IN THE PAPERS
In the papers 14 June
14-06-2007
by Deirdre McArdle
Online 'adspend' in Europe totals EUR8 billion in 2006 | Mobile industry to launch challenge to Apple's iPhone
The Irish Times reports that the State has won a High Court order halting legal challenges by two unsuccessful bidders -- Comcast International Holdings Incorporated and Persona Digital Telephony Ltd -- for the country's second mobile phone licence, which was awarded to Esat Digifone in 1995. The two consortiums had alleged fraud, conspiracy, deceit, corruption and misfeasance in public office in their challenges to the licence allocation. The pair had also sought multimillion euro in damages.
The Irish Independent says that Limerick-based ParkMagic has clinched a deal with Chicago city authorities that will see it roll out its mobile parking payment system throughout the city. Read the full story on ENN.
The same paper says the Irish Farmers Association (IFA) has signed a deal with Vodafone that will provide its 85,000 members with a range of discount packages that could lead to lower mobile rates for members of IFA Telecom.
Google, Yahoo, Microsoft, Intel and IBM are among the tech firms who have formed the Climate Savers Computing Initiative in a drive to cut greenhouse gas emissions with more energy-efficient computers and components, writes the Irish Independent. Read the full story on ENN.
The paper also says that spending on online advertising in Europe almost doubled last year to EUR8 billion, according to figures compiled by Interactive Advertising Bureau Europe. This compares to EUR4.6 billion in 2005. Almost a third of the spend last year was on all forms of display advertising, while search ads made up 45 percent of the total spend.
The Wall Street Journal reports that Liberty Media and EchoStar Communications are pitching an unexpected bid for satellite communications firm Intelsat, which is currently accepting final bids for its auction, according to people familiar with the matter. If the joint bid succeeds it would create an unusual partnership between two competitive rivals who operate satellite-to-home broadcast systems that currently compete with each other. Intelsat is reportedly expected to draw bids of USD4.5 billion to more than USD5.5 billion.
The same paper writes that online auction giant eBay stopped buying ads from Google that appear next to web search results in the US late Monday evening. A spokesman for eBay said that the move was part of eBay's "constant experimentation to see what works best" in advertising online. But people familiar with the matter said it was at least partly a response to a Google marketing event that clashed with the opening of an eBay conference for its online sellers. The eBay decision serves to highlight the simmering contention between the two internet giants.
The Financial Times reports that the mobile industry is to launch a challenge to Apple's iPhone, by unveiling a flat-rate music service that can be accessed on most mobile handsets in Europe and Asia. The MusicStation service is supported by mobile makers Nokia, Sony Ericsson, Motorola and Samsung and 30 mobile phone operators as well as four music majors -- Universal Music Group, Sony BMG, EMI Music and Warner Music International -- along with several independent labels. The service launches just ahead of Apple's iPhone debut in the US on June 29. The iPhone is to provide easy access to Apple's popular iTunes service.
According to the same paper chipmakers are predicting industry growth of just 1.8 percent this year, down from previous forecasts of 10 percent or higher. The Semiconductor Industry Association said on Wednesday that sharp declines in average selling prices (ASPs) in three key segments -- microprocessors, D-Ram memory and Nand flash -- would contribute to slower growth in chip sales in 2007.
Caped Koala Studios has built a virtual world for kids, combining education and social networking 