Roundup: Obama’s potential Blackberry replacement, internet does not equal “To Catch a Predator” episodes, plus layoffs

Venture Beat — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 01:10:21 -0800

Here’s the latest action:

Alternatives to Obama’s favorite Blackberry — One option for the email-addicted President-elect is an NSA-approved secure PDA, the Sectera Edge, which costs $3,350 — but hey, you can drop it four feet onto concrete repeatedly without worry (it’s waterproof and dustproof!), according to CNET.

Graphics chip maker Nvidia forecasts steep revenue drop — The company blames sagging PC sales for a drop as steep as 40 to 50 percent for its fourth quarter revenue, following a September announcement that it would lay off 6.5 percent of its staff.

Dell is close to launching a smartphone (maybe) — After two years of discussions, it might just happen, according to a research note from Kaufman Brothers. It’ll probably be based on Windows Mobile, given their track record of making Windows Mobile-enabled PDAs and their relationship with Microsoft. Electronista has more.

Electronics giant Sony may suffer first loss in 14 years – Sony stock shares slumped 9%, with sales of electronic goods sagging and a stronger yen contributing to Sony’s troubles and an operating loss of $1.1 billion, reports CNN. This means even more layoffs, on top of plans to cut four percent of the company’s global workforce.

The internet may not be such a dangerous place for kids — So it’s not as safe as Sesame Street or Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood, but the internet does not expose kids to as many sexual deviants as the show NBC show “To Catch a Predator” would have parents believe — a report finds that bullying among children is far more common. The New York Times has more.

Oracle gives 500 employees pink slips on Friday — That’s what the Wall Street Journal estimated, according to Reuters, which is not as many layoffs as some predicted earlier — phew?

50 million Playstation 2 consoles sold in the U.S. — A milestone for Sony, plus Nielsen data showing gamers spend more time with their PS2 than other consoles (it helps that video game sales were up 18 percent in October 2008).

Slacker Radio arrives in the App store — The streaming music app, which feels a lot like satellite radio, is here to challenge the Pandora and Last.fm apps. With more options like direct customization of radio stations, Slacker Radio could be a contender. ReadWriteWeb elaborates.

Online ad prices are half of what they were a year ago — So says Pubmatic, an online ad optimizatization service. Yes, we know online advertising spending for 2009 is in the tank. TechCrunch has more.

[photos via flickr/cathleenritt/Tim & Chrissi Home]

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Roundup: Obama’s potential Blackberry replacement, internet does not equal “To Catch a Predator” episodes, plus layoffs