Lenovo plans to grab more of the mobile device pie as it invests $800 million in a mobile device production base in the city of Wuhan, China.

The Chinese vendor is better known as the 2nd biggest PC vendor in the world... or 3rd biggest, depending on which analyst reports you refer to.

The Wuhan facility will start operations from October 2013, and will produce smartphones, tablets and other mobile devices for both Chinese and international markets.

Lenovo's mobile device strategy includes the Continue reading...

There's no stopping the legal patent battles-- the German Mannheim Regional Court decides against Microsoft in a set of 4 lawsuits against Motorola, FOSS patents reports.

The decision awards Motorola with an injunction against the distribution of Windows 7, Internet Explorer, Windows Media Player and the Xbox 360 console in Germany... an injunction the courts cannot currently enforce, as US courts issued a ruling back in April preventing Motorola from enforcing sales bans in Germany for the near future.

This particular legal battle involves patents covering the H.264 video codec. Motorola demands huge royalties (reaching $4 billion annually according to "conservative" estimates), despite an obligation to make licenses to such patents available under fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory (FRAND) terms.

Microsoft invests $300 million in a strategic partnership with Barnes & Noble-- forming a subsidiary with plans to take on Amazon by spinning off B&N's Nook and College businesses.

The new subsidiary will focus on eReaders and tablets and retain close relationship with the B&N bookstore company.

The first result of Microsoft's investment is a Windows 8 Nook app-- a move making plenty sense, seeing how Windows 8 is tablet-ready while Microsoft lacks an eReader strategy.

Apple manages to exceed analyst expectations for Q2 2012-- with $39.2 billion in revenues and net profits reaching $6bn with 94% Y-o-Y growth.

Wall Street was expecting Apple revenues to reach $36.81bn.

Apple also managed to beat analyst sales forecast-- at least when it comes to iPhones. Q2 2012 is the 2nd best quarter for iPhones on record (the best being Q1 2012), with total sales reaching 35.1m (with 88% Y-o-Y growth), up from an expected 30.5m.

On the other hand iPad sales see a slight Q-o-Q Continue reading...

Intel reports fairly solid results for Q1 2012, with earnings reaching $2.7 billion-- down from $3.9bn in Q4 2011 due to disruptions from HDD shortages and the resulting inventory reductions across the supply chain.

Q1 2012 revenues reach a total of $12.9bn, with all Intel groups (including PC client and data centre groups) seeing Y-o-Y losses.

However Intel is optimistic for H2 2012-- and not only because HDD shortages are improving. The company hopes the Ivy Bridge launch will fuel sales further, especially in combination with the Windows 8 launch.

The company also remains hopeful Ultrabook demand will be on the up.

Keeping track of the ever-ongoing patent wars is hard work-- but now keeping tabs on who is suing who is easier thanks to a Bloomberg infographic showing key cases at the International Trade Commission.

As the graphic shows, the smartphone patent wars appear to radiate from one source-- Apple. Other vendors in the various legal fights include Samsung, Motorola Mobility, HTC, VIA, S3 Graphics and even Kodak.

Sony Mobile Communications names Sony CEO and Executive VP Kunimasa Suzuki President and CEO, replacing ex-Sony Ericsson President and CEO Bert Nordberg.

Suzuki starts his new duties from May 16 2012.

Following the company's "One Sony" reorganisation, Nordberg remained with then-new Sony Mobile Communications while Suzuki was to "oversee the mobile business." Nordberg will remain within the Sony Mobile board as Chairman.

Meanwhile Yoshihisa (Bob) Ishida will continue serving as Deputy CEO and Continue reading...

Reuters reports Microsoft is pulling its European software distribution operations from Germany to the Netherlands due to the web of patent disputes it is going through with Motorola Mobility.

Motorola is suing Microsoft over use of the H.264 video codec standard-- and the decision the Mannheim Regional Court does on April 17 has the power to ban Windows 7 (and related technologies such as Media Player) and Xbox sales in the biggest European economy, as well as other countries the German centre supplies.

"We would have preferred to keep our European distribution center in Germany, where it has been for many years. But unfortunately the risk from disruptions from Motorola's patent litigation is simply too high," Microsoft says.