Weekly Digest
Weekly Digest Issue No. 495
10-12-2009
by Deirdre McArdle
Smart economy gets Budget boost | Apple tablet on the cards for 2010: report
Tech firms continue to attract funding
Despite the challenging environment Irish technology companies have been relatively successful in raising funding in 2009. In the third quarter tech firms raised EUR109 million, up 55 percent on the same period last year. According to the latest 'VenturePulse' survey issued by the Irish Venture Capital Association (IVCA), the money raised for the first nine months of the year came in at EUR220 million, up 26 percent from the EUR174 million raised in the same time-frame in 2008. Some 86 companies raised funds in 2009 up to September, compared to 64 in the first nine months of 2008. The amounts raised ranged from EUR50,000 to EUR47 million. Looking at it from a sector perspective, the business services sector was the most successful in terms of the number of companies that raised money, at 19; however, the pharma and biotech sector was most prolific in terms of the amount of funding raised, with nine companies raising EUR76.7 million between them. Grouped together, 15 nanotech, fibre optics, photonics and chip firms managed to bring in EU43.2 million during the nine months, while in the medical devices sector 15 companies raised EUR32.4 million. Overall, the figures were welcomed by Minister for Science, Technology and Innovation Conor Lenihan, who paid particular attention to the area of seed funding. During the nine-month period, 39 early stage companies raised EUR48.3 million (22 percent of the total).
Smart economy gets Budget boost
The Tanaiste Mary Coughlan has called Budget 2010 "the Budget for jobs"; in many ways it could also be seen as "the Budget for Green", such is the focus on the green economy. Eamon Ryan, Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, may have been one of the very few ministers delivering good news following Brian Lenihan's Budget speech on Wednesday. His department was allocated EUR517 million, some EUR5 million more than last year. "Every euro this department spends will be focussed on jobs for our people in the growing areas of the green and digital economies," said Minister Ryan. Breaking it down, EUR12.9 million will be spent on energy research with a focus on wave energy; the sound and vision fund will be increased to EUR14.6 million; while EUR45 million has been pegged for "modernising" our telecoms infrastructure (this includes the ongoing National Broadband Scheme and delivering broadband to 78 secondary schools). The minister also said "work will be advanced on positioning Ireland as a test bed for the next-generation of energy-efficient fibre optics networks". The so-called 'smart economy' was also prioritised, with Minister Coughlan announcing a EUR474 million capital commitment to the enterprise, job creation, and science, technology and innovation mandate of her Department and its agencies -- IDA Ireland, Enterprise Ireland, Shannon Development, Science Foundation Ireland and the County and City Enterprise Boards. Of the EUR474 million, some EUR276 million will be allocated to science, technology and innovation programmes. Chambers Ireland has broadly welcomed the Budget, saying it has "the potential to significantly boost confidence and get Ireland on the road to recovery".
Broadband trends shift ever so slightly
While there has been no movement in the percentage of Irish enterprises (84 percent) that access the net via a broadband connection between 2008 and 2009, there has been a slight change in the way businesses receive broadband. Central Statistics Office figures for 2009 show that 45 percent of enterprises use a DSL broadband connection with speeds of over 2Mbps, compared to 41 percent in 2008. On the other hand, use of DSL broadband connections with speeds of less than 2Mbps dropped to 29 percent compared to 31 percent last year. Mobile broadband usage has risen to 27 percent, up from 24 percent in 2008. Meanwhile, there has been a noticeable drop in the number of firms using other fixed broadband access technologies such as leased lines and cable broadband -- from 31 percent in 2008 to 20 percent in 2009. In a separate but related report, ComReg revealed that over half of Irish businesses reduced their communications spend in 2009. In a study of 485 SMEs and 66 corporate firms, 56 percent said they had reduced spending on communications services in the past 12 months. Some 42 percent said "getting the best value for money" was the chief reason they chose their main fixed-line telecoms supplier, while 14 percent have considered dispensing with their fixed-line service altogether. Though Eircom continues to be the main internet service provider (ISP) in the market, 40 percent of businesses are now using an alternative provider, according to ComReg.
Google turns up the dial on real-time search
Google turned up the heat on the real-time search market this week by adding to-the-second updates from the likes of Twitter and Facebook to its search results. From Monday, tweets, blog items, news articles and social networking updates have been appearing in results for certain topical searches on Google.com. A quick search for 'Budget Ireland' on Wednesday, for example, showed up a series of search results as you would expect, but the middle of the page featured a box with real-time updates from Twitter et al, scrolling through continuously. In October, Google struck formal partnerships with Twitter, Facebook and MySpace to bring real-time updates from those services into its search index. Also in October, Microsoft signed deals with Twitter and Facebook, but for now real-time updates from those sites do not appear in Bing's search results page. Rather, Microsoft's move into the area is confined to a dedicated Twitter search page. Also this week, Google introduced a number of other features, perhaps the most ambitious of which is called Google Goggles. The feature allows people to send Google a mobile phone photograph of a landmark or a book, for example, and Google will then send information about the contents of the image to them instantly. For now, Google Goggles works on Android-powered phones, but the search firm said it will be made available for other phones soon.
Apple tablet on the cards for 2010: report
The Apple "iPad" rumour mill cranked up again this week following a report by Oppenheimer tech analyst Yair Reiner which suggested that the e-reader/web browsing tablet could hit the market by March next year. In a note to investors, excerpts of which have been published on AppleInsider, Apple is currently preparing to commence production of up to 1 million units per month, a plan that would see Apple with enough devices to launch to market by March 2010. According to Reiner, the device is likely to feature a 10.1 inch screen, using LTPS LCD technology similar to that used in the iPhone's screen. Reiner also has an insight into possible content offerings to book publishers: "Apple will split revenue 30/70 (Apple/publisher); give the same deal to all comers; and not request exclusivity. We believe the typical Kindle split is 50/50, rising to 30/70 if Kindle is given e-book exclusivity." Apple traditionally remains tight-lipped on upcoming products and true to form it hasn't commented on the rumours of an Apple tablet/e-reader. Industry commentators and analysts appear convinced that the release of such a device is imminent, however. The e-reader market is certainly heating up. While Amazon's Kindle is still hugely popular, Barnes & Noble's Nook e-reader has stirred things up, although supply problems suggest it may not be able to fill its current orders until the New Year.
Caped Koala Studios has built a virtual world for kids, combining education and social networking 