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Microsoft to acquire mobile-data company

MobiComp, a Portuguese firm, will become part of Microsoft's Mobile Communications Business division.

Caroline McCarthy Former Staff writer, CNET News
Caroline McCarthy, a CNET News staff writer, is a downtown Manhattanite happily addicted to social-media tools and restaurant blogs. Her pre-CNET resume includes interning at an IT security firm and brewing cappuccinos.
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Microsoft announced Thursday it has made plans to acquire MobiComp, a mobile-data company founded in 2000

Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. MobiComp, which is based in Braga, Portugal, will become part of Microsoft's Mobile Communications Business division.

The acquisition will be used to bolster a number of services on the Windows Mobile smartphone platform as well as the Windows Live Web services division.

MobiComp has developed an array of products: MobileKeeper Backup & Restore, MobileKeeper Sharing & Communities, and Active mTicker. They're used by companies to back up data stored on mobile phones, submit content from mobile phones to social networks like Facebook, and access news and other mobile media.

"People expect their phones to deliver the best experiences from PCs and the Web right to their pockets," Todd Peters, Microsoft's corporate vice president for its Mobile Communications Business, said in a release Thursday. "Investing in the right solutions from companies like MobiComp will extend the capabilities of Windows Mobile and Windows Live to help us provide the most innovative and seamless way to stay connected."