Intel delays Larrabee indefinitely

In today's podcast: Intel delays Larrabee indefinitely; Dell sets up mobile product division; and Microsoft, Yahoo finalize search deal.

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Intel has delayed indefinitely the commercial release of its Larrabee graphics processor, which had been due out next year. The company originally planned to start selling the many-core chip sometime in 2010, but has fallen behind where it hoped to be in Larrabee's development, an Intel spokesman said Friday. He did not provide a more detailed reason for the delay. Intel demonstrated a system based on Larrabee in September at the Intel Developer Forum in San Francisco. It said then that the chip would ship next year, but did not give a specific date.

Dell is setting up a new business unit surrounding mobile products as it tries to expand its presence in the communications market, the company said on Friday. The newly formed communications solutions division will be responsible for developing mobile products like smartphones. The company is ramping up its mobile focus as it tries to establish a presence in a market dominated by companies like Apple, Nokia and Research in Motion. Dell last month launched its first smartphone, the Mini 3, which will be offered in Brazil and China. The company also offers low-cost laptops called netbooks through mobile carriers.

Microsoft and Yahoo have finalized the terms of a broad search and advertising agreement intended to help them compete more effectively with Google. The companies announced the agreement, in which Microsoft's Bing search engine would power Yahoo's search results and Yahoo would provide premium search-advertising services for both companies, in July. They had hoped to finalize the deal in late October but needed more time to work out the details.

Usage of the open-source MySQL database is set to decline if Oracle succeeds in buying the software's owner, Sun Microsystems, according to new data released by analyst firm The 451 Group on Friday. While 82.1 percent of respondents use MySQL today, that figure will drop to 72.3 percent by 2014, the study found. Fifteen percent said that if Oracle buys Sun, they would be less inclined to use MySQL. Only 6.3 percent indicated they would be more likely to use the database under Oracle's stewardship.

...And those are the top stories from the IDG Global IT News Update, brought to you by the IDG News Service. I'm Sumner Lemon in Singapore. Join us again later for more news from the world of technology.