r MoneyToday reported Tuesday, citing unnamed company officials. The mobile operator unveiled its software platform business in October, seeking to exploit the new profit driver in the mobile telephony business amid the rapidly growing popularity of smartphones in South Korea, one of the world's most saturated and fiercely competitive telecom markets. Last year, SK Telecom said it planned to spend KRW1 trillion ($927 million) over three years to dzil by entering into this rare-earth market, and I think it's an important thing for the West as a whole. It would also benefit Vale as a company," Science and Technology Minister Aloizio Mercadante told the U.K. newspaper. The government has met several industrial companies to line up customers for rare earths, a group of 17 elements used in producing components for wind turbines, electric cars and computer screens, among other goods. Vale confirmed that it's looking at investing in the production of rare earths, adding that the project remains at a "preliminary stage," according to thhn Investment Research Conference in New York. Microsoft's nine-person board, including Chairman and co-founder Bill Gates, supports Ballmer, a source close to the board told Reuters on Thursday. Microsoft -- the largest U.S. company by market value in the late 1990s -- has been overtaken by Apple Inc and International Business Machines Corp in market value, and is no longer seen as a dominating force in technology after a failure to capitalize on Internet and mobile markets. Before Thursday's gain, the stock had been down 6 percent in the past two weeks after Microsoft agreed to pay $8.5 billion for Internet phone service Skype, a move that mystified many investors. Einhorn said it was time for Microsoft to consider strategic alternatives for its money-losing online business, which has so far failed to win share from Google Inc. "Clearly, some people are calling for a change," said Sid Parakh, analyst with McAdams Wright Ragen. "If you look at the financial performance, that's been fine. But I think the issue is broader than that. "If you look at search, mobile, tablet, these are areas they should have been investing in, and they have -- but they weren't able to get it right," he added. But: "If there was any reason to believe the board was not with Steve, it would be a different situation. But the board seems to be behind Steve." IT'S ON The online services unit, which runs the Bing search engine and MSN Web portal, had a loss of $726 million last quarter and has now lost $7 billion in four years. "What it boils down to is that Microsoft has had a load of initiatives which haven't shown traction yet," said one U.S. equity fund manager at an investment house featuring on