Apple passes Microsoft as tech leader; Google resists international regulators

It's getting tougher all the time to tell the players without a scorecard. For instance, imagine considering Microsoft the underdog and Apple the tech bully. That's exactly what's happened, though, as Apple has assumed the crown of the "world's most valuable technology company," according to the New York Times.

The financial wizards of Wall Street have valued Apple at $222.12 billion while Microsoft is worth only $219.18 billion.

Microsoft, as is to be expected, isn't taking this lying down. The software giant shook up its top level execs, including ousting the key player in the development of Xbox and Zune products. "That's a big change, but clearly a change is what the E&D (Entertainment & Devices) division needs," said a blog item by John Carroll on ZDnet.com.

Then there's the third leg of the stool, Google, which has resisted surrendering fragments of Internet data and emails it "improperly collected from unsecured home wireless networks," according to the New York Times. Regulators in Germany and Hong Kong had both requested the information to see if Google intruded on consumer privacy.

For more:
- ZDnet has this blog post
- see this story as well
- and this story

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