Microsoft Explains Sony Tirade: related news

Microsoft Explains Sony Tirade

Microsoft's Aaron Greenberg tells Next-Gen why he lit a fire under the behind of the console war with recent comments made about Sony "snowing consumers."

Microsoft Downplaying Recent DNS Vulnerability

Microsoft Watch writes "Microsoft downplays a recent DNS vulnerability in all Microsoft operating systems (XP, Vista, 2000, and 2003), claims Amit Klein, the security researcher who published the original vulnerability description (PDF) earlier this month. According to Klein, the description in Microsoft's Secure Windows Initiative blog entry is misleading, contains disinformation about the DNS transaction ID algorithm, and downplays the severity of the issue. Klein refutes Microsoft's claim that there is no way to reproduce the next transaction ID, given a series of observed transaction IDs. He shows that this is possible in his paper, which Microsoft had before publishing the SWI post, as well as on the series of data provided in the SWI blog itself.

Ed Bott: Microsoft releases Virtual PC 2007 SP1

Tags: Microsoft Windows Vista, Microsoft Virtual PC, Microsoft Corp., VM, Microsoft Windows, Microsoft Windows Vista (Longhorn), Microsoft Windows Server 2008, Operating Systems, Software, Ed Bott

Microsoft's Good and Bad News

While Apple is clearly slowly eating into Microsoft’s dominance of the corporate desktop Microsoft isn’t smarting too much for many reasons. One reason is that Microsoft is the biggest developer of Mac software outside of Apple itself, and as it happens, Microsoft’s Mac business is booming. Word came today from Redmond’s Mac Business Unit today is that Office for Mac is selling faster than any previous version of Office for the Mac in the in the last 19 years. Of course Microsoft won’t say exactly how many units it has sold. As a percentage of revenue it’s not large enough that Microsoft would be required to break it out of its usual results, though I for one certainly wish it would. Also noted is that today is the day that Office for Mac’s first service pack, SP1, is being released.

Microsoft 'Shared Source' Attempts to Hijack FOSS

aacc1313 writes "An article that details how Open Source is being hijacked by Microsoft and the sort via 'Shared Source' licenses and how Open Source licenses have become so much more confusing. From the article, "The confusion stems from the fact that Microsoft's 'shared source' program includes three proprietary licenses as well, whose names are similar in some ways to the open-source licenses. Thus, while the Microsoft Reciprocal License has been approved by OSI, the Microsoft Limited Reciprocal License (Ms-LRL) is not, because it allows users to modify and redistribute the software only on the Windows platform" and "The 'shared source' program was and is Microsoft's way of fighting the open source world, allowing customers to inspect Microsoft source code without giving those customers the right to modify or redistribute the code.

Some Developers Leaving Google For Microsoft

recoiledsnake writes "We have heard about lots of talented developers jumping ship from Microsoft to Google, but is the trend beginning to turn? Dare Obasanjo (a Microsoft employee) writes about a few high-profile people picking Microsoft over Google — either making the jump directly, or choosing Microsoft after receiving offers at both. Sergey Solyanik is back to Microsoft and he primarily gripes about the culture and lack of career development at Google. He writes, 'Everything is pretty much run by [engineering] — PMs and testers are conspicuously absent from the process. Google as an organization is not geared — culturally — to delivering enterprise class reliability to its user applications.' Danny Thorpe, who was the key architect of Google Gears, is back at Microsoft for his second stint working on developer technologies rel

REG-Sony Corporation Sony Corporation Announces Final Results

0- *T Sony Corporation 1-7-1 Konan, Minato-ku Tokyo 108-0075 Japan No: 08-062E 3:00 P.M. JST, May 14, 2008 *T Consolidated Financial Results for the Fiscal Year Ended March 31, 2008 TOKYO--(Business Wire)-- May 14, 2008--Sony Corporation today announced its consolidated results for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2008 (April 1, 2007 to March 31, 2008). -- New fiscal year records were achieved for consolidated sales and net income. -- Consolidated operating income for the current year was more than five times the prior year and the second highest level in Sony's history. -- In the Electronics segment, new records in sales and operating income were achieved. -- Sony plans to increase its regular annual dividend by Y 15 to Y 40, and to issue a special cash dividend of Y 10 per share, which would result in a total annual dividend of Y 50 for

The Divnich Tapes: How Both Microsoft And Sony Won With GTA IV

The Divnich Tapes: How Both Microsoft And Sony Won With GTA IV [05.20.08] Continuing his Gamasutra-exclusive NPD analysis, EEDAR's director of analytical services Jesse Divnich examines the different ways with which both Microsoft and Sony can claim victory with Grand Theft Auto IV's Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 releases.

Yahoo! rejected Microsoft bid for search business, due to exclusivity clause

Microsoft dropped bid for all of Yahoo! on 8 June and launched a bid of USD 1 billion for Yahoo!'s search business and a share of future search advertising revenue. This proposal also included an USD billion investment in Yahoo! but required Yahoo! to commit to a 10-year exclusive arrangement, according to a letter sent to Yahoo! stockholders by CEO Jerry Yang and Chairman Roy Bostock. The letter explains the reasons for Yahoo! to sign a four year non-exclusive deal with Google for online advertising services and to end the talks with Microsoft, as their search-only hybrid proposal may have been helpful to Microsoft. The board and its advisers also carefully studied the financial impact of Microsoft's proposal and concluded that it would have provided no meaningful improvement to the operating cash flow.

Microsoft launches Live Search cashback program - update

(RTTNews) - Software giant Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) said Wednesday that it will offer ad-funded cash rebates to customers who find and purchase products through a new program called Microsoft Live Search cashback. This is one of the latest efforts of Microsoft to increase its market share in searching, which is dominated by Google (GOOG). Microsoft has roped in companies such as eBay Inc. (EBAY), Barnes & Noble.com (BKS), Overstock.com Inc. (OSTK), and Sears Holdings Corp. (SHLD) as partners in the new program. The Live Search cashback portfolio includes more than 10 million products from more than 700 merchants, including more than 13 of the top 40 U.S. retailers. Microsoft also said it has delivered a new Live Search travel destination, Live Search Farecast in order to find the best travel deals on the Web.

Sony Playstation 3 revival

At this time last year, Sony Corp.’s PlayStation 3 videogame machine looked like a dud, outsold in the U.S. two-to-one by Microsoft Corp.’s Xbox 360 and four-to-one by Nintendo Co.’s Wii. Now, Sony’s videogames business is back in the hunt. The Wii still leads in sales world-wide, but the PS3 exceeded Xbox 360 sales in the critical U.S. market during the first three months of the year, helped by an improved selection of games, a 20% price cut last fall and the lure of models with built-in Blu-ray DVD players. Sony has also continued beating Microsoft in console sales in Europe and Japan.

Microsoft Acknowledges Open Source As a Bigger Threat Than Google

ruphus13 takes us to ZDNet for an analysis of comments by Microsoft's Chief Software Architect, Ray Ozzie, about how open source is "much more potentially disruptive" to Microsoft's business strategy than Google. Ozzie also spoke about the future of Microsoft's search technology, which will develop with or without Yahoo. There is a related interview at OStatic with several Microsoft employees about how they view and interact with the open source community. The head of Microsoft's global open source and Linux team is quoted saying: "The other thing I think is missing is implementation of a basic principle of economic fairness. Thousands of developers have put very hard work into building software used by millions of people and companies, yet only a fraction of these developers are rewarded financially.

Microsoft Acknowledges NBC's Wish is Its Command

theodp writes "Responding to questions about why some users of Windows Vista Media Center were prevented from recording the NBC Universal TV shows 'American Gladiator' and 'Medium,' Microsoft has acknowledged that Windows Media Centers will block users from recording TV shows at the request of a broadcaster. 'Microsoft included technologies in Windows based on rules set forth by the (Federal Communications Commission),' wrote a Microsoft spokeswoman, apparently referring to an FCC proposal that the courts struck down in 2005. 'Microsoft has put the requirements of broadcasters above what consumers want,' said the EFF's Danny O'Brien. 'They've imposed restrictions way beyond what the law requires. Customers need to know who Microsoft is listening to and how that affects their equipment.

Yahoo! Announces Microsoft Talks Have Concluded

Yahoo! (YHOO) today announced that discussions with Microsoft (MSFT) regarding a potential transaction—whether for an acquisition of all of Yahoo or a partial acquisition—have concluded. The conclusion of discussions follows numerous meetings and conversations with Microsoft regarding a number of transaction alternatives, including a meeting between Yahoo and Microsoft on June 8 in which Chairman Roy Bostock and other independent board members from Yahoo participated. At that meeting, Microsoft representatives stated unequivocally that Microsoft is not interested in pursuing an acquisition of all of Yahoo, even at the price range it had previously suggested.

First look at OpenOffice.org 3.0 beta

Tags: Microsoft Office 2007, Document, Launch, Microsoft PowerPoint, Microsoft Corp., OpenOffice.org, OpenOffice, Microsoft Office, Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel

Microsoft To Put Office Online as Equipt for Consumers

Microsoft will put its Microsoft Office suite online as Microsoft Equipt, joining Windows Live Mail, Messenger, OneCare and Photo Gallery. A one-year subscription for three home computers will cost $69.99. The Microsoft Equipt license bars business use and the Equipt suite does not include Outlook, which is popular among small businesses.

Sony PS3 Update Locks Consoles

Sony has taken its PlayStation 3 firmware update offline after some users reported it locked their PS3 consoles. Sony says the problem only affected a few consumers, but the publicity could hurt. Also affecting Sony's image is an SQL-injection attack on Sony's popular PS3 Web site that offers a fake computer scan.

Sony PS3 Update Locks Consoles

Sony has taken its PlayStation 3 firmware update offline after some users reported it locked their PS3 consoles. Sony says the problem only affected a few consumers, but the publicity could hurt. Also affecting Sony's image is an SQL-injection attack on Sony's popular PS3 Web site that offers a fake computer scan.

Microsoft Eyes iPhone Development

Microsoft says its looking at Apple, Inc.'s software development kit for the iPhone, partly to make sure users of its Microsoft Office for Mac users won't have problems. Microsoft is one of the largest software makers for the Mac. Other Microsoft units, including its new TellMe purchase, are also looking at Apple's SDK for the iPhone.

Google, Yahoo, and the Elephant In the Room

CWmike writes "Linda Rosencrance reports that despite assurances from Google and Yahoo that their online advertising deal doesn't need regulatory approval, the two companies should not be too quick to dismiss Microsoft's influence on Capitol Hill. Andrew Frank, an analyst at Gartner, said both Yahoo and Google will benefit from the deal, but he also said Microsoft will do everything in its power to bring the arrangement to a screeching halt. 'Expect Microsoft to challenge it and come back aggressively with some search plans of its own,' he said. Rob Enderle, of the Enderle Group, said Microsoft is a formidable opponent and knows how to play politics. 'Without Microsoft, this probably would stand up to regulatory scrutiny,' Enderle said. 'But Microsoft has increased its presence on Capitol Hill significantly .

Sony To Sponsor Speed Skater Klassen

Sony of Canada Ltd. is sponsoring Canadian Olympic speed-skating sensation Cindy Klassen, with six medals, Canada's most decorated Olympian. The athlete will represent Sony at events, appear in campaigns, and use the company products to promote the Sony brand. "We are very excited to be sponsoring Cindy as she trains for the 2010 Vancouver Olympics," said Doug Wilson, president and chief operating officer of Sony of Canada. Over the next two years, Klassen will focus on getting herself conditioned and in top shape for a chance to shine at the 2010 Games.

Microsoft loses U.S. search users to Google and Yahoo

Microsoft lost Internet search users in the United States to Google and former takeover target Yahoo last month, research firm ComScore said. Microsoft, the world's biggest software maker, handled 8.5 percent of queries in May, down from 9.1 percent the month before, Reston, Va.-based ComScore said Thursday in a statement. Google extended its lead to 61.8 percent, and Yahoo grew to 20.6 percent, ComScore said. The companies are vying for a bigger piece of the $41 billion online advertising market. Microsoft's talks to buy Yahoo's search business for $1 billion ended last week, around the time Yahoo struck a deal to show some Google ads on its search pages. Microsoft's proposal would have included an $8 billion investment in Yahoo. Google handled 61.

Sony's new powerhouse High Definition Digital Imaging range

Sony India today unveiled new models in its Digital Imaging category with the aim to offer a simple and effortless experience to its consumers to shoot, play, share and enjoy prints at home. Joining Sony India’s range are five High Definition Cyber-shot digital still cameras, two High Definition Handycam camcorders, three compact Digital Photo Printers and two all new Digital Photo Frames. Incorporating super intelligent digital technology and revolutionary features, these products provide consumers with simple and innovative ways to capture, print and share digital images. "Sony has always introduced products that redefine the market. Today's launch reiterates our commitment and sets the stage for products that are yet to come. With digital imaging playing a more significant role in consumers' lives Sony’s solutions and smart technologie

Microsoft, HOYA In Patent Deal

Computing kingpin Microsoft Corp. revealed Monday that it has signed a patent cross-licensing agreement with HOYA Corp.'s Pentax Imaging Systems Division. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. However, Microsoft did divulge that Pentax is providing compensation. By sharing their intellectual properties, Microsoft explained, the two companies will be able to enhance existing product lines and develop future ones. Microsoft noted that the agreement covers Pentax digital cameras and a broad range of consumer products from both companies. HOYA Corp. is headquartered in Tokyo.

Critical vulnerability in Microsoft XML Core Services patched

Microsoft Security issued a patch today for a critical vulnerability affecting all supported editions of Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows Vista, Microsoft Office 2003, and the 2007 Microsoft Office System. The hole is in Microsoft XML Core Services and could allow remote code execution if a user viewed a malicious Web page using Internet Explorer. Users whose accounts are configured to have fewer user rights on the system could be less impacted than users who operate with administrative user rights.

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