Intel

US WiMAX operator Clearwire looks set to switch on a mobile WiMAX network in the US city of Portland early next year, its first since its high-profile asset merger with Sprint Nextel was completed at the end of November.

The BBC notes that Intel, the world's biggest computer chip maker, has cut its forecast for its fourth-quarter earnings for the second time.

The BBC notes that slowing spending on computers saw Intel profits fall by 90 percent from US$2.3 billion to US$234 million in the last three months of 2008.

Telecompaper notes that Intel has disclosed plans to restructure some of its manufacturing operations and align its manufacturing capacity to current market conditions.

Telecompaper notes that Craig Barrett intends to retire from active management in his role as chairman of Intel at the company's shareholder meeting in May.

Reuters reports that Intel plans to invest US$7 billion over two years to build next-generation US chip manufacturing plants, unveiling its biggest spending plan for new technology amid a deepening economic recession and huge internal job cuts.

Nokia has dismissed the prospects of WiMAX becoming a serious player in the next-generation mobile technology era.