Google takes $700M loss on sale of AOL stake

In today's podcast: Google takes $700M loss on sale of AOL stake; Microsoft scrambles to patch IE security hole; and EU changes mobile regulations.

Subscribe to this podcast in iTunes!

Google sold its stake in AOL at a US$717 million loss, according to a regulatory filing made on Monday. Time Warner purchased Google's 5 percent share in AOL on July 8 for $283 million, AOL said in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Google bought the share of AOL in late 2005 for $1 billion. The purchase paves the way for Time Warner to spin off AOL, a move it has said it plans to finally make by the end of this year. Time Warner has been struggling for years to rid itself of AOL, after merging with the company in 2001. The combination of the companies didn't work out as planned. AOL in particular has struggled, failing to make up lost revenue from its shrinking Internet-access subscription business with new revenue from online ads.

Microsoft has been forced to issue emergency patches for its Windows operating system after researchers discovered a way to bypass a critical security mechanism in the Internet Explorer browser. During a Wednesday talk at this week's Black Hat conference in Las Vegas, researchers Mark Dowd, Ryan Smith and David Dewey will show a way of bypassing the 'kill-bit' mechanism used to disable buggy ActiveX controls. A video demonstration posted by Smith shows how the researchers were able to bypass the mechanism, which checks for ActiveX controls that are not allowed to run on Windows. They were able to then exploit a buggy ActiveX control in order to run an unauthorized program on a victim's computer. Although the researchers have not revealed the technical details behind their work, this bug could be a big deal, giving hackers a way of exploiting ActiveX problems that were previously thought to have been mitigated via kill-bits.

European lawmakers reached agreement Monday on how to free up radio spectrum for new mobile Internet services, while ensuring that regular mobile phone services are not compromised. Under the updated law, called the GSM Directive, the 900Mhz frequency reserved for GSM can be used for fast Internet connections once the law takes effect in October. Many users will be able to use their standard mobile phones to access the Internet, rather than having to trade up to an iPhone, BlackBerry or other more expensive handset. By updating the GSM Directive, the European Union "has paved the way for a new generation of services and technologies where Europe can be a world leader," Telecoms Commissioner Viviane Reding said.

Nissan has developed a prototype iPhone application that would allow electric car owners to dial into their vehicles and check battery levels. The application, a working version of which was demonstrated by the company at its research facility in Yokosuka, Japan, links to the car's IT system to check the status of the Lithium Ion batteries that power the car. Using it, owners will be able to monitor charging of their cars while away from the vehicles. The system could come in handy, for example, when cars are parked at public charging stations and owners want to fully charge the batteries before driving away. In addition to the basic monitoring of battery level, more detailed information can be sent to the phone that includes the time required for a full charge and the approximate cost.

...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.

Google sold its stake in AOL at a US$717 million loss, according to a regulatory filing made on Monday. Time Warner purchased Google's 5 percent share in AOL on July 8 for $283 million, AOL said in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Google bought the share of AOL in late 2005 for $1 billion. The purchase paves the way for Time Warner to spin off AOL, a move it has said it plans to finally make by the end of this year. Time Warner has been struggling for years to rid itself of AOL, after merging with the company in 2001. The combination of the companies didn't work out as planned. AOL in particular has struggled, failing to make up lost revenue from its shrinking Internet-access subscription business with new revenue from online ads.

Microsoft has been forced to issue emergency patches for its Windows operating system after researchers discovered a way to bypass a critical security mechanism in the Internet Explorer browser. During a Wednesday talk at this week's Black Hat conference in Las Vegas, researchers Mark Dowd, Ryan Smith and David Dewey will show a way of bypassing the 'kill-bit' mechanism used to disable buggy ActiveX controls. A video demonstration posted by Smith shows how the researchers were able to bypass the mechanism, which checks for ActiveX controls that are not allowed to run on Windows. They were able to then exploit a buggy ActiveX control in order to run an unauthorized program on a victim's computer. Although the researchers have not revealed the technical details behind their work, this bug could be a big deal, giving hackers a way of exploiting ActiveX problems that were previously thought to have been mitigated via kill-bits.

European lawmakers reached agreement Monday on how to free up radio spectrum for new mobile Internet services, while ensuring that regular mobile phone services are not compromised. Under the updated law, called the GSM Directive, the 900Mhz frequency reserved for GSM can be used for fast Internet connections once the law takes effect in October. Many users will be able to use their standard mobile phones to access the Internet, rather than having to trade up to an iPhone, BlackBerry or other more expensive handset. By updating the GSM Directive, the European Union "has paved the way for a new generation of services and technologies where Europe can be a world leader," Telecoms Commissioner Viviane Reding said.

Nissan has developed a prototype iPhone application that would allow electric car owners to dial into their vehicles and check battery levels. The application, a working version of which was demonstrated by the company at its research facility in Yokosuka, Japan, links to the car's IT system to check the status of the Lithium Ion batteries that power the car. Using it, owners will be able to monitor charging of their cars while away from the vehicles. The system could come in handy, for example, when cars are parked at public charging stations and owners want to fully charge the batteries before driving away. In addition to the basic monitoring of battery level, more detailed information can be sent to the phone that includes the time required for a full charge and the approximate cost.

...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.