No blue skies for Blu-ray

Sony's victory over Toshiba for high-def video could be short-lived, says Forbes.

When movie maker Warner Bros threw its weight behind Sony's format for storing high definition movies, Blu-ray, Sony executives likely popped a few corks.

Executives from rival Toshiba grimly declared that they would carry on. "We have been declared dead before," Toshiba VP Jodi Sally told reporters.

But Sony can't afford to spend too long drinking the champagne. The real news isn't that HD-DVD's future looks grim. It's that if Blu-ray's backers can finish off HD-DVD quickly, Blu-ray might have one.

Yahoo is hoping to prove it can be as mobile and open as its rivals, says News.com.

As expected, Yahoo CEO Jerry Yang used his speech at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) to announce several mobile efforts, including a redesigned mobile home page and a beta of Yahoo Go 3.0, which is open to widgets created by outsiders.

However, for those in the crowd hoping to see the new face of Yahoo, he apologised. "It's still the same old face," he said pointing to his head.

According to Intel CEO Paul Otellini, the ability to connect practically all electronic devices to the Internet will unleash a burst of innovation and business opportunities that will rival the impact on personal computers, reports News.com.

Speaking at the CES, Otellini presented a vision of an always-on, always-connected experience for consumers, whether in their homes, or riding a car or bike.

"We're now in the midst of the largest opportunity to redefine consumer electronics and entertainment since the introduction of the television," Otellini said. "Increasingly, computing and communications are coming together, bringing a new level of capabilities and intelligence to the Internet experience. The personal Internet of tomorrow will serve you - delivering the information you want, when you want it, how you want, wherever you are."

Sony BMG Music Entertainment, the record company, said on Monday that it would begin selling digital albums without copyright protection, making it the last record company to do so, says New York Times.

Digital album cards, similar to gift cards, will be available for $12.99 at retailers, Sony BMG said Monday, and will allow buyers to download MP3 files onto their home computers.

Removing digital rights management software makes it easier for consumers to play music and transfer songs to various devices. Sony BMG is the last major record company to do away with the programmes, which prevent illegal copying and distribution of songs on the Internet. Last month, the Warner Music Group said it would offer its music without copy protection on Amazon.com's new download store.