IN THE PAPERS
In The Papers 17 January
17-01-2011
by Sylvia Leatham
PopCap to double Dublin staff numbers | Skype to increase workforce by 50pc
The Irish Examiner reports that US-owned PopCap Games has confirmed it intends to double the number of staff it employs at its European headquarters in Dublin. The company currently employs 55 people, and Senior Director Cathy Orr confirmed on Sunday that the firm is planning to create an additional 55 jobs at its Dublin office. "We are aiming to double the number we employ here over the next two to three years," she said. The Seattle-based games developer established its European HQ in Dublin in 2005.
According to the Financial Times, Skype plans to increase its headcount by nearly 50 percent this year. The hiring spree is an attempt by new CEO Tony Bates to inject urgency into the online telephony firm. Skype has been slow to come up with a broad "premium tier" of services for which it can charge users -- something Bates aims to address. "You're going to see a rhythm and cadence of product release that's going to increase," said Bates. He indicated Skype plans to hire up to 400 new staff this year, with 80 percent of those in Silicon Valley.
The paper also says that the Chinese government has threatened stiff fines or even closure if internet companies engage in unfair competition. In draft rules published on Friday, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology warned that internet businesses must not refuse service to users, make their service incompatible with a rival's or influence customers' use of rival services. The new rules also ban internet companies from installing, uninstalling, updating or otherwise changing content on a user's computer without clearly letting them know.
The Wall Street Journal reports that new HP chief Leo Apotheker is finalising a strategic plan for the tech firm, including shuffling senior management and placing a greater emphasis on the more profitable parts of the business, according to sources. The changes being considered include investing more in HP's software, networking and storage businesses. The strategic plan would also mean new duties for HP veterans including Ann Livermore, who runs the company's enterprise business, as well as newer managers. Some executives are expected to depart, sources said, including Chief Information Officer Randy Mott.
The Sunday Times notes that Apple is due to report another bumper quarter this week, after the iPad maker sold an estimated 8 million devices in the run-up to Christmas.
The paper also notes that IIU, Dermot Desmond's investment firm, has increased its stake in travel software firm Datalex to 28.8 percent.
The paper also reports that hotel-ratings website TripAdvisor has removed several reviews of Legends – the hotel in Mauritius where Michaela McAreavey was killed – that referred to her death. Xavier Arnoux, manager of Legends, said the hotel had not requested the reviews be removed. "They removed them themselves," he said. TripAdvisor said it did not comment on individual posts or hotels, and said a review would only be taken down if there was a request from its author or it did not meet the website's guidelines.
The Sunday Business Post says that online insurance broker Chill.ie has been relaunched. It is running a new ad campaign on TV, radio and online, created by ad agency Atomic.
The paper also says that Endeavour, a mentoring programme for new business start-ups, is looking for 80 participants for this year's initiative. Among the companies that took part in the programme last year were TapMap.com, Learnpipe and DataHug.
The paper also notes that Wikipedia has celebrated its tenth anniversary. The site now has over 3.5 million articles in English.
The same paper note that Sky has delayed its plans to launch a broadband service in Ireland. "Sky continues to explore opportunities to launch broadband and telephony services in Ireland," a spokesman said.
The paper also says that Dublin-based Aircraft Management Technologies has won a new deal with US aircraft maker ATR. The value of the deal was not disclosed.
The same paper says that Louth software firm Armac Systems has signed a new deal with aircraft maintenance firm SR Technics. The deal, the value of which was not disclosed, will see SR Technics use Armac's RIOsys inventory planning software, as well as consultancy support services.
The same paper says that a new technology transfer centre at UCC will house 15 high-tech start-ups and provide a way for research to be commercialised. GatewayUCC is also hoping to house companies from other research centres and to promote academic partnerships with businesses.
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