Los Angeles Times - Technology Business News

The city hopes tech- savvy residents and a business-friendly setting will help lure firms.

Riverside on Tuesday launched a free wireless Internet network that will eventually cover the entire city — a move designed to help Riverside become a more tech-savvy, business-friendly community.

It proposes that any wireless device should be able to hook up to auctioned airwaves.

WASHINGTON — Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin J. Martin is readying proposed guidelines for the upcoming auction of prime public airwaves that would require that the winning companies let consumers hook up any wireless device to the network.

Influential research firm Nielsen/NetRatings said Tuesday that it would begin to emphasize how long visitors spend on websites, rather than how many times they view a page, when comparing sites.

Video gamers now can watch Disney movies through their Xbox 360 game systems, thanks to a deal that Microsoft Corp. and Walt Disney Co. announced Tuesday.

Steven Spielberg and Electronic Arts Inc. plan to introduce an action-adventure video game and a second title that allows players to create games by maneuvering blocks.

'Championship Gaming Series' aims for young male demographic with hopes of following the TV path of poker and extreme sports.

The Los Angeles Complexity couldn't overcome an opening 5-0 loss in the men's "Dead or Alive" competition Monday night in "Championship Gaming Series" play and ended up losing 24-17 to archrival New York 3D.

This year's E3 is an invitation-only event in Santa Monica. Many think it will be the last.

For 11 years, the ogres and elves roaming Figueroa Street sent a clear message: The video game geeks were back in town, selling out hotels, packing restaurants and keeping taxi meters clicking.

The Swiss drug maker is granted rights to gene-silencing technology from the Massachusetts firm.

BOSTON — Switzerland-based Roche on Monday licensed rights to gene-silencing technology in a potential $1-billion deal — the second recent move by a large drug maker to develop novel disease treatments based on Nobel Prize-winning research.

The word went out in the LAPD's Devonshire Division: Focus on the BFMV (burglary from a motor vehicle) problem.

With 'micropractices,' they give patients better access and cut overhead costs.

MELVILLE, N.Y. — In a 150-square-foot tin-ceilinged office in a building that once housed a speakeasy, Dr. Moitri Savard checks her laptop to see whether any patients have scheduled themselves to see her.

The company will acquire Postini for $625 million to expand its online applications.

NEW YORK — Google Inc. said Monday that it had agreed to buy Web-based security provider Postini for $625 million, expanding its package of online applications to compete with Microsoft Corp.'s Office franchise.

Proenza is forced out after squabbling with his superiors, angering forecasters about an aging satellite. His deputy will take over.

MIAMI — In what people here are calling "the 'cane mutiny," forecasters at the National Hurricane Center succeeded Monday in getting their commander ousted.

Unable to meet its hiring needs because of U.S. immigration policy, the software company is opening an office in Vancouver

MICROSOFT CORP. is expanding in the Pacific Northwest, hiring several hundred software wizards to help develop new products. Instead of landing at the Redmond, Wash., mother ship, however, the new workers will toil in Vancouver, British Columbia. Here's why, according to the company's news release (emphasis added): "The Vancouver area is a global gateway with a diverse population, is close to Microsoft's corporate offices in Redmond and allows the company to recruit and retain highly skilled people affected by immigration issues in the U.S. "

Users of TiVo Inc.'s digital video recorders will be able to order movies from Amazon.com Inc. directly from their TVs starting today.

With Apple tight-lipped about info, experts probe the device and develop new programs.

SAN FRANCISCO — Fueled by caffeine and curiosity, more than 300 laptop-wielding tech geeks filled a borrowed office this weekend to unlock the mysteries of Apple Inc.'s iPhone.

Quality audio gear replaces funky rock speakers for custom cacophony in your own backyard.

HANK and Susie Seitz's home on a hill in Tustin Ranch overlooks the 261 toll road and busy Jamboree Road but the noise from the traffic never intrudes except around the evening rush hour. If it disturbs his enjoyment watching the sunset, Hank puts down his drink and turns up the crickets.

A federal judge will hear arguments as the Bush administration tries to block investigations into its Terrorist Surveillance Program.

Can the federal government stop states from investigating whether telephone companies illegally provided customer information to the National Security Agency?

Sony Corp., whose PlayStation 3 game console is losing market share to Nintendo Co.'s Wii, plans to increase its software lineup to more than 200 titles worldwide this fiscal year to bolster sales.

The eagerly awaited iPhone will be able to play YouTube videos when it ships next week, Apple Inc. announced.

Hoping to deepen its appeal to hard-core sports fans, Yahoo Inc. has agreed to buy Rivals.com, a website that provides extensive coverage of collegiate athletics.