ROUNDUPS
In the papers 1 February
01-02-2006
by
Google denies considering a bid for Napster | Publishers to challenge internet copyright breaches
The Irish Times reports that, in the aftermath of the fallout over Google's decision to bow to Chinese censorship demands, Microsoft has modified its stance on how it offers services such as web searches, e-mail and blogs in foreign countries. The software giant believes that these changes will enable it to operate with greater transparency and responsibility. Microsoft said it would remove web content or hand over information only when required to do so by a legally binding notice.
The same paper reports that Enterprise Ireland and Dublin technology start-up company SoftEdge Systems are among the first beneficiaries of a programme that allows governments and small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs) to commercialise technologies that Microsoft has developed but will not market itself. Read more on this story as reported by ElectricNews.net on Tuesday.
Also in the Irish Times is a report that mobile phone company Getmobile Europe saw its share price rise by 12.5 percent on Tuesday after it issued a positive trading statement. Its German subsidiary, Getmobile AG, anticipates that its earnings will be about 20 percent up on the EUR3.97 million it recorded in 2004.
The paper also reports that Ireland is facing increasing competition for high-tech investment from emerging economies in Europe and Asia, according to a Forfas report. Read the full story as reported by ElectricNews.net.
The Irish Independent reports that European publishers of newspapers, magazines and books have joined forces to challenge "exploitation of content" by search engines without fair compensation for copyright owners. A task force led by the World Association of Newspapers (WAN) will examine the options open to publishers seeking to assert issues of copyright and brand infringement.
Also in the Irish Independent is a report that the Department of Communications has launched a discussion paper on broadband demand in Ireland, as noted by ElectricNews.net.
The Irish Examiner reports that Google on Tuesday denied it was considering a bid for Napster, leading to shares of the digital music service to fall back from gains of as much as 60 percent. Napster claims to have about 500,000 subscribers, making it a distant third to dominant music service Apple iTunes and RealNetworks' Rhapsody. Napster showed a net loss of USD13.6 million in its September quarter.
The Financial Times records that AT&T, the recently renamed US telecoms group, significantly raised its estimates of savings and synergies generated by its acquisition late last year of the old AT&T business, and said it expected to record double-digit earnings growth over the next three years.
The same paper also covers Microsoft's call for internet companies to adopt a common approach to dealing with official publication restrictions in China and elsewhere.
The Wall Street Journal reports that Cable & Wireless group chief executive Francesco Caio will step down as part of a reorganisation and warned that earnings at its UK business will stagnate during fiscal 2007. In London, C&W's shares lost 11 percent following the news.
Creating successful email surveys: Denise Cox of email specialist Newsweaver argues that you can tap into your readers' likes or dislikes by surveying them.
