An FAQ about those Android netbooks
Since our post yesterday about Google’s Android platform running on netbooks, we’ve been asked a lot of questions. Here are the most frequent questions, along with our answers.
Do you think Android could run on laptops or PCs?
The simple answer is “yes, with an asterisk.” The operating system Linux runs on PCs and laptops, and Android uses a Linux core. But the reason for the “asterisk” boils down to an important difference between Android and Linux.
Android… Continue Reading
Will Microsoft’s CES keynote yield a ZunePhone?
Yes, the rumor is back again. And it will keep coming back until Microsoft eventually releases its own phone (which I think it will and should). The rumor today is that Microsoft could use chief executive Steve Ballmer’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) keynote to unveil a device based on both its Zune portable music device and the Danger-made Sidekick device, Tech Trader Daily reports.
This rumor comes compliments of Global Equities Research analyst Trip Chowdhry. While… Continue Reading
Microsoft paid $500 million for Danger, and there’s got to be a reason
updated
Software giant Microsoft reportedly spent $500 million to acquire Danger, the company that developed software to power the youngster-popular Sidekick.
The figure, while not officially announced, was dug up in reporting by GigaOm’s Om Malik. We haven’t confirmed that exact figure, but we do have enough info that suggests investors made a very good return.
The acquisition comes after Danger swallowed some $225 million from investors, Om says, though I think that some of that may have… Continue Reading
Microsoft gobbles up Danger, maker of the Sidekick mobile software
Microsoft Corp has agreed to acquire Danger, a Silicon Valley company that makes the software for the Sidekick and other mobile devices, for an undisclosed amount.
Danger has worked away for ten years on its device software, and recently filed for an IPO, which we termed as risky (see our piece The Danger-ous IPO), because Danger has not been as open as trends would suggest it should be, and it’s difficult to see how it could… Continue Reading
The Danger-ous IPO?
Danger, the company that builds software for the “Sidekick” and other mobile devices, has filed an initial public offering after years waiting hungrily for three years to make such a move.
However, the Palo Alto, Calif., company lives under a big shadow emanating from Mountain View’s Google. That’s where one of Danger’s co-founders, Andy Rubin, is now working on a much bigger vision than Danger’s: A cross-platform mobile operating system called Android that lets you access… Continue Reading
Radar, the real-time photo sharing company, gets boost
updated
San Francisco start-up Tiny Pictures allows you to take and send photos to your friends’ phones. The photos can be shared almost instantly and with groups of friends, who can then comment.
The company’s product, named Radar, will get a boost tomorrow, when Danger, which powers the Sidekick mobile device, will announce Radar’s software is available to be downloaded via a user’s carrier. The first carrier, Suncom Wireless, will likely be announced tomorrow. The two companies… Continue Reading
YouTube’s spoils, Yahoo answers, Danger, fuddy US companies & more
The latest roundup of the action happening in Silicon Valley:
First evidence of YouTube wealth — What do you do with your money, when you get it? One way is to spend $20 million to buy Andre Agassi’s Tiburon estate. That’s what Stuart Peterson, of Artis Capital Management, an investor in YouTube, did, as PE Week’s Alex Haislip reports. Or you can invest it into night clubs, as some Web entrepreneurs have done.
Google Answers shuts down, while… Continue Reading
Danger, and its IPO
Updated again
It’s dangerous to predict your IPO. Hank Nothhaft, chief executive of Danger, the Palo Alto company providing the software for the T-Mobile Sidekick, said confidently back in 2004 that Danger had raised its last round of venture capital. An IPO was in the cards for 2005, he said.
But that’s history. Danger has just raised $10.3 million more in funding. It plans to top it off for a total new injection of $12.3 million fifth… Continue Reading