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UK defers EU referendum
London: The UK government has shelved plans to hold a referendum on the EU constitution next year. The decision comes after "No" votes in France and the Netherlands which analysts said had effectively killed the treaty.

However, French President Jacques Chirac and German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder called on EU countries to continue the ratification process.

Britain assumes presidency of the EU in July and says it may look at a later date for the vote.
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Apple set to switch to Intel from IBM
San Francisco: A decade-long relationship between Apple Computer Inc. and IBM may soon be over with Apple CEO Steve Jobs expected to announce that the company will discontinue using microprocessor chips made by IBM in favor of Intel chips, according to published reports from CNET Networks Inc.'s News.com and the Wall Street Journal.

There has been some skepticism about the move for switching to Intel's x86 chips would force Apple's programmers to rewrite its software in order to adapt to the new processor.

News.com has reported that Apple would begin the transition to Intel with its lower-end computers, such as the Mac Mini, in mid-2006 and higher-end models a year later.

According to the report from News.com, Apple's break with IBM may stem from Jobs' wish that IBM make a larger variety of the PowerPC processors used in Macintosh systems, and IBM balking because of concerns over the profitability of a low-volume business.
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