Easier said than done, as Myspace tries to keep its site safe from those on the prowl for sex with kids.
n March, a 15-year-old student at Honeoye Central School left campus with an 18-year-old she met on MySpace, the online networking site. The girl was found in his company in Syracuse a day and a half later.
Protecting teens from predators and other dangers is why MySpace recently announced it will address complaints by developing a way to help block convicted sex offenders from the site.
By messaging, sharing photos and creating personal pages, MySpace users expand their circles of friends online at the site — and critics say those circles could include sexual predators.
The site, owned by News Corp., is partnering with Sentinel Tech Holding Corp. to build and deploy a database, to be called Sentinel Safe, that will contain the names and physical descriptions of convicted sex offenders. An automated system will search for matches between the database and some 135 million MySpace user profiles. MySpace employees will then delete any profiles that match.
According to Ontario County Sheriff's Investigator John Abraham, who has specialized in Internet safety for about 10 years, predators are using the Internet not only to contact potential victims but to coach other pedophiles how to do it.
Were parents to peruse some of the communiques police see exchanged between fellow sex offenders, "it would make your hair stand up on the back of your neck — it's just sickening," Abraham said.
"They learn what to say," Abraham said, referring to a 12-page glossary he just released citing hundreds of acronyms used online, primarily when instant-messaging on sites like MySpace. The online lingo includes codes like: P911 (parents are coming), RPG (role playing games), QT (cutie), WTGP (Want to go private?), 143 (I love you) and LMIRL (let's meet in real life).
Predators are "getting smarter and using technology as a tool, " Abraham said. "These sex offenders are starting to send text messages to kids in school. "
Teenagers "think it's a friend they met online when it's someone watching them walk home from school," Abraham said.
Forty-six states, including New York, now maintain registries containing more than 550,000 convicted sex offenders.
Hemanshu Nigam, MySpace’s chief security officer, said such high numbers mean “there was absolutely no real way to do this (screening) in a real-time, scalable fashion.”
Instead, Sentinel will build a search tool for MySpace using a database of sex offenders, to be updated monthly, that will include details such as names, age, hair color, height, scars and tattoos.
But the problem remains that "no one is getting on saying 'I'm Joe Blow, a sex offender recently released from prison and I want to talk to your 13-year-old daughter,'" Abraham scoffed. "There's really no way of knowing whether the information given is really true."
Abraham would rather see legislation barring convicted predators from Internet access, "banning any sex offender from ever touching a computer again," he said.
Dave Henderson, director of computer services at Victor Central Schools, agreed that there was no way a "straight technological solution is going to be the be-all, end-all. It just won't be."
Victor has blocked student access to MySpace at school not just because of potential danger from predators but because officials have deemed the site has no instructional value. Nonetheless, Henderson added, Victor students are supervised when online "because even a good content filter won't filter out all inappropriate Web sites," he said.
"Parents have to be vigilant regardless," Henderson cautioned.
In June, MySpace adopted restrictions on how adults may contact the site’s younger users and request to view their full profiles, which contain hobbies and additional personal details. That, too, was criticized as ineffective because adults may simply register as teens to skirt the restrictions.
"It's not too hard to pull off a fake identity on it," said Alyssa Eddinger, a junior at Bloomfield who visits MySpace every couple of days. While a teenage MySpace user has to first approve a the request of a new "friend" request to view the teen's full profile, she has seen little concern among fellow students they might be unwitting targets of a prospective predator.
"More often than not, it just gets shrugged off as something that isn't going to happen to them," Alyssa said.
Parry Aftab, executive director of WiredSafety.org, a group dedicated to Net safety, credited MySpace for trying, but doubted a database will make anyone safer.
“The fact that it sounds more effective than it really is, that’s a big problem. The people who they really need to protect kids from in most cases are not (convicted) sexual offenders,” she said. “They are people who haven’t been caught yet."
The only way MySpace could "truly pull this off," Inv. Abraham suggested, would be to require users to register their e-mail addresses, thereby enabling authorities to identify the point of origin through something known as an Internet Protocol address. Once authorities had the IP address, they could permanently block anything from that account at the site, he said.
However, even that alternative would produce limited results because while the IP address for high-speed modem lines remains the same, IP addresses on dial-up modem lines change each time the user connects to the Web, he said. Enforcement could prove challenging given the free Internet access available in places like public libraries, he added.
If sex offenders were completely prohibited from computer use, Abraham said, it would be easier to protect the public. Parole officers could monitor whether a sex offender under their supervision has a computer, for example, Abraham said.
But with changing technologies, more and more portable devices, such as Blackberries, cell phones, and video game consoles, are also able to access the Web. Those advances, he said, make it harder for authorities to track or catch predators, and tools officials hope may help today could prove obsolete in the near future.
"It would be great to see it go back to the days where they had to order stuff through the mail and the Post Office could set up stings," Abraham said.
Saturday, January 13, 2007
Oracle To Patch 55 Database, App Server Bugs Next Week
The 55 patches include 24 for bugs that can be exploited remotely by attackers, which generally are considered critical threats by security researchers and vendors.
Taking a page out of rival Microsoft's playbook, Oracle on Thursday issued its first-ever advanced warning that spells out the number and severity of the patches it plans to release to fix flaws in its flagship database and other software.
According to the advance notification posted on Oracle's Web site, the quarterly Critical Patch Update, scheduled to roll out Jan. 16, will include 55 patches, including 24 for bugs that can be exploited remotely by attackers. Generally, such flaws -- characterized by Oracle as "remotely exploitable without authentication" -- are considered critical threats by security researchers and vendors.
The planned disclosures and patches affect Oracle Database (27 patches, 10 for remote code execution vulnerabilities), Application Server (12/8), E-Business Suite and Applications (7/0), Oracle Enterprise Manager (6/5), and PeopleSoft Enterprise and JD Edwards EnterpriseOne (3/1). Other products, including Oracle Collaboration Server, also must be patched because they use flawed components of some of the fixed applications.
Security vendor Symantec told users of its DeepSight threat management system to set aside time starting Tuesday to deploy the Oracle fixes. "Due to the critical nature of some of these issues, customers are advised to allocate resources for the immediate deployment and testing of vendor patches," Symantec said in its own alert on the upcoming security roll out.
Last October, Oracle instituted a ranking system for the vulnerabilities it planned to patch, and said the changes were made after gathering feedback from customers. The new advance notification -- similar to the practice at Microsoft, which releases limited information the week before its monthly patch release -- is another such customer-oriented tool, said Oracle Thursday.
"It is our hope that these pre-release announcements will become valuable tools to help security professionals analyze the criticality of the forthcoming CPUs and brief their management to obtain any necessary approvals for a timely application of the CPUs," said Duncan Harris, senior director of security assurance, in a blog entry.
Oracle's CPU will be released Tuesday at noon Pacific time, and will be available from the update page of the Oracle Technology Network.
Taking a page out of rival Microsoft's playbook, Oracle on Thursday issued its first-ever advanced warning that spells out the number and severity of the patches it plans to release to fix flaws in its flagship database and other software.
According to the advance notification posted on Oracle's Web site, the quarterly Critical Patch Update, scheduled to roll out Jan. 16, will include 55 patches, including 24 for bugs that can be exploited remotely by attackers. Generally, such flaws -- characterized by Oracle as "remotely exploitable without authentication" -- are considered critical threats by security researchers and vendors.
The planned disclosures and patches affect Oracle Database (27 patches, 10 for remote code execution vulnerabilities), Application Server (12/8), E-Business Suite and Applications (7/0), Oracle Enterprise Manager (6/5), and PeopleSoft Enterprise and JD Edwards EnterpriseOne (3/1). Other products, including Oracle Collaboration Server, also must be patched because they use flawed components of some of the fixed applications.
Security vendor Symantec told users of its DeepSight threat management system to set aside time starting Tuesday to deploy the Oracle fixes. "Due to the critical nature of some of these issues, customers are advised to allocate resources for the immediate deployment and testing of vendor patches," Symantec said in its own alert on the upcoming security roll out.
Last October, Oracle instituted a ranking system for the vulnerabilities it planned to patch, and said the changes were made after gathering feedback from customers. The new advance notification -- similar to the practice at Microsoft, which releases limited information the week before its monthly patch release -- is another such customer-oriented tool, said Oracle Thursday.
"It is our hope that these pre-release announcements will become valuable tools to help security professionals analyze the criticality of the forthcoming CPUs and brief their management to obtain any necessary approvals for a timely application of the CPUs," said Duncan Harris, senior director of security assurance, in a blog entry.
Oracle's CPU will be released Tuesday at noon Pacific time, and will be available from the update page of the Oracle Technology Network.
AsiaInfo Enters China Unicom Deal In Mobile Email
AsiaInfo Holdings entered an agreement Friday to develop China Unicom's national push-mail mobile email system, which allows users to send and receive emails and view multimedia attachments via a mobile device.
Terms of the deal weren't disclosed.
Shares of AsiaInfo, which is based in Santa Clara, Calif., were recently trading above its 52-week high at $8.68, up 12%, or 93 cents on heavy volume.
The deal follows several others the company has signed within the last three months. AsiaInfo has been inking deals with China's leading telecommunications companies, including China Telecom and China Mobile.
Analyst Chang Hua Qiu, of Forun Technologies, said the company has benefitted from the potential for third-generation, or 3G, licenses in China, which would allow mobile providers to operate non-voice services like email, music downloads and entertainment on their phones.
"The firm basically is coming back," said Chang, who has an outperform rating on the stock and expects the firm to break even for its 2006 fourth quarter. The company reports earnings later this month.
"Telecom software is growing at an accelerated pace, and their security software business has turned around. As of this year, it no longer lost money," Chang added. Chang says 2007 should be a growth year for the stock, which fell earlier in 2006 and has since rebounded.
Forun Technologies and Chang both own shares of AsiaInfo.
Last month was a busy month for the company, which, while based in the U.S., deals primarily with Chinese telecom companies and has offices in seven Chinese cities including Shanghai.
In late December, AsiaInfo signed a contract with four China Telecom units to upgrade the company's business support systems, a month after it signed a similar deal with China Unicom.
A few weeks earlier, the company announced it entered an agreement to build a new billing system for China Mobile, which would allow the company to track what features customers use on their phones.
Before that deal, AsiaInfo agreed to expand the customer service system for Beijing Mobile Communication Corp.
The terms of the deals weren't disclosed and the company couldn't be reached for comment this morning.
A. Christian Jean, Dow Jones Newswires, 201-938-2007
(Adam Kuczynski contributed to this report.)
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
Terms of the deal weren't disclosed.
Shares of AsiaInfo, which is based in Santa Clara, Calif., were recently trading above its 52-week high at $8.68, up 12%, or 93 cents on heavy volume.
The deal follows several others the company has signed within the last three months. AsiaInfo has been inking deals with China's leading telecommunications companies, including China Telecom and China Mobile.
Analyst Chang Hua Qiu, of Forun Technologies, said the company has benefitted from the potential for third-generation, or 3G, licenses in China, which would allow mobile providers to operate non-voice services like email, music downloads and entertainment on their phones.
"The firm basically is coming back," said Chang, who has an outperform rating on the stock and expects the firm to break even for its 2006 fourth quarter. The company reports earnings later this month.
"Telecom software is growing at an accelerated pace, and their security software business has turned around. As of this year, it no longer lost money," Chang added. Chang says 2007 should be a growth year for the stock, which fell earlier in 2006 and has since rebounded.
Forun Technologies and Chang both own shares of AsiaInfo.
Last month was a busy month for the company, which, while based in the U.S., deals primarily with Chinese telecom companies and has offices in seven Chinese cities including Shanghai.
In late December, AsiaInfo signed a contract with four China Telecom units to upgrade the company's business support systems, a month after it signed a similar deal with China Unicom.
A few weeks earlier, the company announced it entered an agreement to build a new billing system for China Mobile, which would allow the company to track what features customers use on their phones.
Before that deal, AsiaInfo agreed to expand the customer service system for Beijing Mobile Communication Corp.
The terms of the deals weren't disclosed and the company couldn't be reached for comment this morning.
A. Christian Jean, Dow Jones Newswires, 201-938-2007
(Adam Kuczynski contributed to this report.)
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
Check Point: 87 Percent Accept $625M Protect Data Tender Offer
Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. stock rose Thursday after the company said it is on track to acquire Protect Data AB, a Swedish security company it offered to buy for $625 million in cash.
Shares of Check Point closed up 68 cents, or 3 percent, at $23.10 on the Nasdaq Stock Market.
Israel-based Check Point said about 87 percent of Protect Data shares and warrants on a fully diluted basis were tendered in Check Point's offer for the company. Check Point said it plans to acquire the tendered shares and warrants.
It has extended the acceptance period for remaining shareholders until Jan. 22.
Check Point, which develops firewall, virtual private network and security-management software, originally bid $586 million for Protect Data in November. Check Point then raised its bid to $625 million in December.
The acquisition of Protect Data is part of a push by Check Point into data and network security. Earlier this week, Check Point completed a $20 million deal to buy Rockville, Md.-based NFR Security Inc.
AP
Shares of Check Point closed up 68 cents, or 3 percent, at $23.10 on the Nasdaq Stock Market.
Israel-based Check Point said about 87 percent of Protect Data shares and warrants on a fully diluted basis were tendered in Check Point's offer for the company. Check Point said it plans to acquire the tendered shares and warrants.
It has extended the acceptance period for remaining shareholders until Jan. 22.
Check Point, which develops firewall, virtual private network and security-management software, originally bid $586 million for Protect Data in November. Check Point then raised its bid to $625 million in December.
The acquisition of Protect Data is part of a push by Check Point into data and network security. Earlier this week, Check Point completed a $20 million deal to buy Rockville, Md.-based NFR Security Inc.
AP
AsiaInfo Signs Contract with China Unicom to Develop Push Mail Mobile Email System
AsiaInfo Holdings, Inc., a leading provider of high-quality telecom software solutions and IT security products and services, today announced it has recently signed a contract with China Unicom to develop its national CDMA push mail platform.
'We are seeing a growing trend towards managing information through mobile devices and we are excited to collaborate with China Unicom to develop this push mail solution,'' said Steve Zhang, AsiaInfo's President and CEO. ''China Unicom's push mail platform will be tailored to synchronize with their multi-media email system and meet the unique mobile email requirements of Chinese users.''
Push mail, which allows users to send and receive emails and view multi- media attachments via a mobile device, is rapidly gaining popularity worldwide. In China, China Unicom's push mail service has seen strong user growth since it was introduced in early 2006.
''Since the construction of China Unicom's UniNet internet backbone, we have worked closely with China Unicom to build its VoIP network, broadband network, CDMA billing systems and CDMA based wireless VAS applications,'' added Mr. Zhang. ''We are delighted to continue this relationship with China Unicom and look forward to collaborating on many more high value projects in the future.''
AsiaInfo's high capacity push mail system is based on detailed research, analysis and testing of leading domestic and foreign push email systems. With the imminent arrival of the 3G era, mobile data services such as voice email, music download, and other information and entertainment services are expected to become an essential business for all of China's telecom operators. AsiaInfo will continue to pioneer reliable and efficient mobile data solutions in order to ensure increased profitability among its telecom operator clients.
About AsiaInfo Holdings, Inc.
AsiaInfo Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq: ASIA - News) is a leading provider of high-quality telecom software solutions and security products and services to some of China's largest enterprises as well as many small and medium sized companies in China. An established leader in the Chinese telecommunications industry, AsiaInfo became a prominent supplier of security products and services in China with the acquisition of Lenovo's non-telecom related IT services business in 2004.
Organized as a Delaware corporation, AsiaInfo began operations in the United States in 1993. The Company moved major operations to China in 1995 and played a significant role in the construction of the national backbones and provincial access networks for all of China's major national telecom carriers, including China Telecom, China Mobile, China Unicom and China Netcom. Since 1998, AsiaInfo has continued diversifying its product offerings and is now a major provider of telecom software solutions in China.
For more information about AsiaInfo, please visit http://www.asiainfo.com .
The information contained in this document is as of January 12, 2006. AsiaInfo assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained in this document as a result of new information or future events or developments.
This document contains forward-looking information about AsiaInfo's operating results and business prospects that involve substantial risks and uncertainties. You can identify these statements by the fact that they use words such as "anticipate," "estimate," "expect," "project," "intend," "plan," "believe," and other words and terms of similar meaning in connection with any discussion of future operating or financial performance. Among the factors that could cause actual results to differ materially are the following: government telecommunications infrastructure and budgetary policy in China; our ability to maintain our concentrated customer base; the long and variable cycles for our products and services that can cause our revenues and operating results to vary significantly from period to period; our ability to meet our working capital requirements; our ability to retain our executive officers; our ability to attract and retain skilled personnel; potential liabilities we are exposed to because we extend warranties to our customers; risks associated with cost overruns and delays; our ability to develop or acquire new products or enhancements to our software products that are marketable on a timely and cost-effective basis; our ability to adequately protect our proprietary rights; the competitive nature of the markets we operate in; political and economic policies of the Chinese government. A further list and description of these risks, uncertainties, and other matters can be found in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2005, and in our periodic reports on Forms 10-Q and 8-K (if any) filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission and available at http://www.sec.gov .
Source: AsiaInfo Holdings, Inc.
'We are seeing a growing trend towards managing information through mobile devices and we are excited to collaborate with China Unicom to develop this push mail solution,'' said Steve Zhang, AsiaInfo's President and CEO. ''China Unicom's push mail platform will be tailored to synchronize with their multi-media email system and meet the unique mobile email requirements of Chinese users.''
Push mail, which allows users to send and receive emails and view multi- media attachments via a mobile device, is rapidly gaining popularity worldwide. In China, China Unicom's push mail service has seen strong user growth since it was introduced in early 2006.
''Since the construction of China Unicom's UniNet internet backbone, we have worked closely with China Unicom to build its VoIP network, broadband network, CDMA billing systems and CDMA based wireless VAS applications,'' added Mr. Zhang. ''We are delighted to continue this relationship with China Unicom and look forward to collaborating on many more high value projects in the future.''
AsiaInfo's high capacity push mail system is based on detailed research, analysis and testing of leading domestic and foreign push email systems. With the imminent arrival of the 3G era, mobile data services such as voice email, music download, and other information and entertainment services are expected to become an essential business for all of China's telecom operators. AsiaInfo will continue to pioneer reliable and efficient mobile data solutions in order to ensure increased profitability among its telecom operator clients.
About AsiaInfo Holdings, Inc.
AsiaInfo Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq: ASIA - News) is a leading provider of high-quality telecom software solutions and security products and services to some of China's largest enterprises as well as many small and medium sized companies in China. An established leader in the Chinese telecommunications industry, AsiaInfo became a prominent supplier of security products and services in China with the acquisition of Lenovo's non-telecom related IT services business in 2004.
Organized as a Delaware corporation, AsiaInfo began operations in the United States in 1993. The Company moved major operations to China in 1995 and played a significant role in the construction of the national backbones and provincial access networks for all of China's major national telecom carriers, including China Telecom, China Mobile, China Unicom and China Netcom. Since 1998, AsiaInfo has continued diversifying its product offerings and is now a major provider of telecom software solutions in China.
For more information about AsiaInfo, please visit http://www.asiainfo.com .
The information contained in this document is as of January 12, 2006. AsiaInfo assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained in this document as a result of new information or future events or developments.
This document contains forward-looking information about AsiaInfo's operating results and business prospects that involve substantial risks and uncertainties. You can identify these statements by the fact that they use words such as "anticipate," "estimate," "expect," "project," "intend," "plan," "believe," and other words and terms of similar meaning in connection with any discussion of future operating or financial performance. Among the factors that could cause actual results to differ materially are the following: government telecommunications infrastructure and budgetary policy in China; our ability to maintain our concentrated customer base; the long and variable cycles for our products and services that can cause our revenues and operating results to vary significantly from period to period; our ability to meet our working capital requirements; our ability to retain our executive officers; our ability to attract and retain skilled personnel; potential liabilities we are exposed to because we extend warranties to our customers; risks associated with cost overruns and delays; our ability to develop or acquire new products or enhancements to our software products that are marketable on a timely and cost-effective basis; our ability to adequately protect our proprietary rights; the competitive nature of the markets we operate in; political and economic policies of the Chinese government. A further list and description of these risks, uncertainties, and other matters can be found in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2005, and in our periodic reports on Forms 10-Q and 8-K (if any) filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission and available at http://www.sec.gov .
Source: AsiaInfo Holdings, Inc.
Shares of Check Point Software Continue Climbing As Company on Track to Close Deal
Shares of Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. continued climbing in premarket trading Friday a day after the maker of Internet security software said it is on track to complete the acquisition of Protect Data AB.
Protect Data helps broaden Check Point's portfolio of software guarding computers and networks from hackers, spyware and data theft. With $414 million in 2005 sales, Protect Data makes products encrypting data on computers and cell phones.
Check Point, which booked $579.4 million revenue in 2005, is acquiring Protect Data through a $625 million tender offer.
After rising 3 percent on the Nasdaq Thursday, Check Point's stock gained an additional 28 cents to $23.38 in premarket electronic trading Friday. The stock is poised to open near its 52-week high of $23.48.
RBC Capital Markets analyst Robert Breza upgraded Check Point Software to "Outperform" from "Sector Perform," raising his price target to $32 from $22.
Check Point acquired "an industry leader with the best products on the market," Breza said. With the acquisition, Check Point Software gives its sales force a new bundle of products to pitch to customers, he said.
Breza expects Check Point to launch four new products in 2007, and he thinks the deal will help the company grow at a faster pace with a more diversified product portfolio.
Protect Data helps broaden Check Point's portfolio of software guarding computers and networks from hackers, spyware and data theft. With $414 million in 2005 sales, Protect Data makes products encrypting data on computers and cell phones.
Check Point, which booked $579.4 million revenue in 2005, is acquiring Protect Data through a $625 million tender offer.
After rising 3 percent on the Nasdaq Thursday, Check Point's stock gained an additional 28 cents to $23.38 in premarket electronic trading Friday. The stock is poised to open near its 52-week high of $23.48.
RBC Capital Markets analyst Robert Breza upgraded Check Point Software to "Outperform" from "Sector Perform," raising his price target to $32 from $22.
Check Point acquired "an industry leader with the best products on the market," Breza said. With the acquisition, Check Point Software gives its sales force a new bundle of products to pitch to customers, he said.
Breza expects Check Point to launch four new products in 2007, and he thinks the deal will help the company grow at a faster pace with a more diversified product portfolio.
EBay Set to Buy Inc. 500 Company for $310 Million
StubHub, which ranked No. 8 on this year's list, is considered eBay's chief rival in the online ticket market.
StubHub, an online ticket reseller that ranked No. 8 on the 2006 Inc. 500 list, will be acquired by eBay (NASDAQ:EBAY) for $310 million, the companies announced Thursday after months of speculation surrounding the deal.
San Francisco-based StubHub, which was founded in 2000, grossed more than $400 million last year, and is considered a leading player in the online resale market for sports, concert, and other event tickets.
The company provides a secure way to connect buyers and sellers of tickets, and offers a money-back guarantee if buyers don't receive their tickets. EBay, the online auction giant, is considered StubHub 's biggest competitor.
"StubHub has been extremely successful in the online tickets segment, and it's a perfect complement to eBay's tickets business," Bill Cobb, president of eBay's North America Marketplaces, said in a statement.
The deal will allow eBay to expand its online ticket offerings and presence in the secondary ticket market, while giving StubHub access to the site's resources and expertise.
"StubHub's business model is an excellent fit with eBay, a company we've admired for a long time," StubHub founder and CEO Jeff Fluhr said in a statement. "StubHub exists to serve passionate fans -- and we feel great knowing our customers will benefit from the power of eBay and its community of users."
The deal, which is pending approval by regulators and StubHub shareholders, is expected to close during the first quarter of the year.
source : www.inc.com
StubHub, an online ticket reseller that ranked No. 8 on the 2006 Inc. 500 list, will be acquired by eBay (NASDAQ:EBAY) for $310 million, the companies announced Thursday after months of speculation surrounding the deal.
San Francisco-based StubHub, which was founded in 2000, grossed more than $400 million last year, and is considered a leading player in the online resale market for sports, concert, and other event tickets.
The company provides a secure way to connect buyers and sellers of tickets, and offers a money-back guarantee if buyers don't receive their tickets. EBay, the online auction giant, is considered StubHub 's biggest competitor.
"StubHub has been extremely successful in the online tickets segment, and it's a perfect complement to eBay's tickets business," Bill Cobb, president of eBay's North America Marketplaces, said in a statement.
The deal will allow eBay to expand its online ticket offerings and presence in the secondary ticket market, while giving StubHub access to the site's resources and expertise.
"StubHub's business model is an excellent fit with eBay, a company we've admired for a long time," StubHub founder and CEO Jeff Fluhr said in a statement. "StubHub exists to serve passionate fans -- and we feel great knowing our customers will benefit from the power of eBay and its community of users."
The deal, which is pending approval by regulators and StubHub shareholders, is expected to close during the first quarter of the year.
source : www.inc.com
FreeTrip.com to Resell InTouch Wireless Internet Access
SiriCOMM, Inc., (OTC Bulletin Board: SIRC - News) today announced a reseller agreement with FreeTrip.com in which FreeTrip will resell SiriCOMM's InTouch wireless Internet access. FreeTrip will use banner ads and direct mail campaigns to market and resell InTouch to the monthly visitors to their web sites, www.freetrip.com, www.insidetrackclub.com, and www.truckpilot.com.
"We are very pleased that FreeTrip will be offering InTouch to their large subscriber base," stated David Mendez, Executive Vice President of SiriCOMM. "FreeTrip is a popular site among highway travelers and this agreement presents a new market base for SiriCOMM. We look forward to working closely together in 2007 to gain subscribers through FreeTrip's marketing efforts."
FreeTrip and SiriCOMM share a common interest of providing productivity services to the highway transportation industry, including the commercial trucking market and recreational vehicle (RV) community. There are approximately 4.5 million truckers and 11 million RV enthusiasts in North America.
SiriCOMM offers InTouch wireless Internet access at over 475 Hot Spot locations. Subscribers have always-on wireless access to the Internet anytime they are in a SiriCOMM Hot Spot. InTouch is available for purchase online or at any of the SiriCOMM Hot Spot locations. This gives truck drivers and other highway travelers a convenient communication tool for both business and personal use while on the road.
"We are excited about this agreement with SiriCOMM because it gives FreeTrip.com the opportunity to expand the services we offer to our members and the 2 million unique visitors to our web sites each month," stated Ann Shack, President, FreeTrip, Inc. Ms. Shack continued, "In today's environment, highway travelers want and need access to information available on the Internet, and SiriCOMM will play a major roll in keeping them connected while on the road."
About SiriCOMM
SiriCOMM is an application service provider specializing in wireless Internet connectivity and productivity applications tailored to the transportation industry. By providing both network access and a robust application host platform, SiriCOMM delivers a responsive and convenient way for all industry stakeholders to utilize and leverage information. The company uses Wi-Fi and radio-frequency technologies to create hot spots at locations convenient to highway travel. More information including network locations is available at http://www.siricomm.com
About FreeTrip.com
FreeTrip.com, Inc. develops highway routing technology and services for the travel and transportation industries, focusing on highway travel planning, truck fleet operations, and on-the-road information website services. FreeTrip technology specializes in providing comprehensive highway itineraries that include not only accurate and easy-to-read directions, but road advisory and en-route points of interest information as well. The technology also allows a variety of ways to drive from A to B, depending upon personal needs (e.g. avoid tolls in Pennsylvania, favor scenic roads in Colorado, avoid tunnels that do not allow propane, avoid I-95, etc.) Our motto is: "Make It Useful ... Keep It Simple"
Statements about the future performance of SiriCOMM, economic trends, and other forward-looking statements in this release are made pursuant to the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Investors are cautioned that such forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, including without limitation, continued acceptance of SiriCOMM's products, increased levels of competition for the company, new products and technological changes, SiriCOMM's dependence on third-party suppliers, and other risks detailed from time to time in SiriCOMM's periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. SiriCOMM provides no assurance regarding the actual outcome of the events contemplated by any forward-looking statements included in this release.
Source: SiriCOMM, Inc.
"We are very pleased that FreeTrip will be offering InTouch to their large subscriber base," stated David Mendez, Executive Vice President of SiriCOMM. "FreeTrip is a popular site among highway travelers and this agreement presents a new market base for SiriCOMM. We look forward to working closely together in 2007 to gain subscribers through FreeTrip's marketing efforts."
FreeTrip and SiriCOMM share a common interest of providing productivity services to the highway transportation industry, including the commercial trucking market and recreational vehicle (RV) community. There are approximately 4.5 million truckers and 11 million RV enthusiasts in North America.
SiriCOMM offers InTouch wireless Internet access at over 475 Hot Spot locations. Subscribers have always-on wireless access to the Internet anytime they are in a SiriCOMM Hot Spot. InTouch is available for purchase online or at any of the SiriCOMM Hot Spot locations. This gives truck drivers and other highway travelers a convenient communication tool for both business and personal use while on the road.
"We are excited about this agreement with SiriCOMM because it gives FreeTrip.com the opportunity to expand the services we offer to our members and the 2 million unique visitors to our web sites each month," stated Ann Shack, President, FreeTrip, Inc. Ms. Shack continued, "In today's environment, highway travelers want and need access to information available on the Internet, and SiriCOMM will play a major roll in keeping them connected while on the road."
About SiriCOMM
SiriCOMM is an application service provider specializing in wireless Internet connectivity and productivity applications tailored to the transportation industry. By providing both network access and a robust application host platform, SiriCOMM delivers a responsive and convenient way for all industry stakeholders to utilize and leverage information. The company uses Wi-Fi and radio-frequency technologies to create hot spots at locations convenient to highway travel. More information including network locations is available at http://www.siricomm.com
About FreeTrip.com
FreeTrip.com, Inc. develops highway routing technology and services for the travel and transportation industries, focusing on highway travel planning, truck fleet operations, and on-the-road information website services. FreeTrip technology specializes in providing comprehensive highway itineraries that include not only accurate and easy-to-read directions, but road advisory and en-route points of interest information as well. The technology also allows a variety of ways to drive from A to B, depending upon personal needs (e.g. avoid tolls in Pennsylvania, favor scenic roads in Colorado, avoid tunnels that do not allow propane, avoid I-95, etc.) Our motto is: "Make It Useful ... Keep It Simple"
Statements about the future performance of SiriCOMM, economic trends, and other forward-looking statements in this release are made pursuant to the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Investors are cautioned that such forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, including without limitation, continued acceptance of SiriCOMM's products, increased levels of competition for the company, new products and technological changes, SiriCOMM's dependence on third-party suppliers, and other risks detailed from time to time in SiriCOMM's periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. SiriCOMM provides no assurance regarding the actual outcome of the events contemplated by any forward-looking statements included in this release.
Source: SiriCOMM, Inc.
TMO at Macworld - Ovolab Shows New Geophoto Geocoding Software
Ovolab was demonstrating Geophoto, a new photo organization utility, at this week's Macworld Expo. Unlike other photo organization utilities, which typically present photos based on date order, Geophoto offers a new perspective, allowing you to browse photos based on the location they were taken.
Adding location information to a photo is commonly referred to as "geocoding." You can of course manually tag your photos with this information, but if you want to get serious and save time, you'll want to get a camera with integrated GPS, or add a GPS module if you camera supports this.
In addition to being able to tag and view your own photos, you can also use Geophoto to fly through the pictures taken by a vast community of people around the globe, who share them through Photocasts or through Flickr.
Geophoto will be released in the second half of February for $49.95. You can also preorder now for the reduced price of $39.95.
source article : www.macobserver.com
Adding location information to a photo is commonly referred to as "geocoding." You can of course manually tag your photos with this information, but if you want to get serious and save time, you'll want to get a camera with integrated GPS, or add a GPS module if you camera supports this.
In addition to being able to tag and view your own photos, you can also use Geophoto to fly through the pictures taken by a vast community of people around the globe, who share them through Photocasts or through Flickr.
Geophoto will be released in the second half of February for $49.95. You can also preorder now for the reduced price of $39.95.
source article : www.macobserver.com
Monday, January 08, 2007
Consumer Electronics Leaders Embrace Rhapsody DNA Platform
RealNetworks® Inc., (Nasdaq: RNWK - News), the global leader in digital media delivery, today announced that a number of leading consumer electronics companies, including Nokia, TiVo, iriver, Logitech, SigmaTel, and Telechips, have licensed its Rhapsody® DNA technology platform and plan to build support for Rhapsody DNA into products and services shipping in 2007.
These new partnerships will help make the award-winning Rhapsody digital music service accessible virtually anywhere, from your PC to your home stereo to your portable music player. The news underscores growing support for the Rhapsody DNA platform among leaders in the home audio, portable device, chipset and middleware markets.
These new partnerships will help make the award-winning Rhapsody digital music service accessible virtually anywhere, from your PC to your home stereo to your portable music player. The news underscores growing support for the Rhapsody DNA platform among leaders in the home audio, portable device, chipset and middleware markets.
"Our vision for Rhapsody is to deliver seamless and personalized access to millions of songs, on-demand and from any device," said Dan Sheeran, senior vice president of music and video, RealNetworks. "Last October, we released tools and technologies that enable CE companies to deliver on that vision by creating products with built-in access to Rhapsody. With industry leaders like Nokia, TiVo, SanDisk, iriver, and Sonos embracing Rhapsody DNA, we look forward to a steady stream of Rhapsody-enabled CE products in 2007."
"Combining Real's Rhapsody DNA technology with our award-winning TiVo service will make it easy for consumers to enjoy Rhapsody from the comfort of their living rooms," said Jim Denney, vice president of product marketing at TiVo.
Rhapsody DNA is a technology platform and set of marketing programs that enable CE makers to extend the award-winning Rhapsody digital music experience beyond the PC to portable and in-home devices through features such as the ability to browse the Rhapsody Music Guide and My Library menus, instant song playback, and access to Rhapsody's critically-acclaimed editorial content. Additional information about Rhapsody DNA and Rhapsody DNA licensing can be found at http://webservices.rhapsody.com .
PORTABLE AUDIO
RealNetworks today announced that it is working with Reigncom, maker of the popular iriver portable multimedia devices, to introduce two new Rhapsody DNA-enhanced portable players this spring (see companion release). These flash-based devices include a groundbreaking Wi-Fi enabled MP3 player that will allow consumers to download, stream and share their favorite music over the air directly to the device via the award-winning Rhapsody digital music service, and the iriver clix 2, a new and enhanced version of iriver's acclaimed clix line of players.
RealNetworks also announced that Nokia is integrating Rhapsody DNA support into the Nokia N800, the newest generation of its groundbreaking Nokia Internet Tablet product line and is demonstrating the Rhapsody service with the product at its booth during CES 2007. The sleek, pocket sized Nokia N800 device is a desktop Linux-based handheld product dedicated to convenient Internet browsing, messaging, email communications and other applications over Wi-Fi or Bluetooth phone data connections. Using the new Nokia N800, consumers will be able to wirelessly access Rhapsody virtually anywhere and enjoy their favorite music on the device's stereo speakers or with headset. The Nokia N800 Internet Tablet includes a high-resolution widescreen display (4.13") with zoom, an on-screen keyboard, and intuitive thumb navigation that is ideal for browsing for music through Rhapsody. Rhapsody support on the Nokia N800 device is expected to be available in February.
DIGITAL LIVING ROOM
Real is also working with manufacturers of set-top boxes and home audio devices to enable direct playback of Rhapsody's music and radio stations via their devices. In support of that effort, Real today announced that it is working with TiVo, Inc. to integrate Rhapsody DNA support into TiVo digital video recorders. Later this year, TiVo customers will have from-the-couch access to Rhapsody's library of over 3 million songs right through their TiVo (see companion release).
Real also announced it is working with Logitech to give consumers direct access to Rhapsody via the Logitech Squeezebox(TM) and Transporter home audio players. In an industry first, consumers can search the entire Rhapsody library for specific artists, albums and songs -- and then instantly play selections using the intuitive Squeezebox and Transporter remote interface without having to interact with a PC. The new Rhapsody feature-set for the Squeezebox and Transporter is expected to be available in the United States from Logitech on January 15 (see companion release).
A number of other device OEMs, including Dedicated Devices, Inc., D-Link, NETGEAR, Pepper Computer, and Roku have licensed Real's Rhapsody DNA platform for inclusion in their products.
CE INDUSTRY
To make it easier for CE device makers to integrate Rhapsody into their products, Real is working with leading chip makers and middleware providers to integrate support for Rhapsody DNA. Real today announced that two of the leading chipset manufacturers for portable devices, SigmaTel, Inc. and Telechips Inc., have licensed Real's Rhapsody DNA technology.
Real also announced today that many of the market's leading home audio middleware providers, including BridgeCo, Digital Deck, DigiOn, Mediabolic, Oregan Networks, Syabas Technology, and Verismo Networks, have also licensed Real's Rhapsody DNA technology and are building support for Rhapsody DNA into their middleware.
RealNetworks pioneered the unlimited access music service model, and currently leads the market for those services with more than 1.65 million subscribers to Rhapsody and its other premium music services. Since launching in 2001, Rhapsody has received multiple industry awards and honors. In 2006, Rhapsody earned Billboard's Digital Entertainment Media and Marketing Excellence award for the Best Downloadable or Subscription Music Service, Entertainment Weekly named Rhapsody one of its "25 Best Music Websites," and PC World honored Rhapsody with a 2006 World Class Award in its annual list of "100 Best Products."
About RealNetworks
RealNetworks, Inc. is the leading creator of digital media services and software including Rhapsody®, RealPlayer® 10, and casual PC and mobile games. Broadcasters, network operators, media companies and enterprises use RealNetworks' products and services to create and deliver digital media to PCs, mobile phones and consumer electronics devices. Consumers can access and experience audio/video programming and download RealNetworks' consumer software at http://www.real.com. RealNetworks' systems and corporate information is located at http://www.realnetworks.com.
Source: RealNetworks, Inc.
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