Technology

Microsoft reported strong profits and revenue for the most recent financial quarter, amid better than expected sales of its much-maligned Windows Vista operating system.

Sales rose 32 percent to $14.4 billion, and the company's net income for the third quarter increased to $4.93 billion.

Movie pirates ran a DVD factory in secret for two years by pretending they were scientists conducting research into highly contagious avian flu, according to Chinese police. The factory, in a quiet farming area in eastern China, sold more than 30 million DVDs before authorities finally noticed the mysterious flow of discs coming from the claimed 'research facility'.

Initially, the warnings about the hazard of deadly bird flu infections had been enough to keep local residents and suspicious officials well away from the factory at the end of a forest road.

Updated: The movie 'Spider-Man 3' has not been pirated, despite reports of copies being sold on the streets in China, claims Sony Pictures Entertainment. Earlier this week, Reuters reported that copies of the movie were on sale in Beijing.

Updated March 26: MySpace has failed to register its Chinese language domain name, despite being just days away from launching its service in the world's most populous market.

Skeptical analysts are still predicting a price cut for the PlayStation 3 this year, even though Sony may be about to reveal encouraging profit forecasts, according to reports from Japan today. Japan's Nikkei newspaper today claimed that Sony is expecting to improve operating profits to $3.35 billion this financial year – the paper did not identify the source of its information.