Microsoft said Thursday it invested an undisclosed sum in ThingWorld.com, a 3-year-old company that produces streaming media used in animations like screen savers, digital trading, cards, and Web graphics.
The companies didn't disclose terms of the transaction.
ThingWorld.com will begin working more closely with Microsoft to integrate Windows technology into its products. In return, Microsoft plans to show off its technology through ThingWorld.com's sports and entertainment partners like the NFL, the World Wrestling Federation, Hasbro, Comedy Central, and Major League Soccer.
"If you can get new technologies bundled more rapidly on hot content like the WWF, it becomes a great vehicle to get them into the marketplace," said Steve Barlow, ThingWorld.com's chief executive officer.
Barlow said the company wants to create more media that can attract users and drive commerce, such as a South Park Chef Aid screen saver.
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Telco Y2K suit: A New York law firm is suing AT&T and Lucent Technologies for allegedly not fixing Y2K-related defects in their software and telecom-switching equipment -- a problem the lawyers claim could lead to telephone-system failures.
The suit claims AT&T and Lucent knowingly sold products for years, but didn't tell customers about the problems until recently. Customers often have to pay more than US$8,000 to fix their systems, the suit charges.
New York's Beatie & Osborn, which filed the suit, says it wants AT&T and Lucent to cover the cost of fixing or replacing products with Y2K defects. The firm is seeking class-action status.
Lucent and AT&T are trying to dismiss the suit.
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Audible gets louder: Audible, a Net company that sells sound versions of print publications, said Thursday it landed $11 million from Microsoft, AT&T, Compaq Computer, Hambrecht & Quist, Intel, and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Buyers.
Audible, based in Wayne, New Jersey, offers downloadable sound files from publications like The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, National Public Radio, and from best-selling authors like John Grisham.
Recently, the company said it would make its content playable on handheld devices like Diamond Multimedia's Rio player, Creative Labs' Nomad player, and on boxes running Microsoft's Windows CE operating system.
