By Phoebe Magdirila
Computerworld Philippines
June 7, 2011

With the interactive web-based application Google maps, locating unfamiliar places have become easier. Its user-friendly navigation and the detailed view of streets, shops, banks and other establishment, gave way to its wide adoption in the Philippines. But for Philippine-based software company Orange & Bronze Labs, Inc. (O&B), the technology can provide a better opportunity for enterprises to market services and operate businesses better.

“There are deeper, more in-depth uses of maps than location-based services,” Kathleen Fonacier-Garcia, Marketing and Communications Officer, O&B said.

According to the software company who is also a local enterprise partner and authorized reseller of Google Enterprise products, Google Maps API Premier can now be an advantage to Philippine businesses and organizations to improve operations, marketing, and customer service.

A Unified Approach

Compared to the free application, the premier version can allow companies to integrate Google maps into their website along with other valuable information that can guide not only their customers, but also their employees. Calen Martin D. Legaspi, O&B CEO said that with the growing use of mobile devices for Internet-related services, local businesses will find more ways to easily connect and engage with their employees and customers. Google Maps is one way for organizations to get ahead of competition.

By having a visual representation of data, people can analyze their data better, Garcia said.

Google Maps can be used as an effective marketing tool to help companies create campaigns targeted to a user base within an area. This saves time, financial resource, and manpower as marketing campaigns can already target a niche group of customers.

More Than Just Maps

The company develops and customizes applications using Google maps that match industry-specific requirements. Aside from the map itself, companies “can create more sophisticated application based on their needs,” Butch Landingin, Chief technology Officer, O&B said.

A Filipino real estate search site, Haybol.ph, developed by Senior Software Engineer Edge Dalmacio and Software Architect Lorenzo Dee, sets how integrating Google maps in their website provides better service to its online visitors. People can locate houses better and easier by targeting a selected vicinity, likewise, it helps sellers to be easily found. Citing an example for better and more sophisticated applications, the developers have also installed 3D virtual tour and “augmented reality” tools for its enhanced usage. “The Philippines deserves a better way to search,” Dee said.

“Location-based services in the Philippines is just starting and we see huge potential here. There are already quite a number of interesting approaches that we are looking at that utilizes Google Maps and we expect these to be implemented soon,” according to Legaspi.

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By Phoebe Magdirila
Computerworld Philippines
June 7, 2011

Software company SAP projects 50% more energy will be used by 2030. Today, companies are slowly adopting green IT platforms as part of their cost-saving and energy efficiency strategies. However, more than the cash savings, sustainability is a shared responsibility for businesses to make the world run better, an SAP official said.

According to Dr. Corazon P.B. Claudio, President, Earth Institute Asia, sustainability is the new key to competitiveness. To achieve this goal, it should start with the individual, then the society; and the environmental and economical factors will follow.

“It is our responsibility as a company, as an individual to initiate this on our own without waiting for any regulations,” said Ramnath Anantharam, Principal Solution Advisor, GRC, SAP South East Asia added.

Because of the lack of sustainability measures locally, “we are at the bottom of competitive rating,” Claudio said. “IT companies can help a lot because they can produce the software that can, for example, measure the carbon foot prints,” she added.

SAP started to commit to reduce greenhouse gas in 2009 which brought a 4% decrease. To continuously provide green IT solutions, the company provides GRC platforms that help various industries in measuring and reducing energy costs, in turn, providing more revenues.
Promoting green IT initiatives give more profitability and competitive advantage to a company. Customers are now more aware of the environment and continue to embrace more eco-friendly offerings to aid in reducing their own costs.

“To be a leader we have to be different, to drive something to the market,” Anantharam said. Currently, bigger companies abroad have already successfully spread green computing by sharing its best practices to its supply chains. “It’s about optimizing resources. It’s about using your fuel wisely, your land wisely,” he added.

“We need to act now, we’re trying to tell companies to aim for sustainability,” Claudio said.

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By Phoebe Magdirila
Computerworld Philippines
June 7, 2011

Only after the first quarter of the fiscal year, Dell has manifested stronger strategies as the company’s continuously expanding offerings in emerging markets bring increased revenue in their commercial enterprise business.

According to Andreas Diantoro, Dell Managing Director, South Asia and Developing Market Group, the company’s strategy is to focus on the population that signifies the buying behavior. “They usually reside in emerging markets,” Diantoro said.

After acquiring eight different companies for medium businesses, in the (Brazil, Russia, India & China) BRIC region, the company gained more than 13% revenue last year and even increased to 17% during the first quarter of this year. In (Asia-Pacific and Japan) APJ, the enterprise also played a big role with 21% revenue increase led by shares in servers (28%) and services (28%). This contributes to the APJ’s revenue of US $3billion.

Locally, the company’s enterprise business is growing 62% while Software & Peripherals is at 64%. “These are the two lines of business that push the growth in Philippine commercial,” Diantoro said.

“We’re off to a solid start in our fiscal year 2012. Our substantial profit increase demonstrates that our strategy is working and our execution is improving,” Michael Dell, Chairman and CEO said.

Expanding Offerings
“The expectations of the commercial and offices have shifted,” Diantoro said. He explained how IT managers now have to keep up with increased productivity while securing their network. In line with their acquisitions, the company expands its solutions to cloud computing, data center solutions and mobile workforce.

“Storage is also something we are really focusing on,” Diantoro said. He also mentioned that storage companies Equallogic and Compellent are two of their successful acquisitions. “Youtube will drive data into zetabyte,” he added as he speaks about the continuous growth of data.

After the company’s launch of Dell Streak as part of its mobility solutions for the local market, the company will focus to provide more mobility solutions to the consumers, specifically to the small and medium businesses. Diantoro said, they are also planning a geographic expansion in Visayas and Mindanao.

“What we intend to do is to provide our customers the best hands-on experience regardless whether what they’re holding is a laptop, desktop or a mobility device,” Christopher Papa, Country Manager, Consumer and Small Business Dell Global said.

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By Phoebe Magdirila
Computerworld Philippines
June 7, 2011

With the continuous growth of mobility devices like smart phones and tablets, competition lies in the service providers’ ability to provide varied content and applications. To further expand the service providers’ offerings, Cisco has launched the Videoscape.

Cisco’s Videoscape positions the service providers in the country as a gateway to give more content and applications to its end users. It is an Internet-based TV platform that allows video capability on any device – television, laptop, smart phone or tablet PC — functioning simultaneously with social media, merchandising and other forms of entertainment content.

“Filipinos already have access to a vast array of television and online content, but they could not get all content across all devices,” Stephen Misa, Cisco Country Manager said. Sixty-percent of the world’s traffic is on videos, it can go up to 90% by 2014, he explained.

The new platform boasts an array of video availability from online videos to local TV channel shows including a library of online content and application. As it works simultaneously with social media, it gives an interactive component to subscribers to see what their friends are viewing and recommend favorite content as well. “For consumers, this will provide more entertainment possibilities on-screen including broadcast channels, on demand TV, DVR and the Web. This will enable them to take their TV experiences with them, viewing multiple forms of content over a wide range of mobile devices and smart phones,” Misa added.

“Piracy is about not providing convenience,” Peter Papaioannou, Cisco Operations Director, Video and Cable Solutions said. Service providers can help address this with the opportunity to offer the content to subscribers, once they buy it, they will have the ability to access it across all devices.

Advanced mobile models could include capabilities for application delivery, home telepresence and in video e-commerce as well.

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By Phoebe Magdirila
Computerworld Philippines
May 9, 2011

Autodesk, the global software company for 3D design, engineering and entertainment, creates a benchmark in the local industry as they recently launched the Autodesk Certification Program in the country.

The company’s certification program is designed to enhance and validate the users’ technical expertise in Autodesk’s wide range of design solutions. This certification helps the employers to recognize a person’s set of skills, and helps employees land in a promising job. “Autodesk Certification is the validation of the skills and knowledge of the individual making [it] a win-win situation for both the professional and the employer,” said Autodesk Philippines Country Manager, Teddy D. Tiu.

Parsons Brinckerhoff, a global AEC firm, is one of the companies who use Autodesk’s training resources to help determine their employees’ skill set. “We use their training courses in order to leverage in our employees,” said Rebecca Arsham, CADD Training Manager at Parsons Brinckerhoff. She shared how important it is to keep their employees educated. “All of our clients are now aware of Autodesk certification,” she said.

Now, Parsons Brinckerhoff is starting to expand in the Philippines and they are making sure that the staff here will be as globally trained as everyone else. “It’s important for us to make sure they are as qualified as everybody else,” Arsham said. “Adding certification to their personal resume, adds certification to our company resume,” she concluded.

Locally, Far Eastern University (FEU) - East Asia College has also considered implementing the program for their employees. FEU - East Asia College Director Jarvis C. Muyargas said, “Providing quality education is essential at FEU - East Asia College. Autodesk has responded by providing our students with free use of software and giving our faculty members with opportunity to be certified in their field of expertise. That is what you call commitment to quality education!”

Currently, learning Autodesk programs can be done through local Authorized Training Centers. A free downloadable software through their website (autodesk.com) is also available to further users’ skills set. “We’re committed to the advancement of design education and certification hopefully, helping the Philippines be a tiger economy,” Tiu said.

Autodesk has appointed MicroCADD Technologies Company Inc and Standford IT Learning Center as their official Autodesk Training Centers in the Philippines.

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By Jeremy Kirk
IDG News Service (London Bureau)

LONDON - London’s High Court ruled Thursday that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange can be freed if he posts £240,000 (US$384,000) in bail, rejecting prosecutors’ appeal that he be imprisoned pending a January extradition hearing, according to the BBC.

Assange was granted bail on Tuesday in Westminster Magistrates Court on the conditions that he surrender his passport, wear an electronic tracking tag, regularly check in with police and adhere to a curfew. The Crown Prosecution Service, however, appealed the ruling, maintaining that Assange should remain in custody. In a statement, the Swedish Prosecution Authority affirmed that it was the U.K., not Sweden, that appealed.

Prosecutors argued that Assange has few ties to the U.K, travels frequently and represents a flight risk. He has remained in jail since Dec. 7.

Assange is wanted in Sweden for questioning related to sexual assault allegations from two women stemming from two incidents in the country in August. According to the Metropolitan Police, Assange is accused of one count of unlawful coercion, two counts of sexual molestation and one count of rape.

Assange has denied the allegations, maintaining that his contact with the women was consensual. He and his lawyers have said they believe the pursuit for Assange is related to WikiLeaks’ ongoing release of U.S. diplomatic cables, which has angered the U.S. government.

Journalists and spectators convened en masse for Assange. Although Westminster Magistrates Court allowed reporters to use Twitter from the courtroom — a deviation from the norm since courts regularly tell spectators to turn off their mobile phones — Justice Duncan Ouseley did not allow reporters to use Twitter during Assange’s latest hearing, according to The Guardian newspaper, which ran a live blog of the proceedings.

The U.S. Attorney General’s office is investigating Assange but has yet to charge him. It has raised questions over whether Assange could eventually be extradited to the U.S. from Sweden. Sweden’s prosecutor’s office addressed that scenario in its statement, saying that an extradition request from the U.S. would require the consent of the U.K.

Assange is scheduled for an extradition hearing in the U.K. on Jan. 11. His attorney, Mark Stephens, said Thursday the bail money for his release appears to have been raised.

While Assange remains under intense pressure, the U.S. Army has charged a soldier believed to have leaked the cables to WikiLeaks.

Private First Class Bradley E. Manning is charged with mishandling and transferring classified information in connection with the cables. He is also believed to be the source of video of an Apache helicopter shooting civilians in Iraq, which was also released on the whistle-blower website.

As of Thursday, WikiLeaks has published about 1,600 of more than 250,000 cables in its archive.

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By Computerworld Philippines
December 16, 2010

Cyber sex is not part of the Philippines’ BPO or outsourcing industry. This was the statement stressed by the Commission on Information and Communications Technology (CICT) and the Business Processing Association of the Philippines (BPAP) amid recent media reports comparing the illegal practice to “outsourcing” and “BPO”.

“Cyber sex and illegal sex dens as reported recently is pervasive on the worldwide web and they are being committed from various locations. It is not being offshored to the Philippines, so we should not attribute or compare cyber porn with our flourishing BPO industry,” says CICT Chair Sec. Ivan Uy.

For his part, BPAP President and CEO Oscar Sanez said, “Commercial sex on the net is basically on-line porn and is not part of the off-shoring industry because they are illegal activities being done around the world. This is not at all related to the outsourcing industry and certainly not at all connected with BPO.”

The BPO government arm and industry association made the statement on the wrong association of cyber sex to BPO as both organizations are very concerned about the possible adverse effects it may have on the image of the “sunshine” industry which is now getting the Philippines on the global stage because of the country’s strength in scalable skills in business and corporate services that can support US and European companies.

The BPO industry has been growing at an average of 26% per year and is expected deliver to the economy some US$ 9 billion in revenues by year-end and it has already provided jobs to more than half a million workers.

The CICT is the government body overseeing the over-all welfare of the country’s ICT development while BPAP is the umbrella association of BPO companies which houses some 320 members in the Philippines. BPAP and CICT with the rest of the Philippine BPO industry denounce and condemn on-line sex trade and believe that any involvement in such practice should be criminally prosecuted.

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Computerworld Philippines
November 4, 2010

Ayala-owned Integrated Micro-Electronics Inc (IMI) has selected Oracle’s Agile Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) 9.3 to accelerate profitable innovations across its enterprise and to enhance customer service.

With Agile PLM 9.3, IMI will be able to streamline processes, reduce time-to-market, lower product and development costs, and improve collaboration among internal departments, customers, suppliers, and other external partners.

The initial implementation of the project will focus on Request-for-Quote (RFQ) to first batch acceptance and Bills on Materials (BOM) change management during volume production. With this, IMI expects improved efficiencies in key business functions particularly in quotation process, product data management, document management, and change management.

The selection of Agile PLM is considered to be a strategic investment by IMI to support future growth and stay competitive in a highly dynamic global marketplace. For IMI, the rich functionality within Agile PLM will help the company in managing the complexities of its day-to-day operations.

By leveraging Agile PLM 9.3, IMI will be able to quickly respond to the unique needs of its diverse customers from the computing, communications, consumer, automotive, industrial and medical electronics markets.

IMI is consistently ranked among the top 30 electronics manufacturing services providers around the world and has eleven manufacturing sites across China, Philippines, Singapore, and the United States.

Oracle’s Product Value Chain solution includes Oracle’s Agile PLM, Oracle Product Hub, Oracle’s AutoVue Enterprise Visualization and Oracle Product Data Quality. Relying on these offerings, customers can manage all product information, integrate product lifecycle processes and benefit from secure collaboration, data quality and knowledge management.

“As we continue to expand globally, we need a best-in-class and reliable technology partner to support our growth, mitigate risk and help manage productivity and costs across the product lifecycle. We believe that Oracle’s Agile PLM can best deliver on these imperatives,” said Arthur Tan, president and CEO, IMI. “Our global original equipment manufacturer customers can expect improved service with this new system in place.”

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By Computerworld Philippines Staff
September 13, 2010

Intermec Technologies today announced that they had partnered with local FedEX licensee in the Philippines – AIR21 – along with Smartmatic Philippines and the Commission on Elections, to successfully provide real time logistics support for the recent Filipino national elections.

The logistics infrastructure, established specifically for the Filipino Elections, ensured that 41,714 packages of official ballots to 863 municipalities in 39 provinces throughout the Luzon and Visayas regions were delivered safely and securely.

Such was the success of the logistics rollout in handling the large volume of deliveries in a short time frame, that Smartmatic President for Asia Pacific, Cesar Flores, remarked, “among all the aspects of the project, the delivery of the ballots was probably the most seamless of all.”

Importantly, through utilizing the advanced scanning technology provided by Intermec’s CN3 mobile computer, the official ballots were able to be monitored in real time throughout the delivery process to ensure enhanced transparency.

“Real time visibility of high value items - like official ballots - is becoming a logistical imperative across Asia as governments and businesses alike call for greater accountability,” said Intermec’s GM, VP for the APAC region, Jansen Ek. “We’re proud that our technology played a part in supporting the recent Filipino national elections in conjunction with our partners AIR21 and Smartmatic.”

Given the national importance of the dispatch and delivery of the ballots, a range of security forces (Comelec Organic Security) and national police groups (Police Security Protection Group, NCRPO and the PNP) were also involved in the dispatching process.

In addition to the technological capabilities provided by Intermec’s CN3, the dispatching efforts were successful in coordinating and adapting to delivery changes when handling the highly sensitive and secure shipments.

AIR21 Corporate IT head, Tere Eisma, commented that, “the successful ballot deliveries reaffirm our commitment to nation building and utilizing technology partners like Intermec ensures that we are able to increase efficiency, while reducing error-on-delivery.”

Following the successful rollout of the election project, AIR21 redeployed the CN3 devices back into their operational courier services work flow.

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By Sumner Lemon
IDG News Service (Singapore Bureau)
September 7, 2010

SINGAPORE - Former Hewlett-Packard CEO Mark Hurd has been appointed co-president of Oracle, the software company announced Monday.

Hurd, who also joined Oracle’s board of directors, will serve as co-president alongside Safra Catz. Co-President Charles Phillips has resigned his position and will step down from the company’s board, the company said.

“Mark did a brilliant job at HP and I expect he’ll do even better at Oracle,” said CEO Larry Ellison in a statement.

Hurd’s appointment comes after weekend reports that he was in talks to join Oracle. Hurd left HP in August amid a scandal over an undisclosed relationship with a contractor and falsified expense reports. At the time, Ellison was among Hurd’s most vocal supporters, criticizing HP’s board for its handling of the matter.

Oracle’s statement did not specify Hurd’s area of responsibility. Catz, the other co-president, handles legal and financial issues and helped to negotiate Oracle’s takeover of Sun Microsystems. Both positions report to Ellison.

Hurd will replace Phillips, who was most recently responsible for Oracle’s sales and marketing. Phillips had been rumored to be leaving the company after a series of missteps.

Earlier this year, Phillips acknowledged having an affair after romantic pictures of him with a woman who was not his wife appeared on billboards in U.S. cities. In another incident in July, Oracle issued a statement rebutting comments by Phillips that the company had increased its budget for acquisitions over the next five years.

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September 1, 2010

Since its establishment in 2000, ePLDT has been leading the way in bringing the latest IT solutions to the country. A major proponent of IT outsourcing in the Philippines, ePLDT boasts a continuously evolving service catalogue that not only that boosts operational efficiency and overall business growth, but also meets the changing needs and demanding requirements of the local and global markets.

These solutions include outsourced data center services offered through ePLDT’s VITRO Data Center, the first purposely built Class “A” Internet Data Center in the country. Sitting atop a robust carrier-neutral telecommunication infrastructure that provides redundant and high-capacity connectivity around the world, VITRO is designed to be a highly secure and scalable facility supported by a fault-tolerant environment and skilled workforce. VITRO’s advanced telecommunications infrastructure offers multiple options for organizations’ bandwidth requirements, while its carrier neutrality makes it possible to reach diverse audiences with services delivered in the best way possible.

VITRO provides industry leading Service Level Agreements (SLA) which covers both co-location and connectivity. It also consistently complies with global operation standards and specifications, having received certifications for the ISO 9001:2000 Quality Management System and ISO 27001:2005 Information Security Management System standards. VITRO is accredited by the Philippine Export Zone Authority.

Through VITRO, ePLDT is able to provide organizations with IT infrastructure services. These include Co-location, Server & Storage Hosting, Managed Data Security Solutions, Business Continuity Services, Managed Network Services, Web and Email Hosting, Facilities Management, and IP-based Contact Center Solutions.

ePLDT has also been able to expand its IT reach thanks to the various subsidiaries it has built or acquired throughout the years. The synergy of ePLDT and its subsidiaries’ product and service lines allows the ePLDT group to deliver on its promise to provide true end-to-end IT solutions.

In the past decade, ePLDT has evolved not only to become an IT industry powerhouse, but one that is recognized locally and globally. In recent years, it has received several acknowledgements from prestigious international organizations. The company’s many accolades include the International Star for Leadership in Quality in the Gold category, a prestigious honor bestowed to companies that demonstrated excellence in leadership in their respective industries as seen in increased market share and sustainability. This award was given by Business Initiative Directions, the leading private organization focused on promoting quality in leading companies around the world. ePLDT was also the recipient of the 2009 Philippines Frost & Sullivan Market Leadership Award in the Data Center Services Market. This recognition was given based on research conducted by globally renowned growth partnership company Frost & Sullivan.

With innovative and customized solutions, delivered by a team of competent professionals through robust, state-of-the-art technologies and enabling infrastructure, as well as subsidiaries that offer complementing, top quality IT products and services, ePLDT is able to provide the best for its clientele, whose continued support has certainly helped make the company the country’s leading ICT firm.

“Our clients and partners have also been instrumental to our success, as they continue to trust in our ability to deliver products and services of the highest standards,” said Beth G. Lui, President and Chief Executive Officer of ePLDT.

After ten successful years in the industry, the company is now more bullish than ever about the future. “After a decade, we are still here and still growing,” said Lui. “And you can definitely count on ePLDT to continue strengthening the businesses of our clients here in the Philippines and in other parts of the world for the years to come.”

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By Computerworld Philippines Staff
August 27, 2010

Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. has announced a new security gateway, the Series 80 Appliance, designed for remote and branch offices and delivering 1.5 gigabit performance for under US$2,500. The new Series 80 Appliance is based on the Check Point Software Blade Architecture and provides the same security and flexibility enjoyed by larger offices and enterprises.

Check Point Series 80 Appliance includes several software blades including firewall, IPS, VPN, anti-virus and anti-malware, URL filtering, anti-spam and email security software. The new appliance delivers the best price/performance in its class with less than US$1.6/Mbps for firewall and US$5.6/Mbps for IPS. In addition, it offers the highest port density with 10 GbE ports to manage the entire branch network in one appliance and come in a small desktop form factor ideal for remote branch offices. The Series 80 Appliance is based on Check Point security technologies that today secure 100 percent of the Fortune 100.

“Enterprises are demanding more protection, faster performance and increased simplicity to protect their entire network from data centers to the smallest branch offices,” said Dorit Dor, vice president of products at Check Point Software Technologies. “Our new Series 80 Appliance is stronger in security, faster in performance but smaller in size and price and provides companies greater security at the ends of their network, the branch offices.”

The Check Point Series 80 Appliance can be activated in one single click by corporate IT and then deployed locally within minutes without additional corporate support. Security administrators can define policies for branch offices from a single, centrally located Check Point Security Management console. These policies, along with other security profiles, can be automatically applied to remote office Series gateways to simplify deployment, reduce IT overhead and maintain strong security consistency.

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LONDON - Intel said Thursday it plans to acquire security vendor McAfee in a cash deal valued at about $7.68 billion and aimed at enhancing the chip maker’s mobile strategy.

Both boards of directors have approved the deal, and McAfee is expected to become a subsidiary within Intel’s Software and Services Group. McAfee develops a variety of security software for end-users and enterprises, including antivirus applications, firewalls and intrusion protection systems.

Intel said that the current approach to security does not address the full range of Internet-connected devices, including TVs, cars, medical devices and ATM machines. “Hardware-enhanced security” will be needed to counter increasingly sophisticated threats, said Renée James, Intel senior vice president, and general manager of the group.

McAfee CEO Dave DeWalt wrote in a blog post that “current cybersecurity model isn’t extensible across the proliferating spectrum of devices.”

“The industry needed a paradigm shift, incremental improvements can’t bridge the opportunity gap,” DeWalt wrote. “There is no better partner that we could have found than Intel.”

Intel president and CEO Paul Otellini said during a conference that the deal illustrates what Intel regards as the three most important pillars of computing today: energy efficiency, Internet connectivity and security. Everywhere Intel sells a microprocessor is also an opportunity for a security sale as well, he said.

“We believe that security will be most effective when enabled in hardware,” Otellini said. Intel will continue to work with other security vendors as well, he said.

Security technology needs to be combined with hardware in order to deter new threats, said James during the call. Intel will bolster its hardware with technology that comes from McAfee’s current products, she said. The first results of that collaboration will be announced next year, she said.

The deal is expected to close after McAfee shareholder approval and regulatory clearances. Intel said the acquisition will have on a GAAP basis a slightly dilutive effect on its earnings in the first year of operations and a flat effect in the second year.

McAfee generated approximately $2 billion in revenue in 2009, and has about 6,100 employees. The company has had double-digit growth over the last year and was an attractive acquisition target, and rumors had been circulating for some time, said Ruggero Contu, senior research analyst at Gartner.

But an acquisition by Intel is surprising, Contu said. “I would have thought that in terms of synergies, I would have thought other players would have” been better positioned to integrate McAfee into their operations, he said.

Intel would be wise to continue McAfee’s successful consumer security software business, as it has been bringing in increased revenue, Contu said. In terms of the overall security market, the acquisition is likely to have an impact on Symantec, as it is McAfee’s most direct competitor, Contu said.

“We’ll see how it shakes out,” Contu said.

The deal brings Intel a wealth of security technologies, such as encryption, data loss prevention and Web messaging, said Chris Christiansen, program vice president for analyst IDC. McAfee has a large network security business, and its engineers will now have access to Intel’s manufacturing processes, advanced engineering capabilities and chip designs.

The premium price paid by Intel for McAfee indicates there may have been a bidding war, which is likely to spark a frenzy of acquisitions from other players such as Oracle and IBM, Christiansen said.

“I can’t imagine that the unsuccessful bidders will simply just go away,” he said.

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Computerworld Philippines
July 20, 2010

The likelihood of businesses in Asia Pacific to lose customers who are dissatisfied with their contact center interaction to the competition in 2010 is as high as 47%, says an annual Contact Center Consumer Index 2010 report generated by callcentres.net and commissioned by Avaya.

The report found that 10% of dissatisfied respondents said that they had already switched their business elsewhere. These figures come from the annual Avaya Contact Centre Consumer Index 2010 report generated by callcentres.net and commissioned by Avaya. It surveyed 1797 consumers in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, India, Malaysia and Japan.

Respondents were asked about their overall satisfaction with their last call to a contact center. A good 69% said they were satisfied while 18% said that they were dissatisfied. Australia topped that list with close to a quarter (24%) of dissatisfied respondents. Across the region, respondents who did not feel strongly happy with their last interaction with a contact center blamed the inability to resolve their problem or because it took too long to resolve their call. Singapore was the only market where respondents felt that a long holding time was the primary reason why they were unhappy. 36% of all respondents regard poor customer service as a key factor in switching to a competitor.

“We have conducted this survey with Avaya for three years and the trend is clear,” said Dr Catriona Wallace, Director, callcentres.net. “There is a strong and growing correlation between a customer’s contact center experience and their loyalty. Indeed in Asia Pacific a customer having a single poor contact center experience results in a 47% chance that the customer will move his or her business to a competitor. These are compelling results confirming the strategic importance of the contact center,” she added

A quarter of respondents (24%) believed that a quick response time is what a company’s contact center should offer to them to be rated truly excellent. This is an increase from 21% a year ago. Other determining factors are politeness (13% of respondents Vs. 10% a year ago) and having access to a knowledgeable customer service representative (10% of respondents Vs 14% a year ago). The most significant driver of customer engagement in Asia Pacific is the ability for the contact center to resolve the customer’s enquiry during the first call or contact, which is technically known as first call or first contact resolution.

“The 2010 Contact Center Consumer Index shows what consumers want when they call into a Contact Center,” said Chong Win Lee, Avaya APAC Contact Centre Solutions Leader at Avaya. “Organizations must tailor customer service strategies to meet the requirements of an increasingly demanding customer base. If a company understands the level of service its customers expect and enables this through the channels and technology the consumer wants to use, the business can truly differentiate itself by being a Customer Service Leader – meaning better retention and new customer acquisition.”–Melba Bernad

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By Gregg Keizer
Computerworld (US)
July 13, 2010

FRAMINGHAM - Consumer Reports magazine today said it won’t recommend Apple’s iPhone 4 because of major reception issues when users touch the external antenna. One analyst called the publication’s conclusion a “black eye” for Apple.

“When your finger or hand touches a spot on the phone’s lower left side — an easy thing, especially for lefties — the signal can significantly degrade enough to cause you to lose your connection altogether if you’re in an area with a weak signal,” said Mike Gikas, the publication’s senior electronics editor in a blog post Monday. Consumer Reports non-recommendation — “Due to this problem, we can’t recommend the iPhone 4,” Gikas said — is the latest in a series of knocks against the iPhone 4 over reception problems.

Complaints from consumers about the iPhone 4 dropping calls surfaced within hours of the smartphone ’s launch last month. Apple quickly acknowledged that holding the iPhone 4 can diminish the signal but offered only generic advice, telling users to “avoid gripping it in the lower left corner” or “use one of the many available cases.” A week later, Apple admitted that the iPhone 4’s signal strength formula was flawed and promised to update the software.

Consumer Reports’s Gikas dismissed that explanation as a red herring. “Our findings call into question the recent claim by Apple that the iPhone 4’s signal-strength issues were largely an optical illusion caused by faulty software,” he said.

The magazine tested three iPhone 4s in its radio frequency (RF) isolation chamber, where a cell tower emulator was used to simulate real-world signals. Gikas said that the publication’s engineers also tested several other AT&T phones in the chamber, including the iPhone 3GS and the Palm Pre. “None of those phones had the signal-loss problems of the iPhone 4,” he said.

Gikas said that the tests hinted that “AT&T’s network might not be the primary suspect” in the iPhone 4 woes, quashing talk by some that the U.S. carrier is largely at fault.

“Consumer Reports carries some weight,” said Jack Gold, an analyst at J. Gold Associates. “But I’m not sure how many people are actually reading it. Certainly, not many 20-somethings are.”

Still, the magazine’s testing and conclusion is bad for Apple on several levels. “This is a black eye for Apple,” Gold said. “Now people can say, ‘See, we told you it has reception problems.’”
Gold speculated that the antenna issue either escaped Apple’s notice, or that the company knew of it and still released the iPhone 4. “This is basic cell phone 101,” he said, referring to testing Apple should have done prior to launching the smartphone. “RF [radio frequency] is a sort of like black magic, so in order to make sure [handsets] work, cell phone makers have beta devices in the real world running around.” But Apple, with its fondness for security, may have skimped on that part of its pre-release testing.

Consumer Reports also concluded that covering the antenna gap — the small scores in the steel band near the bottom of each side of the iPhone 4 — with duct tape or another thick, non-conductive material helps reduce the reception problem. “It may not be pretty, but it works,” said Gikas.

That advice contradicts an antenna engineer’s take two weeks ago that suggestions to tape over the gaps were just “hokum.”
Consumer Reports continued to recommend 2009’s iPhone 3GS. Last year’s model is priced at $99 in an 8GB configuration, and is available at Apple’s and AT&T’s online stores.

“To me, [the reception issues] are fundamental problems that show Apple didn’t properly test the iPhone 4,” said Gold. “And I’m not so sure that the software update will fix it.”

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