Bill Gates(pict.) and other Microsoft Corp officials stepped up lobbying of top U.S. communications regulators on Monday, ahead of an important vote next week to open up unused wireless airwaves.

The Federal Communications Commission has scheduled a November 4 vote on a plan to allow unlicensed use of parts of the airwaves called “white spaces.” These pockets of the spectrum will become available when U.S. broadcasters are required to move completely to digital television next year.

Microsoft co-founder Gates planned to speak to Republican Commissioner Robert McDowell later on Monday, according to Microsoft chief strategist Craig Mundie, who was also in Washington for a lobbying trip.

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After a 19-month battle over Internet radio royalties, a truce between record labels and webcasters is finally in sight that would allow Internet radio start-ups to eke out an existence for at least a little while longer.

The two sides have signaled that they are nearing a compromise that would lower the royalties that online radio stations pay artists and labels for the rights to stream songs to listeners. On Sept. 30, they jointly persuaded Congress to pass a bill that would put into effect any changes to the royalty rate to which the parties agree while lawmakers are out of session.

Still, even if royalties decrease as expected, webcasters must figure out how to bring in enough revenue to cover the costs.

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It looks like the mini ­notebook (or often referred to as netbook) is now a bona fide market segment, with all the big companies jumping on the ­bandwagon to produce one as well.

So what we have here is the Ideapad S10, sporting almost all the same specifications as the rest of the mini notebooks on the market.

It has a 1.6GHz Intel Atom ­processor, 1GHz RAM, Windows XP Home Edition, 10in screen, webcam and all the usual ­complement of USB ports and VGA output.

However, the S10 does have one feature found in only one other notebook — an ExpressCard slot, something which until now, only the Hewlett-Packard MiniNote has.

So does the S10 sink or swim in a virtual sea of mini notebooks on the market? If you want the quick answer, skip to the end of this ­article. If you want the long answer, then read on. Read the rest of this entry »

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Samsung Electronics Co. is equipping Blu-ray DVD players so they can retrieve movies and TV shows from Netflix Inc.’s Internet streaming service, accelerating Netflix’s push to develop more delivery methods beyond the mail.

The deal, to be announced Thursday, could set the stage for Netflix to embed software connecting to its streaming service directly into television sets made by Samsung.

In a statement, Netflix and Samsung said they are planning to plant the streaming capability in a variety of home entertainment products. Reed Hastings, Netflix’s chief executive officer, declined to elaborate on the other possibilities in an interview.

This won’t be the first time that Netflix has piped its online content through Blu-ray DVD players — devices built to show movies in high-definition quality that outshines traditional DVD players.

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Telecommunications giant AT&T reported its earnings rose 5.5 percent during the third quarter, but profits fell short of analyst predictions. Ironically, the chief cause of both the rise in revenues and the disappointing profits was the same: The company’s strong sales of Apple’s iPhone 3G.

According to the company’s report, 2.4 million people activated an iPhone 3G during the third quarter, and 40 percent of those were new AT&T wireless subscribers.

“I am particularly pleased with the customer response to the iPhone 3G,” said Randall Stephenson, AT&T chairman and chief executive officer. “The new customers we’re winning are high-value, with attractive revenue and churn profiles. We’re expanding the market as users adopt more data and media-rich services and access a wide array of applications. These achievements are positive for the future of our business.”

The news, however, was disappointing to Wall Street — in midday trading, AT&T was down about five percent.

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Yahoo was hurting long before the financial crisis got everyone worried about a global recession. Now its pain has become more acute.

Yahoo said Tuesday that it would lay off at least 10 percent of its 15,000 workers as it tries to bring down its expenses. It said reduced marketing budgets had taken a bite out of its online advertising business, sending its net income for the third quarter tumbling by 64 percent.

The company also lowered its revenue projections for the remainder of the year and said it was too early to make forecasts for 2009.

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