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Music biz insiders say Sony-Jackson deal makes sense (Reuters)

Reuters - The magnitude of Sony Music Entertainment's landmark recording contract with the estate of Michael Jackson raises an inevitable question: Is it a smart deal for the label?

Ellen, Web site give gay teen $30,000 in prom flap (Reuters)

Reuters - Talk show host Ellen DeGeneres and an inspirational Web site on Friday gave $30,000 toward the college education of a teenage lesbian whose high school prom was canceled when she asked to attend with a girl.

Ex-MySQL Chief Marten Mickos Lands New CEO Job (PC World)

PC World - Marten Mickos, the longtime CEO of MySQL who eventually sold the open-source database company to Sun Microsystems for US$1 billion, has taken a new job as CEO of Eucalyptus Systems, the company said Friday.

Smartphones not enough for carriers at CTIA (Reuters)

Reuters - Smartphones may be one of the hottest areas in technology with big names like Apple and Google tussling for share, but investors are questioning the growth prospects for mobile carriers as subscriber gains slow.

Browser Choice Boosts Downloads of Opera 10.5 (NewsFactor)

NewsFactor - In the wake of the browser choice screen in Europe, Opera Software is reporting a dramatic uptick in browser downloads. The company said more than half the European downloads of Opera 10.50 have come directly from Microsoft's choice screen since early March.

Special Guests, Android Updates, and the iPad on PCWorld Podcast 69 (PC World)

PC World - This week on the podcast, Wired's Dylan Tweney and Brian X. Chen visit the PCWorld podcast studio for some verbal jousting over Google's Android operating system and Apple's iPad.

Basketball, Facebook and Gossip Are Malware Targets (NewsFactor)

NewsFactor - Cybercriminals have been busy this week running scams that target Facebook users, college basketball fans, and celebrity gossip watchers. Security experts are warning about recent attacks with nasty payloads.

Microsoft pulls Bing app from non-U.S. App Stores (Macworld.com)

Macworld.com - The iPhone app for Bing, Microsoft's search engine, has been pulled from all international App Stores, according to Neowin.net. However, it remains available for U.S. customers.

Airtel says it will bring iPhone 3GS to India (Macworld.com)

Macworld.com - On Friday, Bharti Airtel announced in a concisely worded press release that it had struck a deal with Apple to bring the latest version of Apple's smartphone to India “in the coming months.�

The Great Nintendo DS School Invasion (PC World)

PC World - Could Nintendo's Mario and Luigi be headed for blackboards and pop-top desks after decades battling bob-ombs, chain chomps, hammer bros, and koopa troopas? Mario creator and Nintendo R&D guru Shigeru Miyamoto certainly hopes so.