Asus Can Keep Selling Tablets Using "Transformer" Label

Asus can continue to use the "Transformer" label for now, says a federal judge.

A federal judge has ruled in favor of Asus in its battle with Hasbro over the use of the "Transformer" label, allowing the company to continue selling tablets using the robotic name. Hasbro filed a lawsuit against Asus late last year, claiming that the use of "Transformer" was trademark infringement, and causes consumer confusion even though the tablet doesn't convert into a truck or a bright yellow Mustang.

In the lawsuit, Hasbro said that it contacted Asus about the original Transformer tablet sometime around its release, requesting that the company not use the Transformer name. But according to the lawsuit, "Asus refused to comply." The lawsuit also points to December 2011 ads promoting the Transformer Prime which use imagery that "closely resembles imagery used in Transformers movies and video games, in particular evoking the Transformers home planet of Cybertron."

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Microsoft: Google's SPDY is nice for a faster Web, but...

Apparently Microsoft isn't content leaving one potentially important speed boost for the Web to Google.

The company last night announced a plan to improve HTTP -- the Hypertext Transfer Protocol that browsers use to request Web pages and servers use to deliver them -- with a technology it calls HTTP Speed+Mobility. Google has proposed an idea called SPDY for speeding up HTTP and won an important ally at IETF, the group that oversees the standard and that's beginning work on a new HTTP 2.0.

But Microsoft wants a piece of the action, too. It thinks SPDY is OK but wants to augment it with the new WebSocket high-speed communications link between browsers and Web servers. WebSocket has begun arriving in browsers after a hiccup last year.

And Microsoft wants to extend the work so mobile apps, can take advantage of the performance improvement, too. "We think that apps -- not just browsers -- should get faster too. More and more, apps are how people access Web services, in addition to their browser," said Sandeep Singhal, program manager of Microsoft's Windows Core Networking group, and Jean Paoli, general manager of Microsoft's Interoperability Strategy, put it in a blog post about HTTP Speed+Mobility.

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Microsoft's ads, humor boost consumer opinion of IE

Computerworld - Microsoft's recent campaigns touting Internet Explorer 9 (IE9), including a tongue-in-cheek promotion it unveiled last week, have moved IE's quality perception needle for U.S. adults, according to a brand quality measurement company.

"When we see an inflection [in the quality scores], we look at other events that are happening," said Ted Marzilli, the global manager for BrandIndex, a brand awareness and consumer perception service of U.K.-based YouGov.

While BrandIndex does not gauge reaction to specific ad campaigns, Marzilli called Microsoft's marketing moves "a contributing factor."

IE's perception index is at its highest level since January 2011, said Marzilli.

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As ultrabook makers seek stronger sales, some opt for low cost

Ultrabook suppliers are still dealing with pesky market and profitability issues, according to a CNET source and two reports. And some will turn to low-cost designs as a result.

"The ultrabook adoption during the holiday season was ugly," an industry source, who speaks to ultrabook suppliers, told CNET. That source was speaking about sales for one particular ultrabook vendor.

The market for all ultrabook suppliers, however, is still challenging. "You've got a down market on the eve of a new operating system (Windows 8) at a price point that's fairly robust (high)," said the source.
And Acer, a high-profile ultrabook vendor, said today that it is not making a profit for lower-end models, according to a report in The Verge.

Acer's Aspire S3 ultrabook is priced generally at $899.99 but can go as low as $799.99 at Best Buy.

Acer's chairman said in December that ultrabook sales should be between 250,000 and 300,000 in the fourth quarter.

Other first-tier vendors like Hewlett-Packard and Dell have only just begun to sell ultrabooks so it's not clear how they are faring.

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IBM cuts more than 1,000 U.S. workers

Computerworld - IBM has laid off just over 1,000 employees so far this week, and more layoffs may be possible, according to an employee organization.

IBM never comments on the specifics of any cuts, and the only reason that the company's job action is noticeable is due to the Alliance@IBM/CWA Local 1701, which gathers its data directly from IBM employees.

The alliance keeps a running tally of cuts by business units while affected employees post comments on a bulletin board.

An alliance spokesman was uncertain as to how many employees will lose their jobs in this latest round of cuts. The employees are from multiple business units and locations in the U.S., and nearly half of the employees "are mobile or work from home," according to a union spokesman.

An IBM spokesman, in a statement, said IBM "is constantly rebalancing its workforce." The company went on to say that "that means reducing in some areas and hiring in others -- based on shifts in technology and client demand. This flexibility allows IBM to remain competitive and relevant in an industry that is constantly changing. And given the competitive nature of our business, we do not publicly discuss the details of our staffing plans."

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Microsoft Office for iPad: Separating fact from fiction

Summary: If the Daily.com is right, Microsoft’s Office for iPad could be launching well ahead of Office for Windows 8 on ARM tablets.

The Daily.com — the folks that brought us last year’s rumor that Microsoft planned to deliver Office for the iPad in 2012 — is back with an update.

On February 21, The Daily folks said that they had gotten a brief hands-on with Office on iPad. They also said they expected Office for iPad to be sent to Apple for approval “soon.” The Daily’s Matt Hickey is guessing that the release could be “in the coming weeks.”

Update: A Microsoft spokesperson said the screen shot accompanying The Daily’s story is not a picture of a real Microsoft software product. But the spokesperson also said Microsoft is declining to comment as to whether or not the company has developed a version of Office for the iPad and/or when such a product may come to market. I’ve asked Daily Editor Peter Ha and Matt Hickey, the author of The Daily’s piece, for a response (via Twitter). No word back so far from either.

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Apple, Microsoft to duel in '12 with OS upgrades

Computerworld - This year is shaping up as a repeat of 2009, when Microsoft and Apple last faced off with rival operating system upgrades, analysts said today.

Three years ago, Microsoft rolled out Windows 7, it's last operating system upgrade, and Apple launched Snow Leopard, or Mac OS X 10.6.

Today, Apple began distributing a preview of Mac OS X 10.8, aka Mountain Lion, to developers, and said it would ship the final code "late summer 2012."

Meanwhile, most analysts agree that Microsoft is on pace to deliver Windows 8 to customers this year, probably in the fourth quarter. The company has slated the release of what it calls a "Consumer Preview" of Windows 8 for Feb. 29.

"It looks like both have the mobile OS religion," said Ezra Gottheil of Technology Business Research.

Gottheil cited the similarities between the Microsoft and Apple strategies, pointing out that both show strong influence from the companies' mobile operating systems.

"It's interesting that both companies are taking big gambles this year with their operating systems," said Gottheil. "Both recognize that the form factor that's taken off, tablets and smartphones, requires an upgrade from the 25-year graphical user interface that's dominated PCs."

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