Editor’s Note: Related tickers: Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG), Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT), American Express Company (NYSE:AXP)
Apple has begun to train staff on iOS 7 and iTunes Radio (MacWorld)
According to 9to5Mac, which says it’s quoting “multiple AppleCare employees”, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has begun training its technical support staff on the features and differences in iOS 7. Apple traditionally preps its staff in time for the launch of a new product, but this time things are a bit different because, as the website points out, it “will be requiring a large number of Mac hardware/OS X technicians to be trained on iOS as well” meaning that “both Apple’s iOS and Mac AppleCare support staff members will be receiving AppleCare calls related to iOS 7?.
Google co-founder Sergey Brin rumored to be dating younger employee after split (Coolage)
Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) co-founder Sergey Brin has split with wife Anne Wojcicki and the two have been living apart for several months. Anne Wojcicki is the chief executive of a biotech firm 23andMe she co-founded in 2006. Google has invested roughly $10 million in the company which maps DNA and provides clients with information about their ancestry. Her sister is one of the Internet search company’s top executives. Susan Wojcicki, Anne’s sister, is Senior Vice President of Ads and Commerce for Google.
Microsoft plans a stake in Foursquare (TechEye)
Software king of the world, Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT), is looking to buy itself a chunk of a social networking site. According to RT News, Foursquare labs said that Vole is competing with American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) to take an equity stake in Foursquare. Foursquare is slightly different from your usual social not-working site in that it is location-based primarily for mobiles. Users “check in” at venues using a mobile website, text messaging or a device-specific application by selecting from a list of nearby venues that the application will locate, and can share relevant tips. It has been around for a while and was launched in 2009 by Dennis Crowley and Naveen Selvadurai. It works on iOS, Symbian, Series 40, MeeGo, Android, WebOS, Windows Phone, Bada and BlackBerry, and PlayStation Vita.
Apple Target of Unusually High Options Trading (AAPL) (UtahPeoplesPost)
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Thursday. Traders acquired 61,584 put options on the stock, ARN reports. This is an increase of approximately 431% compared to the average volume of 11,598 put options. In other Apple news, SVP Eduardo Cue unloaded 24,580 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $504.18, for a total transaction of $12,392,744.40. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.
Google Chairman Unloads 85,916 Shares (GOOG) (UtahPeoplesPost)
Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) Chairman Eric Schmidt sold 85,916 shares of Google stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $851.27, for a total transaction of $73,137,713.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 34,095 shares in the company. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. A number of analysts have recently weighed in on GOOG shares.
Microsoft names new “channel chief” for Worldwide Partner Group (ITBusinessNet)
Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) today announced the appointment of Phil Sorgen as corporate vice president of the company’s Worldwide Partner Group. Sorgen will manage a team of sales and marketing professionals tasked with helping Microsoft’s 640,000-member-strong partner community capitalize on new areas of growth in cloud computing, mobility, big data and enterprise social technologies. A 17-year veteran of Microsoft, Sorgen previously led the company’s U.S. Small and Midmarket Solutions and Partners (SMS&P) Group, which provided Microsoft technology solutions for more than 20 million small and midsized businesses in the United States. Before this position, he served as president of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) Canada for 3 1/2 years.
Google love triangle (CNBC)
Apple Denied Quick Win In Flash Recording IP Suit (Law360)
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) fell short in its early bid to dismiss a suit alleging its iPhone, iPod, iPad and MacBook products infringe three patents relating to flash memory technology for handheld recording devices, a California federal judge ruled Wednesday. U.S. District Judge Dana M. Sabraw denied Apple’s bid for judgment in a suit accusing Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s products of infringing three patents belonging to San Diego-based E.Digital Corp., saying that it was too early in the case to rule on issues of fact.
Google-backed Uber drives into radio taxi market (LiveMint)
The cabs were dirty and stinky, and the drivers smelled.” This complaint by Pankaj Jain of 500 Startups is shared by many other customers of radio taxis in India. They may soon have a better option. San Francisco-based Uber, the Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) backed start-up that has disrupted the cab industry in the US, announced that it would launch operations in India in a move that is likely to raise the quality of taxi cabs in the country and provide stiff competition to existing firms such as Meru Cab Co. Pvt. Ltd.
Microsoft talks up WP app store integrity (MobileWorldLive)
Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) promoted the security of its Windows Phone app store, against a backdrop of concern about the growth of malware targeting the rival Android platform. In a blog post, Microsoft said that “malware hasn’t been much of an issue for Windows Phone customers”. It noted that the Windows Phone store is the “exclusive consumer source of Windows Phone apps”; that apps in the store are tested and certified; and that “if we discover a malicious app, we remove it”.
