Top 10 Tech Stories Of 2012

2012 was enriched with evolutions and revolutions in tech. Justifying the phrase, “change always involves conflict,” tech giants fought with each other in markets, web, courts, and even among themselves, paving way to some major headlines of the year. Adding to it, 2012 also witnessed some unbelievable transitions of  few tech titans.

Here are the top 10 stories, which defined the year in tech.

#10 Microsoft’s Biggest Bet Ever: Windows 8

Microsoft is the ever grateful tech giant to millions. Its products defined the term “computer” to many. The tech titan, who is lately in a struggling phase, has released its trump card, Windows 8 into the market few months back. The stakes have never been higher for the software giant, which dominated the industry for three long decades. The future rests in success of Windows 8 for PCs, Windows phone 8 for the Smartphones and Windows RT for tablets. The company has also made a risky entry into the hardware segment with its own tablet Surface and is readying the office and server software to be released in 2013. So the next year will decide Microsoft’s fate in the post PC era.

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#9 Apple Tastes $1 Billion Patent Victory

It’s for the first time in decades that patent wars ruled the top headlines, almost the entire year. A California District Court jury in August, ordered Samsung to pay $1 billion- may be the highest amount fined to anyone for patent infringement- to Apple. Almost all the major products from both companies were dragged into the courtrooms on alleged patent infringements. Samsung is appealing and the fight is going on in many courts around the world. Other tech giants including Microsoft, Google owned Motorola, Nokia and others also played their part in contributing to the patent war in the year.

#8 HP And The Biggest Accounting Scandal

Hewlett-Packard stunned the Wall Street and customers in November, when it alleged Autonomy, its subsidiary in UK, for a massive accounting scandal of $8.8 billion write-down. Eventhogh HP blamed Autonomy’s former management for all troubles, the company hit back, adding to the board room dramas happening inside the once leading PC manufacturer of the world. The company had made a series of missteps in this year including a short lived decision to enter the Smartphone-Tablet market and a decision to sell off its PC business. Meg Whitman, the new CEO, is trying to resurrect the company in every way possible. However, the company also lost its leading manufacturer title to Lenovo.

#7 Facebook And The IPO Tragedy

The world’s biggest social network, with approximately 1 billion users set out on its journey to become one among the most valuable companies in the world by offering its IPO at $38. It kept up with hype till the last moment with most of the shares getting looted by celebrity Silicon Valley Angels and the Private Equity firms, hurting the common investor. However things turned upside down in a jiffy. With analysts cutting revenue forecasts, just before opening; shares reaching as low as $24; Nasdaq noticing for the late trading; investors suing Zuckerberg,  the most hyped IPO of the decade turned a disaster.

#6 A Troubled Apple

Apple’s iPhone 5 release was probably one of the best discussed topics of this year in tech arena. But the top headline which attracted many was the exposure of poor working conditions at Apple’s manufacturing plants. Around 2000 workers at the Foxconn factory in China turned riots on a September evening, putting pressure on the Cupertino tech giant, which had came under fire for poor working conditions in early years. There have also been multiple suicides inside the facility. Eventhough Apple requested the Fair Labor Association an enquiry, the conditions are still under the labor of “improvement.”

#5 Will Google Be Finally Declared ‘Evil’?

The search giant got a blow, when after two years of investigation, the European Competition Commissioner had warned Google on manipulating search results for its own gain and asked to find remedies within short time. In October, later the year, the Federal Trade Commission was also convinced after a yearlong investigation that Google indeed is using its search service to direct users to its own services and to reduce the visibility of competing websites and services.

According to reports, the proceedings for a lawsuit are under progress. Meanwhile in October, Google became the most valuable tech company after Apple, replacing Google.

#4 Intel’s Decline- Titanic Shift in the Technology World

In 2012 October, Intel, the world’s largest chip makers sales declined for the first time in 12 years, which according to the analysts, predicts a big shift in tech sphere- the move to mobile devices. Intel is falling back in this market due to the inability to fast adaption. Moreover, with AMD announcing ARM licenses, ending its long lasting relationship with x86 architecture and entering Intel’s area, the competition is expected to get tougher.

#3 Internet Kills SOPA

In an act which can be called as direst democracy, the Stop Online Privacy Act (SOPA) bill, which was introduced to control the websites in the name of protecting copyrighted materials, was stopped in 2012, due to major oppositions from all over the world. The internet joined its hands together, including all the major websites like Wikipedia to protest against the law which contradictory to the proponents’ arguments, will limit free speech, invade privacy, and limit creativity.

 

#2 Flame- The Biggest Virus Ever

The world’s “largest” cyber attack has been uncovered in May with the discovery of ‘Flame’- the most complex computer virus ever. The complex virus sized 20 MB has been used for cyber espionage in Middle East including Iran and North Africa. The researchers came to the conclusion that the massive Virus is a product of a Government backed project due to its sophistication. Its resemblance to the virus which created problems for Iran’s nuclear plant pointed the possible involvement of U.S. and Israel.

#1 Android Rules

The ongoing debate on the leading Smartphone platform came to a halt in this year as Android overtook Apple’s iOS, grabbing 75 percent of the world’s Smartphone market in Q3 of 2012. Google also entered into the hardware market with its own tablet, the Nexus 7. The tight competition between Apple and Google   has made life difficult for Blackberry and Microsoft.