second quarter

Microsoft reported positive fiscal second-quarter results on Thursday. Total revenue was $20.89 billion for the quarter, which ended on Dec. 31, 2011.

Smartphone sales worldwide rose 74 percent year-over-year in the second-quarter but unit sales of Microsoft Windows Phones slipped, falling behind the Samsung Bada, according to Gartner research.

All of the major phone vendors have released their financial results for the second quarter, and Apple has captured two thirds of all profits made.

See the variances between HTC, RIM and alike here.

Apple's struggles to meet demand for the iPad 2 in the second quarter of fiscal 2011 were allegedly due to production problems and quality concerns with components, including LCD panels and speakers.

That has prompted one research firm to cut its 2011 sales forecast by 4 million units, to 39.7 million.

Microsoft mostly beat financial analyst expectations in its fiscal second quarter, reporting overall earnings of $19.9 billion.

In the second quarter of 2010, Google posted revenues $5.1 billion with advertising accounting for 96% of its revenues, 66% of its total revenue.

Not intending to rely on traditional search advertising, Google is said to be readying a huge push into mobile with the aim of securing revenues of $10 billion a year with the help of its Android OS

LinuxDevices: "A DisplaySearch study shows netbook sales continuing to defy the recession and the slow PC market, growing at a 264 percent rate in the second quarter year over year, says eWEEK.

However, netbooks are also eroding ASPs (average selling prices) across the mobile PC industry, claims the study."

Advanced Micro Devices stole a bit of market share away from rival Intel in graphics add-on cards during the second quarter, a report revealed Wednesday.

In total, graphics card sales rose slightly from the previous quarter, but still fell sharply from a year ago.

The Register: "With System z mainframe revenues down 39 per cent - and MIPS mainframe capacity shipments off 20 percent in the second quarter - IBM is keen on boosting mainframe sales.

And it wants to use Linux as a lever."

Taiwan's Compal Electronics, the world's second largest contract laptop maker, issued an upbeat outlook for the second quarter, as clients stock up from depressed inventory levels.