McAfee to acquire network security provider Secure Computing
In an attempt to give it a bigger presence in the enterprise network security market, McAfee announced today that it was acquiring Secure Computing Group for $465 million, or $5.75 per share plus $84 million for outstanding preferred stock.
Part of the attraction of Secure Computing is that it offers little overlap with existing McAfee Inc. products, said Vimal Solanki, vice president of worldwide solution marketing for the Santa Clara, Calif.-based company. Users can expect to see a suite product for network security similar to McAfee's Total Endpoint Security and Total Protection for Data, he said.
Is Windows 7 slimming down to speed up (development)?
Microsoft is making plans to drop an assortment of e-mail and media-editing tools from the next version of Windows, concentrating instead on those programs' Windows Live analogues.
[ME's NOTE: Today, we welcome into the BetaNews family of journalists the former USA Today correspondent and Tech_Space blogger, and the former co-host of public television's Digital Duo...and more importantly, someone I've been proud for years to call my friend and colleague: Angela Gunn.]The Engineering Windows 7 blog, run by engineering team leaders Steven Sinofsky (senior VP of the Windows and Windows Live Engineering Group) and Jon DeVaan (senior VP of the Windows Core Operating System Division), frames the forthcoming OS as an "ecosystem" comprised of PC and hardware manufacturers, developers, users, and enthusiasts. Going extinct from that ecosystem will be the following: Windows Mail, Windows Photo Gallery, Windows Calendar, Windows Contacts, and Windows Movie Maker.
Google and partners roll out first apps for Android Marketplace
The grand launch of T-Mobile's G1 today included the rollouts of Ecorio and ShopSavvy, two applications expected be among of hundreds or more that might eventually populate Android Marketplace, Google's answer to Apple's App Store.
NEW YORK, NY (BetaNews) - During a product expo following this morning's presentation by Google, T-Mobile, and HTC, T-Mobile senior manager for product development Mitch Lustig pointed to Android's open source development platform as one big reason for the new device's appeal.
T-Mobile plans more Android phones after G1
T-Mobile plans to follow up on the release of HTC's Dream phone -- now known as the G1 -- with several more Android devices, a senior T-Mobile official told BetaNews at during a New York City press event today.
NEW YORK, NY (BetaNews) - While the G1 device rolled out today in New York is aimed at providing a "Google-focused experience" to users, future Android phones for T-Mobile's emerging 3G HSPDA market will be geared to other kinds of "user experiences." This from Mitch Lustig, T-Mobile USA's senior manager of product development, although he declined to specify which kinds of experiences.
MySpace denies antitrust action is pending against its Music site
BetaNews spoke with MySpace reps last night regarding the speculation that's been going on since last week about possible antitrust actions, including in Europe, preventing MySpace Music from launching its new, dedicated site.
Much of the talk was fueled by a particular news article, which MySpace told us was "based mostly on conjecture." The article discusses precedents set by indie groups in European courts, most notably the ongoing opposition to SMEI by independent organization Impala, hinting at preferential pricing and discriminative practices by MySpace against indie music producers.
Royalties breakthrough: RIAA and media agree on streaming rates
While legislation before Congress languishes in the midst of two wars and now a severe financial crisis, the major parties in the online music royalties debate have actually come to an agreement on compromise rates.
In a surprise announcement that could actually signal the beginning of the end of the long-running streaming media royalties debacle, representatives of the Recording Industry Association of America state they have reached an agreement with DiMA, the leading trade group representing digital media broadcasters. That agreement could cap the music royalties that streaming broadcasters pay to 10.5 percent of revenue.
T-Mobile's new G1 looks promising, if lopsided
T-Mobile's G1 is without a doubt its most hyped product launch. Practically all the information about the phone was "unconfirmed fact" one month ago, and today's release brings into perspective what the first "open" phone has to offer.
Thanks to FCC regulatory filings, we already know the general design specs and radio arrangement of the G1 (155mm x 55mm, 3.2" 480 x 320 HVGA screen, Quad-band GSM, UMTS, HSDPA 1700/2100, SUPL, 802.11b/g, GPS, non-A2DP Bluetooth). We also found out that at the heart of the G1 is the same CPU that the HTC Touch Diamond carries, the 528 MHz Qualcomm MSM7210A.
Sony's latest lightweights will have SSDs, play and burn Blu-ray
The smallest Sony devices to show Blu-ray movies on big and small screens aren't PlayStations. They're super-small, lightweight Vaio computers, and like a certain banned iPhone app, they have "I Am Rich" written all over them.
There have been, and continue to be, two classes of customers for small computer devices. One class is interested in making functionality portable enough to achieve true data mobility, and it's that class to which the latest rounds of MID and netbook form factor computers are being pitched. The other is interested in seeing how much hardware can be shrunken down to a minimum form factor -- oftentimes without regard to cost -- and it's that second class to whom Sony is playing today, with its latest miniaturized Vaio notebooks, slated to roll off the assembly lines this fall.
First thoughts: CS4 twirls, and occasionally sparkles
The parts of a product usually featured on a launch day demo may not always be the parts that will satisfy a day-to-day user. But as Angela Gunn reports, the parts of CS4 it chose to show off this morning could genuinely sway opinions.
[ME's NOTE: Today, we welcome into the BetaNews family of journalists the former USA Today correspondent and Tech_Space blogger, and the former co-host of public television's Digital Duo...and more importantly, someone I've been proud for years to call my friend and colleague: Angela Gunn.]I don't generally trust product demos when my own hands aren't on the keyboard -- not that every company does hinky things to make new software look faster or slicker or more stable than it is, but enough do so a person winds up suspicious.
HP to absorb Voodoo PC's catalog, re-org appears likely
Is one of North America's most prolific builders of ostentatious, custom PCs going the way of the Atari ST and the Exidy Sorcerer? The man in charge says no, but the way it's being said has not been filling folks with confidence.
A blog post from the usually forthright Rahul Sood, the CTO of the Voodoo business unit that was incorporated into Hewlett-Packard last year, is being interpreted by the hardware enthusiast community as a thinly-veiled, euphemistic notice of deep setbacks at the former VooDoo PC, and what had up until recently been called the Voodoo Business Unit.
Charm City awaits Xohm: Baltimore could be among Sprint's first
So we've seen Sprint's Xohm trucks driving around downtown Baltimore during most of September, in anticipation of the service's impending launch. But as the month nears its end, there's still no launch announcement.
BALTIMORE (BetaNews) - Rumors have recently circulated that Sprint's Baltimore Xohm network would be announced as soon as this Friday, with availability beginning on October 6 and with Baltimore, Maryland being an early rollout target. Sprint told Betanews this morning that the September launch for Xohm in Baltimore is still firm, so at most we've got one week before getting Sprint WiMax.
T-Mobile Android G1 phones priced at $179, launch Oct. 22
Google's two founders appeared on stage this morning at T-Mobile's launch event for the G1 phone, describing it as essentially a smaller laptop computer that isn't too much trouble to carry with you.
NEW YORK, NY (BetaNews) - At the T-Mobile G1 launch event, executives announced the launch date for the G1 Android-based phone in the US will be October 22. November is the scheduled month for the European launch, though a specific day has not been mentioned.
Adobe creates a suite launch with CS4
In what CEO Shantaru Narayan describes as his company's largest-ever product launch, Adobe on Tuesday formally unveiled all six flavors of version 4 of its Creative Suite, ranging in price from $999 to $2499 and slated to ship next month.
In an online presentation that went live this morning, John Loiacano, senior VP for the Creative Solutions Business Unit, divided Adobe Creative Suite 4's improvements into three categories: increased speed and efficiency, better Macromedia integration, and new "wow factor" features. Improved asset management is one of CS4's emphases, as are mobile application development and project collaborations, and Loiacano briefly touched on Adobe's trend toward hosted services such as Acrobat Connect.
One more iPhone app rejected for duplicate functionality
In an ongoing string of rejections by Apple's iPhone App Store, Angelo DiNardi's MailWranger is the latest application to get turned down, for much the same reason that Alex Sokirynsky's Podcaster was rebuffed about a week ago.
Apple officials have deemed that, like Sokirynsky's application, DiNardi's "duplicates the functionality" of an Apple tool built into the iPhone platform. As in DiNardi's case, Apple sees similarities with the iPhone's built-in Mail app.
Circuit City CEO resigns amid more looming bad news
Presaging dismal second quarter results for next Monday, Circuit City said today that its chairman, president, and CEO Philip J. Schoonover was stepping down, to be replaced by a retail turnaround artist named to the board in June.
James A. Marcum, who has served as vice chairman since August 18, has now been appointed to serve as acting president and chief executive officer.
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