Stake
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Time Warner Cable abandons wireless business plans, sells 7.2 percent Clearwire stake
Time Warner Cable has decided against entering the wireless business, and as such, it's selling the 7.2 percent stake in Clearwire it picked up in 2008. Thanks to the dwindling value of the network provider, it's $550 million investment is now only worth around $73 million. Current investors have first refusal on the shares, but it's unlikely to find takers quickly, given that both Intel and Google dumped their interests at a steep loss and even Sprint has ceased to be its majority owner -- although the company itself did tell The Wall Street Journal that it's doing perfectly fine, but thanked it for asking, before quickly dashing off to "a thing."
British Telecom says it's 'highly likely' to write off OnLive stake
British Telecom has reported that it is "highly likely" to simply write off the 2.6 percent stake it invested in the recently rebooted cloud computing service, OnLive. The issue isn't yet settled, but a BT spokesperson told TechRadar that "the 2.6 percent shareholding in OnLive does not represent a significant investment for BT as a whole. We consider it highly likely that we'll have to write off our investment."HTC also made a $40 million investment in OnLive, and it has already reported to the Taiwanese Stock Exchange that it considers the money written off. With all of OnLive's assets being transferred to form a new company, getting compensated for their investments may be more trouble than it's worth for both HTC and BT.But the book isn't closed just yet – BT says it will "keep a close eye on developments" with OnLive, and that current customers who are able to access the service can continue to do so for the time being.
Sony formally quits Sharp LCD joint venture, takes back every yen it invested
After Sony cut off its supply of capital to the ill-fated Sakai production plant that it jointly owns with Sharp, it became clear that the final goodbye may be little more than a formality. And here it is, in the form of a cold, resolute press release stating that Sony is selling its seven percent stake back to Sharp and taking back the 10 billion yen ($126 million) it originally invested. The only reason given is the "rapidly changing market for LCD panels and LCD televisions," which is a polite reference to the fact that profits from big TVs are well below what these companies predicted back in the heady days of 2008 and early 2009, when the impact of the global economic crisis loomed without yet being fully apparent. Fortunately for Sony, which is in the delicate stages of reform, the solid pre-nuptial agreement it had in place with Sharp should protect the company from having to revise its financial forecasts for the coming year -- not that those were particularly great in the first place.
Vodafone voices intentions to keep stake in Verizon Wireless
Earlier in the summer, some words from Verizon chief Ivan Seidenberg led us all to believe that he wanted his firm to take full control of Verizon Wireless. Now, Vodafone CEO Vittorio Colao has made clear that his outfit had precisely zero plans to sell its 45% stake in VZW, though he did mention having an "open mind" about the future of said stake. Just in case that wasn't definitive enough for ya, he stressed that staying put was "the best thing" for Vodafone right now, and given just how many Storms are flying off of US shelves, we can't stand to disagree.[Via mocoNews]
PlantSense unveils USB stake sensor to prevent plant malnutrition
What was once an art form of sorts has become somewhat of an antiquated skill, as touting a green thumb certainly isn't as awe-inspiring as it used to be; with gizmos like RFID-enabled terrariums, hydroponic gardens, and remote-controlled greenhouses, it shouldn't be all that difficult to keep that flora flourishing. Giving further aid to the clueless plant owner is a USB stake sensor that resides a few inches beneath the soil, and provides "information about light, moisture, soil composition and other factors that can affect plant growth and health." Start-up PlantSense has designed the intelligent stake to relay the data via USB to a subscription-based website, where it informs users what they're doing wrong (too much sunlight or not enough fertilizer, for example) as well as "providing recommendations on which plants might grow best in a particular microclimate." The self-proclaimed "lifecycle development platform" will likely sell for $49.95 (includes a stake and one year of data analysis) if it can scrounge up the necessary funds from eager VCs, while additional years of the service will run $20 -- but that's a small price to pay if your home-based garden looks more like a cemetery anyway. [Via Engadget Chinese]
Sony to buy stake in Gamepot
Sony Communication Network Corp. has announced it will buy a 27-percent stake in Gamepot, (No, not Gamespot or Gamestop) a mobile content and solutions provider, for about $22 million, according to Gamasutra.So-net says the move will broaden its online games operations.In addition, Sony Communication, which operates So-net Internet service provider, will purchase 8,200 new shares of Gamepot in a third-party allocation. It will also buy 15,000 existing Gamepot shares from Aeria Inc., Gamepot's parent, a Reuters report stated.Gamepot made a name for itself by publishing the popular online fantasy golf game, PangYa. I doubt this will have much of an impact for anything coming stateside, but it's encouraging to see Sony continue to take online gaming seriously.(Via Gamasutra/Yahoo)
