Sometime in 1998 or 1999, Internet Explorer (IE) became the number one Web browser in the world. In October 2011, according to NetMarketShare, IE is barely above the 50% mark of desktop browsers with 52.63%.

Toyota has extended production cuts at its factories in Thailand and Japan due to shortage of parts in the wake of floods in Thailand.

Prolific develops leading-edge IC design optimization software tools that significantly reduce development time and improve the performance of cell-based designs.

The Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) board of directors has elected Freescale Semiconductor CEO Rich Beyer as its 2012 chairman.

Flash memory provider Spansion said it would cut 750 jobs, 610 of which will come from closing down its Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, facility by the end of the first quarter of fiscal 2012.

China's Trina Solar Ltd slashed its sales estimates for solar panels on Thursday because of weak European demand and said declines in panel prices would shrink its profit margins.

SunPower Corp. and First Solar Inc., the two largest US solar manufacturers, will reorganize as falling prices and increased competition from China drive down sales.

"[Making] bulk silicon HKMG at 28nm is hard. All foundries are having yield issues and defect density issues right now," said Bob Johnson, research vice president at Gartner.

ING's announcement follows job cuts by other big Dutch lenders. Nationalised Dutch bank ABN Amro is shedding 2,350 jobs as the state readies it for a return to private hands, while Rabobank said it planned 1,200 job cuts to save costs.

RealD, a producer of 3D video technology, has disclosed that Samsung has decided not to proceed with a previous plan to build TVs using the RealD 3D technology.

India's solar power costs could fall by more than 40 percent by 2015, allowing the industry to compete against domestic oil and gas firms without the help of state subsidies, the head of Lanco Solar told Reuters on Wednesday.

The solar power system Facebook Inc. plans for its new Menlo Park headquarters won't just supply electricity. It'll heat water for the showers, too. And maybe help clean dishes in the cafe.

Sony Corp warned of a fourth straight year of losses, with its television unit alone set to lose $2.2 billion on tumbling demand and a surging yen, sinking its US shares and raising concerns about the viability of its high-profile TV business.

ARM, which designs the technology at the heart of all the top smartphones and tablets, has dismissed its American rival Intel as a "niche" player in the future of computing.

The strong yen has had an impact on several Japanese companies including Toshiba, Honda Motor and Panasonic, which have reported lower second-quarter profits.

A public-private fund that will acquire the small- and mid-size LCD operations of Toshiba, Hitachi and Sony will also buy a Panasonic factory for about JPY20 billion (US$255.5 million), Japanese business daily The Nikkei said.

Flush from better-than-expected third quarter revenues, flash memory supplier SanDisk is buying back up to US$500 million of its stock over the next five years, joining a growing list of companies putting their cash to use to help build investor confidence.

The peremptory cut in subsidies for solar energy announced by the Government this week has stunned an industry that employs 25,000 people and that now faces ruin.