SAP Strengthens Leadership in Analytic Applications Market with Acquisition of Pilot Software

Addressing C-level executive requirements for comprehensive analytic applications for performance management, SAP AG (NYSE: SAP) today announced the acquisition of Pilot Software, a privately-held company specializing in strategy management software. With this “tuck-in” acquisition, SAP is adding a critical piece to its portfolio of analytic applications and furthering its commitment to provide C-level executives with the tools necessary for effective performance management by fostering alignment across their organizations. By aligning strategy with execution, organizations are able to improve corporate performance, accelerate management decision-making, facilitate collaboration and turn information into value.

Founded in 2002, Pilot Software has more than 150 customers worldwide utilizing its strategy management solutions across a variety of industries including financial services, public sector, retail and many others. Pilot’s flagship product, PilotWorks, helps organizations empower their employees to effectively execute on strategies by aligning the three cornerstones of strategy management — goals, initiatives and metrics. Additionally, PilotWorks addresses executive requirements around managing goals, initiatives and metrics and codifying strategies to make them relevant to the daily business processes of information workers. The PilotWorks product will be integrated with SAP applications and built on the SAP NetWeaver® platform, allowing SAP customers to leverage their current investments in SAP solutions to gain new business value.

“Analytic applications that help organizations manage their performance effectively represent a strategic area of investment for SAP as we continue to expand our leadership in this market,” said Doug Merritt, executive vice president and general manager, Suite Optimization, SAP. “With the acquisition of Pilot Software, we are providing an advanced system for defining and managing strategies that is integrated with the business processes of information workers. By providing contextually-relevant information to employees in a highly collaborative user experience, we are making strategy relevant to every employee in a company, thus bringing immediate value to a strong cross-section of our customer base.”

Leveraging analytics to improve performance management has been among the top priorities of senior executives in the last five years and is an area in which SAP continues to broaden its portfolio and further strengthen its leadership position in the analytic applications market. With SAP’s analytic applications, C-level executives can make the most meaningful, confident decisions about their businesses by optimizing core business processes critical to their industries to deliver high performance. More critically, C-level executives can assure that the strategies codified in SAP’s analytic applications are translated into execution by their employees through tight integration with SAP’s core business applications such as enterprise resource planning (ERP), customer relationship management (CRM) and supply chain management (SCM). Designed around Web 2.0 technologies, analytic applications from SAP enable information workers to leverage their collective intelligence and work collaboratively to bridge the gap between strategy and execution.

“Pilot Software has had a strong focus on customer success, and now with the PilotWorks strategy management software becoming an integral part of SAP’s analytic offerings, organizations are empowered to achieve successful alignment across their organizations and achieve their performance objectives,” said Jonathan D. Becher, CEO and president, Pilot Software. “This is an exciting time for Pilot Software and its customers who will gain immediate value from the breadth of SAP’s portfolio.”

The transaction with Pilot Software is continuing evidence of the SAP strategy to use “fill-in” acquisitions to add to its broad solution offering by gaining specific technologies and capabilities that meet the needs of its customers, within industries or across industries, while maintaining its successful track record of organic growth.

Headquartered in Mountain View, California, Pilot Software provides solutions to customers around the world. While integration plans are still being finalized, SAP said it intended to continue operations in these offices and that Pilot Software employees would become part of the worldwide network of SAP Labs. The acquisition was completed on February 14, 2007. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

CSCO: Glasgow City Council Develops e-Government Strategy with THUS plc and a Cisco Connected Government Solution

Glasgow City Council is implementing Access Glasgow, a comprehensive e-government strategy to improve the delivery of services to nearly 600,000 citizens. Fundamental to this approach is a modern, high-bandwidth communications infrastructure provided to the Council by THUS and a unique relationship with Cisco®. Access Glasgow will deliver a citywide network platform to integrate data, voice and video communication and support a host of front-line applications like online consultation and planning, tax collection and benefit payments.

The programme will also enable greater integration between Council departments - such as social services and education - and external agencies like the National Health Service to provide citizens with a single point of contact for service delivery.

The programme is being funded by savings generated from improved technology, management and maintenance. The strategy focuses on combining voice and data networks, where appropriate, to give citizens, elected members and council employees the same level of service whether they communicate with the council in person, by phone, by fax or online.

Bailie Alan Stewart, information and communications technology spokesperson for the Glasgow City Council said, "E-government is first and foremost about changing the way the Council works, rather than simply being about technology. ICT has the capability to enable the Council to deliver high-quality services at best value as well as make a real contribution in assisting all of our citizens to develop to their full potential. However, we need high-quality technology to do this, and the expertise of companies like Cisco and THUS continues to play a key role in helping the city achieve this vision."

The Council network comprises local- and wide area networks (LANs and WANs) that connect 300 offices. THUS, using the Cisco Unified Communications System, will deliver IP telephony services to Council staff and a multi-lingual contact centre. With advice from Cisco on wireless technologies, the Council has also developed a wireless communications strategy which will include facilities such as hot-spots in libraries around Glasgow.

Cisco technology and THUS services are already being used to support connected-government initiatives such as the Glasgow Young Scot Card, an electronic card that gives young people in Glasgow access to leisure facilities, libraries, discounts at local shops, and a payment facility for school meals. Cisco technology is also enabling the use of innovative applications such as VIPonair, Europe's first Internet radio for the visually impaired, and it is providing on-line access via libraries to the Real Learning Partnership which brings together resources from the key learning providers in Glasgow including universities, colleges, Scottish Enterprise Glasgow and the Council.

Glasgow City Council is developing its city-wide network with THUS based on Cisco Catalyst® 6500 Series Switches and Cisco Catalyst 3560 and 3750 workgroup switches. The Cisco Unified Communications System comprises of Cisco Unified CallManager for the telephony system, Cisco Unified IP phones and Cisco Unified Contact Centre.

"Glasgow City Council is an example of how utilising the knowledge and expertise of companies such as Cisco and THUS- as well as its technology - are helping local governments plan and deploy improved e-government services to the community," said Paul Wingate, Head of Public Sector, Cisco Scotland. "Cisco is at the centre of a shift in service provision, where local governments are not just speeding up service delivery but are also changing the way they work to make services more cost effective and more accessible to more people."

Turkish Airlines grew 20% last year

Turkish Airlines, the rising star of the world’s aviation, increased its number of passengers by 20% from 14 mio to 17 mio in 2006 thanks to its new airplanes and its 23 new destinations.

The traffic data of Turkish Airlines for 2006 were disclosed in a statement sent to the Istanbul Stock Exchange (ISE) on 16 February 2007.

Turkish Airlines, the rising star of the world’s aviation, increased its number of passengers by 19.4% from 14 mio to 17 mio in the period of January-December 2006 compared to the period of January-December 2005.

Being the world’s 17th largest airlines company with its fleet of 102 airplanes, Turkish Airlines is also increasing its global market share. With its newly added 23 routes in 2006, Turkish Airlines augmented the number of its destinations to 131.

Turkish Airlines’ number of landings, which stood at 125.992 in 2005, increased by 21.1% upto 152.536. The seat km figure of Turkish Airlines was increased by 23,9% from 29,8 billion in 2005 to 36,9 billion in 2006, while the company’s revenue passenger km, which stood at 21,3 billion in 2005, increased by 19% to 25,3 billion in 2006.

Achieving considerable progress in its cargo transport operations as well, Turkish Airlines, which transported 144.974 tons of cargo-mail in 2005, increased the amount of cargo-mail it transported by 10.3% to 159.873 tons in 2006.

SEC Announces $6.3 Million Settlement With Former Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. CEO in Stock Option Backdating Scheme

The Securities and Exchange Commission today simultaneously filed and settled civil charges against Ryan Ashley Brant, formerly the Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board of video and computer game publisher and distributor Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (Take-Two), alleging that during a seven year period, Brant enriched himself and others by granting undisclosed, "in the money" stock options to himself and to other Take-Two officers and employees.

Without admitting or denying the allegations of the Commission's complaint, Brant consented to the entry of an order permanently enjoining him from violating or aiding and abetting violations of the antifraud, reporting, record-keeping, internal controls, and securities ownership reporting provisions of the federal securities laws and permanently barring him from serving as an officer or director of a public company. Brant has consented to disgorge ill-gotten gains of $4,118,093 with $1,143,513 in prejudgment interest, and to pay a $1,000,000 civil penalty, for a total of $6,261,606. The settlement is subject to the approval of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.

Linda Chatman Thomsen, Director of the SEC's Enforcement Division, said, "As the Commission has alleged in its complaint filed today, the backdating scheme at Take-Two, which spanned seven years and was at Brant's direction, resulted not only in millions of dollars of ill gotten gains, but also caused Take-Two to materially misrepresent its financial condition to investors. The Commission's commitment to protecting the investor requires us to address vigorously undisclosed options backdating wherever and whenever it arises. Our action today sends the message that we take our duty very seriously."

Christopher Conte, an Associate Director in the Division of Enforcement, said, "The complaint alleges that Brant, with the participation and knowledge of senior executives and others at Take Two, looked back and picked grant dates to coincide with historically low prices, and that he did so, in virtually all instances, without Board approval for either the grant dates or exercise prices. This case highlights the need for public companies to ensure that their internal controls and oversight structures are adequate to prevent stock options from being granted in ways that are contrary to shareholder approved option plans."

The complaint alleges that from 1997 through September 2003, Brant, with the participation and knowledge of senior executives and others at Take-Two, looked back and picked grant dates for the company's incentive stock options that coincided with dates of historically low annual and quarterly closing prices for Take-Two's common stock, resulting in grants of "in-the-money" options. Brant and others at Take-Two referred to this practice as "pick-a-date" option granting. According to the complaint, Brant granted options to himself and others at Take-Two without complying with Take-Two's stock option plans and, in virtually all instances, without the Board or a Committee of the Board approving the grant dates or exercise prices. The complaint alleges that at Brant's direction, Take-Two officers and employees prepared documents falsely indicating that the option grants had been made on earlier dates when Take-Two's stock price had closed lower. From 1997 to September 2003, Brant awarded himself ten backdated option grants, representing a total of approximately 2.1 million shares of Take-Two common stock. Brant exercised all those options before resigning from Take-Two on Oct. 16, 2006.

The complaint further alleges that because of the undisclosed backdating scheme, Take-Two filed with the Commission quarterly and annual reports, proxy statements and registration statements that Brant knew, or was reckless in not knowing, contained materially false and misleading statements concerning the true grant dates and proper exercise prices of stock options, and which misled investors to believe that stock options were granted in accordance with the terms of the applicable stock option plans. According to the complaint, Take-Two materially understated its compensation expenses and materially overstated its quarterly and annual pre-tax earnings and earnings per share in its financial statements. Take-Two has announced that it must restate historical financial results for multiple years in order to record additional non-cash charges for option-related compensation expenses.

Separately, the New York County District Attorney's Office today announced that Brant has pled guilty to felony criminal charges of Falsifying Business Records in the First Degree and agreed to pay $1 million in lieu of fines and forfeiture, which will be distributed to state and local New York authorities.

Brant previously settled with the Commission for his alleged role in a massive financial fraud at Take Two in 2000 and 2001. On June 9, 2005, the Commission filed and simultaneously settled civil charges against Take-Two, Brant and other members of senior management in connection with an alleged $60 million video game parking scheme. SEC v. Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc., et al., Civil Action No. 1:05-CV-5443 (DLC) (S.D.N.Y. 2005) (filed June 9, 2005), Litigation Release No. 19260. In that action, Brant was permanently enjoined from violating and/or aiding and abetting violations of the antifraud, reporting, record-keeping, and internal controls provisions of the federal securities laws; barred from serving as an officer or director of any public company for five years; and ordered to pay disgorgement of $2,490,408, prejudgment interest of approximately $613,000, and a civil penalty of $500,000.

The Commission would like to acknowledge the assistance of the New York County District Attorney's Office, which conducted its own separate, parallel investigation.

The Commission's investigation is continuing.

Epps Retires as President of The UPS Foundation

UPS (NYSE:UPS) today announced the appointment of Lisa Hamilton, a Public Affairs manager in Washington, D.C., as the next president of The UPS Foundation, succeeding the retiring Evern Cooper Epps.

Hamilton will take the reins of The UPS Foundation in March. A native of Atlanta, she earned a BS degree in Commerce from the University of Virginia and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Michigan. She has been with UPS for 10 years and before her current post, served as The UPS Foundation's program director.

Founded in 1951 and based in Atlanta, The UPS Foundation donates more than $45 million annually to charitable organizations worldwide. The UPS Foundation's major initiatives include programs that support global volunteerism, literacy programs and hunger relief. In recent years, the company has focused on expanding its philanthropy and volunteer programs outside the United States in tandem with the company's business expansion.

Epps, a native of Detroit, joined UPS 32 years ago and has served as president of The UPS Foundation since 1998. Only the fourth president in the Foundation's 55-year history, she has guided the organization through a period of significant growth and change.

During her tenure, The UPS Foundation focused its giving into three primary areas: volunteerism, hunger and literacy.

In the area of volunteerism, a key effort has been helping non-profits better manage their own networks of volunteers through streamlined management techniques and technology tools. More than $12.3 million has been contributed to support such projects at both the national and local levels. Through these strategies, charitable partners have succeeded in attracting additional recruits from more diverse pools of volunteers; improved retention rates for their volunteers, and helped volunteers become more effective in actually delivering social services.

The heart of UPS's philanthropic outreach is the company's Neighbor to Neighbor program, which experienced a dramatic expansion under Epps' guidance. This program mobilizes UPS employees and their families to serve as volunteers in their communities. It provides UPS employees and their families with hands-on volunteer opportunities where they live and work and is part of an ongoing company-wide effort to heighten awareness for community needs and promote the importance of volunteerism.

Last year, UPS employees donated more than 950,000 hours in volunteer activities around the world.

In recent years, Epps turned her focus toward the development of a global strategy for The UPS Foundation as UPS experienced rapid international expansion and growth. Over the past five years, contributions outside of the United States have grown from $385,000 to more than $4 million annually. And employee volunteerism has skyrocketed thanks to a new effort that the company calls Global Volunteer Week. Last year, more than 23,000 UPS people in Asia and Latin America, Europe and the United States participated in at least one activity over the seven days, contributing more than 154,000 hours of service.

"Evern has led the Foundation through its most dynamic period of growth and change and in the process she has touched millions of lives," said Mike Eskew, UPS chairman and CEO. "Perhaps her most important legacy is the global perspective she has brought to the Foundation, which will be a key focus in the coming years."

In addition to her Foundation duties, Epps has served in leadership roles in a number of community organizations including the Northwest Georgia Girl Scouts Council; the National Urban League; United Way of America; the Points of Light Foundation; the Metro Atlanta YMCA; the Center for Corporate Citizenship at Boston College; the Andrew Young School of Policy, and the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce. She also is an appointed member of President George W. Bush's Council on Service and Civic Participation and plans to continue her work with that organization.

The UPS Foundation pursues its initiatives by identifying specific projects where its support can help produce a measurable social impact. Visit community.ups.com for more information about UPS's community involvement.

UPS Board Nominates New Director Gary L. Crittenden

The Board of Directors of UPS (NYSE:UPS) announced the nomination of a new director to stand for election at the annual shareowners' meeting in May.

The new candidate is Gary L. Crittenden, executive vice president and chief financial officer of the American Express Co. He assumed those positions in June 2000 and is a member of the American Express Global Leadership Team, the company's senior-most management group. Crittenden serves as a key advisor on strategic and financial matters worldwide as well as representing American Express to investors, lenders and rating agencies.

"We are pleased to nominate an executive of Gary's caliber for election to our Board," said Mike Eskew, UPS's chairman and CEO. "UPS will benefit greatly from his skills and experience in global finance and strategy."

Crittenden, 53, began his career in consulting with Bain & Company, where he worked on a range of strategic projects in the United States and Germany. Prior to joining American Express, he also worked as the chief financial officer of Monsanto and Sears Roebuck Co.

Crittenden holds a BS degree in management from Brigham Young University and an MBA from Harvard. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of Staples Inc.

In announcing Crittenden's nomination, the Board also disclosed that a long-time independent director, Gary MacDougal, would not stand for re-election in accordance with the company's corporate governance guidelines. The guidelines state that a director should not be nominated for election once he or she attains the age of 70. MacDougal, the former chairman and CEO of Mark Controls Corp., currently is the senior member of the UPS Board, having become a director in 1973.

"It is impossible to overstate the contributions of Gary MacDougal," said Eskew. "Gary brought an essential outside perspective as well as global view to UPS when it was a private, much-smaller U.S. company. And he's the type of individual who constantly challenges everyone to think outside the box. UPS will miss Gary and I will miss Gary."

MacDougal served as the chairman and CEO of Mark Controls from 1969 to 1987. Prior to that, he was a partner at McKinsey & Co., an international management consulting firm. In 1989, MacDougal was appointed by President George H.W. Bush as a delegate and alternate representative in the U.S. delegation to the United Nations. He currently serves as a director of the Bulgarian American Enterprise Fund.

A former U.S. Navy officer, MacDougal earned a bachelor's degree in engineering at UCLA and an MBA degree from Harvard. He serves as an advisory director of Saratoga Partners, a New York-based venture capital fund.

The current directors who will seek re-election to the Board include Mike Eskew; Scott Davis; Michael J. Burns; Stuart E. Eizenstat; James P. Kelly; Ann M. Livermore; Victor A. Pelson; Carol B. Tome; John W. Thompson, and Ben Verwaayen. John Beystehner, who retired on Jan. 2 as UPS's chief operating officer, is not seeking re-election.

The annual shareowners' meeting will be held May 10, 2007. The Board of Directors has fixed the close of business on March 12, 2007, as the record date for determining holders of UPS common stock entitled to notice of, and to vote at, the annual meeting.

UPS, which celebrates its 100th birthday in 2007, is the world's largest package delivery company and a global leader in supply chain services, offering an extensive range of options for synchronizing the movement of goods, information and funds. Headquartered in Atlanta, Ga., UPS serves more than 200 countries and territories worldwide. UPS's stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange (UPS) and the company can be found on the Web at UPS.com

IBM Announces Development Agreement With Deutsche Telekom AG / T-Com

IBM (NYSE: IBM) and Deutsche Telekom AG / T-Com announced today that the companies will collaborate to transform the Deutsche Telekom / T-Com fixed line network into an NGN (Next Generation Network). The agreement will include the development and management of advanced services.

This IP-based network transformation will include the entire range of Internet services and the high standards of telephony that are available today. On behalf of Deutsche Telekom / T-Com, IBM has developed unique software-based services that in combination with IBM server technology will transform Deutsche Telekom / T-Com's service offerings. As a result Deutsche Telekom fixed line customers will have a new range of services at their disposal.

"The German fixed line network delivers outstanding quality of voice and data transmission, but at present it does not yet have the integration capability that is required for convergence of services," said Matthias Hartmann, General Manager IBM Germany and head of IBM Global Business Services. "The development initiative between IBM and Deutsche Telekom AG / T-Com starts with fixed line network replacement and will move on to integrating other innovative services."

The long-term conversion of the German fixed line network into a state-of-the-art NGN (Next Generation Network) infrastructure based on Internet standards (the Internet protocol/IP) will combine the full range of services offered by the Internet and the high standards of telephony that are already available.

IBM has developed special software that runs entirely on standard IBM server technology and IBM software which makes it possible to transfer Deutsche Telecom's existing network communications structure to a new IP infrastructure.

In contrast to conventional VoIP solutions, it resolves IP-specific challenges with respect to security and quality of transmission, personal identification and localization. The new NGN architecture thereby benefits both Deutsche Telekom and its customers significantly and in equal measure.

For Deutsche Telekom this leads to entirely new ways to market services systematically in both the home and the business segments. Higher quality services, for example, that cannot be marketed in an integrated manner via existing networks can now be provided and billed to both consumers and business customers. In this way companies in other industries will in the future be able to benefit from new, IP-based process solutions such as automated meter reading for utilities or networked in-car communication, navigation and vehicle servicing.

"This solution, developed on the basis of open standards and the IP protocol, is a trend-setting model for the transfer of traditional telecommunications business models and their simultaneous integration in the exciting variety of IP-based solutions, which include the Internet. Jointly with IBM we will be seeking to convince telecoms providers in other countries of the carrying capacity and business prospects of this solution," said Wolfgang Schmitz, head of the Technology Rollout Center, Deutsche Telekom AG/ T-Com.

The agreement was signed in Q4, 2006.

MSFT: Microsoft and Plaintiffs Resolve Iowa Class Action Lawsuit

Class counsel and Microsoft jointly announced that a settlement has been reached in a class action lawsuit that alleged violations of the Iowa Competition Law.

The terms of the settlement are not being disclosed pending preliminary court approval, which is expected in April. The settlement concludes the seven-year case and will provide compensation to individuals and businesses that purchased specified operating system and application software including Word, Excel and Office from May 18, 1994, through June 30, 2006. Details for making claims will be announced this spring.

“We are confident that the settlement is in the best interests of all members of the class and we are deeply grateful for the quality and fairness of the judicial process in Iowa,” said Roxanne Conlin, lead counsel for the class.

“The settlement will provide tremendous benefits for many people throughout the state of Iowa. We are pleased with the results of this litigation and we are pleased that the process worked so well,” Rick Hagstrom, class co-counsel of the firm Zelle Hofmann Voelbel Mason & Gette.

Under the settlement, Microsoft will provide half of any unclaimed proceeds to the Iowa Department of Education to bridge the digital and technical divide in Iowa schools through the purchase of computer hardware and software.

“One of the best aspects of resolving this case is that we can provide much needed resources to underprivileged schools,” said Rich Wallis, associate general counsel for Microsoft. “We’re happy to have this matter behind us so we can focus on the future and build the next generation of products and innovations that enrich the lives of people around the world.”

The Court will consider the joint motion for preliminary approval of the settlement on April 20, 2007. Purchases of Microsoft operating systems covered by this settlement include MS-DOS, Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows 98 Second Edition, Windows Millennium Edition, Windows for Workgroups, Windows NT Workstation, Windows 2000, and Windows XP. Microsoft applications in this settlement mean Word, Excel and Office versions designed for computers with the above MS DOS or Windows operating systems.

CSCO: Cisco Fortifies Enterprise Wireless LANs with Self- Defending Network

Cisco® today unveiled a tested and validated wireless solution to secure business critical applications and data, as well as business environments with today's launch of the Cisco Secure Wireless Solution. This solution forges robust network security using Cisco's Self-Defending Network with the latest wireless security features enabled in its Unified Wireless Network.

Ideal for organizations that must meet stringent government regulations, such as Sarbanes-Oxley, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), and retail's Payment Card Industry (PCI) standard, the Cisco Secure Wireless Solution signals a significant milestone in Cisco's strategy to deliver integrated, advanced technology solutions to address critical business issues.

The Cisco Secure Wireless Solution is an architectural design that builds on the Self Defending Network framework that encompasses a Cisco Unified Wireless Network combined with Cisco's award-winning NAC Appliance, ASA firewall, Cisco Security Agent, Cisco IPS Software, Cisco Secure ACS and Cisco Secure Services Client. The culmination of this fully-tested and validated solution provides IT administrators with a comprehensive set of advanced security features for their wireless LANs, which until now were previously reserved solely for wired-based networks.

"Truly integrated wired and wireless network security is a No. 1 requirement for our customers as they move toward pervasive wireless networks," said Brett Galloway, vice president and general manager of Cisco's Wireless Networking Business Unit. "Today's Secure Wireless Solution takes that fear factor away by mitigating network threats and allowing a business to realize wireless-enabled mobility benefits without compromising regulatory compliance."

Cisco's new Secure Wireless Solution supports the following applications:

• Unified wired and wireless intrusion detection (IDS) and intrusion prevention systems (IPS) by way of inspecting traffic flow for harmful applications and blocking malicious client access at the physical layer before network connection can occur;
  
• Comprehensive client validation, posture assessment and remediation for wireless users, which helps ensure wireless clients are up to date with the latest security policies and which mitigates the spread of viruses from uncontrolled wireless networks;
  
• Single sign-on capabilities and 802.1X integration that provides for integrated encryption of wireless client applications and streamlined password management control;
  
• Integrated firewall services for guest access, which helps business provide non-employees and contractors with access to the Internet, while protecting the company's network;
  
• Host intrusion prevention, which prevents wireless clients from being exploited as a bridge into the network and helps protect clients from suspect content and potential hackers;
  
• Rogue detection and containment to proactively help eliminate potential wireless threats from ad hoc client associations and rogue access points.

"With the Cisco Unified Wireless Solution, we have built a best of breed security architecture," said Erik Parker, certified information systems security professional and senior wireless infrastructure analyst of Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc. "The security features are an included functionality in our Cisco powered enterprise class wireless network and greatly reduce the total cost of ownership for maintaining a secure wireless LAN."

Business and Security Compliance Provided by Cisco Secure Wireless Solution

Protecting sensitive business and customer data is the driving force behind the latest regulatory requirements of Sarbanes-Oxley, HIPAA and PCI. For publicly traded companies, Sarbanes-Oxley requires that companies maintain internal control structures and procedures, and HIPAA requires safeguards to ensure integrity and maintained confidentiality of patient information. With the Cisco Secure Wireless Solution, companies and healthcare providers can deploy pervasive wireless, knowing that they are meeting these requirements.

Likewise, for retailers, the PCI standard requires that any merchant that uses payment cards must build and maintain a secure network, protect and encrypt cardholder data, and regularly monitor and test its network. PCI compliance is accomplished with the Cisco Self-Defending Network, providing retailers a superior end-to-end wired and wireless solution.

More information about regulatory compliance and the Cisco Secure Wireless Solution is available at: http://www.cisco.com/go/wirelesssecurity

IBM Completes Acquisition of Vallent

IBM (NYSE: IBM) today announced it has completed its acquisition of Vallent Corporation, a privately held software company based in Bellevue, Washington with more than 400 employees. IBM announced a definitive agreement to acquire Vallent on November 28, 2006. Vallent's operations will be integrated into the IBM Software Group's Tivoli Software unit.

Vallent's software helps service providers manage the performance of their network infrastructure through monitoring and reporting problem areas such as dropped telephone calls and traffic bottlenecks. The software also helps service providers improve service quality and identify network problems before they impact a customer's experience. Vallent adds significant wireless telecommunications expertise and technology to IBM.

Vallent has more than 200 clients, including Bharti, China Mobile and Brasil Telecom, as well as equipment providers such as Alcatel-Lucent and Motorola.

"Since we are a customer of both Vallent and IBM, the acquisition aligns well with our OSS strategy," said Sasho Mitov, Operations and Maintenance Division Director of Mobiltel. "We look forward to expanding our business relationship and supporting our rapid roll-out of high quality services."

The acquisition of Vallent extends IBM Service Management capabilities including the Netcool operations support system portfolio acquired with Micromuse in February of 2006. With Vallent technology, IBM can now offer distinctive capabilities across wireline, wireless, IP, and IT infrastructure to help clients manage services end-to-end, from the content server to the handset. Vallent further extends IBM's ability to help service providers address emerging opportunities in next generation network transformation, fixed/mobile convergence, and IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) deployment.

For more information, go to http://www-306.ibm.com/software/tivoli/welcome/vallent/

IBM Unveils World's Fastest On-Chip Dynamic Memory Technology

In papers presented at the International Solid State Circuits Conference (ISSCC) today, IBM revealed a first-of-its-kind, on-chip memory technology that features the fastest access times ever recorded in eDRAM (embedded dynamic random access memory).

This new technology, designed using IBM’s Silicon-on-Insulator (SOI) for high-performance at low power, vastly improves microprocessor performance in multi-core designs and speeds the movement of graphics in gaming, networking, and other image intensive, multi-media applications.


The technology is expected to be a key feature of IBM’s 45nm (nanometer) microprocessor roadmap and will become available beginning in 2008.


IBM’s new eDRAM technology, designed in stress-enabled 65nm SOI using deep trench, dramatically improves on-processor memory performance in about one-third the space with one-fifth the standby power of conventional SRAM (static random access memory).


“With this breakthrough solution to the processor/memory gap, IBM is effectively doubling microprocessor performance beyond what classical scaling alone can achieve,” said Dr. Subramanian Iyer, Distinguished Engineer and director of 45 nm technology development at IBM. “As semiconductor components have reached the atomic scale, design innovation at the chip-level has replaced materials science as a key factor in continuing Moore’s Law. Today’s announcement further demonstrates IBM’s leadership in this critical area of microprocessor design innovation.”

IBM innovations in microelectronics and the company's groundbreaking system-on-a-chip designs have transformed the world of semiconductors. IBM breakthroughs include High-k, which enhances the transistor’s function while allowing it to be shrunk beyond today's limits, dual-core and multi-core microprocessors, copper on-chip wiring, silicon-on-insulator and silicon germanium transistors, strained silicon, and eFUSE, a technology that enables computer chips to automatically respond to changing conditions. The White House has awarded IBM the National Medal of Technology, the nation's highest technical honor, for 40 years of innovation in semiconductors.

IBM chips are the heart of the company's server and storage systems, the world's fastest supercomputers and many of the best-known and widely used communications and consumer electronics brands.


eDRAM Specifications
Among the specifications of IBM’s high-performance eDRAM technology:

cell size: 0.126 mm²

Power supply: 1 V

availability: 98.7%

Tile: 1K RowX16 Col X146 (2Mb)

AC power: 76 mW

standby keep alive Power: 42 mW

Random cycle time: 2ns

Latency: 1.5ns

AMD Promotes Raj N. Master to Corporate Fellow

AMD (NYSE: AMD) today announced the promotion of Raj N. Master to Corporate Fellow. In this role Master will focus on driving continued excellence in the performance and cost-effectiveness of AMD’s chip packaging technologies. Packaging is the final step in the semiconductor manufacturing process where a wafer is cut and packaged into an individual microprocessor. Master’s areas of expertise include C4 (controlled collapse chip connection), die packaging, assembly and thermal solutions within AMD’s expanding product portfolio.

Corporate Fellowship is the highest level of technical recognition at AMD, and is reserved for those who impact AMD’s business opportunities and technical breadth by providing a high degree of expertise, knowledge, creativity and tactical and strategic direction

“Raj Master is the kind of domain expert that makes AMD such a magnet for talent,” said Chuck Anderson, corporate vice president of manufacturing services at AMD. “Through Raj’s leadership and commitment we took the C4 process and implemented it with tremendous speed, accuracy and agility in our facilities in Europe and Asia to meet the growing needs of our business.”

Back-end manufacturing is the final stage of the microprocessor production process where chips are bumped, assembled, tested and packaged before being sent to customers. The C4 process is an important final step where the die is connected off a wafer to a package. Often referred to as “flip-chip” or “solder-bump,” C4 is a technology pioneered by IBM that provides a more reliable and efficient method of connecting a die to its packaging than older wire-bonding techniques. AMD first licensed the technology from IBM in 1996 for use with the AMD-K6™ processor. Raj was responsible for successfully transferring the technologies to AMD, qualifying the C4 process on a prototype assembly line in Sunnyvale, and then implementing volume C4 production in Penang, which has to date produced more then 200 million flip-chip assemblies.

In addition to his responsibilities in die packaging, Master led AMD’s organic packaging development and manufacturing initiatives as well as provides guidance to the company’s quality and reliability community. Master also focuses on AMD’s drive for environmentally responsible manufacturing with leadership roles on the company’s lead-free bumping and packaging initiatives.

“I am appreciative of the confidence AMD exhibited in me and in the strength of our global manufacturing team,” said Master. “That confidence has allowed us to meet or exceed all milestones in delivering the customer-centric products that we ship today. I am proud to be the part of a team that has a ‘can-do’ philosophy and is focused on the highest quality products to satisfy the needs of our customers. Through continued enhancements and innovation in this process we will drive increased speed, accuracy and agility in our ability to deliver new products to the marketplace in volume.

Master earned his bachelor’s degree from M.S. University, Baroda, India and a master’s degree in metallurgical engineering from the University of Missouri. He began his career with IBM in technology packaging, rising to Senior Technical Staff Member before joining AMD. Raj also has authored 81 publications and holds 37 U.S. patents, many of which are currently being used in AMD products.

SUNW: Sun Releases Optimized AMP Stack for Solaris 10 Along With New OpenSolaris Distribution For Developers

Sun Microsystems, Inc., (NASDAQ: SUNW) the creator of Java technology, the Solaris Operating System (OS) and the world's leading contributor of open source code, today announced a new set of products and services that will help make it easier for developers, start-ups and Internet companies to build and deploy their Web infrastructure on the free and open source-based Solaris 10 OS. The three offerings available today are:

• Solaris Express, Developer Edition, an OpenSolaris-based distribution for Solaris, Java, and Web 2.0 developers


• Solaris + AMP (Apache/MySQL/Perl or PHP), an open source-based Web infrastructure stack optimized for the Solaris 10 OS


• An expanded Sun Startup Essentials program

More details on today's announcements can be found at: http://www.sun.com/web.

"Internet start-ups and Web 2.0 companies have shown a preference for open source software running on x86 hardware platforms," said Rich Green, executive vice president of Software for Sun. "With this announcement, we are making it easier and less expensive for them to get up and running with familiar tools, like Apache and MySQL, combined with the superior security and performance of Solaris 10 and attractive programs to tie it all together."


Solaris Express, Developer Edition
Solaris Express, Developer Edition is the first iteration of a new distribution based on the OpenSolaris project, providing developers with a fully integrated environment for the development of applications for Solaris, Java technology, and Web 2.0. Solaris Express, Developer Edition supports a wide variety of common x86-based desktop and laptop hardware and offers a simplified install experience so companies can get Solaris up and running more easily, reduce development time and save money. This release also includes an improved GNOME-based desktop and award-winning Sun development tools, including Sun Studio 11 software and NetBeans Integrated Development Environment 5.5, as well as over 150 open source applications. Sun plans to release regular updates to Solaris Express, Developer Edition with additional capabilities and ease of use improvements. More information on this new program is available at: http://developers.sun.com/solarisdevex.



Solaris + AMP
Sun is now offering versions of some of the most popular open-source applications optimized for Solaris, including: the Apache web server, MySQL database management system, PostgreSQL object-relational database management system, Perl, PHP and Python, as well as Sun developer tools and other open source technologies. For customers committed to the open AMP stack, this offer provides the same web applications they know and use on a more secure platform with greater scalability for building and deploying web applications. As part of the new program, Sun is posting a "recipe for success" of complete step-by-step instructions so customers can get up and running more quickly, as well as multiple levels of Sun Services. Solaris + AMP also leverages Sun's popular Try and Buy Program where customers can receive a free 60 days trial of Sun systems including: Sun Fire x64 (x86, 64-bit) servers, Sun Fire servers with CoolThreads technology, Sun Ultra Workstations and Sun Storage systems. More information is available at: http://www.sun.com/solaris/amp.



Sun Startup Essentials Program
Sun has expanded its Startup Essentials program to offer even more features to help startup companies accelerate their development cycle and get to market faster, while conserving their cash. This expanded program offers an improved buying experience with streamlined, online access to Sun hardware, including its award-winning Sun Fire x64 servers and Sun Fire servers with CoolThreads technology running the Solaris 10 OS or other operating systems. Starting today, Sun is adding Sun StorageTek modular disk arrays, NAS and tape storage products to the program at deeply discounted prices. In addition to offering free technical resources online, Sun is also offering Startup Essentials program participants free technical advice and guidance via e-mail. For full details visit: http://www.sun.com/startupessentials.



Developer Services
Developers can receive specialized advice for programming issues relating to Solaris Express, Developer Edition on a per-request basis with guaranteed response times through Sun Developer Expert Assistance Service. The service is available to all developers with a cost of $49 (USD) per request or unlimited requests for an annual subscription cost of $249 (USD). Sun Developer Expert Assistance Service will be available for Solaris + AMP stack at the end of February, 2007 with full production support on Solaris available early this summer. Sun Developer Expert Assistance Service provides global, round-the-clock e-mail based support on Sun software. More information is available at http://developers.sun.com/services, the comprehensive location for developers to discover all the Sun support and training options.

INTC: Virtual Windows to Run Unmodified on Linux

Novell and Intel Corporation today announced the availability of paravirtualized network and block device drivers that will allow Microsoft* Windows* Server 2000/2003/XP to run unmodified in Xen* virtual environments on SUSE® Linux Enterprise Server 10 from Novell®, operating on Intel-based server platforms featuring Intel® Virtualization Technology. Combined with the existing ability to host unmodified Linux* on SUSE Linux Enterprise Server, these new drivers will let customers confidently migrate to newer and fewer energy-efficient servers, consolidating legacy Windows or Linux solutions onto virtual servers.

"With our SUSE Linux Enterprise 10 platform launch in July 2006, Novell became the first major Linux distributor to integrate Xen virtualization into a Linux distribution," said Jeff Jaffe, Novell executive vice president and chief technology officer. "In September, we became the first distribution to support virtualized Linux workloads on Xen, and today we are the first distributor to support virtualized Windows workloads on Linux. Our commitment to innovation to solve customer problems has never been greater."

"Intel has been working with the open source community to enable Linux virtualization solutions to take advantage of Intel Virtualization Technology, so that guest OS and applications can run unmodified," said Doug Fisher, Intel vice president of Software and Solutions Group. "In addition, our Quad-Core Intel Xeon Processor-based platform with its outstanding performance, energy efficiency and reliability provides unparalleled headroom for multiple Virtual Machines running varied data center workloads. Getting Windows to run with Linux unmodified and vice versa will bring an immense confidence boost to IT managers in making decisions on corporate platform standardization and refresh."

In addition to providing cost savings when virtualizing Windows on SUSE Linux Enterprise Server, these drivers can improve the availability of Windows- and Linux-based workloads via clustered virtual systems and help IT staff respond faster to business needs by easily creating and provisioning services on virtual systems.

Novell is sponsoring a virtualization pilot program for customers, providing enterprise-level support for running fully virtualized Windows 2000/2003/XP workloads on SUSE Linux Enterprise Server. The paravirtualized device drivers are now available to members of the pilot program. General availability is scheduled for later this year. For more information on the pilot program and Novell virtualization solutions, visit www.novell.com/virtualization. For more about SUSE Linux Enterprise offerings from Novell, visit www.novell.com/linux. For more information about Intel Virtualization Technology, visit www.intel.com/business/technologies/virtualization.htm

SAP Names Christoph Liedtke Vice President of Global Media Relations

SAP AG (NYSE: SAP) today announced the appointment of Christoph Liedtke as new vice president of Global Media Relations. Effective February 1, 2007, Liedtke is responsible for all global media relations activities for SAP, including business, finance, trade, technology media, as well as new and social media.

Based in Walldorf, Germany Liedtke reports directly to Herbert Heitmann, head of SAP Global Communications.

“With Christoph’s appointment, we are strengthening our global team with a seasoned professional who brings a wealth of international communications experience and deep technology expertise,” said Heitmann. “Christoph will help us to better focus and further enhance the effectiveness of our global media relations efforts as we continue to build SAP’s already strong brand awareness as the world’s leading provider of business software.”

Liedtke joins SAP from Qimonda AG, the world’s second-largest DRAM semiconductor company, where he served as head of global public relations. Qimonda was a part of Infineon Technologies AG until May 1, 2006, when it became its own entity. Prior to this role, he was spokesperson for Infineon Technologies North America, based in San Jose/Silicon Valley, and responsible for all media relations and executive communication activities of the company in North America. Before his international assignment, he was director of public affairs for Infineon Technologies in Munich.

Liedtke holds a master's degree in political science from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, in the United States.

INTC:Intel Research Chip Advances 'Era Of Tera' 80-Core Programmable Processor First to Deliver Teraflop Performance with Remarkable Energy-Efficiency

Intel Corporation researchers have developed the world's first programmable processor that delivers supercomputer-like performance from a single, 80-core chip not much larger than the size of a finger nail while using less electricity than most of today's home appliances. This is the result of the company's innovative 'Tera-scale computing' research aimed at delivering Teraflop -- or trillions of calculations per second --performance for future PCs and servers. Technical details of the Teraflop research chip will be presented at the annual Integrated Solid State Circuits Conference (ISSCC) this week in San Francisco.

Tera-scale performance, and the ability to move terabytes of data, will play a pivotal role in future computers with ubiquitous access to the Internet by powering new applications for education and collaboration, as well as enabling the rise of high-definition entertainment on PCs, servers and handheld devices. For example, artificial intelligence, instant video communications, photo-realistic games, multimedia data mining and real-time speech recognition - once deemed as science fiction in Star Trek shows - could become everyday realities.

Intel has no plans to bring this exact chip designed with floating point cores to market. However, the company's Tera-scale research is instrumental in investigating new innovations in individual or specialized processor or core functions, the types of chip-to-chip and chip-to-computer interconnects required to best move data and most importantly, how software will need to be designed to best leverage multiple processor cores. This Teraflop research chip offered specific insights in new silicon design methodologies, high-bandwidth interconnects and energy management approaches.

"Our researchers have achieved a wonderful and key milestone in terms of being able to drive multi-core and parallel computing performance forward," said Justin R. Rattner, Intel's chief technology officer. "It points the way to the near future when Teraflop-capable designs will be commonplace and will reshape what we can all expect from our computers and the Internet at home and in the office."

The first time Teraflop performance was achieved was in 1996, on the ASCI Red Supercomputer built by Intel for the Sandia National Laboratory. That computer took up more than 2000 square feet, was powered by nearly 10,000 Pentium® Pro processors, and consumed over 500 kilowatts of electricity. Intel's research chip achieves this same performance on a multi-core chip that could rest on the tip of a finger.

Also remarkable is that this 80-core research chip achieves a teraflop of performance while consuming only 62 watts - less than many single-core processors today.

The chip features an innovative tile design in which smaller cores are replicated as "tiles," making it easier to design a chip with many cores. With Intel's discovery of new and robust materials to build future transistors and no immediate end in sight for Moore's Law, this lays a path to manufacture multi-core processors with billions of transistors more efficiently in the future.

The Teraflop chip also features a mesh-like "network-on-a-chip" architecture allowing super high bandwidth communications between the cores, and capable of moving Terabits of data per second inside the chip. The research also investigated methods to power cores on and off independently, so only the ones needed to complete a task are used, providing more energy efficiency.

Further Tera-scale research will focus on the addition of 3-D stacked memory to the chip as well as developing more sophisticated research prototypes with many general-purpose Intel® Architecture-based cores. Today, the Intel® Tera-scale Computing Research Program has over 100 projects underway that explore other architectural, software and system design challenges.

Intel is presenting eight other papers at ISSCC, including one which will cover the Intel® CoreTM micro-architecture and its use in dual and quad core processors spanning laptops to desktop PCs and servers, using both 65nm and revolutionary 45nm process technologies. Other papers cover such topics as a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) reader transceiver chip, a low power cache for mobile applications, a reconfigurable Viterbi accelerator, as well as novel circuits for on-die supply resonance suppression, on-chip phase-noise measurement and adaptive techniques for variations and aging.

MSFT: ING Investment Management Streamlines Market and Reference Data, Creating Relative Value Application on Microsoft Software

ING Investment Management Americas, the U.S. investment arm of ING Group, one of the leading financial services companies in the world, today announced that it has implemented a unique database solution built on Microsoft® technology to help its employees easily manage, access and analyze investment data from an array of data sources.

Leveraging Microsoft Windows Server System™ products including Microsoft SQL Server™ 2005, .NET Framework 2.0 and ASP.NET, ING created the Relative Value Application, which analyzes securities to determine their investment potential to streamline how investment firms manage and use reference data. The computationally intensive application gives ING employees the opportunity not only to retrieve data from multiple places, perform complex transformations and distribute the data to multiple destinations, but also to fulfill stringent reporting requirements.

ING Investment Management needed to be able to access proprietary market data quickly and efficiently, and accelerate time-to-insight by applying computational analysis to business processes across the organization. ING Investment Management’s complex data infrastructure made it difficult for executives, credit analysts and portfolio managers to access and analyze important business information.

To tackle the problem, ING Investment Management developed a framework for its Relative Value Application based on SQL Server 2005. SQL Server was chosen for a number of reasons, including developer efficiency, performance and scalability improvements. Through the development, rollout and implementation processes, Microsoft worked closely with ING Investment Management to ensure that the solution met its immediate business requirements as well as its long-term business plans.

“Retrieving high-quality, up-to-the-minute reference data from multiple sources is crucial to the success of trading institutions,” said Brian Timberlake, senior analyst for the quantitative risk management division of ING Investment Management. “We needed to create a clear and concise solution for retrieving and analyzing business data from multiple sources, without sacrificing our robust reporting capabilities. We were able to meet these increasing demands by deploying the innovative and scalable Microsoft technology.”

With the Relative Value Application in place, ING Investment Management has a mechanism that allows investment professionals to easily access and analyze investment data from an array of sources. Microsoft SQL Server 2005, along with SQL Server 2005 Reporting Services, creates a platform through which employees can retrieve data from multiple places, perform complex transformations and distribute the data to many destinations. Because the application is easy to set up and scale out, it will serve as a model for future applications at the company.

In addition to providing ING with additional functionality, the Relative Value Application performs more quickly and is more flexible than previous systems. In ING’s previous application, employees had a fixed set of data choices that were computed and then stored in a database; with the Relative Value Application, employees have virtually unlimited data choices. The application’s framework performance enhancements and use of asynchronous operations to perform parallel processing allow it to compute information on the fly and present it more quickly than previous systems.

“Financial institutions such as ING Investment Management are increasingly adopting real-time, scalable risk and analytic business intelligence solutions for getting timely and accurate data,” said Craig Saint-Amour, industry solutions director of the U.S. capital markets industry at Microsoft. “By using next-generation features provided by the Microsoft Windows Server System family, ING Investment Management demonstrates tremendous thought leadership, and is providing its employees with versatile, intuitive tools to improve customer service.”

About ING

ING is a global financial institution of Dutch origin offering banking, insurance and asset management to over 60 million private, corporate and institutional clients in over 50 countries. With a diverse workforce of about 115,000 people, ING comprises a broad spectrum of prominent companies that increasingly serve their clients under the ING brand.


In the U.S., the ING family of companies offers a comprehensive array of financial services to retail and institutional clients which include life insurance, retirement plans, mutual funds, managed accounts, alternative investments, direct banking, institutional investment management, annuities, employee benefits, financial planning, and reinsurance. ING holds top-tier rankings in key U.S. markets and serves over 14 million customers across the nation. For more information, visit www.ing.com

About Microsoft in Financial Services

Microsoft’s Financial Services Group provides software that helps financial firms transform the customer, employee and operations experience so they can maximize opportunities for increased market share and profitability. Microsoft software helps empower people and IT staff within financial firms — and across key focus areas such as advisor platforms, channel renewal, insurance value chain, enterprise risk management and compliance, and payments. Through a combination of Microsoft- and partner-provided solutions, customers enable their employees to turn data into insight, transform ideas into action and turn change into opportunity.

More information about Microsoft’s Financial Services Group can be found at http://www.microsoft.com/financialservices

MSFT: Microsoft and AMD Award Space Trip to Vanishing Point Winner William Temple

William Temple of Sacramento, Calif., will be traveling to space as one of the winners of “Vanishing Point,” a unique interactive puzzle game from Microsoft Corp. and AMD to celebrate the recent consumer release of the Windows Vista™ operating system. Temple was awarded the prize today by Aaron Coldiron, lead communications manager for Microsoft, Teresa de Onis, marketing manager, Advanced Marketing Group for AMD, and Randy Brinkley, president of Rocketplane Kistler at the Oklahoma Spaceport in Burns Flat, Okla.

“This has been a lifelong dream — floating in space and seeing the Earth from above is going to be an amazing experience,” Temple said. “I’m really excited I was chosen out of the 87,000 registered players online.”

Coldiron noted, “We wanted to show people how Windows Vista will take computing to new heights — 60 miles up, in this case. The chance to give someone the ultimate ‘vista’ from space is a fantastic reward.”

“This game brought to life one of the most promising and rewarding aspects of technology — the ability to bring people from around the globe together to solve shared problems,” de Onis said. “The online community that grew around Vanishing Point displayed amazing cleverness, persistence and ingenuity in completing these puzzles.”

The online community has been abuzz about “Vanishing Point,” the latest alternate reality game: solving a series of online puzzles that led to a corresponding real-world event. The sweepstakes kicked off Jan. 8, 2007 with a spectacular custom light show in the fountain of the Bellagio Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. The week following the launch event, people around the world discovered a new round of clues in the form of skywriting. On Jan. 20, 2007, significant global structures, including the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco, the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, the National Gallery in London, the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto and the Victoria Theatre in Singapore, were “painted” in light, revealing clues about historic figures and times. To cap off the real-world activities, on Jan. 27, 2007, Microsoft and AMD conducted a fireworks finale on Seattle’s Lake Union, drawing hundreds of people to learn more about the identity of the mysterious Microsoft Puzzle Master.

Temple will visit space in the Rocketplane XP, a four-seat, fighter-sized vehicle fitted with a delta wing and a V-tail providing good flight characteristics both subsonically and supersonically. The vehicle is powered by turbojet engines and a rocket engine, allowing it to accelerate to speeds of more than 3,500 feet per second (2,386 miles per hour) and reach altitudes in excess of 330,000 feet (60 miles), providing the sensation of weightlessness for three to four minutes. Rocketplane Limited is a subsidiary of Rocketplane Kistler.

The grand prize package includes a Windows Vista-based, AMD-powered Dell desktop PC; a 24-inch widescreen monitor; a Zune™ digital media player; an Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system; three Games for Windows® game titles; a Microsoft® LifeCam VX-6000 webcam; Microsoft Office Ultimate 2007; and $50,000 cash.

“Vanishing Point” raised the stakes in online games with tougher challenges, bigger rewards and events scheduled around the globe. Players worldwide competed for nearly half a million dollars in prizes. Representatives are available to discuss the game, the grand prize and the role Microsoft, Windows Vista, AMD and Rocketplane Limited played in the game. More information, official rules and coverage of the offline events are available at http://vanishingpointgame.com

CSCO: Cisco Announces Agreement to Acquire Five Across

Cisco Systems, Inc., (NASDAQ: CSCO) today announced a definitive agreement to acquire privately held Five Across, Inc. of San Francisco, Calif., a leading vendor in the social networking marketplace.

The Five Across platform, Connect Community Builder, empowers companies to easily augment their websites with full-featured communities and user-generated content such as audio/video/photo sharing, blogs, podcasts, and profiles. These user-interaction functions help companies improve the interaction with their customers and overall customer experience on their websites. Social networking functions are of unique interest to media companies, sports leagues, affinity groups and any organization wishing to increase its interaction with its online constituency.

"Cisco believes the network is the platform for organizations to connect with their constituents and for individuals to connect with each other," said Dan Scheinman, senior vice president and general manager of the Cisco Media Solutions Group (CMSG). "With the acquisition of Five Across, Cisco is taking an important step towards helping its customers evolve their website experience into something more relevant and valuable to the end-user."

Five Across was founded in 2003 and has 11 employees in San Francisco, Calif.. Upon close of the transaction the Five Across team and product portfolio will be integrated into CMSG led by Scheinman.

The terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. The acquisition is subject to various standard closing conditions and is expected to close in the third quarter of Cisco's fiscal year 2007, ending April 28, 2007.

For more information about the Cisco Media Solutions Group, go to: http://www.cisco.com/go/media

GlaxoSmithKline(GSK) and XenoPort(XNPT) announce agreement on late-stage compound for RLS and neuropathic pain

GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and XenoPort, Inc. (Nasdaq: XNPT) today announced an exclusive agreement to co-develop and commercialise XP13512, a unique prodrug of gabapentin that improves its bioavailability, in the US and other countries worldwide, excluding certain Asian countries. XP13512 is currently in Phase III development for Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) and in Phase II development for neuropathic pain. Prior clinical trial results have been encouraging.

XP13512 is a patented, new chemical entity that is designed to improve upon the clinical utility of gabapentin by taking advantage of high-capacity transport mechanisms in the gut to improve absorption.

Under the terms of the agreement, XenoPort is entitled to receive an up-front cash payment of £40 million. XenoPort is also eligible to receive aggregate milestone payments of up to £34 million for development activities leading up to the NDA filing for RLS, up to £111million in other potential development and regulatory milestone payments and up to £153million in potential sales milestone payments based on successful commercialization of XP13512 for RLS and neuropathic pain. In addition to royalties on sales outside the US, XenoPort is entitled to receive tiered, double-digit royalty payments on US sales of XP13512 unless XenoPort elects to co-promote XP13512 with GSK in the US, in which case it will be entitled to participate in a net profit share for XP13512 in the US. If XenoPort decides to co-promote XP13512 in the US, it is also entitled to detail REQUIP products currently in development by GSK, provided they are approved in the US. GSK will have an exclusive right to develop, manufacture and commercialise XP13512 in the US and all countries worldwide except certain Asian countries previously licensed by XenoPort to Astellas Pharma Inc.


In the US, XenoPort will complete the ongoing studies to support RLS development. Subject to positive Phase III clinical data, GSK will file the NDA for RLS for FDA approval. GSK will lead development and registration of XP13512 for all other indications, including neuropathic pain. GSK will also be solely responsible for the manufacture of XP13512 to support its development and commercialization within the licensed territories.


The agreement is subject to review by the US Government under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act and will become effective after clearing review.


Moncef Slaoui, chairman of R&D, GSK, commented, “This is another important late-stage programme addition to GSK’s R&D pipeline. We are pleased to work with XenoPort toward bringing a new treatment alternative for the management of these two important disease areas of RLS and neuropathic pain where there is still such a large unmet need.”


Ronald W. Barrett, Ph.D., XenoPort’s chief executive officer, stated, “GSK has demonstrated leadership and innovation in educating doctors and patients about the debilitating aspects of RLS and has helped improve the lives of many patients with RLS. We are excited to be collaborating with GSK to advance the development and commercialization of XP13512 and, most importantly, to be creating a new treatment for patients with RLS and neuropathic pain.”


About XenoPort
XenoPort, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing a portfolio of internally discovered product candidates that utilize the body's natural nutrient transport mechanisms to improve the therapeutic benefits of existing drugs. XenoPort's most advanced product candidate, XP13512, is the subject of this announced alliance with GSK. XenoPort also has a second product candidate, XP19986. Positive Phase IIa results have been reported in patients with Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) with XP19986.