deal

How to protect yourself when buying Cheapskate deals

Sometimes it's hard being the Cheapskate. I don't mean the rigors of finding awesome deals on a daily basis, though that certainly can be a challenge. (What? Another tablet?!)

No, the tough part is when a frustrated reader e-mails me because the product he ordered hasn't arrived after three weeks. Or, even worse, it arrived in poor condition. And the company that sold it to him won't help or even respond. Although I have no control over these kinds of situations, and can't offer much in the way of assistance, I feel terrible for indirectly … Read more

Salesforce, Intellectual Ventures ink patent deal

Salesforce.com and patent aggregator Intellectual Ventures inked a new licensing deal on Friday that gives Salesforce access to some 40,000 of IV's patents.

The deal is the latest by Intellectual Ventures, a Bellevue, Wash.-based company that's made headlines for accumulating a massive trove of software and design patents, along with other intellectual property.

A major part of IV's business includes licensing patents out to other companies, which can use them for legal protection, though it's also made waves for litigating other companies.

Pricing and length of the deal were not disclosed, and a … Read more

New Groupon CEO won't be named until next year

Groupon is not racing to find a new CEO, say the interim leaders who've been running the show since the company's founder resigned earlier this year.

Speaking to The Wall Street Journal in an interview published on Tuesday, Groupon's interim CEOs Ted Leonsis and Eric Lefkosky said that "are not in a rush" to name a new, permanent chief executive, adding that they have only just kicked off the process of finding a replacement.

"We want to bring in a world-class leader, but the talent pool is not huge," Leonsis told the Journal. &… Read more

Sprint forms special committee to review Dish proposal

Sprint is at least wiling to consider a proposal that Dish Network made recently to acquire its business.

Sprint today announced that it has formed a "special committee" made up of several of its board members, including Larry Glasscock, who will serve as the committee's chairman. The committee's charge is simple: to review the deal offered last week by Dish to determine if it's superior to the one already brought by Japan-based Softbank.

Last October, Japan-based Softbank announced that it would invest $20.1 billion into Sprint. A large portion of that -- $12.1 … Read more

Yahoo tries to freshen up, kills a bunch of products

Yahoo is doing some spring cleaning. The company announced its plans on Friday to shut down several products, including Yahoo Deals, Yahoo SMS Alerts, and the Yahoo Mail and Messenger apps used on feature phones.

It's all about getting rid of the old to make room for the new, according to Jay Rossiter, Yahoo's executive vice president in charge of platforms, who wrote about the changes in a blog entry.

"We want to bring you experiences that inspire and entertain you every day," Rossiter wrote. "That means taking a hard look at all of our … Read more

Woot Stalker - Deal Tracker 1.5 Review

One-a-day deals are becoming very popular on the Web. For those who are interested in getting a great bargain on various products, Web sites such as woot.com represent a great opportunity. Woot Stalker allows users to quickly access woot.com and several other similar Web sites and browse deals of the day and select merchandise that they wish to purchase.

The shear ease of operation and simplicity of its design make Woot Stalker a joy to use. It downloads almost instantly and it consumes minute amounts of the device's resources. Following the quick download, users are able to … Read more

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Dish-Sprint merger may bring new bundles, deals

Consumers may potentially get an even bigger price break if Dish is able to snap up Sprint Nextel.

Dish's $25.5 billion unsolicited bid for Sprint certainly adds a wrinkle to Sprint's existing merger plans with Japanese wireless carrier SoftBank. But a deal with Dish may be a boon to consumers, particularly ones looking for a mix of video, mobile, and Internet services.

A combination between Dish and Sprint means the two could bundle satellite-TV and mobile service together. In select markets where the telecommunications and cable providers don't have a strong presence -- particularly in rural … Read more

Apple, Yahoo said to be cozying up for more iOS services

The enemy of my enemy is my friend. And in the case of Apple and Yahoo, Google is most definitely that company for the two.

So it makes sense that Apple and Yahoo might deepen their partnership, which is just what's happening, says The Wall Street Journal (subscription required).

In a somewhat vague report, the Journal says the two companies have been in talks to bring more of Yahoo's content and services to Apple's devices. That's on top of what's already there, a list that includes weather, sports scores, stock information, and Web search in … Read more