Technology Report: HP plans PC spinoff, eyes Autonomy, halts webOS

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	08/18/2011
Good afternoon Bit Hewlett-Packard is close to a deal to buy software company Autonomy for $10 billion and will announce a long-rumored spinoff of its PC division. Autonomy, which counts Procter & Gamble among a long list of major corporate customers that use its software to search and organize unstructured data like emails, confirmed it was in talks with HP. Google+, which has picked up more than 25 million users since launching in June, is headed down the right path and is the first serious challenge to Facebook's dominance. Google's infant social network, which counts Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg as a member, has met skepticism so far but some venture capitalists see reason to be optimistic. Speaking of Facebook, the social networking giant has won access to computers, files and emails it hopes will prove an upstate New York man's claim to own half of Zuckerberg's stake in the company is a fraud. At issue is the authenticity of an alleged 2003 contract under which Paul Ceglia said he hired Zuckerberg, then a Harvard University freshman, to work on StreetFax.com, a street-mapping website intended for the insurance industry. BlackBerry maker Research In Motion is close to rolling out its own music streaming service that will work across its mobile devices. The new service is likely part of an attempt by RIM to beef up its BlackBerry Messenger service as it seeks to compete with the mobile media platform strengths of rival Apple and of Google''s Android. Are governments inching ever closer to the some form of censorship of social media? British Prime Minister David Cameron has flirted with the idea after recent riots and Western democracies and emerging authoritarian states alike, the temptation to try and regain control through censorship may grow. As governments draw up strategies for cyberspace they face fundamental questions about the power and limits of the state. Finally, Blippar has developed a smart phone application which detects the shape of chocolate bars and other objects and converts them into virtual experiences. LATEST NEWS HP plans PC spinoff, eyes Autonomy, halts webOS August 18, 2011 03:49 PM ET NEW YORK/SAN FRANCISCO/LONDON (Reuters) - Hewlett-Packard Co is in talks to buy British software company Autonomy and is pondering options for its personal computing division including a spinoff, as the tech giant steps up an overhaul aimed at rekindling growth. | Full Article Ceglia ordered to give files, emails to Facebook August 18, 2011 02:29 PM ET NEW YORK (Reuters) - Facebook Inc has won access to computers, files and emails it hopes will prove an upstate New York man's claim to own half of founder Mark Zuckerberg's stake in the world's largest social networking company is a fraud. | Full Article Analysis: When Google+ gives Facebook a run for its money August 18, 2011 01:57 PM ET SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Facebook finally has a serious competitor. At least, that's what social-media investor Sergio Monsalve thinks. | Full Article RIM near BlackBerry music service launch: sources August 18, 2011 03:35 PM ET NEW YORK/TORONTO (Reuters) - BlackBerry maker Research In Motion Ltd is close to rolling out its own music streaming service that will work across its mobile devices, according to three people familiar with its plans. | Full Article Analysis: UK social media controls point to wider "info war" August 18, 2011 02:38 PM ET LONDON (Reuters) - British Prime Minister David Cameron's flirtation with the idea of social media censorship controls after recent riots might only be the beginning. | Full Article BUSINESS NEWS S&P 500 falls 5 percent, Nasdaq at session lows August 18, 2011 03:17 PM ET NEW YORK (Reuters) - The S&P 500 hit session lows and the Nasdaq fell to session lows on Thursday, as selling intensified in the last hour of trading. | Full Article News Corp executives mull chance James Murdoch may leave August 18, 2011 02:36 PM ET NEW YORK (Reuters) - News Corp's senior management is starting to think about what the company might do if James Murdoch stepped aside, sources inside and close to the global media empire said. | Full Article Fed says it is treating U.S., European banks the same August 18, 2011 12:39 PM ET LONDON/NEW YORK (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Reserve Bank is treating foreign banks the same as their U.S. peers, a policymaker said, putting himself at odds with a report that it was keeping a closer eye on European banks struggling with the continent's debt crisis. | Full Article U.S. bond yields plunge as economy fears mount August 18, 2011 12:02 PM ET NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury prices soared on Thursday and benchmark 10-year note yields fell below 2 percent for the first time as global economic fears sent investors scrambling for safe-haven government debt. | Full Article Regional factory activity hits 2-1/2 yr low August 18, 2011 03:07 PM ET WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Factory activity in the Mid-Atlantic region slumped to a nearly 2-1/2 year low in August and home resales unexpectedly dropped last month, dampening hopes for a quick revival in economic growth. | Full Article U.S. TOP NEWS Obama calls on Assad to step down Analysis: Big economic talk, few plans from '12 Republicans James Murdoch did not cover up Goodman details: law firm Anna Hazare to launch public fast as government relents China, U.S. seek to boost confidence as Biden visits RELATED VIDEO App turns chocolate bars into games Unrest over social media clampdown Scientists see new solution for chronic back pain A daily digest of breaking business news, coverage of the US economy, major corporate news and the financial markets. 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