SAP to buy Sybase for $5.8 billion

In today's podcast: SAP to buy Sybase for $5.8 billion; HTC hits Apple with ITC patent suit; and netbooks coming based on dual-core Atoms.

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SAP is buying mobile and database vendor Sybase for roughly US$5.8 billion, the company announced Wednesday. The all-cash offer of $65 per share amounts to a 44 percent premium over Sybase's three-month average stock price, according to SAP. Sybase's board has voted unanimously in favor of the deal, which requires clearance by antitrust officials. The pending deal would significantly expand the technological portfolio of SAP, which is known most of all for its ERP applications.

HTC said it filed a complaint with the U.S. International Trade Commission charging Apple with infringing on five patents. The move is the latest salvo in a battle between the companies that started when Apple filed a lawsuit against HTC in March, charging it with infringing on 20 patents. HTC did not describe the technology covered in the five patents, but said it has asked the ITC to halt the importation and sale of the iPhone, iPad and iPod into the U.S.

Intel on Tuesday showed off a netbook with a dual-core Atom processor as it talked up efforts to crank up the performance of the low-cost laptops. The dual-core netbook shown on stage at the company's investor meeting in Santa Clara, California, was thinner than a thumb. The company also showed off a tablet computing device based on a new Atom chip during the event, which was also webcast. New netbooks and tablets based on Intel chips will be on display at Computex, which will be held between June 1 and June 5 in Taipei.

Photos and a video of what appear to be a second "iPhone prototype have appeared on a Vietnamese Web site, showing a device that's somewhat more refined than the prototype purchased by Gizmodo. There's not a lot of new information revealed by TaoViet, a mobile device news site and forum. The iPhone prototype photos on the site include a series of external shots, including several with the device turned on, running an application but apparently not the full iPhone OS, and a teardown of the hardware. Apple is widely expected to unveil the next iPhone model, dubbed iPhone 4 or iPhone 4G, at its World Developer's Conference in June.

...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.