SAN FRANCISCO/HONG KONG (Reuters) – Wynn Resorts (WYNN.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) posted quarterly results that lagged Wall Street targets after robust growth in Macau failed to make up for flagging Las Vegas revenue, underlining the incentive for CEO Steve Wynn to develop his business further in the bustling enclave off China’s coast.

Macau, the world’s largest gambling destination, has been a goldmine for U.S. operators, raking in six times what Vegas does as visitors from the mainland spend big at the slots and baccarat tables in the only Chinese city where casino-gambling is legal.

Wynn’s company received formal approval last week to build a new Macao casino, and he told a conference call following the earnings results that it would take 3-1/2 years to complete, with the firm going “lickety-split” to get it done.

Wynn Resorts reported revenue of $1.31 billion in the first quarter of 2012, shy of analysts’ forecasts for about $1.33 billion.

Vegas revenue slid 8.1 percent due to lower “hold,” or money won from gamblers, the company said. Analysts said the quarter was essentially a slight miss with the month of March overall a weak month.

Revenue in Macau, however, jumped 9.8 percent.

Wynn’s approval for his new Macau casino puts him ahead of rivals MGM China (2282.HK: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and local player SJM (0880.HK: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), which are awaiting notice from the government. Las Vegas Sands (LVS.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) just opened another casino there in April.

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – The chief executives of Oracle Corp and Google Inc took center stage in court on Tuesday as Google’s lawyers argued Oracle is trying to hitch a ride on Google’s success after abandoning the idea of building its own smartphone.

Oracle chief executive Larry Ellison and Google CEO Larry Page both appeared on the stand in Oracle’s high stakes lawsuit against Google over the Android operating system. Ellison, 67, is a Silicon Valley veteran while Page, 39, cuts a younger and more unpolished figure.

Oracle sued Google in August 2010, saying Google’s Android mobile operating system tramples its intellectual property rights to the Java programming language. Google says it does not violate Oracle’s patents and that Oracle cannot copyright certain parts of Java – an “open-source” or publicly available software language.

“I think we did nothing wrong,” said Google CEO Larry Page as he testified for about 20 minutes toward the end of day two of the jury trial. He is expected to continue on Wednesday.

Oracle acquired Java when bought Sun Microsystems in 2010. In 2009, Oracle considered the feasibility of buying Blackberry maker Research in Motion and Palm to make a foray into the mobile device market, Ellison testified.

But Ellison said Oracle ultimately decided against pursuing its own phone after weeks of analysis.

He told the packed federal courtroom in San Francisco that Google was the only corporation he knew of that had not taken one of three types of Java licenses. He said other companies ranging from Samsung Electronics to Amazon.com Inc had taken licenses.

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Oracle is trying to obtain a share of Android by asserting its intellectual property even though it had nothing to do with the development of the smartphone operating system, an attorney for Google said in court.

Opening statements between Oracle Corp and Google Inc continued on Tuesday at the high-stakes trial in a San Francisco federal courtroom. Oracle Chief Executive Larry Ellison is also likely to take the stand later Tuesday.

Oracle sued Google in August 2010 over patent and copyright claims for the Java programming language. According to Oracle, Google’s Android operating system tramples on its intellectual property rights to Java, which it acquired when it bought Sun Microsystems in 2010.

Google says it does not violate Oracle’s patents and that Oracle cannot copyright certain parts of Java. The trial before U.S. District Judge William Alsup is expected to last at least eight weeks.

Google attorney Robert Van Nest acknowledged on Tuesday that Google executives had once negotiated for a potential partnership with Sun to develop Android.

“When those negotiations failed, Google engineers built Android on their own without any Sun technology whatsoever,” Van Nest said.

On Monday, Oracle attorney Michael Jacobs had said Google took copyrighted Java “blueprints” to harness the creative power of millions of Java software developers, so they then could write applications for Android. However, Google never obtained the proper license, he said.

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Apple Inc and its main contract manufacturing Foxconn agreed to tackle violations of conditions among the 1.2 million workers assembling iPhones and iPads in a landmark decision that could change the way Western companies do business in China.

Taiwan’s Foxconn Technology Group, whose subsidiary Hon Hai Precision Industry assembles Apple devices in factories in China, will hire tens of thousands of new workers, eliminate illegal overtime, improve safety protocols and upgrade workers’ housing and other amenities.

It is a response to one of the largest investigations ever conducted of a U.S. company’s operations outside of America. Apple (AAPL.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) had agreed to the probe by the independent Fair Labor Association FLA.L to stem a crescendo of criticism that its products were built on the backs of mistreated Chinese workers.

The association, in disclosing its findings from a survey of three Foxconn plants and over 35,000 workers, said it had unearthed multiple violations of labour law, including extreme hours and unpaid overtime.

FLA President Auret van Heerden expects the agreement between Apple, the world’s most valuable listed company, and Foxconn, which supplies 50 percent of the world’s consumer electronics, to have far reaching affects.

“Apple and Foxconn are obviously the two biggest players in this sector,” he said in an interview. “Since they’re teaming up to drive this change, I really do think they set the bar for the rest of the sector.”

That could affect brand names that have contracts with the Taiwanese company, including Dell Inc (DELL.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), Hewlett-Packard (HPQ.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), Motorola Mobility Holdings (MMI.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), Nokia Oyj (NOK1V.HE: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and Sony Corp (6758.T: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz).

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – In a landmark development for the way Western companies do business in China, Apple Inc said on Thursday it had agreed to work with partner Foxconn to tackle wage and working condition violations at the factories that produce its popular products.

Foxconn – which makes Apple devices from the iPhone to the iPad – will hire tens of thousands of new workers, clamp down on illegal overtime, improve safety protocols and upgrade worker housing and other amenities.

The moves come in response to one of the largest investigations ever conducted of a U.S. company’s operations abroad. Apple had agreed to the probe by the independent Fair Labor Association in response to a crescendo of criticism that its products were built on the backs of mistreated Chinese workers.

The association, in disclosing its findings from a survey of three Foxconn plants and over 35,000 workers, said it had unearthed multiple violations of labor law, including extreme hours and unpaid overtime.

Apple, the world’s most valuable corporation, and Foxconn, China’s biggest private-sector employer and Apple’ main contract manufacturer, are so dominant in the global technology industry that their newly forged accord will likely have a substantial ripple effect across the sector.

The agreement is a sign of the increasing power of Chinese workers to command higher wages given climbing prices in China in recent years for everything from food to housing and medical care, and an aging workforce that has led to labor shortages.

Working conditions at many Chinese manufacturers that supply Western companies are considerably inferior to those at Foxconn, experts say.

SAN FRANCISCO, March 29 (Reuters) – In a landmark development for the way Western companies do business in China, Apple Inc said Thursday it had agreed to work with partner Foxconn to substantially improve wages and working conditions at the factories that produce its wildly popular products.

Foxconn – which makes Apple devices from the iPhone to the iPad – will hire tens of thousands of new workers, clamp down on illegal overtime, improve safety protocols and upgrade worker housing and other amenities.

The moves came in response to one of the largest investigations ever conducted of a U.S. company’s operations abroad. Apple had agreed to the probe by the independent Fair Labor Association in response to a crescendo of criticism that its products were built on the backs of mistreated Chinese workers.

The Association, in disclosing its findings from a survey of three Foxconn plants and over 35,000 workers, said it had unearthed multiple violations of labor law, including extreme hours and unpaid overtime.

Apple, the world’s most valuable corporation, and Foxconn, China’s biggest private-sector employer and Apple’ main contract manufacturer, are so dominant in the global technology industry that their newly forged accord will likely have a substantial ripple effect across the sector.

Working conditions at many Chinese manufacturers that supply Western companies are considerably inferior to those at Foxconn.

“Apple and Foxconn are obviously the two biggest players in this sector and since they’re teaming up to drive this change, I really do think they set the bar for the rest of the sector,” FLA President Auret van Heerden told Reuters in an interview.

SAN FRANCISCO, March 20 (Reuters) – Apple Inc’s new iPad throws off a lot more heat than the previous version, lending weight to complaints on Internet forums that the hot-selling tablet computer could get uncomfortably warm after heavy use, an influential consumer watchdog found after running tests.

Consumer Reports, a widely followed group that reviews everything from electronics to cars, found that Apple’s new tablet racked up temperatures of 116 degrees Fahrenheit (47 Celsius) after 45 minutes of running an intense action game, up to 13 degrees F hotter than the previous model under similar conditions.

Using a thermal imaging camera, it ascertained that the front and rear of the tablet could run 12 to 13 degrees F hotter than the iPad 2 after running Infinity Blade II, depending on whether it was plugged in, Consumer Reports said.

The group, which can be instrumental in the success or failure of consumer products, has not reached a final decision on whether to recommend the latest model of Apple’s tablet. A spokesman urged caution on the part of consumers but added the heat issue in itself did not appear serious enough to void its recommendation.

Consumer Reports plans to release a final review on the new iPad – which has sold more than 3 million units since it hit store shelves in more than 10 countries on Friday – in about five days.

“During our tests, I held the new iPad in my hands. When it was at its hottest, it felt very warm but not especially uncomfortable if held for a brief period,” reviewer Donna Tapellini said in the report.

The third iteration of the iPad, which hit markets in 2010, set a record for first-weekend sales when it launched Friday.

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Apple Inc’s new iPad throws off a lot more heat than the previous version, lending weight to complaints on Internet forums that the hot-selling tablet computer could get uncomfortably warm after heavy use, an influential consumer watchdog found after running tests.

Consumer Reports, a widely followed group that reviews everything from electronics to cars, found that Apple’s new tablet racked up temperatures of 116 degrees Fahrenheit (47 Celsius) after 45 minutes of running an intense action game, up to 13 degrees F hotter than the previous model under similar conditions.

Using a thermal imaging camera, it ascertained that the front and rear of the tablet could run 12 to 13 degrees F hotter than the iPad 2 after running Infinity Blade II, depending on whether it was plugged in, Consumer Reports said.

The group, which can be instrumental in the success or failure of consumer products, has not reached a final decision on whether to recommend the latest model of Apple’s tablet. A spokesman urged caution on the part of consumers but added the heat issue in itself did not appear serious enough to void its recommendation.

Consumer Reports plans to release a final review on the new iPad – which has sold more than 3 million units since it hit store shelves in more than 10 countries on Friday – in about five days.

“During our tests, I held the new iPad in my hands. When it was at its hottest, it felt very warm but not especially uncomfortable if held for a brief period,” reviewer Donna Tapellini said in the report.

The third iteration of the iPad, which hit markets in 2010, set a record for first-weekend sales when it launched Friday.