msft

Microsoft has gained on Google in search engine rankings -- if only by a little. But it is taking advantage of the momentum by launching a new Bing shopping product for phones and computers.

Microsoft soundly beat its 2010 sales forecast for the Kinect, a motion-sensor device that enables players to use body movements -- instead of controllers -- to play games on the Xbox console.

The Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission have launched an antitrust investigation into Apple's new media store, amid concern that the company will use its leverage in the multimedia device market to undermine competition.

Microsoft has definitively denied that its Bing search engine takes its cues from its rival. Nonetheless, the Google allegations highlights the challenges Microsoft faces in addressing the "long tail" market in search, or the obscure searches that collectively account for a huge portion of search traffic.

Investors are buying into the meme that Windows is dying -- and therefore Microsoft is as well. While tablets are clearly cutting into the giant's core PC business, Microsoft is also showing remarkable agility in building new franchises for the future, the Kinect for one.

Stocks fell sharply Friday as investors fled to safety amid disappointing economic data, mixed corporate earnings reports and escalating violence in Egypt. A soft start for equities only got worse as the day progressed. [Video]

With corporate earnings season in full swing -- watch for McDonalds, along with Catepillar, Amazon and other -- and with the Fed meeting on interest rates, the GDP estimate and housing numbers coming out -- the week ahead is expected to be quite busy.

It's been a long time since the DJIA reflected just America's smokestack economy. But today's economic rebound is being led so far by manufacturers. And if you plot those Dow components as a group, you'll see they're leading the larger pack by far.

Some stocks may seem like bargains when they're really duds. Here's how you can find stable, defensive stocks that might provide market-beating returns. You can start with these nine high-quality stocks that should do well for buy-and-hold investors.

Despite all the amazing gadgets launched at the Consumer Electronics Show -- the smart TVs, 3-D technology, larger touch screens, and tablet PCs -- the bigger news in Las Vegas this week may be about price cuts.