In The Papers 22 August

22-08-2008

by Deirdre McArdle

Bioptics to locate R&D operations in Ireland | Verizon and Google in mobile search talks

The Irish Times reports that Apple is facing a lawsuit in the US based around claims that its iPhone 3G does not function properly as a phone and does not download web pages at twice the rate of its predecessor, as had been advertised. Read more on this story on ENN.

The same paper says that retailers have been urged by Detective Inspector Denis Heneghan of the Garda Bureau of Fraud Investigation (GBFI) to take more precautions with their security procedures and technology in an effort to avoid a repeat of two large-scale card frauds that emerged this week.

Still in the Irish Times, Gardai have warned car buyers to be careful if buying a car online. The warning comes after a member of the public became a victim of a motoring scam whereby the car they purchased online was never delivered. Gardai have advised prospective car buyers to ensure they are satisfied with the bona fides of individuals or organisations offering items for sale over the internet.

According to the same paper, shares in the Australian investment bank Babcock Brown, which has an 8 percent share in Eircom, fell sharply on Thursday morning after a major overhaul of its board and management team failed to convince investors that the company can be saved. With this latest 36 percent plunge in its Sydney-listed shares the company's share price has now lost more than 90 percent in value this year. The share price drop comes as concerns grow about the viability of its debt-funded investment model amid the global credit crunch.

The paper also reports on Microsoft's attempts to attract the casual gamer to the Xbox with the launch of two new games that ditch the traditional game controllers. "Lips", a karaoke game which uses wireless microphones, and "You're in the Movies", which is controlled by an Xbox Live camera, are due for release by the end of the year.

US digital imaging company, Bioptics, has announced plans to locate the majority of its R&D operations in Ireland, according to the Irish Times. The firm, which is based in Tucson, Arizona, is also looking to open a sales office for its operations in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) in Ireland. Kingspan co-founder Eugene Murtagh and his son, Paul, who is based in the US, have emerged as the controlling shareholders of the company. They recently appointed Dr Hugh Cormican, founder of Northern Ireland specialist imaging group Andor Technology, to the post of chief executive. Bioptics is involved in the development and manufacturing of digital X-ray machines for the medical sector.

The paper also says that Kerry-based remote communications group Altobridge recorded a 2007 profit of EUR4.7 million compared with a loss of EUR3 million in 2006. This reduced its accumulated losses to EUR1.2 million, from just under EUR6 million a year earlier. In 2007 Altobridge earned EUR3.7 million from Blue Ocean Wireless, which provides mobile phone services to container ship crews by licensing its technology. Altobridge owns shares in Blue Ocean and chief executive Mike Fitzgerald is among its directors.

Finally, in the Irish Times, the paper reports that Muzu TV, the recently launched music video platform, has signed a content deal with ITN which gives it access to 80,000 hours of video. Read more about this latest deal by Muzu on ENN.

The Irish Independent reports that people trying to download tracks from Apple's iTunes Music Store in China have complained that they could not access the site. Since Monday, over 60 consumers have posted messages to an Apple discussion forum about the issue. Their complaints follow the release of The Art of Peace Foundation's new album called "Songs for Tibet", which is a compilation about the rights of ethnic Tibetans. The glitch has raised fears among analysts that the Chinese government has blocked Apple's iTunes site over the pro-Tibet lyrics.

The same paper writes that Eircom has lost the contract to operate the 999 emergency service to directory enquiries firm Conduit and telecoms giant BT. Eircom had previously expressed dissatisfaction to the Government at the cost of running the service and the then Communications Minister Noel Dempsey had launched a public procurement process for the contract. Eircom had run the service for free up until 2007. The contract is estimated to have been worth EUR3 million a year to Eircom.

According to the Examiner, student finance site, www.studentfinance.ie, has received more than 100,000 visits since its launch by the Higher Education Authority (HEA) in January. Around 27,000 of those visits have been made in the past month alone.

The Wall Street Journal reports that Verizon Communications is close to signing an agreement with Google on a wide-ranging search partnership, according to people familiar with the situation. The deal under discussion would make Google the default search provider on Verizon devices and give it a share of ad revenue. The deal isn't yet final and the two sides are still negotiating on key issues, such as Google's interest in saving information from user cellphone searches. Traditionally carriers prize such information and are reluctant to turn it over.