IN THE PAPERS
In The Papers 22 October
22-10-2010
by Sylvia Leatham
Dept of Foreign Affairs issues scam warning | Just Mobile launches as MVNO
The Irish Times reports that the passport number and other details of at least one person have been phished as a result of a fraudulent e-mail purporting to come from the Revenue Commissioners. The e-mail is headed "You are eligible to receive a tax refund!" and links to a convincing reproduction of Revenue.ie. It then prompts the user to input personal details including their passport number and expiry date. Following a warning issued by the Department of Foreign Affairs, the passport office received a call from a person who had provided passport details after receiving the e-mail. The person was advised to get a new passport.
The paper also says that the electronic tagging of reoffending burglars on bail has been called for by Fianna Fail backbencher Frank Fahey. Fahey said he had raised with Minister for Justice Dermot Ahern the circumstances of serial burglars who had previously been in prison and were breaking into houses while on bail. "It is time for electronic tagging of those serial criminals while they are on bail awaiting a further trial," he said. It was clear, he said, that many burglaries were committed by the same people again and again.
The paper also notes the launch of mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) Just Mobile, which promises lower call costs than the established networks while also offering customers a way to donate to their charity of choice. Just Mobile will use Vodafone's network to carry its service. Offering a pre-paid service to begin with, Just Mobile is hoping to lure customers with flat rates of EUR0.20 per minute for calls to mobiles and landlines in Ireland, and EUR0.09 for text messages. The company has signed up with a number of charities to donate some of the call revenue.
The paper also says that Heystaks Technologies, a social web search start-up, has secured EUR1 million in equity funding from the Ulster Bank Diageo Venture Fund, managed by NCB Ventures. The company will use the investment to create 10 new jobs over the next year, develop its product further and open a US office.
The same paper says that Kidspotter, which develops child-tracking systems and sells them to high-traffic venues such as theme parks and shopping centres, has secured EUR400,000 in funding from Enterprise Ireland and a syndicate of angel investors. Kidspotter has developed a tamper-proof bracelet device which can be worn by children in a crowded but confined environment like an amusement park. If the child wanders away, they can be quickly located using GPS and wireless technologies. Kidspotter founder Liam Darling said the new investment had made an "astonishing" difference to the company already and would enable it to accelerate its product development and entry to the US market.
The paper also notes that BriteBill has won a contract with mobile operator Three Ireland to provide it with its web-based bill presentation and payment software.
The same paper reports that the worst of companies' slashing of technology budgets may be over, according to a survey of Irish chief information officers (CIOs) by Deloitte. Last year almost 60 percent of CIOs expected their budgets to be cut by 20 percent in 2010, with 6 percent predicting even bigger cuts. While this year 58 percent expect a decrease in 2011 budgets, 47 percent are optimistic that this will be a more modest cut of less than 10 percent. The research found that 38 percent of CIOs believe the rest of their organisation views the technology function as "adding value" to the business.
The Irish Examiner says that Brian Conlon, the founder and chief executive of Newry firm First Derivatives, has been named Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year. Conlon was the winner of the International Category, the overall title. Dublin-born Conrad Burke of Innovalight was named the Emerging Entrepreneur of the Year.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Amazon.com has reported a 16 percent rise in profit, but the online retail giant is spending heavily to expand its business. Income for the third quarter came in at USD231 million, or USD0.51 a share, compared with USD199 million, or USD0.45 a share, in the third quarter of 2009. The results were driven by a 39 percent increase in sales to USD7.56 billion. Most of the growth came from the company's catch-all electronics and general merchandise category. Operating expenses rose 40 percent from a year earlier, continuing a trend seen in the second quarter.
The Financial Times says that Hewlett-Packard has become the first computer maker to release a tablet running Microsoft's Windows 7 operating system. The device, the Slate 500, is designed for companies wedded to Windows, especially those that might want to install their own applications, HP said. HP also plans to deliver a webOS-based Slate, which executives said will ship early next year. HP bought Palm, the owner of the webOS operating system, earlier this year.
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Caped Koala Studios has built a virtual world for kids, combining education and social networking 