Booz Allen Hamilton Sells Government Transportation Consulting Biz

Booz Allen Hamilton signed an agreement to sell its state and local government transportation consulting business to CH2M HILL for $28.5 million in cash. The company says the divested businesses products accounted for
less than 1% of its overall revenue, and that its sale will allow it to focus more clearly on its core federal government work. The transaction includes 150 employees, all of which have been offered employment with CH2M HILL. The transaction is expected to
close some time during the third quarter of 2011, subject to certain closing conditions.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

Ericsson to Acquire Some Assets of Guangdong Nortel

Ericsson completed an asset purchase agreement to acquire certain assets of the Guangdong Nortel Telecommunications Equipment. The deal gives it access to R&D engineers, manufacturing and services professionals,
and manufacturing and research facilities in China, and will also allow it to continue to develop its CDMA and GSM businesses while also extending its presence in China and northeast Asia. 1,000 former GDNT employees – including 550 in R&D – will join
Ericsson in the coming months. Effective immediately, manufacturing and Services will operate as a separate business entity: Ericsson (Guangdong Shunde) Communications.

Source: Vendor, 5/12/2011

Microsoft Buys Skype for $8.5 Billion

Microsoft and Internet telephony company Skype announced that they have signed a definitive agreement under which Microsoft will acquire Skype for $8.5 billion in cash from an
investor group led by Silver Lake, which bought Skype from eBay in 2009. eBay had purchased Skype in 2005, and retained a minority interest when it sold a majority interest to Silver Lake. The popular voice-over-IP company, which offers free calls
worldwide between Internet-connected devices, and low-cost calling to landline and cellphones, was founded in 2003. The agreement has been approved by the directors of both companies. In a press release, Microsoft said Skype will support Microsoft devices like Xbox and Kinect, Windows Phone, and a wide array of Windows devices, and Microsoft will connect
Skype users with Lync, Outlook, Xbox Live, and other “communities.” Microsoft “will continue to invest in and support Skype clients on non-Microsoft platforms,” the company said. 

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

Motorola Mobility Acquires Software Company

Motorola Mobility said it has acquired SunUp Digital Systems, a software provider based in Santa Clara, California. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. SunUp
Digital Systems makes operating software for IPTV, DTH (direct-to-home), digital cable, and content distribution networks. With the acquisition of SunUp, Motorola Mobility strengthens its ability to manage revenue-generating video services for service
providers across multiple screens, the company said. For example, SunUp software will give the Motorola Medios software platform the ability to enforce content rights and manage live content across television screens, smartphones, and tablet devices.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

Sophos to Acquire Network Security Solutions Provider Astaro

Security firm Sophos signed a definitive agreement to acquire Astaro, a network security solutions company. According to Sophos, this acquisition will allow it
to offer the industry’s first coordinated protection and policy control between endpoint and network, as well as improving its own threat and data protection capabilities, and application control. Sophos says the merger will also benefit the channel
partners of both firms by unifying their range of security solution and service needs in a single provider. No financial terms for the agreement were disclosed.

Source: Vendor, 5/12/2011

Towerstream Agrees to Acquire One Velocity’s Las Vegas, Reno Assets

Towerstream a 4G business Internet service provider, signed an agreement with One Velocity to acquire the company’s Las Vegas and Reno-based business assets. The deal includes
all customer contracts, network infrastructure, and related assets. The agreement is expected to close prior to the end of the second quarter of 2011. No financial terms for the transaction were disclosed. However, Towerstream did increase its revenue
guidance for the second quarter to between$6.4 million and $6.7 million as a results of the acquisition.

Source: Vendor, 5/12/2011

ALLIANCES & JOINT VENTURES

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Avaya to Provide Virtualization Mgmt for VMware vCenter Server

Avaya announced it will provide virtualization management for VMware’s vCenter Server. Avaya’s Virtualization Provisioning Service (VPS) provides a tool to help network administrators provision and secure virtual
machines within the network. It will integrate with VMware vCenter Server to provide insight into the entire VM lifecycle – from activation to deletion – and update Avaya networking devices to react to changes in that lifecycle.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

Cisco, Xerox to Deliver Print, Cloud Svcs Over Cisco Infrastructure

Cisco Systems and Xeroxsaid they will form an alliance to deliver cloud services and technology that combines network intelligence and printing. The companies will provide Xerox’s
managed print and cloud IT outsourcing services over Cisco’s intelligent network infrastructure. This will create a joint technology that should allow channel partners to provide businesses with the ability to improve performance, making IT applications
more accessible.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

Deutsche Telekom Teams with iPass for Wi-Fi Roaming Service

Deutsche Telekom formed a partnership with iPass Inc to create WiFi Mobilize, a new network services exchange for domestic and international roaming. The goal of the new service is to provide carriers with a method of
offloading a considerable portion of their roaming data usage onto a Wi-Fi network. The result, according to the companies, will be reduced bill-shock for consumers, and an easing of pressure on the carrier’s network. The WiFi Mobilize service will launch
with more than 500,000 commercial grade Wi-Fi networks spread across Europe. The new service will be marketed by International Carrier Sales & Solutions (ICSS), the international wholesale arm of Deutsche Telekom Group.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

NetSuite Teams with NEC for New Large Enterprise Offerings

NetSuite formed a strategic global partnership with NEC. The goal of the union is to combine NetSuite’s ERP, CRM, Ecommerce, and professional services automation offerings with
NEC’s ability to deliver customized and integrated solutions to large enterprise customers. The first product of this alliance is expected to be the NEC Enterprise Gateway for NetSuite, a new software title designed to integrate the customer’s cloud
environment with existing systems, such as SAP and Oracle. More information about the Enterprise Gateway is available at its product page.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

BIOMETRICS

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GAO: Further Action Needed to Strengthen Biometric ID Program

A report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has found some weaknesses within the Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) program, which
requires biometric ID cards and background checks for maritime workers to gain unescorted access to secure areas of regulated facilities. The GAO has recommended that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which
oversees TWIC, to assess the program’s effectiveness and determine what processes should be implemented to ensure that TWIC’s objectives can be met.

Source: GAO, 5/10/2011

BUSINESS CONTINUITY

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Chubuu Electric Temporarily Shuts Down Hamaoka Power Plant

Japanese power firm Chubuu Electric has agreed to shut a nuclear plant in Japan until it can be better defended against the type of massive tsunami that in March triggered a nuclear emergency and severely damaged a power plant managed by TEPCO. Reuters reported that the temporary shutdown of Hamaoka, which supplies power to central Japan, has added to concerns about power shortages and their impact on manufacturing companies (as well as individuals). Chubu’s
decision was in response to a request from Prime Minister Naoto Kan to halt all reactors still operating at Hamaoka, citing the high risk that a powerful earthquake would hit the region in coming years. Reuters said another operator – Japan Atomic Power –
revealed that it has plugged a very small radiation leak at its Tsuruga plant on the West coast of Japan, the first since it started operations in 1987. Japan Atomic Power said the leak had no impact on the environment.

Source: Reuters, 5/9/2011

Citrix Teams with SolarWinds, Splunk, and CA for AppFlow

Citrix teamed with SolarWinds, Splunk, and CA Technologies to introduce AppFlow, a new open standards technology designed to provide insight into cloud-based business applications.
The companies say AppFlow can provide a 360 degree view of all application traffic and transactions. The technology is also capable of utilizing in-place network solutions, such as firewalls, application delivery controllers, and WAN optimization
controllers. The first product to include the new technology will be Citrix’s own NetScaler software. More information about AppFlow is available from an introduction document on Citrix’s community Web site.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

Lessons to be Learned from FEMA Pilot Program: GAO

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) reviewed the Task Force for Emergency Readiness (TFER) pilot program, which has been overseen by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for two years. The GAO evaluated how the five states in the pilot program satisfied TFER’s objectives and the extent to which FEMA administered the program. In its report, the GAO recommended that FEMA develop policies based upon TFER information to create future pilot programs.

Source: GAO, 4/8/2011

Progress Software Releases Responsive Process Management Suite 2.0

Progress Software launched its new Responsive Process Management (RPM) 2.0 Suite. The suite is designed to let businesses make decisions based on predictive analytics to better handle unforeseen circumstances,
whether they’re opportunities or threats. Updates to version 2.0 includes the new Progress Control Tower, a simplified, browser-based, interface; cross enterprise functionality; enhanced business process improvement; infinite drill downs into processes;
and customizable mash-ups. More information is available at the RPM Suite’s product page.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

Verizon Wireless Says Nearly All Service Restored in Alabama

Verizon Wireless said it has restored virtually all coverage affected by the recent, devastating tornadoes in Alabama and boosted capacity for customers in the state. Verizon Wireless dispatched Cells on
Wheels in Tuscaloosa, Phil Campbell, and Pleasant Grove, Alabama to boost coverage in three of the hardest-hit areas of the state. Temporary towers are operating in Cullman, Centreville, Jasper, and east of Lake Martin to replace towers that were downed or
badly damaged. Verizon Wireless also added capacity in Bessemer, Birmingham, Decatur, Guntersville, Hueytown, and Midfield to accommodate customers’ increased calling and data usage, the carrier said. In addition, all Verizon Wireless Communications Stores
in the storm-struck areas are open to customers and others who need assistance with their wireless service, including free calling and phone charging service.

Source: Vendor, 5/12/2011

CALL CENTER

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Verizon Business, Alcatel-Lucent Deploying Virtual Contact Center

Verizon Business said its professional consultants are working with Alcatel-Lucent’s Genesys to help Ticketmaster deploy an Internet Protocol-based global customer
communications platform. The platform will upgrade and consolidate Ticketmaster’s contact center technology worldwide. Verizon said the new virtual contact center solution combines Verizon’s global IP network with a Genesys customer voice portal and SIP
(session initiation protocol) server to enable call delivery to the appropriate customer service agents.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

CARRIER SERVICES

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Cox Communications Launches TV Online

Cox Communications has launched TV Online. The broadband communications company said its customers can now view movies and TV shows on an Internet-connected computer, at no additional charge. No special equipment is
required – just a computer with a flash supported browser, a broadband connection within the United States, and a Cox user ID and password. Cox Communications is the third-largest cable television provider in the United States, with more than 6.2 million
customers.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

Rogers Places Small Business Experts at 157 Retail Locations

Rogers announced the launch of Small Business Specialist, a new initiative designed to install a small business communications expert at 157 of its retail locations across Canada. The new plan is the result of a
survey conducted by Rogers that found small business owners would appreciate being able to get advice on smartphones, the Internet, and Web site to help with their business. Rogers says Small Business Specialist will build on its current Live Agent
offering, and will not replace it. More information is available from Rogers’ business Web site.

Source: Vendor, 5/12/2011

Verizon to End Automatic Deliveries of Printed Directories in Virginia

The Virginia State Corporation Commission has granted Verizon Communication‘s request to end the automatic delivery of printed Verizon residential white pages listings to customers in the state. Verizon said it
intends to provide customers with an online, electronic version of white pages residential listings as the primary means to access such directory information. Customers also will be able to request a free printed or CD-ROM directory of residential
listings. In addition, print directories – containing business and government white pages, customer information pages and the yellow pages – will continue to be delivered, the company said.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

CLOUD COMPUTING

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Akamai, Riverbed Partner to Speed Hybrid Cloud Network Performance

Akamai is partnering with Riverbed Technology on a joint offering designed to overcome the application performance bottlenecks facing enterprises that use public
cloud services, as well as improve the availability, scalability, and security of hybrid network environments. The companies said they will develop a joint application solution for hybrid cloud networks, combining Internet optimization with wide area
network (WAN) optimization. Akamai will employ its global network of more than 90,000 servers, which provide route, protocol, and application-layer optimization, and carry about 30 percent of all Internet traffic. Akamai optimization software will be
integrated with Steelhead appliances from Riverbed, and Riverbed’s WAN optimization software would be integrated within Akamai edge servers with the goal of extending WAN optimization into the public cloud. This will extend Riverbed’s edge from the data
center to close proximity to cloud data centers.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

AWS Launches Tomcat 7 Support for Elastic Beanstalk

Amazon Web Services (AWS) announced that its Elastic Beanstalk protocol now supports Tomcat 7. Users will now be able to launch Tomcat 7 environments using Servlet 3.0 specifications, JSP 2.2, and JSP-EL 2.2.
Tomcat 7 will become the new default for Elastic Beanstalk, going forward. However, AWS says it will continue to support Tomcat 6 for new and existing environments, for the time being. A getting started guide for using Tomcat 7 is available from the Elastic Beanstalk documentation page.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

AWS Announces Custom Metrics for CloudWatch, EC2 Monitoring Price Drop

Amazon Web Services (AWS) announced the ability to add custom metrics to its Amazon CloudWatch product. Prior to this change, CloudWatch could only be used to monitor the company’s own products, such as Amazon
EC2 instances, Amazon EBS volumes. Following the update, customers can now set CloudWatch to monitor an application metric of their choice for $0.50 per metric per month. In a related announcement, AWS revealed a new pricing model for the monitoring of EC2
instances. Customers currently pay $0.015 per instance-hour. However, beginning June 1, the new pricing scheme will drop the price to free for 5-minute interval reports, or $3.50 per instance per month for 1-minute interval reports.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

Cisco Announces Mobility, Security Products for the Cloud

Cisco Systems announced new products that use cloud deployment models to improve branch office mobility and security, without requiring new hardware or support. Releases include cloud branch controllers, for managing
wireless deployments from a data center. – across as many as 500 branch locations, 2,000 APs, and 20,000 clients – and new cloud security products for providing malware detection on the branch router,

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

Force 10 Showcases Open Cloud Networking at Interop

Force10 Networks demonstrated its new Open Cloud Networking (OCN) framework and solutions at Interop, which was held this week in Las Vegas. Force 10 introduced OCN in April.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

Oracle Releases Sun Ray Software 5.2

Oracle released Sun Ray Software 5.2, its latest desktop virtualization offering. The new version features simplified installation, improved audio and video, smart card support, virtual private networking (VPN), and
enhanced network resiliency. Sun Ray supports Windows, Linux, and Oracle Solaris desktops. More information is available at Oracle’s virtualization product page.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

Zoho Docs Gets Updated with New UI, New Features

Zoho released a revamped user interface for its Zoho Docs Web app. According to the company , the new features include easier to use navigation, the ability to drag and
drop files and folders, and the ability to attach files to an email from directly within Zoho Docs. Other enhancements include the options to remove previously shared files, unsubscribe from items in the workspace, and send emails from within the
workspace.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

COMMUNICATIONS NETWORKS & EQUIPMENT

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Alcatel to Lay Submarine System Linking Australia, Singapore

Alcatel-Lucent agreed to construct a 4,800-kilometer, multi-terabit submarine cable system for Australia-Singapore Cable International. The submarine system includes an option for 100G-bps transmission, and
will link Perth, Australia and Singapore to provide the first open-access, high-speed connection from western Australia to southeast Asia. Commercial operation will commence in 2013, and will allow ASC to extend the reach and capacity of its services to
better meet bandwidth demands for high-performance data networking services, while supporting traffic growth driven by smartphones and cloud computing applications. The system has a 6T-bps ultimate capacity (potentially 16T bps).

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

Alcatel to Upgrade Completel’s French Backbone Network

Alcatel-Lucent was selected to upgrade Completel’s backbone communications network by deploying 100G optical technology on new and existing routes. Completel is a fiber network operator and fixed services
provider that offers very high-speed services for enterprises in France. The technology will allow it to better address the growth of videoconferencing, image transfers, high-definition videos, and collaborative tools.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

Alcatel, China Mobile Complete TD-LTE Call in Shanghai

Alcatel-Lucent and China Mobile completed the first TD-LTE network call in Shanghai, a development being regarded as a major step toward delivering future high speed
mobile broadband services to millions of Chinese subscribers. The trial – backed by China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology – includes Alcatel end-to-end 4G LTE technology, and covers six Chinese cities. Alcatel and China Mobile enhanced
their partnership last month when they announced a joint research program to pioneer developments in next-generation mobile communications.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

Avaya to Provide Infrastructure for Saudi Consulting Firm

Avaya agreed to provide network infrastructure operations for Saudi Arabia’s Zuhair Fayez Partnership – a consulting firm specializing in architecture, engineering, and information systems – to accommodate its staff
as it moves to a virtualized environment. The infrastructure will serve 3,000 users, across five main branches and 20 remote sites. Avaya partner BMC will install the Avaya Virtual Services Platform. The deployment should boost application responsiveness,
increase carrier-class reliability, and address future support needs for emerging 40G and 100G standards.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

Ciena Providing Technology for Extending Russian Carrier’s Network

Networking company Ciena has been chosen by Russian telecom carrier RASCOM to extend its network in order to connect Russia to Germany through the Nordic countries. RASCOM’s
existing network is based on Ciena’s coherent 40G technology and connects Moscow to Stockholm through sites in St. Petersburg and Helsinki. Based on Ciena’s ActivFlex 6500 Packet-Optical Platform that includes its WaveLogic coherent optical processors,
RASCOM’s new international network will include six 40G wavelengths connecting Moscow to Frankfurt. With expandability to 8.8 Tbps and support for both coherent 40G and 100G transmission, it allows RASCOM to gradually scale its network as requirements
change, Ciena said. Ceina is headquartered in Linthicum, Maryland.

Source: Vendor, 5/12/2011

Cisco to Roll Out Cable Internet for Malta’s Melita

Cisco Systems was selected by Melita – a telecommunications operator in Malta – to roll out next-generation cable Internet technology across its FibrePower network, spanning Malta and Gozo. The deployment includes
broadband routers, gateways, and high-speed cable modems, within an end-to-end Cisco infrastructure. It will allow Melita to provide subscribers to its FibrePower network with 100M-bps Internet connectivity services, while also paving the way for future
fixed services. It will also allow for the convergence of data, voice, and video, over an IP-based infrastructure.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

Ericsson to Build LTE Services Network in Korea

Ericsson reported it signed a commercial contract with South Korean wireless services provider LG U+ to build an ultra highspeed LTE commercial service network, via its LG-Ericsson local entity. LG U+ will use it
to support CDMA and 4G LTE mobile services, concurrently, allowing it to offer highspeed broadband HD video, voice, and data services. Ericsson will build a LTE network in Seoul, and will supply Evolved Packet Core network technology, LTE base stations,
and optical repeaters. The project will be completed in 2012.

Source: Vendor, 5/12/2011

HP Introduces FlexNetwork Unified Architecture

Hewlett-Packard (HP) announced its FlexNetwork architecture, a unified architecture for the data center, campus, and branch office. It allows businesses to access media-rich content, virtualization, mobility, and cloud
computing. It converges network silos by ensuring protocols are implemented consistently, across all network devices performance an enterprise. HP also announced new products based on the architecture, including new FlexFabric, FlexCampus, FlexBranch, and
FlexManagement offerings.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

Huawei to Upgrade Everything Everywhere Network Capacity

Huawei Technologies signed an agreement with UK communications firm Everything Everywhere to upgrade its 2G network with added capacity and coverage. The 2G-to-3G migration will provide subscribers with HD voice
services, while also allowing for future LTE services.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

NEC Launches MS5000 6.0 Transport Network Management Platform

NEC launched its new MS5000 Release 6.0, the latest iteration of its management platform for transport networks. The company says the new version supports a “Pay as You Grow” approach, and also features
path-provisioning, end-to-end Quality of Service (QoS) management, and SLA assurances. MS5000 6.0 also supports the company’s full range of transmission platforms, including the NEC iPASOLINK 1000 converged microwave and optical product for mobile
backhaul aggregation.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

Nokia Siemens Signs Services Deal with Shanghai Unicom

Nokia Siemens Networks agreed to provide network maintenance services for Shanghai Unicom, a Chinese mobile operator looking to provide uninterrupted, high-quality services in Shanghai. Nokia Siemens
will provide field maintenance services, covering base stations, transmission, and fixed line networks.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

Telefonica Signs Contract Extension with Multichoice

Telefonica renewed its contract with Multichoice, a pay-TV operator in Sub-Saharan Africa. The terms of the new agreement call for an increase in Multichoice’s broadcasting capacity, including new high-definition
channels, and an extended broadcast area. The work will primarily take place at Multichoice’s Satellite Communications Centre in Armu¤a de Taju¤a, Guadalajara. The new agreement has a duration of 15 years.

Source: Vendor, 5/6/2011

ZTE Selected as Supplier for New Ukrtelcom Home Gateways

ZTE announced that its H108L multiple-terminal access home gateway solution has been selected for use by Ukrtelcom. The device will be used to support broadband Internet access, and IPTV service. It also offers
streaming-oriented customization and optimization for the carrier. ZTE says it has shipped more than 60 million of the H108L units to more than 80 countries.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

CONFERENCING

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Cisco Deploys WebEx for Al Jouf University E-Learning

Cisco Systems deployed WebEx enterprise collaboration tools for Al Jouf University in Saudi Arabia, to boost the school’s ability to support new distance and e-learning services. 19,000 students, as well as hundreds
of lecturers and staff, will use WebEx to collaborate remotely with one another. WebEx integrates real-time collaboration and VoIP technology.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

CONSULTING & MANAGED SERVICES

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Cable&Wireless Renews and Expands Contract with SONI

Cable&Wireless renewed and extended its contract with System Operator for Northern Ireland (SONI) to manage the utility’s Operational Telecoms Network. In addition to the existing management tasks assigned to C&W, the
company will now undertake a project to connect several planned wind farms to the SONI grid.

Source: Vendor, 5/5/2011

CSC Teams with Panaya to Offer SAP Upgrade Simulation Service

CSC signed a global agreement with Panaya Inc, a Software as a Service (SaaS) supplier of upgrade and testing automation software. The deal focuses on CSC’s adoption of Panaya’s cloud-based simulation service as a
method for analyzing, planning and executing upgrades of SAP solutions. The company says this news simulation service will allow it to pinpoint which transactions and programs should be used, as well as determining the
possible risks associated with a planned upgrade. The service will initially be available in North America, the UK, Brazil, Australia, Spain, and Germany.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

Ericsson to Provide Field Services for German Carrier

Ericsson was selected to exclusively manage field services for Versatel’s fixed and transmission networks in Germany. The five-year contract includes managed services, maintenance, provisioning, logistics, repair,
spare parts management, and support systems. 95 Versatel staff members will join Ericsson in the 2011 fourth quarter, when responsibility for service operations is transferred. Versatel is an alternative fixed-net services carrier.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

HP to Upgrade Computing for Australian Tax Office

HP Enterprise Services signed a $500 million USD services agreement to deliver centralized computing services to support the Australian Taxation Office (ATO)’s new multi-source model, for improving taxpayer
services. The deployment will allow the ATO to migrate to a next-generation data center facility with extended capacity and flexibility to meet growing business demands and improve application availability and performance while providing overall production
systems support. ATO currently uses midrange servers and storage arrays.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

CYBERCRIME

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Spam Still Flows Despite Rustock Botnet Demise

In its quarterly spam report, Kaspersky Lab said that despite the closure of the Rustock botnet command centers on
March 16, the event did not impact spam traffic as dramatically as last year’s Pushdo/Cutwail and Bredolab closures. According to the report, the quantity of spam fell by 2-3 percentage points for a day or two before bouncing back again. In the first
quarter, the Asian and Latin American share of the total volume of spam worldwide grew (+2.93 and +3.85 percentage points, respectively) while the amount of spam originating from eastern and western Europe fell by 5.64 and 2.36 percentage points.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

DATA BREACHES

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Arts and Crafts Retailer Michaels Hit with Data Breach

Michaels, an arts and crafts chain store, reported that approximately 90 debit card readers in its stores have been tampered with. The company was alerted by banking and law enforcement authorities last week after
some fraudulent debit card transactions took place, and originally thought the breach was isolated to the Chicago area. However, the warning has since been extended to 20 states. Michaels announced it will replace all of the key pads within its stores
nationwide in the coming weeks.

Source: Vendor, 5/6/2011

Sony Shuts Down Site that Contained Customer Data

Sony discovered that 2,500 of its stolen customers’ names and partial addresses had been posted online following an earlier massive data breach and said that the information was immediately removed. The data, which was
stolen in the April breach that affected more than 100 million Sony customers, came from individuals who had entered a 2001 product sweepstakes contest. Sony also announced that it will offer a free 12-month membership in an ID theft program to its
PlayStation Network and Qriocity users.

Source: Vendor, 5/7/2011

Symantec Warns Facebook Data Inadvertently Given to 3rd Parties

Symantec warned Facebook users that their account information on the social network site may have accidentally been leaked to third parties over the past several years, the
result of a programming error. According to a blog post, Symantec said it has “discovered that in certain cases, Facebook IFRAME
applications inadvertently leaked access tokens to third parties like advertisers or analytic platforms.” The vendor claims that upwards of 100,000 Facebook applications allowed personal information to be made available without users’ knowledge. Facebook
has denied these claims, calling Symantec’s data “inaccurate.”

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

DEVELOPMENT SOFTWARE

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Google Debuts Arduino-Based Development Kit, Home Automation

Google made several key announcements about its Android mobile operating system that were unrelated to the new Ice Cream Sandwich update, or its streaming music service. Among these were a new open-source development
kit, a new accessory creation initiative, and a new home automation protocol. The updated development kit allows users to create new software and hardware for existing Android-based devices, as well as creating hardware “from scratch” by using an official
Android version of the popular Arduino micro-controller. The company believes this will spur the growth of Android associated devices, similar to what the “Made for iPod” program did for Apple. Additionally, Google’s foray into home automation,
Android@Home, includes controller apps, wirelessly controlled lightbulbs, and various other appliances in what Google calls the “Internet of things.” It’s still early in the development cycle for Android@Home. However, the company believes the
infrastructure will be able to compete with more costly existing options on an equal playing field.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

Qualcomm Releases Augmented Reality Platform for Android

Qualcomm has released its Augmented Reality (AR) Platform for Android smartphones. Offered through Qualcomm’s online developer network, the 1.0 release can be used by developers to build, market, and
commercially distribute applications based on Qualcomm’s AR platform.

Source: Vendor, 4/27/2011

ENTERPRISE APPLICATION SOFTWARE

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CSC Releases Pair of Celeriti Solutions for Financial Market

CSC announced the immediate availability of Celeriti Customer and Celeriti Deposits, its two new products designed to help modernize financial institutions. CSC says the duo of products is ideal for banks wishing to
undertake “core systems renewal projects.” Celeriti can be implemented on a gradual basis, and will integrate with the institution’s own goals, according to the company. The new offerings also support modern enterprise banking, cards, payments, and lending
platforms. More information about Celeriti Customers and Celeriti Deposits can be found at the Celeriti product page.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

ENTERPRISE RESOURCE PLANNING

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NetSuite Announces NetSuite Unlimited Cloud-Based ERP Suite

NetSuite announced the launch of its new NetSuite Unlimited, a cloud-based enterprise resource planning (ERP) suite designed specifically for large companies. As the name would suggest, NetSuite Unlimited removes
all of the restrictions enforced by the company’s previous products, including a limited number of users, subsidiaries, add-ons, and other factors. NetSuite says this solution can be rolled out in as little as three weeks. More information is available at
the NetSuite Unlimited product page.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

FINANCIAL

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Alcatel Cuts Q1 Losses with Strong N American Sales

Alcatel-Lucent reported it narrowed its losses to 10 million EUR ($14.6 million USD) for the 2011 first quarter, ended March 31, 2011, as strong sales in North America – 1.6 billion EUR, representing 40
percent year-to-year growth – continued to drive it forward. These losses were improved from 2010 first quarter losses of 515 million EUR. Sales were 3.74 billion EUR, up 15 percent compared to 2010 first quarter revenues of 3.25 billion EUR. Shares in the
company doubled in 2011, on new contracts, as mobile phone companies upgrade their networks upon demand for phones that allow users to surf the Web and stream multimedia.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

AuthenTec Releases First Quarter 2011 Financials

For the first fiscal quarter, which ended on April 1, AuthenTec posted revenues of $15.5 million USD, an increase of $1 million from the same quarter one year ago. Net loss for the first quarter of 2011 was $5.6
million, or $0.13 per diluted share.

Source: Vendor, 5/5/2011

Belgacom Misses Expectations, Sees Declining Profits in Q1 2011

Belgacom posted its results for the first quarter of its 2011 fiscal year. The company’s revenue totaled EUR 1.58 billion, down from EUR 2.07 billion for the same period in 2010. This dropped net income down to EUR
194 million, less than a third of the EUR 638 million reported for the third quarter, last year. A similar effect could be seen in Belgacom’s earnings per share total, which fell to EUR 0.60, up from EUR 1.99, year over year. The single largest factor in
this decline is a EUR 52 million impact from regulatory measures. However, even without the regulatory impact, the company would still have missed its expectations. On a more positive note, the company saw subscriber growth across the board. Combination
packages saw the largest uptick, with 57,000 net adds. The TV business added 54,000 subscribers of its own, while fixed Internet picked up 10,000, and mobile Internet added another 5,000.

Source: Vendor, 5/6/2011

Bell Canada Reports Modest Q1 Results, Boosts 2011 Outlook

Bell Canada posted its financial results for the first quarter of its 2011 fiscal year. The carrier’s revenue totaled $3.88 billion, a modest 1% increase over the same quarter last year when it reported revenues of
$3.84 billion. Net earnings fell to $503 million, down from $706 million, a 28.7% year-over-year decrease; this was at least partially due to the company’s recent acquisition of CTV. The declined profits caused earnings per share to drop to $0.67, down
from $0.92 over the same period. Bell’s wireline business lost a total of 59,243 subscribers this quarter, as more and more consumers moved to cellular lines. However high-speed Internet subscribers grew by 13,161, while TV gained 7,663. On these results
the company increased its dividend for the year by 5% to $2.07. Bell Canada also updated its FY 2011 financial guidance, with expected revenue growth now placed at 9-11%, and EPS ranging between $2.95 and $3.05.

Source: Vendor, 5/12/2011

Cincinnati Bell Data Center Revenues Drive Q1 Results

Incumbent carrier Cincinnati Bell reported revenue of US$361 million, an 11 percent increase over Q1 2010. A big contributor to its first quarter growth was a 117 percent, or $23 million, increase in data
center colocation revenue. Adjusted EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization) of $142 million was Cincinnati Bell’s strongest quarterly performance since 2002. It was up $15 million, or 12 percent, both sequentially and
year-over-year, with an increase of $13 million or 122 percent in Data Center Colocation Adjusted EBITDA. The carrier did see losses in the wireline segment as voice revenues declined from $81.3 million in Q1 2010 to $73.2 million in Q1 2011.
Year-over-year access line loss in the first quarter was 6.76 percent.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

Cisco’s Profits Fall Amidst Charges, Restructuring

Cisco Systems reported its profits fell 11 percent in the 2011 fiscal third quarter ended April 30, 2011, as it was forced to assume more than $120 million in asset impairments and restructuring costs. Net income was
$1.8 billion, with $0.33 per share, down from 2010 fiscal third quarter earnings of $2.2 billion, or $0.37 per share. Sales were $10.9 billion, up nearly five percent from 2010 fiscal third quarter revenues of $10.4 billion. The news comes at a difficult
time for Cisco, which recently announced several moves to streamline its operations, including the closure of its Flip video camera division.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

Comcast Board Okays Quarterly Dividend

Comcast said its board has approved a quarterly dividend of $0.1125 a share on the company’s common stock. The quarterly dividend is payable on July 27, 2011 to shareholders of record as of the close of business on
July 6, 2011.

Source: Vendor, 5/12/2011

Deutsche Telekom’s Revenue, Profits Down in Q1 2011

Deutsche Telekom posted its first quarter 2010 financial results. The company’s revenue was EUR 14.59 billion, down from EUR 15.8 billion for the same period last year. Net profit was EUR 480 million, also down from the
EUR 767 million posted a year ago. The telecom’s European segment showed significant customer loss during the quarter, with more than 1.5 million subscribers leaving Deutsche Telekom’s mobile services, and 889,000 canceling their fixed line accounts. On a
more positive note, retail broadband services added a net total of 472,000 accounts. The company said that, although it believes the sale of T-Mobile USA to greatly improve its situation, it still expects to face challenges in the coming year.

Source: Vendor, 5/6/2011

Frontier Revenues Up on Acquisition of Rural Lines from Verizon

Frontier Communications reported first quarter 2011 revenue of $1.3 billion USD, compared to $519.9 million in the first quarter of 2010. The increase in revenue is attributable to $841.8 million in revenue
associated with the rural access lines it acquired from Verizon Communications last year. This increase was partially offset by a decline of $14.9 million for Frontier’s legacy operations results. Frontier’s net income for the first quarter was $54.7
million, or $0.05 per share. After excluding $13.2 million for acquisition and integration costs, net income would have been $63.0 million, or $0.06 per share. “Frontier’s strong operating metrics and stabilized revenues this quarter were driven by
continued broadband expansion and local customer engagement,” said Maggie Wilderotter, Chairman & CEO of Frontier Communications.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

Frontier Board Declares Quarterly Dividend

Frontier Communications announced that its board of directors has declared a regular quarterly cash dividend payment of $0.1875 per share of common stock, payable on June 30, 2011 to holders of record of
common stock at the close of business on June 9, 2011. Frontier provides communications services to customers in 27 US states.

Source: Vendor, 5/12/2011

KPN Accelerates First Half of Stock Repurchasing Efforts

KPN announced plans to accelerate its long-running share repurchase program. The new plan involves an increased volume of purchases for as long as the first EUR 500 million of the EUR 1 billion program last. The company
says the acceleration is being authorized to take advantage of current favorable share pricing. The remaining EUR 500 million of the reprurchase’s allowance will proceed at the normal pace established by KPN. The program is expected to reach completion on
October 1, 2011.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

NEC Posts Net Loss for FY 2011

NEC posted financial results for its fiscal year, which ended March 31, 2011. The company’s net sales totaled JPY 3.11 trillion (US$3.8 billion), down 13.1% from JPY 3.58 trillion, reported for
2010. The company suffered a net loss for the year of JPY 12.5 billion, a drastic decrease when compared to the net income of JPY 11.4 billion reported for the prior year. This resulted in a net loss per share of JPY 4.82, down from
the earnings per share total of JPY 5.04 reported a year ago. NEC listed the reasons for the year’s negative outcome as the divestiture of the NEC Electronics Corporation, now Renesas Electronics Corporation; the lack of recovery in
the domestic IT market, and the effects of the devastating March 11, 2011 earthquake and tsunami.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

News Corp Posts Solid Quarter, but Can’t Match Q3 2010 Success

News Corp posted its third quarter results for the 2011 fiscal year. The company’s revenue was $8.25 million, down from $8.75 for the same quarter last year. Net income also fell, dropping to $682 million from $861
million for the third quarter of 2010. This pushed earnings per share down to $0.24, a considerable drop from the $0.32 posted a year ago. The company said the discrepancy between the years is largely due to a massive contribution by the film “Avatar” to
its Filmed Entertainment business segment, which could not be matched this quarter. On a more positive note, News Corps Cable Networks business showed 25% profit growth, year over year.

Source: Vendor, 5/5/2011

Symantec Announces Q4, Year-End 2011 Financials

Symantec reported revenues of $1.67 billion USD for the fourth quarter of 2011, which ended on April 1, a 9% increase from the same quarter in 2010. Net income was $168 million, or $0.22 per diluted share, compared
with $184 million, or $0.23 per diluted share, for the year-ago period. For the fiscal year 2011, Symantec’s revenues increased 3% to $6.19 billion. Net income for the fiscal year 2011 was $597 million, or $0.76 per diluted share.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

T-Mobile USA Posts Weak First Quarter Results

T-Mobile USA reported that its operating income dropped from $1.39 billion USD in the first quarter of 2010 to $1.19 billion in the first quarter of 2011. Revenues for the first quarter 2011 were $4.63 billion,
just about even with the first quarter of last year. The company lost 99,000 subscribers in the first quarter, bringing its total to 33.6 million. At the end of 2010, it had 33.7 million subscribers. Parent company Deutsche
Telekom posted a 37 percent drop in first quarter profits, mainly due to T-Mobile USA’s weak performance. Deutsche Telekom is planning to sell T-Mobile USA to AT&T, a process likely to take a year for regulatory inquiries and approvals. In a press
release, T-Mobile USA said “our deal with AT&T announced a few weeks ago will not change the focus of our US business. Until the closing of the deal, T-Mobile will continue to challenge its competitors and compete
aggressively in the US market.”

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

Telecom New Zealand Posts 2011/2012 Guidance

Telecom New Zealand posted its Q3 FY2010/11 Trading Update, including its 2011 and 2012 guidance. In 2011 the carrier expects EBITDA of $1.72 billion to $1.78 billion, resulting in net earnings of $330 million to
$370 million. The company predicted its EBITDA will increase by between $20 million and $80 million for 2012, but did not provide any net income expectations. Telecom New Zealand warns that none of these figures include provisions for the Government’s
Ultra-fast Broadband initiative, which it says is “likely to reshape the industry.” As part of this release, Telecom New Zealand also announced a Q3 dividend of 3.5c per share.

Source: Vendor, 5/6/2011

Toshiba’s Sales Down After March Natural Disaster

Toshiba Japan reported sales of 1.73 trillion JPY ($21.5 billion USD) for the 2010 fiscal fourth quarter – ended March 31st – largely due to the forced shutdown of chip fabs following the March 11th earthquake and
tsunami that devastated Japan. This was down 102 percent from 2009 fiscal fourth quarter sales. In March, Toshiba suspended manufacturing for at least two chip fabs because of damage incurred in the earthquake and subsequent power outages and aftershocks.
The most seriously damaged Toshiba fab – a microcontroller fab in Kitakami, Iwate prefecture – did not resume manufacturing until April 18th. Profits were 98 billion JPY, down 11 percent from 2009 fiscal fourth quarter profits. For fiscal 2010, Toshiba’s
sales were 6.4 trillion JPY, up 107 percent from fiscal 2009 sales of 6.3 trillion JPY. For fiscal 2010, which also closed March 31, Toshiba reported sales of 6.4 trillion yen (about $80 billion), up 107 from fiscal 2009. Fiscal 2010 profits were 137.8
billion JPY, up 158 percent from fiscal 2009 losses of 19.7 billion JPY.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

Trend Micro Releases First Quarter Financials

For the first quarter of 2011, Trend Micro posted net sales of 23,980 million yen (or $291 million USD). The company reported a net income of 3,995 million yen (or $48 million) for the quarter.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

Western Digital Revenue Down

Western Digital reported revenue of $2.25 billion, hard-drive unit shipments of 50 million and net income of $146 million, or $0.62 per share, for its third fiscal quarter ended Apr. 1, 2011. The company’s results
include expenses of $10 million associated with the planned acquisition of Hitachi Global Storage Technologies announced Mar. 7, 2011. Excluding the acquisition-related expenses, non-GAAP net income was $156 million or $0.66 per share.In the year-ago
quarter, the company reported revenue of $2.64 billion, shipped 51 million hard drives, and reported net income and earnings per share of $400 million and $1.71, respectively. The company generated $313 million in cash from operations during the March
quarter, ending with total cash and cash equivalents of $3.2 billion.

Source: Vendor, 4/20/2011

GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS

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Accenture Signs Administration Deal With Navy Mutual Aid Association

Accenture was selected by the Navy Mutual Aid Association to provide its life insurance policy administration application. The Mutual Aid Association is a non-profit organization that provides life insurance and
annuity products to current and retired Navy service members. Accenture’s life insurance platform will be powering all of the company’s policy administration and new business functions, and will replace the company’s legacy systems. Accenture will also
handle the migration of data between the systems using its Insurance Data Migration Factory. No financial terms for the agreement were disclosed.

Source: Vendor, 5/12/2011

Booz Allen Hamilton Names in DoJ IT Modernization Contract

Booz Allen Hamilton was named a prime contractor on the US Department of Justice’s (DoJ) IT infrastructure modernization program. The so called Information Technology Support Services 4 (ITSS-4) contract calls on Booz
to supply IT modernization and support services to several agencies, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and the Executive Office for United States Attorneys (EOUSA). Booz Allen Hamilton is one of 20
prime contractors selected in the agreement. The entire contract has a seven-month base period, 6 annual options, and a total value of more than $1.1 billion.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

General Dynamics Signs $83.6 Million USSOCOM IT Services Contract

General Dynamics received a contract from the US Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) to provide information technology (IT) enterprise network services. The services include data, voice, and video
communications networks for USSOCOM headquarters, as well as supporting 75,000 users spread across 120,000 user accounts. The five-year contract is valued at $83.6 million, with options that bring the ceiling value to $125 million.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

Northrop Grumman Earns Place on $1.1 Billion DoJ IT Contract

Northrop Grumman received a place in the US Department of Justice’s (DoJ) IT solutions contract. The company will be tasked with modernizing and securing the department’s information systems, while also attempting
to reduce costs by improve the efficiency of IT operations. Northrop Grumman is one of the 20 companies named in the contract. The entire program has a six-month base period, six one-year options, and a total value of more than $1.1 billion for all
awardees.

Source: Vendor, 5/12/2011

Raytheon Receives Contract to Develop New Training Software for NATO

Raytheon received a contract from NATO to develop a new electronic Individual Training and Education Program (e-ITEP). The new software is designed to be a Web-based, commercial, off-the-shelf software application
designed to train personnel quickly and efficiently. More information about the new software is available from Raytheon’s professional services page. No financial terms were disclosed.

Source: Vendor, 5/12/2011

HEALTHCARE SYSTEMS

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Allscripts Allies with Humedica for Cloud-Based Clinical Info Platform

Allscripts announced a new collaboration with Humedica focused on the creation of a cloud-based clinical informatics platform. The new solution, dubbed Allscripts Clinical Analytics Powered by Humedica, will
offer business insight, clinical best practices, management of clinical performance variations, care guideline compliance, and predictive modeling. As part of the joint venture, Allscripts made a strategic investment in Humedica. The purpose of the
investment is to enhance its own portfolio of analytics solutions, and to better adapt to changing payment models in the healthcare industry.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

Fujitsu Launches HumanBridge SaaS Medical Network Product

Fujitsu Japan launched HumanBridge, a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) medical network solution for regional healthcare institutions that uses Fujitsu datacenters to provide access to diagnostic information, tests,
medical images, report information, and other patient data, making it possible to effortlessly refer patients from an outpatient clinic to a central hospital, or transfer inpatients between hospitals. It allows institutions to exchange information using a
network within a secure cloud environment, without having to build a new ICT system.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

Fujitsu, Japanese Vet Association Trial Cloud System

Fujitsu Japan and the Tokyo Jonan Regional Veterinary Medicine Promotional Association announced they commenced field trials of a cloud-based veterinary medicine system. The system centrally manages pet health
information, examination records, treatment history, and other medical records, for sharing between participating pet hospitals.

Source: Vendor, 5/12/2011

SAS Forms New Center for Health Analytics and Insight

SAS formed a new health care and life sciences research and incubation organization. The goal of the new division, dubbed Center for Health Analytics and Insights (CHAI), will be to help customers develop deeper
insights into medical care, financial performance, and their customers, according to the company. SAS says it will accomplish this by leveraging advanced analytics in the areas of evidence-based medicine, adaptive clinical research, cost mitigation, and
many aspects of customer intelligence.

Source: Vendor, 5/12/2011

INTERNET

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MapQuest Opens Localized Canadian Site

AOL subsidiary MapQuest launched a new Canadian mapping site. Although the navigation site has been servicing Canadians for years, this is the first time MapQuest has provided a
localized version of its mapping software. The localizations include search results and directions that have been tailored specifically for the needs of Canadian users, not drawn from the US-based database and mapping engine that previously covered both
countries. This is the 24th localization of MapQuest.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

W3C Launches Web Real-Time Communications Working Group

W3C launched a new Web Real-Time Communications Working Group. The goal of the group will be to define client-side APIs for Real-Time Communications in Web browsers. The
purpose of the APIs is to allow developers to create applications which can be run from within a Web browser, without the need for additional downloads or plugins. The Working Group will focus specifically on applications that allow for audio, video, and
supplementary real-time communication, but do not require intervening servers to function. W3C has made the new groups Charter available online, for those interested in its mission.

Source: Vendor, 5/5/2011

LAPTOPS & TABLETS

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Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos Says to “Stay Tuned” for an Amazon Tablet

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos gave the first official hint that the online retailer is prepping its own tablet device. In an interview with Consumer Reports,
Bezos said “stay tuned” when asked about a possible tablet. Although this was as close as he came to confirming such a device’s existence, the CEO also hinted that the Amazon tablet would be marketed as a supplemental device to the popular Kindle e-reader,
not as a replacement. Bezos went on to put another nail in the coffin of predictions that a color Kindle with an e-ink screen would launch soon, saying the technology is “not ready for prime time.” He did say he believes that color e-ink could result
in a “fantastic product” once the technology has been improved.

Source: CR, 5/12/2011

AT&T Will Sell Cisco Cius Business Tablet Later this Year

AT&T announced plans to offer the Cisco Cius to its business customers this Fall. The Cius is an ultra-portable
mobile tablet designed for business enterprise applications. The 1.15-pound device has a 7-inch, high-resolution, multi-capacitive touch screen, and runs under the Android operating system. It supports HD video, GPS, and conferencing applications, and
3G/4G wireless and Wi-Fi connections. Pricing information was not released.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

Google Unveils First Wave of Chromebooks, Details Features

Google unveiled its first retail Chromebooks, and provided further details on the capabilities and pricing of its netbook competitor. The first units will be produced
by Samsung and Acer, and will be available for purchase from Amazon and Best Buy starting June 15. The
devices will feature the instant-on Chrome OS, which revolves around the Chrome Web browser and its accompanying app store for all tasks. Models will be available with built-in 3G, and all models will last a full day on a single charge, according to
Google. The company is also launching Chromebooks for Business and Education, a subscription-based pricing model which will make the portable computers available to schools for $20 per
student per month, and to businesses for $28 per user per month. Both programs include hardware, administrative support, hardware upgrades and warranty. The consumer models will range from $349 for Acer’s Wi-Fi only model to $499 for Samsung’s 3G unit.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

Hewlett-Packard Unveils New Laptops with DataPass

Hewlett-Packard (HP) introduced new laptops, including new FORGE business systems and ProBook, EliteBook, Mini, Pavilion, and ENVY consumer notebooks. The Intel based laptops measure between 12 and 16 inches, weigh 3-5
pounds, and feature a high-definition display. They also offer HP DataPass, a pre-paid 3G mobile broadband service that lets users purchase wireless broadband data using mobile carriers in the US without requiring a contract or hotspot. All products will
be available in the US, and range in price from $299.99 USD (Mini 210) to $1,099 (EliteBook 2560p).

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

Lenovo Adds RapidBoot Bootup Technology to Laptops

Lenovo reported it added the RapidBoot Extreme model, technology that allows a system to boot up in 10 seconds or less, to its ThinkPad 420s laptop. RapidBoot Extreme is part of Lenovo’s Enhanced Experience 2.0 for
Windows 7 program. It uses proprietary BIOS and Intel Solid State Drive technology to give it faster loading speeds. Lenovo also announced that the IdeaPad Y570 laptop – due in June – will feature sub-10 second bootup speeds. Lenovo also announced its
ThinkPad X1 laptop is available for pre-order from Amazon UK, for 1,293 GBP ($2,100 USD). It ships May
20th.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

Telstra Launches Motorola XOOM Tablet

Telstra announced the launch of the Motorola XOOM Android-based tablet. The device features a 1GHz dual core processor, 1GB of RAM, a 10.1-inch 1280×800 widescreen HD display, a 5MP rear camera, and a 2MP
front-facing camera. All of this is running on Android 3.0 (Honeycomb). The non-contract price for the XOOM will be $840 when it launches on May 24. The tablet will also be available for $35 per month on any of Telstra’s 2-year Data+ Cap plans, or Business
Mobile Broadband Member plans.

Source: Vendor, 5/6/2011

LEGAL

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Google Accused of Anti-Competitive Behavior by Skyhook

Google is being accused of using its Android compatibility standard for software developers as a tool in anti-competitive behavior, The New York Times reports. The accusations
came with the release of several email documents from a case filed by Skyhook Wireless against the search giant in a Massachusetts state court. Google says it simply uses the standards to assure universal compatibility among the disparate models of
smartphones and tablets Android can be found on. However, Skyhook asserts that Google used those standard to force Motorola to switch back to its location-based service, after the phone maker chose to use Skyhook’s services instead. A similar event later
took place at Samsung. For its part, Google says the case is “a baseless complaint,” and says Skyhook is on a fishing expedition.

Source: NYT, 5/10/2011

Google’s South Korean Branch Raided by Police Over AdMob Accusations

Police raided the offices of Google in South Korea, The New York Times reports. The reason behind the raid, according to police, is the suspicion that Google’s mobile advertising
unit, AdMob, was illegally collecting location data from its users. Although both Google and Apple have recently been called out by national governments over their controversial location tracking practices, this is the
first time a nation has taken action against a company for this reason. Google has since confirmed the raid, and says it is cooperating with authorities. This is only the latest blow for Google in the region, which saw the local version of its StreetView
data collection fiasco, as well as accusations of anti-competitive behavior filed against the search giant by some of South Korea’s largest Internet portal companies, The Times says.

Source: NYT, 5/12/2011

ZTE Provides Update on Legal Battle with Huawei in Germany

ZTE posted a document designed to clarify the ongoing litigation between itself and Huawei in Germany. First, Huawei has been
awarded a preliminary injunction against ZTE for trademark infringement. ZTE warns that this is only a temporary measure, and has no bearing on the final decision of the courts. Secondly, ZTE says it ceased using the trademark RoHS (Restriction of
Hazardous Substances) as of July 14, 2009, a date prior to Huawei’s filing of the lawsuit. This means that, should the injunction become permanent, it would still have little or not effect on ZTE’s ongoing business. Third, ZTE claims that Huawei had no
legal rights to begin using the trademark as a company standard, as it was a logo created by the European Union to denote a set standard for hazardous material safety. ZTE has petitioned the European Union to revoke Huawei’s rights to use the trademark on
these grounds.

Source: Vendor, 5/12/2011

M2M

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Sprint, Trimble Win GSA Contract for Fleet Management Services

Sprint announced it is partnering with Trimble to provide US government agencies with fleet management services as part of a Blanket Purchase Agreement (BPA) awarded by the US
General Services Administration (GSA). The BPA will be administered by GSA Fleet, which provides fleet management services to more than 75 participating federal agencies with more than 217,000 vehicles. Trimble’s software
offers vehicle monitoring, diagnostics, driver safety, and identification services. Sprint is providing connectivity for the services. Trimble is a “preferred partner” with Sprint in the machine-to-machine marketplace for fleet management.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

MALWARE WATCH

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Security Researchers Sound Alarm for Mac Users

Security researchers are sounding the alarm for Mac users, saying the release of a construction kit for creating Trojans targeting the Mac OS X is a major security issue for Apple Mac users. Peter Kruse, partner and security specialist at Danish firm CSIS Security Group said the kit is being sold to hackers on underground forums under the name Weyland-Yutani Bot. He added that “CSIS finds this crimekit to be quite disturbing news since Mac OS previously to some degree
has been spared from the increasing amount of malware which has haunted Windows-based systems for years.” While many Mac users have a false sense of security regarding viruses, the threat is real. All major antivirus vendors offer Mac versions of their
software, including Intego, Norton, Kaspersky, McAfee, and Avast.

Source: Vendor, 5/12/2011

Juniper Networks Sees Spike in Android Device Malware

In its Malicious Mobile Threats Report 2010/2011, Juniper Networks has found that Android malware has increased by 400% since the summer of 2010 and mobile devices are becoming more susceptible to Wi-Fi attacks. The
greatest distribution point for mobile malware, according to the report, is via downloadable applications, yet most smartphone users neglect to employ an antivirus offering on their devices. The
report also found that 17% of all reported infections were due to SMS trojans that sent SMS messages to premium rate numbers.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

Phishing Schemes Soared to New Heights in 2010

Microsoft released its Security Intelligence Report volume 10, providing details about the threat landscape in 117 countries based on information gleaned from more than 600 million machines throughout the world.
Among the report findings: phishing schemes that use social networking increased by 1,200% in 2010, and rogue security software ("scareware") was detected and blocked on 19 million machines
during the course of the year.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

Thousands of Google Images Infected with Links to Malware

The SANS Internet Storm Center issued an alert last week that a large number of images on Google are infected with malicious links that direct unsuspecting users to purchase fake antivirus software. The hackers have
attacked legitimate Web sites by planting malicious scripts on them and then create Web pages that use the top search terms from Google Trend. It is unknown how many sites have been attacked.

Source: SANS, 5/12/2011

SonicWALL Warns of New Java Applet Malware Circulating

New malicious Java applets are in use to perform drive-by malware downloads according to a warning from SonicWALL. This malware can be downloaded and executed without any user interaction once the applet executes,
and the malicious download then reports back to a remote server while creating a backdoor on the victim’s machine.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

MOBILE APPS

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Adobe Releases First 3 Photoshop Apps for iPad

Adobe announced the launch of three Adobe Photoshop Touch apps for the Apple iPad: Adobe Color Lava, Adobe Eazel, and Adobe Nav. Adobe Color Lava allows users to mix virtual paints
on the iPad which can then be transferred back to Photoshop as a color swatch; Adobe Eazel creates a virtual canvas that allows digital artists to use “wet” and “dry” paints to create images which can be exported to Photoshop; and Adobe Nav gives users the
option of using the iPad to control commonly used Photoshop functions, such as the toolbar, zoom level controls, and file management. All three apps were created with the Adobe
Photoshop Touch Software Development Kit (SDK). The apps are compatible with Photoshop CS 5.5, and CS 5, via a free update. All three applications can be downloaded from the Apple App Store.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

Open-Xchange Launches New Mobile Web App

Open-Xchange launched its new Mobile Web App. The application gives Open-Xchange subscribers the ability to access their appointments, emails, and contacts while online or offline. The company says the Web app
is optimized for low-speed connections, providing secure access to users’ information without requiring access to high-speed Internet access. The Mobile Web App is compatible with on-site and hosted versions of Open-Xchange Server 6. More information about
the new Web app is available from Open-Xchange’s Wiki.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

MOBILE PLATFORMS

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Google Debuts Next Iteration of Android, Ice Cream Sandwich

Google announced the next update to its Android operating system at this year’s I/O conference. The new OS, titled Ice Cream Sandwich, will reunify the Android ecosystem by running on both smartphone and tablet
devices. The operating system will automatically scale and adapt for the screen size, and type of device its installed on. Google says that it will release tools for app developers to help in the process of creating applications that are able to scale to
device sizes and types similarly. Google released relatively few details on the specific updates included in Ice Cream Sandwich. However, the company did demonstrate several features that were previously limited to tablets that would be making their way
onto phones with this update, including the holographic interface, face tracking, and more complex widgets. No release date has been set.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

KT to Market Junos Pulse, Pulse Mobile Security Products

Juniper Networks announced an agreement for South Korean telecommunications service provider KT to market Junos Pulse and the Junos Pulse Mobile Security Suite. Pulse provides secure technology for managing the user
experience across a variety of devices, users, and locations. The Mobile Security Suite provides an additional layer with anti-virus, anti-spyware, anti-spam, loss and theft protection, parental controls, and monitoring and control services for
smartphones, tablets, and other mobile devices.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

Rhomobile Release Rhodes 3.0 with Support for NFC, Windows Phone 7

Smartphone software company Rhomobile announced the release of Rhodes 3.0, the latest version of its native smartphone app framework. Rhodes 3.0 includes support for near field communications (NFC) chips as well
as Windows Phone 7 and Windows CE support. It also includes RhoStudio, an Integrated Development Environment that provides integrated app generation, editing building, device emulation. Rhomobile said Rhodes is the first framework to provide support for
Windows Phone 7 development.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

SAP Teams Joins with Verizon for Managed Mobility Portfolio

SAP expanded its agreement with Verizon to jointly sell Verizon’s Managed Mobility portfolio. The duo says the new partnership will allow their customers to access their on-premise
and cloud-based SAP applications via Verizon’s business-class cloud. The anytime, anywhere access is supported on PCs, smartphones, and tablets. As part of the agreement, Verizon announced changes to its Managed Mobility Portfolio that will enhance the
security features and capabilities of products for customers of both companies. These changes included the addition of iOS and Android supports, as well as new security policy enforcement functionality, application delivery, and device management
profiles.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

PERSONNEL AND ORGANIZATION

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Amazon Announces Plans to Open Third Fulfillment Center in Indiana

Amazon announced plans to open a third fulfillment center in Indianapolis, Indiana. The new facility will house 900,000 square feet of inventory, and will employ hundreds of new workers. The company’s existing
warehouses in the area are located in Whitestown and Plainfield, Indiana. With the addition of the Indianapolis location, Amazon has more than 2.5 million square feet of space in the state. The new facility it expected to be completed some time this
summer.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

Amerisource Bergen Appoints Steven H. Collis to Board

Amerisource Bergen elected Steven H. Collis to its Board of directors, effective immediately. Collis currently works as the company’s President and Chief Operating Officer. He will serve in the Executive
and Finance Committees of the Board. Mr. Collis will also be moving into the role of Chief Executive Officer of the company on July 1, 2011, when current CEO, R. David Yost retires.

Source: Vendor, 5/12/2011

Cisco Reports Plans to Restructure Business, Operations

Cisco Systems announced changes to its business structure and operations, for streamlining sales, services, and engineering organizations as it looks to improve the customer, partner, and employee experience. The
restructuring will focus on five key areas of network and Internet growth: routing/switching/services, collaboration, cloud/data center virtualization, video, and business transformation architectures. Among the changes, Cisco will restructure its
Worldwide Field Operations into three geographic regions (Americas, EMEA, and Asia Pacific), reorganize Cisco Services around key segments, and establish three councils to reinforce a more globally aligned customer focus Most of Cisco’s planned changes
will take place over the next 120 days. Cisco’s new sales organization launches July 31st.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

Cisco Introduces New Head for Server Access, Virtualization

Cisco Systems announced David Yen will head its Server Access and Virtualization Technology Group as GM and SVP. The group is responsible for Cisco’s Unified Computing System and Nexus server access data center
switching portfolio. Yen is a former SVP for Juniper Networks’ Fabric and Switching group.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

FCC Commissioner Leaving for Position with Comcast

One of the FCC commissioners who approved the Comcast/NBC Universal deal is leaving the commission to work for Comcast. Meredith Attwell Baker, one of two Republican commissioners
on the Federal Communications Commission, announced that she is leaving the agency when her term expires in June. Baker’s new title at Comcast will be senior vice president of government affairs. Baker was one of four FCC commissioners who approved
Comcast’s acquisition of a majority ownership in NBC Universal in January. Commissioner Michael Copps, a Democrat, was the only one who opposed the deal. In a Comcast press release, Baker said “I’ve been privileged to serve in government for the past seven years under President Obama at the FCC and President Bush at NTIA, I’m excited
to embark on a new phase of my career with Comcast and NBCUniversal.”

Source: Vendor, 5/12/2011

HP Announces Utility Storage Migration Program

Hewlett-Packard (HP) announced its Get Thin Guarantee Program, a migration program for clients replacing legacy equipment with new HP 3PAR
Utility Storage. 3PAR systems offer a silicon-based, thin processing mechanism that – when combined with Thin Conversion software – drives the rapid “thinning” of storage volumes by identifying and removing unused pockets of disk capacity to reduce storage
volumes. It is available to clients, globally, through HP and its authorized channel partners.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

Motorola Mobility to Locate Headquarters in Libertyville, Illinois

Motorola Mobility and the governor of Illinois announced that the Motorola spin-off will locate its corporate headquarters in Libertyville, Illinois. The state is providing a business investment package as
part of the deal that will keep an estimated 3,000 jobs in Illinois. Motorola Mobility has committed to spending more than $500 million in research and development related to those jobs over the next three years. The state also extended a tax credit
package, which was a determining factor in Motorola Mobility’s decision to locate in Illinois, the company said.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

Qualcomm Names Doh Senior VP, President CDMA Technologies Asia

Qualcomm announced that it has named Jim Doh senior vice president, worldwide sales, and president, Qualcomm CDMA Technologies Asia. In his expanded role, Doh will be responsible for managing all sales efforts and
customer relationships for the business unit. He will continue to report to Steve Mollenkopf, executive vice president and group president.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

TeliaSonera Unifies All 18 of Its Companies Under a New Brand Identity

TeliaSonera launched a new official brand identity as part of its efforts to unify the company. The carrier’s 18 separate brands will now be marketed under a single brand identity, while retaining their
individual brand names. The revamp includes more than 300 retail stores, 1,000 signs and some 500 digital interfaces, including the company’s various Web sites. TeliaSonera says the new brand identity will be particularly noticeable in the Nordic region,
where it previously showed the most fragmentation. More information about the changes resulting from this initiative are available at the company’s New Brand Web site.

Source: Vendor, 5/12/2011

Teradata Opens New Facility in Manila, Philippines

Teradata opened its first global consulting center in the Southeast Asia region. The new facility is located in Manila, Philippines. The company plans offer its data warehousing and analytic business intelligence
solutions to customers in the area. Teradata has already signed service agreements with several local companies, including Smart Communications and Philippine Airlines.

Source: Vendor, 5/6/2011

Verizon Foundation Announces Grant to Aid Tornado Victims

The Verizon Foundation has awarded an $80,000 grant to the Salvation Army to assist relief efforts in communities affected by the recent tornados across several states in the Southeastern US. The
Foundation said it will also match dollar-for-dollar donations by US-based Verizon employees, up to $1,000 per employee per year, through its disaster relief incentive program. That program will match donations to the American Red Cross, Save the Children,
and the Salvation Army.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

Vonage Appoints Scott Ballantyne as New Chief Marketing Officer

Vonage announced the appointment of Scott Ballantyne as its Chief Marketing Officer. He will handle the company’s sales and marketing initiatives, including advertising, media, segment marketing, pricing,
promotions, and retail distribution at a global level. Ballantyne comes to Vonage from Tendril Marketing, where he served as Senior Vice President of Marketing.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

PUBLIC SAFETY

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Cellphone Emergency Alert Service to Launch Early in New York City, DC

The US Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) said carriers AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile USA, and Verizon will offer – ahead of schedule – a new public safety system called Personal Localized Alerting Network (PLAN). With PLAN, wireless customers with a
mobile device supporting the technology (a specialized chip and software) can receive geographically-targeted text messages alerting them of imminent threats to safety, and other emergencies. Authorized government officials will be able to send emergency
text messages to participating wireless companies, which will then use their cell towers to forward the messages to subscribers in the affected area. Participation in the system is voluntary for wireless carriers but those who participate must activate
PLAN technology by April 2012. Cellphone users in New York City and Washington, DC are scheduled to have the service late this year; nationwide service is expected next year.

Source: fema.gov, 5/10/2011

FEMA Teams On the Ground in States Hit by Flooding

The US Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced that, at the request of the states affected by record flooding from the Mississippi River and its tributaries, it has staff on the ground in Arkansas,
Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, and Tennessee. The agency is working with state emergency management partners to coordinate federal support in flood-damaged and threatened areas. President Barack Obama has issued emergency
declarations for Mississippi, Tennessee, and Louisiana, and a major disaster declaration for Kentucky, allowing the federal government to support emergency measures to save lives, and to protect property and public health and safety. In addition to
personnel on the ground, FEMA said it is sending supplies to a pre-determined staging area in western Kentucky to ensure the needed supplies are located close to the affected areas.

Source: FEMA, 5/12/2011

REGULATORY & GOVERNMENT AGENCIES

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Obama Administration Lays Out Cybersecurity Plan

The Obama administration has released a proposed cybersecurity policy that would require industry to better protect systems that run
critical infrastructure like the electrical grid, financial systems, and nuclear power plants. The proposal requires the Department of Homeland Security to work with industry members to identify the core
critical-infrastructure operators and to prioritize the most important cyber threats and vulnerabilities for those operators. The plan also would require DHS to implement its cybersecurity program in accordance with privacy and civil liberties procedures,
calling for rules to be developed in consultation with privacy and civil liberties experts and approved by the Attorney General. The plan published by the Obama administration concludes: “Our Nation is at risk. The cybersecurity vulnerabilities in our
government and critical infrastructure are a risk to national security, public safety, and economic prosperity.” The proposal now goes to Congress.

Source: Whitehouse.gov, 5/12/2011

Union Comes Out in Favor of AT&T, T-Mobile USA Merger

Communications Workers of America President Larry Cohen told a Senate committee that the proposed merger between AT&T and T-Mobile USA is
favored by the union he leads. In calling for approval of AT&T’s acquisition of T-Mobile USA, Cohen said the proposed deal “will accelerate high-speed broadband development. Second, the transaction will positively impact consumers and finally, the merger
will benefit workers. Therefore, we believe the merger should be approved.”

Source: CWA, 5/12/2011

Justice Department Wants *More* Data Storage by Mobile Providers

The US Department of Justice called for new laws requiring mobile providers to collect and store information about their customers, a proposal that pits it against privacy advocates and even other federal agencies,
including the Federal Trade Commission. Jason Weinstein, the deputy assistant attorney general for the criminal division, spoke at a
US Senate hearing that arose out of revelations about Apple iPhones and Google Android-based phones recording information about owners’ locations, and, in some cases, transmitting
that data back to the vendors without consent. Nevertheless, Weinstein said, “when this information is not stored, it may be impossible for law enforcement to collect essential evidence.” Cnet reported that the Justice
Department’s suggestion conflicts with what the Federal Trade Commission has recommended. A company should adopt a policy of “not collecting or retaining more data than they need to provide a requested service or
transaction,” said Jessica Rich, deputy director of the FTC’s bureau of consumer protection, who spoke at the same Senate hearing. Also testifying at the hearing were Bud Tribble, Apple’s vice president for software technology and Google’s US director of
public policy, Alan Davidson. Microsoft did not make an appearance, even though it collects location information from Windows Mobile 7 devices with a unique ID.

Source: Cnet, 5/10/2011

NIST Posts Security Documents for Public Comment

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is seeking comments from the public regarding its draft on random number generation (RDG), identified as SP 800-90A. Comments can be addressed to NIST by August 1. In addition, NIST is asking for commentary on its draft revision that pertains to recommendations for key management. Comments
for that document, identified as SP 800-57, Part 1, will close on July 1.

Source: NIST, 5/6/2011

Sprint CEO Slams Proposed Acquisition of T-Mobile USA by AT&T

Sprint CEO Dan Hesse testified May 11 before members of a US Senate Committee, voicing strong opposition to the proposed acquisition
of T-Mobile USA by AT&T. Hesse took direct aim at AT&T’s claim that the deal would enable it to dramatically expand access to broadband connections in rural and underserved areas of
the US. Hesse said AT&T “has been warehousing its largest, most desirable spectrum holdings rather than deploying them to solve its customer needs.” He also said T-Mobile USA’s “congested spectrum” would not give AT&T the relief “it claims to need.” He
added that “AT&T’s rural reach will similarly not improve markedly with the addition of T-Mobile since T-Mobile extends AT&T’s reach to only 1 percent more of the population.” Hesse concluded that the proposed merger would “create a duopoly, providing
‘Twin Bells’ with control of approximately 80 percent of wireless industry revenues.”

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

USCIS Launches E-Verify Web Page in Spanish

US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has launched the Spanish version of its E-Verify Web page. USCIS plans to expand the E-Verify Spanish Web site with
additional sections on a recurring basis.

Source: USCIS, 5/5/2011

SATELLITE COMMUNICATIONS

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Gilat Tapped for Australian VSAT Network

Gilat Satellite Networks announced that it has been selected by Optus Networks to provide a SkyEdge II Very Small Aperture Terminal (VSAT) network for the Australian Government’s National Broadband Network (NBN)
Interim Satellite Service. NBN has pledged to offer connectivity to regional and rural locations in Australia via satellite technology where geographic location makes it difficult to provide either fiber or advanced wireless connectivity. The Interim
Satellite Service is a first stage solution. Gilat’s agreement with Optus provides for an initial network of 11 SkyEdge II hubs and 20,000 SkyEdge II VSATs expected to be deployed within three years.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

SEARCH

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Google Grabs 65.4% US Search Share in April

Google led search-engine traffic in April, with 65.4% of Web searches taking place on Google-owned search sites, according to research firm ComScore. Google’s traffic was down
slightly from March when Google-owned sites took up a 65.7% share of the market, ComScore reported.Coming in second place last month was Yahoo, which accounted for 15.9% share of online searches, up 0.2% from March, the
research firm said. In third came Microsoft search sites, which were also up 0.2%, taking up a 14.1% slice of the market, ComScore said. In a distant fourth place slot was the Ask Network, which nabbed a 3.0% share
of online search queries, followed by AOL which had a 1.5% take in April, ComScore reported. Ask and AOL’s April numbers were each down 0.1%, the report said. Yahoo and Microsoft’s search sites are powered by the Microsoft Bing search engine. When Yahoo
and Microsoft’s search sites are combined, Bing powered a 30% share of the online search market.

Source: Vendor, 5/12/2011

SECURITY FLAWS & FIXES

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eBay Takes Down Compromised Web Page

CNET reported that eBay has removed a page from its Web site that was leaking customer data after CNET inquired about the security issue. Acting on a reader tip, CNET verified that
an eBay Web page for sellers to order co-branded US Postal Service boxes was exposing customers’ names, addresses, e-mail addresses, and phone numbers. The site was automatically filling in a stranger’s information when the page was accessed by a logged-in
user. eBay representatives did not respond to e-mails or phone calls from CNET but did take down the compromised Web page, the online publication reported.

Source: Cnet, 5/12/2011

WebGL Has Critical Flaws, Says Research Firm

Context Information Security, an independent security firm, issued a warning about a number of serious issues that have been found in WebGL, a new Web standard for browsers that aims to bring 3D graphics to any
page on the Internet. WebGL been enabled by default in Firefox 4 and Google Chrome, and can be turned on in the latest builds of Safari. Web users should read an updated blog post for details
about these security issues.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

Microsoft Patch Tuesday Bulletins Fix Issues in WINS, PowerPoint

Microsoft‘s monthly Patch Tuesday security release this week consisted of just two bulletins, fixing issues within Windows and Office
products. The first bulletin, identified as MS11-035, is deemed “critical” and fixes a vulnerability within Windows Internet Name Service (WINS) that could result in a remote code execution. Bulletin MS11-036 patches two issues reported in PowerPoint and
is considered “important.” Microsoft recommends applying the updates immediately to resolve risks.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

Microsoft Updates Older Advisory, Security Bulletin

Microsoft updated an earlier advisory regarding nine fraudulent digital certificates which were issued by Comodo back in March. The amended advisory contains an update for Windows Mobile 6.x devices. In addition, Microsoft re-released an April security bulletin regarding a critical vulnerability in .NET Framework. The bulletin re-offers updates KB2446709 and KB2449742.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

Skype Plugs Mac Hole, Releases New Version

Skype released a fix for Mac users of its chat and Internet phone software to plug a hole that could have been used by hackers to create malware. Version 5.1.0.935
not only fixes that vulnerability but also resolves video freezing in high-packet loss networks.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

Sybase Releases Patches, Advisory to Address Vulnerabilities

Three critical vulnerabilities in Sybase‘s M-Business Anywhere have resulted in a vendor-issued advisory and the release of patches. The successful exploitation
of these flaws could result in the execution of arbitrary code.

Source: Secunia, 5/10/2011

Vulnerability Firm Claim: We’ve Sidestepped Google Chrome’s Sandbox

Vupen, a French vulnerability research firm, announced that it has figured out how to bypass Google Chrome’s sandbox, which has been set up to prevent hackers from executing
arbitrary code in the Chrome browser. Although Vupen refused to release the exploit code and details of the vulnerabilities to the public, the company said in a blog post, “…we have now uncovered a reliable way
to execute arbitrary code on any default installation of Chrome despite its sandbox, ASLR and DEP.” Google security engineers, however, have denied Vupen’s claims, saying that the flaw actually lies within Adobe Flash,
which is bundled with the browser, and not Chrome’s sandbox.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

SECURITY PRODUCTS & COMPANIES

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HBO Chooses AuthenTec’s Content Protection Services for GO

Home Box Office (HBO) has chosen AuthenTec content protection integration services for use in its new mobile applications for HBO GO. The downloadable HBO GO mobile application is now available as a free download to HBO
subscribers from Apple‘s App Store and the Android Market, and is compatible with iPhones and iPads as well as select Android-based phones.

Source: Vendor, 5/5/2011

McAfee Cloud Security Platform Makes its Debut

McAfee rolled out its Cloud Security Platform to provide security features to companies who wish to move their data and applications to the cloud. The new Cloud Security Platform architecture consists of modules for
Web security, mobile security, cloud access control, email security, and Web services security.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

Microsoft Adds Another Variant to Software Removal Tool

The malicious variant Win32/Ramnit has been added to the Microsoft Software Removal Tool (MSRT) this month. Win32/Ramnit has the capability to infect Windows PE files and HTML files and steals sensitive data. In
addition, it can open a backdoor to await instructions from a remote attacker.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

Sophos: Once Again, the US Sits on the Spam Throne

Sophos issued its “dirty dozen” ranking for the top 12 spam-producing countries in the world for the first quarter of 2011. The US topped the list with 13.7% of spam origination while India placed second at 7.1%.
Rounding out the top five on the list were Russia, Brazil, and South Korea, respectively.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

Tilera Selects AuthenTec’s Embedded Security for New Processors

Tilera, a manycore general purpose microprocessor manufacturer, has chosen AuthenTec‘s SafeXcel embedded hardware security engines for use in its new TILE-Gx multicore
processor family, targeting data networking, telecom and cloud datacenter servers. Tilera incorporated hardware security engines from AuthenTec to achieve throughputs exceeding 80 Gigabits per second (Gbps) for protocols such as IPsec, SSL and MACsec.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

SafeSync for Business Now Available from Trend Micro

Trend Micro has launched SafeSync for Business, an offering that uses cloud-based technology to keep data across multiple computers secure. Users of SafeSync for Business can share data via synchronication
technology.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

SERVERS

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Unisys Launches Pair of New ClearPath Enterprise Servers

Unisys launched a pair of new server lines in its ClearPath Enterprise Server series: the ClearPath Dorado and ClearPath Libra 800 Series. The company says the new servers feature more powerful Unisys-produced
processors and I/O capabilities, as well as enhancements to their ClearPath software operating environments, including support for Apple’s iPad, and the Blackberry and Android mobile operating systems. More information about these new servers is available
from the ClearPath Enterprise Servers product page.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

SMARTPHONES

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AT&T to Debut Samsung Infuse 4G on May 15

AT&T and Samsung Mobile announced the upcoming availability of the Samsung Infuse 4G smartphone. The Infuse 4G will be available at AT&T company-owned stores and online at its
wireless Web site on May 15. The price is $199.99 with a two-year contract plus a minimum $15 per month data plan. The Infuse 4G is just 8.99 mm thick and has a 4.5-inch screen with Super AMOLED Plus technology. The smartphone boasts a 1.2 GHz processor
and runs the Android 2.2 mobile operating system.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

comScore Shows Continued Android Growth; RIM Struggling

comScore released its mobile subscriber share numbers for the quarter ending March 31, 2011. On the OEM list, Samsung remained on top with 24.5%, dropping 0.3% since December.
LG was flat in second with 20.9%; Motorola claimed third with 15.8%, but lost 0.9% during the period; RIM was flat, managing to stay in fourth at
8.4%; and Apple continued its push up the list, staying in fifth place, but adding another 1.1% to reach 7.9% of the market. On the smartphone platform list, Google‘s Android
continued its meteoric rise, gaining another 6% to cement its position on top with 34.7% of the market. Most of this growth came at the expense of RIM, which held on to second place, but lost 4.5%, dropping it to 27.1%; Apple came in third, adding 0.5% to
reach 25.5%, and nip at RIM’s heels; Microsoft was fourth, losing another point and falling to 7.5%; and Palm rounded out the list in fifth, losing 0.9%, and clinging to 2.8% of the market.

Source: Vendor, 5/6/2011

HTC to Supply Smartphones, Tablets to to Asian Telecom Alliance

HTC announced that it has signed a memorandum of understanding with a consortium of Asian telecom service providers who will be jointly buying equipment for mobile Internet applications from the Taiwanese company. The
group, called Conexus Mobile Alliance, comprises 11 mobile carriers who together have 310 million customers. HTC makes mobile phones and tablets. Conexus members include large operators such as NTT DoCoMo of Japan, Hutchison Telecommunications of Hong
Kong, and Indonesia’s PT Indosat.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

LG Unveils Optimus Black Android-Based Smartphone

LG launched the Optimus Black, its latest Android-based smartphone. The standout feature of the new phone is the company’s recently-developed Nova display. According to LG the new display technology is easier to view in
sunlight or other brightly-lit situations thanks to higher levels of brightness and truer blacks and whites. The company says the display also uses 50% less power than competing LCD screens, on average. Other features of the Optimus Black include a 1GHz
processor, Wi-Fi Direct, a 5MP rear camera, a 2MP front-facing camera, gesture-based user controls, and 2GB of internal memory. The handset will launch in Europe later this month, with 56 network carriers in 50 different countries around the world
scheduled to carry it.

Source: Vendor, 5/8/2011

Motorola to Launch Atrix for Australia’s Telstra

Motorola Mobility announced it will launch the new ATRIX Android-powered smartphone on June 7th, exclusively for the Telstra Next G network in Australia. ATRIX has a high-definition (HD) display – with the
option for HD video capture and review – and features biometric fingerprint recognition for security. It can be purchased under Telstra’s Freedom Connect plans, or can be purchased outright for $840 USD.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

Telstra Launches Motorola ATRIX

Telstra announced its launch of the Motorola ATRIX smartphone. The device features a 1GHz dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM, a qHD display, high-definition front and rear-facing
cameras, and up to 48GB of storage. The handset can also be used in combination with the Motorola HD Multimedia Dock to offer a media-center PC type experience, or with the Motorola Lapdock to fill the role of a netbook. The ATRIX will be available on June
4, 2011, with a full retail price of $840, or for $20 per month on Telstra’s $59 Freedom Connect Plan.

Source: Vendor, 5/6/2011

SOCIAL MEDIA

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Facebook Employee Admits Company is Behind Google Smear Campaign

Facebook hired public relations firm Burson-Marsteller to spearhead a smear campaign against Google, according to an article on The
Daily Beast. Although it was known for some time that the ad agency had been commissioned to encourage news outlets to explore possible privacy breaches by the search giant, the company funding the campaign remained a mystery. The Daily Beast said
that changed when it confronted an unnamed Facebook employee, who confirmed that the social network was indeed behind the negative press. The entire controversy revolves around a Google-produced tool called Social Circle, a piece of software that lets user
collect information on their own Gmail friends, as well as the friends of their friends. Facebook claims this violates agreements with the FTC, and was designed to scrape data for Google’s own use. According to the Daily Beast, some of those “secondary
connections” were collecting Facebook’s own data, lining up with the claims of its source at Facebook. Google has so far remained mute on the subject.

Source: TheDailyBeast, 5/12/2011

500% Increase in Corporate Social Networking Creates Severe Risks

Social networking access from behind corporate firewalls increased by 500% over the past year, according to enterprise security and firewall company Palo Alto Networks. The
company just released an eight-month study of 1,253 organizations including more than 2 million users, and 28 exabytes of data. The firm discovered that approximately 23% of all bandwidth used was taken up by applications running SSL (secure sockets
layer), while those using dynamic/port hopping accounted for an additional 16%. The importance of these findings come from the fact that the traffic included in those two percentages is hidden from corporate firewalls, and thus represents a severe security
risk to corporations. SSL is currently the standard on the most popular social networking sites, including Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter.
Essentially, one of the most high-risk Internet activities is going completely unmonitored by companies’ most important security measures. This factor will presumably become an even greater risk as more and more enterprises establish an official presence
on social media sites.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

Twitter Launches Revamped Mobile Site

Twitter released an updated version of its mobile Web site. The new iteration supports HTML5 and offers updates such as tabbed navigation between timelines and tweet composition, gesture controls, and aesthetic updates
for phones with larger screens and higher resolutions. The new site has been rolled out to a small number of iPhone, iPod Touch, and Android smartphones, with a full-scale launch expected in the coming weeks. The mobile version of Twitter.com will
automatically load when visiting the site on an appropriate device.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

Twitter Launches Updated Twitter for Mac Application

Twitter released an update to its Twitter for Mac application. The revised software includes the ability to view multiple timelines at once, a new toolbar, a “new tweet” button, username and hashtag autocomplete, and
improved user profiles. Twitter for Mac is available as a free download from the Mac App Store.

Source: Vendor, 5/12/2011

STORAGE

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Dell Unveils New Server and Storage Products

Dell announced new networking, server, and storage products for the enterprise and SMB customer requiring a high-performance data center environment. The rollout includes new Ethernet blades, for streamlining fabric
deployments, PowerConnect 10GbE and top-of-rack switches and blades, PowerEdge blade servers for mission critical applications, and the DX Object Storage platform, for accessing, storing, and managing fixed digital content.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

EMC Upgrades Data-Caching Appliance

EMC announced an upgrade to its data-caching appliance that allows storage arrays to replicate data between applications over distances greater than 2,000 miles. The company also announced an integration of its Cloud
Tiering Appliance and its midrange SAN/NAS VNX array, which allows older or unused data to be moved off the array to a lower-level tier of storage. The EMC Cloud Tiering Appliance supports archiving to secondary storage with file retention capability, such
as Data Domain, and will provide automated policy-driven migration, which allows users with big data challenges to automate data migration from multi-vendor environments to the VNX or to EMC Isilon clustered NAS storage.

Source: Vendor, 5/12/2011

IBM Launches Pair of New Storage Products with 3 Exabyte Capacity

IBM launched a new line of tape storage and enhanced archiving, deduplication offerings. The so called “big data” solutions include the System Storage TS3500 Tape Library, a 15 tape storage system with 80% more capacity
than competing Oracle products, according to the company; and the IBM Linear Tape File System Library Edition (LTFS LE) a system for indexing, searching, retrieving, and sharing large amounts of store data. IBM says the combination of systems is capable of
storing as much as 3 exabytes of data, or 3 times the entire mobile data usage of the US last year. More information about both products is available from IBM’s storage products page.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

STREAMING MEDIA

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Google Adds 3,000 Rental Movies to YouTube Library

Google added 3,000 new movie rental titles to the library available on YouTube. The new lineup of feature-length Hollywood films will
include well-known titles from the past, as well as new releases. YouTube says the movies will be “available to rent at industry standard prices,” and will be viewable on any PC the user can log into his or her YouTube account. Many of the movies will also
include extras, such as trailers, behind-the-scenes featurettes, and more. The new titles have already begun appearing on the streaming video site, with the library expected to grow considerably.

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

Google Launches Beta for Cloud Music Service

Google launched its long-expected cloud music service at this year’s I/O conference. The product, titled Music Beta by Google, is currently in a limited-access beta. Google Music lets
users to upload as many as 20,000 songs in MP3, AAC, WMA, and FLAC format, although it should be noted that any FLAC files will be compressed into 320 Kbps MP3s. The upload requires an application titled Music Manager, which will handle adding files to the
user’s library. Once the potentially massive upload is completed, Android device owners can stream their audio via the newly updated Google music app. No other mobile OS is currently supported. Google says it originally intended to offer its own music
store, and may still do so in the future. However, talks with record labels broke down to the point where the company decided to launch Google Music without a retail presence. As a final note, Google has said that it will actively seek to remove any
copyright infringing or pirated songs uploaded to the service. How the company intends to differentiate the illegal media was not disclosed.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

Google Adds Movie Rental to Android Market

Google announced that its new movie library will also be coming to Android. The company says several thousand titles will soon begin appearing in the Android Market on devices running version 2.2 or later of the
operating system. Each film will be priced at $1.99 to $3.99, and can be viewed on the renter’s handset, tablet, or PC once paid for. The rental service is already available on the Web-based version of the Android
Market, while the aforementioned update is expected shortly.

Source: Vendor, 5/12/2011

Level 3 to Provide Streaming Services for HBO’s GO Mobile App

Level 3 announced it has been selected by HBO to provide content delivery network services supporting the new HBO GO mobile app. The application, which launched on May 2, gives HBO
subscribers access to HBO programming on Apple iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch devices as well as selected Android devices.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

WEB COMMERCE

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comScore Says Online Spending Hit $38 Billion in Q1 2011

comScore reported that domestic online spending reached $38 billion for the quarter. This was a 12% year-over-year increase, when compared to 2010. The measurement company said the growth was most profound in
product categories including video games, consoles & accessories, books & magazines, computers & peripherals, and consumer electronics. Other interesting statistics included a drop in the market share held by the top 25 online retailers, with the group
accounting for 67.7% of all online purchases, down from 70% in 2010. Additionally, the number of online shoppers grew by 7%, as did the number of transactions per buyer, which was up 9%. However, the amount spent per transaction was down 4%.

Source: Vendor, 5/10/2011

Google Launches “Think Insights with Google”

Google announced the launch of a new data site for digital marketing trends. Think Insights with
Google will house the company’s papers, case studies, and videos on marketing trends and statistics. Google says it founded the sight in an effort to increase the understanding of how people actually use the Web. The search giant promises the site will
be updated regularly with new information.

Source: Vendor, 5/11/2011

Microsoft to Add PayPal Support to Xbox Live

Gaming blog Joystiq posted a pair of leaked documents detailing the contents of the upcoming Xbox 360
Dahsboard update. The update will enable the system to use the new, larger format of disc that Microsoft has developed for the console. However, the most important aspect of the update may be the introduction of PayPal
integration into Xbox Live. According to the documents, PayPal will be usable as a method of funding the purchase of points, content, and subscriptions available through the online gaming service. The update will be rolling out to systems in 6 separate
groups between May 19 and May 30.

Source: Joystiq, 5/10/2011

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890 Million Subscribers to Mobile Services in China

DigiTimes reported that there were 890.27 million subscribers to mobile communication services in China as of the end of March 2011, up 14.6% over the course of one year. Of these, 61.9 million (6.95%) were 3G
users, according to statistics published by China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and quoted in the DigiTimes report. The number of subscribers at the end of March accounted for 64.4% of the country’s
population. Also at the end of March there were 292.73 million subscribers of fixed telecommunication networks in China, translating into a user density of 22.1%. In March, mobile subscribers in China sent 70.63 billion text messages, averaging 2.58 per
number a day.

Source: DigiTimes, 5/9/2011

HP Introduces Pre-Paid DataPass 3G Service Plan

Hewlett-Packard (HP) introduced its new DataPass service mobile data plan. DataPass – like a pre-paid cell phone – offers 3G-enabled laptops mobile broadband services courtesy of Sprint’s EVDO network, without requiring
any contracts, setup fees, or Wi-Fi hotspots. It will be available in the US for all HP business notebooks. Plans start at $5 USD (75MB per seven hours).

Source: Vendor, 5/9/2011

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