pages

Google faces lawsuit over its stock-split plan

Criticism of its recent stock split plan has evolved into a court case against Google. A shareholder filed a class action lawsuit in an attempt to block the plan on the grounds that it gives Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin too much power, according to Reuters.

Brockton Retirement Board brought the suit, alleging that Page and Brin "wish to retain this power, while selling off large amounts of their stockholdings, and reaping billions of dollars in proceeds." Brockton filed the complaint in Delaware, where Google is incorporated.

Google announced its first stock split -- or, if … Read more

Firefox beta moves closer to SPDY

Firefox 13 has moved to the browser's beta channel today, bringing with it default support for SPDY, some elbow grease on default landing pages like the Home page, and better memory management for open tabs.

Firefox 13 beta can be downloaded for Windows, Mac, and Linux.

Having SPDY active by default means that, for sites that support it, they will appear in your browser faster than before. SPDY is also a more secure protocol than HTTP, which it's the successor to, because it uses SSL encryption for all sites.

The new Home page, available at about:home, puts … Read more

Android not critical to Google? Really?

During the Oracle v. Google trial, the value of the Android platform to the Internet giant has been a subject of inquiry. When Google CEO and co-founder Larry Page was asked last week by Oracle's attorney David Boies about the value of Android, he responded that Android is "important, but not critical." 

On Wednesday, Google's head of the Android platform, Andy Rubin, was asked by Boies what purpose Android serves for Google, He responded that it "makes it easier to access Google services." 

Boies queried Rubin on whether … Read more

Larry Page practices the art of evasion in court

Larry Page was well-schooled by his legal team. But despite the training, which is essential for any CEO of a major company, the Google chieftain didn't exude comfort in the courtroom as Oracle's lead lawyer, David Boies, questioned him.

He was at times evasive, recalling the exchanges on complex technology issues of Microsoft co-founder and CEO Bill Gates with the same David Boies in the U.S. vs. Microsoft antitrust trial in 1998. For example, Gates stated he didn't know what Boies meant when he used terms such as "concerned," "ask" and "… Read more

Facebook inserts 'listen' button on musicians' pages

The ways to listen to music on Facebook continue to grow. The social network launched a "listen" button on music artists' pages today.

On the top right corner between the "like" and "message" buttons on musicians' fan pages, users can click "listen" and be guided to songs on any of the music streaming services the user has signed up for, such as Spotify and Rdio.

This is different than the "listen with" buttons users can click when they see what their friends are listening too; those buttons were created by … Read more

Oracle CEO Larry Ellison: I don't know if Java is free

Among the highlights emanating from U.S. District Court in San Francisco courtroom 8 today was Oracle CEO Larry Ellison's response to a question regarding the status of the Java programming language, which his company acquired when it bought Sun Microsystems in 2010.

Asked by Google's lead attorney, Robert Van Nest, if the Java language is free, Ellison was slow to respond. Judge William Alsup pushed Ellison to answer with a yes or no. As ZDNet reporter Rachel King observed in the courtroom, Ellison resisted and huffed, "I don't know."

In other words, it's … Read more

Larry Page: Google's on a mission to clean up its products

Google CEO Larry Page says that the company is undergoing a lot of "clean up" as it consolidates products, redesigns, and reworks the network's underpinnings that make technology invisible.

Speaking on Google's first-quarter conference call yesterday, Page outlined his view of the search giant's products as well as his view of IT. Since taking over at Google, Page has been talking incessantly about creating beautiful products and providing a simple user experience across all properties.

It's unclear how successful Google has been, given that white space was a big topic in the Google+ redesign, … Read more

Stock split keeps Google's destiny in hands of co-founders

Since Google went public in 2004, co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin have been wedded to the idea that management ought to be able to decide what's right for the company without needing to sacrifice future opportunities to satisfy near-term demands from Wall Street.

That philosophy was on display as Google disclosed plans for a 2 for 1 split, which would still preserve their control over the company with the issuance of a new class of non-voting capital stock.

In a note published along with the company's Q2 earnings,Page and Brin returned to that theme, cautioning that … Read more

AT&T sheds directories, advertising business

AT&T is getting rid of its advertising and directories business for $750 million in cash, the company said today.

The Dallas-based telecommunications giant is offloading the assets to Cerberus Capital Management but will retain a 47 percent stake in the new YP Holdings venture created from the deal. It also gets a $200 million note from Cerberus, a private investment firm based in New York.

AT&T is following in the other telecoms' footsteps in ditching assets outside of its core focus of wireline and wireless services. Rival Verizon long ago sold its directories business because it … Read more