BUSINESS
In the papers 03 October
03-10-2000
by
Rise in e-mail fraud in Ireland | Ericsson plans for 4G mobile system
Fraudulent e-mails, many of which originate from Nigeria and seek funds from Irish recipients, are on the rise in Ireland, according to a report in the Irish Times. The Gardai and the Small Firms Association have warned Irish companies to throw away or report such fundraising scams without replying to the e-mail's sender, the paper said. The Irish Times also reports on developments at the Northern Ireland e-mail services firm Gem, whose CEO Owen Lamont said the company would create 700 new jobs in the North.
The Irish Independent reports on Mobile2Meter, a software firm which is rolling out a mobile phone-based parking payment system in Cork. The company has also conducted trials on Boston for the technology, which lets drivers park on designated parking spaces, then call a phone number to pay for a specific parking duration, the paper said. Mobile2Meter is exhibiting at this week's Internet World 2000 Exhibition Business Show in Dublin.
Most of the papers also report on Eircom's anticipated price cuts. The former state telco is expected to slash prices up to 20 percent in the wake of NTL's announcement last week. The cable firm said it would offer an IEP20 monthly service combining home telephony, high-speed Internet and cable TV in a package initially available in Tallaght.
Abroad the Financial Times reports that Ericsson has started planning for a fourth generation mobile phone system. A 4G system could transmit data at speeds up to 50 times those of 3G networks and include three-dimensional visuals, the paper said. The FT quotes Hakan Eriksson, head of research at Ericsson, who said that 4G would be operational by 2011, building on IP-based networks that will become standard as part of 3G.
The FT also reports that Avaya, the former Lucent Technologies division, had a difficult debut on Wall Street on Monday. Avaya opened at USD22.88 but closed down USD2.88 at USD20 in New York. Avaya, which employs 300 in Dublin, offers services included hosted IP telephony and hosted messaging for client list that includes Internet service providers, application service providers and trading exchanges. The company's general manager for the UK & Ireland, John Winchester, said on Monday that the company intends to invest further in R&D.
Caped Koala Studios has built a virtual world for kids, combining education and social networking 