Shadowing a fund manager at CES
More than 140,000 people descended (or will descend) on Las Vegas this week to kick the tires on a new wave of consumer electronics gadgets. Of those, a relatively small contingent (estimared? 3,500) are portfolio managers and other financial professionals earnestly seeking to place informed bets on the Next Big Thing.
We tagged along as Hampton Adams, head of research and a portfolio manager at Pasadena, California-based Gamble Jones Investment Counsel, hiked around a CES showfloor spanning 30 football fields in a pair of comfortable loafers, taking a first-hand peek at the technology industry’s latest offerings.
Motorola, Lenovo sign on to first Intel-powered smartphones
(Reuters) – Intel announced multi-year pacts with Motorola Mobility and Lenovo to develop smartphones and tablets, and said the first Google Android phones using the top chipmaker’s processors would go on sale this year.
Speaking at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas on Tuesday, Intel Chief Executive Paul Otellini said Lenovo would launch a smartphone for the Chinese market using Intel’s newest chip in the second quarter of the year, while Motorola will release its phone in the second half.
Chip start-up SuVolta secures scarce venture capital funding
SuVolta, a Silicon Valley start-up working to slash power used by microchips, has secured $17.6 million in new funding from its venture capital backers to help it continue its research.
The funding round came from existing investors Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, August Capital, New Enterprise Associates, Northgate Capital and DAG Ventures, and for the first time included Bright Capital.
Federal judge blocks California emissions rules
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – A judge blocked California’s signature attempt to lower greenhouse gas emissions, a victory for out-of-state ethanol producers and refiners that has California’s air quality board vowing to appeal.
U.S. District Judge Lawrence O’Neill in Fresno on Thursday issued a preliminary injunction against a regulation adopted by the California Air Resources Board in 2010. The regulation unconstitutionally discriminates against out-of-state producers and tries to regulate commercial activities outside California, O’Neill found.
California law turns up heat on labor conditions
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – A new California law will force retailers and manufacturers to disclose from 2012 how they guard against slavery and human trafficking throughout their supply chains, ratcheting up scrutiny over some of the largest U.S. corporations.
From January 1, about 3,200 major companies doing business or based in California, a list that includes Apple Inc and Gap Inc, will be required to disclose steps they take, if any, to ensure their suppliers and partners do not use forced labor.
Intel’s smartphone guru angles for smooth landing
SANTA CLARA, California (Reuters) – Mike Bell likens his new job at Intel Corp to piloting a glider.
The engineer Intel is counting on to spearhead a belated drive into the smartphone arena has refocused its development arm, brought in new blood, and tried to inculcate an appreciation for gadgetry at the decades-old institution.
Tepid PC sales weigh on Micron’s results
(Reuters) – Micron Technology (MU.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) posted quarterly revenue below expectations as weak demand for personal computers pushed down prices for its memory chips.
The company’s shares fell in after-hours trading, in tandem with the rest of the tech sector, which was already hit by negative sentiment after a rare earnings miss by Oracle (ORCL.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) sparked new fears that corporate America may be pulling back on tech spending.
Avago sees industrial chip orders at bottom
SAN JOSE (Reuters) – Avago Technologies believes a correction in inventories of industrial chips is bottoming out and expects more complicated smartphones to drive demand for its filters and power amplifiers, its chief financial officer said on Tuesday.
As manufacturers cram more features using wireless signals like Bluetooth, Wifi and basedband into smartphones, they need more of the chips Avago makes, which keep different kinds of signals from interfering with each other, CFO Doug Bettinger told Reuters in an interview on Tuesday.
AMD slowly replenishes its ranks
Advanced Micro Devices has hired another senior executive to replenish its ranks and get back on track following the appointment of a new CEO.
New Chief Executive Rory Read, who started in August, has lured Lisa Su from Freescale Semiconductor to head up AMD’s client, commercial, graphics and game console markets.
Adobe results beat Street view, shares rise
Dec 15 (Reuters) – Software maker Adobe Systems Inc, the maker of Photoshop and Acrobat software, released quarterly results that beat Wall Street projections, sending its shares up 3 percent.
The positive surprise came a month after the company announced plans to lay off 7 percent of its staff as it cut back on investment in some products and halted development of its Flash Player for mobile browsers, surrendering in a long-running war with Apple Inc over emerging Web standards.
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