Twitter sues Twittad over 'tweet' trademark

Until 2006 the word 'tweet' was the noise a bird made, and no more. Now, though, a 'tweet' refers to a message written on the 100 million-strong micro-blogging site Twitter and the company is laying claim to the word under trademark.

However, Twitter has run into a problem as the word 'tweet' is already owned by an advertising firm called Twittad in the slightly jarring phrase 'Let Your Ad Meet Tweets'.

So, like any self-respecting US company, Twitter is suing Twittad. Specifically, it is going after the firm for a violation of a trademark that Twitter argues it should own as it is clearly the reason the term is popular, citing 'retweet' and 'tweetdeck' as evidence.

"This action arises from the registration of the mark 'Let Your Ad Meet Tweets' by Twittad in connection with online advertising services for use on Twitter," the suit reads.

"Defendant's registration unfairly exploits the widespread association by the consuming public of the mark 'tweet' with Twitter, and threatens to block Twitter from its registration and legitimate uses of its own mark."

Such litigiousness over a word previously associated with twitchers such as Bill Oddie is not the first time that tech firms have gone at it over some words. Apple famously lost a preliminary injunction case against Amazon over the term 'app store'.

Sky Broadcasting also tried to take on Skype over the use of the word 'Sky' in its name.

It appears that the lawyers of Silicon Valley are prepared to scour the dictionary from morning to night looking for more words over which they can suggest their client has dominion.

Sony hires former US defence director as chief security officer

Sony has appointed Philip Reitinger as senior vice president and chief information security officer as the company looks to prevent any further high-profile security breaches.

Reitinger will be responsible for securing Sony's information and services, and will report to Nicole Seligman, executive vice president, general counsel and corporate executive officer at Sony.

"He will oversee information security, privacy and internet safety across the company, co-ordinating closely with key headquarters groups and working in partnership with the information security community to bring the best ideas and approaches to Sony," the firm said in a statement.

Reitinger has held a number of high-profile security positions, including six years as chief trustworthy infrastructure strategist and senior security strategist at Microsoft.

His most recent posts were director of the US National Cybersecurity Center and deputy undersecretary of the US Department of Homeland Security, roles he started in June 2009.

Sony chief executive Howard Stringer acknowledged that Sony had a difficult start to 2011, and hinted at changes during his keynote at electronics trade show IFA in Berlin last week.

Stringer maintained that Sony has learned from its mistakes with regard to the high-profile hacking of the PlayStation Network, and that the service is now "more secure than ever".

Sony is aiming to end 2011 with a bang. The company will launch its Sony P and S tablets at the end of September, and has revamped its Reader device to take the fight to Amazon's Kindle.

Apple gives job to JAILBREAKER hacker

Ipad maker Apple has given a job to the hacker responsible for cracking, or jailbreaking, recent versions of its iOS mobile operating system.

The hacker, who goes by the handle "Comex" but whose real name is Nicholas Allegra, has accepted an internship at Apple, and also announced that he will not be publicly releasing jailbreaks for future versions of the iOS.
During an interview with members of the public on link-sharing sire Reddit, Comex admitted that he may still hack his own iPhone.

Allegra also revealed some trepidation about entering the corporate world, and suggested that his tenure at Apple may be temporary.

"I've never had a job before and I don't know what it's like – and I intend to go back to college soon."

During the interview, Allegra admitted that he had made a substantial amount of money from his jailbreak hacks.

"I've made a good amount of money through donations, which is mostly being used to help pay for college. JailbreakMe 2.0 was $40,000 [£24,500]; 3.0 was $15,000 [£9,200]."

Apple took two weeks to patch the last jailbreak hack in July this year, which exploited a bug in the way that the iOS handles PDF files.

Jailbreaking a device enables users to download software other than that directly approved by Apple, from locations other than iTunes.

However, it also renders the device vulnerable to security risks such as malware – the unbroken iOS is seen as a very secure operating system.

Will Apple remain just a FRUIT after Steve Jobs?

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Silicon Valley legend Steve Jobs relinquished the reins at Apple Inc to right-hand man Tim Cook on Wednesday, after 14 years in command at a company he brought back from the brink and turned into the world's largest technology corporation.

Jobs, who fought and survived a rare form of pancreatic cancer and revolutionized the technology arena with the iPhone in 2007, is deemed the heart and soul of a company that started in a garage and is today neck-and-neck with Exxon Mobil in the race to become the largest U.S. corporation.

Analysts do not expect Jobs' resignation -- which was more a question of when than if -- to derail Apple's fabled product-launch roadmap, including possibly a new iPhone in September and a third iteration of the iPad tablet in 2012.

But the company's shares still dived as much as 7 percent in after-hours trade after the industry icon, who has been on medical leave for an undisclosed condition since Jan. 17, announced he will be replaced by COO and heir apparent Cook.

"I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple's CEO, I would be the first to let you know. Unfortunately, that day has come," he said in a brief letter announcing his resignation.

The 55-year-old CEO had briefly emerged from his medical leave in March to unveil the latest version of the iPad and later to attend a dinner hosted by President Barack Obama for technology leaders in Silicon Valley.

Jobs' often-gaunt appearance has sparked questions about his health and his ability to continue at Apple.

"I will say to investors: don't panic and remain calm, it's the right thing to do. Steve will be chairman and Cook is CEO," said BGC Financial analyst Colin Gillis.

AGAIN, DEEP BENCH

Jobs' resignation marks the end of an era at Apple.

A college dropout, a Buddhist and a son of adoptive parents, he started Apple Computer with friend Steve Wozniak in the Jobs family garage in Silicon Valley in the late 1970s.

The company soon introduced the Apple 1 computer. But it was the Apple II that became a huge success and gave Apple its position as a critical player in the then-nascent PC industry, culminating in a 1980 IPO that made Jobs a multimillionaire.

Despite the subsequent success of the Mac, Jobs' relationship with internal management soured, and in 1985 the board removed most of his powers and he left the company, selling all but one share of his Apple holdings.

Apple's fortunes waned after that. However, its purchase of NeXT -- the computer company Jobs founded after leaving Apple -- in 1997 brought him back into the fold. Later that year, he became interim CEO and in 2000, the company dropped "interim" from his title.

On Wednesday, Apple shares slid to $357.40 in extended trading after a brief halt. They had gained 0.7 percent to close at $376.18 on the Nasdaq.

Analysts again expressed confidence in the Apple bench, headed by longtime company No. 2 and supply-chain maven Cook.

"Investors are very comfortable with Tim Cook even though Jobs has been a driver of innovation and clearly an Apple success. Tim has shown Apple can still outperform extremely well when he's been acting as CEO," said Cross Research analyst Shannon Cross.

"I don't know if it's a health issue. I don't know if it is a shock. Most likely it was going to happen at some point. Why today versus another day? I don't know."