AP Technology NewsBrief at 8:02 p.m. EST

(Associated Press Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Colorful investor Einhorn behind Apple attackNEW YORK (AP) _ David Einhorn, the 44-year-old investor who attacked Apple Thursday, has a history of taking on companies and winning. But Apple is his biggest target yet. The Cornell graduate founded New York-based hedge fund Greenlight Capital Inc. in 1997 with $1 million under management. The firm has been highly successful, often by "shorting" the stocks of companies that have hidden weaknesses.

LinkedIn's 4Q gets rave reviews from investorsSAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ Online professional-networking service LinkedIn's fourth-quarter performance added another line to its sterling resume as a public company. The results announced Thursday extended LinkedIn Corp.'s uninterrupted streak of exceeding analysts' projections for both earnings and revenue. It marked the seventh consecutive quarter since LinkedIn's May 2011 IPO that the company has pulled that off, to the delight of investors.

Sprint posts big 4Q loss, revenue risesNEW YORK (AP) _ Sprint Nextel Corp., the country's third largest wireless carrier, on Thursday said it lost $1.3 billion in its fourth quarter, about the same as a year ago, as it revamped its network for a comeback versus bigger competitors. The company's focus, and that of its investors, is on its long-term turnaround efforts rather than on short-term results. Sprint is selling 70 percent of itself to Japanese carrier Softbank Corp. for $20 billion. That deal is expected to close this summer, and provide long-ailing Sprint with a much-needed infusion of capital.

Sony trims quarterly loss to $115 millionTOKYO (AP) _ Sony Corp. is still struggling but managed to reduce its red ink for the latest quarter as the Japanese electronics and entertainment company aims for a comeback from record yearly losses. Sony on Thursday reported a 10.7 billion yen ($115 million) loss for the October-December quarter compared with a 158 billion yen loss a year earlier.

US magazine circulation flat despite digital gainsLOS ANGELES (AP) _ Magazine industry auditors say more U.S. magazines are selling more digital copies, but they still represented just 2.4 percent of circulation in the second half of last year as overall circulation was largely unchanged. The number of magazine titles selling digital copies rose to 289, from 245 a year earlier. They sold 7.9 million digital copies, up from 3.2 million.

Investor sues Apple, wants more cashNEW YORK (AP) _ With its annual meeting looming and its stock on the decline, Apple is facing a rebellion from an influential investor who wants the company to stop stockpiling cash and give it to shareholders instead. Greenlight Capital said Thursday that it is suing Apple in a New York federal court over the company's proposal to make it more difficult for it to issue preferred stock. David Einhorn, who heads the investment fund, said the proposal would close down one avenue for Apple to reward shareholders with more cash.

Alcatel-Lucent boss leaving as losses mountPARIS (AP) _ Alcatel-Lucent CEO Ben Verwaayen is leaving the loss-making French-U.S. telecommunications gear maker after a failed four-year bid to turn the business around. Verwaayen said in a statement Thursday that it was "clear to me that now is an appropriate moment" for Alcatel-Lucent to seek new leadership. Investors cheered the news, with shares jumping 7.7 percent in early trading to (EURO)1.40.

EU pushes plans for safer, more secure InternetBRUSSELS (AP) _ EU officials are pushing a plan to make the Internet safer _ more resistant to cyberattacks, freer from cybercrime and safer for children to use. The proposal unveiled Thursday would require each of the European Union's 27 nations to designate an authority to prevent and respond to Internet risks and incidents.

Ahead of the Bell: Bar set high for LinkedIn's 4QMOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. (AP) _ LinkedIn `s knack of surprising Wall Street, an unbroken streak that winds back through every quarter since May 2011 after the company first went public, will be on the line when it posts fourth-quarter results Thursday afternoon. In every instance, key numbers from the online professional networking service have beaten expectations.

Vodafone revenue falls amid tougher competitionLONDON (AP) _ Telecommunications company Vodafone says its revenue dropped 2 percent in the third quarter due to tougher competition, a weak economy, and regulatory changes at home and abroad. The company said that revenue in the quarter ending on Dec. 31 fell to 11.4 billion pounds ($17.4 billion).

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