WebProNews

Google Seeking Not To Cross The Creepy Line

Google CEO Eric Schmidt while appearing on Fox Business made some interesting comments about Google's emergence as a huge Microsoft-like business power. I thought most interesting was Schmidt's statement about Google becoming like Microsoft, "Hopefully, we won't repeat the mistakes that Microsot made ten years ago that ultimately led to all these things that happened with them". Schmidt elaborated:

eBay And Skype Settle Litigation

eBay said Friday that the investor group led by Silver Lake has reached a settlement agreement with Joltid Limited and Joost N.V. that gives Skype ownership over all software licensed from Joltid and ends all litigation against the investor group and eBay at the closing of the acquisition.

Facebook Most Widely Used Network Among Businesses

Webinars and podcasts are the most popular social media resources for business people, used by 69 percent of those who turn to such channels for business information, according to a new study by Business.com. Facebook is the primary social network on which consumer-focused companies maintain one or more profiles, cited by 83 percent of respondents compared with 45 percent for Twitter. Business-to-business companies maintain a presence on both social sites with 77 percent maintaining a profile on Facebook and 73 percent on Twitter.

Windows 7 Sales Outperform Vista Launch

Initial sales of Microsoft's Windows 7 software outperformed those of Vista's first few days on the U.S. market, according to the latest analysis from The NPD Group. Windows 7 software unit sales in the U.S. were 234 percent higher than Vista's first few days of sales. A combination of early discounts on pre-sales and a lack of promotional activity for the Ultimate version resulted in dollar sales that were 82 percent higher than Vista.

More People Relying On The Internet To Buy Vehicles

Searching online for used vehicles has become the primary way for consumers to locate used automobiles, according to new a report by J.D. Power and Associates.

Best Buy Now Installing Google Mobile Apps On Smartphones

Best Buy Mobile said today it will install Google mobile applications in the smartphones it sells at its retail outlets. Best Buy Mobile employees will install Google Mobile App on all compatible smartphones through its "Walk Out Working" program which is a free in-store smartphone setup. Google will announce this additional method of getting Google Mobile App on its Mobile Blog and provide more information on a new Google and Best Buy Mobile website scheduled to launch on November 9.

Pew: Technology Hasn't Made Us Hermits

Good news, people: according to the latest info from the Pew Internet & American Life Project, we're not turning into a bunch of grouches who want to do little besides stare at computer screens.  As it took statistics dating back to 1985 into account, Pew even found a couple of instances in which technology seems to have made folks more sociable over the years.

Apple App Store Hits 100,000

Apple said today developers have created over 100,000 apps for its App Store, making it the largest application store in the world. iPhone and iPod touch users in 77 countries can choose from a range of apps in 20 categories, including games, business, news, sports, health, reference and travel. App Store users have downloaded over two billion apps since the launch of the store 16 months ago.

Florida Sues Expedia And Orbitz Over Taxes

Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum said today his office has sued online travel companies Expedia and Orbitz for failing to pay the right amount of taxes on hotel room rentals. The lawsuit states that while the companies have been collecting these taxes from consumers all along, they have only been paying a portion of the taxes to the state and keeping the rest as profit.  Florida says the practice denies it of millions of dollars every year in tax revenue.

iPhone Most Popular Touchscreen Device

Touchscreen mobile phone adoption in the U.S. showed a significant 159 percent growth rate during the past year to 23.8 million users, according to a new report from comScore. The growth in touchscreen device adoption outpaced the already strong 63 percent growth in U.S. adoption of smartphones.