Brand: MacNews

Apple has been named as one of the “most impressive comebacks ever” by Forbes.com, which will be naming three other companies this week that defied the odds by reviving itself from near-death. Apple’s comeback is attributed largely to CEO Steve Jobs, who returned to Apple in 1997 after being ousted in 1985.

Leading e-tailer Amazon.com today reported its first ever profit: US$5 million for its fourth-quarter. Sales rose 15 percent to $1.12 billion. This compares favorably to a loss of $545 million reported in the year-ago quarter. Amazon attributed the profit to lower prices and companywide cost reductions. Shares of Amazon are trading up more than 20 percent on the news.

A Wired article examines the debate over potential health risks from exposure toelectromagnetic fields used in wireless devices, including cell phones andwireless local area networks, such as Apple’s AirPort. Many activistgroups believe that the FCC has been far too lenient in its precautionaryguidelines.

AOL Time Warner has denied that it is in talks to acquire Red Hat, according to c|net. This past weekend, The Washington Post reported that the media giant was in talks to acquire the Linux maker. “The Washington Post story is incorrect,” said AOL Time Warner spokesman Andrew Weinstein. “AOL is not in negotiations with Red Hat.”

WorkingMac has published a rather comprehensive summary of the Mac-related announcements that came out of NAMM, The International Music Market’s winter tradeshow that took place last week in Anaheim, CA.