The European parliament on Tuesday demanded all new cars be forced to be equipped by 2015 with an electronic emergency system known as eCall.

Because the auto industry appears reluctant to voluntarily install the satellite-based system, which automatically alerts emergency services in case of a serious accident, MEPS called for eCall to be mandatory in new cars.

Google chairman Eric Schmidt has submitted a proposal to European regulators in Brussels aimed at avoiding a showdown on the some of the Internet search leader's business practices.

The European Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia began investigating Google in 2010, and in May of this year warned the company it needed to quickly propose changes to several practices — notably including the way it promotes its own offerings in search results — or face possible fines.

Upscale headphone maker Beats Electronics is buying music subscription service MOG in an attempt to improve what goes into playback devices as much as what comes out of them.

Beats, founded by rapper Dr. Dre and recording executive Jimmy Iovine, has devoted its brand to high-quality sound. But headphones and speakers are limited in their ability to improve the sound of songs whose data is compressed to squeeze through narrow pipes like older cellular phone networks.

Microsoft is absorbing a $6.2 billion charge to reflect that one of the biggest deals in its 37-year history turned out to be a dud.

The non-cash charge announced Monday could saddle Microsoft Corp. with a loss for its fiscal fourth quarter ended in June. Analysts polled by FactSet had predicted Microsoft would earn about $5.3 billion for the period. The company hasn't suffered a quarterly loss during the past 20 years, according to its website.

Google on Monday urged governments to get better at sharing information to allow citizens and first responders to make better use of the Internet during natural disasters.

At a conference in quake-prone Japan, Rachel Whetstone, the firm's senior vice president of public policy and communications, said some countries hesitate over disclosing data.

U.S. technology giant Apple has paid a Chinese firm $60 million to settle a long-running dispute over the iPad trademark in China, a court said Monday.

The government body overseeing trademarks has been asked to immediately recognize Apple's rights to the iPad name, the High Court of the southern province of Guangdong said on its website.

Chinese appliance and electronics giant Haier is aiming to expand into Europe with higher-end products, helping to upgrade China's reputation for churning out mostly cheap, low-quality goods.

However, experts say that even if Haier succeeds the country still has much to do before it emulates the transformation by neighbors Japan and South Korea over recent decades so that their top brands are now synonymous with class.

Can a tailored suit help clinch that tricky deal at work? Get the girl? Or simply put a spring in your step? Absolutely, if you believe a year-old Paris firm that is using a 3D body scanner to bring made-to-measure to the masses.

"There is a whole psychological side to men's suits," said Francois Chambaud, co-founder of Paris store Les Nouveaux Ateliers. "Say you arrive at a meeting -- or your wedding -- in an ill-fitting suit, you just won't feel right."

A scruffy, young Steve Jobs worked at Atari before he founded Apple. "Pong," one of the world's first video games, was born there, as was "Centipede," a classic from the era of quarter-guzzling arcade machines. "Call of Duty" creator Activision was started by four of Atari's former game developers.

The iconic video game company turns 40 years old this week, much slimmer these days as it tries to stay relevant in the age of "Angry Birds" and "Words With Friends."

BlackBerry maker Research in Motion is now in a struggle for survival after its latest quarterly report underscoring its deteriorating position against other smartphone makers, analysts say.

The firm, which is headquartered in the ironically named city of Waterloo, Ontario, appears on shaky ground.