Thursday, August 4, 2005America Online Acquires XdriveAmerica Online has acquired Santa Monica-based Xdrive, a provider of online storage and backup services. America Online said this morning that it will operate Xdrive as a stand alone, wholly-owned subsidiary of AOL under its Digital Services business unit. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Xdrive will continue to be based in Southern California, and subscribers will continue to have access to the service. As reported by socalTECH.com in February of this year, Xdrive has been seeking a buyer (More info...)
posted on Thursday, August 4, 2005(Full story)
Leap Wireless Sells BandwidthSan Diego-based wireless communications service firm Leap Wireless said today that it has received FCC approval for its sale of spectrum licenses to Verizon Wireless. The sale, which includes spectrum in Arkansas, Michigan, Missisipi, New York, and Wisconsin, will yield the company $102.5M. The company said that it would use the money for strategic growth of its business. The company also sold all of its operating assets in Michigan to Verizon Wireless. Leap provides mobile wireless services usi (More info...)
posted on Thursday, August 4, 2005(Full story)
CallWave Rolls Out National Availability Of Mobile Phone ServiceSanta Barbara-based Voice over IP services company CallWave announced this morning that its new cell phone services, linked to its existing VoIP services, is now available nationwide. The company is offering a prepaid cell phone that links into its call forwarding and Internet messaging services. The cell phone plan features a low monthly fee, no contract, and loadable minutes and is linked into CallWave's Internet Answering Machine service and mobile forwarding services. The cell phone plan fo (More info...)
posted on Thursday, August 4, 2005(Full story)
Napster, Tower Records Launch Japanese Joint VentureLos Angeles-based Napster and Tower Records, a leading music retailer in Japan, said today that the two companies have created a joint venture to launch Napster Japan. The two companies said that they will launch the Napster service in the area within the next 12 months, operating out of Tower's Tokyo headquarters. Tower Records Japan will contribute $7M in cash and additional funding obligations for a 70% majority equity stake in Napster Japan. Tower Records will provide a majority of the mana (More info...)
posted on Thursday, August 4, 2005(Full story)
Study Finds Widespread Access To Internet For TeensThe latest Pew Internet & American Life Study is reporting that that 87% of all youth between the ages of 12 and 17 use the internet, however 37% of those teens say that their peers are using the internet to cheat in school. Despite the use of the Internet for cheating, 88% of online teens believe that the Internet helps teenagers do better in school. Of the 21 million online teens, the study says that 78% of the students use the Internet at school, a growth of roughly 45% over the past four (More info...)
posted on Thursday, August 4, 2005(Full story)