COMPANIES

Sony will be introducing new TVs, gadgets and its next generation handheld the Sony PlayStation Vita at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. The company is expected to reveal new content for its smart TVs at Sony's press event on Monday at CES. The company is also expected to heavily promote the PlayStation Vita for its upcoming U.S. and European release. The company will likely have some announcements for the Vita and even a hands-on demo for the participants. The PlayStation Vita was...

Amid Australia's resources boom which led to higher export activities, the workers in the country's seaports are becoming more restive as evidenced by increased strikes toward the end of 2011 and another round of industrial actions at the start of 2012.

Google Inc. is expanding its Internet-TV coalition as LG Electronics Inc., Samsung Electronics Co. and Vizio Inc. join Sony Corp. in showcasing Google TV products at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this year.

The chief executive of music app Spotify Daniel Ek showed off the hack that allows him to control the app using Siri.

In 2011, Samsung released powerful smartphones designed for different users and for different purposes. For 2012, there are speculations that the successor of Galaxy S2 will be released - the Galaxy S3. It is expected to be far more superior and powerful than all of its Galaxy relatives especially against the Nexus.

Adelaide Port workers who struck on Thursday got the support of the International Transport Federation (ITF) in their ongoing labor row with port operator DP World. The ITF spoke against the lockout of employees.

Qantas Airways downplayed on Friday possible questions on its flight safety as reports of cracks discovered on wing ribs of its A380s emerged, renewing fears that engine failures could again hit its aircrafts.

Wesfarmers reported on Friday that its coal export prices for the first quarter of 2012 would go down 19 per cent compared to the fourth quarter of 2011.

The iPad 3 rumor mill is at full tilt right now with speculation running wild about tablet's improved specs to when Apple will announce the next generation tablet. But along with rumors about the iPad 3 there are also reports about what will happen to Apple's current tablet, the iPad 2.

Elders International, a major exporter of Australian beef, complained of difficulty in planning its foreign shipments because of the unclear import permit policy by Indonesia.

Microsoft Research is collaborating with researchers from the University of Washington to develop a 'smart' contact lens that can directly transmit digital information to the wearer's eye.

Samsung's Galaxy S III and the next generation Galaxy Tab will likely debut at MWC. Despite the spotlight focusing on new smart TVs and Intel's new Ultrabooks that doesn't mean the mobile industry is going to be completely silent at CES. Here are some of the mobile trends to expect at CES 2012.

Yahoo Inc. finally named its new CEO on Wednesday hiring President of PayPal Scott Thompson in an effort to recharge the flagging Internet company.

Yancoal Australia asked the Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) to either delay or lower the level of its interest in coal mining in New South Wales and Queensland.

Australian carmakers are forecasting that the industry will hit one million unit sales in 2012. However, the bulk of the sales will be small cars based on changing consumer preference.

Apple emerged as the winner in the patent case against Taiwanese-based firm HTC which means that the company was triumphant in placing a ban against "offending smartphones" in the U.S. starting April 9, 2012.

Intel Corp. announced that the company is consolidating their mobile business division in order to have a competitive advantage in the ever-developing mobile market.

Scott Thompson, eBay Inc.'s top executive, was hired by Yahoo Inc. He was designated as the new chief executive while attempting to proceed with an independent unit.

The Russian market will have first taste of Samsung's new Galaxy phone - the new Galaxy Ace Plus that experts said derives its look from an earlier version of Apple's iPhone.

The number of apps available for downloads on Android Market reached the 400,000 milestone recently, indicating, experts said, that developers have begun regarding the Google platform equally lucrative as that of Apple's.

Australian stevedoring firm DP World locked out for 24 hours on Thursday striking Adelaide port workers.

Prices of weaner steers reached $895 and weaner heifers $870 on Wednesday at the opening of the Wodonga yearly weaner and grown steer sale. The prices of steers were at 305 cents per kilogramme and 256 cents for heifers due to the strong demand from northern and Victorian buyers.

Tiger Airways Australia is eyeing Avalon Airport as its second hub because of the strong performance of the budget air carrier in 2011. In the seven-month period March 27 through Oct 31, Tiger added 380,000 seats to its four current routes.

While gold's glitter partly dimmed toward the last few months of 2011, a study released Wednesday predicted that diamond and gemstone mining will be strong industries in Australia in 2012.

ETrade, ANZ Bank's online broking business, shuttered its Web site over the holidays because of an offshore cyber attack.

Qantas Airways has revealed plans of loaning significant numbers of its pilots to other international airlines, claiming that they agreed to go on unpaid leave as the national carrier implements measures to reduce its costs.

It was still a banner year for the mining sector of Australia in 2011 despite claims by some groups that the boom has waned. Proof of the strength of the mining sector is that while the previous year was marked by economic contraction in many countries, construction work on new resources projects in Australia went up 31 per cent for the year.

Growth of Australia's services sector has remained subdued in December with business services posting headwinds ahead of the consumer-related services offered by local firms in December, according to the latest survery conducted by the country's Australian Industry Group and the Commonwealth Bank.

Microsoft recently launched a tech support website that users could use when encountering technical problems.