COMPANIES

Three websites accused of copyright infringement for allowing the illegal download of Android apps have been taken down. Applanet.net, Appbucket.net and Snappzmarket.com have all been seized by the FBI.

We're less than a month away from the alleged unveiling date for the iPhone 5, and Apple fans can't wait to get their hands on the company's latest model, which promises a new exterior design and hundreds of new features inside. While selling an old smartphone or iPhone before the next one releases has a few benefits, by and large, most users should wait to sell their old iPhones to buy an iPhone 5. We explain five reasons to wait it out.

With rumors swirling that the next generation iPhone will have a Sept. 12 release date and hit stores on Sept. 21, many are wondering what they can do with their old iPhone or recently purchased iPhone. But Gazelle, one of the nation's largest consumer electronics trade-in site, has the answer. Gazelle will extend its iPhone buyback deal with the current August price locked in until October so that consumers can take advantage of the highly anticipated new iPhone. But how exactly does a custo...

Platinum rose to its highest level since early May on Wednesday and was set for its biggest weekly gain in 10 months as spreading labor unrest in top producer South Africa cast doubt over output for the year.

Vestas Wind Systems A/S, the western Denmark-based energy company and the world's largest maker of wind turbines, announced Wednesday that it is letting go of 1,400 workers - a 7 percent cut of its entire workforce.

Mac OS X Mountain Lion has out in the wild for a month now, and by and large, users are very happy with Apple's biggest new cat. Apple will address some of the most common issues reported among early adopters of Mountain Lion in the 10.8.1 update, but on Tuesday, it's been reported that the first maintenance upgrade "substantially" improves battery life on MacBook laptops.

Online auctioneer eBay (Nasdaq: EBAY) will team with Discover Financial Services (NYSE: DFS) to offer electronic payments in as many as seven million U.S. outlets next year, the companies announced. The move is intended to spur e-payments among users of smartphones.

The Florida home of Kate "Ma" Barker, matriarch of the infamous Barker gang from the "public enemy era," is currently up for sale. Check out photos of the 2,016 square foot estate

Shares of Dell (Nasdaq: DELL), the No. 3 PC maker, plunged more than 5 percent after the company reported poor second-quarter results and issued a forecast for lower sales ahead. In pre-market trading, shares fell as low as $11.72, down 62 cents.

Saudi Arabia will begin deep-water drilling in the Red Sea by the end of the year, says Khalid al Falih, president and CEO of Saudi Aramco, the world's largest oil company.

Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE: HPQ), the world’s biggest computer company, has nowhere to go but up. Scheduled to report third-quarter financials after the market close Wednesday, investors and technologists will be watching for signs that its restructuring and massive write-offs are over.

The iPad Mini, the Apple device reportedly coming in September that is not named "iPhone," has been rumored since early January -- reports then called it "the iPad 4" -- but few know any real details about Apple's incredible shrunk-down tablet, especially concernimg its appearance.

Carl's Jr. and Hardee's teamed up for their new sinful creation: The Memphis BBQ Burger.

Thirteen former employees of General Motors' Colombian subsidiary are in the fourth week of a hunger strike outside of the U.S. Embassy in Bogota. They say GM fired them when they were injured on the job and has not provided medical care or pensions.

Dell (Nasdaq: DELL), the No. 3 PC maker, reported second-quarter results that missed analyst?s estimates. Worse, the company said it expected third-quarter performance to fall below expectations.

Market watchers are writing the obituary for struggling big box electronics retailer Best Buy Co. (NYSE:BBY), whose share price plunged to a nearly four-year low on Tuesday, even as stakeholders waited to see if the new CEO can live up to his reputation.

Royal Dutch Shell announced plans to spend at least $1 billion a year exploiting China's supply of shale gas, Reuters reported. The news came from the energy firm's head executive in China, Lim Haw Kuang, who responded to Reuters' questions about the alleged $1 billion-a-year plan to invest in the potentially vast natural gas trove.

One of the longest-running printed video game magazines in the U.S. in Canada, Nintendo Power magazine will finally close its doors after a 24-year run. Nintendo Power is dead. Long live Nintendo Power.

Gamasutra reports that Electronic-Arts owned PopCap video game studio has issued a round of layoffs and closed down one of its international studios.

Electronic Arts Inc. (Nasdaq: EA) has removed a controversial promotion from the website for its upcoming military shooter "Medal of Honor: Warfighter" video game to sell branded weapons to the general public.

Nike Inc. (NYSE:NKE) has announced its most expensive sneaker yet, the "LeBron X," a virtual smart shoe that retails for a cool $315 per pair.

International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE: IBM), the no. 2 computer maker that?s also one of the biggest chipmakers, said it plans to acquire private Texas Memory Systems to bolster its offerings in the flash-memory sector crucial for new servers and mobile products.

The northeastern Chinese city of Tianjin announced a four-year plan to invest 1.5 trillion yuan ($236 billion) to stimulate industrial growth, Bloomberg News reported Tuesday. The Communist Party's Tianjin Daily also reported that investments have been announced for 10 industries, including petrochemicals and aerospace.

A lawsuit filed in San Francisco federal court Monday alleges that Marriott International, Hilton Hotels, Sheraton Hotels & Resorts and others conspired to use their market dominance to fix hotel prices with travel websites like Expedia, Travelocity and Booking.com, a subsidiary of Priceline.com.

In case you needed any more confirmation that Apple's next iPhone is coming in September, German carrier Mobilcom Debitel has added fuel to the iPhone 5 fire. The company is now featuring a page on their site with a red veil covering what appears to be an iPhone, hinting at its September release date.

Fisker Automotive Inc. is in a bad place right now, running out of money, recalling its hybrid-electric Karma luxury cars because they burst into flames and shuffling around executives faster than a losing team substitutes pitchers; it's hard to find a bright patch for the company that isn't on fire.

Siemens AG (NYSE: SI), Europe?s largest engineering company, is in early internal talks to slash thousands of jobs after posting quarterly results that came in sharply below analysts? estimates, a German newspaper reported Tuesday.

Best Buy Co. (NYSE: BBY) is not having a good week.

The Instacube, which launched on Kickstarter Tuesday morning, is the solution for Instagram users that want enjoy their photos in more casual way. Now, anyone can passively view their Instagram feeds in their living rooms, on their work desks, or on their nightstands. They're party centerpieces, and a great way to immediately display photos being taken at that very party. It's the only way to share photos with a crowd of people; its viewfinder is far superior to that of an iPhone.