Daily Digest 11 September

11-09-2008

by Deirdre McArdle

Alcon to create jobs in Cork | NTT DoCoMo jumps into Blue Ocean Wireless

Medical devices firm Alcon has announced plans to create 186 new jobs at its Cork city plant. The US firm has just completed a major expansion of its Cork operation and it is now set to invest a further EUR21 million there. Alcon is the world's largest ophthalmic company producing eyecare pharmaceuticals, surgical devices and products such as lenses. It currently employs around 200 people in Cork. Staff at the plant are charged with making surgical intraocular lenses, which are used to replace the eye's natural lens following cataract surgery.

Japanese mobile giant NTT DoCoMo is to acquire an 11.5 percent stake in Dublin-based maritime communications firm Blue Ocean Wireless. The Japanese company's EUR7.2 million investment values the Dublin firm at EUR62.4 million. Blue Ocean Wireless was launched in 2007 as a joint venture between Co Kerry-based Altobridge, known for its pioneering aviation and maritime communications technology, and private investment house Claret Capital. At the beginning of August Smart Communications, one of the largest mobile phone operators in the Philippines, bought a 30 percent stake in Blue Ocean Wireless. Prior to that, in June, Bank of Scotland (Ireland) acquired a 10 percent stake in the Dublin-based firm.

Tanaiste Mary Coughlan has urged Irish businesses of all sizes to "harness the power of innovation" if they are to prosper in more challenging economic times. The Tanaiste was speaking at the 2008 National Innovation Forum, "Making Innovation Deliver Results", in Croke Park on Thursday. "Our recent economic success is rooted in innovation; however we cannot afford to become complacent especially given increased competition in the global economy. Ireland’s priority is developing our economy in ways that maintain competitive advantage and increases productivity. Innovation has no policy borders; in fact it has no borders at all. Innovation must be core to how we think and act as a society and how we deliver goods and services as players in the global economy," she said. Other speakers at the event included Dr Elena Lurie-Luke, head of Bioscience Business Development at Procter and Gamble EMEA, and Michael Moriarty, manager of Enterprise Ireland’s Innovation and Global Partnering Department.

Despite the slow-down in IT spending and the general economic malaise, worldwide PC shipments are projected to grow by 15.7 percent in 2008 to reach 311 million units, largely thanks to recent shipment growth and increasing competition in the rapidly growing netbooks market. That's according to research house IDC, which expects growth to remain strong through 2011, with growth above 9 percent in 2012, boosting annual shipments to over 482 million that year. "The right way to gauge the success of consumer PCs is no longer the adoption rate of households with PCs, or even the number of PCs per household, but rather the number of machines per individual," said Bob O'Donnell, vice president, Clients and Displays, IDC. "The increasing form factor diversity in notebooks as well as desktops is enabling people to justify multiple PC purchases. In the commercial space, companies continue to see the value of refreshing their PCs and are maintaining surprisingly healthy purchasing patterns."

Following the release of its upgraded iPods, Apple has received praise from environmental group Greenpeace. In its newly updated iPod Nano, Apple has completely eliminated the use of PVC and BFRs. Greenpeace issued a statement praising Apple's move and encouraging the company to expand this greener policy. "Greenpeace believes that the latest-generation iPods are significantly less toxic than before. Further, it shows once again that there is absolutely no reason why a high-performing electronics product needs to be toxic in order to be popular, effective and affordable. These are the cheapest iPods yet." Greenpeace hasn't always been a fan of Apple's policies. In January 2007 the activist group set up a campaign called Greenmyapple in a bid to get Apple to take a lead on environmental issues. As part of its campaign Greenpeace took to the streets of San Francisco and New York, staging activities outside Apple outlets in the cities, where they projected a green light onto the signature Apple logo above the stores.