IBM Files Lawsuits Against Amazon
IBM has filed two suits against Amazon.com Inc. alleging that the online retailer knowingly infringes on IBM patents. The patents cover, among other things, the presentation of applications in an interactive service, the storage of data in an interactive network, the presentation of advertising in an interactive service and the ordering of items from an electronic catalog. The lawsuits, filed separately in two federal courts in Texas, seek unspecified damages.
Oracle’s Buying Spree Continues
Oracle Corp. has agreed to buy MetaSolv Inc., a developer of operations support software for telecommunications service providers, for $219.2 million in cash. Oracle said that it will incorporate MetaSolv into its Communications Global Business Unit and that members of the existing MetaSolv management team will lead the operation. The deal is expected to close by year’s end.
BitTorrent Works With Device Makers
BitTorrent Inc. has reached agreements with several companies to embed its file-sharing software in their devices. Asustek Computer Inc., Planex Communications Inc. and QNAP Systems Inc. all signed agreements to embed the software into products such as wireless routers, network-attached storage devices and media servers.
Dell Unveils Servers Based on Opteron
Dell Inc. has unveiled its first servers based on Advanced Micro Devices Inc.’s Opteron processors. The four-socket PowerEdge 6950, priced from $6,500, and the two-socket PowerEdge SC1435, priced from $1,300, debuted at the Oracle OpenWorld user conference in San Francisco. Dell machines were previously based only on processors from Intel Corp.