Episode 0046, 05/10/2008
Title/Description: CourseCast 48: Microsoft Goes to the Prom, Next Gen Wireless, Rogue China
Welcome to Course Technology's CourseCast of the week, Episode 48, recorded May 10th, 2008. This is Ken Baldauf bringing you this week's technology news and information. This CourseCast is brought to you by Course Technology. Check out www.course.com for innovative textbooks and creative electronic learning solutions.
Story 1 - Microsoft Goes to the Prom
It's rather like watching a nervous high school boy looking for a prom date. Turned down by Yahoo!, Microsoft is dropping hints that it’s interested in Facebook! The Wall Street Journal reported that Microsoft's bankers put out subtle signals to Facebook to see if it would be open to a full acquisition. Facebook spokeswoman, Brandee Barker, declined to comment on the report. Will Microsoft find a date before all the good candidates are taken? Will it suffer further humiliation? Will it have to go to the dance stag? Tune in next week to find out!
Sources: Microsoft sends out feelers to Facebook: report [Reuters]
Story 2 - Next Gen Wireless
A deal I reported on a few weeks back has gone formal. Sprint has announced that it’s joining with Clearwire to create a new mobile broadband company. The pair plans to build a nationwide 4G network based on WiMax technology. Comcast, Time Warner, Google, and Intel will pitch in a few billion dollars to make the network a reality. I've also reported that AT&T and Verizon plan to roll out their next generation high-speed networks using a technology called Long Term Evolution, or LTE. So what about TMobile? Well, TMobile has announced that it’s rolling out its 3G network out based on HSDPA technology - High-Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA). All three of these technologies: WiMax, LTE, and HSDPA, have the potential to provide speeds equal to home high-speed connections, only wirelessly within cell phone coverage areas. Whether these should be considered 3G or 4G is open to interpretation. One thing is clear, the race is on to see which company is able to provide high speed wireless soonest - and the stakes are very high.
Sources: Sprint
To Revive Wi Max Venture [Washington Post], T-Mobile's 3G
Rollout Lags Behind Competitors
By Barry Levine [News Factor]
Story 3 - China Goes Rogue
Technology standards provide a framework within which companies work to develop products that work in expected ways and interconnect to work together, even if they are produced by different manufacturers. Standards provide a service to consumers, by offering the ability to choose from a wide variety of manufacturers. Recently, US Under Secretary of Commerce, Christopher Padalia, warned China that developing unique and secret technology standards of its own would lead to "technological isolation." China is requiring its tech companies to implement standards that differ from widely accepted international standards in areas such as 3G cell phone networks, digital media, and information technology products. China believes that mandating its own standards will give its companies an advantage when selling to its own citizens. The Under Secretary warned that, "while China's approach may appear to provide a competitive advantage in the short term, it in fact inhibits collaboration, limits product development, reduces consumer choice, and hinders China's competitiveness and growth."
Sources: US warns China of 'technological isolation’ [MSN News]
And that brings us to News Briefs.
That's it for this week's CourseCast. Links to this week's stories and many more news and information resources are provided at the CourseCast Web site at www.course.com/coursecasts. E-mail us with your suggestions for the show at course.coursecasts@cengage.com. Until next time, have a great week and be sure to take advantage of the Power -- of Technology!