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AP Technology NewsBrief at 4:41 p.m. EST(Associated Press Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) HP's profit up 14 pct despite sales dropSAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ Hewlett-Packard Co. says cost cutting helped its profit jump 14 percent in the latest quarter despite an 8 percent revenue decline. HP got higher profits from Electronic Data Systems Corp., a technology services company HP bought for $13.9 billion last year to better compete against IBM Corp. Friends go online at Foursquare to meet offlineSAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ Laura Fitton's ascent has been staggering: In less than a year, she's become mayor of nine different places in several different states, all without giving any speeches or kissing any babies. Instead, Fitton has gone out. A lot. And that's allowed her to build an empire in the world of a rapidly growing Internet startup called Foursquare, which rewards users with points and virtual "mayorships" for checking in on their cell phones when they're out and about. Google scoops up display ad specialist TeracentMOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. (AP) _ Google Inc. has snapped up another startup in its quest to sell more visual advertising on the Web. The acquisition of Teracent Corp., a 3-year-old startup, provides Google with more tools for customizing the online billboards known as display advertising. Canada woman to fight insurance co. over FacebookMONTREAL (AP) _ A Canadian woman on sick leave for depression said Monday she would fight an insurance company's decision to cut her benefits after her agent found photos on Facebook of her vacationing, at a bar and at a party. Nathalie Blanchard said Monday she was diagnosed with major depression and was receiving monthly sick-leave benefits until payments dried up this fall. Retailers look to stretch out Cyber Monday pushNEW YORK (AP) _ Retailers are thinking beyond Cyber Monday _ a holiday marketing promotion many push for the Monday after Thanksgiving _ and trying to spin their discounts into into Cyber Weekends or even Cyber Weeks. Target, Walmart, Toys R Us and others will be running online sales throughout the holiday weekend, with additional sales on Nov. 30, or Cyber Monday. J.C. Penney will offer online sales for items such as clothes and electronics on Monday and Tuesday, and Walmart.com will offer deals starting Monday through Dec. 4. South Koreans to get Apple's iPhone this weekSEOUL, South Korea (AP) _ Apple Inc's iPhone is coming to South Korea this week, a local carrier announced Sunday, bringing the iconic communications device to one of the world's most sophisticated mobile phone markets. KT Corp. began accepting orders for the iPhone both online and in stores Sunday and service will start Nov. 28 as part of an official launch, said Alice Park, a spokeswoman for the country's second-largest mobile carrier. Newspaper circulation may be worse than it looksSAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ While U.S. newspapers are losing subscribers at a staggering rate, a few dailies stand out because their circulation is rising. But they aren't necessarily selling more copies. Here's why: Since April 1, new auditing rules have made it easier for newspapers to count a reader as a paying customer. B&N Nook sells out, too late for holiday ordersNEW YORK (AP) _ Consumers who haven't yet ordered Barnes & Noble's electronic book reader, the Nook, won't see one before Christmas. The earliest that anyone who orders the $259 device on Friday _ or later _ will receive it is Jan. 4, 2010, the nation's largest bookseller said Friday. Fox CEO wants US to join France on Internet piracyATHENS, Greece (AP) _ The chief executive of Fox Filmed Entertainment said Monday the U.S. should join France in cutting off the Internet connection of users who repeatedly download copyright-protected films. CEO Jim Gianopulos said Internet piracy is the single biggest threat to the film industry worldwide, and independent films are the hardest hit. Scientist: Leak of climate e-mails appallingLONDON (AP) _ A leading climate change scientist whose private e-mails are included in thousands of documents that were stolen by hackers and posted online said Sunday the leaks may have been aimed at undermining next month's global climate summit in Denmark. Kevin Trenberth, of the U.S. National Center for Atmospheric Research, in Colorado, said he believes the hackers who stole a decade's worth of correspondence from a British university's computer server deliberately distributed only those documents that could help attempts by skeptics to undermine the scientific consensus on man-made climate change. (c) 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |