Sources say Microsoft to face heavy fines from EU

Microsoft is facing stiff fines after an EU advisory committee found the company has broken European Union antitrust law, according a report by Reuters. The decision is likely to be announced as negotiations between the EU and Microsoft over a compromise are said to have stalled. The Committee is expected to recommend a fine running to hundreds of millions of euros, at its next meeting on 22 March. ...more

New web mail service gives to charity

A new free web mail service is being launched that allows its users to help charities while they manage their email. Ippimail says it plans to give 45 per cent of its profits to the charities of the user's choice. The new service, known as Ippimail, is based entirely on Open Source software and a further 10 per cent of the profits are being donated to the Open Source programming community. ...more

New Media New Danger - Microsoft identifies more security flaws

Microsoft has identified a new security flaw regarding its Windows Media Player 9, and is urging users to patch. This is a good example of additional functionality leaving gaps for exploitation. When a user visits a Web page with embedded media a Windows Media Player 9 ActiveX control handles the interface to allow the user to perform such actions as pausing or rewinding the video or audio. ...more

iPod scratching design flaw lawyers sue own client

In a bizarre twist of fate, lawyers in the iPod scratching lawsuit are suing the man who first brought the problem to their attention. Jason Tomscak was named as the lead plaintiff in a class action lawsuit that alleges that Apple released the iPod nano despite knowing that the case was prone to scratching. However in an open letter to the Mac community, Tomscak said that he never sought out or hired the lawyers in question - David P Meyer & Associates and Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro - and wants nothing to do with the lawsuit. ...more

Google buys stake in Chinese filesharing

Google has acquired a stake in China's Xunlei Network Technology, which provides file-sharing and other services, a Google spokesperson said yesterday. Terms of the deal were not disclosed by Google, although the China Daily earlier reported that Xunlei planned to announce the details soon. Google is reportedly partnering Ceyuan Ventures, a Shanghai-based venture capital firm for the investment, the newspaper said. ...more