After three years of spent treasure , Sharp and Samsung have finally settled their LCD patent fight. Although the terms of the agreement won’t be made public, a Sharp spokesman was caught boasting about conditions that “will be in favor of Sharp” — the company that kicked off the battle back in 2007. As a recap, the disputed patents covered LCD TVs, monitors, and mobile phones in lawsuits filed in the US, Europe, Japan, and South Korea. After a string of defeats in the US and Europe resulted in an import ban on its panels, Samsung, it seems, was left with little choice but to settle on Sharp’s terms. Sharp and Samsung settle LCD patent cases, end legal dispute originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Feb 2010 06:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink    |  PC World  |  Email this  |  Comments

Everyone knows “realtime” has been a hot tech category for the last year or so but as we all know the ‘realtime problem’ is getting some kind of intelligence out of that firehose, and, crucially, eventually working out if or how it can be monetised. Search found its way with keyword targeting, but what will happen around realtime? The Cognitive Match startup is applying artificial intelligence, learning mathematics, psychology and semantic technologies to match content (product, offers, or editorial) to realtime content. It’s doing this in part by relying on an academic panel of professors in artificial intelligence from Universities across the UK and Europe who specialise in machine learning and psychology. The idea is to ensure maximum response from individuals, thereby increasing conversion, revenue and ultimately profit. Last year it raised a Series A investment from Dawn Capital, rumoured to be in the $1m+ ballpark. Today Dawn has stepped in again with a follow-on Series B investment of $2.5m which the company will use to accelerate its growth. That takes it’s war-chest to around $3.5m

Oskar Stål has joined Spotify as its new CTO after the departure of the original CTO Andreas Ehn, who left to pursue his own startup. I guess people slightly forget that next year Spotify is actually going to be 4 years old, even though it only launched publicly at the end of last year. (Long time in private beta). Stål comes from the mobile transaction company mBlox , where he’s been for the last eight years, growing from a five-person start-up into a global business. By hiring a CTO with deep mobile experience it’s clear Spotify sees the mobile as the key supporting plank in its structure. Last night I spoke to a Spotify contact who told me that since they launched the Symbian version of Spotify, the service has “gone crazy.” Make of that what you will. Symbian, as a platform used by Nokia’s non-smartphones, is of course a great deal more mainstream, especially in Europe, than the iPhone or Android. Crunch Network : CrunchBase the free database of technology companies, people, and investors

The long-rumored little brother to the Galaxy , the i5700 , has finally been made official by Samsung — and sure enough, it’ll go by the trade name “Galaxy Spica.” Sammy’s latest Android-powered set clocks in at 13.2mm thick and comes equipped with a 3.5mm jack (which, frankly, every smartphone in the world should be including at this point) and an Android first: built-in DivX support. This one appears to be a no-frills Google Experience device considering the number of times that “Google” is mentioned in Samsung’s press release, but for some Android connoisseurs, the purest, unskinned look and feel is preferred. Sammy says it’s already out in Europe and the CIS and will be coming to the Middle East and Asia shortly. Filed under: Cellphones Samsung unveils Android-equipped Galaxy Spica i5700 originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 15 Nov 2009 22:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Read  |  Permalink  |  Email this  |  Comments

Want to be the head of Barnesandnoble.com’s international business? Because they’re definitely hiring a whole team, and they’re starting at the top. Recruiting firm Russell Reynolds Associates is representing Barnes & Noble in a search for the “head of their international business,” according to a source who was contacted about the position. The job entails building the international business for BN.com from scratch, hiring the team and “building the infrastructure outside the U.S.” They prefer the executive live in New York, but Europe is ok, too. Global ecommerce experience is preferred. Barnes & Noble is no Amazon, but it is a billion dollar company and they have an upcoming ebook reader that kicks the Kindle’s butt (it’s so easy to love unlaunched products, isn’t it?). Crunch Network : CrunchBoard because it’s time for you to find a new Job2.0