Even opponents of Microsoft could not have predicted it would happen this quickly, but their Kin smartphone is already dead. Microsoft announced yesterday that it is killing both the Kin One and Kin Two. After only two months of sales, the software giant has halted production on the phone and will not ship it to Europe, as was planned. Microsoft and Verizon did not release actual sales numbers, but estimates put the sales above 1,000 but far less than 10,000, a drop in the pond compared to many of the top-selling smartphones. Critics of the device believe Microsoft should not be surprised. Although it was labeled a smartphone, it...

$700 Million cash buys Google the online travel software company ITA software. Google is trying to take advantage of the huge demand and the need for innovation in the highly competitive airfare market. According to Google, more than half of airline tickets are bought online today and the decision to buy ITA software stems from the confusion that exists in the online travel arena. Google CEO Eric Schmidt talks of the lack of proper ticket pricing and availability information in spite of there being thousands of options. He stressed that his company aims at turning this disarray into a highly streamlined approach to online travel. ...

Android-based Tablet Of all the companies you might have expected to create a tablet based on the open source Android operating system from Google, Cisco was probably not at the top of the list. Nevertheless, not to be outdone by competition, Cisco seems more prepared to actually distribute and market their tablet than other players at the table. The most obvious reason why is that Cisco has an actual market: businesses.  Their tablet, called the Cisco Cius (pronounced "See-us"), is designed for business employee collaboration.  By selling it through traditional corporate channels, they also do not have to worry about pushing it ...