NEWS IN BRIEF
Daily Digest 21 October
21-10-2009
by Emmet Cole
Sajan to create 35 Dublin jobs | Google to launch music site: report
US software group Sajan is to establish its European headquarters in Dublin, leading to the creation of 35 new jobs in the capital. The jobs will focus on the areas of research and development, as well as sales, and the firm told ENN that recruitment had already begun for the positions. Sajan provides on-demand translation technology and services. The Dublin operations -- Sajan Software -- will be a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sajan, and will focus on developing cloud-based translation technologies. According to Sajan, Ireland's reputation as "a business-friendly country with deep roots in linguistics and translation" fits well with Sajan Software's overall business strategy. The firm said having a base in Ireland also affords more immediate access to European customers.
The Irish Technology Leadership Group -- a group of US-based executives with Irish links -- is set to launch a venture fund of USD100 million and is also in the process of creating an Irish tech centre in Silicon Valley, California, which is expected to open in 2010. According to the group, the fund is designed to provide a beachhead for Irish tech start-ups to enable them to develop and showcase their potential in the traditional heart of the high-tech sector. Twelve high-potential technology companies from both sides of the border have been attending workshops in Belfast on Wednesday morning, where they met the chief executives from the US companies involved in the group.
The Tanaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment Mary Coughlan announced on Wednesday that Irish software company Lincor Solutions has won a significant contract to install its MEDIVista product in the London Health Sciences Center (LHSC), in Ontario, Canada. Lincor, an Enterprise Ireland client company, specialises in providing digital media entertainment and clinical access solutions at the point of care. The new contract was secured by Lincor along with its Canadian technology partner Carillion IT, a subsidiary of Carillion Canada. The announcement was made during Enterprise Ireland's trade mission to Canada involving 35 companies from sectors including software, telecoms and financial services. A value of the deal was not revealed.
Research conducted by eBay.ie reveals that Ireland leads the way in 'night owl' shopping among its European neighbours, with 41 percent of all online sales to Irish consumers occurring at night. The UK night owl shopping rate is 36 percent. An incredible 100 percent of DIY sales on eBay.ie occurred at night. The research also revealed that the UK is our largest export market, accounting for 55 percent of all outward sales, followed by the US, with 10 percent of exports. The study also revealed that Irish people require discounts of over 37 percent to feel they have achieved a bargain.
Meanwhile, employees plan to spend nearly two full working days (14.4 hours) on average shopping online from a work computer this holiday season, according to a survey conducted on behalf of ISACA, a non-profit association of 86,000 information technology (IT) professionals. One in 10 plans to spend at least 30 hours shopping online at work. The second annual "Shopping on the Job: Online Holiday Shopping and Workplace Internet Safety" survey found that fully half of those surveyed plan to shop online for the holidays using a work computer.
Software company Mamut has received Microsoft certification for 18 products in seven markets with the "Compatible with Windows 7" logo. The company, which has an office in Dublin, has also been awarded the title 'authorised Microsoft Gold Provider'. All Mamut-solutions are developed using Microsoft technology. Finally, Mamut has been selected as a Windows 7 launch partner in several European markets. Windows 7 is due to be launched on Thursday, 22 October.
Irish web-enabled hotel software firm Avvio has announced plans to continue its global expansion and accelerate its growth to EUR3.5 million in 2010. The company was also ranked fifth in Deloitte's Technology Fast 50 for Ireland. Avvio provides online reservations software, including online marketing and web-design, for over 700 hotels and serviced apartment providers worldwide. Avvio was established in 2002 by Limerick brothers Brian and Frank Reeves.
TechCrunch is reporting that Google is set to launch an online music service. According to the report, Google has spent the last several weeks securing content for the launch of the service from the major music labels, with one source referring to the new service as "Google Audio". Google launched a free music download service called Google China music in 2008, but the new service is expected to be very different. It's not yet clear whether the US-based service will be a download or streaming service, or both.
Finally, Kanye West was the victim of an internet hoax on Wednesday, with reports of his death in a car accident flooding online sources. Although it's not known exactly where the rumour started, fingers are pointing at 4chan.org -- a site known for its high population of online tricksters. Computer security blog Sophos.com tied the scam to hackers using the rumour to push false reports to the top of internet search engine results. By Wednesday morning, "Kanye West died" and variations of this phrase were amongst the most-searched topics on Google Trends, while 'RIP Kanye West' was one of the top trending topics on Twitter on Wednesday morning.
Caped Koala Studios has built a virtual world for kids, combining education and social networking 