IHT Tech Alert

"TIMES BUYS ABOUT.COM:
The New York Times Co. said Thursday that it had agreed to acquire the online consumer information provider About Inc. from Primedia, a magazine publisher, for $410 million in cash. The acquisition is the biggest for The Times since it acquired The Boston Globe for $1 billion in 1993. About operates the Web site About.com, which offers a network of nearly 500 guides on thousands of topics from personal finance to consumer electronics.

The company said that About.com attracted 22 million unique visitors a month.The Times Co. said that it expected strong revenue and profit growth from About and that the acquisition should add to its earnings in 2007. The acquisition was announced after the stock market closed. The Times Co.'s shares closed down 46 cents at $38.25 on the New York Stock Exchange. (NYT)


CARPET BURNS BY XBOX:
Microsoft, the world's largest software maker, said it would recall 14.1 million power cords for its Xbox video game console after a defect gave some users minor burns and scorched carpets. The recall covered all Xboxes made for Continental Europe before Jan. 13, 2004, and the rest of the world before Oct. 23, 2003. (Reuters)

A NEW NAPSTER CHALLENGE:
Fewer than three weeks after Napster began touting its all-you-can-rent music subscription service, the company is denying accusations that its copy-protection measures are flawed. The company posted a message this week, saying the service's digital music tracks were no more susceptible to unauthorized copying than any other licensed music service.

The statement came after word circulated on the Internet that subscribers of Napster To Go, which lets users play an unlimited number of tracks on their computer or on certain portable devices for about $15 a month, could make permanent copies of the songs. (AP) "