Linux backers to buy software patents

Five big backers of Linux are funding an effort to buy up related software patents, part of a plan to reduce legal risks that could impede the broader use of the open source operating system, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday.

The New York Times says (10 November) that the WSJ reports that a nonprofit company called Open Invention Network is receiving undisclosed funds from IBM, Sony, Philips Electronics, Novell and Red Hat.

The company will buy Linux-related patents and offer royalty-free licenses to companies and individuals that agreed not to assert their own patents, the paper said.

According to the report, the network's initial assets will include patents purchased for US$15.5 million by Novell from Commerce One.

Patents are cited as a threat for users of Linux and other ''open source'' programs that make it difficult to ensure parts of programs don't violate software patents. The possibility remains that patent holders could try to demand royalties, the paper reported.

The NYT says that Microsoft has indirectly used patent risks in its marketing, stressing it offers indemnification from patent suits for users of its competing products, the WSJ reported.

{mospagebreaktitle=Casio in mobile talks, near best buy deal}Casio in mobile talks, near best buy deal

Japan's Casio Computer Co. is making an overseas push with plans to supply 3G phones to US mobile carriers and for a deal to win shelf space for its digital cameras at US electronics retailer Best Buy, Casio President Kazuo Kashio said on Wednesday.

Reuters reports in The New York Times (9 November) that Casio, which also has hit products such as solar watches that use radio signals to keep accurate time and electronic dictionaries that help with pronunciation, derives three fifths of its sales in Japan.

But the company is now in advanced talks with US mobile carriers for a supply contract, said Kashio, the 76-year-old brother of the company's late founder, reports Reuters in the NYT.

Reuters says that the company's waterproof and shock-resistant 3G phones, which make up more than a fifth of total sales, have received high marks, Kashio said in an interview, declining to identify the US carriers.

{mospagebreaktitle=Yahoo in China to promote search engine}Yahoo in China to promote search engine

The entrepreneur who runs Yahoo's China-based web portal has announced a new strategy based on promoting the site as a search engine, saying he's ready to spend heavily in a battle with Chinese-language search leader Baidu.com.

The Associated Press reports in The Neww York Times (9 November) that Wednesday's announcement by Jack Ma, chief executive officer of Alibaba.com, highlighted the intense rivalry in China's market of more than 100 million internet users.

Alibaba took control of Yahoo's China sites in a deal in August, in which Yahoo bought 40 percent of the Chinese company.

The AP reports says that Alibaba unveiled a redesigned, simplified Chinese-language Yahoo site that focuses on a search box and drops entertainment listings and other features of the earlier site.

He said Alibaba would cooperate with the communist authorities if they sought information on ''politically sensitive information'' sent by a Yahoo e-mail customer. Human rights groups disclosed in September that Yahoo's Hong Kong arm provided information about e-mail that led to a 10-year prison term for a Chinese reporter, convicted under state secrets laws.

According to AP., China's internet market has attracted investment from major players, including search giant Google.

Daily searches by Chinese internet users are expected to jump from 360 million this year to 816 million in 2007, according to investment bank Piper Jaffray. It expects annual revenues from advertising on search sites to reach US$1 billion (euro700 million) by 2010, up from US$134 million (euro100 million) now, reports AP in the NYT.

{mospagebreaktitle=Alleged virus spreader held without bond}Alleged virus spreader held without bond

A man has been ordered held without bond on charges of spreading electronic viruses so he could gain control over military and other computers and sell access to hackers and spammers.

The Associated Press reports in The New York Times (9 November) that authorities in California say Jeanson James Ancheta, 20, also downloaded adware programs onto some 400,000 of the infected computers, or ''botnets,'' in order to profit from the placements.

Ancheta, who was arrested last week, pleaded not guilty Monday in federal court. Trial was set for 27 Dec.

The AP report in the NYT says that prosecutors say his programs were powerful enough to infect computers operated by the US Naval Air Warfare Centre in China Lake and the Defense Information Systems Agency, part of the US Defense Department.

The 17-count indictment charges conspiracy, money laundering, transmission of code to a government computer and accessing a protected computer to commit fraud. If convicted on all counts, Ancheta could face 50 years in prison, reports AP.

{mospagebreaktitle=SuSE co-founder leaves Novell}SuSE co-founder leaves Novell

Novell has insisted it's business as usual for the SuSE Linux operation despite the loss of SuSE co-founder and kernel team member Hubert Mantel.

The Register reports (9 November) that a Novell spokesperson told the publication on Wednesday that Mantel's exit "won't have a significant impact on our strategy or our ability to execute."

Mantel's exit comes as Novell cuts 600 jobs amid a restructuring designed to reduce costs while the company focuses on its core operations, including SuSE Linux, and spinning out the Celerent business consulting business, reports The Register.

The Register says that Novell acquired SuSE Linux in 2003 for US$210 million, but the company's leadership has recently come under growing criticism for its inability to develop SuSE or execute on sales.

{mospagebreaktitle=France Telecom fined €80m in broadband access row}France Telecom fined €80m in broadband access row

France Telecom has been fined a €80m (£54m) for failing to open up its network to rival broadband providers.

The Register reports (9 November) that the incumbent telco - which owns mobile giant Orange and ISP Wanadoo - has already said it plans to appeal the ruling issued by France's Competition Council yesterday branding the fine as "disproportionate".

The original complaint dates back to 1999 when 9 Telecom complained that it was unable to gain access to France Telecom's network to provide a rival broadband service.

The Register says that rival operators were not able to gain access to France Telecom's network until late 2002, concluded investigators despite repeated attempts to get the telco to comply.

But in a statement France Telecom hit back saying that the complaint was lodged even before the telecoms regulator had "defined the conditions for the opening of this market and before the end of the public consultation to which all players in the telecommunications sector participated," reports The Register.

{mospagebreaktitle=Mystery over 'hidden booty' in UK email scam trial}Mystery over 'hidden booty' in UK email scam trial

Peter Francis-Macrae, the 23-year-old who's allegedly the UK's biggest spammer, has testified that he may have "over stepped the mark" in posing as an approved domain registrar at his trial at Peterborough Crown Court this week.

The Register reports (9 November) that Francis-Macrae faces a variety of charges ranging from threats to kill to fraudulent trading.

According to the publication, operating from a bedroom in his father's home, Francis-Macrae allegedly made an estimated £1.5 million through a series of domain registration scams, promoted using bulk email. He is accused of fraudulently selling unavailable .eu domains among other dubious business practices dating back five years. He's also accused of sending out fraudulent re-registration letters to UK domain owners.

The Register reports that, testifying on his own behalf, Francis-Macrae said he was taken back by the response to his "registration business" and conceded that he exaggerated what his company might be able to accomplish in registering .eu domains as soon as they were officially released.

{mospagebreaktitle=Setback in court for BlackBerry maker}Setback in court for BlackBerry maker

In the US., a federal judge in Virginia said Wednesday that it was "highly unlikely" he would delay a patent case against the maker of the BlackBerry wireless e-mail device that could result in a ban on its use in the United States.

The New York Tiomes reports (10 November) that the company, Research In Motion, based in Ontario, requested the delay until the United States Patent and Trademark Office re-examines patents held by NTP. Three years ago, NTP successfully sued R.I.M., contending patent infringement. That award was held up to permit R.I.M.'s ultimately unsuccessful appeal.

The NYT reports that Judge James R. Spencer of Federal District Court in Richmond told R.I.M. he was unlikely to review the patent office actions. He gave NTP until Thursday to request that he activate an injunction against the BlackBerry granted three years ago.

{mospagebreaktitle=Suit targets Sony BMG anti-piracy technology}Suit targets Sony BMG anti-piracy technology

Record company Sony BMG Music Entertainment has been targeted in a class-action lawsuit in California by consumers claiming their computers have been harmed by anti-piracy software on some Sony BMG CDs.

Reuters reports in The New York Times (9 November) that the claim states that Sony BMG's failed to disclose the true nature of the digital rights management system it uses on its CDs and thousands of computer users have unknowingly infected their computers, according to court documents.

The suit, filed 1 November in Los Angeles Superior Court asks the court to stop Sony BMG from selling additional CDs protected by the anti-piracy software and seeks monetary damages for California consumers who purchased them.

Reuters says that the suit claims that around June 2005, Sony BMG began to issue some CDs that install digital rights management software that continuously monitor for rights problems, depleting a computer's available resources. The suit says the technology cannot be removed without damage to the system and that Sony BMG does not advise consumers of the existence or true nature of the program.

{mospagebreaktitle=MGM to support Blu-Ray disc format}MGM to support Blu-Ray disc format

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer on Wednesday said it would support the new high definition Blu-ray Disc format, created by a group led by Sony.

Reuters reports in The New York Times (9 November) that the MGM announcement marks the latest move in an increasingly heated battle over rival DVD technologies between the Sony-led camp and another group led by Toshiba, which is pushing a format known as HD DVD.

According to Reuters, MGM's move was not considered a surprise as the studio behind the lucrative James Bond film franchise was bought in April by an investor group including private equity firms Providence Equity Partners and Texas Pacific Group, as well as Sony and Comcast.

MGM said it plans to begin releasing film and television titles from its library of 4,000 films when the new Blu-ray hardware launches in North America, Japan and Europe.

Last month, Warner Bros., a long time supporter of HD DVD among Hollywood studios, threw its weight behind Sony's rival Blu-ray format, following a similar move by Paramount.

{mospagebreaktitle=Microsoft & Associated Press news video distribution deal}Microsoft & Associated Press news video distribution deal

Microsoft has said that it would develop a news video distribution network for The Associated Press and share in advertising revenue generated by the newspapers and broadcasters that use it.

The New York Times carries a story (11 November) that Bloomberg News reports that the AP Online Video Network will be available to the news service's 3,500 United States newspaper and broadcast members at no charge in the first quarter of next year, the companies said.

According to the report, the agreement builds on the MSN Video service, which Microsoft started in January 2004, said Todd Herman, director of MSN advertising and business strategy. That service, which offers video from TV networks including NBC, Showtime and the Discovery Channel, has had a 400 percent rise in revenue, he said.

The NYT says that the MSN unit of Microsoft will provide the software-based video player, the technical support and the network capacity for the service. MSN will also sell the advertising and develop other network products, including local advertising and content syndication systems.

{mospagebreaktitle=AOL privacy policy now permits targeting}AOL privacy policy now permits targeting

America Online is updating its privacy policy to outlaw a marketing tactic it has already stopped employing and to permit the targeting of ads and content based on what users do online.

The Associated Press reports in The New York Times (9 November) that AOL promises to no longer share names and home addresses with other companies for marketing, formalising a policy put in place a year ago based on subscriber feedback, spokesman Andrew Weinstein said Wednesday.

According to AP., the new policy, which takes effect immediately, lets AOL track what visitors do at its sites and tailor news, weather and ads based on such tracking. Many of AOL's rivals already serve targeted ads and content, but the company was restricted from doing so under a policy little changed since 1998.

{mospagebreaktitle=Digital tracking to protect on-demand tv}Digital tracking to protect on-demand tv

In the US.,invisible marks that can be used to trace illegal copies of television shows and movies will be embedded in programs available on demand across the country using technology from Widevine Technologies.

The Associated Press reports in The New York Times (8 November) that Widevine, based in Seattle, said Tuesday its invisible digital markers would be embedded in programs distributed to cable companies served by TVN Entertainment.

AP says that among TVN's cable customers are four of the nation's largest operators: Comcast, Cox Communications, Charter Communications and Adelphia Communications.

The watermarks remain even after the program is copied several times, allowing law enforcement to tell where illegal copies were obtained, reports AP.