News Briefs for the Week Ending
04/16/2010
Copyright 2010, Faulkner Information Services. All Rights Reserved.
Docid:00020009
Publication Date: 1004
Publication Type: NEWS
ACQUISITIONS, MERGERS, DIVESTITURES
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Cisco Cleared to Acquire TANDBERG on Appointment of TIP Manager
TANDBERG announced that the European Commission (EC) has approved the appointment of CompetitionRx as the independent industry member tasked with insuring Cisco‘s compliance
with interoperability standards set down as a requirement for the company’s acquisition of TANDBERG. Specifically, CompetitionRx will take over the handling of TANDBERG’s TelePresence Interoperability Protocol (TIP) and its accompanying library of open
source software. Following the agreement, CompetitionRx will have the right to license the TIP technology to anyone, royalty-free. With the completion of this requirement, Cisco has received final approval from the European Commission to move ahead with
its acquisition of TANDBERG. The company now has 14 days to close the transaction.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
France Telecom, TDC Finalize Agreement to Merge Swiss Operations
France Telecom and Dutch provider TDC have signed a final agreement to combine their respective subsidiaries in Switzerland: Orange Communication(Orange Suisse) and Sunrise
Communications. The deal was first announced November 25, 2009 and confirms the commitment of the two groups to create a strong alternative operator in Switzerland, France Telecom said. France Telecom will pay a net amount at closing of 1.5 billion euros
(US $2.04 billion) to TDC and ultimately become a 75% shareholder in the combined entity. TDC will hold the remaining 25%. The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2010, once approvals have been obtained from the Swiss competition and
other relevant regulatory authorities.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
Google Acquired Visual Search Start-Up Plink
Google has acquired visual search startup company Plink. The startup company announced the acquisition on its corporate blog. The purchase will give Google access to
the technology behind PlinkArt’s visual search engine. PlinkArt allows mobile device users to take a photo of a painting and upload it to Plink servers. The visual search service then returns information about the painting to the user based solely on
automatic identification of the image. The blog post says the service will continue to operate following the company’s addition to Google but that it will no longer be updating PlinkArt. No financial terms were disclosed.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
HP Completes $2.7 Billion 3Com Acquisition
Hewlett-Packard (HP) announced it has completed the acquisition of data networking company 3Com for approximately $2.7 billion USD, or $7.90 per share. HP will integrate 3Com’s network
switching, routing, and security products with its ProCurve portfolio. The expanded portfolio expands HP’s Converged Infrastructure strategy, which focuses on the integration of servers, storage, networking, management, facilities, and services. According
to HP, more details on product integration will be announced at a later date.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
Nokia Acquires MetaCarta; Closes Novarra Acquisition
Nokia announced that it has acquired Cambridge, Massachusetts-based MetaCarta. MetaCarta is a privately-held company that makes geographic intelligence applications. It employs more than 30 people. Nokia said it will
use MetaCarta’s technology for local search and other services. Financial terms of the deal were not released. The Finland-based Nokia also said it has closed its acquisition of Novarra, first announced March 26th. Novarra’s mobile browser and services
platform will be integrated with Nokia’s Series 40 mobile phones.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
ALLIANCES, JOINT VENTURES
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Accenture-Built Telef¢nica Facility Opens
Accenture announced the opening of a new telecommunications center built for Telefonica. The center will serve as an application development facility for Telef¢nica’s Latin
American and European Divisions. The commission of the center was included in three separate contract signed between 2007 and 2009. These same contracts include provisions for Accenture to handle the development and maintenance of consumer systems
applications in the areas of billing and collections. This portion of the deal includes 17 markets, including the aforementioned areas, and the American region.
Source: Vendor, 4/9/2010
Bell Labs Announces Joint Publishing Research Alliance
Alcatel Bell Labs is working with Abilene Christian University and Cambridge University Press, on a joint research project focused on publishing, from creation through distribution. The group is developing tools,
based on software prototypes that present information – images, text, audio, and video – on the same device. Bell Labs will conduct technical research, and develop prototypes, while Cambridge will provide content, detail service requirements and validate
integration. Abilene Christian will evaluate user requirements and conduct technical experiments with a base of on campus users.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
Convergys Expands Reseller Relationship with iTa
Convergys announced that it has expanded its distribution agreement with Information Technologies Australia (iTa). The new alliance allows iTa to resell Convergys’ Intelligent Automation Solutions, which are based
on its Dynamic Decisioning platform. The deal will make iTa the first and only company to offer this product in Australia. It will also make the IT company responsible for sales, consulting, installation, and support services for the Convergys’ Dynamic
Decisioning software within the country.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
CSC Deepens Alliance with Symantec
Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC) announced that it has added another aspect to its alliance with Symantec. The company has signed an agreement with the security software maker which will allow it to include Symantec
Hosted Services in its portfolio of managed services. The pair claim that this alliance will help them provide cloud-computing solutions that meet the security needs of both enterprise and government customers. The deal will also give Symantec’s customers
access to CSC’s Cyber Security Solutions, a stable of more than 1,400 security professionals. The new CSC branded Symantec Hosted Services are expected to launch in May.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
Dell, Telefonica to Focus on the Digital Ecosystem
Dell announced it will work with Telefonica to develop future products and services based around a new digital ecosystem. The digital ecosystem is focused on the “data first”
experience, based on the demand for pervasive, instant-on, Web connected devices. The alliance is part of Dell’s initiative for developing smart, mobile products and services, through relationships with leading operators.
Source: Vendor, 4/14/2010
Deutsche Telekom Teams with REWE on New Instore Info/Ad Network
Deutsche Telekom announced that it has signed a deal with REWE Markt GmbH, a franchise of German supermarkets. The contract calls for the telecom company to collaborate with REWE on the task of deploying 2,600 LCD
televisions throughout 480 of its supermarkets. The televisions will display useful information, such as local news and weather, and will also serve as an outlet for advertising. Deutsche Telekom will include the new televisions as part of its NetContact
display advertising product line. Advertisers will be able to purchase ad space on the new instore network under the standard pricing models of the NetContact line.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
HP Venture to Provide Print Technology for FedEx Office
Canon USA – a subsidiary of Hewlett-Packard and Canon – agreed to provide printing and imaging technology for FexEx Office, to help its staff and customers create, customize, and distribute materials. The former FedEx
Kinko’s will use Canon and HP as sole service providers, in their respective printing categories, and will deploy over 12,000 printing devices from them at more than 1,800 locations in the US and Canada.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
Microsoft Licenses PlayReady Technology to Samsung Electronics
Microsoft announced that it has signed a deal with Samsung Electronics to license its PlayReady technology to the company. PlayReady is a form of digital rights management that lets users access their owned media
across any device compatible with the technology. Samsung plans to include the solution in products ranging from televisions, to mobile phones, and digital video players. The announcement of the deal predicted that the first such devices would be available
before the end of the year. Microsoft has said that it is particularly interested in marketing this new alliance’s benefits to mobile and network operators, service providers, and device manufacturers.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
NetSuite Teams with Genpact to Bring BPM to the Cloud
NetSuite announced that it has formed a strategic alliance with Genpact Limited. The new collaboration will focus on the goal of innovating in the area of business process management (BPM). The companies plan to
expand their jointly developed BPM solutions into the cloud computing venue. They believe this will allow them to provide more cost-effective, and agile solutions to their customers. For its part, Genpact plans to provide its IT program management and ERP
consulting teams for the effort, while NetSuite handles the cloud-based distribution of the new services via its OneWorld solution. No specific date for the availability of the new joint offering has been set.
Source: Vendor, 4/14/2010
News Corp Joins 11 Other Media Companies to Form New Mobile Offering
News Corp announced that it is one of the organization involved in the formation of a new national mobile content service. The other participants are Belo Corp, Cox Media Group, E.W. Scripps, Gannett Broadcasting,
Hearst Television, ION Television, Media General, Meredith Corp, NBC, Post-Newsweek Stations, and Raycom Media. The group plans to provide both live and on-demand content to mobile devices over an existing portion of the broadcast spectrum. The companies
claim the combined assets of the group will be able to reach 150 million viewers, and that its plans compliment those put forward by the National Broadband Initiative. The announcement of the group’s formation said more information on the structure of this
new venture will be made available at a later date.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
Nokia Siemens, SFR Demonstrate Cutting Edge HSPA+
Nokia Siemens Networks and SFR are showcasing HSPA+ technology they claim offers download speeds of up to 28M bps. They are conducting a live, 3G network trial, in
Marseille, France, having successfully deployed a 14.4M bps version, in 2009. According to Nokia Siemens, the technology facilitates the transition to HSPA+ and longterm evolution, with just a software upgrade. To date, Nokia Siemens has deployed high
speed mobile broadband networks to more than 170 customers, worldwide.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
Telefonica O2 Germany Buys Naming Rights to Color Line Arena
Telefonica O2 Germany announced that it has signed a licensing agreement with the Anschutz Entertainment Group, a subsidiary of the Anschutz Corporation. The deal gives Telef¢nica naming rights on the
entertainment group’s event arena located in Hamburg. Telefonica has chosen to use these rights to rename the venue from its current title of the Color Line Arena, to O2 World Hamburg. The company will retain these naming rights for a period of no less
than 10 years. As part of the transition, Telef¢nica has said it plans to install technological, and hospitality upgrades in the newly dubbed facility.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
APPLICATION SOFTWARE
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Netflix Selects Irdeto Cloakware for Content Protection
Irdeto announced that Netflix has licensed Irdeto’s Cloakware Embedded Security as part of the company’s suite of content protection tools for the tens of thousands of TV
episodes and movies it streams to its members.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
Accenture Teams with Oracle, CedarCrestone on Public Sector Pensions
Accenture, CedarCrestone, and Oracle announced that they will be collaborating on an effort to enhance Oracle’s Public Sector Pension Solution. The goal of the alliance is to
better suit the pension plan solution to the needs of all levels of the US government. The enhancements will be designed to tailor Oracle’s product to better handle the complex rules and regulation inherent to the retirement benefits provided in the
public sector. The companies claim that adoptees of the new Public Sector Pension Solution will find themselves better equipped to handle participant-centric pension plans.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
Adobe Announces Release of Creative Suite 5
Adobe announced the release date for the 5th edition of its Creative Suite. The new update includes several notable additions to the previous lineup. Among them are Flash Player 10.1 and Adobe AIR 2, both of which
include new technologies designed to function across desktop, and mobile platforms. CS5 will also ship with Flash Catalyst, a piece of software designed to let developers write their software in a Flash environment, and then convert it to work on other
devices and platforms. As usual, CS5 also includes the standard selection of Adobe products, including Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Flash Professional, Dreamweaver, Premiere, and After Effects. For this edition, Adobe has teamed with Omniture to add
Web-based analysis, capture and storage to several of the aforementioned products as well. The CS5 Suite is will be available within 30 days, and will be priced from $1299 for the Design Standard edition, to $2599 for the Master Collection.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
IBM Launches Analytics-Based Solution for Delinquent Tax Collection
IBM announced the launch of a new product designed to aid in the collection of delinquent tax debt. The IBM Tax Collections Optimizer is an analytics based software solution designed to optimize the tax collection
policies of government agencies. The software takes into account such factors as business needs, legal constraints, payment history, and the amount owed to design a plan, and prioritize collection efforts. IBM claims the system can suggest best practices
which will ultimately improve agent efficiency. The Tax Collections Optimizer is available now from IBM’s Business Analytics and Optimization consulting practice.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
Opera Reaches 100M Total Users Across Desktop and Mobile Versions
Opera said that its Web browsers have reached the 100 million user mark. The distribution of these users is split almost exactly in half, with 50 million desktop Opera users, and 50 million Opera Mini mobile users.
The company said that it reached the milestone some time during March, after showing a 30% year-over-year growth. It should be noted this statistic was likely helped along by the recent launch of the Microsoft browser ballot screen, which presented users
with Opera as one of the alternatives to Internet Explorer. Following the launch of the browser ballot, Opera itself noted a sharp uptick in new users.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
SAS Launches SAS Risk Management for Insurance
SAS announced the launch of its new SAS Risk Management for Insurance product. The new application is designed to function as a complete solution for risk analysis and risk-based capital calculation for insurance
companies. SAS claims that the product will allow the senior management of the companies which adopt it to gain a better comprehension of the overall performance of their company. SAS Risk Management for Insurance is available now, and is targeted at P&C
and life insurance companies.
Source: Vendor, 4/14/2010
BIOMETRICS
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US, Germany Launch Trusted Traveler Programs
The Department of Homeland Security signed an agreement with Germany to integrate US and German trusted-traveler programs. The partnership enables both countries to develop processes for qualified citizens of either
country to apply for both the United States’ Global Entry program and Germany’s Automated and Biometrics-Supported Border Controls program. Both programs use biometrics to identify trusted travelers.
Source: DHS, 4/14/2010
BUSINESS CONTINUITY
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Air Force: Recruits to Receive Cyber Warfare Training
The US Air Force will begin training all new recruits in cyberwarfare in an attempt to thwart the growing number of attacks on federal networks. According to an Associated Press report,
recruits will receive basic training, but officers and enlisted personnel can opt for a more advanced, undergraduate-level program in cyber operations. Such a program would run for six months and give students more in-depth training on computer networks
and vulnerabilities. More specific training would be offered as a follow-up.
Source: AP, 4/13/2010
CARRIER SERVICES
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AT&T Unveils Plans for Broadcaster Customers
AT&T announced plans to deploy a standards-based High Definition-SDI video transport and switching network capability designed for the professional broadcast marketplace and customers using AT&T’s Global Video Services.
The new capability will support HD-SDI at rates between 75Mb and 400Mb, along with SD-SDI at 24Mb to 150Mb. Following a pilot program in January, AT&T expects to start delivering the feature using JPEG2000 compression capabilities in major metropolitan
areas across North America beginning in the third quarter of this year.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
Cable&Wireless Adds Two Ethernet Services, Expands Asia Pacific Region
Cable & Wireless announced that it has added two new ethernet-based services to its selection of products. Ethernet Wireline (EWL) and Ethernet Virtual Private Network (EVPN) will both run on its Multi-Service Platform
(MSP). As part of the announcement, the company also revealed that it has expanded the presence of its MSP network in the Asia Pacific region, adding 14 Points of Presence (PoPs) across Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan, China, Malaysia, Korea, Indonesia and
Thailand.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
Level 3 Unveils Infrastructure Upgrade Plans
Colorado-based Level 3 announced that it plans to significantly upgrade its Vyvx VenueNet infrastructure, introducing new services across the US. Vyvx is used by broadcasters for delivering sporting events. Level 3
said it will focus this year on upgrading venue services in time for the start of the US professional football and hockey seasons. In 2011, the carrier expects to continue upgrading venue services in time for the professional basketball and baseball
seasons in the US. The upgrades will include support for 1880P high definition video services and fiber infrastructure upgrades to support future broadcasts in 3D.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
Vonage Launches Support for Android Devices on AT&T and T-Mobile
Vonage announced the launch of support for its voice over IP (VoIP) calling services on Android devices running on the T-Mobile and AT&T networks. These handsets will join Vonage’s previous mobile offerings, which
included the iPhone, iPod Touch, and BlackBerry devices. The company notes that users of these newly supported handsets will not have to use a separate number, and may make both international and domestic calls directly from their existing contact lists.
The only restriction on these devices will be the limitation of domestic calls to being made over a Wi-Fi connection.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
CHIP TECHNOLOGY NEWS
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Intel Outlines Atom-Based, System-on-Chip Plans During Beijing Speech
Two Intel executives speaking in Beijing outlined the latest Intel system-on-chip (SoC) products for embedded applications, and described new research to allow homes and small businesses to better use and manage
energy. Intel’s forthcoming SoC product features an Atom processor core that will let other companies create PCI Express-compliant devices that directly-connect to the chip. This offers offers new flexibility for embedded applications, the Intel execs
said. Intel also highlighted work with HawTai, a Chinese car maker that plans to use Intel Atom processors and MeeGo software for its in-car infotainment systems. In
addition, China Mobile plans to adopt Intel chips for targeted platforms powering its wireless networks. Intel execs also disclosed details on a future Intel product code-named “Tunnel Creek.” during his speech. This SoC for embedded applications, such as
in-vehicle-infotainment and IP media phones, will use a standard interconnect to the processor. The SoC combines an Intel Atom processor core, the memory controller hub, graphics engine, and video engine into one chip.
Source: Vendor, 4/14/2010
TI Debuts New Video Processor
Texas Instruments announced a new video processor, the DM368. TI said the DM368 is well-suited for many video-based applications, including HD video cameras, real-time digital video recorders, HD video communications
systems, and digital signage. Besides support for higher video resolutions, it provides a more than 40 percent boost in ARM performance, enabling advanced application programming interfaces for high definition video processing.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
CLOUD COMPUTING & SAAS
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Amazon Web Services Launches Relational Database Service in EU
Amazon Web Services (AWS) announced that it has launched Amazon Relational Database Service (Amazon RDS) in the European Union. The company says the service provide a cost-effective and self-maintaining database in the
cloud. The benefits for EU customers include lower latency and higher performance, both of which are a result of the customer’s data being stored entirely within the EU.
Source: Vendor, 4/14/2010
Citrix’s Xen.org Launches Xen 4.0 Hypervisor
Citrix‘s Xen.org announced the launch of its new Xen 4.0 Hypervisor. The primary update to the virtualization system is the addition of new network cards specifically designed to optimize the usage of virtualization
services. Additionally, the update features improvements to scalability, memory, and security. The company claims this collection of advancements will allow its virtualization platform to provide new levels of usability, including applications which would
previously have been impossible to run in a virtual environment, due to the degradation of performance inherent to virtualization. Xen 4.0 is available now.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
Google Adds Collaborative Drawing Tool to Google Docs
Google announced the addition of Google Docs Drawings to the Web-based office suite. The company says the new software can be used to make charts, diagrams, designs, and more. The application also includes support
for collaboration, so multiple users can work on a single image at once. Once an image is completed, it can be published as a Google hosted image, inserted into Web pages, or downloaded as a PNG, JPG, PDF, or SVG file.
Source: Vendor, 4/14/2010
Google Announces Numerous Upgrades to Google Docs
Google announced numerous upgrades to its Google Docs Web-based office suite at the vendor’s first Atmosphere cloud computing event. The enhancements focus on bringing the solution more in line with competing offline office productivity suites. For documents, this means the
addition of a margin ruler, improved bullets and numbers, and streamlined image placement. Spreadsheets will also be receiving updates, in the form of a formula editing bar, auto-completion of cells, drag-and-drop columns, among other changes. Other
improvements to Docs include easier uploads of local files, including better retention of formatting; quicker response times on large documents; and the ability to collaborate in real time with up to 50 people at once, Google said. As part of this
round of changes, Google has also chosen to replace the previous Google Gears infrastructure behind its Docs product with the new HTML5 World Wide Web language.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
IBM Updates LotusLive Cloud Services with New Features
IBM announced that it will add several features to its LotusLive cloud services. The first is the implementation of UPS shipping and visibility functionality within the suite. The service, which is expected to be
available later this year, is designed to automate or expedite shipping related tasks from within the cloud services themselves. Also being added to LotusLive are integrations with Skype, salesforce.com and Silanis. LotusLive Engage will allow LotusLive
Meetings, Files, and Activities users to collaborate with other users on the Salesforce CRM infrastructure. Silanis e-SignLive e-signature services will be added to allow customers a way to accelerate the handling of legal documents, while reducing
potential errors. The integration of Skype will give users a one-click method of connecting with one of their LotusLive contacts. As part of the same announcement, IBM revealed that it would be adding an enterprise-grade cloud email and social networking
bundle of services for $7 per user, per month.
Source: Vendor, 4/14/2010
Open-Xchange Teams with Dinahosting to Bring Services to Spain
Open-Xchange announced that its email and groupware services will soon be available in Spain. This is being made possible by Dinahosting, an independent provider of Internet business services. The new offering
will be available to customers as a Software-as-a-Service product.
Source: Vendor, 4/14/2010
Open-Xchange Launches Web Mail for Plesk Users
Open-Xchange announced a new product for users of Plesk Webmail in shared hosting environments. The new 4PSA OXtender for Plesk offering allows those users to replace their normal Plesk Webmail installations
with Open-Xchange email and groupware via an Ajax-based Web interface. The company is touting the benefits as including access to flat rate Open-Xchange services, additional groupware functionality, simplified deployments, and automated management. The
OXtender is available now for Plesk 8.3 or later, running in Linux and Unix environments.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
Progress Software Adds End-to-End Encryption to SaaS Platform
Progress Software announced that it has added a new data privacy solution to its Progress OpenEdge SaaS platform. This update encrypts user data through its entire lifecycle, bringing it in line with the latest
Payment Card Industry (PCI) regulations. This is done through Transparent Data Encryption (TDE), which keeps data encrypted no matter where it happens to be stored at any given time. The company believes this will alleviate some of the fears its customers
may have had about making the transition to cloud-based solutions.
Source: Vendor, 4/14/2010
Verizon Adds New Features to Cloud Solution
Verizon Business is adding new features to its Computing as a Service (CaaS) solution. CaaS now offers: server cloning; application and operating system expansion, including support for SUSE Linux and for
Microsoft SQL Server 2008; and expanded networking options for connecting back-end systems to Verizon CaaS, including private IP connections.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
Zoho Adds Organization Functions, IMAP Support to Email
Zoho announced changes to its Web-based email service. The company has added a new method of filtering messages. Users can now label emails from their email lists, from within the message, and from the message’s
preview pane. Zoho has also separated labels and flags into 2 separate classification tools. Zoho has also added support for the IMAP Web mail protocol.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
COMMUNICATIONS NETWORKS & EQUIPMENT
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ADC Demonstrates Fiber Products for Migrating from Copper
ADC demonstrated new fiber portfolio products for easing network migration from copper to fiber within the broadcast industry. New products include fiber panels, optical distribution frames, and an HD patching
system.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
Aruba Introduces New Spectrum Analysis Module
Aruba Networks announced its new Spectrum Analysis Module. The software works with Aruba’s existing fleet of 802.11n access points to scan the airwaves and provide a view of interference on an enterprise
WLAN. The Spectrum Analysis module will be included in Aruba’s wireless intrusion and protection service, available in the third quarter of 2010.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
Intelsat Launches IntelsatONE, with Cisco IP NGN
Cisco Systems announced that Intelsat launched IntelsatONE, a global platform that includes an IP/MPLS based network, fiber, teleports, and points of presence, integrated with Intelsat’s global satellite fleet. It
manages video distribution, over an all IP backbone, using Cisco’s IP next generation network (IP NGN) technology, and video transcoding and network management platforms. According to Intelsat, the Cisco IP NGN technology will expand its capacity for
global, commercial satellite services, including high definition video programming, media applications, and broadband services. It was created to serve the media, network services, and government sectors. For network services and government, it will
provide IPv6 services, DVB-S2 trunking, and MPLS VPN.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
Cisco to Provide CRS-3 for KPN’s New IP Network
Cisco Systems will provide its CRS-3 Carrier Routing System for KPN to serve as the foundation for its core IP Next Generation Network (IP NGN), while also supporting future video
transmission, mobile device, and online services growth. The core IP NGN will replace all current KPN networks, used for Internet transport.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
Covad Offers New Ethernet Services to Wholesale Customers
US carrier Covad Communications said its wholesale partners can now order the company’s new nationwide Ethernet services. Covad Ethernet is available at speeds from 1.5 Mbps to 35 Mbps and can reach about 10 million
businesses, Covad said. Covad’s Ethernet services are offered with dedicated Internet access or aggregated with one of Covad’s Gigabit Ethernet-based hub aggregation services.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
Juniper Announces 8GbE Port Mobile Blade Router
Juniper Networks released its LN1000 mobile router, an 8GbE port, blade model. It was created for high demand, mobile network and sensor applications, such as military platforms, first responder and public safety
vehicles, the Smart Grid, vehicular transportation systems, and exploration and energy and utility applications. Juniper first developed it as a commercial, off the shelf product, supporting General Dynamics‘
efforts on the US Army Warfighter Information Network Tactical program.
Source: Vendor, 4/14/2010
Juniper Selected for Mobile Infrastructure by Allied Wireless
Juniper Networks was selected by Allied Wireless Communications, to build a mobile infrastructure for future wireless services. The architecture is based on open standards and
software, allowing mobile operators to support a range of devices, applications, and subscriber needs, and, it claims, accommodate future growth. Allied Wireless is a wireless, telecommunications provider in Little Rock, AK, US. It serves 800,000
subscribers in six US states.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
Korea Telecom Taps ADTRAN for Carrier Ethernet Services
Korea Telecom (KT) announced that has chosen networking and communications equipment provider ADTRAN to support its X4BIZ PLUS Carrier Ethernet service to small and mid-sized
businesses. KT will deploy ADTRAN’s Total Access 5000 Multiservice Access and Aggregation Platform and NetVanta 800 series of network termination units to deliver the service to its carrier’s customers.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
Level 3 Upgrades New York/Chicago Fiber Optic Network
Level 3 announced that it has upgraded performance and expanded the service options offered on its low-latency, fiber-optic network between New York and Chicago, two financial centers in the US. The upgrade means
Level 3 is now offering a total of three ultra-low-latency options backed by service level guarantees. The company said latency (network delay) has emerged as a critical performance parameter for specialized financial applications.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
Nokia Siemens, Chunghwa Trialing FDD-LTE in Taiwan
Nokia Siemens Networks and Chunghwa Telecom are collaborating on a live, frequency division duplexing, longterm evolution (FDD-LTE) trial, in Taiwan,
to advance future development of new mobile broadband. Nokia Siemens is providing platforms for FDD-LTE, while Chunghwa evaluates the technology as a natural evolution path for WCDMA. FDD-LTE is the variant of LTE that provides a logical path for GSM,
WCDMA, and CDMA operators. It is relevant for operators who have access to the FDD spectrum used for these technologies. Nokia Siemens will also provide technical support.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
Nokia Siemens to Extend Networks in Channel Islands, Germany
Nokia Siemens Networks deployed a 3G network for Cable & Wireless in the Channel Islands. The implementation brings mobile broadband to Sure subscribers on the island of
Guernsey, for future multimedia data services. It is supplying a single RAN platform, which removes the need to deploy separate equipment for 2G, 3G, and longterm evolution networks. It also agreed to expand Telefonica O2 Germany‘s network capacity, to address traffic growth, covering those areas of the country not previously equipped with Nokia Siemens infrastructure. Nokia Siemens will provide network
implementation, project management, and logistics, as well as capacity and radio planning.
Source: Vendor, 4/14/2010
Telstra Launches T-Hub Home Communications Center
Telstra announced the launch of its new home networking and entertainment device, the Telstra T-Hub. The device is designed to serve as a home phone, while offering some of the features more commonly found in mobile
smartphones. This includes text messaging, Web browsing, audio playback, and picture viewing. This is all displayed on the device’s 16cm touch screen. The T-Hub uses a standard phone-line connection for calls, and connects to the internet via the company’s
BigPond Wi-Fi modem. The Telstra T-Hub is available now as part of 15 different pricing plans.
Source: Vendor, 4/14/2010
CONFERENCING
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CSC Adds Videoconferencing to Line of UCC Products
Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC) announced that it will be adding global videoconferencing services to its line of Unified Communications and Collaboration (UCC) solutions. The features of the new service will
include streamlined scheduling, with Microsoft Outlook and Lotus Notes integration, video end-point management, 24-hour customer support, and a selection of both desktop and room-based devices. CSC will also offer value-added services, such as end-point
hardware leasing, hardware maintenance programs, and recording services.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
CONSULTING & MANAGED SERVICES
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IBM to Transform IT Infrastructure of Hilton Worldwide Brands
IBM announced that it has signed a global collaboration agreement with Hilton Worldwide. The agreement calls for IBM to provide the ten brands of the Hilton company with data center management, email services, Web
hosting, and a central guest reservation system. The data center portion of the deal will be handled at IBM’s new Smarter Data Center in Research Triangle Park (RTP), North Carolina. While the collaboration has officially begun, the actual transition will
take several months to be completed. No financial terms for the deal were discussed.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
Boeing Creates GoldCare Plan for 787s, Find First Customer
Boeing announced the launch of the GoldCare Service plan for its upcoming 787 Dreamliner planes. The upkeep plan includes provisions for maintenance, engineering, and material management. The first customer to adopt
this lifecycle solution is TUI Travel. The company, which has 13 of Boeing’s 787 planes on order, has purchased the company’s GoldCare plan for the multiple units which it will place with its subsidiaries Thomson Airways, Tuifly Nordic, Jetairfly and,
Arkefly.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
CA Announces Launch of Windows 7 Migration Support
Computer Associates (CA) announced that it has begun delivering support for the Microsoft Windows 7 operating system (OS). The company says the new addition to its service is designed to streamline the transition for
companies interested in upgrading to the new OS, while reducing the risks inherent to such a major update. CA’s list of services which are part of this OS migration function includes application compatibility assessment, creation and management of images,
supplemental application deployment, and end-user data and settings migration. More information about the system migration service is available at CA’s product page.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
Capgemini to Provide Procurement Services to Kraft Foods
Capgemini announced that its Capgemini America business has signed a procurement agreement with Kraft Foods. The multi-year deal will see Capgemini providing the food company with strategic sourcing and spend
management in numerous purchasing categories. The company has said that it plans to complete this task by leveraging some of the technology acquired in its recent purchase of IBX, an on-demand purchasing solutions provider. No financial terms for the deal
were announced.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
Cisco to Provide Infrastructure Support for Kuwaiti Skyscraper
Cisco Systems announced it was selected by Al Hamra Real Estate to support the development of an information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure for the Al Hamra Tower skyscraper, in Kuwait. As an ICT
advisor, Cisco will support the provision of technical advice and guidance, to support building infrastructure and technology enabled services. Cisco – as part of its Smart+Connected Communities initiative – will provide project management, market and
service analysis, operation and financial model definition, and feasibility analysis. The Cisco Smart+Connected Communities initiative is designed to provide cities and communities with smart connected solutions for utilities, safety and security,
connected real estate, transportation, health care, learning, sports venues, and government services.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
CSC to be Prime Contract for Airbus VCV and Auto-ID Program
Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC) announced that it has been selected as the new prime contractor for Airbus’ Value Chain Visibility (VCV) and Auto-ID program. The deal will give CSC the task of coordinating all of
the company’s current Auto-ID and RFID programs. This includes project management, business analysis, change management, architecture, operation, monitoring, and support. CSC will be working with all previously selected Auto-ID suppliers to ensure that all
Airbus VCV & Auto-ID projects are delivered as planned.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
HP Introduces New Client Infrastructure Services
Hewlett-Packard (HP) introduced new client infrastructure services portfolio, for managing worker productivity and business risk, assessing security measures, and, according to HP, enhancing the end user experience. The
services include: new Client Strategy Services, for the client architecture; Client Virtualization Services, for client, storage, and server technologies; services to help migrate to new operating systems; and end user segmentation, application
compatibility management, and client management services.
Source: Vendor, 4/14/2010
IBM Announces Five-Year IT Deal with BG Group
IBM announced that it has signed a five-year global contract to provide information technology (IT) services to the BG Group. The contract includes provisions for server and storage support; end user services, such as
global service desk support; and network management services. IBM will also be providing a selection of its managed security services to BG Group. No financial terms were discussed.
Source: Vendor, 4/14/2010
SAIC Signs Navy Inventory Control Contract
Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) announced that it has received a contract from the Fleet Industrial Support Center Norfolk Det Philadelphia. The deal calls for SAIC to provide technical services
to support the TARP (Technical Assistance for Repairable Processing) program located at the Naval Inventory Control Point (NAVICP). The support services will include procurements, as well as training. The goal is to streamline the process of securing and
distributing spare parts within the Naval logistics pipeline. The contract has a one-year base period, 4 one-year options, and a maximum value of $47 million, if all options are exercised.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
Verizon Business to Provide Managed Services to Mitsui
Verizon Business announced a new contract worth nearly $100 million with multinational conglomerate Mitsui. Under the deal, Verizon Business is helping Mitsui build a new, fully managed global communications
and IT platform. Verizon Business said it will deploy and manage an integrated global IT, communications, data center and networking solution, supported by managed services, security, and IT consulting offerings. Mitsui is headquartered in Tokyo.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
CRM
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Alcatel Releases Genesys v8 CRM Software Suite
Alcatel-Lucent released its Genesys v8 customer service software, an open platform for coordinating customer conversations across multiple channels and contact points. It features an integrated platform,
interface, and development environment, for synchronizing conversations, whether in person or via the contact center, Web, mobile device, or social media, Alcatel claims. Alcatel also released Genesys Knowledge Management, Web Callback, and SMS, e-services
for customer service and sales. They were created to enable cross channel conversations, as the customer transitions across voice and non-voice channels.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
SugarCRM Launches Sugar 6 Beta; Makes Repository Public
SugarCRM announced the availability of a beta version of its Sugar 6 product. The updated software features a new user interface, increased speed, and a focus on interoperability with Web applications and mobile
devices. The beta version is available for download from the company’s preview page. As part the same announcement, SugarCRM also revealed that it would be making its primary source code repository
for Sugar Community Edition publicly accessible. This is being promoted as a celebratory gesture in recognition of the fifth anniversary of its SugarForge open source CRM community. The repository is available for download here.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
Teradata Announces Swisscom to Consolidate BI Needs on its Platform
Teradata announced that Swisscom will be consolidating its entire business intelligence (BI) operation into a single data warehouse running on a Terradata platform. The new
centralized database will serve as a tool for the company’s customer relationship management (CRM) functions. The entire process of integration is expected to be completed prior to the end of 2010.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
CYBERCRIME & PUNISHMENT
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Kaspersky Highlights Zeus Threats in New Article
Kaspersky Lab published a report about the dangers involved with the Zeus Trojan. The report details how Zeus steals passwords and
other sensitive data from users’ computers, and how the Trojan has been used to create worldwide zombie botnets.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
DBMS
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Oracle Provides First MySQL Product: MySQL Cluster 7.1
Oracle made its first announcement on the future of the MySQL technology. The news came in the form of an update to the MySQL Cluster. The primary change made in version 7.1 of the Cluster is the addition of MySQL
Cluster Manager. This new automation tool handles the management of the MySQL database without human intervention. The company claims this will free up system administrators to more quickly respond to changes in market conditions and service level
agreements. The new release also includes MySQL Cluster Connector for Java, which accelerates development cycles for Java-based services, and NDBINFO, a method of presenting real-time information on MySQL Cluster Data Nodes. The update is available now at
the MySQL Developer’s page.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
DEVELOPMENT SOFTWARE
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Microsoft Updates Visual Studio, .NET Framework, Silverlight
Microsoft announced the official release of both Visual Studio 2010, and .NET Framework 4.0. The company also
revealed Silverlight 4 will be released on the Web soon. Microsoft is promoting the trio of products as a new end-to-end solution for developers creating Web-based or local software products. All three
products feature multiple updates and improvements, including the addition of Windows 7 support, and editors based on the Windows Presentation Foundation. All products can be downloaded and purchased from their respective Microsoft Web sites.
Source: Vendor, 4/11/2010
ENTERPRISE RESOURCE PLANNING
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Progress Software Launches Sonic Enterprise Service Bus 8.0
Progress Software announced the release of Progress Sonic Enterprise Service Bus (ESB) 8.0. Improvements made to this release of the product include open development standards, enhanced continuous availability
architecture, and support for lightweight deployments in multi-site, high-transition environments. The company is also highlighting the addition of its RESTful (Representation State Transfer) architectural approach to integration as part of the ESB 8.0
release. The RESTful technology allows for streamlined integration with portals, mash-ups, mobile devices, and Web-based applications, while providing a greater level of code portability.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
SAP Launches Canadian Localized Version of Business All-in-One
SAP announced the launch of a localized version of its SAP Business All-in-One for Public Sector product in Canada. The enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution has been tailored to the specific regulatory compliance
needs of small to mid sized Canadian municipalities. The solution also features a modular method of adding new business processes as the needs of the customers grow. More information on the new ERP solution can be found within the company’s official announcement of the launch.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
FINANCIAL
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Intel Posts Strong Earnings; Plans to Hire 1,000 Staffers Worldwide
Intel posted the strongest first quarter in its history, with profits nearly four times higher than for the same period a year ago. Intel’s first-quarter 2010 revenue for the period ended March 31, 2010 was $10.3
billion; profit was $2.4 billion; and earnings per share, 43 cents. In the same period last year, Intel earned $629 million, or 11 cents per share. In a press release, Intel said earnings were driven by strong demand for its new line of chips and a return
of business spending on technology. The company expects to hire about 1,000 people this year, worldwide. Intel currently has 79,900 employees, down from 82,500 a year ago.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
Nortel Wins Further Extension of Stay Period
Nortel Networks announced that it and its Canadian subsidiaries that filed for creditor protection under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act have obtained an order from the Ontario Superior Court of Justice
further extending, to July 22, 2010, the stay of proceedings that was previously granted by the Canadian Court. The purpose of the stay of proceedings is to provide stability to the Nortel companies to continue with their divestiture and other
restructuring efforts.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
Harbinger Increases Stake in Palm
Harbinger Capital Management has taken a 9.48% stake in Palm. The New York-based hedge fund, headed by Philip Falcone, revealed the passive investment in a regulatory filing that was reported by The New York Times. Harbinger now owns some 16 million Palm shares. Bloomberg and others reported this week that Palm is considering putting itself up for sale. According to the
Bloomberg report, Palm has hired Goldman Sachs and Qatalyst Partners to help it evaluate its options.
Source: NYTimes, 4/15/2010
Qwest Directors Okay Quarterly Dividend
Qwest Communications announced that its board of directors has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.08 per share. The dividend is payable on June 11, 2010, to all stockholders of record at the close of business on May
21, 2010.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
TI Board Declare Quarterly Dividend
Texas Instruments‘ board of directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.12 per share of common stock, payable May 17, 2010, to stockholders of record on April 30, 2010.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS
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US Army Awards $12.4 Contract to FLIR
FLIR has received a $12.4 million order from the US Army for its Star SAFIRE II stabilized multi-sensor systems. The units delivered under this order will be deployed on UH-60
helicopters in support of ongoing Medevac operations
Source: Vendor, 4/8/2010
General Dynamics Receives $10.2 Million Sub Upkeep Contract
General Dynamics announced that it has received a $10.2 million contract modification to perform several tasks on the USS Miami, a Los Angeles-class attack submarine. The contract calls for a standard
Docking Continuous Maintenance Availability procedure, which includes repairs, maintenance, alterations, and testing. The work is scheduled to be completed by August, 2010.
Source: Vendor, 4/14/2010
HP Extends Services Agreement with Kansas Agency
HP Enterprise Services announced it signed a technology services contract extension with the Kansas Health Policy Authority (KHPA), valued at $119 million USD. The agreement extends HP’s eight year relationship
with the KHPA, a state agency that oversees Medicaid and HealthWave programs for more than 300,000 state residents. HP will continue to manage its customer service call center, in Topeka, and will continue to enroll providers and process approximately 19
million claims, per year. It will also provide Medicaid management information systems maintenance, and surveillance and utilization review, for detecting overpayments, fraud, and abuse. The contract includes two, one year options.
Source: Vendor, 4/14/2010
Juniper Supplying Core to Edge Network for US JFC
Juniper Networks is supplying the US Joint Forces Command (JFC) with a core-to-edge network, to provide real time joint training to Army, Navy, and Air Force personnel, worldwide. Juniper router, switch, firewall,
and network security technology are being used for JFC’s Next-Generation Joint Training and Experimentation Network (JTEN), which supports up to 30,000 concurrent, multi-cast streams, including live video and virtual simulations. JTEN is the communications
network for the US Department of Defense Joint National Training Capability, used to train combatant commands and services.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
Lockheed Martin to Provide Wind Turbine Mitigating Radar to UK
Lockheed Martin announced that it has been commissioned to create a radar solution for several planned offshore wind farms in the UK. The company’s TPS-77 radar will be able to provide normal radar resolution
in the areas of the farms despite the usual interference provided by the large rotating blades of the wind collection turbines. The network of farms will include 5 locations in the “Greater Wash Strategic Area.” Their combined power generation is expected
to be in the range of 5,500 megawatts. The systems will be delivered to the UK’s Ministry of Defense by the end of 2011.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
SAIC Signs Contract for Naval Air Systems Command Support
Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) received a contract from the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division (NAWCAD). The deal calls for the company to support the Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR)
Corporate Operations and Comptroller Offices with organizational and business services. This includes professional and analytics services with the goal of developing a system of best practices for the NAVAIR Command. The contract has a one-year base
period, and 4 one-year options. The total value of the deal is $84 million if all options are exercised.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
HEALTHCARE SYSTEMS
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AT&T Wins California Telehealth Network Contract
AT&T announced a new agreement with the University of California in support of the California Telehealth Network (CTN).
The project aims to build a statewide network infrastructure that will connect smaller hospitals and clinics to larger hospitals, their specialists, and experts. When complete, the network will include more than 860 sites throughout the state. As part of a
three-year, $27 million contract, AT&T will provide Managed Network Services in support of the telehealth initiative. CTN is the result of a statewide coalition of healthcare, technology, government, and other stakeholders that sought funding from the
Federal Communications Commission’s Rural Health Care Pilot Program. With the goal of significantly increasing access to acute, primary, and preventive health care in rural America, the FCC will provide CTN with up to $22.1 million over three years.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
INDUSTRY GROUPS
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Mobile High-Definition Link Consortium Established
Toshiba Japan, Nokia, Samsung Electronics, Silicon Image, and Sony Japan announced the formation of
the Mobile High-Definition Link (MHL) consortium, for developing a new mobile audio/video interface standard, for connecting mobile phones and other electronic devices to HDTVs and displays. The MHL standard
features a single cable, supporting up to 1080p HD video and digital audio, while simultaneously providing power to the mobile device.
Source: Vendor, 4/14/2010
INTERNET
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Akamai Serves Record 3.45 Tbps of Content in Single Day
Content delivery network Akamai said its EdgePlatform reached a single-day peak of 3.45 Tbps of content served on April 9th, driven by demand for online coverage of sporting events as well as customer product
announcements and software releases. This rate of content served is Akamai’s highest in more than ten years in business, and represents total, simultaneous content served in support of more than 3,100 customers worldwide. Akamai also delivered its
largest-ever traffic for HD video streaming April 9th. Over the course of the day, Akamai logged more than 500 billion requests for content. At peak, the company supported more than 12 million requests per second. In a press release, Akamai said the traffic peak of 3.45 Tbps is roughly equivalent to the capacity needed to download the entire printed contents of the US Library of Congress
in less than a minute.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
The Debian Project Creates Massive Package Release Archive
The Debian Project announced the launch of a new archival Web site. The new site will serve as a repository of all previous packages, and source codes, released since March,
2005. The company claims the availability of this library to system administrators will enhance their ability to provide stable operating environments by providing them with definitive access to a replica of the Debian version in use at any given time. The
archive will include almost all packages released as part of the main and security archives, as well as additional archives from debian-volatile, debian-ports and backports.org. The archive’s initial size comes in at 6.5 terabytes, and will continue to
grow as new packages are added to it.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
Google Adds More Languages to Text-to-Speech, Transliteration
Google announced a pair of updates to its Google Translate service. The text-to-speech functionality, which reads words run through the translation service aloud, can now support French, Italian, and German. These
languages join English, Haitian and Creole. Google has also upped the number of languages which support transliteration. Transliteration is a function which converts words written using a standard Roman script keyboard into their native alphabets. The
service has supported Arabic, Hindi, and Persian for some time. It now also supports Greek, Russian and Serbian, with plans to add Hebrew in the near future.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
Google Adds Single Word In-Page Translation to Toolbar, Chrome
Google added an additional layer of language translation support to its Google Toolbar. The toolbar already featured the function of automatically translating an entire foreign language pages into a user’s native
tongue. However, Google has now added the option to leave the page in its original language, while enabling the translation of individual words by mousing over them. The company suggests that this function would be especially useful to multi-lingual users
that may understand the language in question, but may still need help with unfamiliar words. The feature is available now as part of the latest release of the Google Toolbar, which is compatible with Microsoft‘s
Internet Explorer, and Mozilla Firefox. The feature is already included in the latest release of Google’s own Chrome Web browser.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
Google Adds MediaRSS to Feed API
Google added support for MediaRSS to its Google Feed API. The MediaRSS technology allows for the inclusion of multimedia files, such as images and videos, to be included in the distribution of RSS feeds. Google has
now included this content in the JSON and XML results returned by the API. The new technology is available now. However, Google warns that users should not expect to see it implemented on any feed items distributed prior to February 1, 2010.
Source: Vendor, 4/8/2010
Google Services for Web Sites Added to Parallels Plesk Panel
Google announced that its Google Services for Web Sites product is now integrated with Parallels Plesk Panel. Parallels, the maker of control panel software for hosting companies, will include the Google Services
solution with version 9.5 of its Plesk control panel. The benefits of this integration include access to Google services, such as maps, news, and video, as well as access to Google Custom Search, and Site Search query engines. More information on the new
feature is available at Google’s Services for Web Sites info page.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
ICANN Transfers All DotSpeedy Registered Domains to Secura GmbH
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) announced that it has authorized a bulk transfer of all generic top level domains managed by DotSpeedy to registrar Secura because DotSpeed has been decertified as a registrar by Internet oversight body ICANN. The transfer will be handled free of charge by the newly-selected registrar, which should be
contacting all affected customers shortly. Because DotSpeedy did not forward billing information to Secura, however, all registrants must provide updated billing information to Secura or transfer their names to other registrars.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
Yahoo, Feds Fight over Email Privacy
Yahoo and federal prosecutors in Colorado are embroiled in a privacy battle over whether the US Constitution’s warrant requirements apply to email. According to NextGov,
the legal battle concerns a 1986 law that already allows the government to obtain a suspect’s email from an ISP or Web mail provider without a probable-cause warrant, once it has been stored for 180 days or more. The government now contends it can get
email less than 180-days old if that email has been read by the owner, and the Constitution’s Fourth Amendment protections do not apply. Google has voiced its support for Yahoo in the dispute.
Source: NextGov.com, 4/15/2010
Yahoo Launches “WHO KNEW?” 90 Second News Briefs
Yahoo announced a joint venture with Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. (TMS) and Reveille called “WHO KNEW?”. The new product, which features the tagline “just when you thought you knew the news,” comes in the form of 90
second news updates that are designed to provide information on lesser known aspects of each days most clicked news topics. The new program is part of a larger video content deal signed between Yahoo and Reveille, while Toyota’s involvement ostensibly
relates to its promotion of its redesigned Avalon luxury car. The updates will appear on a daily basis at Yahoo’s new dedicated page.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
IT ASSET MANAGEMENT
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Accenture Teams with Hanhwa S&C for IT Services in South Korea
Accenture announced that it has signed an eight-year agreement with Hanhwa S&C to jointly market their information technology (IT) services to members of the insurance, banking, and security industry in South
Korea. As part of the deal, the two companies will also jointly offer their application management services to the Hanwha Group’s financial services affiliates. The collaboration will include the establishment of sales and support teams with members from
both companies, as well as training from Accenture skills-development programs for both companies’ IT professionals.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
CA Launches Nimsoft On Demand IT Monitoring Solution
Computer Associates (CA) announced the launch of Nimsoft On Demand, the latest Software as a Service (SaaS) product in its Unified Monitoring line. Nimsoft On Demand provides customers with a cloud based method for
monitoring their IT assets, including on-site, and cloud-based holdings. CA is promoting Nimsoft On Demand as a cost saving method of providing scalable IT monitoring to companies with dynamic IT infrastructures. Interested companies can request a trial of
the SaaS solution at the company’s Web site.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
LAPTOPS & NETBOOKS
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Apple Announces New MacBook Pro Lines
Apple announced it updated its MacBook Pro line, adding support for new processors, NVIDIA graphics, and, according to Apple, a longer, 10 hour battery life. The new 15 and 17 inch MacBook Pro’s feature Intel Core i5
and i7 processors. New 13 inch models retail for between $1,199 and $1,499, 15 inch models for $1,799 to $2,199, and 17 inch models for $2,299. All are available immediately, through Apple’s online store, retail store, and authorized resellers.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
Apple Delays International Launch of the iPad Due to Demand
Apple announced that it will delay the international launch of its new iPad handheld until late May. The company said strong demand for the iPad made the delay necessary. Apple had originally announced plans to
gradually roll out the iPad, worldwide, beginning April 24th. Apple says it has sold more than 500,000 iPads to date, and that demand in its stores continues to outstrip supply in many cases. Apple will begin taking preorders for international customers
on May 10th, for delivery later in the month.
Source: Vendor, 4/14/2010
General Dynamics Launches Tadpole TOPAZ Rugged Notebook
General Dynamics announced the launch of a new ruggedized laptop. The Tadpole TOPAZ notebook computer is being targeted at “military power-users, first responders and federal agents.” The unit has passed
military-standard testing for extreme temperatures, shock resistance, and water resistance. The rugged notebook also features 3 ethernet ports, for simultaneous access to multiple networks, a 15.1 inch daylight-visible screen, and compatibility with
Windows, Linux, and Solaris operating systems.
Source: Vendor, 4/9/2010
Toshiba Releases Tecra M11 Lightweight Business Laptops
Toshiba Digital Products released its new Tecra M11 series of high performance, business laptops, which are 1.5 inches thick and weigh just over five pounds. The systems have a 14 inch, high
definition display. They are available through authorized resellers, e-tailers, and directly, via toshibadirect.com, for $899 USD. Further information is available at laptops.toshiba.com/laptops/tecra/M11
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
LEGAL
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WSJ: HP Offices in Moscow Raided in Bribery Investigation
HP Russia‘s Moscow offices were raided by regulatory officials looking for clues in a multi million dollar bribery investigation. At question is a $47.8 million USD contract to provide a computer system and
secure communications for Russian prosecutors, the Wall Street Journal reported. German and Russian investigators are looking into claims that HP paid in $8 million in bribes to secure the deal, in August 2003.
Source: WSJ, 4/14/2010
WiLan Sues Major Companies over Bluetooth Patent
Licensing company WiLan, based in Canada, has filed a patent infringement suit against most of the major manufacturers in the mobile phone and computer industries. The suit filed in the District Court for the Eastern
District of Texas accuses the companies of infringement of WiLan’s US Patent No. 5,515,369. Companies named in the filing include Acer, Apple, Atheros Communications, Belkin, Broadcom, Dell, D-Link, Gateway, HP, Intel, Lenovo, LG Electronics, Marvell
Semiconductor, Motorola, Personal Communications Devices, Sony, Texas Instruments, Toshiba, and UTStarcom. In a press release, WiLan
claims the companies have infringed and continue to infringe WiLAN’s patent by making and selling products enabled with Bluetooth technology, including cellular handsets and personal notebook computers.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
MOBILE SOFTWARE & PLATFORMS
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Alcatel Announces New Mobile Advertising Software
Alcatel-Lucent unveiled its Optimism mobile advertising product, designed to help mobile operators develop new business models, while also helping advertisers reach a more targeted audience. Further
information is available at alcatel-lucent.com/advertising.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
Google Updates Google Mobile App for iPad
Google announced that it has updated its Google Mobile application for the iPad. The app, which was originally designed for the iPhone and iPod Touch, has been revamped to meet the requirements of the new, larger
screen of the tablet computing device. The update is largely an aesthetic one, however. As the app provides the exact same feature set as its iPhone predecessor. This includes access to Gmail, Maps, My Location, and Voice Search services. The app is
available for free from the Apple App Store.
Source: Vendor, 4/14/2010
Opera Mini for iPhone Gets Approved
Opera made a brief announcement to reveal that it has gained approval from Apple for its Opera Mini version designed for the iPhone operating system. The approval was far from
certain, due to Apple’s policy of rejecting applications which replicated some function of the iPhone OS. However, the application has been approved, and should be globally available from the Apple App Store within 24 hours. It is compatible with all
versions of the iPhone and iPod Touch.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
Opera Mini for iPhone Downloaded over 1 Million Times in 24 Hours
Opera announced that its newly-available Opera Mini for iPhone app has been downloaded over 1 million times. The browser, which Opera claims can produce speeds up to six times faster than the iPhone’s default Mobile
Safari browser, reached the top spot on the downloads charts for all 22 of the regional app stores that Apple track on their site. The company believes the early success of the product can be attributed to its ability to
compress the incoming data when loading a Web site. This is both how the browser expedites loading, and a method of saving money for iPhone users around the world that pay for data on a per usage basis. The Opera Mini for iPhone app is available for
download from the Apple App Store.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
SugarCRM Creates App for the iPad
SugarCRM announced the launch of an application for the Apple iPad. The new Sugar iPad app allows mobile workers to access their itinerary, including urgent tasks; add modules
which contain existing SugarCRM applications; synchronize their data; and access customer information. The company also announced that it would be bringing a similar feature set to its existing iPhone application in a future update. The app will be
available from the Apple App store some time in August.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
Twitter Collaborates with RIM on Official BlackBerry Twitter App
Twitter announced that it has collaborated with Research in Motion (RIM), makers of the BlackBerry smartphone, to create an official Twitter application for the BlackBerry operating system. The app, which is available
for free from the company’s download page, includes several BlackBerry-specific features. Among them are push notifications of new messages, camera and photo integration,
browser integration, inbox integration (which will place new tweets in the same universal inbox and emails and texts), and notifications of @mentions.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
PERIPHERALS
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Cisco Releases New Flip Video Camcorder
Cisco announced the newest member of its consumer-targeted Flip Video line, the Flip SlideHD. The latest iteration of the very popular small camcorder features a new form factor, can record up to four hours of HD
video or store up to 12 hours of content, and sports a wide screen for viewing. Flip SlideHD is available now for a suggested price of about $280 at major retailers and from the online Flip store.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
HP Introduces Smart Install Plug and Print Technology
Hewlett-Packard introduced new Smart Install “plug and print” technology for its LaserJet Pro printer line, which allows the user to print after connecting a netbook, laptop, or desktop to a USB cable, without first
installing the printer via CD. It is available for HP’s new LaserJet P1100 printer series printers. Additional information on HP’s imaging and printing portfolio is available at hp.com/go/plugandprint.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
PERSONNEL AND ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGES
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Boeing Appoints Antoine Balas as Director of Corp. Communications
Boeing announced that Antoine Balas has been appointed as its new Director of Corporate Communications for France. The role will place him in charge of directing the company’s corporate communications in the country,
and conversing with stockholders. Balas has worked in corporate communications for over 15 years. His last position, prior to joining Boeing, was as leader of Corporate Communications and Media Relations at Valeo, a French auto manufacturer.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
CSC Appoints Denise Peppard as VP and Chief Human Resources Officer
Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC) announced that it has appointed Denise Peppard as its new vice president and chief human resources officer. Peppard will be replacing Nathan Siekierka, who will be staying on with the
company as corporate vice president until his retirement early next year. The new position will have her reporting directly to Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer of the company, Michael W. Laphen. Before coming to CSC, Peppard was vice
president of human resources for Wyeth and Wyeth Pharmaceuticals.
Source: Vendor, 4/14/2010
HP Announces Several New Executive Appointments
Hewlett-Packard (HP) announced several executive appointments. It appointed Thomas Hogan as EVP of Sales, Marketing, and Strategy for its Enterprise Business. Hogan formerly headed HP’s Software and Solutions unit. It
also announced Francesco Serafini – the SVP and managing director for HP’s EMEA regional activities – as EVP of Emerging Markets. Jan Zadak will assume Serafini’s EMEA post. HP announced former VMware executive Richard Geraffo, as SVP and managing director
for the Americas. Finally, HP named Piau Phang Foo to replace the retiring Doraisamy Balu as SVP and managing director for the Asia Pacific and Japan.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
IBM Opens New Server Factory at Poughkeepsie Facility
IBM announced the opening of a new manufacturing facility for its System z mainframes and high-end Power Systems servers. The new 56,000-square-foot factory will be located at the company’s existing compound in
Poughkeepsie. IBM claims that it designed the production facility to function like a data center, including innovative cooling technologies, and ergonomics designed to reduce noise production. The first products produced by the plant will reach customers
later this year.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
Opera Opens Office in St. Petersburg, Russia
Opera announced the official opening of its new Russian office. The company’s desktop browser has particularly strong user base statistics within the country, accounting for 31.7 percent of the Russian market share.
The new office, which is located in St. Petersburg, will serve as the company’s headquarters for all of the company’s support, Web development, and corporate communication functions in the region.
Source: Vendor, 4/14/2010
Siemens Collapses Smartcard Operations into IT Solutions, Services
Siemens announced that it merged its smartcard-based security solutions business, under the Siemens IT Solutions and Services banner. The integration expands the unit’s
capabilities for integrated security offerings, while also strengthening its activities within the sector. Smart cards can be used to allow access to buildings and IT systems, within enterprises and public institutions, and can also attach a legally
binding, electronic signature to documents, or to encrypt the contents of e-mails and hard disks.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
Verizon Ramps Up Green Efforts
Verizon Communications announced that it has launched a comprehensive sustainability program comprising new initiatives and an expansion of existing ones. The efforts range from significantly increasing the number
of alternative vehicles in the company’s fleet to conducting a trial of energy-efficient FiOS-TV set-top boxes (in partnership with Microsoft). Verizon said that, among its other initiatives, the company has kicked off a long-term awareness campaign for
the company’s 220,000 employees that aims to cut energy use and encourage recycling at work and home. Recent examples include free electronic recycling days, open to the public, at various company locations.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
Verizon Breaks Ground for New Technology Center
Verizon Communications broke ground April 15 for its new Technology Innovation Center in Waltham, Massachusetts. The facility, focused on 4G Long Term Evolution wireless networks, will build on the history of the
existing Verizon Technology Campus at Waltham, Verizon said. The company has operated its research campus at Waltham since the 1940s.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
PUBLIC SAFETY
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US Signs Megaports Agreement with Argentina
The Department of State signed a Megaports Agreement with Argentina in an effort to prevent the smuggling of nuclear and other radioactive materials. The pact will enable the US to work with Argentine customs, and
to install radiation detection equipment and associated infrastructure at the Port of Buenos Aires. The Megaports Initiative was created to deter, detect, and intercept illicit trafficking in nuclear and other radioactive materials transiting the global
shipping system.
Source: DoS, 4/13/2010
Verizon Hosting National Disaster Recovery Exercise
Verizon Business announced that it is hosting a national disaster recovery exercise at one of its major facilities near Washington, DC to demonstrate how critical communications infrastructure can be restored
after catastrophic events. The exercise began April 12. As part of the event, Verizon brought vehicles and trailers from its disaster recovery fleet, including the company’s new 51-foot mobile communications command center, to its Ashburn, VA campus. The
company also engaged its 30-member Major Emergency Response Incident Team (MERIT), which is experienced at protecting and restoring the company’s network assets during hazardous-materials situations. The MERIT team will conduct additional drills during its
annual weeklong training. Verizon is also highlighting its “smart credentialing” services at the exercise. When used for disaster recovery activities, the service enables authorities to electronically confirm identities and skills of emergency responders
arriving at a disaster scenes. Only those with proper credentials would be allowed into specific areas to work.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
REGULATORY
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CDS Reports on Flu Vaccination Coverage in US
Two reports on recent surveys of flu vaccination coverage were released this month by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. One was a survey of health care workers, while the second report focuses on each
state’s H1N1 vaccination coverage. The first study (Internet-based) surveyed more than 1000 health care workers. It found that an estimated 64.5% have received at least one (seasonal or H1N1) flu vaccine during the 2009-2010 season, which is much higher
than what has been seen in other surveys in previous years, according to the CDC. The report also found that those who care for seriously ill patients were more likely to be vaccinated than those working with less seriously ill patients. In addition, the
health care worker survey showed that those who were employed by health care organizations and providers that required or recommended staff vaccination were 2-3 times more likely to get vaccinated than those in organizations without a flu vaccination
policy. The second report provides state-level estimates of H1N1 vaccine coverage and highlights success rates in vaccinating children as well as individuals who were in groups that were initially recommended to get the H1N1 vaccine. The complete reports
are available online.
Source: CDC, 4/15/2010
Homeland Security Adds Two Methods for Securing Federal Facilities
The Department of Homeland Security has added two initiatives to the Interagency Security Committee in an effort to better protect federal facilities. The new standards include the Physical Security Criteria for
Federal Facilities, which establishes comprehensive standards to address site, structural, interior and system security; and the Design-Basis Threat Report, which is meant to align the standards with current threat-based intelligence.
Source: DHS, 4/12/2010
House Okays Radio Spectrum Inventory Act; Bill Pending in Senate
Tech blog Hillicon Valley reported that the US House of Representatives approved a bill that would require federal officials to take stock of the country’s occupied and available radio spectrum. The
bill, co-sponsored by Rep. Henry Waxman (D-California), cleared the House on a 394-18 vote, with only Republicans opposing the legislation. A version of the proposal, spearheaded by Senators Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) and John Kerry (D-Massachusetts) is still
pending action in the Senate. The bill would require the FCC and National Telecommunications and Information Administration to study radio spectrum and report back elements of it that remain under-utilized. Wireless
industry trade group CTIA applauded passage of the bill in the House, saying in a statement that enactment of the bill “will assist us in efforts to
remain the most competitive and innovative wireless market in the world.”
Source: TheHill, 4/15/2010
GAO Calls for DHS to Decrease Reliance on Contract Security Guards
The US Homeland Security Department should consider decreasing its reliance on contract guards at federal buildings, a top government watchdog has testified. According to a report in Government Executive, Mark Goldstein, director of physical infrastructure issues at the Government Accountability Office, told the House Homeland Security Committee that DHS’ Federal
Protective Service (FPS) has failed repeatedly to properly manage its contract workforce, and that federalizing security should now be an option. “We recommend that FPS identify other approaches to protecting federal buildings,” Goldstein said. The hearing
followed a GAO report that reported undercover agents were able to slip fake guns, knives, and explosives past guards at federal facilities. Since July 2009, 53 “penetration tests” have been
conducted at federal facilities nationwide, according to the report. In more than 66 percent of those tests, guards did not identify prohibited items.
Source: GovExec.com, 4/15/2010
Two GAO Reports Discuss Federal IT Security Challenges
Because security incidents on government IT systems continue to increase, the US Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently reviewed the Federal Desktop Core Configuration (FDCC) initiative, which was launched in
2007 to strengthen federal agencies’ security. In its report, the GAO advised the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to issue guidance on assessing risks
and monitoring compliance with the FDCC. In addition, the GAO recommended that 22 government agencies adopt various steps to fully implement FDCC requirements. The GAO also issued a report on its
assessment of the Trusted Internet Connections and Cybersecurity Protection System, which were initiated to protect federal systems and operations from cyber attacks.
Source: GAO, 3/12/2010
Telcel Customers Get Extension for Registering Mobile Phones
Mexican newspaper The News reported that mobile operator Telcel has been granted an extension so that services to users who did not register their phones with
Mexico’s National Registry of Mobile Phone Users will not be suspended. Telcel, which controls more than 70 percent of Mexico’s cell phone market, filed and was granted an injunction for protection against the registration initiative, which was enacted in
an effort to curb crime. The phone carrier said that “the established deadline for the register was insufficient due to the extensive database of our current clients.” It also said that since the process began 11 months ago, Telcel has registered an
average of 100,000 customers per day. Nearly 25 million cell phones were not registered by last Saturday’s deadline, according to Mexico’s federal government.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
SATELLITE COMMUNICATIONS
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Gilat Providing Upgraded Broadband Satellite Network in Ethiopia
Gilat Satellite Networks announced that it is providing a broadband satellite communications network to Ethiopian Telecommunication Corporation (ETC), Ethiopia’s national telecom
operator. The new network will provide an upgrade to ETC’s existing Gilat VSAT network and will enable ETC to deliver advanced broadband services to business and government customers, Gilat said. ETC will also deploy Gilat’s VSATs at remote community
centers nationwide to provide citizens with toll-quality telephony and reliable broadband Internet access. Gilat said ETC also plans to extend the range of cellular services in Ethiopia’s remote regions through Gilat’s SkyAbis cellular backhaul
solution.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
Intelsat Reports Anomaly; Will Transition Media Traffic
Satellite operator Intelsat announced that its Galaxy 15 satellite (G-15), located at 133ø West Longitude, experienced an anomaly on April 5th. The G-15 satellite primarily provides transmission capacity for cable
programmers in North America. Intelsat said there has been no service interruption to customers, and based on current technical information, no service interruption is expected. All media traffic on the G-15 satellite will be transitioned to Intelsat’s
Galaxy 12 satellite, which is the designated in-orbit spare for the North American region. Galaxy 12 is currently relocating to the 133ø WL orbital location. Intelsat’s fleet includes 12 other satellites that serve the continental US region.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
SEARCH
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Bing To add Twitter Search Results
Bing announced that it will soon be joining the collection of search engines which integrate Twitter results into their queries. Users will be able to perform a standard Bing search and have results presented to them
from both the Web and Twitter updates. The new feature is currently in testing, and limited to a small number of users, and search terms. However, the company plans to roll out the functionality to all users in the very near future.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
Google Continues Dominance of US Web Search
comScore released its monthly qSearch analysis of the US search marketplace. In March 2010, Americans conducted 15.4 billion core searches, with Google sites accounting for 65.1
percent search market share. Behind Google: Yahoo sites (16.9 percent); Microsoft sites (11.7 percent); Ask Network (3.8 percent of the US search
market); and AOL, with 2.5 percent.
Source: comScore, 4/12/2010
Google Adds Recipes to Rich Snippets
Google announced that it has added recipes as a new form of rich snippets. The function allows Web site designers to create a piece of code in microdata, RDFa, or the hRecipe microformat which will display a more
in-depth search result for a given recipe on a Google search results page. This marks the fifth type of rich snippet result Google supports. The other four are reviews, people, video and, events. Google warns that it is rolling the new function out
gradually, so many sites may not see their snippets appearing in search results immediately.
Source: Vendor, 4/14/2010
Microsoft Revamps Bing Shopping, Adds Products Summaries
Microsoft announced several updates to its Bing shopping page. The landing page for shopping searches will feature a new categorized list pane. This will let users browse through
potential purchases by categories and sub-classifications. The company has also added product summaries for popular items. These include such facts as user reviews, where the item is available, and product specifications. The review function of the site
has been improved as well. Bing now automatically parses out the available reviews in an attempt to provide users with the most recent, and most relevant ratings possible.
Source: Vendor, 4/8/2010
SECURITY FLAWS & FIXES
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Adobe Releases Security Bulletin for Acrobat, Reader
Adobe Acrobat and Reader both contain a variety of critical vulnerabilities. The vendor issued a bulletin with details about these flaws and
advises uses to update to version 9.3.2 or 8.2.2.
Source: Secunia, 4/14/2010
Mac OS X Contains Major Vulnerability
A critical flaw discovered in Apple Mac OS X could result in the execution of arbitrary code. The vulnerability is reported in Mac OS X Server 10.5, Mac OS X 10.5, Mac OS X 10.6, and Mac OS X Server 10.6. Users should
immediately apply Security Update 2010-003. Further information can be found in the vendor advisory.
Source: Secunia, 4/15/2010
Cisco Secure Desktop Flaw Results in Advisory
Cisco Secure Desktop has a vulnerability that is caused by the CSDWebInstaller ActiveX control failing to properly verify the integrity of an executable file during the installation process. Cisco issued an advisory which directs users to update to version 3.5.841 or later.
Source: Secunia, 4/15/2010
Fedora Fixes Java-1.6.0-OpenJDK
Fedora has issued an update for Java-1.6.0-OpenJDK. There are two advisories posted on Fedora’s site and users may update their products at the yum utility.
Source: Secunia, 4/9/2010
Microsoft Patch Tuesday Resolves 25 Issues
Microsoft issued 25 fixes within 11 bulletins on April’s Patch Tuesday. Five fixes are rated critical, and two of them fix zero-day flaws. The critical updates resolve issues in Windows, SMB Client, Windows Media
Services, MPEG Layer-3 Codecs, and Media Player. Users should read the security bulletin and immediately apply all updates.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
Oracle’s April Critical Patch Update Offers 47 Fixes
Oracle issued a critical patch update to resolve 47 critical flaws in several of its products including Database 11g, Identity Management 10g, and Collaboration Suite 10g. The update provides all of the information as to which products are affected.
Source: Vendor, 4/14/2010
Vulnerabilities Found in Real Networks’ Helix Server Products
Some vulnerabilities have been reported in Helix Server and Helix Mobile Server. An update to version 14.0.0 fixes these issues. Real Networks has also issued an advisory to address the vulnerabilities.
Source: Secunia, 4/15/2010
SonicWALL: Oracle JavaWS Has Flaw
SonicWALL reported that a command-line injection vulnerability exists in Oracle‘sJava Web Start (aka JavaWS or javaws), which is due to insufficient input validation of JNLP
network paths. Further details regarding this issue are available at SonicWALL’s site.
Source: Vendor, 4/14/2010
Sun Java Zero-Day Flaw Has No Current Fix
A zero-day injection vulnerability has been found in Sun Java Toolkit. No fix has been issued at this time but users should set the kill-bit for affected ActiveX controls.
Source: Secunia, 4/12/2010
Sun Issues Advisory for Ray Server Software
A vulnerability has been reported in Sun Ray Server Software. Users should read the advisory for further information regarding this
issue.
Source: Secunia, 4/14/2010
SuSE Fixes Resolve Critical Flaws
SuSe issued fixes for multiple products and details about these updates are available in an advisory. Updates are available
via YaST Online Update or the SUSE FTP server.
Source: Secunia, 4/14/2010
VMware Flaws Result in Updates
Vulnerabilities were detected in VMware Workstation Movie Decoder, VMware Remote Console, and VMware Server. Users of Workstation Movie Decoder are advised to update to version 6.5.4 Build 246459. An advisory was issued for Remote Console, which directs users to update to a fixed version by visiting WebAccess on an updated vCenter 4.0 or ESX 4.0 system. VMware Server’s
issues are also discussed in the advisory.
Source: Secunia, 4/9/2010
Flaws in VMware Products Require Updates
There have been reports of vulnerabilities in various VMware products. Users are asked to update to a fixed version.
Source: Secunia, 4/9/2010
SECURITY PRODUCTS & CONTRACTS
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BitDefender Launches Two Antivirus Products for Mac
BitDefender now offers two antivirus products for Apple Mac users. The company’s Antivirus for Mac and Antivirus for Mac and PC are its first ones for Apple computers. The first is designed solely for Mac users,
while the second is for those who frequently boot into Windows via Boot Camp or virtualization apps like Parallels and VMware Fusion. Antivirus for Mac costs $40 for the application and the first year’s virus subscription updates. Antivirus for Mac and PC
sells for $50 with the first year included; extra years can be purchased for additional fees. BitDefender said it launched the products in response to an increase in malware targeting Mac vulnerabilities.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
Report: IT Staff, Executives Not in Agreement on Security
A new study sponsored by CA has found that there are differences between US federal agency IT executives and IT professional staff when it comes to how prepared they believe their agencies are to deal with security
threats, the strength of their security profiles, and their ability to achieve security objectives. The study polled 320 IT practitioners and found that 62 percent of respondents deemed
privileged-user password management very important, while just 31 percent of executives felt it was very important.
Source: Vendor, 4/14/2010
Check Point Introduces New Products
Check Point Software DLP is the vendor’s new data loss prevention offering which provides over 250 pre-defined best practice policies to help meet security, performance and compliance requirements. The product
consists of a three-tiered MultiSpect engine that correlates and classifies sensitive data. Check Point also rolled out the SmartEvent Software Blade, which is a unified security management product that offers event visibility across multiple security
systems.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
Check Point Streaming Technology Added to Products
Check Point Software has added streaming technology to its various software blades in an effort to provide better security protection. This streaming technology is designed to improve Check Point’s antivirus and
URL filtering software. In addition, Check Point has extended its SecureXL acceleration technology to all UTM-1 appliances.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
Extreme Networks Joins RSA Secured Parner Program
Extreme Networks has joined the RSA Secured Partner Program to certify interoperability between its ExtremeXOS operating system and the RSA enVision security
information and event management platform from RSA, the security division of EMC.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
Researcher: Changing Passwords Frequently a Waste of Time
The Boston Globe reported that a study conducted by a researcher at Microsoft has found that the constant creating and protecting of passwords to keep information secure on
computers is not beneficial. Cormac Herley, a scientist at Microsoft Research, studied how users are asked to change their passwords regularly in an attempt to thwart computer attacks. He discovered that this process is not effective in preventing
sabotage, and it often is time-consuming and requires a great deal of user effort.
Source: BGlobe, 4/11/2010
Raytheon Receives $88 Million Contract from TSA
Raytheon announced that it has received an $88 million contract for airport security equipment. The contract was signed under the Transportation Security Administration’s Security Equipment Integration Services
contract. It includes a range of checkpoint screening equipment, which is to be installed at airports across the US. The contract began on March 24, 2010, and runs through March 23, 2011.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
New RSA Service Fights Cybercrime
RSA announced its CyberCrime Intelligence Service, which was created to help organizations identify computers, information assets and identities compromised by Trojans and other online attacks. The managed
service is based upon the RSA Anti-Fraud Command Center and will be made available beginning on May 1.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
RSA Details Rise of Zeus Trojan in New White Paper
A new white paper from RSA details how the increase in malware, particularly Zeus Trojans, has impacted 88 percent of the Fortune 500 companies that were studied. In addition, the paper determined that companies
with less than 75,000 employees appeared to have the highest ratio of email addresses compromised by malware to employee counts. The publication notes that the rapid evolution of malware has created possible gaps with the current security controls and
policies designed to protect corporate resources and monitor employee behavior.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
Sophos Updates SafeGuard
Sophos announced the release of version 5.50 of SafeGuard Easy and SafeGuard Enterprise. These updated versions offer new capabilities including recovery of lost passwords through the Local SelfHelp function and
support for Windows 7.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
Symantec Updates Four Security Suites
Symantec has unveiled four updated security offerings that are designed to manage and secure IT assets: Control Compliance Suite 10.0; Data Loss Prevention 10.5; Altiris IT Management Suite 7.0; and Symantec
Protection Suites. The suites were updated to provide added security against threats both within and from outside corporate networks.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
Unisys Launches New Suite of Airport Security Products
Unisys announced that it has launched a new product suite called Next Generation Airport Passenger Security Solution. The product is designed to expedite a passenger’s trip through security checkpoints with such
technologies as mobile-enabled electronic boarding passes, biometrics, and preprinted baggage tags.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
Verisign Surpasses 2 Billion OCSP Checks in a Single Day
Verisign announced that it has passed a significant milestone in terms of utilization of its services. For the first time, the company recorded over 2 billion Online Certificate Status Protocol (OCSP) checks in a
single day. This occurred on Monday, April 12, and represented an average of more than 23,000 OCSP checks per second. This news comes less than a year after Verisign announced that it had broken the 1 billion mark in the same category.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
SERVERS
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IBM Launches New Blade Servers, New Software
IBM announced the launch of several new products in their software, and server lines. The new servers are part of IBM’s new lineup of POWER7 blade servers. They come in 4, 8, and 16-core models, and offer better
performance than their predecessors. On the software side, IBM launched AIX 6 Express Edition, and the IBM i 7.1 integrated operating environment. AIX 6 Express Edition is a lower priced version of the software designed for SMB environments, or smaller
workloads consolidated on midrange or high-end Power Systems. The i 7.1 operating environment serves to optimized the performance of POWER7 based system, through features like exploitation of solid state drives, and enhanced support for XML in DB2.
Source: Vendor, 4/14/2010
SAP Receives Energy Efficiency Certification from TšV Rheinland Group
SAP announced that two of its data centers have received energy efficiency certification from TšV Rheinland. The TšV Rheinland group is an organization that rates the safety and quality practices of business and
technology systems and their sustainability in industrial development. The companies claims the awards were the result of its efforts last year, which saved 55 million kilowatt hours of electricity, or 14,000 tons of CO2 emissions. The company attributes
its reduced power usage to the implementation of unique cooling technology at its data centers. This marks a milestone on SAP’s current goal of reducing its carbon emissions to the levels it was producing in the year 2000.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
SMARTPHONES
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Microsoft, Sharp, Verizon Wireless, Vodafone Unveil KIN Smartphone
Microsoft announced KIN, a new Windows-based smartphone optimized for mobile social networking. Microsoft is working with Verizon Wireless, Vodafone, and Sharp on the launch, which will feature new applications called the Loop, Spot, and Studio. KIN will be exclusively available from Verizon Wireless in the US
beginning in May and from Vodafone this Fall in Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
Qwest Launches LinkedIn Discussion Group
Qwest Communications said it has launched SMB IT Connection, a community discussion group on social networking site LinkedIn. The discussion group is designed for professionals
from small- and mid-sized businesses to share ideas and solve problems, Qwest said. It was launched in collaboration with Bloomberg’s BusinessWeek. Qwest also has a presence on social sites Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
Telstra to Launch Sony Xperia X10 on May 4
Telstra announced that it will launch the Sony Xperia X10 smartphone on May 4. The high-end handset features a 1GHz Snapdragon processor powering its 480 x 854 pixel touchscreen. It also touts an 8.1 megapixel auto
focus camera, 8GB of removable Micro SD memory, AGPS, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and a 3.5mm audio jack. The device will ship running version 1.6 of Google’s Anrdoid Operating system. However, Telstra’s promotional material specifies that an update to Android 2.1
will be made available for the device. The Xperia X10 will be available for free to new two-year subscribers on the carrier’s Ultimate and Cap plans, and will be sold as an unsubsidized phone for AU$1099.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
SOCIAL MEDIA
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Amazon Gets its Own URL Shortener Courtesy of Bit.ly
Amazon launched its own URL shortening service, according to Techcrunch. The company launched the shortener with the help of Bit.ly, the current default link shortener used by
Twitter. Bit.ly provides custom link shortener URLs, amzn.to in the case of Amazon, to about 6,000 corporate clients. Similar to the function of most shortened URLs, the amzn.to generated links will be used to post the Web
addresses of Amazon.com products and announcements, which would otherwise be too large to fit in a tweet, or other social networking message.
Source: Techcrunch, 4/15/2010
Facebook Launches Redesigned and Improved Safety Center
Facebook announced the opening of its "new and improved" Safety Center. The new center includes a large selection of educational material designed to inform parents and children about the potential
dangers they may face on the site, and on the Internet in general. The information is presented in both text and multimedia content. The project was constructed by the Facebook Safety Advisory Board, which includes Common Sense Media, ConnectSafely,
WiredSafety, Childnet International and The Family Online Safety Institute.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
Google and Library of Congress to Create Archive of All Tweets
Both Google and the Library of Congress have announced plans to obtain and archive Twitter‘s entire database of past
tweets. The announcements were made on Google’s corporate blog and the Library of Congress’ own Twitter page, respectively. Google announced a new timeline search related to the archive. The tool will let users search the timeline of the entire Twitter
databse. Users can enter a search term and be presented with matching results and an interactive graph. Google will be rolling the new feature out over the next few days. It will initially only include tweets from February 11, 2010 onward but the
company says it has plans to expand the archive all the way back to the first tweet, posted on March 21, 2006. The Library of Congress has yet to announce specific plans for its archive but has suggested the archive will be available for
scholarly research projects.
Source: Vendor, 4/14/2010
Google Adds Share and Follow Buttons for Buzz
Google added a pair of buttons to ease the task of linking pages, or following members of its Buzz social networking service. The “Buzz” button functions similarly to those used by many existing social networks such
as Twitter and Digg. They appear on the posts of participating sites, and give users a one-click method of posting a link to that page on their Buzz feed. The initial list of participating sites includes The Huffington
Post, Glamour, Blogger, PBS NewsHour, and SocialWok, among many others. Also, the sharing platforms ShareThis, Meebo, Shareholic, AddThis, and AddtoAny have added Buzz support. The second button, “Follow on Buzz,” is designed for users who would like to
give other Buzz members a fast way to begin following them on Buzz. Both buttons are available from Google’s Stuff page, where they can be customized and embedded as JavaScript code.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
Google Launches Google Follow Finder to Help Find New “Tweeps”
Google announced the launch of Google Follow Finder as a new tool in Google Labs. The new function allows users to enter their Twitter screen name and be presented with a list of accounts the service believes they might like to follow. This is done by examining the accounts that user is currently following, and searching out users with similar
contents. This tool is being made possible by using Twitter’s new @anywhere framework, which lets developers add Twitter functionality to their own software.
Source: Vendor, 4/14/2010
TechCrunch: Free Ride Over for Ning Users
According to TechCrunch, Ning’s free service is ending, giving way to paid options. The site itself, however, was still offering free accounts at this writing. Ning, which lets
you create your own social network, is planning major changes, according to TechCrunch: it is killing off its free product, and forcing existing free networks to either make the change to premium accounts or migrate their networks elsewhere. The TechCrunch
report said Ning has also cut nearly 70 people – more than 40% of its staff.
Source: TechCrunch, 4/15/2010
SAS Launches Analytics Solution for Social Media
SAS announced the launch of SAS Social Media Analytics. The new analytics solution is designed specifically to allow companies to access the huge amount of information available on social networking sites. The company
claims the product can aggregate and analyze over 2 years worth of data on a given company from Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, discussion forums, blogs, and other sites. The purpose is to give customers a better idea of how the consumer feels about its brand.
The software can also provide predictive analysis based on its historical data. SAS Social Media Analytics is available as an OnDemand starting today.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
Twitter Launches Ads
Twitter announced its long-expected foray into the world of advertising. The company has created what it is calling "Promoted Tweets." Promoted tweets begin as normal tweets. Then, the company
that authored them may pay for the tweets to gain "promoted" status. Assuming Twitter approves the content, the tweet will then become a Promoted Tweet. Twitter is touting this form of advertising as superior to the standard model
for online ads because – according to Twitter – it takes an "organic tweet," or one that would have already been part of the Twitterverse, and simply moves it to an area of higher exposure. Twitter has already signed Best Buy,
Bravo, Red Bull, Sony Pictures, Starbucks, and Virgin America as customers for the new advertising service. It plans to roll out additional phases of the new advertising model but is staying vague on future plans until it can gauge how well
the initial phase is working.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
Twitter Acquires Tweetie to Create Official iPhone Twitter App
Twitter has aquired a software application, Tweetie, from Atebits. Tweetie will be rebranded and become the official Twitter for iPhone app. Twitter signed an agreement to acquire the product from Atebits and has
hired Loren Brichter, Tweetie’s designer. The new application is expected to be available in a few weeks.
Source: Vendor, 4/9/2010
Twitter Announces @anywhere is Officially Live
Twitter announced that its @anywhere platform has officially gone live. The new platform is designed to let third-party developers integrate Twitter features into their sites. This includes, but is not limited to, such
functions as tweeting directly from third party pages, Twitter log-in integration, and being able to respond to tweets from outside of the Twitter.com domain. Google has already debuted a suggestion engine which presents users with Twitter accounts they
may like to follow using the @anywhere framework. Many other well-known companies have also announced plans for @anywhere, or are actively building features that use the new technology. A list of some of the uses the new framework has been put to will be
made available on Twitter’s media page.
Source: Vendor, 4/14/2010
STORAGE
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Toshiba Announces New High Capacity Hard Disk Drives
Toshiba Japan announced new hard disk drives (HDD) it claims deliver 200-GB and 100-GB storage capacity, in a single platter design. It claims that the supposed extreme temperature tolerant MK2060GSC and MK1060GSC
offer the industry’s highest capacity HDD, for automotive applications. Both enter mass production, in August.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
STREAMING MEDIA
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AT&T Upgrades Content Delivery Features; Signs Deal with iStreamPlanet
AT&T announced enhancements to its Digital Media Solutions suite of content management and delivery capabilities. The suite now supports Adobe Flash Media Interactive Server 3.5, which provides adaptive bit rate
streaming technology that dynamically adjusts video delivery rates. AT&T also announced an agreement with iStreamPlanet to expand the range of the carrier’s services supporting video creation and publishing.
AT&T will offer iStreamPlanet’s Director, Presenter, and Managed Live Broadcasting and Professional Services. AT&T said it is finalizing a content download manager that is designed to cater to the rapidly increasing demand for controlled electronic
software delivery. AT&T’s also offers a range of content management and distribution, broadcast video, and digital signage services targeting mid-sized and large enterprises.
Source: Vendor, 4/15/2010
Ericsson Providing ESPN 3D with Video Processing
Ericsson is providing sports TV network ESPN 3D with video processing technology for broadcasts and future high definition content. ESPN is deploying the Ericsson 3D and HD products for direct to home,
contribution, and distribution of 3D content. It also announced it will transmit HD programming, in 2D, using an Ericsson video processing system.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
Motorola Updates DCX Lineup with Features for Streaming 3D
Motorola‘s Mobile Devices and Home business announced software enhancements for its DCX line of set top boxes. It claims the new features allow 3D content to be processed in the set top, before delivery to a 3D
capable TV.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
SYSTEMS MANAGEMENT
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IBM Launches Software Platform for Media Industries
IBM announced the launch of IBM Media Enterprise Framework. The new software platform is designed to support companies in both the television and print media
industry. IBM has broken the features of this new platform down into five categories: Multi-channel enablement, which add customization to the user experience; Business process transformation, which optimizes the distribution of digital media throughout
an enterprise; Business analytics and optimization, which is a pricing decisioning engine which aggregates internal and external sources; Media, metadata & information management, which is a service that helps catalogue and organize a customer’s
media assets; and Infrastructure Management & Security, which secures all assets, networks, systems and channels that are part of the platform.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
WEB COMMERCE
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Google Adds “Search by Audience” to Ad Planner
Google announced the addition of “audience interest” to its Ad Planner set of tools. The new function lists the top 10 interests common to users who visit any given site in the service’s database of several million.
The company claims this will allow advertisers to make connections between genres of Web sites that they may not have realized attracted similar users. Google’s announcement on the matter uses the example of a political Web site. The site had a high rate
of correlation with the predictable topic of “Oil & Gas,” but it also had a surprisingly high correlation with “Pets.” The new service is available now to Ad Planner users, and includes a “Search by audience” tab as part of the new tools.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
Omniture Adds Improvements, iPad Support, to Online Marketing Suite
Omniture announced the addition of several new analytics and optimization features to its Omniture Online Marketing Suite. The updates focus on three main areas: dashboarding, segmentation, and iPad support. The
dashboard feature is designed to make it easier for customers to display and print statistics on any metric provided by the suite’s SiteCatalyst portion. Segmentation, on the other hand, is designed to improve the customer’s ability to comprehend ad
viewers’ behavior, and is part of the Omniture discover portion of the suite. The last of the primary new features, iPad support, is being added to the aforementioned products, as well as Omniture Test&Target, which is also part of the suite. The new
features are available now.
Source: Vendor, 4/13/2010
Unica Updates NetInsight OnDemand
Unica announced that it has updated its Unica NetInsight OnDemand Web analytics solution. New features include real time reporting, which provide up-to-date statistics on rich-application and form data; a real-time
XML API, which provides access to calendaring and filtering from any networked location; improved funnel reporting, which can create on-the-fly funnel reports from any combination of saved segments and Web pages; and mobile device measurement, which
provides metrics specific to mobile devices, including the iPad. The updated version of NetInsight is available as both an on-site installation, and an on-demand solution.
Source: Vendor, 4/12/2010
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