News Briefs for the Week Ending 08/27/2010






News Briefs for the Week Ending

08/27/2010



Copyright 2010, Faulkner Information Services. All Rights Reserved.

Docid:00020009

Publication Date: 1008

Publication Type: NEWS



ACQUISITIONS & DIVESTITURES


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ADC Announces Extension of Tyco Electronics Bid

ADC announced that Tyco Electronics has extended the expiration of its offer to purchase all outstanding common share of the company. Tyco is offering $12.75 per share, and has now placed the expiration of its offer at
September 20, 2010. As of the time of writing, approximately 86.6 percent of outstanding shares had been included in the offer.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

AT&T Completes Sale of Centennial Assets in Louisiana, Mississippi

AT&T announced that it has completed the sale of certain wireless assets of Centennial Communications to Verizon Wireless. AT&T completed its acquisition of Centennial in
November 2009. Under terms of the agreement, Verizon Wireless acquired former Centennial wireless properties in six service areas in Louisiana and Mississippi. AT&T previously divested former Centennial properties in Alexandra and DeSoto, LA to MTPCS. With
the completion of the sale to Verizon Wireless, valued at $235 million, AT&T has satisfied the divestiture requirements of the Centennial acquisition.

Source: Vendor, 8/23/2010

Cisco to Acquire Extend Media

Cisco announced it will acquire Extend Media, which makes video content management systems. Cisco said xtendMedia, a privately-held company based in Newton, Massachusetts, will allow it to deliver and monetize IP
video via multiple screens. ExtendMedia will be folded into Cisco’s service provider video technology group. The deal is expected to close in the first half of fiscal 2011. Financial terms were not released.

Source: Vendor, 8/26/2010

Fibertech Networks Acquired by Equitiy Firm Court Square

Fibertech Networks, a regional provider of fiber optic bandwidth services, announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement under which Court Square Capital
Partners
will acquire Fibertech. Court Square is a private equity firm established by the former members of Citigroup Venture Capital Equity Partners. Under terms of the agreement, Court Square will acquire the company from its original investors,
Nautic Partners and Ridgemont Equity Partners. The transaction is expected to close in the second half of 2010; financial terms were not released. Headquartered in Rochester, New York, Fibertech Networks has built metro-area fiber networks in 24 mid-size
markets in the Eastern US.

Source: Vendor, 8/26/2010

HP Acquires Database and Application Automation Company Stratavia

HP announced that it has acquired Stratavia, a privately-held database and application automation company. HP plans on adding the assets of the company to its Software and
Solutions division. It says the addition will help it better support all aspects of the full application lifecycle. The company also expects to enhance its Cloud Service Automation product with technology acquired in this transaction. No financial terms
for the acquisition were announced.

Source: Vendor, 8/26/2010

Intel Buys Security Vendor McAfee

Intel announced last week that it is buying computer security software maker McAfee for $48 per share, or approximately $7.68 billion. Chip giant Intel said security is now a
fundamental component of online computing, but today’s approach to security is not adequate for the growing availability of Internet connections on mobile phones, medical devices, ATMs, automobiles, and elsewhere.

Source: Vendor, 8/23/2010

PwC to Acquire Diamond Management & Technology Consultants

PricewaterhouseCoopers announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Diamond Management & Technology Consultants, a strategic management consulting firm. The transaction will be made for $12.50
per share in cash, a 31 percent premium over Diamond’s closing stock price as of the time of writing. The acquired company will be added to the PwC Advisory practice. The boards of both participants have already approved the deal. The acquisition is
expected to close in the fourth quarter of the year, pending regulatory approval.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

Qwest, CenturyLink Shareholders Approve Merger

At a special meeting of CenturyLink shareholders, more than 97 percent of the votes cast supported the proposal to issue CenturyLink common stock to Qwest shareholders in connection with the proposed merger of the two telecoms. At Qwest’s special
shareholder meeting, approximately 97 percent of the votes cast, representing about 79 percent of Qwest’s shares outstanding, voted to adopt the merger agreement, as well. The deal still requires regulatory approvals.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

RIM Buys App Store Management SW Firm

Research in Motion has acquired Cellmania, a company that builds and licenses software for managing mobile phone stores. News of the acquisition was posted at Cellmania’s Web site. It is expected the company’s
technology will be used to upgrade RIM’s BlackBerry App World.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

ALLIANCES & JOINT VENTURES


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Avaya Announces Extended and Expanded Relationship with BT

Avaya announced that it has extended and expanded its strategic relationship with BT. The three-year extension will grow the partnership to include collaborations in the areas of voice
and unified communications. For its part, BT will be providing integration and consultancy services designed to improve Avaya’s product suite. No financial terms for the extension were announced.

Source: Vendor, 8/23/2010

blinkX Signs with Accuweather.com to Add Weather Videos to its Search

blinkX announced that it has signed a deal with Accuweather.com. The contract gives blinkX the right to place all of Accuweather’s local and international weather videos on its video search engine. The company will
place in-stream advertising over the Accuweather videos via its Ad-Hoc network. The revenue resulting from the embedded ads will be shared between blinkX and Accuweather.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

IBM and EU Partner on Huge Digitization Project

IBM and the European Union have expanded their research collaboration to provide new technology that will enable the digitization of rare and culturally-significant historical
texts on a “massive scale,” according to their press release. Unlike past digitization
projects where the result has been static, online libraries of texts, the new effort, called IMPACT (IMProving ACcess to Text), will offer new tools and best practices to institutions across Europe that will
enable them to “efficiently and accurately produce quality digital replicas of historically significant texts … and make them widely available.” At the core of the digitization project lies a new OCR system, designed by IBM researchers, and tools that
enable large groups of volunteers spread over the European continent to verify the accuracy of processed texts and correct recognition mistakes using an online Web system. Moreover, inherent in the system, is the ability to learn from its recognition
errors, and adapt automatically to a specific font’s characters. IMPACT consortium partners include many national and university libraries, as well as IBM Research.

Source: Vendor, 8/26/2010

Nokia, Intel Partnering on 3D Graphics Interface for Mobile Devices

Intel and Nokia are partnering on the creation of new user interfaces designed to bring augmented 3D graphics experiences to mobile devices. The collaboration is an extension of
the vendors’ MeeGo venture, the Linux-based mobile operating system combining Nokia 3DNokia’s Maemo and Intel’s Moblin, introduced in February. The firms said their 3D efforts will initially target the MeeGo OS, although other platforms are also under
consideration. No product timetable is presently in place.The two are jointly setting up a research lab at the University of Oulu. Both companies see 3D Internet as the next major breakthrough in the mobile environment. The new lab, dubbed the Intel and
Nokia Joint Innovation Center, Oulu, will be located in the Center for Internet Excellence (CIE) at the University of Oulu, which Intel praised for its focus on telecommunications and electronics. Oulu itself boasts a strong development community with
experience in 3D Internet and technology, according to Intel. The open-source RealXtend technology, used to create 3D virtual worlds and adopted by Finland-based Nokia, has its roots at the University of Oulu.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

BIOMETRICS


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AuthenTec Releases Software Development Kit

AuthenTec announced that it is now offering a software development kit (SDK) for developers to create applications around AuthenTec smart sensors and TrueSuite identity management software. The SDK is designed
to let developers create applications or modify existing applications to include biometric features for notebook PCs and netbooks.

Source: Vendor, 8/23/2010

Morpho Selected as One Provider for India’s Identity Program

Morpho (Safran group) and a Morpho-led consortium have been selected as one of the key partners to implement and deliver the Aadhaar program by the  Unique Identification Authority of India. Aadhaar, the
largest identity program in the world, is designed to secure the identity of the residents of India, which is currently close to 1.2 billion. Based on latest generation biometric technologies (fingerprints and iris recognition), it aims to provide a
unique identification number to each Indian resident to provide them with secure access to benefits and services, as well as political and economic rights.

Source: Vendor, 8/23/2010

BUSINESS CONTINUITY


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Qwest Expands Cloud-Based Business Continuity Services

Qwest Communications announced enhancements to its business continuity/disaster recovery portfolio with the launch of Qwest Real-Time Application Recovery. Qwest said the new cloud-based service keeps business
operations running uninterrupted in the event of a system failure at a much lower price point than conventional backup solutions.

Source: Vendor, 8/26/2010

CARRIER SERVICES


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DISH Network Launches DISHOnline Video Streaming Portal

DISH Network announced the launch of DISHOnline.com, an online on-demand and streaming video portal. The new Web site combines an on-demand viewing library of 150,000
programming choices with access to live TV, and the ability to remotely view all saved DVR recordings. The site also features a unified search, which will let users query all of the aforementioned sources of video for a specific show or actor. Although
portions of DISHOnline.com are accessible to the public, visitors must have a DISH Network subscription to receive all of the site’s features.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

Virgin Mobile Launches No-Contract Unlimited Mobile Broadband for $40

Sprint’s Virgin Mobile prepaid brand announced an overhaul of its Broadband2Go mobile broadband service. Virgin Mobile’s Broadband2Go will now offer two new mobile broadband data plans: unlimited data for
$40 per month or ten days of data access for $10 with consumption capped at 100MB. All Virgin Mobile plans are prepaid and contract-free. To use Virgin Mobile’s new mobile broadband plans, users must also purchase the carrier’s MiFi 2200 mobile hotspot for
$150 or the Ovation MC760 USB device for $80. Virgin Mobile’s new broadband plans replace the carrier’s previous tiered mobile broadband offerings that ranged from $10 to $60 per month.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

Verizon Relaunches Games Service

Verizon is partnering with digital media firm Exent to relaunch its Verizon Games service and desktop application with new virtual world
features. The virtual world component of the service allows users to customize profile pages and create avatars. The service gives users access to some 1500 games and introduces a touchscreen interface for compatible handsets that will make browsing and
purchasing the games library easier. All games on the service will offer users free demos for trying out the game. Exent is a major distributor of games on demand.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

Verizon Wireless Testing $99 per Month “Unlimited Everything” Plan

Fierce Wireless reported that Verizon Wireless is testing a postpaid plan that offers unlimited talking, texting, and data for $99 per month. Fierce Wireless
cited Current Analysis as the source for its story. Verizon is testing the plans in retail outlets in Los Angeles and San Diego. The pricing represents a $20-per-month reduction from what Verizon currently
charges for unlimited talking, texting, and data. Verizon competitor Sprint Nextel offers a $99 per month Simply Everything plan that supports unlimited talking, texting, and data.

Source: FierceWireless, 8/23/2010

CLOUD COMPUTING


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AWS Releases Updated Security Processes Whitepaper

Amazon Web Services (AWS) announced that it has released an updated whitepaper, the fourth version of Overview of Security Processes.
The document includes updates to several sections, including a description of the AWS control environment; services risk management and shared responsibilities principles; descriptions of physical security; environmental safeguards; configuration
management; business continuity management processes and plans; and a listing of updated security features.

Source: Vendor, 8/23/2010

CA Announces Expanded Support for Amazon Virtual Private Cloud

Computer Associates (CA) announced that it has expanded its support for Amazon Web Services (AWS). CA’s Virtual, Service Automation, Service Assurance, and Nimsoft Monitoring Solution
can now all be integrated into the Amazon Virtual Private Cloud (VPC). The company says this will allow customers to automate the deployment of applications on Amazon’s VPC, as well as allow them to monitor the services once they are deployed.

Source: Vendor, 8/26/2010

Citrix Announces New XenDesktop with Improved Laptop Support

Citrix announced the release of an updated version of XenDesktop which includes its XenClient and XenVault products. The company claims the addition of these new technologies to the XenDesktop products will
significantly ease its use by customers on both company-owned, and personal laptops. Citrix boasts that laptop users can now use their own operating system while disconnected and their company’s virtual desktop when a connection is available, all with the
same level of security previously reserved for desktop systems. More information is available from the XenDesktop product page.

Source: Vendor, 8/25/2010

Novell Announces Availability of Cloud Security Service

Novell announced the general availability of its new Cloud Security Service. The purpose of the software is to allow companies to extend their existing identity infrastructure to any public cloud. This includes the
ability to synchronize any changes made to the local ID infrastructure to the public cloud version. The new solution is hosted in the cloud, and can be installed either on the same servers as the customer’s provider, or on a server provided by one of
Novell’s hosting partners. More information about the product can be found at Novell’s Cloud Security page.

Source: Vendor, 8/25/2010

Red Hat Announces Plans for Platform-as-a-Service Solution

Red Hat announced its plans for a Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) solution to compliment its Cloud Foundations portfolio, a set of offerings designed to promote consistency between enterprise applications and the cloud.
Red Hat claims the new product, which is based on JBoss Enterprise Middleware, will allow a variety of companies to use existing assets to create solutions which can be deployed to a variety of public and private clouds. The product will also include
features designed to let companies transition their existing applications into cloud-based solutions. The solution itself will be offered as a software-as-a-service product, and will be deployable to public or private clouds.

Source: Vendor, 8/25/2010

COMMUNICATIONS NETWORKS & EQUIPMENT


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Alcatel-Lucent Announces Expansion of the West Africa Cable System

Alcatel-Lucent announced that it would be extending the West Africa Cable System (WACS) from Portugal to the UK. The project was undertaken to increase the available broadband capacity which will soon be
needed due to higher broadband penetration in the area. The system will span 2,000 kilometers, and will have an operating capacity of 40 gigabits per second. Commercial service through the cable is expected to be available some time in 2011, and will reach
as far as Namibia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Togo, and the Republic of Congo.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

BT Signs with Starbucks in Germany for Wi-Fi at 140 Locations

BT announced that it has signed a contract with Starbucks Coffee Company in Germany to provide Wi-Fi access to 140 of its locations. This deal joins a partnership which includes 650 coffee houses across the UK and
Ireland. Customers will be able to use the Wi-Fi at no charge for up to two hours at any of the locations. The hotspots will also support the BT MobileXpress client, allowing customers access to their corporate email accounts.

Source: Vendor, 8/23/2010

FiberLight Constructing New Network Run in Virginia

FiberLight announced it has begun construction of a 46-mile direct connection from Culpeper, Virginia to Charlottesville, Virginia. The completely underground fiber optic network will use “enhanced fiber” for
lower latency and provide a diverse route to companies in Charlottesville seeking optical transport to the greater Washington DC area. The network will be directly-connected to FiberLight’s multi-ringed, underground network linking the high-density
government and enterprise corridor encompassing Northern Virginia, Washington DC, and greater Baltimore.

Source: Vendor, 8/26/2010

Harris Corp Opens TV Transmitter Factory in Brazil

Harris Corp announced the opening of a new factory in Brazil. The facility is designed for the manufacture of low- and mid-power UHF television transmitter products. The factory was opened in the nation to support
the upcoming regional transition to digital television standards.

Source: Vendor, 8/23/2010

Huawei Selected as Exclusive provider for Maxis Berhard IP Network

Huawei announced that Maxis Berhad has selected it as the exclusive provider for its Next-Generation High-Speed Internet network. Huawei’s task will focus on the building and managing of a full-service FTTx network
using GPON technologies. Huawei expects to be able to offer high-speed Internet access to consumers within the year. No financial terms for the transaction were discussed.

Source: Vendor, 8/26/2010

CoSentry Expands Agreement with Level 3

Level 3 announced that it has signed an expanded agreement with CoSentry, a provider of business continuity and managed technical services, to provide the company with
wavelength and high-speed Internet protocol (HSIP) services that will facilitate broadband connectivity for CoSentry’s enterprise customers in the Americas, Australia, and Europe. Headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, CoSentry provides enterprises with data
center, disaster recovery, and cloud solutions, and has worked with Level 3 for Ethernet private line and Internet protocol services since 2007. Under terms of the expanded three-year agreement, Level 3 will provide CoSentry with 10 gigabit (GB)
wavelengths and two GB HSIP.

Source: Vendor, 8/23/2010

CAP Logistics Taps Level 3 for Voice, Data, Internet Services

Level 3 announced that it has been selected by CAP Logistics to deliver voice, data, Internet protocol (IP), and colocation services. Under terms of the three-year
agreement, Level 3 will provide CAP Logistics with session initiated protocol trunking voice, IP virtual private network, dedicated Internet access, and colocation services. Based in Denver, CAP Logistics will deploy the services in Denver, Salt Lake City,
Houston, and Mount Prospect, Illinois.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

Transbeam Taps Level 3’s Fiber-Optic Network to Expand Footprint

Level 3 announced that it has expanded its service relationship with Transbeam to include transport services to Boston and – later this year – to Philadelphia and Washington,
DC. New York City-based Transbeam offers customers a variety of integrated communications solutions, such as carrier grade Ethernet, hosted private branch exchange, and customized data delivery solutions. Under the terms of the agreement, Level 3 will
provide Transbeam with fiber connectivity for services in the Boston area, with later expansion planned to Philadelphia and Washington, DC by the end of 2010.

Source: Vendor, 8/25/2010

Motorola Providing Equipment for Red Cross System

The Solutions business of Motorola announced that the American Red Cross has selected Motorola’s MC55 Enterprise Digital Assistant (EDA) and wireless LAN (WLAN) access points to help document blood donations for
more than 200,000 blood drives each year. Motorola and its partner, MoreDirect, a subsidiary of PC Connections, will custom configure and deliver more than 6,000 MC55 EDAs and 2,000 access points to be deployed throughout the 36 Red Cross regions in the
US.

Source: Vendor, 8/23/2010

Nokia Siemens and TeliaSonera Launch 4G Network in Gothenburg

Nokia Siemens announced that TeliaSonera has gone live with its 4G network in Gothenburg, Sweden’s second largest city. The service, which leverages Nokia
Siemens Flexi Multiradio Base Stations, is capable of speeds up to 100 Mbps download, and 30 Mbps upload. TeliaSonera plans to market the service to users interested in “high-end services,” such as streaming video and large-scale data downloads.

Source: Vendor, 8/25/2010

Nokia Siemens to Provide Hardware, Services to Movistar Chile

Nokia Siemens announced that it would be providing the hardware for Movistar Chile’s upgrades to HSPA+ technology. Movistar, a Telefonica company, will be able
to offer mobile consumers speeds as high as 21 Mbps download and 5.8 Mbps upload. The upgrades will also increase the available network bandwidth, in order to support Movistar’s growing customer base. Nokia Siemens will also provide its NetAct network
management system, and network implementation services.

Source: Vendor, 8/26/2010

Telecom Italia, NSN Roll Out LTE Trial in Turin

Telecom Italia, in partnership with Nokia Siemens Networks, has rolled out an LTE technology trial in some areas of the Italian city of Turin. Trial
participants will be able to access HD video streaming, video conferencing, online gaming ,and other multimedia applications for smart devices.

Source: Vendor, 8/25/2010

TELUS Launches 3G+ Network in Saskatchewan

Canada’s TELUS announced that its 3G+ network, using HSPA+ technology, is now available in the province of Saskatchewan. TELUS said its wireless broadband network now offers customers increased wireless data download
speeds of up to 21 megabits per second, access to sophisticated mobile devices, and international roaming services to more than 200 countries.

Source: Vendor, 8/26/2010

ZTE Announces Contract to Build LTE Network for Telenor Hungary

ZTE announced that it has signed a contract with Telenor Hungary to build a hybrid GSM/UMTS/LTE network in Hungary. ZTE will be tasked with providing radio and core infrastructure to support the build for a period of
5 years. ZTE will also operate the network, including switching, and expanding its coverage area. The end result will be a wireless 2G/3G/LTE core network, with support for multi-mode and multi-band wireless services. No financial terms for the agreement
were disclosed.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

CONSULTING & MANAGED SERVICES


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Accenture Signs 3-Year Outsourcing Contract with Norsk Hydro

Accenture announced that it has signed an application outsourcing contract with Norsk Hydro ASA, an integrated aluminum company. The agreement calls for Accenture to support and maintain two of Hydro’s SAP systems
across the globe. The three-year project has the goal of increasing the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of the company’s SAP-based systems by using an industrialized approach. The contract is expected to commence in October 2010.

Source: Vendor, 8/25/2010

CSC Launches Enterprise Print Solutions Managed Service

Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC) announced the launch of its new Enterprise Print Solutions product. The company
describes the new product as “a managed service offering that enables organizations to transform traditional print into transactional business processes.” The service, being offered in collaboration with Xerox, is designed to let businesses shift
traditional print services into a cloud-accessible asset. This is accompanied by cost-saving features such as cost of ownership tracking, financial and printing policy controls, and reduced paper and toner usage. More information about this product can be
found at CSC’s Enterprise Print Solutions page.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

SunGard to Manage Delaware State University IT Services

Delaware State University (DSU) is expanding its relationship with SunGard Higher Education by outsourcing its information technology services to the company. SunGard will manage
the university’s IT services as well as provide 24/7 help desk support and other services. DSU will also launch efforts to improve the reliability and quality of its network and server infrastructure. SunGard consultants will work with university
administrators to establish more effective IT governance and develop a strategic technology plan that aligns with the institutional goals and objectives of the university, SunGard said.

Source: Vendor, 8/23/2010

Unisys Signs 5-Year IT Contract Extension with Flowserve

Unisys announced that it has signed a 5-year extension on its contract with the Flowserve Corporation, provider of pumps, valves, seals, automation and services to the fuel and chemical industries. The extension
calls for Unisys to continue to provide technical support and services to the company’s 10,000 employees spread across 50 countries. Unisys will also be providing its Converged Remote Infrastructure Management Suite under the extended contract. The
contract will now expire in 2016.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

CYBERCRIME


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Web Scam Hits iTunes, PayPal: BBC

The BBC reported that Apple iTunes accounts linked to PayPal have been hacked, with a number of users complaining that their accounts have been
cleaned out. Apple and PayPal refused to discuss details of the incident. The BBC said, however, that security experts believe that there is no security hole in iTunes or Apple servers; rather, it is most likely that users have fallen for an online
scam.

Source: BBC, 8/24/2010

Defense Official Confirms 2008 Cyber Attack Against Military

The BBC reported that a previously-unreported 2008 cyber attack launched from an infected flash drive in the Middle East penetrated secret US military computers. US Deputy Defense Secretary William Lynn – writing in a
Foreign Affairs magazine article cited by the BBC – described the incident as a “digital beachhead” to steal military secrets. He urged the US to speed up its cyber defense system procurement procedure.

Source: BBC, 8/25/2010

AOL Launches SafeSocial Parental Control Site for Social Networking

AOL launched a new parental control service called SafeSocial. The service is designed to let parents monitors their childrens’ social networking activities across the Internet.
AOL claims that it will allow them to monitor a child’s social networking for warnings signs and dangerous behavior, without intruding or “friending” the younger user. SafeSocial is designed to inform parents if a child uses any words it considers
worrisome, such as “suicide”, “drug”, or “violence”; and monitors the social connections that child makes to prevent such dangers as cyber-bullying or online predators. AOL is offering a 5-day free trial of the service, after which it costs $9.99 a month.
The company notes that the child will have to agree to the monitoring before it can begin the service.

Source: Vendor, 8/25/2010

DEVELOPMENT SOFTWARE


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Micro Focus Launches Silk Test 2010 and SilkCentral Test Manager 2010

Micro Focus announced the launch of SilkTest 2010 and SilkCentral Test Manager 2010. This pair of products is designed to let programmers create automated tests to be applied throughout the software development
process. New features in these releases include an updated user interface, which is designed to be easier for non-technical personnel to use; a user interface plug-in, which lets the software integrate into Microsoft Visual Studio 2010, Silk4J, and Eclipse
environments; and automatic synchronization with AJAX and Web 2.0 script. More information about both products is available from the Micro Focus site.

Source: Vendor, 8/25/2010

ENTERPRISE APPLICATION SOFTWARE


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Autonomy Launches Meanings-Based Risk Management Product for Law Firms

Autonomy announced the launch of an end-to-end meanings-based risk management platform for law firms. The Autonomy Risk Management Platform uses the company’s Intelligent Data Operating Layer (IDOL) to deliver
multiple risk management modules via a single platform. The software combines the company’s Client Intake, Conflicts Manager, Legal Hold, Records Manager, and Supervisor products in a framework with built-in compliance assurances. More information on the
new product is available at the company’s Risk Management Page.

Source: Vendor, 8/23/2010

CheckPoint Releases New Security Gateway

Check Point Software Technologies recently released a new security gateway, the Check Point Series 80 Appliance, designed for remote and branch offices and delivering 1.5 gigabit performance for under $2,500. The
new Series 80 Appliance is based on the Check Point Software Blade Architecture. The Series 80 includes several software blades including firewall, IPS, VPN, anti-virus and anti-malware, URL filtering, anti-spam, and email security software.

Source: Vendor, 8/23/2010

CSC Releases Vendor Relationships Suite

Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC) announced the release of its new Vendor Solutions Suite (VSS), a Web-based software product designed to improve the productivity and cost-effectiveness of vendor relationships. The
company says the software is able to handle all aspects of vendor relationships, including everything from assigning tasks, to reviewing and approving expenses. The product is available as a on-site solution, a hosted solution, or as a
software-as-a-service offering. More information about the release is available at the VSS product page.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

IBM Announces BigFix Unified Management Software Platform

IBM announced the launch of the BigFix Unified Management Software Platform. As the name would suggest, the new product is a result of the company’s recent acquisition of BigFix. The platform is designed to monitor
corporate IT policy compliance across as many as 500,000 machines, including desktops, laptops, point-of-sale devices, and more. If the system identifies a problem, a fix can be remotely applied from a single control point, which monitors all connected
systems. The new product also features improved management of virtualized systems, and a role-based interface, which lets IT staff categorize devices by their use. More information about the software is available from BigFix’s Web site.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

Novell Announces Release of WorkloadIQ

Novell announced the release of WorkloadIQ, a new intelligent workload management (IWM) product. The company says the goal of the new offering is integrate identity and security into IT workloads. This feature is
designed to eliminate security concerns associated with delivering IT services through various methods, such as virtualized and cloud-based environments. The new solution consists of four functions: building workloads, securing workloads, managing
workloads, and measuring workloads. Each of these is handled by one or more Novell products. A full list of products utilized by Workload IQ and more information about the new offering can be found at its product
page
.

Source: Vendor, 8/19/2010

SAP Signs Reseller Agreement with StreamServe

SAP announced that it has signed a reseller agreement with StreamServe, a provider of business communication solutions. The deal will allow SAP to resell StreamServe’s document automation solution as an extension to its
own product. Marketed under the name SAP Document Presentment application by StreamServe, the product will automate the task of producing and personalizing documents across several enterprise software products. The new solution is available now from
SAP.

Source: Vendor, 8/25/2010

FINANCIAL


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Dell Reports Impressive Q2 2011 Results on Strong Enterprise Solutions

Dell released its financial results for the second quarter of its 2011 fiscal year. The company’s revenue totaled $15.5 billion, an impressive 22 percent increase over the same period last year. Operating income rose
11 percent to $745 million, up from $671 million in Q2 2009. The company’s net income for the quarter was $542 million, or $0.28 per share, versus $472 million, or $0.24 per share reported in the second quarter of last year. One of the largest drivers of
this success was the company’s Enterprise Solutions segment, which produced an overall increase in revenue of 22 percent. The servers, storage, and services portion of the segment grew 43 percent.

Source: Vendor, 8/19/2010

Gilat Realizes Gain with Merger of Two Health Industry Companies

Israel-based Gilat Satellite Networks announced that it is to receive more than $24 million in cash proceeds from the merger of Ingenix and Axolotl. Ingenix, a health information technology and services company
announced on August 16, 2010 that it is acquiring Axolotl, a provider of health information exchange services. Gilat had invested approximately $4.5 million in Axolotl more than 10 years ago. During the global economic downturn of 2000 and 2001, Gilat
wrote off the investment. Under terms of the merger agreement between Ingenix and Axolotl, however, Gilat is to receive approximately $24 million immediately and subject to certain standard escrow conditions, may receive an additional $3 million in one
year.

Source: Vendor, 8/23/2010

HP Reports Results for Q3 2010, Raises Year-End Guidance

HP reported its results for the third quarter of its 2010 fiscal year. The company posted a revenue of $30.7 billion, an 11.4 percent increase over the same period in 2009. Operating profit rose 5 percent year-over-year
to reach $2.3 billion, while net earnings jumped 15 percent to hit $2.6 billion. Earnings per share followed suit, rising 17 percent to $1.08, up from $0.92 reported for Q2 2009. These results caused the company to raise its guidance for the end of the
year. The new predictions place HP’s 2010 revenue between $125.3 billion and $125.5 billion, with earnings per share to fall between $3.62 and $3.64.

Source: Vendor, 8/19/2010

Hughes Receives $58.7 Million from American Recovery and Reinvestment

Hughes announced that it has received $58.7 million from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 for its role as the only nation-wide provider of satellite-based Internet access. The portion of the act
that disbursed the award has the goal of creating jobs and business opportunities by proliferating broadband accessibility across the US.

Source: Vendor, 8/18/2010

Lenovo Shows Strong Growth in First Quarter Results

Lenovo reported its financial results for the first quarter ending June 30, 2010. The company claimed the title of fastest growing among the top 5 PC manufacturers in the world for the third quarter in a row,
according to the results. Total sales for the quarter reached $5.1 billion, a 46 percent year-over-year increase. Operating profit was $82 million, five times what the company brought in during the same period a year ago. Net profit was $55 million, a vast
improvement over the $16 million loss reported during the corresponding period of 2009. This brought earnings per share up to $0.57. The majority of Lenovo’s income, 60.5 percent, came from its thriving laptop business, with its desktop segment accounting
for the majority of the remaining portion at 35 percent. The company also launched its mobile phone division this quarter, which has seen “encouraging” sales numbers throughout China.

Source: Vendor, 8/23/2010

Qwest Directors Declare Quarterly Dividend

Qwest Communications announced that its board of directors has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.08 per share. The quarterly dividend is payable on Sept. 24, 2010 to all stockholders of record at the close of
business on Sept. 10, 2010. Qwest is in the process of being acquired by CenturyLink.

Source: Vendor, 8/23/2010

Rogers Board Announces Dividend

Canada’s Rogers Communications announced that its board of directors has declared a quarterly dividend totaling $0.32 CAD (US$0.30) per share on each of its outstanding Class A and Class B common shares. The quarterly
dividend will be paid on October 1, 2010 to shareholders of record on September 9, 2010.

Source: Vendor, 8/23/2010

Salesforce.com Reports Bullish Second Quarter, Raises Guidance

Salesforce.com announced its financial results for the second quarter of its 2010 fiscal year. Revenue made an impressive 25 percent jump, year-over-year, to reach $394 million. The vast majority of this was
accounted for by the company’s subscription and support revenues, which totaled $369 million. Salesforce reported its quarterly earnings per share at $0.11, a 35 percent increase over the same period in 2009. The company’s customer base also grew this
quarter with 5,100 net adds during the period. The recent success caused the company to raise its year-end guidance to a revenue range of $1.595 billion to $1.6 billion.

Source: Vendor, 8/19/2010

Telecom New Zealand Reports Disappointing Results for 2010

Telecom New Zealand announced its results for the year ending June 30, 2010. The company reported a revenue of NZ$5.2 billion, a 6.3 percent drop from 2009’s total of NZ$5.6 billion. Net earnings took a harsher
hit, going from NZ$483 million in 2009, to NZ$382 million this year. This resulted in a 23 percent drop in earnings per share, which fell to NZ$0.20 from the NZ$0.26 they reached in 2009. Despite these discouraging numbers, company CEO Paul Reynolds was
upbeat on the results, touting a NZ$126 million increase in free cash flow as an indicator that the company’s downward trend has been reversed.

Source: Vendor, 8/20/2010

ZTE Reports Strong 1st Half Results Despite Weak China, India Marke

ZTE announced its results for the first half of the 2010 fiscal year. The company reported a total revenue of $4.52 billion, a 10.9 increase over the same period in 2009. Net profit also rose 12 percent, reaching
$129 million. Earnings per share for the half came in at $0.04. The company says that this year-over-year growth occurred despite revenue decreases in China and India. This is largely due to a greater focus on the high-end customers ZTE has shifted to, the
company claims.

Source: Vendor, 8/19/2010

GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS


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Boeing Receives $182 Million for Work on Wideband Global SATCOM Units

Boeing announced that it has received $182 million to begin work on the US Air Force’s next Wideband Global SATCOM (WGS) satellite. The agreement, which includes options for the production of up to another 6
satellites, was signed under the standing WGS Block II follow-on contract. The three satellites included in the initial contract will launch in across 2011 and 2012, and will provide the military with broadband access in remote locations around the
globe.

Source: Vendor, 8/23/2010

Lockheed Martin to Support Nationwide Health Information Network

Lockheed Martin announced the signing of two contracts with the US Department of Health and Human Services to support the use of digital health records and their secure transmission. Lockheed is being tasked
with creating reference implementation software to support the future rollout of Nationwide Health Information Network capabilities. The contracts have a total value of about $9 million dollars, and a duration of 2 years.

Source: Vendor, 8/25/2010

SAIC Receives TASER Contract from NGA

Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) announced that it has received a Total Application Services for Enterprise Requirements (TASER) contract from the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA).
SAIC will compete with other awardees to provide support for the four areas of TASER functionality: engineering and trade studies; pilots and prototypes; integration and deployment; and application sustainment. The contract has a five-year base period, and
a $1 billion value for all awardees.

Source: Vendor, 8/23/2010

SAIC Signs INSCOM Support Contract

Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) announced that it has received a contract from the US Army Intelligence and Security Command (INSCOM). The agreement calls on the company to provide a full range of
multi-discipline intelligence services in support of the command’s operation. The deal has a 1-year base period, 4 annual options, and a total value of $492 million if all options are exercised.

Source: Vendor, 8/26/2010

GRANTS


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DHS Announces New Gulf Coast Rebuilding Projects

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Administrator Craig Fugate announced some $25 million in newly-approved
Gulf Coast rebuilding projects to help communities continuing to recover from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The announcement is the latest in Gulf Coast recovery projects that have totaled more than $2.5 billion since the start of the Obama administration.
Newly-announced projects include: more than $11 million to the state of Louisiana to help Xavier University rebuild its student center; more than $2.7 million to the Archdiocese of New Orleans’ St. Martin Manor Yellow Masonry Assisted Living Complex; and
several large grants to other schools in the New Orleans area, and in Mississippi, that were damaged by the hurricanes and subsequent infrastructure failures.

Source: DHS, 8/24/2010

TSA Announces Grant for New Checked Bag Screening System

The US Transportation Security Administration (TSA) announced an award of approximately $600,000 to Grand Forks International Airport f(Grand Forks, ND) for construction of a new inline baggage handling system. The new
system is scheduled to be operational in 2011. “This technology will streamline the baggage screening process while strengthening security,” said TSA North Dakota Federal Security Director John Hursey.

Source: TSA, 8/23/2010

TSA Award Funds Dallas Love Field Security Upgrades

The US Transportation Security Administration (TSA) announced an award of approximately $19.5 million to Dallas Love Field Airport (Dallas, TX) for construction related to the installation of a new in-line baggage
handling system.The project involves the modification and construction of the terminal building infrastructure to allow for the installation of explosive detection system machines and explosive trace detection resolution areas.

Source: TSA, 8/23/2010

INTERNET


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ICANN Publishes Revised Draft of .XXX Domain Proposal for Comment

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) announced the publication of a revised draft of the proposed .XXX domain suffix. The long-fought battle to bring the controversial suffix into use began
in 2006, with the effort having reached this stage several times before. ICANN has not reviewed or commented on the revised draft yet, and is posting it for a period of 30 days to collect public comments. Links to all portions of the proposed draft, as
well as links to the comment forum set up to collect the public’s opinions can all be found within ICANN’s announcement of the draft’s publication.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

ICANN Announces Bulk Transfer of Lead Networks Domains to Answerable

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) announced that it has approved the bulk transfer of all domains registered with Lead Networks Domains to Answerable.com. The receiving registrar was chosen by Lead Networks after losing its Registrar Accreditation Agreement due to the ruling in the case of Verizon California Inc., et al v. Lead Networks Domains Private
Limited et al. As usual, the transfer will be handled free of charge. ICANN notes that affected registrants will need to contact Answerable.com to provide billing information. Answerable.com has also set up a Web page to provide information and services related to the transition.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

ICANN to Investigate Claims of eNom Allowing Illegal Domain Usage

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers [ICANN] is investigating Demand Media’s eNom division following complaints from an independent Web security group, IDG
News
reports. eNom, the second largest domain registrar in the world, was accused of willingly hosting an extremely high number of malicious Web sites by HostExploit. The security group currently has eNom at number
one in its top ten list of “bad hosts.” The allegations made by HostExploit include eNom allowing its customers to falsify Whois information, ignore ICANN deletion policy, and commit other violations of ICANN’s rules. A spokesman from ICANN said that,
although the group does not typically intervene on matters of illegal activity, the seriousness of the allegations require further examination of the situation.

Source: IDG, 8/20/2010

Microsoft and Google Selected as Co-Chairs of W3C

Microsoft and Google have been selected to act as co-chairs of the World Wide Web Consortium‘s Web Performance Working Group. The purpose
of the group is to research and establish a consistent method of measuring Web application performance. As its first act in the role, Microsoft is suggesting that the WebTimings protocol be used in the API for measuring performance. The technology already
exists within both the latest platform preview of Internet Explorer 9, and one of the most recent builds of Google’s Chrome.

Source: Vendor, 8/18/2010

Mozilla Updates Firefox 4 with Firefox Sync, Panorama

Mozilla announced the release of an updated Firefox version 4 beta. The new edition includes two important updates: the integration of Firefox Sync, and the introduction of Firefox Panorama. Firefox Sync began as an
add-on made by Mozilla to allow users to synchronize their bookmarks, opens tabs, and browsing history across all installations of Firefox and Firefox Home on the iPhone. This latest update to Firefox 4 streamlines the functionality into the browser
itself, without the requirement of a separate add-on. The second addition, Firefox Panorama, is a new method of organizing browser tabs. Rather than simply displaying open tabs in a single line, Panorama allows users to view thumbnails of each tab’s
contents, group the tabs into categories, and organize tabs in several new ways. The latest Firefox 4 beta version is available from Mozilla’s download page. Current Firefox 4 users will be updated
to the latest version automatically

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

Yahoo Begins Process of Shutting Down HotJobs, Transitioning Users

Yahoo has begun the process of transitioning all HotJobs users over to Monster.com, the site which purchased HotJobs in February 2010. The newly renamed “Monster+HotJobs” will remain open until early 2011. Yahoo is asking current HotJobs members for permission to transition their information, including employment histories, and saved resumes to Monster.com when the
transition is completed. The companies have set up a Web Page to provide users with information on the transfer process, and how to integrate a HotJobs account with an existing Monster.com
account.

Source: Vendor, 8/25/2010

LAPTOPS & TABLETS


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Wave of Netbooks Debuting with Dual-Core Intel Processors

Intel announced the first dual-core Atom processor targeted specifically at netbooks, and a wave of new, more powerful netbooks is now beginning to hit the market. Among the manufacturers announcing new dual-core
netbooks were: Acer, Asus, Lenovo, and LG. Fujitsu, Hewlett-Packard, MSI, Samsung, and Toshiba – among others – are planning similar announcements in the coming weeks and months, according to Intel.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

Toshiba Libretto Tablet Goes on Sale in US

Toshiba is now selling its dual-screen tablet, Libretto, in the US. The Libretto W105 is a small, 1.8-pound, 7-inch Windows 7 clamshell device that sports two capacitive LCD screens: one for viewing, and one for
typing. It is available in the US via preorders at ToshibaDirect.com. It will also be available at some retail stores beginning August 29, for $1,099.99, the company said.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

LEGAL


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Facebook Sues Second Company over Use of “Book” in its Name

Facebook is suing a relatively unknown social network for teachers called Teachbook, Wired reports. The social networking giant is using the case to set an example that it will
not allow other social networking sites to use the “book” portion of its name and potentially dilute its brand value. This follows an earlier filing against a company called Placebook, which, it should be noted, is not even a social networking site. That
site has since changed its name to TripTrace. For its part Teachbook says that it will fight the social network to maintain its right to use “book” in its name.

Source: Wired, 8/26/2010

MALWARE WATCH


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Kaspersky Reports on 2nd Quarter Malware Activity

Kaspersky Lab released its report on information security threats in the second quarter of 2010. During this period, Kaspersky said its products blocked more than 540 million attempts to infect computers around
the world. The countries most targeted were China, Russia, India, the USA, and Vietnam. According to the security vendor, cybercriminals used all possible attack vectors and techniques, both old and new, along with scams, in order to make profits. Overall,
more than 33 million vulnerable applications and files were identified on users’ computers during Q2 2010. More than seven unpatched vulnerabilities were found on one in four computers.

Source: Vendor, 8/23/2010

McAfee Says “Cameron Diaz” Most Common Malware Lure

Cameron Diaz has replaced Jessica Biel as the most dangerous celebrity to search for on the Web, according to security company McAfee. The “McAfee Most Dangerous Celebrities” study found movie stars and models top
the “most dangerous” list this year while politicians are among the safest. Cybercriminals often use the names of popular celebrities to lure people to sites that are actually laden with malicious software.

Source: Vendor, 8/23/2010

Rustock Botnet Still Responsible for 40% of Spam: Symantec

Despite a drop in activity, more than 40 percent of the world’s spam is coming from a single network of computers that computer security experts continue to battle, according to new statistics from Symantec’s MessageLabs. About 1.3 million computers are still infected with Rustock, and those infected computers – most of which are in North America and Western Europe – are collectively sending around 46 billion spam e-mails
per day, according to the Symantec security researchers.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

MOBILE PLATFORMS


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XATA Turnpike Solution Now Available via Verizon Wireless

Verizon Wireless and XATA Turnpike, a division of XATA Corporation, announced the availability of XATA Turnpike’s RouteTracker fleet performance management solution
to Verizon Wireless enterprise customers. The companies’ agreement enables XATA Turnpike subscription fees to be added directly to customers’ Verizon Wireless bills. XATA Turnpike’s RouteTracker device transmits Global Positioning System and other vehicle
data to a wireless phone and sends the data back to a hosted Web site. Verizon Wireless customers can now access XATA Turnpike on their Verizon Wireless handsets, including such information as hours of service tracking and logging.

Source: Vendor, 8/23/2010

MOBILE APPS


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Opera Licenses Opera Mini Mobile Browser to Telenor

Opera announced that it has signed an agreement with Telenor to license its Opera Mini mobile browser to the telecom company. The deal will allow Telenor to place the Opera Mini browser on any of its mobile handsets,
and within its software portfolio. The contract also includes a provision for the development of a co-branded version of Opera Mini for use by Telenor’s local operators. The first deployment of Opera Mini on a Telenor product is expected in September
2010.

Source: Vendor, 8/25/2010

NANOTECHNOLOGY


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NIST Develops New Laser-Powered Detector

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have developed a laser-powered detector coated with the world’s darkest material: a “forest” of carbon nanotubes that reflects almost no light
across the visible and part of the infrared spectrum. NIST will use the new “ultra-dark” detector to make precision laser power measurements for advanced technologies such as optical communications, laser-based manufacturing, solar energy conversion, and
industrial and satellite-borne sensors.

Source: NIST.gov, 8/23/2010

PERSONNEL AND ORGANIZATION


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AOL Appoints Graham Moysey as GM of AOL Canada

AOL announced that it has appointed Graham Moysey as the new general manager of AOL Canada. His responsibilities will include overseeing the company’s development strategy across Canada, and executing its core
advertising, local, and content objectives. Moysey will report to Jeff Levick, President of AOL Global Advertising and Strategy. Prior to joining AOL, Graham Moysey served as Senior Vice President and General Manager of Digital Media at Canwest Global
Communications.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

Apple to Shut Down Quattro Wireless Ad Network in Favor of iAd

Apple is shutting down its Quattro Wireless ad network to focus entirely on iAd, according to Business Insider. The company purchased the Quattro network last year for $275 million. The news was revealed
in a memo sent out to all current Quattro advertising participants from Apple. The message said that the network will cease operation on September 30, 2010, and that it is no longer taking any new campaigns for placement on the network.

Source: Bus. Insider, 8/19/2010

Harris Opens R&D Operation in San Antonio

IT and communications company Harris Corporation announced that it has opened a new research and development operation in San Antonio, Texas to support the company’s military and intelligence customers, as well as
other customers, in the central Texas region. Harris said the 6,000-square-foot Advanced Research and Development Center houses offices, research and development, and demonstration space for several Harris businesses – including Government Communications
Systems, RF Communications, and Healthcare Solutions. The operation will be staffed by more than 20 new engineering and support positions, the company said.

Source: Vendor, 8/23/2010

Savi Technology Appoints William Maggs CTO

Lockheed Martin announced that William Maggs has been appointed to the newly created office of Chief Technology Officer (CTO) and senior vice president at its subsidiary Savi Technology. Maggs will handle the
design and development of all of the company’s future technological products, and will be expected to innovate on Savi’s wireless product line. Prior to joining Savi, Maggs served head of the Developer and Partner programs at Sony Ericsson. He also held
the position of CTO at Palm.

Source: Vendor, 8/19/2010

MITRE Opens Site in Clarksburg, West Virginia

MITRE Corporation announced the official opening of its Clarksburg, West Virginia, facility. The site was first established in a temporary location in October 2008 to provide support to the company’s Department of
Defense and Department of Justice customers. The site employs 10 technical and administrative staff. A ribbon-cutting ceremony will be held August 25. The MITRE Corporation is a US-based not-for-profit organization chartered to work in the public
interest.

Source: Vendor, 8/23/2010

Northrop Grumman Lays Off 292 Workers in Mississippi

Northrop Grumman announced that it has send a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) message to 292 of the employees at its Gulf Coast shipbuilding facility at Pascagoula, Mississippi. The company
claims the cyclical nature of shipbuilding is to blame, with the business currently experiencing a lull in demand. Northrop Grumman also warns that it expects to cut as many as 350 further positions at the facility before the end of the year.

Source: Vendor, 8/25/2010

Northrop Grumman Names Russell Anarde Lead Executive, Colorado Springs

Northrop Grumman announced that it has named Russell J. Anarde as the new lead executive for its Colorado Springs business. The appointment, effective September 13, will see Anarde reporting to John Landon, vice
president of Missile Technology and Space Programs for the company. Anarde will serve as the primary point of contact for all business activities involving the Colorado Springs office. Mr. Anarde has been with the company since 2004, most recently serving
as director, business development for the Military Systems segment.

Source: Vendor, 8/26/2010

PAETEC Opens Data Center in Andover, MA

PAETEC announced the opening of a new data center in Andover, MA. The new center will provide customers with maintenance of critical data, server operating applications, networks, and communications assets. The
92,000 square foot facility will provide services to local companies, as well as geographic redundancy to businesses across the US. This is the first of eight new data centers PAETEC plans on opening over the next 18 months, including other facilities in
Houston, Milwaukee, and Phoenix.

Source: Vendor, 8/18/2010

SAP and Sybase Lay Out Post-Acquisition Product Roadmap

SAP and Sybase, recently purchased by SAP, held an event to announce their plans on combining the assets of the two companies. Among the notable announcement was the news that a
combined mobile platform division would be formed, and would market solutions for all mobile operating systems; a solution portfolio for EIM would be created by combining the SAP Business Suite and other solutions with Sybase data management servers; a new
business analytics infrastructure would be launched; and SAP’s in-memory computing technology would be added to Syabase’s data management offerings. The company promised further announcements would be made via Twitter
using the #SapSybase hashtag.

Source: Vendor, 8/19/2010

Verizon’s Senior Finance VP to Retire

Bill Heitmann, Verizon’s senior vice president-finance, will retire from Verizon effective at the end of this year, after more than 39 years with the company. John Killian, Verizon’s chief financial officer,
announced that Ron Lataille, who currently serves as senior vice president-Investor Relations, will succeed Heitmann, and that John Doherty, currently chief financial officer for Verizon Services Operations, will succeed Lataille. Their appointments are
effective Sept. 2. Heitmann has been responsible for leading the Verizon Investment Management Corporation. He also serves as chairman of Verizon Capital Corporation., the company’s financing subsidiary.

Source: Vendor, 8/26/2010

PUBLIC SAFETY


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Malware May Have Contributed to Airliner Crash: Spanish Authorities

Information Week reported that Spanish authorities investigating the crash of Spanair flight 5022 in Madrid have found that malware may have contributed to the accident, which occurred two years ago, killing
154 people. According to the report, the Spanish agency charged with investigating the accident has listed the official cause as pilot error but the pilots’ errors, which were non-trivial, should each have been immediately logged in a maintenance system,
which would have spotted the recurring fault and triggered an alarm at the airline’s headquarters in Palma de Mallorca, keeping the plane grounded until the issue was fixed. Authorities said, however, that the maintenance system had been infected by a
Trojan application, rendering the monitor useless.

Source: Info Week, 8/23/2010

Whooping Cough Rise Noted in Philadelphia Suburbs

The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that a rise in reported cases of whooping cough in the Philadelphia (PA) suburbs in the last several months has prompted the Pennsylvania Department of Health to urge
that people throughout the state ensure that their vaccinations are up to date. The state also scheduled free vaccine clinics in Delaware and York Counties in Pennsylvania. The significance of the increases in Bucks, Chester, Montgomery, and Delaware
counties is not clear, officials said. The state of California declared a whooping cough epidemic in July, saying it is likely to be the worst such outbreak in 50 years.

Source: Inquirer, 8/24/2010

Morpho Trialing ShoeScanner Technology

Morpho Detection, part of Morpho (Safran group’s security business) has launched a data collection study of its next-generation ShoeScanner at Indianapolis International Airport , one of the final steps in preparing
this solution for regulatory approvals. The data collection will take place at Indianapolis International Airport’s pre-security Civic Plaza and is expected to provide insights into real-world operational requirements. Morpho Detection’s latest-technology
shoe scanning device is designed to detect shoe-borne threats, allowing air travelers to be screened at security checkpoints without the need to remove their shoes.

Source: Vendor, 8/23/2010

Sprint, California to Pilot New Mobile Alert System

Sprint Nextel and the California Emergency Management Agency announced they are partnering to be the first in the US to deploy Commercial Mobile Alert System (CMAS) technology.
CMAS is a public safety tool that allows emergency management officials to rapidly disseminate warnings and safety information via text alerts to wireless phones – tailoring delivery of the messages to specific locations. CMAS is a national program
established by the Federal Communications Commission in response to the Warning, Alert and Response Act passed by Congress in 2006. CMAS will allow the Federal Emergency Management Agency to accept and aggregate alerts
from the President of the United States, the National Weather Service, and state and local emergency operations centers. The alerts will be sent over a secure interface to Sprint and other participating wireless providers, and then sent to cell phones as
text messages using CMAS technology. CMAS technology is similar to emergency alerts currently broadcast on cable television or disseminated to citizens through calls to their wired phones, but the new technology will be able to send emergency text messages
to mobile phones within a defined geographic area. The area could be as large as a county or city, or targeted to a smaller area, in some instances. Text-based CMAS alerts will include a dedicated vibration cadence and audio attention signal for wireless
customers with hearing or vision disabilities, officials said.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

REGULATORY


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GAO Says Wireless Consolidation Squeezes Competition

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has issued a report that concludes enhanced data collection could help the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) better monitor competition
in the wireless industry, and thereby better fulfill its statutory reporting requirement. Among its major findings, the GAO said consolidation over the past decade has left just four big carriers in control of 90 percent of the wireless market in the US,
making it harder for small and regional companies to compete. The study could support the FCC’s recent efforts to increase oversight of the wireless industry.The GAO report recommends that the FCC
assess whether expanding original data collection of wireless industry inputs and outputs – such as prices, special access rates, capital expenditures, and equipment costs – would help the agency better satisfy its requirement to review competitive market
conditions with respect to commercial mobile services.

Source: GAO, 8/26/2010

GAO Uncovers Questionable Contract Practices

The US Government Accountability Office has completed a review of noncompetitive government contracts during the past few years and discovered a number of questionable business practices by contracting officials and
government program managers. The GAO found 44 percent of all federal contracts in fiscal 2009 either were not placed up for competition or attracted only one bid. The report described contracts that
appeared to be written with such narrowly-defined requirements that only one company could reasonably compete. In other instances, the GAO said, program managers pressed for follow-on contracts to be awarded without competition to the existing company,
essentially because it would be an easier process to complete.

Source: GAO, 8/26/2010

SATELLITE COMMUNICATIONS


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Spacenet Wins Grant to Provide Broadband Service in Alaska, Hawaii

Spacenet, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Gilat Satellite Networks, announced that it has been awarded federal grant funding from the Rural Utility Service under the American
Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The grant will allow it to provide broadband service to rural, unserved markets in Alaska and Hawaii through its “StarBand Open Skies” initiative. Spacenet will offer its StarBand broadband-over-satellite service to these
regions for $0 down, including equipment and standard installation, and an entry-level monthly service fee of $50.

Source: Vendor, 8/23/2010

SEARCH


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Google Creates New Standalone Realtime Search Page

Google announced the relaunch and expansion of the service now known as Google Realtime Search. The Realtime search focuses on providing Web browsers with timely and
recent content related to their queries, particularly content from social networks such as Twitter. New features of the updated Realtime search include the ability to search for results from a specific geographic location;
a new conversation view, which lets users expand a single tweet on the results page into an entire conversation; and an accompanying update to Google Alerts, which informs users via email when a topic of their
choice pops up in a Twitter conversation.

Source: Vendor, 8/26/2010

Hitwise Debuts Two New Search Products

Hitwise announced the launch of two new products. The first, Search Engine Result Pages (SERP), provides customers with the top 100 results from the top 3 US-based search engine for popular search terms. The company
claims this is the only product currently available that can correlate rank with actual traffic received by a given site. The second product, Search Term Sequencing, analyzes the order search terms are entered in by Web users. The company says it can list
up to 5 terms entered before or after a given search. Hitwise claims this will provide companies with a more holistic view of how consumers find their products and services online.

Source: Vendor, 8/19/2010

Yahoo Completes Transition to Microsoft Back End in US, Canada

Yahoo announced that it has completed the transition to Microsoft technology for its search engine’s back end. This means that all Yahoo Web, video, and image searches conducted
are now being powered by Microsoft’s Bing technology. The company says the change has only been applied to its English search product in the US and Canada so far, but that it expects other languages and regions to follow
soon.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

Yahoo to Shut Down SearchMonkey, Retain Enhanced Results Program

Yahoo announced that it would be shutting down all aspects of its SearchMonkey developer tool as of October 1, 2010. The move is a result of Yahoo’s transition to using Microsoft‘s Bing technology to power its back end search and related technologies. Yahoo suggested that all developers export their work prior to the shutdown date.

Source: Vendor, 8/25/2010

SECURITY FLAWS & FIXES


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Adobe Issue Patches for Security Vulnerabilities

Adobe Systems issued software updates to fix at least two security vulnerabilities in its Acrobat and PDF Reader products. Updates are available for Windows, Mac, and UNIX versions of the programs. Acrobat and Reader
users can update to the latest version, v. 9.3.4, using the built-in updater. The update is an out-of-cycle release for Adobe, which recently moved to a quarterly patch release schedule. The company said the update addresses a vulnerability that was
demonstrated last month at the Black Hat security conference.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

Google Updates Chrome to Fix Security Bugs

Google announced that it has released Google Chrome version 5.0.375.127 for Windows, Mac, and Linux. The new release fixes
several security bugs in the Chromium Web browser.

Source: Vendor, 8/23/2010

IBM Releases Mid-Year X-Force Trend and Risk Report

IBM released its 2010 X-Force Mid-Year Trend and Risk Report. The company found a total of 4,396 new vulnerabilities. This is a significant, 36 percent increase over the last study findings. Some 55 percent of the
identified vulnerabilities did not have a manufacturer-supplied patch to deal with them. The study listed ten companies in order of the percentage of their flaws remaining unpatched during the study period. Sun, now owned
by Oracle, was the worst at 24 percent, with Microsoft coming in a close second at 23.2 percent. Mozilla followed at third with 21.3 percent,
and Apple was fourth at 12.9 percent. IBM itself was fifth with 10.3 percent, with Google following at sixth, at 8.6 percent. The remainder of the list was Linux at 8.2 percent,
Oracle with 6.8 percent, Cisco with 6 percent, and Adobe with 2.9 percent.

Source: Vendor, 8/26/2010

Microsoft Releases DLL Preloading Attack Guidance

The Microsoft Security Response Center has relased an advisory offering guidance in the wake of increased DLL preloading attacks. Security Advisory 2269637 is different from other Microsoft Security
Advisories because it does not talk about specific vulnerabilities in Microsoft products. Rather, it is the vendor’s “official guidance” in response to security research that has outlined a new, remote vector for a well-known class of vulnerabilities,
known as DLL preloading or “binary planting” attacks. Microsoft said it is currently conducting a thorough investigation into how this new vector may affect Microsoft products. The advisory comprises a “defense-in-depth” update that customers can deploy
with the goal of helping to protect against attempts to exploit vulnerable applications.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

Applications Already Being Targeted via Microsoft Flaw: Report

The Register reported that a day after Microsoft confirmed a vulnerability in Windows applications – the DLL preloading vulnerability – the first exploits have been released targeting programs including the
Firefox browser, uTorrent BitTorrent client, and Microsoft PowerPoint. As many as 200 applications may be vulnerable to the so-called binary planting or DLL preloading attacks, according to the report, which cited CEO of Acros Security, the Slovenia-based company that warned Microsoft of the issue 4 months ago.

Source: Register, 8/26/2010

SECURITY PRODUCTS & COMPANIES


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NSS Labs: Most Business Anti-virus Products Do A Poor Job

Research and testing firm NSS Labs reported that most anti-virus products designed for use in businesses do a “poor job” of detecting the exploits that hacked and malicious Web sites use to spread malware. The
security firm looked at the performance of 10 commercial anti-virus products to see how well they detected 123 client-side exploits, those typically used to attack vulnerabilities in Web browsers including Internet Explorer and Firefox, as well as common
desktop applications, such as Adobe Flash, Reader, and Apple QuickTime. Among all ten products tested, NSS found the average detection rate against original exploits was 76 percent, and that only three out of ten products stopped all of the original
exploits. The average detection against exploits variants was even lower, at 58 percent, NSS found.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

SMARTPHONES


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Dell Releases Aero Smatphone

Dell has released its Aero smartphone in the US. Aero is based on Google’s Android OS version 1.5. The new smartphone is available through Dell’s Web site for US$99.99 with a two-year mobile contract from AT&T, and for $299.99 without a contract. Aero is the second mobile device announced by Dell with smartphone capabilities. On August 12th, Dell started shipping its Streak mobile device, which has a 5-inch screen. The Streak
– termed a tablet by Dell – is a mobile Internet device with voice capabilities.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

SOCIAL MEDIA


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Facebook to Update Chat, Cease Internet Explorer 6 Support

Facebook announced that it is in the process of improving its chat function. The social networking giant is working to reduce or eliminate slow-downs and disconnections which have plagued the communications tool.
It has already implemented several changes which are designed to address these issues, and plans further updates. However, as part of these new alterations, Facebook warns that the chat client will no longer support Internet Explorer 6. As usual, the site
encourages all IE 6 users to update to the latest version of Internet Explorer.

Source: Vendor, 8/25/2010

STANDARDS & PROTOCOLS


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Visa Issues Security Best Practice Guidelines

Credit card company Visa has announced a set of security best practices for vendors of payment applications, and for the systems integrators and resellers responsible for implementing and managing them. The best
practices developed by Visa in collaboration with the SANS Institute are designed to complement the Payment Card Industry (PCI) Payment Application Data Security Standard (PA-DSS). The Guidelines are summarized in a Visa
press release.

Source: Vendor, 8/26/2010

STORAGE


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Toshiba Claims Breakthrough in HD Design

BetaNews reported that Toshiba is claiming a research breakthrough in hard disk design that will allow hard drives to have much higher capacities than what is possible today.
The research is in the discipline of bit-patterned media, a magnetic storage technology. Bit-patterned drives could hold some 2.5 terabits of data on every square inch of recordable space, according to the report. Toshiba does not expect the drives to hit
the market until 2013, and says a great deal of work remains.

Source: Betanews, 8/24/2010

STREAMING MEDIA


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Juniper Networks Intros New VXA Series Media Flow Engines

Juniper Networks announced the availability of its new line of VXA Series Media Flow Engines. The content delivery appliances are designed to increase the scalability and reliability of the company’s Media Flow
Solutions, a content delivery product. Junipers claims the new offerings can reduce costs by shaping network traffic; improve the user experience by preventing interruptions due to fluctuations in network speed; and expand revenue by offering new
content-base services. More information about the VXA Series Media Flow Engines is available from their product page.

Source: Vendor, 8/25/2010

VOIP


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AT&T Adds VoIP to VPN Services

AT&T announced that new and existing virtual private network customers can now add VoIP services to the network solution delivered over AT&T’s global network cloud. The carrier said the converged solution will enable
customers to consolidate their separate voice and data networks, reduce equipment and maintenance costs, and simplify migrating to a common, secure infrastructure.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

Google Adds Phone Functionality to Gmail

Google introduced the ability to call telephones from within the Gmail Web-app. The new feature lets users dial out to any phone in the US or Canada for free (at least until the end of the year). International calls
are supported too, but they incur a per-minute fee. These fees range from $0.02 for France, Germany, and several other countries, to as much as $0.46 in some cases. The amount a user pays is also dependent
on whether the line being called is a landline or a mobile phone. Google Voice accounts will now be merged with Gmail, enabling users to integrate their Google Voice number into the service, and receive calls via Gmail. The feature will only be available
to users in the US initially, with other countries to follow. A free plug-in is required to use the new feature, and users must be signed in to "chat" in order to use it.

Source: Vendor, 8/25/2010

WEB COMMERCE


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MSN Launches Local Deals Page for Online Circulars

MSN launched a new Local Deals site. The new Web page allows users to access their local advertising circulars for numerous retailers in their area. The site also supports a search
functionality – which lets visitors enter a single query to search through all of the available circulars – and a direct link to Bing reviews for items with listings on the review site. Launch partners for the page
include Target, Kohl’s, Staples, and Radio Shack. Bing says that it expects several more retailers to be added to that list over the course of the next year.

Source: Vendor, 8/19/2010

PayPal Planning Microtransaction Product Before Year’s End

eBay revealed that PayPal would be releasing a micropayment product before the end of the year. Micropayments are a form of very small transactions, usually less than a dollar,
which are frequently used in the purchase of virtual products and online gaming items. Although details on the upcoming product were few and far-between, the company did reveal that it plans on offering customers a system by which each transaction can be
deducted incrementally. PayPal said this differs from current offerings in that most microtransaction services require consumers to purchase blocks of credits, which locks their funds into a type of currency that cannot be redeemed anywhere else.

Source: Vendor, 8/25/2010

WIRELESS


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Survey of Industry Execs Forecasts An End to Flat-Rate Data Plans

In a survey of 391 international mobile telecom executives, law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer found that the industry is leaning toward ending flat-rate data plans, which have fueled an explosion in
network traffic without bringing in significant extra revenue. The survey found that 55 percent agreed tiered pricing was the way forward in mature markets, with 47
percent saying that “all-you-can-eat” data plans were damaging their ability to increase revenue. Almost half – 48 percent – predicted mobile operators would focus on developing new pricing models over the next three years. The Freshfields “mobile
challenges survey,” completed in June, was conducted among 391 representatives from the mobile industry from 55 countries. The participants included software providers, mobile services providers, mobile network equipment providers, integrated
fixed-wireless telecommunications operators, mobile network operators, value-added services providers, and content providers.

Source: Vendor, 8/24/2010

Sprint Offers Free Femtocell Device to Some Customers

Engadget reported that Sprint is offering a free femtocell device, the Airave Access Point, to customers who have specific in-building coverage problems. Each customer situation
is reviewed independently to determine whether the customer would qualify and benefit from Airave use, according to Sprint.

Source: Engadget, 8/23/2010

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