mike

RIM ready to name new chairman, report says

Research In Motion may be gearing up for an overhaul in its leadership.

Co-CEOs Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie are preparing to relinquish their titles as co-chairmen, possibly giving way to independent director Barbara Stymiest, according to a report by the Financial Post. Stymiest is the leading candidate to replace the two, the Post said, citing anonymous sources.

RIM said in a statement that a committee of independent directors was reviewing the company's governance structure, and would report its findings by January 31. It added the committee is on track to meet this target, and that the board would … Read more

The joys of real-time data analysis for online retailers

Re-reading a piece I wrote a few weeks back about the uptick in online sales during Black Friday, I started to wonder if real-time customer intelligence is what is driving online retail growth.

There are undoubtedly a number of aspects to the growth in online sales. But after spending some time with a few of the major online retailers last week--including one who might not be considered a "retailer" in the traditional sense, I realized that the online world has a huge competitive advantage in its predilection toward data analysis with actionable near real-time results.

Amazon's suggested … Read more

Even with $1 salaries, RIM co-CEOs are doing just fine

If you think Research In Motion's co-CEOs are hurting for money after taking dramatic pay cuts, think again.

RIM chiefs Jim Balsillie and Mike Lazaridis said yesterday that they had asked to change their salary to $1 per year. The salary cut was a clear acknowledgement of the issues facing the company, and an act of contrition amid growing criticism about their ability to run the BlackBerry business.

It's a welcome gesture from two executives who have previously been criticized as in denial about RIM's prospects. But the act isn't as magnanimous as it initially appears, … Read more

Reorg aims to make Intel more competitive in mobile

Intel is doing a sweeping reorganization in its mobile device group in order to make the company more competitive in small devices like smartphones and tablets, where its chips are virtually absent.

The chip giant has created a new business unit, the mobile and communications group, Intel spokesman Robert Manetta told CNET. The move was earlier reported in Fortune.

The group is composed of four existing divisions: mobile communications, Netbook and tablet, mobile wireless, and ultra mobility.

Mike Bell and Hermann Eul--both current Intel employees--will lead the group. Eul is a former member of the Infineon technologies management board (Intel … Read more

Kleiner Perkins signs ex-Twitter engineer as general partner

From Twitter to big-time venture capitalist in just two months.

Mike Abbott, who recently stepped down as vice president of engineering for Twitter, has joined the prestigious Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers as a general partner.

Abbott will focus on Kleiner's digital practice, helping startups involved in social, mobile, and the cloud. A key part of his role will also be to help portfolio companies hire talent, which in the Valley these days is a constant and expensive struggle.

While at Twitter, Abbott amped up the engineering team from 80 to more than 350 people in less than a … Read more

Autonomy's wizardry: Bringing still images to virtual life

Autonomy CEO Mike Lynch took to the stage of at Techonomy 2011 and gave a glimpse of some amazing stuff that phones and tablet cameras will soon be able to do.

Autonomy, which Hewlett Packard just acquired for almost $12 billion, bills itself as a leader in "meaning based computing," a tagline that's easy to dismiss. Then Lynch brought out an iPad to demonstrate Autonomy's technology, and he wowed the audience. And this was a jaded crowd, folks.

Lynch had an assistant hold up poster-size images--an ad for a Harry Potter move, a front page of … Read more

Senate bill reignites Internet sales tax debate

A Senate bill introduced today has reignited a long-simmering debate over whether Americans should be required to pay Internet sales taxes when they go shopping online.

The legislation, which CNET reported on last week, would allow states to force Amazon.com, Overstock.com, Blue Nile, and other out-of-state online retailers to collect sales taxes.

It was introduced by Sens. Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.), Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), and Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and is backed by Wal-Mart, Best Buy, Home Depot, and other companies that have stores in nearly every state and are currently required to collect sales taxes in both their physical … Read more

RIM management has to go before it's too late

Research in Motion shares are now trading below book value and the previous argument for not tossing co-CEOs Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie to the curb revolved around disruption.

Here's what Balsillie said June 16 on RIM's fiscal first-quarter earnings conference call:

Mike and I would like to address some of the concerns that have been expressed in the media and analyst community surrounding the executive management structure at RIM and particularly about the joint nature of our leadership. Mike and I have been partners in this business for almost 20 years, and over that time RIM has … Read more

First Solar ousts CEO, shares dive 24 percent

First Solar's board of directors ousted the solar company's chief executive, Rob Gillette, replacing him on an interim basis with Chairman Mike Ahearn while it searches for a permanent replacement.

Shares in the world's most valuable solar company plummeted more than 24 percent to $43.71--its lowest level since March of 2007--following the unexpected Tuesday announcement.

"It's an absolute and total surprise," said Mark Bachman, an analyst with Avian Securities LLC.

The U.S. solar company said in a brief statement that its board of directors has asked Ahearn to serve as temporary CEO … Read more