a2z Information: 2012-10-21

Friday, October 26, 2012

Facebook revenue surpasses forecasts rises 32 pc to dollar 1.26 bn

Facebook pleased Wall Street on Tuesday when it reported thirdquarter financial results that beat expectations.

Even though the company reported a net loss of $59 million in the quarter, compared with net income of $227 million a year ago, the stock rose in after-hours trading by as much as 10%.

Revenue grew 32% to $1.26 billion, slightly surpassing analysts' forecasts. They had expected revenue to rise by 29% from a year earlier to $1.23 billion, according to a survey by Bloomberg.

SAP, the world's biggest business software company, sprang a surprise on Wednesday with better-than-expected sales for the third quarter and stronger revenue forecast. While the global economic environment continues to be uncertain, SAP's Irish American co-chief executive William McDermott is optimistic about the future and confident of the company's ability to meet customers' needs as mobile computing catches on at enterprises.

Why do investors prefer Amazon to Apple? Sure, the gadget maker's market capitalisation is far larger. Yet investors are willing to pay almost nine times as much for the retailer's estimated earnings. That looks expensive in any case. But it's also odd, because Amazon perpetually promises more jam tomorrow, while Apple delivers it.

Netflix said Thursday it now has more than 30 million subscribers worldwide, including some five million outside the United States as theInternet video service pursues a global expansion.

"Thirty million of you are now Netflix streaming members. I'd like to express my gratitude to each of you," chief executive Reed Hastings said on his Facebook page.

Five Indian companies -- Larsen & Toubro, Hindustan Unilever, Infosys, TCS and Sun Pharma-- have made to a list of the world's 50 most innovative firms, with the engineering giant L&T ranking among the top-ten.

While the global list, released by US-based business magazine Forbes, is topped by IT firm Salesforce.com, Indian major L&T is ranked 9th worldwide, followed by HUL (12th), Infosys(19th), Tata Consultancy Services (29th) andSun Pharma (38th) among the Indian companies.

Apple iPhone 5 is now available for pre-orders in India and will start shipping in the first week of November. Online retailer Infibeam has listed the 16GB version of the latest iPhone on its website and is taking pre-orders for advance booking amount of Rs 5,000.

Though Infibeam has not mentioned the price of the device, its iPhone 5 web page states that the remaining amount will be collected from buyers at the time of launch of the device. Buyers will have the option to pay the remaining amount via cash on delivery (CoD), debit card and credit card. According to a company executive, the booking amount will be refunded for those who are unable to pay the full amount at the time of launch.

iPhone 5 is widely expected to be roll out in India in the next few days, although Apple has consistently declined to announce a launch date in the country. According to sources, the company may price the device between Rs 46,000 and Rs 61,000, depending on the variant.

Infosys founder NR Narayana Murthy has been conferred with the prestigious 2012 Hoover Medal in recognition of his philanthropic activities in India.

Former US Presidents Herbert Hoover, Dwight Eisenhower and James Earl Carter are among some of the prominent recipients of this annual award established in 1930 to recognize great, unselfish and non-technical services by the engineers to humanity.

Murthy was awarded with the prestigious award on October 2 at the Global Humanitarian Technology Conference in Seattle.

Microsoft chief executive officer Steve Ballmer expects the Windows 8 operating system to open a new chapter in the company's history and thrust it back into the forefront of technology.

"We've reimagined Windows and we've reimagined the whole PC industry," Ballmer told Reuters Television early on Thursday in New York ahead of a launch event for Windows 8 and the company's new Surface tablet, which both go on sale to the public on Friday.

A new of version of Skype, which is now owned by Microsoft, has been launched for Windows and Mac. Users can now log intoSkype installed on their desktop with their Facebook and Microsoft Live ID, along with the standard Skype account.

Canada "has been slow" to set up firewalls to protect against cyber threats to critical infrastructure, leaving the nation vulnerable to crippling attacks, the auditor general has warned.

In a report, Auditor General Michael Fergusonsaid the government has made only "limited progress" over the past decade to safeguard electrical grids, telecommunications infrastructure, banking systems, manufacturing and transportation, as well as its own computers.

A key agency set up seven years ago to monitor cyber threats 24/7, called the Canadian Cyber Incident Response Centre, is still not fully functioning, leaving evening and weekend gaps in its security coverage, he said.

Amazon.com will make Japanese language Kindle e-readers and tablets available next month, as the US online seller joins a slew of e-book makers in trying to win market share in the world's second-biggest publishing market.

Amazon began taking pre-orders on Wednesday for its Kindle Paperwhite e-reader, which starts with a price tag of 8,480 yen ($110), and Kindle Fire tablet, which has a base price of 12,800 yen ($160). Both devices will be available from November 19.

US retail firm Barnes & Noble said customers who have shopped as recently as last month at any of its 63 stores in the country may have their credit card information stolen, and has informed federal law enforcement authorities about the breach.

The company said in a statement it has disconnected all PIN pads from its stores nationwide by close of business Sept 14. upon detecting tampering of those devices.

Germany's SAP raised its 2012 software revenue outlook to reflect the acquisition of internet-based cloud computing company Ariba, completed earlier this month.

The world's biggest maker of business software said on Wednesday it sees full-year revenue from software and software-related services growing by between 10.5 and 12.5 percent.

Yahoo Chief Executive Marrisa Mayer promised to modernize Yahoo's websites and make them more smartphone-friendly in her debut appearance at the helm of the struggling company, faulting it for underinvesting in the "mobile wave".

Mayer, once a rising star at Google Inc who took charge at Yahoo in July, told analysts on a conference call that she wanted to focus Yahoo's efforts around the "daily habits" of users such as email, the home page, Internet search and mobile devices.

Six major Indian companies, including Bharti Airtel, Infosys and Tata Consultancy Services, have made the cut in list of 20 'Most In Demand Employers' compiled by professional network LinkedIn.

Besides, Wipro Technologies, HCL Technologiesand Mahindra Satyam have also found a place in the list, which is topped by Accenture.

Apple's "iPad mini" will attract new customers but the higher-than-expected price will come as a relief to low-cost tablets such as Amazon.com's Kindle, analysts said, in a muted reaction to the new tablet.

Few analysts revised their price targets for Apple in the wake of the announcement, with one raising their target and one cutting it.

Apple shares edged up 0.7 per cent to $617.75 in premarket trading.

Global cloud traffic, the fastest growing component of data centre traffic, will grow six-fold by 2016 led by the Middle East and Africa, according to networking major Cisco.

It will grow from 683 exabytes of annual traffic in 2011 to 4.3 zettabytes by 2016, clipping a 44 per cent combined annual growth rate, said the second annual Cisco Global Cloud Index today.

Struggling social games pioneer Zynga began trimming workers, shuttering studios and shelving older titles to get in financial shape to win in the long run.

"Earlier today we initiated a number of changes to streamline our operations, focus our resources on our most strategic opportunities, and invest in our future," said an internal memo by Zynga founder Mark Pincus.

"As part of these changes, we've had to make some tough decisions around products, teams and people."

IT pricing will decline in next 12 months, iGate

ET now caught up with Phaneesh Murthy, CEO, iGATE for his take on the IT sector. Excerpts:

Let us talk about the IT environment.Infosys is in trouble, TCS is charged up. Do you think the IT sector is now getting more and more polarised?

Phaneesh Murthy: We are starting to see some differences in the performance of companies. Companies have been following different models and at certain points of time, some models were more effective and at different points of time, different models were more effective. But certainly, you are starting to see a little bit of difference in strategies, which may have been adopted 5-7 years ago or 8-10 years ago, starting to create little divergence now.

Nokia has unveiled Lumia 510, an entry-level smartphone running on Windows Phone 7.5 platform. The device, which will first be launched in India and China, will be positioned just above the Finnish manufacturer's Asha series. In India, the phone will cost less than Rs 11,000, though the company has not revealed the exact price.

Lumia 510 has a 4-inch TFT touchscreen with 800x480-pixel resolution, 800MHz QualcommSnapdragon S1 processor and 256MB RAM. This smartphone has 4GB of internal storage, but there is no support for microSD card, though the company is offering 7GB of free SkyDrive storage.

Apple on Tuesday refreshed its notebook line-up with a 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display priced at $1,699. It also launched all-new, razor-thin line of its iMac all-in-one desktop computers, besides Mac mini desktop computer. The company alsointroduced the iPad Mini and an updated version of the six-month-old iPad.

The 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display(227PPI pixel density) runs on OSX Mountain Lion, powered by a 2.5GHz Intel dual-core i5 and i7 'Ivy Bridge' processor and is available with 8GB RAM and 128GB flash memory.

Internet search giant Google is reportedly planning to unveil a new tablet from Samsung, a new phone from LG, an updated operating system and an improved Nexus 7 during its upcoming event on October 29.

The firm is expected to unveil at least one new Google Nexus phone as well as an enhanced version of its existing Nexus 7 tablet that will add more memory and 3G capabilities.

US computing giant Microsoft on Tuesday gave an early peek to the key Chinese market of its new tablet computer and Windows 8 software, promising a "fast and fluid" operating system.

Microsoft will launch Windows 8 and theSurface tablet computer, designed to compete with Apple's popular iPad, in the United Stateson Friday. The launch of the two products in China is the same day.

Windows remains the dominant platform for personal computers, but it has lost ground to Apple and Google in newer devices which use rival operating systems.

Samsung Electronics today announced the launch of its 75ES9000 LED Smart TV in the Indian market, priced at Rs 7,50,000. The TV, which falls in the segment 152cm or larger televisions, boasts of a unique design concept with rose-gold-coloured finish.

"The ES 9000 represents superior quality, best in class performance and features in a very sophisticated and elegant design. It provides consumers with a pure immersive viewing experience," said Mr. Mahesh Krishnan, Vice President - Consumer Electronics, Samsung India. The set's unique and timeless design concept includes a super-slim 7.9 millimeter curved bezel with no visible seams, cleanly complementing the TV's square stand. Additionally, the TV's built-in camera is hidden within the top of the bezel, rendering it invisible when not in use. Finally, the application of a luxurious rose-gold-colored finish to the entire body of the set makes it one of the most unique and attractive smart TVs to date.

LG Electronics India has launched a 84-inch Ultra HD 3D TV with a screen resolution of 3840 x 2160. LG has also introduced new features like LG's Cinema 3D technology, Smart TV ecosystem for easy browsing and navigation with the TV.

LG has also introduced four-mode Magic Remote which allows users to access and navigates the Home Dashboard. The remote also features Premium Content, Smart Share Plus and voice recognition.

Apple on Tuesday unveiled iPad Mini, a smaller version of the original iPad, with a 7.9-inch touchscreen and Retina display technology, starting at $329.

iPad Mini runs on dual-core A5 processor, FaceTime HD camera and 5MP iSight camera (with1080p recording). This tablet will compete with the likes of Google Nexus 7, SamsungGalaxy Tab 7.7 and Amazon Kindle Fire HD.

IT industry would see creation of 4.4 million jobs globally by 2015 to support big data, but only one-third of the jobs will be filled because there is not enough talent, according to IT research and advisory firm Gartner.

It also said the IT spending is forecast to surpass $3.7 trillion in 2013, a 3.8 per cent increase from the current year projected spending of $3.6 trillion.

Millions of people across the globe are using 'vulnerable' Android apps, which are leaking users' personal data, a new research has said.

The new study, which tested the 13,500 most popular free apps from the Google Play Store, found that 1074, almost eight per cent, used incorrect or inadequate coding.

Researchers at the Leibniz University of Hannover and the Philipps University of Marburg, both in Germany, tried to hack a sample of 100 of the vulnerable apps.

According to the Brisbane Times, they could easily exploit 41, of which there are at least 39.5 million users worldwide.

Internet search giant Google is known for its largesse when it comes to employee measures, and the recent death benefits policy may reinforce the belief. But while the company does not have "infinite money" to pump into benefits, at times core values take precedence over everything else, says Laszlo Bock, senior vice president, people operations and global HR head. Excerpts from an exclusive interview with Anumeha Chaturvedi.

Taiwanese PC maker Acer reported third quarter net profit of T$68 million ($2.32 million), well below estimates.

A poll of 18 analysts by Thomson ReutersI/B/E/S produced a mean estimate of T$756 million profit.

The company did not explain why its profit undershot expectations so dramatically, but said it would hold a briefing on Thursday to give more details of the earnings and its outlook.

A new social network similar to Twitter and Tumblr, called Pheed has attracted lots of celebrity support in its first week launch.

Pheed is hoping to take on Twitter and other social networks.

Celebrities such as Miley Cyrus, Chris Brownand Slash are using the new service, which allows members to charge for access to their "channels," either on a subscription basis or a pay-per-view basis, the Telegraph reported.

Even though retail sales are still dominated by brick and mortar stores, the influence of internet on offline purchasing is becoming increasingly important, according to a recent study conducted by Annik Technology Services.

Realising its power, retailers in India have started adopting social media. Though this is just the beginning, there is considerable untapped opportunity. "There is a lot of communication happening online but there are not many that are being addressed. This certainly can be leveraged to identify the needs of the people you are engaging with and how you should go about approaching them." said Partha Sarathi Sengupta, senior project director - analytics practice of Annik Technology Services.

Online auction giant eBay paid only £1.2 million ($1.92 million, 1.47 million euros) in tax to the British government despite generating £800 million in sales in the country, the Sunday Times reported.

The auction site denied any wrongdoing.

According to the Sunday Times report, the internet firm notched up sales of £789 million during 2010 at its four British subsidiaries, generating an estimated profit of £181 million.

Japan's biggest mobile operator said on Monday it will launch a translation service that lets people chat over the telephone in several different languages.

The application for NTT DoCoMo subscribers will give two-way voice and text readouts of conversations between Japanese speakers and those talking in English, Chinese or Korean with a several-second delay, the firm said.

" Hanashite Honyaku" will be a free application that can be used on smartphones and tablet computers with the Android operating system, DoCoMo said.

Text messaging is fast and efficient but a new video-sharing application aims to put users in the picture.

The London-based company Six3 has launched a new video-sharing app by the same name that will enable users to send short video messages as easily as sending a text. Whether it is a business traveller trying to stay in touch with family or a teenager connecting with friends, the app aims to combine the convenience of texting with the intimacy of video.

HCL Infosystems has been asked by a consumer forum here to either refund Rs 27,890 as cost of a faulty notebook computer to a buyer or replace the defective machine with a new one.

The New Delhi District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum also awarded the customer Rs 3,000 as compensation saying he was "mentally harassed" as he had been approaching HCL ever since he had purchased the computer, for rectifying the problems with the machine.

"...the complainant has been mentally harassed and it (HCL) has no option except to replace the set or refund the amount as per the invoice as it is pointed out by the service centre that it is a software manufacturing problem.

Mark Zuckerberg has opened up about his start-up experience and said that ifFacebook hadn't happened, he would have probably landed at Microsoft.

The social networking mogul shared his experience in a talk at Startup School, the annual conference for entrepreneurs and computer hackers at Stanford University, the Daily Mail reported Monday.

Even though Facebook boasts one billion users worldwide - the founder divulged that he most likely would have made his way to Seattle if his idea had flopped.

Ashok Vemuri, 43, head of the vital US market for Infosys , says there are "desperate" price games being played by competitors in a highly competitive outsourcing market and, if need be, Infosys too can play the game. But as a strategy, price under-cutting is a fool's game, says Vemuri, a potential contender for the job of CEO when SD Shibulal retires in 2014. The global recession has been a wakeup call for the company and there is a greater realisation internally about the need to use the bank balance to acquire companies, instead of trying to make everything in-house , he told LisonJoseph and Harsimran Julka in an interview. Here are edited excerpts:

Google faces moment of truth on monopoly probe

Google faces a moment of truth in the coming weeks over a lengthy US probe into potential abuse of its Internet search dominance, amid regulatory woes on both sides of the Atlantic.

The Federal Trade Commission is widely reported to be nearing a decision on whether to pursue Google for monopoly abuses, at the same time European regulators are conducting a similar review.

Saudi Arabia - Saudi Arabia did not have an Arab Spring. But it has had a revolution of sorts.

Open criticism of this country's royal family, once unheard-of, has become commonplace in recent months. Prominent judges and lawyers issue fierce public broadsides about large-scale government corruption and social neglect. Women deride the clerics who limit their freedoms. Even the king has come under attack.

All this dissent is taking place on the same forum: Twitter.

Windows 8 is coming on October 26. But it is not just any other update to Windows, the most widely used operating system (OS) in the world. According to Microsoft, Windows 8 is re-imagining of the 25-years-old OS.

Windows 8 is publicly available as a Release Preview. I downloaded the 64-bit version, installed it onto a laptop and used it to see what sort of changes it brings for the end users. There are interesting and significant ways in which this Windows is different from its predecessors. All of them affect the way people use computers. Some in a good way and some in bad. Dive in to know how Windows 8 fared on my laptop...

Pinterest lets you pin your favourite web objects to a virtual pinboard, but there is a lot more you can do with this useful service. Karan Bajaj & Hitesh Raj Bhagat present a few useful tips, tricks tools and etiquettes to get the most out of it.

WHO SHOULD USE IT?

Website owners and bloggers can use it to drive traffic to their own website.

Just weeks after its momentous launch of the iPhone 5, Apple is back with what is expected to be another hot gadget -- a "mini" version of its market-leading iPad tablet.

Apple sent out invitations for an event Tuesday in San Jose, California, keeping details under wraps as it normally does, saying only: "We've got a little more to show you."

Marissa Mayer, who earned a reputation for decisive action and intensity during her 13-year stint at Google Inc, has spent her first months as Yahoo Inc CEO quietly moving the Internet pioneer back to its roots in technology.

Long torn between whether it should focus on media content or on tools and technologies, Yahoo under Mayer is being positioned firmly in the latter camp, according to sources inside and outside the company.

Joanna Shields, head of social media group Facebook's operations in Europe, is leaving to join a British government-sponsored venture to create London's answer to Silicon Valley.

Tech City Investment Organisation was set up in April 2011 to attract inward investment focused on an area in London's east End, dubbed "silicon roundabout" and supporting start-ups looking to expand.

It has signed up companies including Cisco, Google and Intel.

Want to be a spy, Hone your social media, gaming skills

Britain launched a new spy recruitment drive on Thursday aimed at "Xbox generation" youngsters without a university education but with social media and computer game skills to counter the threat of cyber attack.

Foreign Secretary William Hague launched the apprenticeship scheme in a speech at Bletchley Park in southern England, where Nazi Germany's Enigma codes were broken in World War II.

The release of Microsoft's Windows 8 operating system is a week away, and consumers are in for a shock. Windows, used in one form or another for a generation, is getting a completely different look that will force users to learn new ways to get things done.

Microsoft is making a radical break with the past to stay relevant in a world where smartphones and tablets have eroded the three-decade dominance of the personal computer. Windows 8 is supposed to tie together Microsoft's PC, tablet and phone software with one look. But judging by the reactions of some people who have tried the PC version, it's a move that risks confusing and alienating customers.

Luminaries from the tech sector launched the first in a series of online videos supporting President Barack Obama on Friday, in the latest effort of the "Tech for Obama" group.

A two-minute YouTube video touting "innovation" included comments from a dozen tech executives including Craigslist founderCraig Newmark, LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman and others, one of several videos for Obama.

Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh today said there is a need to increase the country's capabilities in emerging areas like cyber and space, which can be the sources of new threats.

He said India's security challenges, including cross-border terrorism, transnational crime and drug trafficking, remain diverse and serious. Added to these are new challenges in areas that constitute the 'global commons' - such as space, the high seas and cyberspace.

Tata Consultancy Services, India's top software services exporter, expects pricing for its services to remain stable for the remaining part of the fiscal year ending in March 2013, its chief executive N Chandrasekaran said on Friday.

The company is not seeing delays by clients on outsourcing spending decisions, he said, despite an uncertain global economic outlook.

Tablet sales in India are expected to cross 1.6 million units this year, a growth of 40% over last year and way above the 16% growth registered by personal computers.

According to the apex body for information technology hardware Manufacturers Association of IT, tablets are emerging as the preferred device for entertainment and content consumption.

Russia's leading internet search engine, Yandex, will take the fight to Google in emerging markets like Turkey in a bid to offset the inroads made by the US giant in its home market.

Yandex founder and chief executive Arkady Volozh told Reuters on Friday the firm was likely to use its own experts to expand into new countries, but would not rule out acquisitions or partnership deals.

Phil Libin, chief executive of Evernote, turned to his wife last year and asked if she had suggestions for how the software company might improve the lives of its employees and their families. His wife, who also works at Evernote, didn't miss a beat: housecleaning.

Today, Evernote's 250 employees - every full-time worker, from receptionist to top executive - have their homes cleaned twice a month, free.

Google has some good news for developers in the country. The company has announced Indian developers can now sell their apps on Google's Android platform, Google Play. Till now, developers from India could only offer their apps for free downloads on the Google Play marketplace.

In a post on Android Developers blog, Ibrahim Elbouchikhi, product manager of the Google Play team said, "Developers in India can sell paid applications, in-app products, and subscriptions in Google Play, with monthly payouts to their local bank accounts."

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