News and Analysis to 1st October 2003
Sun exhibits retrograde motion
Unix box vendor, Microsoft baiter and Java evangelist Sun
Microsystems is exhibiting some unhealthy signs. Recently it announced that it
would be reporting a loss for the first quarter. Its shares slipped 10% on the
news and now Sun looks on the verge of being categorised as a ‘sell’ stock.
Microsoft takes action against ‘poor’ perverts
Microsoft has decided to close down its free Internet chat
rooms across the planet from 14th October. Its reasoning being that
such chat rooms are a haven for sex predators. Microsoft clearly feels that its
‘soon to be launched’ paid chat room service, also unmoderated, will be a safer
environment. Unsurprisingly free speechers and Microsoft rivals reacted negatively.
In any case this is a wake up call for parents.
Open source – Almost universally mandated
The open source phenomenon (More details click
here) looked set to get a very high profile endorsement from the United
Nations at a forthcoming World Summit on the Information Society, but was
recently toned down to acknowledge the role of proprietary software. The
proponents of open source in this context see it as a perfect model for the
cash strapped governments of developing nations. No doubt pressure from
software vendors played a part, but one can’t help feel that the recent Linux
related ‘SCO Group versus the planet’ spat might have made the decision makers
jittery.
Verisgin targets dyslexics
Security specialist and domain name manager Verisign has
identified a way to make money from web surfers who mistype .com domain names.
Rather than being sent to an error page, Verisign ushers them to a landing page
rich in Verisign advertising. A number of law suits have been filed against
Verisign accusing them of cybersquatting and even, get this, typosquatting. I
am sure that Verisign will be very happy to sell web site owners supplementary
domain names that reflect all possible mistypings to avoid the problem.
‘Roger that’
Don’t take offence should you hear this voiced as you walk
past someone on his or her mobile phone. This is more likely to be the
confirmation protocol adopted by early adopter mobile phone users as they
replace SMS (how thumb numbingly passé) with ‘push to talk’ walkie-talkie
services. Think of it as voice SMS. Nextel already has 12 million customers in
the US. FastMobile plans to bring such a service to the UK.
Merrill Lynch predicts IT spend upturn
Merrill Lynch’s survey of 75 CIOs in the US and Europe
points to a mild recovery next year. Responses highlight that there is a
concern over desktop security and so Linux could start to replace Windows,
despite the uncertainty over the future of Linux. Hardware spend looks more
promising than software, with networking taking the top priority slot. Cisco
and all the other Internet plumbing companies should start to dust down their
order books.
Further consolidation in IT services
French IT services outfit Atos Origin has decided to
purchase the bulk of SchlumbergerSema, the IT arm of oil and gas services firm
Schlumberger, giving it the bulk needed to be a Premier League player in the
European market. Many will nostalgically see this as the final chapter for Sema
Group, one of the founding fathers of the IT services industry, which through a
relatively minor misdeed at Board level, found itself prey to Schlumberger. It
will at least be a relief to SchlumbergerSema’s call centre staff and anyone
who has ever had to communicate with Schlumberger’s 5 syllable alliterating IT
division. The integration of Atos Origin and the 5 syllable alliterating IT
division will be watched closely by analysts and reported carefully by
journalists.
Alarming prospect
Imagine a mobile phone that acts as a smoke alarm. This
could be on the cards if a couple of Romanian inventors can convince a major
handset operator to adopt their idea. The phone could potentially alert the
user if smoke or other toxic gases are detected and/or alert the emergency
services. It sounds like a must-have in these no-holds barred terrorist times.
It might even provide a further justification for smoking bans in public
places. The emergency services might well insist on smoking/ mobile phone bans
on all trendy restaurants.
