AP & WRAL TechWire

Cisco Systems (Nasdq: CSCO), the world’s largest maker of computer networking gear, said Wednesday that it’s set to eliminate thousands of jobs as part of cost-cutting moves to get profits growing again. The company’s largest operation other than its California headquarters is located in Research Triangle Park.  “There are no excuses, we must adjust quickly,” Cisco Chairman and Chief Executive Officer John Chambers said, according to Dow Jonws news. “We are, and we will.” (Chambers sees cuts as “surgical,” not a “haircut” – read details here.) The networking giant has been cutting back in recent weeks, eliminating 550 jobs...

Here is a summary of recent earnings and reports for selected technology companies and what they reveal about the state of spending and the overall economy: Jan. 5: Tekelec cuts revenue forecast; CEO leaves. Jan. 13: Intel Corp. says net income jumped 48 percent, mainly on strong demand from corporations for Intel’s higher-profit server chips. Yet the sour economy and the rise of smaller and sleeker gadgets such as the iPad have hurt consumers’ appetite for new PCs, depressing that part of Intel’s business. Jan. 18: Cree shares tumble on lower revenue forecasts in LED markets. Jan. 18: Apple...

Here are highlights of recent quarterly earnings reports from selected Internet, media and advertising companies and what they say about the state of spending on advertising: Triangle-based ChannelAdvisor reports record e-commerce sales over the holidays and for 2010. Off the wires: Jan. 20: Google Inc. says advertising revenue grew 26 percent to $8.2 billion in the fourth quarter. Advertising accounts for the bulk of Google’s revenue. After subtracting the commissions paid to Google’s advertising partners, the company’s revenue totaled $6.37 billion – about $300 million more than analysts anticipated. Jan. 25: Yahoo Inc. says ad revenue fell 10 percent...

Federal regulators have given a satellite start-up called LightSquared clearance to use its allotted airwaves to provide wireless broadband services that could compete with AT&T and Verizon Wireless. The Federal Communications Commission is granting the Reston, Va., company a waiver from federal rules limiting the use of those airwaves to providing back-up wireless connections for satellite phone service. Without the waiver, LightSquared’s network could only be used to provide ground-based broadband service if it can also connect to a satellite. LightSquared, launched in July by private-equity firm Harbinger Capital Partners, has the spectrum because Harbinger already owns satellite company...

Data storage company EMC Corp. (NYSE: EMC) said Tuesday its fourth-quarter earnings jumped 61 percent, boosted by the continued growth of technology spending. That’s good news for the Massachusetts-based firm, which maintains a growing presence in the Research Triangle Park area with manufacturing and research-and-development operations. As corporations have started replacing old equipment and software again, EMC says it is also benefiting from the shift to so-called “cloud” computing, in which software and data are stored on remote servers rather than in-house machines. It was the fifth straight quarter of earnings growth for EMC. “EMC’s performance in 2010 was...

Facebook said Friday it has raised $1 billion from non-U.S. investors, which combined with an infusion from Goldman Sachs and Russia’s Digital Sky Technologies in December, brings the haul from its latest round of funding to $1.5 billion. The investments value the social networking site at $50 billion, more than the current market values of Yahoo Inc. or eBay Inc., but below those of Amazon.com Inc. and Google Inc. The transaction consisted of two parts. On Friday, Goldman Sachs completed an oversubscribed offering to its non-U.S. clients in a fund that invested $1 billion in Facebook Class A common...

Funding to startups slipped in the fourth quarter of 2010 as venture capitalists funneled less money into fewer companies, with biotechnology taking the brunt of the drop-off, according to a study slated for release Friday. For the full year, however, overall investments rose 19 percent from their 2009 level. North Carolina had an especially strong year with deal-making rebounding to pre-recession levels. Read the details here. Georgia ranked 13th nationally with 63 deals generating more than $333 million in funding. Unlike in many other states, including N.C., Georgia deal making rose sharply in the fourth quarter with 12 deals...

Taiwan’s top smartphone maker HTC said Friday its fourth-quarter earnings more than doubled from a year earlier amid strong demand in global markets. HTC will soon open a major research and development center in Durham. Net profit for the October-December quarter surged to $500 million, up 160 percent from a year earlier, and a 31 percent increase from the third quarter, the company said in a statement. HTC will employ about 45 people at the Durham office, which will open by the end of March. The operation will handle research into wireless technology and could expand in the future....

Google Inc. (Nasdaq: GOOG) co-founder Larry Page is taking over as CEO in an unexpected shake-up that upstaged the Internet search leader’s fourth-quarter earnings. Page, 37, is reclaiming the top job from Eric Schmidt, who had been brought in as CEO a decade ago because Google’s investors believed the company needed a more mature leader. “We’ve been talking about how best to simplify our management structure and speed up decision making for a long time,” Schmidt said ina statement. “By clarifying our individual roles we’ll create clearer responsibility and accountability at the top of the company. In my clear...