BT rumoured to be eyeing PlusNet with takeover view

PlusNet has declined to comment on a report that it is in talks about the possibility of a takeover by BT Retail. The Independent claimed yesterday that the Sheffield-based ISP may become the subject of a bidding war after 'industry sources' indicated that BT may put in a bid for the company. BT Retail also declined to comment. ...more

Nintendo announces Gameboy Advance release date

Forget the Xbox and the Gamecube, the console everyone wants to get their hands on has got to be the Gameboy Advance. Start saving your pennies now as Nintendo has just announced the date and street price of this updated version of its mega-popular Gameboy handheld games machine. The new 32-bit colour machine will be coming to Europe on June 22 and will cost a reasonable 130 Euros (that's about ?80, but don't count on the UK price being that!). ...more

Microsoft breathes Live into Shopping

Microsoft is preparing to release yet another component of its Windows Live initiative. The company is set to add 'Shopping' to the list of services which already includes, Mail, Custom Domains (web hosting), Messenger, Safety Centre and Office. Although Microsoft is not saying much about the new service named Windows Live Shopping just yet, it will sit between Windows Live Expo and MSN Shopping, presumably as some kind of rival to Froogle or Kelkoo. ...more

iPod shuffle sales increase

Sales of the iPod shuffle appear to be on the increase and much better than expected, according to the company that makes music decoder chips for the keyfob MP3 players. SigmaTel's revenues from shuffle chip manufacture were up 31 per cent during its last financial quarter. American Technology Research analyst Shaw Wu said that iPod shuffle sales 'may be turning out better than expected' despite pressure from the iPod nano, which offers four times the storage and a screen for little extra cost. ...more

Star Office free no more

Sun Microsystems has launched version 6.0 of StarOffice, and for the first time fettered it with a price tag, $75.95 (about ?52). ...more