ibm

Google's acquisition of IBM patents may aid its Oracle case

A latecomer to the patent acquisition game, Google continues to accumulate intellectual property rights, picking up more than 200 patents and patents pending from IBM.

According to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Web site, Google acquired 188 patents and another 29 patents pending from IBM in a deal recorded December 30. Terms weren't disclosed and both companies declined to comment on the transaction, other than to acknowledge that it happened. The deal was first reported by the Web site SEO by the Sea.

Patents have been a key tool in the battle for smartphone revenue and leadership. … Read more

iPhone, iPad ring in 13 percent of all online purchases on Christmas

If you used an iPhone or iPad to buy something online on Christmas, you had plenty of company.

Among all online purchases made on Christmas Day, 7 percent were done through an iPad and 6.4 percent through an iPhone, giving iOS devices 13.4 percent of all online purchases that day.

Eyeing online sales across 500 retailers on December 25 and 26, IBM's latest holiday benchmark report found a surge in cybershopping from mobile devices.

Android devices accounted for 5 percent of all online purchases on Christmas Day. And moving to the next day, the iPad again led … Read more

Ha, good one! IBM predicts people-powered homes

commentary Some of IBM's distinguished engineers may want to review the laws of thermodynamics.

The computing giant today announced its "IBM 5 in 5" predictions of five technology developments in the next five years. The most provocative is mind reading, to understand brain disorders, or where sensors will be able to translate people's thoughts into actions, such as operating a computer.

The least plausible perhaps is the idea that homes will be powered by human motion. In a video on its "People power comes to life" prediction, an IBMer says "you will be … Read more

IBM: Mind reading is less than five years away. For real.

The world is changing fast--maybe faster than we ever thought. And within five years, science fiction is going to turn into non-fiction. We'll be able to read each other's minds, forget all our passwords, and create all our own homes' energy.

These are just three of the five predictions IBM announced this morning as part of its annual "5 in 5" prognostication project.

The list is meant to promote long-term work being done under Big Blue's Smarter Planet initiative--and the company says "5 in 5" already has a track record of success. In … Read more

1960s IBM standard-issue wall clock tops Don Draper's wish list

One of my favorite products on the Schoolhouse Electric & Supply site is a replica of IBM's standard-issue wall clock from the '60s, sure to make it onto Don Draper's holiday wish list this year.

This run is technically the first, as Schoolhouse Electric hit up IBM to make these iconic clocks available to all of us who didn't work in IBM offices, warehouses, and schools during the mid-20th century.

They're all assembled by hand in the company's factory in Portland, Ore., and each clock is bound by a spun-steel case with the original graphic hands and domed glass lens.

As is usually the case with historical relics, getting your hands on one of these will empty your wallet--the IBM standard-issue wall clock retails for $235 in the Schoolhouse Electric marketplace.

(Via A Continuous Lean)… Read more

Cyber Monday sales rise 33 percent

Cyber Monday has typically been a big day for online retailers, but yesterday was a significant step up over last year, IBM has revealed.

According to the company, online sales were up 33 percent compared to Cyber Monday 2010 and 29.3 percent compared to Black Friday 2011. Consumers spent an average of $198.26 per order this year, IBM said. Last year, the average Cyber Monday order was $193.24.

"Cyber Monday was once again the big winner for the Thanksgiving holiday shopping season, with a record number of consumers focused on finding the best online deals," … Read more

E-shoppers go mobile on Thanksgiving, Black Friday

Apple's iPhone and iPad helped make mobile devices a key driver of Thanksgiving and Black Friday e-commerce this year, according to a report from IBM Coremetrics.

Online Thanksgiving shopping grew by 39.3 percent year over year, creating momentum that continued into Black Friday, where online sales grew by 24.3 percent compared with the same period last year, said the report (PDF).

And Black Friday witnessed the arrival of the mobile deal seeker, who embraced his or her mobile device as a research tool for in-store and online bargains. Mobile traffic came close to tripling year over year, … Read more

IBM brings solar power to data centers

IBM is bringing electric power--in the form of solar panels--to data centers with trouble getting power in the first place.

The company tomorrow will detail a pilot project that couples solar power with water-cooled servers that run on high-voltage direct current. The method results in about a 10 percent energy savings by reducing the losses that normally happen in converting from alternating power from the grid to the direct current servers run on, according to Kota Murali, the chief scientist of nanotechnology at IBM India who developed the pilot as a side project.

That level of energy reduction is significant … Read more

IBM listens in on wave energy's subsea sounds

Harnessing energy from the oceans involves a lot more than putting a generator in the water.

IBM Research today announced a project to monitor the impact of noise on marine ecosystems from a wave energy generator in Ireland. Done in conjunction with the Sustainable Energy Authority Ireland, its part of an ongoing SmartBay project to monitor the environment of Galway Bay with sensors and telemetry to advance ocean energy.

To monitor the acoustic impact of wave power, a generator from OceanEnergy in Ireland is equipped with audio sensors. Data from the sensors is fed continuously to IBM's data centers … Read more