Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer positioned Windows 7 as an operating system that can drive new and innovative products, as the company tries to fend off competition from tablet computers based on software from Google and Apple.

Oracle on Wednesday announced the availability of Cloud Office 1.0, a Web-based productivity suite that is set to give online applications from Microsoft and Google a fresh dose of competition.

Microsoft filed patent infringement complaints against Motorola and its Android phones in the International Trade Commission and U.S. federal court Friday, indicating that the software giant may hope to use its strong patent position as one way to set its mobile software apart from the competition.

Amazon took it's time with its latest Kindle-and that time has paid off in spades. Fully a year-and-half after the Kindle 2, Amazon today introduced its latest iteration Kindle, and the improvements are dramatic. An enhanced display, faster navigation, and an entirely redesigned chassis aren't all that set this Kindle apart from its competition. Amazon is continuing to be aggressive with its pricing: the Wi-Fi and 3G version will cost $189, while the Wi-Fi-only model will cost $139 (that's $10 less than Barnes & Noble's Wi-Fi-only Nook).

Nokia is selling off its wireless modem business to Renesas Electronics, a move that could help the mobile giant better focus on phone competition and get rid of a business that may have been struggling.

Price declines on LCD panels hit nine-month sales at Sharp.

Apple plans to buy mobile ad company Quattro Wireless for $275 million, a blog owned by the The Wall Street Journal said Monday, a move that would intensify Apple's growing competition with Google.

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has filed an antitrust-related lawsuit against Intel, charging the world's largest computer chip maker with illegally using its dominant market position to stifle competition and strengthen its monopoly for a decade.

The European Commission on Monday issued its formal "statement of objections" over Oracle's planned acquisition of Sun Microsystems, saying the deal would harm competition in the database market.

Europe's competition commissioner says Oracle has failed to help address its concerns.

Microsoft said today that it will pull the plug on its Money personal finance program at the end of this month, citing competition from banks, brokerage firms and unspecified Web sites as the reason.

The effects of tough price competition in the electronics and cell phone businesses hit Sony's profits during the April to June quarter, it said Tuesday.

Yahoo CEO Jerry Yang has told Microsoft executives that the company's search advertising deal with Google would reduce the Internet search market from two poles to one, Microsoft general counsel Brad Smith told U.S. lawmakers Tuesday.

The Srizbi botnet has stormed over its competition to become the Internet's biggest spammer.

The European Commission fined Microsoft a massive ?899 million (US$1.3 billion) for continued failure to honor the 2004 antitrust ruling against it, Commissioner for Competition Neelie Kroes said Wednesday.

The European Union's antitrust regulator has fined telecommunications operator Telefónica SA ?152 million (US$207 million) for overcharging its competitors for wholesale access to broadband services in Spain. But competing operators say the fine is still not enough to ensure fair competition in Europe's telecommunications markets.

Advanced Micro Devices Inc. will continue to supply ATI graphics chips for PCs based on Intel Corp. microprocessors despite the fierce competition between the two companies, AMD's chief technology officer said in an interview.

Motorola Chairman and CEO Ed Zander says his company is ready for competition from Apple Inc.'s iPhone, due out next month.

Hewlett-Packard Co. (HP), the world's largest PC vendor, has filed another lawsuit against its fastest growing rival, Acer Inc., as competition in the PC industry continues to heat up.

The newest version of Minimo, the Mozilla mobile browser, became available this week in the midst of changes within the Minimo project that make its future uncertain.