IN THE PAPERS
In The Papers 12 November
12-11-2009
by Sylvia Leatham
Mark Little to launch news website | HP to acquire 3Com
The Irish Times reports that books of Irish interest held in libraries around the world have become almost instantly available with the launch of a new service organised by the National Library of Ireland. The Sources Database for Irish Research catalogues books and periodicals of Irish interest held in the National Library and research centres and universities in the US, Britain, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. The internet-based system (http://sources.nli.ie) contains up to 170 periodicals held in the library's own collection, with references to 40,000 books and documents held in Dublin. It also delivers almost 160,000 more references to publications held abroad. Sources provides information about these books and documents but also links to the institutions holding them so that copies can be organised.
The paper also notes that regional airline Aer Arann recently ran an online marketing campaign that resulted in a 320 percent spike in flight bookings, the highest sales achieved by the airline in one day this year. In a "Happy Hour" offer, customers could get 50 percent off all flights booked between 1pm and 3pm on a certain day. Customers were notified about the sale the previous day via the Aer Arann e-zine, which said that a major offer was on the way without disclosing what the offer would be.
The Irish Examiner says that RTE's Mark Little has revealed his plans to develop an Irish-based "global website" providing news and information across the world. The Prime Time presenter described traditional news media as being dead and said he was leaving RTE for a year because he wants to become a serious player in the information revolution. The site, which is months from going live, will use social and digital media, with a strong emphasis on video and crowd-sourcing. Content will be provided by both professional journalists and users.
The paper also says that TV viewers risk being ripped off by phone-in shows because the technology driving them falls between regulatory cracks, a Dail Committee has heard. Opposition TDs railed against Communications Minister Eamon Ryan for not doing enough to close potential loopholes in new legislation governing premium-rate phone lines. The new bill seeks to impose stricter regulations on the operators of these high-priced phone services and the telephone companies who facilitate them. Labour Party spokeswoman Liz McManus said Ryan could not oversee phone operators with one regulator (ComReg) and police broadcasters airing the premium-line shows with another (the Broadcasting Authority). McManus said the legislation did not deal with an ongoing convergence in the media industry, which had blurred the lines between broadcasters and communications companies.
According to the Financial Times, UK telco BT Group has said improvements in operational performance would enable it to raise its full-year dividend, in spite of a decline in underlying first-half revenues. The group's optimism was based on predictions that group turnover would fall at a slower-than-expected rate, and that cost reductions and cash flow would be at least 50 percent better than previously predicted. BT said the full-year dividend would rise by about 5 percent from last year's payout of STG0.065.
The paper also says that strength in the emerging Latin American mobile market and cost-cutting measures helped Spain's Telefonica post flat nine-month profit. Net profit grew 0.3 percent to EUR5.61 billion, compared with analyst expectations of EUR5.65 billion. Revenues overall fell 3.3 percent to EUR41.72 billion in the nine-month period, just below an analyst consensus of EUR41.93 billion, while operating income before depreciation and amortisation fell 2.2 percent to EUR16.65 billion, compared with analyst predictions of EUR16.66 billion.
The paper also says that Hewlett-Packard has agreed to buy 3Com for USD2.7 billion in cash. The purchase would make HP, the top PC maker, number two in the market for networking gear, putting it into competition with Cisco Systems. 3Com has about 30 percent of the growing Chinese market for switches and routers, stemming from a previous joint venture with China's Huawei. HP said it intended to use its larger sales force to distribute 3Com gear more broadly.
The Wall Street Journal reports that Motorola is exploring the sale of its biggest business unit as it seeks to split itself apart. The unit, which makes television set-top boxes and networking gear, could sell for USD4 billion to USD5 billion, according to sources. Motorola is trying to break itself up as it seeks a strategy to combat plunging sales. It has tried for nearly two years to spin off its mobile phone business, which has been without a hit device since its blockbuster Razr. Its newest smart phone, the Droid, has generated good reviews and initial buzz, however.
Free! "In the papers" email newsletter -- get the full text to your in-box every business day. Email itp@enn.ie with 'subscribe' in the subject line.
Caped Koala Studios has built a virtual world for kids, combining education and social networking 