THE END OF EXTENDED SUPPORT for Microsoft's Windows XP operating system (OS) is now exactly one year away.

Microsoft acknowledged the countdown to the end of support for Windows XP and Microsoft Office 2003 almost a year ago, advising back then that it was is a good time for organisations that still have PCs running the software to migrate to a newer version, such as Windows 7.

Today marks the 365-day countdown, so the advice that Microsoft customers must abandon the Windows XP ship is now more relevant than ever.

Google purportedly is eyeing up mobile messaging service Whatsapp, with speculation suggesting that the app might be its next $1bn purchase.

That speculation comes from Digital Trends, which heard from an "inside source" that Google is in talks with Whatsapp to acquire the company.

According to the rumours, Whatsapp is "playing hardball" with Google in a bid to get a higher aquisition price, which reportedly is hovering around $1bn at present.

While some companies are looking to end piracy across the entertainment industry, one major player doesn’t think it’s quite the crisis it’s often made out to be. HBO’s hit show Games of Thrones is the most-pirated TV show on the Internet with more than 4 million illegal downloads per episode, however the company’s programming president Michael Lombardo believes piracy is a “compliment” to the show and has actually helped sales. In February, Game of Thrones season two was released to record-setting DVD sales, becoming the company’s biggest first-day home video release with sales of 241,000 units, an increase of 44% over season one, and sales of individual episodes reached 355,000, up 112% from season one.

“I probably shouldn’t be saying this, but it is a compliment of sorts,” Lombardo said to Entertainment Weekly. “The demand is there. And it certainly didn’t negatively impact the DVD sales. [Piracy is] something that comes along with having a wildly successful show on a subscription network.”

Despite being the most pirated show on television, Games of Thrones is also the network’s top money-maker.

For all the griping over Windows 8's omitted Start menu and other UI inelegancies, the biggest knock against the OS has arguably been its comparatively weak app catalogue. PreApps, a site that previews new apps before they hit the market, wants to change that.

The Boston-based startup only launched in January, but it has already forged a partnership with Microsoft. The deal will enable Windows developers to interact with potential users while building their apps, helping programmers build buzz and implement feedback-driven refinements as they approach an app store release.