 |
Housing pop is no bubble: Trulia CEO
At the Reuters Tech Summit, Trulia chief executive Pete Flint says private equity investors are starting to pull back from buying U.S. real estate, while overseas buyers are coming on strong once again. Video
Reuters Photojournalism
Our day's top images, in-depth photo essays and offbeat slices of life. See the best of Reuters photography. See more | Photo caption
The Afghan Army
The many faces of the Afghan National Army, which has taken over security of the country from NATO. Slideshow
Sponsored Links
Microsoft acquires start-up id8: source
The interior of a Microsoft retail store is seen in San Diego January 18, 2012.
Credit: Reuters/Mike Blake
SAN FRANCISCO |
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp bought start-up id8 Group R2 Studios Inc as it looks to expand further in technology focused on the home and entertainment, a person familiar with the situation said on Wednesday.
id8 Group R2 Studios was started in 2011 by Silicon Valley entrepreneur and investor Blake Krikorian. It recently launched a Google Android application to allow users to control home heating and lighting systems from smartphones.
Krikorian's Sling Media - which was sold to EchoStar Communications in 2007 - made the "Slingbox" for watching TV on computers.
Krikorian will join Microsoft with a small team, according to the Wall Street Journal, which reported the acquisition earlier on Wednesday. Microsoft also purchased some patents owned by the start-up related to controlling electronic devices, the newspaper added.
Krikorian and a Microsoft spokesman declined to comment.
Krikorian resigned from Amazon.com Inc's board in late December after about a year and a half as a director at the company, the Internet's largest retailer.
(Reporting By Alistair Barr; Editing by Steve Orlofsky)
- Tweet this
- Link this
- Share this
- Digg this
- Reprints
Follow Reuters