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AME Info, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, technology briefsDec 11, 2012 (AME Info - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- INTEL REVEALS NEW SOC TECHNOLOGY: Intel has unveiled a new technology that it hopes will get more of its silicon inside smartphones and tablets, Cnet has reported. The chipmaker's next-generation 22-nanometer "SoC" system-on-a-chip technology puts most of a device's core functions onto one piece of silicon and is typically used in mobile devices where space and power efficiency are paramount. "In the past...we were focused primarily on developing transistors with ever higher performance," Mark Bohr, an Intel senior fellow, said. "Now we're developing technologies with a much wider range of transistors...all the way down to tablets and pocket devices." SAUDI PRIVATE FIRMS FINED OVER USE OF COUNTERFEIT SOFTWARE: The Saudi culture and information ministry has said more than 40 private establishments and retail outlets have been sanctioned for using or selling counterfeit software, Arab News has reported. The move was taken after lawyers of software companies filed the cases, saying the companies breached the copyright regulation that was implemented to protect intellectual property and computer programmes. Fines reached SR100,000 in some cases and some companies were closed temporarily until they rectify their situation, sources at the ministry were quoted as saying by the daily. "The total number of cases adds up to about 150 so far," one source said. GOOGLE'S WEB-BASED APPS NO LONGER FREE FOR SMALL BUSINESSES: Google Inc. has announced it will no longer offer its web-based office productivity software free to small businesses, in a bid to expand revenue beyond the company's core advertising services, Reuters has reported. The move marks the latest change to Google Apps, which until 2011 was available for free to businesses with 50 or fewer people. Businesses with 10 or fewer people will now need to pay $50 per user per year, the same rate that larger businesses pay, to use its Google Apps software which includes email, word processing, spreadsheet and presentation tools. Individual consumers will still be able to get a free version of many of the products such as Gmail, Google said. APPLE, GOOGLE IN PARTNERSHIP TO ACQUIRE KODAK PATENTS: Apple Inc. and Google Inc. have teamed up to offer more than $500m to buy Eastman Kodak's patents out of bankruptcy, Bloomberg has reported, citing two people with knowledge of the situation. Competing for dominance of the smartphone market, the two companies have partnered after leading two separate consortia this summer to buy Kodak's 1,100 imaging patents, said the people. The 132-year-old photography pioneer filed for bankruptcy protection in January, listing $5.1bn in assets and $6.75bn in debt. The company plans to exit bankruptcy in the first half of 2013. APPLE TO MANUFACTURE SOME MACS IN US NEXT YEAR: Tim Cook, the chief executive of Apple Inc. has unveiled plans to move some production of Macintosh computers to the US from China next year, Reuters has reported. The company will spend more than $100m on the US manufacturing initiative, Cook said, without providing details on which Macintosh products will be produced in the US. "This doesn't mean that Apple will do it ourselves, but we'll be working with people and we'll be investing our money," he said. ___ (c)2012 AME Info (Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates) Visit AME Info (Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates) at www.ameinfo.com Distributed by MCT Information Services |