Panasonic to control Sanyo

Panasonic and Sanyo have said they've agreed to a "Capital and Business Alliance", which will result in Panasonic owning a controlling interest in Sanyo when everything's agreed. [Sanyo press release; Panasonic press release (pdf)]

HTC buys design company

Handset manufacturer HTC has bought San Francisco-based One & Company Design. One & Co had previously worked with HTC to create the Touch Diamond. [Press release]

Vodafone takes control in South Africa

Vodafone has confirmed that its acquisition of an additional 15% stake in Vodacom, taking Vodafone's shareholding from 50% to 65%, has been approved by the government of South Africa. [Press release]

Samsung drops SanDisk bid

Samsung says it's no longer interested in buying memory card manufacturer SanDisk following SanDisk's recent financial results and its new agreement with Toshiba. SanDisk had already rejected Samsung's offer. [Source: vnunet.com]

Sandisk rejects Samsung takeover bid

Memory manufacturer SanDisk has rejected a $5.8bn takeover bid by Samsung, although it's not rejected the idea completely. The company's chairman said Samsung's offer wasn't high enough. There are now suggestions that Toshiba could also offer to buy SanDisk. Currently, around 14% of SanDisk's revenue comes from licensing its technology to Samsung. [Source: FT.com]

Ghana's parliament approves Vodafone deal

Ghana's parliament has approved Vodafone's plans to acquire a 70% stake in Ghana Telecom. The takeover plans have been controversial, with some politicians criticising the government for agreeing the original deal. Vodafone is paying £483 million for the 70% share. [Sources: Reuters.com; The StatesmanOnline.com]

Problems with Vodafone's Ghana Telecom deal

The last few weeks have seen a number of Ghanaian politicians expressing unhappiness with Vodafone's plans to own a majority share in Ghana Telecom. The Ghana Broadcasting Corporation has a summary of the situation.

New Mobile News podcast now online

This week's Mobile News podcast is now available to download. The regular team of Iain Graham, James Rosewell and Mark Bridge takes a look at the latest industry news - from termination charges to takeovers - and there's also a preview of the Motorola ZINE ZN5 camera phone. The broadcast can be downloaded from TheFonecast.com, from the Mobile News website, via iTunes or from our RSS feed.

Acer buying Glofiish smart phone manufacturer E-Ten

I.T. manufacturer Acer has said it plans to buy PDA and smart phone manufacturer E-Ten for NT$9 billion (around £146 million). Both companies are based in Taiwan. E-Ten is best known for its Glofiish handset range, although has also made products for other companies. [Press release]

Carphone takeover rumours still around

Carphone Warehouse shares rose by 8.1% on Thursday, ending the day at 328.5p as the top gainer in the FTSE100. It's apparently because of the returning rumour that US retailer Best Buy is interested in a takeover. The companies currently work together in the USA. [Source: Scotsman.com]

Nokia buys software company

Nokia is buying Norwegian software company Trolltech to speed up its own software development. The deal, which will cost Nokia around £78 million, will make it easier for Nokia to create software that will run on mobile devices and desktop PCs. [Press release]

Carphone takeover rumours return

Rumours of a Carphone Warehouse takeover have returned, with Vodafone and Best Buy - both suggested in the summer as potential bidders - still in the frame. [Source: Mobile News]