Tim Wu had a great analysis in Slate.com recently about Google's new Open Handset Alliance and how they're locked in a potentially zero-sum tussle with the vestiges of Ma Bell in the form of AT&T and Verizon. But before reading the excerpt below, have a look at the video explaining what Android is all about.

Here's the excerpt:

In Google's words, its recently unveiled "Android" is the "first truly open and comprehensive platform for mobile devices." But it is a signal of much more. Google is as much an ideology as a firm and can resemble a nation-state in its pursuit of power rather than a mere corporation chasing quarterly numbers. Google and its allies are now trying to make the principles of openness—the commanding ideology of the Internet—the conquering principle of the wireless world, and the Android announcement is just the first step.

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HP's aggressive determination to compete in the digital camera market took an abrupt turn a couple of weeks ago after flagging market share in recent years compelled the company to announce it would begin looking for a partner to make and market digital cameras under the HP name and shift the company's focus to its so-called "Print 2.0" posture. Here's a rundown from BetaNews:

Three years ago, Hewlett-Packard announced it would revamp its digital camera lineup and invest $1 billion in research and development over 18 months to become a leading vendor. In a stunning about-face today (Nov. 9), HP announced that it is now seeking an outside OEM to design and distribute HP branded digital cameras.

The company will continue to sell its own models through the holiday season, and then cease in the first half of 2008, when a partnership is intended to be in place. The company that will take over production has not yet been determined.

HP's reinvestment effort ironically only seemed to shrink its brand presence in digital cameras, after having been ranked #3 in sales in the US in 2001 by Infotrends/CAP. Today, HP is ranked #8 in the US with a meager 4% market share.

So the company is shifting its focus now toward its so-called Print 2.0 strategy,announced in May 2007. Falling in line with HP's strength in printing, and the current lack of Web-based printing technology, the Print 2.0 platform is seen by the company as a nearly $300 billion opportunity.

HP is already in development with ViaMichelin to improve printing of online maps and directions, as well as with SixApart, to integrate print functions into the popular Moveable Type blogging platform.
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Rebounding European aircraft company Airbus had reason to celebrate last week at the Dubai Air Show as they sold more than $28 billion worth of orders for planes, including their latest and greatest A380 double-decker super-jumbo airliner, with the most ostentatious sale going to Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal.

The world's 13th-wealthiest man bought one of the brand new $300 million A380s for ... himself as a kind of flying palace in the clouds replacing his aging personal 747. CNN had a rundown of the deals that totaled as much as $100 billion altogether.

Other multi-million deals signed by airlines including Emirates Airline, DAE Capital, Qatar Airways and Air Arabia are expected to top $80 billion. Airbus earned the largest windfall, securing $28 billion in commitments, followed by Boeing.

"These are the largest deals for both Boeing and Airbus from these Middle Eastern Airlines," says Michael Burns, transportation analyst from Booz Allen Hamilton. "Rather than simply re-equipping, they are actually growing for new capacity. So they're ordering lots of new jets very quickly."

The new hubs in the Middle East are creating an impact on air traffic around the world, he adds. "They are taking traffic from all the regional centers in Europe, and funneling them into Asia, Australia and areas like Pakistan. And that means airlines are obviously having to build up capacity. They are expecting to see major growth over the next decade," he says.

Middle Eastern carriers are also starting to lease aircraft in addition to buying them outright, which further allows them to expand more rapidly.

Some of the deals signed at the show(read more)

The news today that the new Zune's from Microsoft were outselling Apple's own enigmatic iPod on Amazon.com got me wondering if this was some sort of trick by Microsoft to create artificial scarcity and repeat their smash of the Xbox 360 or if the player had finally caught on with consumers.

Introduced only a week ago, by this morning Microsoft 's heavily discounted, 30-gigabyte, $134 Zune digital media player was ranked the No. 1 bestseller in the Seattle online retailer's list of top-selling MP3 players in the "Electronics" category. Apple's four-gigabyte iPod nano was No. 2, followed by Apple's 80-gigabyte iPod "classic" at No. 3.

Last week, the Redmond computer giant introduced a new 80-gigabyte Zune player, but they're hard to find. Amazon's site on Monday said they're "temporarily out of stock" and no future shipping date was listed. Microsoft's own Zune site said the 80-gigabyte player can't be ordered until "early December."

In more ways than one, the new Zune's take a strong set of differentia from the first generation and execute more effectively while adding features that truly make it a hipper product. USAToday had a review recently:(read more)

Beginning in Minneapolis on Thursday 8 November 2007, Aurora WDC will begin sponsoring a traveling series of one-day symposia called, "Intelligence 2.0 - Rethinking Intelligence in Business".

Envisioned as much a "conversation" as a collection of thought leadership presentations, like any good conversation, each will come and go with a unique dialog on the issues surrounding the practice of intelligence in the modern business enterprise.

So, if you can't make it to Minneapolis, we're planning four (4) more in 2008 for you to choose from and have high hopes for a vibrant online discussion to compliment and guide the live events.

There will be more news to come in the days and weeks ahead, but for now, please read on below for a better idea of what we've got in mind.

Understanding change in business has always been more art than science.

But today decision makers from top management on down are finding that they must think ahead to anticipate change while there's still time to take advantage of opportunities and navigate risks that have an impact on their company's ability to compete, grow and even survive in terms of relevance to the markets they serve.(read more)

As I continue writing a white paper on "Field Intelligence", which I'll be presenting at our Intelligence 2.0 Symposium in Minneapolis November 8th, and this being my favorite time of year now that we're at the start of regular-season football, I found the New England Patriots' use of field intelligence [no pun intended] to correlate well with a few of my paper's concepts.

For those not familiar with the issue, head coach Bill Belichick has apologized for the team's use of a video camera in efforts to interpret the NY Jets play calling in this past Sunday's game (where the Patriots trounced 38-14). The incident made me think of many different things - from how recording devices are banned from tradeshow or exhibit halls that many of you as Competitive Intelligence professionals are experiencing, to how in an era where coaches routinely cover their mouths when calling the next play (and I even saw recently two side-lined players hold towels up in front of the coach as an extra layer of protection as he called the play), it's ironic that an obvious use of technology gets Belichick and the Patriots in hot water. Some writers are blaming it on the NFL's sense of urgency around winning, but when it stems from a team that's won 3 out of the last 6 world championships, it strikes me as an unnecessary proposition...

Hope you enjoy the story, and drop me a note if you have any other thoughts on the topic.

- Derek (read more)

Just as Intel has regained much of its lost momentum in dominance of the microprocessor market, the European Commission (EC) accused Intel of alleged monopolist acts of anticompetition. Meanwhile entirely by coincidence (I'm sure) as Intel is facing these new legal issues, AMD announced upcoming processor plans designed to create a more competitive market.

As Intel and AMD continue to fight over market share, the variation in processor prices will continue to affect computer makers and retailers. As the biggest computer sales season arrives with the back to school shopping season, manufacturers and retailers alike are in a frenzy to adjust to the right pricing formula.

The European Commission allegations suppose Intel's renewed momentum in the market against AMD was based on three monopolist tactics:

First, Intel had provided 'substantial rebates' to several OEMs under the condition that they buy their microprocessors exclusively from Intel. Secondly, Intel paid OEMs if they delayed or canceled the roll-out of products based on AMD CPUs. Thirdly, Intel has offered microprocessors to server OEMs under cost in order to block the competitor.
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It is believe that one key to living longer is lower bad (LDL) cholesterol and increasing good (HDL) cholesterol, but recent studies show that cholesterol levels that are too low could increase the chances of cancer. For the largest pharmaceutical market in the world and the companies who produce drugs there, this finding could mean that fewer people will begin using statins unless the need for them is serious.

Meanwhile researchers are worried that patients might stop using their statin-medicines and end up dying from a heart attack. Statins provide benefits like lower risk of heart attack and stroke, and evidence also suggests unexpected benefits, such as a lowered risk of death from influenza, pneumonia and the effects of smoking. Plus when patients begin to worry about cancer and stop taking their statins, drug companies start losing sales.

A recently released a study showed patients who took statin drugs and lowered cholesterol also had a higher risk of developing some cancers, although it didn't show a direct correlation that the statins themselves caused the cancer to develop. Cancer was found most frequently in patients that had lower levels of low density lipoprotein or so-called bad cholesterol when compared to patients with higher LDL levels, and also used statin medications.

Promoting the risk of cancer to those who don't need statins as a potentially life-saving therapy is creating a risk for lost profits for the largest pharmaceutical companies. Though they eventually might be shown to increase the risk of cancer, statin users who absolutely need them could overreact and stop using their medicine entirely. Educating patients of their need and possible side effects is the best way for pharmaceutical companies to keep the cholesterol market as profitable as it can be long into the future.