Ciena / Allstream news today

 

Allstream Taps Ciena for National Broadband Network

WaveLogic coherent optical technology ensures network resiliency and performance for delivery of bandwidth-intensive applications

TORONTO, Ontario and LINTHICUM, Maryland — 11/28/2011

Allstream Inc., one of Canada's leading national communication solutions companies, and Ciena® Corporation (NASDAQ: CIEN), the network specialist, today announced the deployment of Ciena’s coherent optical technology in the operator’s 100G-capable national broadband network. The augmented network ensures Allstream can provide heightened network resiliency and performance with its scalable, high-bandwidth national network.

Key Facts:

·         The enhanced national broadband network allows Allstream to deliver enhanced managed wavelength services to customers in high-capacity transaction environments such as data centers, financial institutions, and government services.

·         Leveraging Ciena’s 6500 Packet-Optical Platform equipped with WaveLogic coherent optical processors, Allstream significantly increased its network capacity and resiliency throughout Canada—without adding significant cost and complexity to the network—to deliver bandwidth-intensive applications, such as IP-based collaboration tools, multimedia and social networking, advanced Internet services, remote data storage and videoconferencing.

·         Allstream is also utilizing leading-edge network management software solutions from Ciena to ensure optimal network performance.

·         A long-standing Ciena customer, Allstream is a designated Managed Service Provider (MSP) partner in Ciena’s BizConnect global partner program.

Executive Quotes:

·         “Our customers are asking for higher speed wavelength services to facilitate data center connectivity, storage replication, cloud services and other bandwidth-intensive applications and services. By using Ciena’s industry-leading coherent optical technology, we’re able to cost-effectively provide the performance and resiliency our customers demand to ensure their critical applications have the scale and capacity needed for their day-to-day business activities.

Mike Strople, Chief Technology Officer at MTS Allstream

·         “Demand for our high-capacity coherent DWDM solutions is growing exponentially as communications solutions providers around the globe seek to differentiate their application and service offerings to remain competitive. Allstream has built a reputation on its ability to deliver innovative business services that are reliable, cost-effective, and able to scale to meet customer needs, and our coherent optical technology ensures they are able to meet this demand with optimal performance.”

Chad Whalen, vice president and general manager, North America field organization at Ciena

Technology Leadership

·         The pioneer and market leader in coherent technology for optical transmission, Ciena offered the industry’s first commercially-available systems – with coherent 40G deployed since 2008 and coherent 100G since 2009 – and has shipped in excess of 9,000 coherent 40G/100G line interfaces to approximately 100 customers across the globe with more than 9.0 million coherent kilometers deployed.

·         Ciena provides a unique approach to coherent networking, offering more flexible architectures in addition to improving network economics. With its WaveLogic coherent optical processors, Ciena is increasing capacity throughput in existing networks to 100G today, with developments in place for achieving higher spectral efficiencies with several successful demonstrations of Terabit wavelength transmission, and is the first vendor to offer coherent-enabled colorless ROADM solutions.

Supporting Resources

·         Application Note: Coherent Optical Processing for High-Capacity Networks

·         White Paper: Key Technology Enablers of 100 Gb/s in Carrier Networks

·         Video: Coherent Optical Processing

About Allstream
Allstream is a Canadian leader in IP communications and the only national provider that works exclusively with business customers of all sizes. For more information on Allstream services and solutions, please visit www.allstream.com.

Allstream is a division of MTS Allstream Inc. (“MTS Allstream”), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. As one of Canada's leading national communication solutions companies, MTS Allstream provides innovative communications for the way Canadians want to live and work today. The Company has more than 100 years of experience, with 5,500 employees across Canada dedicated to a mission of delivering true value as seen through the eyes of our customers. MTS Allstream has nearly two million total customer connections spanning business customers across Canada and residential consumers throughout the province of Manitoba. The Company's extensive national broadband and fibre optic network spans almost 30,000 kilometres. Manitoba Telecom Services Inc.'s common shares are listed on Toronto Stock Exchange (trading symbol: MBT). Customers, stakeholders and investors who want to learn more about MTS Allstream are encouraged to visit: www.mtsallstream.com.

About Ciena
Ciena is the network specialist. We collaborate with customers worldwide to unlock the strategic potential of their networks and fundamentally change the way they perform and compete. With focused innovation, Ciena brings together the reliability and capacity of optical networking with the flexibility and economics of Ethernet, unified by a software suite that delivers the industry’s leading network automation. We routinely post recent news, financial results and other important announcements and information about Ciena on our website. For more information, visit www.ciena.com.

Note to Ciena Investors
Forward-looking statements.
This press release contains certain forward-looking statements based on current expectations, forecasts and assumptions that involve risks and uncertainties. These statements are based on information available to the Company as of the date hereof; and Ciena's actual results could differ materially from those stated or implied, due to risks and uncertainties associated with its business, which include the risk factors disclosed in its Report on Form 10-Q, which Ciena filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on September 8, 2011. Forward-looking statements include statements regarding Ciena's expectations, beliefs, intentions or strategies regarding the future and can be identified by forward-looking words such as "anticipate," "believe," "could," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "should," "will," and "would" or similar words. Ciena assumes no obligation to update the information included in this press release, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

 

MEDIA ADVISORY - Norton Presents "Stuff Theatre": A Live, Global Event on Facebook

*****MEDIA ADVISORY****MEDIA ADVISORY***MEDIA ADVISORY****

 

Norton Presents “Stuff Theatre”: A Live, Global Event on Facebook

 

Calling all Facebook users to sign up and have their page brought to life on November 30

 

WHAT:                 On November 30, Norton will host Stuff Theatre – a live, global event where Facebook users’ pages will be performed by a variety of performance troupes and artists for 24 hours straight.

For example, a friend’s desperate cry of longing for his girlfriend may be just plain awkward on Facebook, but it becomes hilarious when a fuzzy puppet dramatically acts it out, live for the world to see.

Facebook users can sign up here to have the “stuff” on their page – photos, status updates and more – performed and broadcast live via Norton’s Facebook page [https://www.facebook.com/Norton].

Performers will include musicians, puppeteers, slam poets, speed talkers, opera singers, graffiti artists, mimes, caricature artists and speed painters, among many others – all working with a professional director. 

 

WHY:                    Stuff Theatre is a creative and fun way to communicate the importance of protecting your stuff and reinforces the messaging in Norton’s current “Stuff” marketing campaign.

The Internet allows us all to create, store and share bits and pieces of our lives online. This stuff is of real emotional and tangible importance to us – our photos, music, contacts, movies and comments are part of who we are. The idea behind Stuff Theatre is to celebrate these personal experiences through live performances and share them with others.

Norton protects the stuff that matters – on your PC, Mac or mobile device. Through solutions like Norton Mobile Security Lite and Norton Anti-Theft, we also help protect your stuff everywhere you go.

Norton will not store or share the personal information of participants outside of this event on Facebook.

Check out the official trailers below, and join us on November 30 for this exciting event!

 

 

VIDEO TRAILERS: Stuff Theatre: Chicken Pot Pie Opera
   Bit.ly: http://bit.ly/uFZ36f

 

                                   Stuff Theatre: Desperate for Haley
   Bit.ly: http://bit.ly/t0NUhr

 

WHEN:                   November 30, 2011

 

WHERE:                 Broadcast live from the Copernicus Theater in Chicago via:

  https://www.facebook.com/Norton

 

WHO:                     Norton spokesperson available upon request.

 

RSVP:                     http://on.fb.me/uLTxUL

 

CONTACT:           Natasha Dos Santos                                

MAVERICK Public Relations

416-640-5525 ex 248

                natashad@maverickpr.com

 

cid:<a href=image003.png@01CA305E.A053B560" width="277" />

 

Natasha Dos Santos 

Account Executive

MAVERICK Public Relations

37 Madison Avenue, Toronto, ON  M5R 2S2

T: 416.640.5525 ext 248

F: 416-640-5524

www.maverickpr.com

natashad@maverickpr.com

Twitter: MAVERICK_PR 

Microsoft Dynamics “Give Me 5” Promotion Now Available Through Candlewest in Canada – Buy Five Users for 3K

Microsoft Dynamics “Give Me 5” Promotion Now Available Through Candlewest in Canada – Buy Five Users for 3K

Candlewest is excited to be offering the Microsoft Dynamics “Give Me 5” promotion in Canada. For a limited time the “Give Me 5” from Microsoft offers new Canadian customers the ability to acquire five users for the price the price of one ($3,000) for any of the Microsoft Dynamics GP, Microsoft Dynamics NAV and Microsoft Dynamics SL products.

 

Candlewest is one of the leading Microsoft Dynamics partners in Western Canada.

Quote start"This is a great opportunity for businesses to get the functionality available in Microsoft Dynamics at an incredible price"Quote end

Vancouver, BC (PRWEB) November 26, 2011

Candlewest is offering organizations a compelling price point to purchase either Microsoft Dynamics Business Essentials or Microsoft Dynamics Advanced Management for a limited time through the Microsoft Give Me 5 promotion. Organizations can purchase five users of Microsoft Dynamics (Business Essentials or Advanced Management) for the price of $3,000.

“We’re excited to be part of this promotion” says Marketing Manager Carlos Ekkert. “This is a great opportunity for businesses to get the functionality available in Microsoft Dynamics at an incredible price”.

In the case of Microsoft Dynamics BE (Business Essentials), organizations buying Business Essentials under the promotion at $3,000 are saving over $10,000 in software costs. In the case of Microsoft Dynamics AM (Advanced Management), organizations will save themselves over $23,000.

Organizations taking advantage of the Business Essentials promotion will receive all the modules typically included in Business Essentials; a list of twenty one different modules. Under the “Give Me 5” Advanced Management promotion, organizations will receive all forty three modules typically included in AM (Advanced Management); including the inventory modules, the manufacturing modules and the financial suite.

Offer is available for a limited time and subject to new customer eligibility. For more information contact Candlewest Systems at 1 (866) 453-5800 or visit us at http://www.candlewest.com

About Us:
Candlewest is one of Microsoft’s leading Microsoft Dynamics Vancouver partners and one of the longest standing Microsoft Dynamics partners in British Columbia. Candlewest implements Microsoft Dynamics GP, Microsoft Dynamics NAV and Microsoft Dynamics CRM. With deep experience in the Microsoft Dynamics line of products and industry best practices, Candlewest leads organizations into better efficiency and business clarity.
For more information contact Candlewest Systems at (604) 453-5800 or visit us at our website at http://www.candlewest.com

CIX ANNOUNCES INNOVATOR OF THE YEAR

Monday, November 21, 2011


CIX ANNOUNCES INNOVATOR OF THE YEAR

Geordie Rose, founder and CTO of D-Wave will be recognized for his ambitious approach to building quantum computing technology

Toronto, ON (Nov. 21, 2011) - The Canadian Innovation Exchange (CIX) is thrilled to announce that Dr. Geordie Rose, founder and Chief Technology Officer of D-Wave Systems Inc. of Burnaby, British Columbia, will be receiving the inaugural CIX Innovator of the Year Award for 2011.

With this award, CIX recognizes an individual Canadian who has demonstrated the most compelling technology or business innovation within the sectors of ICT and digital media. Nominations are put forth by the CIX Advisory Board members and are considered and evaluated by the CIX Co-Chairs.

"Dr. Geordie Rose has created truly incredible technology as the inventor of the world's first functional quantum computer - this is a rare example of a breakthrough that will literally change the way we perceive computing going forward" said Rick Nathan, CIX Co-Chair and Managing Director of Kensington Capital Partners, "After more than 10 years of research and development, 2011 was the break-out year for the Company."

The development of a quantum computer processor has been a longstanding goal of physicists and computer scientists who, until recently, focused primarily on academic research. This transformative technology is comparable in scope to the shift from vacuum tubes to transistors to silicon chips, with vastly more processing power and the ability to solve complex problems that are simply not possible through today's advanced supercomputers based on conventional processors. Applications currently under development include machine learning, protein folding, image recognition, and search as well as powerful analytics for 'big data' sectors like energy usage, consumer behavior or stock market trading.

In selecting the Innovator of the Year, CIX recognized the key milestones achieved in the past 12 months, Including:

· The first commercial sale of the D-Wave One System, to Lockheed Martin Corporation, validating the commercial business model of the quantum technology.

· Recognition by Nature, the prestigious international scientific research journal, where Dr. Rose and his colleagues published peer reviewed research demonstrating the role of quantum mechanics in the D-Wave Processor.

· The launch of the new Quantum Computing Center based on the D-Wave One System at the Viterbi School Engineering at the University of Southern California.

The CIX Innovator of the Year Award will be presented to Dr. Rose at the Canadian Innovation Exchange on December 1, at the MaRS Centre in Toronto.

About Geordie Rose

Geordie Rose is known as a leading advocate for quantum computing and physics-based processor design, and has been invited to speak on these topics in venues ranging from the 2003 TED Conference to Supercomputing 2011. His innovative and ambitious approach to building quantum computing technology has received coverage in MIT Technology Review magazine, The Economist, New Scientist, Scientific American and Science magazines, and one of his business strategies was profiled in a Harvard Business School case study. He has received several awards and accolades for his work with D-Wave, including being short-listed for a 2005 World Technology Award. Dr. Rose holds a PhD in theoretical physics from the University of British Columbia, specializing in quantum effects in materials. While at McMaster University, he graduated first in his class with a BEng in Engineering Physics, specializing in semiconductor engineering.

About CIX

Taking place December 1st, 2011 at MaRS Discovery District in Toronto, the Canadian Innovation Exchange (CIX) is the foremost destination for key leaders in the innovation economy to learn from one another, explore new relationships and accelerate the development of the ground-breaking technologies, products and services propelling the Canadian economy into the future. This one day forum attracts the people behind innovative new technologies ? entrepreneurs, investors, corporations, service providers, government, and media - for an unparalleled program of visionary keynotes and panel discussions, facilitated networking opportunities, and the CIX Top 20 - a showcase of Canada's hottest innovative companies working in Digital Media and Information and Communication Technology. For more information, visit www.canadianinnovationexchange.com

About Achilles Media

CIX is produced by Achilles Media Ltd., an international business-to-business media and facilitation company serving the media and investment industries. Achilles Media communities include: the Banff World Media Festival; nextMEDIA World Events; History Makers International; and the Digi Awards. For more information, visit www.achillesmedia.com.

Media Contact
Jackie Peterson
Cross Border PR
Jackie@crossborderpr.com
778.384.3384

Juniper Networks Responsibly Delivering The New Network

Juniper Networks Responsibly Delivering The New
Network


------------------------------

*Release of Corporate Citizenship and Sustainability Report Documents
Progress Around Company’s Sustainable Operations, Supply Chain, Employee,
Community and Green IT Initiatives*

*SUNNYVALE, Calif., Nov. 21, 2011 — *Juniper Networks (NYSE: JNPR), the
industry leader in network innovation, today published its Corporate
Citizenship and Sustainability Report, highlighting the benefits of the new
network and the company’s initiatives around green IT, employee
development, community engagement, and sustainable best practices for its
extended operations. The report charts Juniper’s progress in 2010 around
its citizenship and sustainability strategy.
Report Highlights:

- *Home Worker Program* – The program employs Juniper technology to
reduce commute congestion and pollution and to keep users connected,
productive and safe when weather, illness or other personal commitments
make it difficult to travel to work.
- *"Not for Sale"* – Juniper pledged a multi-year commitment to a
non-profit that is striving to re-abolish modern day slavery. "Not for
Sale" is using the network to connect people and resources to raise
awareness [slaverymap.org] of the crimes that may be in our own
communities.
- *Advanced Security Technologies* – The new security functionality for
mobile devices, including smart phones and iPads, and data centers protects
the network and the integrity of the information it carries.
- *Internet2* – Juniper donated $2.5 million to support the development
of the new, nationwide 100 Gigabit-per-second (Gbps) network that will
enable advanced networking features for more than 200,000 public
institutions.
- *A New Chipset* – The Junos® Trio chipset requires less cooling
and drives down energy consumption per unit of bandwidth, while increasing
capacity and throughput.
- *The Next-Generation Core Router* - The Juniper Networks® T4000
Core Router consumes just 2.7 watts of power per Gigabit of processed
traffic.
- *A New "3-2-1" Architecture* – Juniper's approach to data center
networks reduces the amount of equipment deployed in the data center, from
three layers to two and ultimately to one, reducing waste, energy
consumption, operational costs and complexity.
- *Reduced Lifecycle Impacts* - Juniper is using bamboo in its
packaging, which is 100 percent recyclable and more environmentally
friendly than paper pulp, and shifted from a just-in-time supply strategy
to a more distributed model, which reduced shipping costs (up to seven
times the savings) and overall transport emissions.
- *Ongoing R&D Commitment* – Juniper Networks invested 22 percent of its
annual revenue in research and development to continue the advancement of
the performance, capabilities and efficiencies of the new network.
- *Carbon Intensity* – Juniper set and met a target to reduce its carbon
footprint by five percent for each employee. The company continues to
report its emissions via the Carbon Disclosure
Project
.
- *Efficient Lab Design and Layout* – Juniper's innovative approach to
its labs reduced energy consumption, garnering the company a savings of
$200,000 a year for each 200 rack lab.

Supporting Quotes:

"Because Juniper's solutions underpin the world's communications
infrastructure, we take our responsibility seriously around ensuring that
we are doing all we can to reduce risks, increase efficiencies, and lower
the total cost of ownership so that people around the globe have access and
can truly benefit from the network. We value total network efficiency,
which means looking at its entire lifecycle and finding ways to reduce
impacts and mitigate the resource and carbon constraints affecting us all."
- *Mark Bauhaus, executive vice president and general manager, Services,
Support and Supply Chain Operations, Juniper Networks*

"Juniper is committed to understanding and reducing the impacts of all its
operations to make sure that every community in which we have a presence is
better off because Juniper is there. We have a history of tackling and
finding answers to seemingly insurmountable problems, and we are committed
to innovating and being part of the solution to some of the toughest issues
facing our world today."
- *Brad Minnis, senior director of Environmental, Health, Safety and
Security, Juniper Networks*
Additional Resources:

- Juniper Corporate Social Responsibility and report:
http://www.juniper.net/us/en/company/citizenship-sustainability
- Questions about the report:
corp-citizenship-sustainability@juniper.net
- Juniper.Net Community:
www.juniper.net/community
- Juniper on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/Junipernetworks

- Juniper on Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/JuniperNetworks


About Juniper Networks

Juniper Networks is in the business of network innovation. From devices to
data centers, from consumers to cloud providers, Juniper Networks delivers
the software, silicon and systems that transform the experience and
economics of networking. Additional information can be found at Juniper
Networks (www.juniper.net
).

*Juniper Networks and Junos are registered trademarks of Juniper Networks,
Inc. in the United States and other countries. The Juniper Networks and
Junos logos are trademarks of Juniper Networks, Inc. All other trademarks,
service marks, registered trademarks, or registered service marks are the
property of their respective owners.*

HP to Transform Server Market with Single Platform for Mission-critical Computing

HP to Transform Server Market with Single Platform for Mission-critical
Computing

Expanded HP Converged Infrastructure delivers industry-leading choice,
investment protection
PALO ALTO, Calif., Nov. 22, 2011
------------------------------

HP today announced “Odyssey,” a project to redefine the future of
mission-critical computing with a development roadmap that will unify UNIX®
and x86 server architectures to bring industry-leading availability,
increased performance and uncompromising client choice to a single platform.

Organizations are challenged with increasingly stringent service-level
agreements for their most demanding workloads, along with the pressure to
be more efficient with their IT budgets and resources. They need the
availability and resilience of UNIX-based platforms along with the
familiarity and cost-efficiency of industry-standard platforms.

Using advanced technology across a common, modular HP
BladeSystemarchitecture, HP is
developing platforms to enable clients to choose the
best environment aligned to their organizations’ needs without compromise,
helping ensure investment protection for the long term.

HP’s new development roadmap includes ongoing innovations to HP
Integrityservers, HP
NonStop systems and the
HP-UXand
OpenVMS operating systems. The roadmap also
includes delivering blades with Intel® Xeon® processors for the HP
Superdome 2 enclosure (code name
“DragonHawk”) and the scalable c-Class blade enclosures (code named
“HydraLynx”), while fortifying Windows® and Linux environments with
innovations from HP-UX within the next two years.

With the availability of “DragonHawk,” clients will be able to run
mission-critical workloads on HP-UX on Intel Itanium®-based blades while
simultaneously running workloads on Microsoft Windows or Red Hat Enterprise
Linux on Intel Xeon-based blades in the same Superdome 2 enclosure.

“Clients have been asking us to expand the mission-critical experience that
is delivered today with HP-UX on Integrity to an x86-based infrastructure,”
said Martin Fink, senior vice president and general manager, Business
Critical Systems, HP. “HP plans to transform the server landscape for
mission-critical computing by using the flexibility of HP
BladeSystemand bringing key HP
technology innovations from Integrity and HP-UX to the
x86 ecosystem. Unlike the competition, HP offers an open, integrated,
single platform approach.”

For more than 25 years, HP has powered the most demanding workloads by
building a robust and proven franchise of technology and service
innovations for mission-critical computing.

By expanding mission-critical HP Converged
Infrastructureand
bringing select proven innovations to x86 systems, HP will enable
clients running Linux or Windows to:

- Increase scalability with 32-socket “DragonHawk” symmetrical
multiprocessing x86 systems that will scale to hundreds of cores and
support large, complex workloads. The systems will enable clients to deploy
the smallest to the largest workloads in a dynamic, highly scalable pool of
IT resources.
- Increase reliability and flexibility with two-, four- and eight-socket
“HydraLynx” scalable x86 server blades with mission-critical virtualization
and availability, all packaged in the robust c-Class enclosures of HP
BladeSystem.
- Increase availability of critical Linux applications with the HP
Serviceguard solution , which
automatically moves application workloads between servers in the event of a
failure or an on-demand request.
- Boost flexibility and availability of x86 systems with HP
nPartitionstechnology
(nPars), which provides precise partitioning of system resources
across multiple or variable workloads. HP nPars is electrically isolated to
eliminate failure points, which allows clients to “scale out” within a
single, robust system.
- Enhance business continuity with HP Analysis Engine for
x86embedded
into the system firmware. HP Analysis Engine goes beyond error
logging to ensure efficient diagnoses and automatic repair of complex
system errors while restoring system stability in seconds.
- Boost reliability and resiliency of x86 systems with fault-tolerant HP
Crossbar Fabricthat
intelligently routes data within the system for redundancy and high
availability.
- Achieve higher levels of availability with HP Mission Critical
Services,
which identify and resolve possible sources of downtime.

*What partners are saying about Project Odyssey*

“Intel’s continued innovation with a multigeneration Itanium processor
roadmap, combined with existing and future mission-critical capabilities of
Intel Xeon processors, allow HP and Intel to provide customers with greater
flexibility and choice,” said Kirk Skaugen, vice president and general
manager, Datacenter and Connected Systems Group, Intel. ”Together with HP
we will be able to give customers the ability to do mission-critical
computing on their terms, with a broad range of operating systems and
applications.”

“Amdocs’ experience in implementing HP-UX/Integrity as a mission-critical
platform for our market-leading BSS/OSS solutions at top global service
providers has proven extremely positive,” said Rebecca Prudhomme, vice
president, Product and Solutions Marketing, Amdocs. “Extending HP Converged
Infrastructure features to Linux on x86 will allow customers using the
Superdome 2 architecture to benefit from the cost-effectiveness of x86,
while leveraging the platform’s strength, scalability and availability.”

“Customers trust Microsoft and HP with their enterprise computing needs,”
said Eduardo Rosini, corporate vice president, SQL Server Marketing,
Microsoft. “By furthering our partnership, Microsoft and HP will bring
together the world’s leading server and software solutions to let customers
harness the flexibility and scalability of Microsoft Windows Server and SQL
Server on HP Converged Infrastructure for their broad mission-critical
computing needs of tomorrow.”

“Red Hat and HP have worked together for more than a decade to continuously
support innovation in server and Linux technologies,” said Paul Cormier,
executive vice president, and president of Products and Technologies, Red
Hat. “Further extending the mission-critical experience to x86 environments
will enable clients to leverage the application performance, scalability
and security provided by Red Hat Enterprise Linux on HP for their most
demanding workloads.”

More information is available at www.hp.com/go/Odyssey.

HP Converged Infrastructure is a key component of
the Instant-On Enterprise . The Instant-On
Enterprise embeds technology in everything it does to serve customers,
employees, partners and citizens with whatever they need, instantly.

HP’s premier client event, HP DISCOVER ,
takes place Nov. 29 - Dec. 1 in Vienna, Austria. The event showcases how
organizations can get started on their Instant-On
Enterprise
journeys.

*About HP*

HP creates new possibilities for technology to have a meaningful impact on
people, businesses, governments and society. The world’s largest technology
company, HP brings together a portfolio that spans printing, personal
computing, software, services and IT infrastructure to solve customer
problems. More information about HP (NYSE: HPQ) is available at
http://www.hp.com.

Best Buy survey: Mom devoting 40 per cent of their overall holiday budget to tech

Bestbuy_holiday_graphic_2


 
When It Comes To Holiday Shopping for Tech, Mom Knows Best
Best Buy survey shows moms know and love consumer technology – and they’re coveting the latest tech under the tree
 
Announcement Highlights:
 
  • Almost three-quarters of Canadian moms say they are confident and knowledgeable when it comes to making the right decisions about consumer technology gifts.
  • Moms shopping for tech this season will on average spend about 40 per cent of their overall holiday budget on consumer technology gifts
  • Moms are coveting tech gifts for themselves, too! Entertainment software, tablets and e-readers are some of the must-haves on moms’ holiday wish lists. 
(Burnaby, BC) November 22, 2011 – She’s packed her DSLR for the holiday party later this evening and her Bluetooth is configured for any last-minute calls.  Tomorrow, her holiday shopping begins – she’s downloaded links to the kids’ must-haves onto her tablet for easy reference. Before bed tonight, she’ll update her Facebook status via her mobile in between catching up with the shows on her PVR.
 
Who is she?  She’s mom, of course, and a recent survey conducted by Angus Reid Public Opinion on behalf of Best Buy – Canada’s fastest growing retailer and e-tailer of consumer electronics, computers and entertainment products – found that not only is she the one who is largely responsible for purchasing consumer technology gifts this season, but she knows what she wants and likes shopping for it, too. 
 
In fact, the survey found that most moms in charge of holiday shopping for consumer technology items actually enjoy it, and 76 per cent say they are confident and knowledgeable when it comes to making the right decisions about technology for themselves and their family members. Moms are involved in shopping for their kids’ consumer technology gifts 80 per cent of the time – but it’s not just the kids who will be taking home the tech this holiday season.  Moms have their own wish lists, too. 
 
“In my circle of friends, we’re really doing it all when it comes to both researching and buying consumer technology for our families – we’re not just blindly shopping off a list handed to us from our kids,” said Krista Swanson, who blogs as Tech Mummy at YummyMummyClub.ca.  “I’m the go-to person in our household when it comes to knowing what apps the kids will like the most, what features I want in a camera to get those coveted shots, and what video games will be fun to play with my family.” 
 
More than 75 per cent of Canadian moms with one or more kids under the age of 21 have at least one consumer technology item on their holiday shopping list, and on average are planning on spending about 40 per cent of their overall holiday budget on tech.  And when it comes to saying thanks for all they know and do? Nearly half of moms (46 per cent) feel they should get more credit from family members when it comes to their holiday shopping efforts.
 
“We know that moms are the cornerstone of consumer technology purchases – it’s outdated thinking to assume that it’s always dad who is the informed tech shopper in the family,” said Angela Scardillo, Vice President, Marketing, Best Buy Canada Ltd. and a mom of 2. “As a mom myself, I can attest that we’re extremely empowered when it comes to knowing what to buy.  Not only do we understand tech when it comes to our families, but we want tech ourselves – in fact, this year, entertainment software, tablets and e-readers are topping the must-have lists for moms.”
 
Need more ideas? A list of Mom’s Favourite things for holiday this year can be found here.
 
For more information about Best Buy, including store locations, visit www.BestBuy.ca
 
-30-
 
About the Survey
 
Angus Reid Public Opinion conducted an online survey on behalf of Edelman Canada from November 3-6, 2011. A representative sample of 1,000 Canadian moms with kids under the age of 21 were surveyed.  A sample of this size yields a margin of error of +/- 3.1%, 19 times out of 20.  All respondents were mothers of children under the age of 21.
 
About Best Buy Canada
Best Buy stores in Canada are a division of Burnaby, BC-based Best Buy Canada Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY). We are Canada's fastest-growing retailer and e-tailer of consumer electronics, computers and entertainment products. With over 70 Best Buy stores across Canada, we offer a unique shopping experience with the latest technology and entertainment products, at the right price, with a no-pressure (non-commissioned) sales environment. Every day our employees are committed to helping deliver technology solutions that enable easy access to people, knowledge, ideas and fun. We are keenly aware of our role and impact on the world, and we are committed to developing and implementing business strategies that bring sustainable technology solutions to our consumers and communities. For information about Best Buy Canada, visit www.BestBuy.ca
 
 

Canadian businesses unclear when it comes to cloud computing


Canadian businesses unclear when it comes to cloud computing

19 per cent of Canadian businesses who thought they weren't using cloud services actually are

MISSISSAUGA, ON, Nov. 24, 2011 /CNW/ - Canadian businesses are unclear when it comes to cloud computing reveals a Microsoft Canada survey released today. The survey, conducted by Leger Marketing, polled Canadian C-level executives across all sectors and found that 19 per cent of those who indicated they are not currently using cloud services were in fact leveraging cloud computing solutions and services like Microsoft Web Apps, Microsoft Office 365 and Windows Azure.

Simply put, the cloud is a network-based way to cost-effectively process, manage and store all of your data - everything from corporate documents to family photos.

The survey also found that those who are not using cloud-based services (67 per cent) admit they don't know enough to make major decisions about it at this time.

"This confusion comes as no surprise because "Cloud" can refer to a wide variety of different services," says John Weigelt, National Technology Officer for Microsoft Canada.  "The market is rife with misinformation and myths surrounding cloud computing, and Canadian businesses are losing out as a result.  The truth is that the cloud can deliver huge benefits such as cost-savings, increased productivity and greater efficiency, but businesses don't know where to start."

The survey indicated security and privacy are the top two barriers for entry into cloud computing for organizations including government and healthcare, whereas security and reliability (data loss) are the major barriers for private sectors.

"Many businesses are already in the cloud whether they know it or not," says Weigelt.  "It's time to take stock of what is already used in-house and consider what other cloud technologies can be introduced. Only by understanding the principles, technology and processes associated with Cloud computing, will Canadian businesses be able to reap the rewards and unlock the potential that cloud offers."

"It's important that businesses become more knowledgeable about cloud computing and understand that they can have both privacy and functionality," said Dr. Ann Cavoukian, Information and Privacy Commissioner for Ontario. "With proper privacy protections designed into the system from the very beginning of its lifecycle, and integrated at every system layer, businesses can gain the huge financial and competitive advantages of cloud and ensure security."

Many Canadian businesses also don't realize they have a choice between adopting public or private cloud solutions or a combination of both, called a hybrid approach, allowing businesses to select services from locations where they make the most sense. A private cloud can be managed in-house or by a third party, with data hosted on or off-site, whereas public cloud is an infrastructure made available to the general public or a large industry group, owned by a vendor providing cloud services.

"Every organization's journey to the cloud will be unique. Some organizations will call for customized, dedicated cloud resources, while others will benefit most from the massive scale of the public cloud," says Weigelt. "In many cases, a hybrid approach is the answer, providing the freedom to select services from where they will most benefit the organization and even move back and forth at will."

Canadian organizations are beginning to take advantage of the cloud for their service delivery initiatives, reaping the benefits of the low-cost, low-management and flexible cloud offerings.

"At the University of Toronto, we are implementing Microsoft Live@edu email and software service for all of our 70,000 students to simplify online collaboration and document sharing, while keeping students' data private and promoting online safety," said Robert Cook, Chief Information Office, University of Toronto. "This cloud-based service helps the university reduce costs through lower IT management and hosting fees, allowing us to divert resources back into the core of our academic mission. Our students benefit from improved communication and collaboration and are equipped with the tools for success in both their academic pursuits and future careers."

Survey Design/Research Methods
The Leger Marketing Survey was completed using Leger Marketing's online panel, LegerWeb, with a sample of 705 Canadian businesses/organizations across all sectors/industries and with a minimum of five computers in use in their individual installed bases.  Leger Marketing is the largest Canadian-owned polling and market research firm. Founded in 1986, the company now has over 650 employees, including more than 115 professionals specializing in marketing research, communication effectiveness and public opinion polling. Our professionals are located in Montreal, Quebec City, Toronto, Ottawa, Winnipeg, Edmonton, Calgary, and Philadelphia, Denver and Tampa in the United States.

About Microsoft Canada
Established in 1985, Microsoft Canada Inc. is the Canadian subsidiary of Microsoft Corporation (Nasdaq "MSFT") the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential. Microsoft Canada provides nationwide sales, marketing, consulting and local support services in both French and English. Headquartered in Mississauga, Microsoft Canada has nine regional offices across the country dedicated to empowering people through great software - any time, any place and on any device. For more information on Microsoft Canada, please visit www.microsoft.ca.

For further information:

For media inquiries:
Allison Colalillo, High Road Communications on behalf of Microsoft Canada
416-644-1644
acolalillo@highroad.com

Livy Feldgajer, High Road Communications on behalf of Microsoft Canada
416-644-2280
livy.feldgajer@highroad.com

Gartner Says CIOs Must Develop New Strategic Business Capabilities to Restore their Businesses

Gartner Says CIOs Must Develop New Strategic Business Capabilities to Restore their Businesses

Analysts Discuss the Importance of Strategic Business Competencies at Gartner Symposium/ITxpo, November 21-23, in Mumbai

Mumbai, India, November 23, 2011— 

Over the next two to three years, CIOs will be tasked in helping business leaders identify, develop and instill the new strategic business capabilities (SBCs) that will help restore their businesses to full health in the post-recession world, according to Gartner, Inc. Those who don’t may find themselves sidelined.

Analysts at Gartner Symposium/ITxpo, being held here through November 23, today explored how IT can make a more strategic contribution to the business.

“If you think the task ahead of you (the CIO) is simply to introduce a new technology, standardize a disparate set of computer systems across the corporation, update vendor agreements and revise the IT governance structure for your company — think again,” said Mark Raskino, vice president and Gartner fellow.

Great companies compete by advancing SBCs. Customer relationship management (CRM) and supply chain management are two clear examples of what is meant by an SBC. These are not “just” technologies. They involve process changes, mind-set shifts, new job roles and organization changes.

“Think of SBCs as a vector through which technology changes the way companies do business, and SBCs also creates industry disruption. A number of these major business strategic ‘weapons’ are moving to a point of maturity where they can provide considerable new business value,” said Mr. Raskino. “The pipeline of newer and emerging SBCs is very healthy. For these reasons, we believe IT will continue to have disruptive potential, in business strategy terms, for at least 15 years. These major innovations depend on funding, ingenuity and market development. Even if Moore's law stopped next year, we believe that most of them would continue to fruition.”

However, analysts said SBCs are getting more complex and challenging. They require skillful and often enterprise-wide change management at the transformation level. This carries failure risks on significant investments, and many CEOs may find simpler and easier ways to compete and win new business. The path of least resistance may be the barrier to SBC-based business progression.

Gartner has created the Strategic Business Capabilities Hype Cycle that plots SBCs at their various stages of advancement (see Figure 1). After the great economic “reset,” analysts said the Hype Cycle will help businesses to identify the biggest value-producing capabilities IT is enabling in progressive businesses.

 

The action to be taken by CIOs varies as the Hype Cycle progresses. At the earliest stages, the task is to assign resources to R&D, in order to give the organization the option to invest in the SBC later. For example, today, a toy company might examine the possibility of 3D-printer-based digital fabrication for uniquely tailoring Lego-style plastic building bricks. The main window of investment opportunity comes next, that is the period when leading organizations, through their own trial and error, incubate and define the SBC itself, gaining perhaps five years or more of competitive advantage. M-commerce is being defined by leaders now - for example, what mobile banking will look like and how it is controlled.

For organizations that wait until later, fast follower, or copying, action will reduce the negative effects of industry disruptions. Those who leave any decision until the Plateau of Productivity will likely find themselves at an increasing comparative disadvantage and must invest quickly to repair damage to business results. For example, slow incumbent retailers that failed to invest in a move to e-commerce five or 10 years ago can find themselves losing share and trying to catch up today.

Gartner analysts will discuss the trends, innovation, current and future directions of IT and emerging technology trends for 2012, with a specific focus on the Indian business environment moving into 2012 and beyond at the Gartner Symposium/ITxpo 2011 being held on 21 – 23 November 2011 in Mumbai. For further information about the event, please visit www.gartner.com/in/symposium.

Members of the media can register for the Symposium by contacting Sony Shetty at sony.shetty@gartner.com.

About Gartner Symposium/ITxpo

Gartner Symposium/ITxpo is the world's most important gathering of CIOs and senior IT executives. This event delivers independent and objective content with the authority and weight of the world's leading IT research and advisory organization, and provides access to the latest solutions from key technology providers. Gartner's annual Symposium/ITxpo events are key components of attendees' annual planning efforts. IT executives rely on Gartner Symposium/ITxpo to gain insight into how their organizations can use IT to address business challenges and improve operational efficiency. Additional information is available at www.gartner.com/symposium/us.

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Blackboard Opens Canadian Data Centre

Blackboard Opens Canadian Data Centre

New Facility Meets Rising Demand for In-Region Hosting Services

WASHINGTON, Nov. 22, 2011 /CNW/ -- Blackboard today announced the official opening of a new data centre in Calgary, Alberta to support growing interest from Canadian institutions for an in-region facility to host and manage their learning environments. The centre, which began production earlier this year, already hosts systems for several Canadian higher education institutions including Dalhousie University, the University of Ottawa and George Brown College.

The new data centre is Blackboard's seventh worldwide. Blackboard Managed Hosting(SM) currently supports about 8.5 million active Blackboard Learn(TM) users and nearly 1,000 education, corporate and government clients worldwide. Overall, the number of clients using Blackboard's hosting services has grown by more than 20 percent in the last two years.

Blackboard's hosting services help ensure high system speeds and uptime and offer greater overall system security. Hosted clients also generally achieve quicker and more successful upgrades and report higher satisfaction rates than institutions that host Blackboard systems locally.

"Our decision to adopt a hosted solution offers an opportunity to strengthen and improve our overall approach to learning technology for our students," said Phil O'Hara, assistant director of academic computing services for Dalhousie University. "Blackboard has surpassed our requirements to safeguard the privacy of our students and faculty, while leaving our IT team in control of populating courses. This direction is more scalable and affordable than what is possible with on-campus resources and has generally improved the online resources we are able to offer. It was a win-win decision."

With guaranteed uptime rates of up to 99.9 percent, Blackboard provides a reliable, secure and high performance infrastructure that supports student and institutional success. Blackboard's data centres typically average over 150 million Internet hits a day during peak times, and are staffed around the clock to guard against threats to physical and data security, natural disasters, and network outages of all types, while also providing a highly reliable and secure hosting environment. Blackboard's hosting technicians are experts both in infrastructure management and learning management systems which leads to enhanced system processing and increased network security.

"We are excited to open a new data centre in Canada to provide a stronger set of capabilities to our local clients," said Harry Choi, vice president of Blackboard Managed Hosting. "With our focus on the safety and manageability of system information and performance, our hosted clients can worry less about day-to-day system management and spend more time improving and growing their online programs."

For more information about Blackboard Managed Hosting, please visit http://www.blackboard.com/Platforms/Learn/Services/Managed-Hosting.aspx

About Blackboard

Blackboard is a global leader in enterprise technology and innovative solutions that improve the experience of millions of students and learners around the world every day. Blackboard's solutions allow thousands of higher education, K-12, professional, corporate, and government organizations to extend teaching and learning online, facilitate campus commerce and security, and communicate more effectively with their communities. Founded in 1997, Blackboard is headquartered in Washington, D.C., with offices in North America, Europe, Asia and Australia.

Any statements in this press release about future expectations, plans and prospects for Blackboard represent the Company's views as of the date of this press release. Actual results may differ materially as a result of various important factors. The Company anticipates that subsequent events and developments will cause the Company's views to change. However, while the Company may elect to update these statements at some point in the future, the Company specifically disclaims any obligation to do so.