Nintendo’s amazing triumph in Japan may doom the company internationally

According to Japanese gaming bible Famitsu, Nintendo (NTDOY) 3DS sold 333,000 units in the week ending December 16, while Sony’s (SNE) PS Vita limped along at 13,000 units, the new Wii U did an okay 130,000 units and the PlayStation 3 managed to sell 46,000 units.  The utter hardware domination of the 3DS is reshaping the Japanese software market. Franchises that were thought to be fading have...

Read More..

European Commission wades into global tech patents war

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - EU regulators are poised to accuse Samsung of breaking competition rules in filing patent lawsuits against rival Apple, in the EU's first formal challenge to the consumer electronic industry's patent wars."We will issue a statement of objections very soon," the European Union's competition chief Joaquin Almunia said on Thursday, referring to the Commission's charge sheet.Technology...

Read More..

Acer will beat Google to market with its own $99 tablet

The Nexus 7 is still an amazing value at $249. But word around the block is that Google (GOOG) and ASUS (2357) are working on a $99 Nexus tablet. But now, per PhoneArena, it’s apparent that Acer (2353) is preparing to beat Google to the punch with a 7-inch Android 4.1 2Jelly Bean-powered tablet that will reportedly sell for $99. Naturally, a lower-priced tablet will come at the expense of less powerful...

Read More..

Arris rises on plans to buy Google's set-top unit

 Arris Group's stock rose to its highest level in more than five years on Thursday following news that it is buying Google's TV set-top business for $2.35 billion, which could be a transformative deal for the relatively small company.But not everyone was upbeat about Arris' ability to benefit. One analyst cut his rating on the company, saying it may have paid too much.THE SPARK: On Wednesday...

Read More..

Competition hots up for 4G mobile phone airwaves

 Seven companies were named on Thursday as bidders for the superfast 4G mobile broadband radio frequencies to be auctioned off in Britain next month by industry regulatorOfcom. Existing mobile network operators EE, Vodafone, O2 owner Telefonica and Hutchison, which is behind Three, will be vying with O2's former owner BT, managed networks firm MLL Telecom and...

Read More..

Omanis hope first local vote is stepping stone towards change

MUSCAT (Reuters) - Hoping for jobs and democratic change, voters in Oman cast ballots in their first municipal election on Saturday, a sign of modest reform in response to protests inspired by the Arab Spring.The small Gulf oil producer, ruled since 1970 by Sultan Qaboos, sits opposite Iran on the Strait of Hormuz, the conduit for nearly a fifth of globally traded petroleum.Its only other elections...

Read More..

Netanyahu lauds Kerry nomination for U.S. secretary of state job

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday welcomed the appointment of his personal friend John Kerry as U.S. secretary of state and described him as "a known supporter of Israel's security".President Barack Obama nominated Kerry on Friday, calling the veteran U.S. senator the "perfect choice" as America's top diplomat.Netanyahu said in a statement: "I congratulate...

Read More..

Pope pardons Vatican butler

Pope Benedict XVI granted his former butler a Christmas pardon Saturday, forgiving him in person during a jailhouse meeting for stealing and leaking his private papers in one of the gravest Vatican security breaches in recent times.After the 15-minute meeting, Paolo Gabriele was freed and returned to his Vatican City apartment where he lives with his wife and three children. The Vatican said he couldn't...

Read More..

Russia says it won't host Assad but others welcome

MOSCOW (AP) — Russia's foreign minister says Moscow would welcome any country's offer of a safe haven to Syrian President Bashar Assad, but underlined that Moscow itself has no intention of giving him shelter if he steps down. Russia has repeatedly used its veto right along with China at the U.N. Security Council to protect its old ally from international sanctions, but it has increasingly sought...

Read More..

Iran a central issue for my next term: Netanyahu

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Iran's perceived nuclear threat against Israel will be the central issue concerning Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government if he is re-elected in a month's time, the Israeli leader said on Saturday.Netanyahu has set out a mid-2013 "red line" for tackling Iran's uranium enrichment project. The West says this programme is aimed at developing the means to build atomic bombs....

Read More..