LAWSUIT

Intel countersues Transmeta

THREE MONTHS AFTER TRANSmeta sued Intel claiming patent infringements, the chip giant fired back, alleging Transmeta is infringing on seven Intel patents.

In the suit filed Jan. 9 in U.S. District Court in Delaware, Intel is charging that Transmeta's Crusoe, Efficeon and Efficeon 2 processors violate Intel patents regarding the Transmeta chips' capabilities in throttling down power when not in use.

The claims mirror those lodged by Transmeta against Intel, which say that Intel's Core 2 Duo processor, as well as others, violate Transmeta's patents on technology used to make the processors more energy efficient.

Starting in 2000, Transmeta tried to gain footing in the competitive x86 processor field by introducing energy-efficient chips. The company has since abandoned much of its chip-making capabilities, focusing instead on licensing some of its products, such as its LongRun2 processor power management technology.

INFRASTRUCTURE

Cooling, power among data center issues

POWER, COOLING AND DISASter recovery are among the top issues facing data centers this year, according to Hosted Solutions, which offers data center and managed services.

In his list of top issues released Jan. 11, Gary McAuliffe, general manager of the Boston-based company, said compliance and IT as a service also will be at the forefront.

"Every business relies on information technology, but managing that technology to extract the best return on investment is a complex task," McAuliffe said.

Recent changes to the federal civil court rules put the issue of compliance with regulations such as Sarbanes-Oxley and HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) on the front burner, while the twin issues of power and cooling—about half of the power consumed by data centers is needed for cooling, McAuliffe said—will continue to be a concern.

NAME CHANGE

As names go, less is more for Apple

AMID ALL THE HYPE AND attention lavished on Apple's rollout of its iPhone at the Macworld Conference & Expo Jan. 9, Apple's CEO Steve Jobs saved one announcement for the end of his 2-hour keynote address: The company is changing its name.

Following in the footsteps of other hardware makers, such as Dell and Gateway, Jobs announced that Apple was dropping the word "computer" from its name, and is now Apple Inc.

And like the others before it, Jobs' decision was based on a desire to have the company name reflect Apple's growth beyond its roots as a computer maker—in this case, the Macintosh. Over the past few years, Jobs and his team have expanded the company's reach into digital entertainment and consumer products that started with its iPod music player and the iTunes music store and now includes the iPhone and Apple TV.