PETER SAYER

Microsoft to Cut 5,000 Jobs as Income Falls

Microsoft said Thursday it will cut up to 5,000 jobs due to a declining PC market and an 11 percent drop in its net income for the quarter ended Dec. 31.

What You Can Learn about Risk Management from Societe Generale

Weak IT access controls cost the French bank $7.2 billion. The case should prompt you to rethink how you balance IT security with employee access to critical systems.

Microsoft Offers to Buy Yahoo for $44.6B

Microsoft has offered to buy Yahoo for around $44.6 billion in cash and shares, to better compete with Google in the market for online services.

Oracle to Buy BEA Systems for $8.5 billion

Oracle hopes that acquiring middleware vendor BEA will allow it to improve its own middleware suite, Fusion.

Don't Upgrade to Vista, UK Government Agency Tells Schools

A UK government agency has advised schools to avoid upgrading to Microsoft's Vista and Office 2007 software, saying that upgrade costs would not be offset by "appropriate benefit." It also recommends open-source alternatives be explored.

IBM Buys Israeli Storage Startup XIV

IBM has bought XIV, an Israeli manufacturer of SAN (storage area network) equipment. XIV's main product is Nextra, a storage system based on a grid of standard hardware components.

U.S. Court of Appeals Hands Google a Patent Setback

Hyperphase Technologies has appealed a U.S. District Court's rejection of the patent infringement allegations.

EMC to Buy Document Sciences for $85 Million

The acquisition will allow EMC to move into transactional content management, which it sees as the fastest-growing part of the enterprise content management market.

Sprint Nextel Names Dan Hesse CEO

U.S. mobile operator Sprint Nextel has appointed Dan Hesse as president and CEO. He replaces Gary Forsee, who resigned in October.

Privacy Concerns Prompt U-Turn at Facebook

Facebook has modified a controversial service that broadcast details of its users' online activities outside the site to their friends, following complaints about its privacy implications. The service now requires users to opt in before their actions are broadcast.