Jan 13 2010

Segway Inc. bought by Segway UK?

This one has been flying under the radar for the past day or so, but talk is starting to heat up on some forums that Segway Inc. has effectively been bought out by one of its own dealerships. That initial word seems to have come from a Segway Inc. shareholder, who says he recently received a stockholder letter informing him that Segway Inc. would be “merging” with JWH Holdings, which is apparently a company formed by Segway UK simply for the purpose of this merger. What’s more, while the deal is apparently being called a merger, the letter itself reportedly confirms that it’s more of a complete buyout, with current CEO Jim Norrod supposedly set to be replaced by Tricia Laidler, and Segway UK’s Wayne Mitchell stepping up to be the new COO. Still nothing in the way of official statements from either party just yet, but we’ll let you know as soon as we hear anything one way or the other.

[Thanks, Ed J]

Segway Inc. bought by Segway UK? originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 13 Jan 2010 17:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dec 4 2009

Apple looking to buy Lala, get into streaming music? (Update: sale confirmed)

There’s no deal yet, but Bloomberg and All Things Digital are reporting “confirmed” buyouts talks between Apple and music-streaming service Lala. If it goes down, the deal would potentially bring free music streaming to Apple’s iTunes empire, but we’re assuming Steve’s less interested in integrating Lala’s current service than he is in its talent, back-end technology, and content licensing deals. We’ll see where this all goes — or if it even happens.

Update: The New York Times and Wall Street Journal are now saying this is a done deal.

Apple looking to buy Lala, get into streaming music? (Update: sale confirmed) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 04 Dec 2009 17:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dec 3 2009

Comcast takes control of NBC, promises not to crush Hulu

As expected, Comcast announced its buyout of NBC this morning, and we have a few details of interest to Engadget readers and fans of rom-coms alike. Essentially, Comcast now owns 51 percent of NBC-Universal to GE’s 49 percent and will manage the entity — leveraging the newly acquired content with their infrastructure. On an investor call (reported by All Things Digital) a short time ago, Comcast CEO Brian Roberts emphasized that the company bought “a bunch of profitable cable channels” and “some theme parks, too” (we think that last part was a joke). Not so funny, of course, is the film studio that’s seen better years and the broadcast network that’s been described elsewhere as “faltering.” When asked about TV Everywhere and Hulu, Comcast COO Steve Burke notes that “NBC has been careful not to put too much cable content on the Internet. We think that’s a smart strategy… We think that going forward, you’re going to continue to have free broadcast stuff on Hulu, and cable stuff on TV Everywhere.” As for rumors of Hulu Premium? “That’s certainly not in the cards.” Web-based TV fanatics will be pleased to note that Roberts appears to be in your court: “We love Hulu and have no intent to crush it like a bug.” That’s all well and good, but as we know nothing’s final until the government has its say: the FCC, the Federal Trade Commission, and the Justice Department are all sure to have strongly held opinions on the matter. PR after the break.

Update: The “crush it like a bug” comment was actually just some editorializing from Peter Kafka at All Things Digital — but we’re certain Steve Burke has only love in his heart for Hulu.

Continue reading Comcast takes control of NBC, promises not to crush Hulu

Comcast takes control of NBC, promises not to crush Hulu originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 03 Dec 2009 11:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dec 1 2009

Comcast deal to buy NBC is done, will be announced Thursday

We told you we had a feeling this thing was happening — less than a day after GE consolidated ownership of NBC Universal in preparation to spin it off and sell a controlling stake to Comcast, CNBC is reporting that the deal is actually done and will be announced Thursday morning. As rumored from the start, Comcast will now own 51 percent of NBC to GE’s 49 percent, and the new company will fold in Comcast’s various content assets, which means the new NBC will rival Disney in size. That’s a big enchilada, and it should make the future of Comcast initiatives like TV Everywhere extremely interesting. Of course, all this still has to go through the FCC and FTC, and we wouldn’t expect anything to be approved and finalized for a year, but none of that takes away from the magnitude of this deal. We’ll obviously know more in a couple days, stay tuned.

Comcast deal to buy NBC is done, will be announced Thursday originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 01 Dec 2009 18:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dec 1 2009

Comcast inches closer to buying NBC

It’s been over a month since we last heard anything about the rumored Comcast takeover of NBC, but things are slowly starting to move forward: Bloomberg says that NBC parent company GE has bought out Vivendi’s 20 percent stake in the broadcaster for $5.8b, with up to a $2b refund due back if the Comcast deal isn’t done by the end of 2010. That’s no small gamble — Comcast will have to clear a “gauntlet” of federal regulators from the FCC and FTC, who will scrutinize everything from the transfer of TV broadcast licenses in New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles to the effects on competitors like Dish Network and Verizon, who will still want access to NBC’s huge stable of content and programming. Big challenges, to be sure, but we get the feeling this deal is going down one way or another — get ready for a rocky 2010.

Comcast inches closer to buying NBC originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 01 Dec 2009 13:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nov 9 2009

Google to acquire Gizmo5, swing at Skype with VoIP-enabled Google Voice?

There’s no official word on this yet, but the inimitable Michael Arrington says that Google’s up and purchased VoIP company Gizmo5 for “around $30 million in cash.” You know, pocket change for the crew in Mountain View. The deal would presumably bring Gizmo’s SIP-based VoIP talents to Google Voice, taking it from quirky phone-management service to complete end-to-end calling solution, and instantly catapulting it into direct competition with Skype. Heavy stuff — we’ll see if Google or Gizmo5 confirms Mssr. Arrington’s report sometime soon.

[Via BGR]

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Google to acquire Gizmo5, swing at Skype with VoIP-enabled Google Voice? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 09 Nov 2009 17:38:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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