Google CEO Eric Schmidt has said today that about 200,000 new Android devices are now being sold daily, leading to huge growth in revenue for the search giant thanks to mobile search traffic.

When asked about the recent studies showing Android outpacing the iPhone handily, Schmidt added: "People are finally beginning to figure out how successful Android is. The number was about 100,000 (a day) about two months ago. It looks like Android is not just phenomenal but incredibly phenomenal in its growth rate. God knows how long that will continue."

While Google does not directly gain revenue from Android (which is free and open source), the more successful the operating system is, the more people are connected to the Web from their mobile phones, leading to an increase in search.

"Trust me that revenue is large enough to pay for all of Android's activities and a whole bunch more," Schmidt added, via Cnet. "I should also say that we love the success of the iPhone because the iPhone also uses Google's search and we get a chunk of that revenue when people search on the iPhone."

Schmidt was also asked about the upcoming Chrome OS to which he responded: "Maybe we can get the same success out of Chrome OS (as Android). Chrome OS is targeted at a different part of the market."

The first Chrome OS netbooks will hit in November.

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The European Commission has now chosen the Apple iPhone and HTC devices over the RIM BlackBerry line, two years after beginning searching for a smartphone to support amongst its employees.

Security and financial impact were part of the criteria in choosing the phones, and BlackBerry security issues were a main concern.

Throughout the week, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, India and Kuwait all threatened to block features of BlackBerrys due to security concerns.

The EC employs 32,000 people.

"Following this evaluation, the HTC and the iPhones emerged at the most suitable platforms for voice/mail-centric mobile devices. As a result, the Commission currently supports these two platforms," said an EC spokesperson, via Reuters.

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Google has said today it is killing off its Wave collaborative messaging service due to a lack of user interest.

The search giant revealed the Wave service last year, which allows people to "communicate online by letting them exchange messages in real-time and collaboratively edit documents."

Many called the service a hybrid Twitter, IM and email client.

The service itself was very confusing to many would-be users, however, and Google has decided to add the service to its growing list of failed projects.

"Wave has not seen the user adoption we would have liked. We don't plan to continue developing Wave as a standalone product," noted Google Senior Vice President of Operations Urs Hölzle.

Hölzle did add that Wave's technology will be used in other projects, and that the code is not dead. "Many of Wave's innovations, like drag-and-drop and character-by-character live typing, will still be available to customers and partners that want to build upon the technology," adds the WSJ.

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Intel has agreed today to stop unfair practices including using threats and giving unfair discounts to block out rivals.

The company settled with the FTC (U.S. Federal Trade Commission) without paying any fine and without admitting any wrongdoing.

Furthermore, Intel pledged to give its rivals access to processor technology for the next six years.

Intel had been sued by Nvidia and rival AMD over the unfair practices. The Nvidia case is still pending.

The chip-maker has 80 percent of the microprocessor market.

"It's a landmark settlement that really will have a striking effect on improving competition in the market," says former FTC policy director David Balto.

Intel is now banned from "retaliating" against computer makers if they chose to do business with AMD or other non-Intel suppliers.

The European Union, Korea and Japan have all, over the past couple of years, accused Intel of similar unfair/anti-trust practices.

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In early May, Microsoft sued Salesforce.com, claiming the company had been actively infringing on nine of the software giant's patents.

The complaint was significant as it targeted patents relating to customer-relationship management (CRM), which is the bread and butter of SalesForce's business.

Microsoft was seeking for an injunction on the features used in SF's software that infringes on the their patents.

Today, the companies have settled the suit, although details of the agreement were not disclosed.

Salesforce says with the agreement both companies will be covered by each other's patents.

Adds Microsoft: "We are pleased to reach this agreement with Salesforce.com to put an end to the litigation between our two companies. Today's agreement is an example of how companies can compete vigorously in the marketplace while respecting each other's intellectual property rights."

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As promised last month, the iPhone Dev-Team has now released their iPhone 4 unlocking tool, Ultrasn0w, which can be used by U.S. owners tired of being stuck on AT&T.

The carrier unlock required a complete rewrite of the software because of Apple's new baseband OS for the updated phone.

It is important to note that users who unlock their iPhone 4 can use T-Mobile's cell network but not its high-speed 3G data.

Ultrasn0w 1.0 comes with instructions, courtesy of RedmondPie:

How to: Jailbreak iPhone 4 on iOS 4.0.1:
-Step 1: Unlocking requires that your phone is jailbroken on the latest firmware. Follow the complete guide posted here to jailbreak your iPhone 4 on iOS 4.0.1 / 4.0 using JailbreakMe 2.0.

How to: Unlock iPhone 4 (Any Baseband) on iOS 4.0.1:
-Step 2: Once you are done with the jailbreak, you can now unlock your iPhone on any baseband using Ultrasn0w 1.0-1 from Cydia. To do this:

-Start "Cydia" on your iPhone.

-Touch on "Manage" tab on the bottom.

-Now touch on "Sources"

-Touch on "Edit" and then on "Add". You will be prompted to enter a url source as seen in the screenshot below. Type "http://repo666.ultrasn0w.com" and touch on"Add Source" to add this repo if you haven't already.

-Cydia will now automatically update your sources by following a series of automated steps.

-After installation is completed. Search for "ultrasn0w 1.0-1" in Cydia and install this application. This app will automatically unlock your iPhone so that you can use it with any carrier.

-Step 3: Now simply restart your iPhone and voila! you should now have a fully unlocked iPhone 4.

As with all unlocking and jailbreaking guides, please use caution as there is always a chance of messing up your device.

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Barnes & Noble has said this week, somewhat surprisingly, that it plans to put itself up for sale after suffering large losses in the battle for leader in the digital books market.

After the news, shares of the company jumped as high as 27 percent, finishing the day up 19 percent.

Founder and largest shareholder Leonard Riggio said he would consider being part of an investment group that could purchase the company.

The news appears to signal that the company is in desperate need of strong decisions that may not be so easy as a public company.

Says Forrester analyst James McQuivey: "They might feel they want to buy the company back now and take it public later and reap the windfall. But there aren't a lot of investors who will be that certain about the probable outcome of that bet."

The company has now formed a "special committee of four independent directors to consider all options for increasing shareholder value."

While the company remains the top brick-and-mortar book store in the world, it has faced increasing pressure from Amazon and Wal-Mart.

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