UK games chart: Nothing gets past Gran Turismo 4

Nothing gets past Gran Turismo, which remains at number one in this week's ELSPA UK games chart. But just beneath Sony's PS2 game there are three new entries in the top five.. ...more

Apple and Creative prep for patent swap deal

Apple and Creative have indicated that they are open to the possibility of a settlement over rival portable music player patents, Bloomberg reports. In a joint court filing the two companies said that they had been negotiating the licensing of Creative's patent to Apple before Creative sued Apple for infringement of the same patent. 'The parties will remain open to the possibility of settlement,' the filing said, although it noted that no specific discussions are planned. ...more

ACS launches two new MP3 players

Japanese multimedia specialist ACS Innovations launched two new CD-R-based MP3 players at the recent World PC Expo 2000. The Compro MPCD-455 looks very much like a standard portable CD player, but it can read CD-Rs comprising MP3 files as well as standard audio CDs. The unit comes with AA NiCad batteries and has a handy recharging function. ...more

HP goes B2B against Dell online

In a bid to challenge Dell as the undisputed champion in direct sales over the internet, HP has launched its "Business to Business" web site. The company claims that the new site offers an end-to-end purchase, delivery and billing system that will make it easier for companies to manage their IT budgets. The site, confusingly at customeradvantage. ...more

Google denies music store rumours

Google has denied rumours that it plans to open a digital music store, following a report that it is contemplating a takeover of Napster. The New York Post claimed that the search giant is considering an 'extensive alliance' with Napster that could amount to acquiring the music service, which has struggled to make much of an impact in the face of the dominance of Apple's iPod/iTunes axis. It is currently the third biggest service behind iTunes and RealNetwork's Rhapsody. ...more