STEVE BALLMER

China sought on Friday to play down a threat by Google Inc to quit the country on hacking and censorship concerns, saying any decision by the Internet search giant would not affect U.S. trade ties.

Microsoft Corp has no plans to pull out of China, its chief executive said on Thursday, playing down concerns about recent cyber-attacks and censorship raised by rival Google Inc.

Recent sophisticated cyber attacks on Google Inc and other businesses exploited a previously unknown flaw in Microsoft Corp's Internet Explorer browser.

LG Electronics has confirmed the first devices featuring Microsoft's highly anticipated Windows 7 Mobile which will begin retailing later this year.

Call it a slate or call it a tablet, the technology world is suddenly awash with a novel category of mobile devices seeking to grab the spotlight from a hugely anticipated product launch by Apple Inc later this month.

Dell Inc showed off a small slate computer that it could bring to market this year, exploring yet another type of device designed for computing on the go.

Microsoft Corp Chief Executive Steve Ballmer unveiled a new Hewlett-Packard Co tablet computer on Wednesday, beating Apple Inc's hotly anticipated move into the market.

Chris Liddell has been hired by General Motors to serve as its vice chairman and chief financial officer.

Widespread recovery doubts; More Caught in Trading Scandal; Microsoft-Yahoo Pact May Go Global

Microsoft Corp Chief Executive Steve Ballmer said on Thursday the company's search engine partnership with Yahoo would not be limited to the U.S. but would be introduced around the world, once it gets regulatory approval.

Microsoft announced 800 layoffs Wednesday, in what the company hopes will be the last in its recent series of job cuts.

Microsoft Corp Chief Executive Steve Ballmer said on Thursday the company could look to extend its search engine partnership with Yahoo outside the United States, if it gets regulatory approval.

Microsoft Corp Chief Executive Steve Ballmer said on Thursday the company could look to extend its search engine partnership with Yahoo outside the United States, if it gets regulatory approval.

Microsoft announced 800 layoffs Wednesday, enforcing the cost-reduction program the company had announced at the beginning of the year.

Microsoft Corp. and Taiwan's economics ministry said they plan to set up a research center on the island by next year, in the software company's first Asian foray into the budding cloud computing industry.

Microsoft Corp. and Taiwan's economics ministry said they plan to set up a research center on the island by next year, in the software company's first Asian foray into the budding cloud computing industry.

Microsoft Corp. and Taiwan's economics ministry said they plan to set up a research center on the island by next year, in the software company's first Asian foray into the budding cloud computing industry.

The idea that hundreds of people would line up outside anything to do with Microsoft would have been far-fetched only a few years ago -- but on Thursday that's what happened when the software giant opened its first retail store in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Microsoft Corp launched Windows 7 on Thursday, its most important release in more than a decade, aiming to win back customers disappointed by Vista and strengthen its grip on the PC market.

Microsoft Corp. formally unveiled Thursday its newest operating system, Windows 7, as the software giant hopes to breath new life into its Operating System product line. Steve Ballmer said the product was a result of an intense collaboration between Microsoft and its partners - 50,000 software, hardware, and peripheral vendors, as well as 8 million beta testers.

Microsoft Corp opened the first in a planned chain of stores on Thursday, aiming to match rival Apple Inc's successful foray into retailing.