SAN FRANCISCO – Former Hewlett-Packard Co. CEO Mark Hurd is in talks to take a top executive job at Oracle Corp., the database software maker run by his friend Larry Ellison, a person with direct knowledge of the discussions said Sunday.

It wasn’t immediately clear what job Hurd would take. But the person told The Associated Press that Ellison, the only person to serve as Oracle’s CEO since he founded the company 33 years ago, wouldn’t be leaving that post. This person emphasized that the talks were not yet finalized.

The person was not authorized to discuss the confidential negotiations and spoke on condition of anonymity.

The possibility of Hurd landing at Oracle isn’t a surprise. Ellison was vocal in coming to Hurd’s defense after Hurd’s sudden resignation Aug. 6 in the wake of a sexual harassment investigation.

Hurd’s resignation was stunning because he was widely praised on Wall Street.

Investors praised his cost-cutting; HP announced about 50,000 job cuts over the five years Hurd was CEO. Wall Street also liked that he engineered more than $20 billion in acquisitions, which helped HP reduce its dependence on printer ink for the bulk of its profits. HP is now a major player in technology services and computer networking.

Those traits could help Hurd at Oracle, which is also known for aggressive dealmaking and cost cuts.

Hurd would also join Oracle at an interesting juncture for both companies.

Oracle, the No. 1 database software maker, and HP, the No. 1 personal computer and printer maker, are longtime partners that are increasingly squaring off against each other. Oracle’s $7.4 billion acquisition of Sun Microsystems last year made it a competitor to HP in the market for computer servers.

The Wall Street Journal reported on Hurd’s job talks with Oracle earlier.

In coming to Hurd’s defense following his resignation, Ellison called HP’s decision to oust Hurd the worst personnel decision since Apple Inc. forced out Steve Jobs — another of Ellison’s friends — 25 years ago. Jobs later returned and lifted Apple out of a funk, turning it onto a top maker of consumer-electronics products.

Ellison has said the HP board’s decision to publicly disclose the harassment claim against Hurd amounted to "cowardly corporate political correctness," as the board had found that Hurd didn’t violate the company’s sexual harassment policies.

The investigation unearthed inaccurate expense reports connected with Hurd’s outings with his eventual accuser, an actress and HP contractor named Jodie Fisher.

The substance of her claim was that her work helping organize HP events dried up after she rebuffed Hurd’s advances. Hurd, 53, who is married with two children, denies making any advances on Fisher. Hurd also insists he didn’t prepare his own expenses and didn’t try to conceal his outings with Fisher, which often included dinner after the events Fisher helped organize and that Hurd attended.

HP has emphasized that its board voted unanimously for Hurd’s resignation.

BEIJING – East Asia is the world’s electronics factory, yet unless they are Japanese, producers are largely anonymous. Now HTC Corp., a Taiwanese maker of smart phones, is moving out of the shadows and trying to establish its own brand name as it competes with Apple’s iPhone.

HTC supplies U.S. carriers Verizon, Sprint and T-Mobile but says a year ago only one in 10 Americans knew its name. With the help of marketing by cellular carriers and HTC’s own television ads during the baseball World Series, HTC says that number is up to 40 percent.

"We want to be one of the leaders," said John Wang, the 13-year-old company’s chief marketing officer.

In trying to establish a global brand, HTC is following in the footsteps of another Taiwanese company, Acer Inc., which is battling Dell Inc. for the title of second-largest personal computer maker. Other rising Taiwanese technology names include software producer Trend Micro Inc. and Asustek Computer Inc., a maker of PCs and cell phones.

HTC’s path to its own brand has been complicated by U.S. carriers’ preference for many years to market its phones under their own brands.

That started to change in 2007, and the "HTC" brand started showing up on phones, as carriers figured that the company had some cachet among early adopters that they could capitalize on. HTC phones on the U.S. market include the Droid Incredible, sold by Verizon Wireless, the HD2, sold by T-Mobile USA, and the Hero, sold by Sprint Nextel Corp.

Even now, HTC is careful to avoid straining ties with carriers by promoting its own identity too aggressively. Such ties are crucial in the United States, Japan and other markets where carriers usually pick which phones to offer. In Europe and elsewhere, customers pick their own phones and buy service separately.

"I don’t think it should ever become a ‘destination phone,’ because that is very arrogant," Wang said.

The company’s slogan, "Quietly Brilliant," expresses both modesty and pride.

Apple, of course, is anything but quiet, and HTC sets itself apart from the U.S.-based giant in other ways, too.

In contrast to lookalike iPhones, HTC tries to make handsets for every taste, some with slide-out keyboards, others with touch screens. While Apple has its own online store, HTC focuses on phones while carriers pick which music and applications to offer.

"This is positioning the vendor almost diametrically against the increasing perception of Apple as an egotistical and domineering company," Seth Wallis-Jones, an analyst for IHS Global Insight, said in an e-mail.

"This is a contrast to a company that wants to do one phone only and say, `This is the one and you are going to love it and if you don’t, there is something wrong with you,’" Wang said.

In the U.S., HTC made a splash this summer by producing the first phone, the EVO 4G, that’s able to use a fourth-generation wireless data network. It’s sold by Sprint. HTC also manufactured Google Inc.’s first phone, the Nexus One.

"These really put the brand into the spotlight in the United States," said Wallis-Jones.

Still, Apple has a daunting sales lead and HTC also faces competition from South Korea’s Samsung Electronics Co., Nokia Corp. and other rivals.

HTC was just behind Apple in the final quarter of 2008, selling 3.7 million phones to its American rival’s 4.4 million, according to Wallis-Jones. A year and a half later, Apple has pulled ahead, selling 8.4 million in the second quarter of this year, while HTC sold 5.4 million.

But HTC is seeing its sales jump. It expects to ship 6.5 million phones in the current quarter, more than twice the number it shipped in the same period last year.

HTC cut its teeth on smart phones that used Microsoft Corp.’s Windows Mobile software. But when Google released its Android smart phone software in 2008, HTC was the first manufacturer on board, and that’s paid off. Every U.S. carrier except AT&T, the home of the iPhone, is pushing Android phones as the alternative to the iPhone.

HTC is pitted against Apple in the legal arena as well. Apple sued HTC in March in the U.S., accusing it of violating 20 iPhone patents. In May, HTC filed a countersuit accusing Apple of violating five patents.

Among consumers, HTC needs to create a distinctive identity as more than a manufacturer, said Joseph Pai, chairman of advertising agency Ogilvy & Mather Taiwan.

"They get the technology right, but Apple is considered fun and creative and very bright," said Pai. "HTC is quite serious. Their technology is good. They keep coming out with new products. But they need to find their own personality."

HTC is working on that, trying to build a reputation for anticipating users’ needs and inventing appealing solutions, Wang said. The company calls that "HTC Sense" and says it wants to create "moments of delight."

Its innovations include allowing users to group together friends’ e-mail, social networking and other contacts under their names, while the iPhone requires separate contact lists for each function. HTC phones can sense when they are in a pocket or purse and ring louder. The EVO has a tiny kickstand to stand upright for video conferencing.

HTC promotes itself as a cross-border brand, with no mention of its Taiwanese roots. The company holds major product launches in London or New York, rather than Asia.

"People don’t really think of Sony as Japanese any more. That’s what I envision HTC to be," Wang said. "Eventually people will see HTC as a global brand, not necessarily from Taiwan or Europe or the U.S."

___

Online:

http://www.htc.com

SAN FRANCISCO – Google Inc.’s methods for recommending websites are being reviewed by Texas’ attorney general in an investigation spurred by complaints that the company has abused its power as the Internet’s dominant search engine.

The antitrust inquiry disclosed by Google late Friday is just the latest sign of the intensifying scrutiny facing the company as it enters its adolescence. Since its inception in a Silicon Valley garage 12 years ago, Google has gone from a quirky startup to one of the world’s most influential businesses with annual revenue approaching $30 billion.

A spokesman for Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott confirmed the investigation, but declined further comment.

The review appears to be focused on whether Google is manipulating its search results to stifle competition.

The pecking order of those results can make or break websites because Google’s search engine processes about two-thirds of the search requests in the U.S. and handles even more volume in some parts of the world.

That dominance means a website ranking high on the first page of Google’s results will likely attract more traffic and generate more revenue, either from ads or merchandise sales.

On the flip side, being buried in the back pages of the results, or even at the bottom of the first page, can be financially devastating and, in extreme cases, has been blamed for ruining some Internet companies.

European regulators already have been investigating complaints alleging that Google has been favoring its own services in its results instead of rival websites.

Several lawsuits filed in the U.S. also have alleged Google’s search formula is biased. Google believes Abbott is the first state attorney general to open an antitrust review into the issue.

"We look forward to answering (Abbott’s) questions because we’re confident that Google operates in the best interests of our users," Don Harrison, Google’s deputy general counsel, wrote in a Friday blog post.

Harrison said that Abbott has asked Google for information about several companies, including: Foundem, an online shopping comparison site in Britain; SourceTool, which runs an e-commerce site catering to businesses; and MyTriggers, another shopping comparison site.

All of those companies offer features that Google includes in its search engine or in other parts of its website. Foundem, SourceTool and MyTriggers have previously filed lawsuits or regulatory complaints against Google.

"Given that not every website can be at the top of the results, or even appear on the first page of our results, it’s unsurprising that some less relevant, lower quality websites will be unhappy with their ranking," Harrison wrote.

Google says its closely guarded search formula strives to recommend websites that are most likely to satisfy the needs of each user’s request. If it didn’t keep its users happy, Google argues that people would become disgruntled and switch to other search engines offered by Yahoo Inc., Microsoft Corp. and IAC/InterActiveCorp’s Ask.com.

Regulators and lawmakers in the U.S. and Europe also have been looking into Google’s privacy practices and its acquisitions as the company tries to fortify its power.

SAN FRANCISCO – Apple Inc. is refining its plans to annex the living room into its entertainment empire.

On Wednesday, Apple unveiled a smaller, cheaper version of Apple TV, which connects to a high-definition television and can show rented movies and TV shows from Apple’s own service, plus content from Netflix, photos on Flickr, YouTube clips and more.

The new $99 gadget marks a slight improvement over Apple’s first television set-top box, which went on sale in 2007. The original Apple TV had to sync with a computer, a concept most consumers weren’t ready for, Apple CEO Steve Jobs said at a media event Wednesday. It also didn’t record live television shows the way TiVo and other digital recorders did, at a time when that was becoming a popular way to watch TV.

"We’ve sold a lot of them, but it’s never been a huge hit," Jobs said of the existing Apple TV, which went for $229.

Jobs, who presided over a media event in San Francisco wearing a black crew neck instead of his trademark mock turtleneck, also unveiled social media features for its iTunes software, a new lineup of iPods including a touch-screen Nano and new software for its iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad devices.

Apple’s new TV box, about four inches square, still doesn’t record television, but it comes at a time when more people have gotten used to watching shows online.

The device lets people rent, not buy, content. Apple TV owners will pay $4.99 to rent first-run high-definition movies the day they come out on DVD. High-definition TV show rentals will be 99 cents.

Apple said the same movie studios that have allowed iTunes users to rent and buy movies have agreed to include their titles for streaming. Apple did not rent TV shows before, but now episodes will be available from News Corp.’s Fox, The Walt Disney Co.’s ABC, ABC Family and Disney Channel and BBC America. Jobs said he hoped other television companies would join once the service gains popularity.

Apple TV, which will be available within a month, will also display shows, movies, photos and music streamed over Wi-Fi from other devices — computers with iTunes installed, as well as iPhones, iPads and the iPod Touch. For example, an iPad owner could start watching a movie on the tablet, then walk into the living room and, with a few taps, finish watching it on the TV screen.

Consumers may have grown more savvy about watching TV over the Internet since Apple’s first attempt, but Apple now faces increased competition for their attention.

Some television companies replay episodes on their own websites, while others allow viewers to tune in on aggregator sites such as Hulu. Netflix has made its streaming library available to its subscribers on many devices, including Microsoft Corp.’s Xbox 360 video game system, Apple’s own iPhone and iPod and Roku’s set-top boxes. Roku, anticipating Apple’s announcement, cut the prices of its devices this week, with the least expensive now costing $60. A high-definition version costs $70 — still $29 less than the new Apple TV.

In a surprise counter-punch, Amazon.com Inc. on Wednesday began selling ABC, Fox and BBC TV shows for 99 cents each to own, not just rent. The shows, in both standard and high-def, are a mirror image of the content available to rent on Apple TV; people can watch on PCs, using Roku’s set-top box and through other devices that carry Amazon’s Video on Demand service.

In Fox’s case, Amazon did not seek to renegotiate the wholesale price on the shows, according a person familiar with the matter. That means Amazon has likely cut into its own profit margin to stay competitive.

Amazon did not immediately respond to a request for more information about the 99-cent offering. Apple declined to comment.

Forrester analyst James McQuivey said in an interview Wednesday that he doesn’t believe Apple TV will add significant momentum to the currently small set-top box business. Nor does McQuivey believe it will grow into a big moneymaker for Apple, a company that has successfully built buzz around the iPhone and iPad, such that customers camp out for hours or days to be among the first to own one.

Apple TV is "a slightly smarter Roku, that has a significantly better marketing push behind it than Roku did," McQuivey said. "I’m actually kind of surprised that Apple didn’t realize that they weren’t revolutionizing the category much."

Instead, McQuivey said he sees Apple TV as a peripheral for iPad owners who spent a lot of money on the coolest new device and might be willing to spend $99 more to extend its contents onto the TV screen.

Additional content at attractive prices may be the way to get more people interested in Apple TV, McQuivey said — bundled subscriptions to TV channels or shows, plus content from Netflix and Hulu’s pay offerings, perhaps.

But Apple may continue to face resistance from media companies, many of which fear that such bundles cut undercut lucrative cable TV deals and that the 99-cent television rentals would hurt higher-priced offerings for permanent download. Most episodes currently sell on iTunes for $1.99 or $2.99.

News Corp., for one, had a fierce internal debate about the merits of the 99-cent plan, but CEO Rupert Murdoch pushed to accept it, mainly because of the success of The Wall Street Journal’s iPad app, which is free to the Journal’s paying subscribers, according to the person familiar with the matter.

The deal for Fox-created TV shows including "Glee" is limited to a trial period of several months, which mollified those opposed to the plan, the person said. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because internal discussions were confidential.

In a public statement, Fox Filmed Entertainment CEO Jim Gianopulos said "we’re excited to be working with them over the next several months to explore this innovative offering."

Fox cannot let Apple rent shows that it buys from other studios, including "American Idol," made by FremantleMedia Ltd., and "Fringe," which is made by Time Warner Inc.’s Warner Bros. Television. Fox’s rentals include "Glee," "Family Guy" and "The Cleveland Show."

Anne Sweeney, co-chairwoman of the Disney-ABC Television Group, said in a statement the company was proud to team up with Apple on its rental offering, which will make available shows such as "Cougar Town" and "Desperate Housewives." Apple’s Jobs is Disney’s largest single shareholder and sits on the company’s board.

Kurt Scherf, an analyst with the market-research group Parks Associates, said requiring consumers to buy yet another box for the living room "is a real inhibitor."

And although he praised Apple’s decision to lower the price of the device itself, he had doubts about TV rentals for 99 cents.

"Part of me is still wondering if that is too rich for a consumer to pay, given all the other options that are out there to consume and catch up on TV shows that don’t cost a thing," he said.

Michael Gartenberg, a partner at consulting firm Altimeter Group, cast a more optimistic light on Apple’s chances of making it into consumers’ living rooms, but said in an interview that he doesn’t expect it to drastically change anyone’s TV watching habits.

Instead, it just raises the stakes for Apple’s competitors.

"This puts a lot of pressure on the Rokus and the Boxees and all the other minor league players," he said.

Shares of Apple gained $7.23, or 3 percent, to close at $250.33 Wednesday.

___

Mintz reported from Seattle. AP Business Writer Ryan Nakashima in Los Angeles contributed to this report.

NEW YORK – Walt Disney Co. and Time Warner Cable Inc. said Sunday that they have made "significant progress" in resolving their issues over programming fees with less than a week left to renew a pact that feeds TV channels like ESPN into American households.

"We are now focusing all our attention on a successful conclusion of these efforts prior to the Sep. 2 deadline," both companies said on their websites Sunday.

Both companies have agreed to pull marketing campaigns that they had launched this past summer aimed at persuading public opinion to their side, The Wall Street Journal reported online Sunday. They now expect to reach a deal without "blacking out any TV networks," the paper said, citing unnamed people familiar with the talks.

The Disney-Time Warner Cable feud marks the latest scuffle between subscription television providers and media companies that own the TV networks they distribute into consumers’ homes. As the recession forced businesses to cut budgets for TV advertising — traditionally the main source of revenue for broadcast stations — television networks started asking for a higher fee per subscriber. The cable TV companies have resisted, saying higher fees will get passed along to customers in the form of bigger cable bills.

In March, Cablevision Systems Corp. customers lost their ABC station in New York in the hours leading up to the Oscars due to a programming fee dispute. The two sides reached a tentative deal that night, and the channel was restored to viewers 15 minutes into the awards show. Other standoffs have pitted Time Warner Cable against News Corp.’s Fox stations, and Mediacom Communications Corp. against Sinclair Broadcasting Group.