader Daily
The House voted 257-to-166 today to pass H.R. 7060, the “Renewable Energy and Job Creation Act of 2008,” a measure that includes an eight-year extension for solar tax credits. But the measure differs in key ways from the Senate version of the bill approved earlier this week.
by Eric Savitz, Blogger and Columnist, Barron's, Tech Trader Daily
In case you happen to think that Toshiba is going to outbid Samsung for SanDisk (SNDK), you ought to take note of the company’s currently grim view of the NAND flash memory market.
In fact, as Bloomberg reports, Toshiba today cut its full-year net income forecast for the March 31, 2009, fiscal year by 46 percent to 70 billion yen, which would be a four-year low.
by Fred Wilson, Managing Partner, Flatiron Partners and Union Square Ventures
Fifty to a hundred thousand high paying jobs are going to go up in smoke in NYC before this is all over. It’s a mess for this city; tax revenues are going to be down, real estate prices are going to be down, restaurants will fail, etc, etc.
by John Murrell, Blogger, Good Morning Silicon Valley
I have nothing but deep collegial empathy for the folks at the Bloomberg financial newswire after they accidentally let their pre-prepared Steve Jobs obituary slip momentarily onto the Web yesterday. The sophisticated publishing systems used in newsrooms today have many advantages, but they can also disrupt the old-fashioned, linear workflow with its series of checkpoints [...]
by Tiernan Ray, Blogger, Barron's, Tech Trader Daily
Here’s the follow-up to last Friday’s article reporting that Netflix (NFLX), after experiencing a technical difficulty that prevented sending out DVDs for several days, said it would refund 15 percent of monthly subscription fees to a subset of customers.
by Eric Savitz, Blogger and Columnist, Barron's, Tech Trader Daily
Federal Communications Commission member Jonathan Adelstein has voted to oppose the proposed merger of XM Satellite Radio (XMSR) and Sirius Satellite Radio (SIRI), leaving the current tally tied at 2-2, with only Deborah Taylor Tate yet to decide. If she votes yes, the deal goes through. If she votes no, the deal dies.
by Eric Savitz, Blogger and Columnist, Barron's, Tech Trader Daily
Solar stocks are again feeling the heat from a report that Spain plans sharp reductions in subsidies for solar power. On Friday, a number of solar stocks dropped sharply after Lehman’s Vishal Shah asserted in a research note that the country was considering sharp cuts in its solar subsidy program. Today, there were further reports on the same theme.
by Eric Savitz, Blogger and Columnist, Barron's Tech Trader Daily
By using more computers and mobile phones, we can cut carbon dioxide emissions by 15 percent and save $1 trillion in reduced electricity and fuel costs, according to a study from something called the Climate Group.
Bloomberg reported on the study, which it notes was funded by, among other people Microsoft (MSFT), Cisco (CSCO) and Nokia [...]
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