Canadian CEOs are more confident about the future than CEOs globally

Canadian CEOs are more confident about the future than CEOs globally; Access to top talent remains a concern

Global CEO Survey shows how CEOs are delegating decision making, developing future leaders and rebuilding trust

TORONTO – Canadian CEOs are generally more confident of their revenue prospects and the economy in the short and longer term compared to their global peers, according to PwC’s 16th Annual Global CEO Survey released today in Davos, Switzerland.

The survey interviewed over 1,300 of the world’s chief executives in 68 countries, including 120 Canadian CEOs. This year’s survey looked at key items on CEO agendas around the world including confidence in growth, current threats like the availability of talent, approaches to leadership and the need to rebuild trust.

Highlights include:

  • Canadian CEOs say they are very confident about their company’s prospects over the next three years and have a higher confidence level than their global counterparts (60% vs. 46% globally).
  • Canadian CEOs are less likely to provide global mobility and international experience opportunities to develop their leadership pipeline than in other countries. Only 39% of Canadian CEOs are focused on mobility opportunities, compared to the global average (61%).
  • About half of Canadian CEOs say they expect the economy to stay the same in 2013 (49%), while more than a quarter expect some improvement (26%); Last year nearly half of leaders said things would get worse in 2012 (48%), and few were expecting an improvement (15%).

Bill McFarland, PwC Canada’s CEO says, “Canada is a global leader when it comes to stability in our financial sector and Canadian CEOs are responding with greater confidence about their company’s prospects. At the same time, our CEOs are watching the economic environment south of the border carefully and paying close attention to the responses of governments in Canada and around the world to how they are managing their deficits and the debt burden.”

Developing Canada’s future business leaders
Canadian CEOs are characterized for taking a more inclusive approach to decision making. Half of Canadian CEOs said that all of their staff are encouraged to get involved in strategic decision making (compared to 31% globally).

Canadian CEOs also said that involving staff below board level in strategic decision making was effective in engaging their people and developing their pipeline of future leaders (88% vs. 79% globally). CEOs also stay active in succession planning, with 85% saying they are identifying multiple successors for their jobs.

McFarland says, “We are seeing an increasing tendency to flatten the hierarchy that exists in many organizations as more CEOs delegate decision-making and empower people. Nine out of ten CEOs in our survey said this was an effective way to develop their people as part of succession planning.”

However Canadian CEOs are less likely to provide global mobility and international experience opportunities to develop their leadership pipeline than other countries including the U.S., the BRIC economies, EU zone and Australia. Only 39% of Canadian CEOs use global mobility as a development tool, compared to the global average (61%).

Moreover, Canadian CEOs were less inclined to say global opportunities are an effective way to develop their leaders (66% compared to the global average of 83%). McFarland says, “This could be a risk, as the global economy changes rapidly and there is an increasing need for Canadian business to penetrate new markets, understand the global marketplace and be a significant player on the world stage.”

Access to talent continues to be limited
Whereas the majority of CEOs around the world cited policy concerns over taxes as their top threat to growth (62%), Canadian CEOs say they are more concerned about finding key skills in their workforce (63%), the speed of technological change (45%) and their ability to finance growth (43%).

Canadian CEOs feel the Government should focus its efforts on creating and supporting a skilled workforce, with 72% saying this should be the Government’s top priority. Over three-quarters of Canadian respondents said they will be increasing their investment in developing a skilled workforce (76%) and more than half expect to increase their headcount in 2013 (52%).

The need to rebuild trust
Another key theme in this year’s survey is that CEOs around the world are recognizing the need to rebuild trust amongst the public by having a stronger social mandate which starts within their own organizations and covers the relationship with all stakeholders. Globally, more than half of CEOs said they are focusing on promoting a more ethical corporate culture over the coming year. In Canada, this is reflected by almost a third of CEOs saying they sense that a “lack of trust” in their industry is a threat to their growth.

“Winning businesses of the future need to be about more than making money – to attract and retain top talent having a social responsibility lense will be a critical success factor,” says McFarland.

He continues, “By aligning the value and purpose of your organization with those of your employees and the needs of society, CEOs can build businesses that have a shared sense of purpose where people do the right thing for the right reasons.”

In a recent speech to the Economic Club of Canada, McFarland also called for leaders within the professional services firms in Canada to be "leaders of change”. “It's important to restore confidence in the markets and inspire and ensure the profession remains relevant for the next generation,” he said.

Survey Methodology:
For PwC's 16th Annual Global CEO Survey, 1,330 interviews were conducted in 68 countries during the last quarter of 2012. By region, 449 interviews were conducted in Asia Pacific, 312 in Western Europe, 287 in North America, including 120 in Canada and 167 in the U.S., 165 in Latin America, 95 in Central & Eastern Europe, 50 in Africa and 32 in the Middle East.

The full survey can be downloaded at www.pwc.com/ceosurvey. Copies are also available from the media contacts including related charts and information graphics to help illustrate your stories. To watch a video clip of Bill McFarland’s address to the Economic Club of Canada, please visit:http://www.pwc.com/ca/en/audit-assurance/bill-mcfarland-economic-club-canada-speech.jhtml.

Follow PwC on Twitter at @PwC_Canada_LLP and on Facebook athttp://www.facebook.com/pwccanada.

About PwC Canada

PwC Canada helps organizations and individuals create the value they’re looking for. More than 5,700 partners and staff in offices across the country are committed to delivering quality in assurance, tax, consulting and deals services. PwC Canada is a member of the PwC network of firms with close to 169,000 people in 158 countries. Find out more by visiting us at www.pwc.com/ca.

© 2013 PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, an Ontario limited liability partnership. All rights reserved. PwC refers to the Canadian member firm, and may sometimes refer to the PwC network. Each member firm is a separate legal entity. Please see www.pwc.com/structure for further details.

Gartner Predicts Cloud as a Delivery Model to Shape Buying and Prioritization of Security

STAMFORD, Conn., January 22, 2013View All Press Releases

Gartner Predicts Cloud as a Delivery Model to Shape Buying and Prioritization of Security

Analysts Identify Key Security Solution Predictions for 2013 and Beyond

Increased adoption of cloud-based computing is expected to impact the way security is consumed as well as how key government agencies will prioritize security of public cloud infrastructures, according to Gartner, Inc. The growing importance of public clouds, along with the ever-persistent threat on private and public sectors' infrastructures, is expected to result in the U.S. government declaring them a critical national infrastructure.

"The popularity and increased adoption of cloud-based security services, albeit at different degrees, will influence the shape of future security marketplaces," said Ruggero Contu, research director at Gartner. "Deployments of virtualization, and its replacing of traditional physical hardware platforms, are expected to impact the deployment model of future network security capabilities, which are expected to be based increasingly on virtual security appliances."

Gartner has made three predictions about the security solutions industry for 2013 and beyond:

By 2016, public cloud infrastructure will include and be mandated to critical national infrastructure regulations by the U.S.

In lieu of poor economic and debt conditions globally, governments continue to seek ways to reduce their IT operating expenditures, eliminate duplication across their IT organizations and optimize their compute resources. Several key governments have created initiatives for the adoption of cloud-based services but have yet to experience significant negative impacts due to their cloud services adoption in the form of disruptions or attacks on cloud services providers. As the economy becomes heavily reliant on public cloud infrastructure for everyday computing activities, cloud services disruptions will pose greater risks to the overall economy and eventually become a threat to national security in the form of economic disruption.

"Public cloud services providers will need to comply with critical infrastructure protection mandates for systems outside of the scope of just federal government use under the FedRAMP program (Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program)," said Lawrence Pingree, research director at Gartner. "Security technology providers will need to prepare their technologies in order to address potential mandates for critical infrastructure protection of public cloud environments. Providers that lack the ability to offer compliant security controls to address critical infrastructure protection mandates will likely face sales difficulties in cloud environments and may be filtered from shortlists based on emerging critical infrastructure protection requirements."

By 2015, 10 percent of overall IT security enterprise product capabilities will be delivered in the cloud.

Growth rates for cloud-based security services are set to overtake those of traditional on-premises

security equipment over the next three years with operational cost reduction, flexibility of deployment across multiple IT environments, and fast implementation and product updates among major factors driving demand. A number of factors will inhibit higher adoption of cloud-based security services as not all businesses will be able to benefit from this delivery model in equal measure. Those organizations located in geographies where Internet connectivity is unreliable or that require high levels of product customization will be at a disadvantage in utilizing this form factor.

Growth opportunities are present across different regions and countries, but Gartner expects North America to provide the majority of spending.

"The biggest opportunities currently center on areas such as messaging and Web security as well as remote vulnerability assessment," said Mr. Contu. "However, as maturity evolves a wide variety of security offerings will emerge, such as data loss prevention (DLP), encryption and authentication, to be increasingly available in the cloud. As new startup players establish themselves with innovative offerings, established players will look to acquire them to expand their portfolios with new capabilities and remain competitive."

By 2015, 20 percent of the VPN/firewall market will be deployed in a virtual switch on a hypervisor rather than a physical security appliance.

Physical network security appliances, such as server mobility and simplified architecture, can inhibit key virtual server benefits customers seek. Partnering with hypervisor providers has become critical to offering network security on the virtual switch. Virtual switches allow for new firewall players such as host-based security software companies to enter the network firewall market. Since a virtual switch is one level of abstraction away from the physical data switch ports, providing network security is no longer just for physical network providers. Hypervisor providers are moving firewall offerings from the data center to the network edge. This could be key for new network firewall players leveraging hypervisor technologies to gain firewall market share outside of the data center.

"Growth in the firewall market could come from virtual players," said Eric Ahlm, research director at Gartner. "To date, the virtual firewall market has been limited to data-center-class firewalls, which make up the minority of the total firewall market. A push from the virtual providers to bring their technology to the edge could be a key accelerator to the virtual switch market growth. Enabling the key benefits of virtualized servers, while not compromising security, is becoming a key requirement for network data-center-class firewalls while transportability of network firewall controls outside of a customer's data center to a third-party provider is essential to customers using these providers for more critical systems."

More detailed analysis is available in the report "Predicts 2013: Security Solutions." The report is available on Gartner's website at http://www.gartner.com/resId=2246015.

More information on Gartner's top predictions for 2013 will be presented in the webinar "Top Technology Predictions for 2013 and Beyond" taking place February 27 at 8 a.m. and 11 a.m. EST. To register for this complimentary webinar, please visit http://my.gartner.com/webinardetail/resId=2297221?srcId=1-2994690285

More information on security solutions and management will be presented at the Gartner Identity and Access Management Summit 2013 taking place March 11-13 in London, U.K. More information can be found athttp://www.gartner.com/technology/summits/emea/identity-access/. Members of the media can register to attend the event by contact Rob van der Meulen at rob.vandermeulen@gartner.com.

Information from the Gartner IAM Summit 2013 will be shared on Twitter at http://twitter.com/Gartner_incusing #GartnerIAM.

Gartner analysts will also look at the outlook for security solutions at the Gartner Security & Risk Management Summit 2013 taking place June 10-13 in National Harbor, MD, August 19-20 in Sydney, Australia, and September 18-20 in London, UK.  More information on the U.S. event can be found atwww.gartner.com/us/security.  Details on the U.K. event are athttp://www.gartner.com/technology/summits/emea/security/. Members of the media can register for press passes to the Summit by contacting christy.pettey@gartner.com (U.S.), susan.moore@gartner.com (Sydney) orlaurence.goasduff@gartner.com (U.K).

Information from the Gartner Security & Risk Management Summits 2013 will be shared on Twitter athttp://twitter.com/Gartner_inc using #GartnerSEC.

About Gartner

Gartner, Inc. (NYSE: IT) is the world's leading information technology research and advisory company. Gartner delivers the technology-related insight necessary for its clients to make the right decisions, every day. From CIOs and senior IT leaders in corporations and government agencies, to business leaders in high-tech and telecom enterprises and professional services firms, to technology investors, Gartner is the valuable partner to clients in 12,000 distinct organizations. Through the resources of Gartner Research, Gartner Executive Programs, Gartner Consulting and Gartner Events, Gartner works with every client to research, analyze and interpret the business of IT within the context of their individual role. Founded in 1979, Gartner is headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut, U.S.A., and has 5,000 associates, including 1,280 research analysts and consultants, and clients in 85 countries. For more information, www.gartner.com.

Oracle Announces Oracle Exalogic Elastic Cloud Templates for Rapid Provisioning of Oracle Applications

Oracle Announces Oracle Exalogic Elastic Cloud Templates for Rapid Provisioning of Oracle Applications

New Templates Help Reduce Application Deployment Time from Weeks to Minutes

Redwood Shores, Calif. – January 22, 2013

News Facts

Oracle today announced new Oracle Exalogic Elastic Cloud Oracle VM Templates for several Oracle Applications, which encapsulate the best application deployment practices based on years of expertise with more than 70,000 Oracle Applications customers.
Oracle Exalogic Oracle VM Templates are now available for the Oracle E-Business Suite 12.1.3, Oracle’s JD Edwards EnterpriseOne 9.1, Oracle’s PeopleSoft PeopleTools 8.52 and Oracle’s Siebel CRM 8.1.1.8 and 8.2.2. These are the first Oracle VM templates specifically built for Oracle Exalogic, adding to theOracle VM Templates already available for dozens of Oracle products.
Each Oracle Application has been tested, validated, benchmarked and optimized on Oracle Exalogic by the Oracle Applications engineering teams for extreme performance. Oracle Exalogic provides a secure, reliable, open standards-based platform for consolidating Oracle, Java and third-party business applications.
Oracle Exalogic Oracle VM Templates for Oracle Applications can help companies:
Decrease application deployment time to minutes, instead of weeks
Speed patching with pre-built templates for Oracle Application patchsets
Consolidate business applications on Oracle Exalogic, leading to higher hardware utilization
Customers can also use Oracle Exalogic Oracle VM Templates for Oracle Applications to reduce the cost and complexity of Oracle Application deployments by:
Deploying Oracle Applications components at the click of a button
Consolidating business-critical applications onto a fully virtualized environment
Aligning application resources with business demand through self-service private cloud capabilities, providing up to 10x faster application deployment 1 using Oracle Enterprise Manager 12c.
Creating golden images for faster deployments, as well as for archiving, cloning and re-distribution purposes
Oracle VM Templates are virtual machine images based on Oracle’s expertise and best practices that contain pre-built, pre-installed, pre-configured and ready-to-run software applications with no installation required. They can be downloaded from Oracle E-Delivery and deployed on Oracle Exalogic.
Oracle Exalogic X3-2, the latest product generation, delivers 3.5x better application performance, 4.4x faster web application requests per second and a 4.6x improvement in messages per second compared to the previous generation, all for the same price.

Supporting Quotes

“Oracle Exalogic has been engineered from the ground up to run business applications and middleware with less complexity and lower total cost of ownership,” said Hasan Rizvi, executive vice president, Oracle. “Oracle Exalogic Oracle VM Templates for Oracle Applications take advantage of Oracle's integrated hardware and software stack to deliver the predictable, low-risk deployment process that our customers need for their multi-tier, business-critical applications, in either a conventional or cloud deployment model.”
“Oracle Exalogic and Oracle VM Templates for Oracle Applications enable PeopleSoft customers to easily consolidate multiple application pillars onto a shared, centrally managed Oracle Exalogic private cloud. The templates provide superfast software-based application scalability during peak usage times by allowing customers to create additional server instances within minutes and dramatically reduce the cost of patching by simply swapping server virtual machines with new ones delivered by Oracle. This in turn enables PeopleSoft customers to implement the latest application innovations while controlling costs, maximizing efficiency and achieving a rapid return on their IT investments,” said Paco Aubrejuan, senior vice president and general manager, Oracle’s PeopleSoft Applications.

Supporting Resources

1 Based on Crimson Consulting Group methodology from the report, “Private Cloud in Action: Early Adopters of Oracle Enterprise Manager 12c Report Agility and Productivity Benefits” September, 2012.

Microsoft Grows Surface Family

Microsoft Grows Surface Family
Jan. 22, 2013
Announces Surface Windows 8 Pro availability, market expansion and new accessories.

REDMOND, Wash. — Jan. 22, 2013 — Microsoft Corp. today announced that its Surface family of PCs is growing. Its newest model — Surface Windows 8 Pro — will be available for purchase on Feb. 9, 2013, in the United States and Canada at all Microsoft retail stores,microsoftstore.com, Staples and Best Buy in the U.S., as well as from a number of locations in Canada.

Powered by an Intel Core i5 processor, Surface Windows 8 Pro provides the power and performance of a laptop in a tablet package. Perfect as your one device — at home, in the office, or on the road — it can run Windows 8 applications, as well as current Windows 7 desktop applications. Starting at an estimated retail price of US$899, Surface Windows 8 Pro will be available in 64GB and 128GB models.[1] A Surface pen with Palm Block technology, designed specifically to work with Surface to let customers edit, collaborate and get things done, is included with Surface Windows 8 Pro.

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The Surface Windows 8 Pro is shown with an optional Type Cover and is available for purchase in the U.S. and Canada Feb. 9 and starts at US$899. Available in 64 GB and 128 GB, Surface Windows 8 Pro comes bundled with Surface Pen and provides the power and performance of a laptop in a tablet package.
Surface Windows 8 Pro With Type Cover
January 22, 2013
The Surface Windows 8 Pro is shown with an optional Type Cover and is available for purchase in the U.S. and Canada Feb. 9 and starts at US$899. Available in 64 GB and 128 GB, Surface Windows 8 Pro comes bundled with Surface Pen and provides the power and performance of a laptop in a tablet package.

Download: Web | Print

In addition to being able to buy Surface Windows 8 Pro in the coming weeks, customers will soon be able to purchase Surface Windows RT in 13 additional markets worldwide,[2] more than double the number of markets in which Surface is currently available.

“The response to Surface has been exciting to see,” said Panos Panay, general manager, Microsoft Surface. “We’re thrilled to continue growing the Surface family with the availability of Surface Windows 8 Pro on Feb. 9 and by increasing the number of places customers can experience Surface firsthand.”

Additional Surface accessories will also soon be available, allowing customers to further personalize and customize their computing experience and get more done with Surface.

  • Surface Windows RT will be available in a new 64GB[1] standalone version for an estimated retail price of US$599 to allow customers the option of selecting a Cover of their choice.

  • Three new Touch Cover Limited Editions in red, magenta and cyan will be sold at an estimated retail price of US$129.99.

  • Customers will have the option of purchasing a Wedge Touch Mouse, Surface Edition, for an estimated retail price of US$69.95 in all markets in which Surface is currently sold[3] with additional markets to follow in the coming weeks.

Additional details on Surface are available at http://www.Surface.com and Surface on Facebook. Those interested can follow Surface or Panay on Twitter for additional updates.


Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

[1] System software uses significant storage space; your storage capacity will be less. See surface.com/spec. 1 GB = 1 billion bytes.

[2] Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland

[3] Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, the United Kingdom and the United States

Note to editors: For more information, news and perspectives from Microsoft, please visit the Microsoft News Center at http://www.microsoft.com/news. Web links, telephone numbers and titles were correct at time of publication, but may have changed. For additional assistance, journalists and analysts may contact Microsoft’s Rapid Response Team or other appropriate contacts listed at http://www.microsoft.com/news/contactpr.mspx.

Google Inc. reported consolidated revenues of $14.42 billion for the quarter ended December 31, 2012

Google Inc. reported consolidated revenues of $14.42 billion for the quarter ended December 31, 2012. Consolidated revenues would have been $15.24 billion had Motorola Home been included.

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. – January 22, 2013 – Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) today announced financial results for the quarter and the fiscal year ended December 31, 2012.

“We ended 2012 with a strong quarter,” said Larry Page, CEO of Google. “Revenues were up 36% year-on-year, and 8% quarter-on-quarter. And we hit $50 billion in revenues for the first time last year – not a bad achievement in just a decade and a half. In today’s multi-screen world we face tremendous opportunities as a technology company focused on user benefit. It’s an incredibly exciting time to be at Google.”

Q4 Financial Summary

In December 2012, we entered into an agreement with Arris Group, Inc. and certain other persons to dispose the Motorola Home business for a total consideration of approximately $2.35 billion in cash and stock, subject to certain adjustments. The transaction is expected to close in 2013. As a result, financial results related to the Home business are presented as net loss from discontinued operations on the consolidated statements of income, and are excluded from all other results unless otherwise noted. Assets and liabilities of the Home business are not presented separately because they are not material.

Google Inc. reported consolidated revenues of $14.42 billion for the quarter ended December 31, 2012, an increase of 36% compared to the fourth quarter of 2011. Google Inc. reports advertising revenues, consistent with GAAP, on a gross basis without deducting traffic acquisition costs (TAC). In the fourth quarter of 2012, TAC totaled $3.08 billion, or 25% of advertising revenues.

Operating income, operating margin, net income, and earnings per share (EPS) are reported on a GAAP and non-GAAP basis. The non-GAAP measures, as well as free cash flow, an alternative non-GAAP measure of liquidity, are described below and are reconciled to the corresponding GAAP measures at the end of this release.

GAAP operating income in the fourth quarter of 2012 was $3.39 billion, or 24% of revenues. This compares to GAAP operating income of $3.51 billion, or 33% of revenues, in the fourth quarter of 2011. Non-GAAP operating income in the fourth quarter of 2012 was $4.27 billion, or 30% of revenues. This compares to non-GAAP operating income of $4.04 billion, or 38% of revenues, in the fourth quarter of 2011. Had we included Home, non-GAAP operating income in the fourth quarter of 2012 would have been $4.31 billion.

GAAP net income including net loss from discontinued operations in the fourth quarter of 2012 was $2.89 billion, compared to $2.71 billion in the fourth quarter of 2011. Non-GAAP net income in the fourth quarter of 2012 was $3.57 billion, compared to $3.13 billion in the fourth quarter of 2011.
GAAP EPS including impact from net loss from discontinued operations in the fourth quarter of 2012 was $8.62 on 335 million diluted shares outstanding, compared to $8.22 in the fourth quarter of 2011 on 329 million diluted shares outstanding. Non-GAAP EPS in the fourth quarter of 2012 was $10.65, compared to $9.50 in the fourth quarter of 2011.

Non-GAAP operating income and non-GAAP operating margin exclude stock-based compensation (SBC) expense, as well as restructuring and related charges recorded in our Motorola Mobile business. Non-GAAP net income and non-GAAP EPS exclude the expenses noted above, net of the related tax benefits, as well as net loss from discontinued operations. In the fourth quarter of 2012, the expense related to SBC and the related tax benefits were $700 million and $152 million compared to $536 million and $114 million in the fourth quarter of 2011. In the fourth quarter of 2012, restructuring and related charges recorded in our Motorola Mobile business were $178 million, and the related tax benefits were $65 million. In addition, net loss from discontinued operations, in the fourth quarter of 2012, was $21 million. In the fourth quarter of 2012, non-GAAP operating income with Home included the impact from Home of $35 million and excludes the above SBC expense and restructuring and related charges.
Q4 Financial Highlights

Revenues and other information – On a consolidated basis, Google Inc. revenues for the quarter ended December 31, 2012 was $14.42 billion, an increase of 36% compared to the fourth quarter of 2011.

Google Revenues (advertising and other) – Google revenues were $12.91 billion, or 89% of consolidated revenues, in the fourth quarter of 2012, representing a 22% increase over fourth quarter 2011 revenues of $10.58 billion.
Google Sites Revenues – Google-owned sites generated revenues of $8.64 billion, or 67% of total Google revenues, in the fourth quarter of 2012. This represents a 18% increase over fourth quarter 2011 Google sites revenues of $7.29 billion.

Google Network Revenues – Google’s partner sites generated revenues of $3.44 billion, or 27% of total Google revenues, in the fourth quarter of 2012. This represents a 19% increase from fourth quarter 2011 Google network revenues of $2.88 billion.

Other Revenues – Other revenues from Google were $829 million, or 6% of total Google revenues, in the fourth quarter of 2012. This represents a 102% increase over fourth quarter 2011 other revenues of $410 million.

Google International Revenues – Google revenues from outside of the United States totaled $6.9 billion, representing 54% of total Google revenues in the fourth quarter of 2012, compared to 53% in the third quarter of 2012 and 53% in the fourth quarter of 2011.

Foreign Exchange Impact on Google Revenues – Excluding gains related to our foreign exchange risk management program, had foreign exchange rates remained constant from the third quarter of 2012 through the fourth quarter of 2012, our Google revenues in the fourth quarter of 2012 would have been $130 million lower. Excluding gains related to our foreign exchange risk management program, had foreign exchange rates remained constant from the fourth quarter of 2011 through the fourth quarter of 2012, our Google revenues in the fourth quarter of 2012 would have been $193 million higher.

Google revenues from the United Kingdom totaled $1.30 billion, representing 10% of Google revenues in the fourth quarter of 2012, compared to 10% in the fourth quarter of 2011.

In the fourth quarter of 2012, we recognized a benefit of $37 million to Google revenues through our foreign exchange risk management program, compared to $25 million in the fourth quarter of 2011.

Reconciliations of our non-GAAP international revenues excluding the impact of foreign exchange and hedging to GAAP international revenues are included at the end of this release.

Paid Clicks – Aggregate paid clicks, which include clicks related to ads served on Google sites and the sites of our Network members, increased approximately 24% over the fourth quarter of 2011 and increased approximately 9% over the third quarter of 2012.

Cost-Per-Click – Average cost-per-click, which includes clicks related to ads served on Google sites and the sites of our Network members, decreased approximately 6% over the fourth quarter of 2011 and increased approximately 2% over the third quarter of 2012.

TAC – Traffic acquisition costs, the portion of revenues shared with Google’s partners, increased to $3.08 billion in the fourth quarter of 2012, compared to $2.45 billion in the fourth quarter of 2011. TAC as a percentage of advertising revenues was 25% in the fourth quarter of 2012, compared to 24% in the fourth quarter of 2011.

The majority of TAC is related to amounts ultimately paid to our Network members, which totaled $2.44 billion in the fourth quarter of 2012. TAC also includes amounts ultimately paid to certain distribution partners and others who direct traffic to our website, which totaled $634 million in the fourth quarter of 2012.

Motorola Mobile Revenues (hardware and other) – Motorola Mobile revenues were $1.51 billion, or 11% of consolidated revenues in the fourth quarter of 2012.

Other Cost of Revenues – Other cost of revenues, which is comprised primarily of data center operational expenses, amortization of intangible assets, content acquisition costs, credit card processing charges, and manufacturing and inventory-related costs, increased to $3.14 billion, or 22% of revenues, in the fourth quarter of 2012, compared to $1.25 billion, or 12% of revenues, in the fourth quarter of 2011.

Operating Expenses – Operating expenses, other than cost of revenues, were $4.81 billion in the fourth quarter of 2012, or 33% of revenues, compared to $3.38 billion in the fourth quarter of 2011, or 32% of revenues.

Amortization Expenses – Amortization expenses of acquisition-related intangible assets were $289 million for the fourth quarter of 2012. Of the $289 million, $153 million was as a result of the acquisition of Motorola, of which $116 million was allocated to Google and $37 million was allocated to Motorola Mobile.

Stock-Based Compensation (SBC) – In the fourth quarter of 2012, the total charge related to SBC was $708 million, compared to $536 million in the fourth quarter of 2011.

We currently estimate SBC charges for grants to employees prior to January 1, 2013 to be approximately $2.5 billion for 2013. This estimate does not include expenses to be recognized related to employee stock awards that are granted after December 31, 2012 or non-employee stock awards that have been or may be granted.

Operating Income – On a consolidated basis, GAAP operating income in the fourth quarter of 2012 was $3.39 billion, or 24% of revenues. This compares to GAAP operating income of $3.51 billion, or 33% of revenues, in the fourth quarter of 2011. Non-GAAP operating income in the fourth quarter of 2012 was $4.27 billion, or 30% of revenues. This compares to non-GAAP operating income of $4.04 billion, or 38% of revenues, in the fourth quarter of 2011.

Google Operating Income – GAAP operating income for Google was $3.75 billion, or 29% of Google revenues, in the fourth quarter of 2012. This compares to GAAP operating income of $3.51 billion, or 33% of Google revenues, in the fourth quarter of 2011. Non-GAAP operating income in the fourth quarter of 2012 was $4.42 billion, or 34% of Google revenues. This compares to non-GAAP operating income of $4.04 billion in the fourth quarter of 2011, or 38% of Google revenues.

Motorola Mobile Operating Loss – GAAP operating loss for Motorola Mobile was $353 million, or -23% of Motorola Mobile revenues in the fourth quarter of 2012. Non-GAAP operating loss for Motorola Mobile in the fourth quarter of 2012 was $152 million, or -10% of Motorola Mobile revenues.

Interest and Other Income, Net – Interest and other income, net, was $152 million in the fourth quarter of 2012, compared to an expense of $18 million in the fourth quarter of 2011.

Income Taxes – Our effective tax rate was 18% for the fourth quarter of 2012.

Net Income – GAAP net income in the fourth quarter of 2012 was $2.89 billion, compared to $2.71 billion in the fourth quarter of 2011. Non-GAAP net income was $3.57 billion in the fourth quarter of 2012, compared to $3.13 billion in the fourth quarter of 2011. GAAP EPS in the fourth quarter of 2012 was $8.62 on 335 million diluted shares outstanding, compared to $8.22 in the fourth quarter of 2011 on 329 million diluted shares outstanding. Non-GAAP EPS in the fourth quarter of 2012 was $10.65, compared to $9.50 in the fourth quarter of 2011.

Cash Flow and Capital Expenditures (including Home) – Net cash provided by operating activities in the fourth quarter of 2012 totaled $4.67 billion, compared to $3.92 billion in the fourth quarter of 2011. In the fourth quarter of 2012, capital expenditures were $1.02 billion, the majority of which was for production equipment, data center construction and facilities-related purchases. Free cash flow, an alternative non-GAAP measure of liquidity, is defined as net cash provided by operating activities less capital expenditures. In the fourth quarter of 2012, free cash flow was $3.65 billion.

We expect to continue to make significant capital expenditures.

A reconciliation of free cash flow to net cash provided by operating activities, the GAAP measure of liquidity, is included at the end of this release.

Cash – As of December 31, 2012, cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities were $48.1 billion.

Headcount – On a worldwide basis, we employed 53,861 full-time employees (37,544 in Google and 11,113 in Motorola Mobile and 5,204 in Motorola Home) as of December 31, 2012, compared to 53,546 full-time employees as of September 30, 2012.

Orcon selects Roaring Penguin Software's CanIt-Domain-PRO software to combat spam

Orcon selects Roaring Penguin Software's CanIt-Domain-PRO software to combat spam

New Zealand's fourth-largest commercial Internet Service Provider selects Roaring Penguin Software to protect its Clients from Spam

OTTAWAJan. 22, 2013 /CNW/ - Roaring Penguin Software Inc., the email filtering experts, announced that Orcon, a leading New Zealand ISP, has selected CanIt-Domain-PRO to combat spam on its network.  Orcon is an award winning internet service provider focused on continually pushing the boundaries to deliver the latest and greatest networking technology to New Zealanders. Said Thomas Salmen, CTO of Orcon, "At Orcon, we are always looking for best in class solutions, and that's what we have found here. CanIt-Domain-PRO allows us to guarantee the robust mail platform our customers demand."

CanIt-Domain-PRO allows an Internet service provider like Orcon to delegate control of spam filtering to clients of their web hosting and ISP businesses. Designed for large-scale environments with multiple email domains, CanIt-Domain-PRO effectively stops spam before it reaches the network while never discarding a valid message.

Roaring Penguin's products include:
* CanIt-PRO, an anti-spam software solution suitable for small and medium businesses.
* CanIt-Domain-PRO, spam filtering software for service providers.
* Hosted CanIt, a spam filtering service.

About Orcon
Orcon is New Zealand's fourth-largest ISP and part of Kordia NZ - a New Zealand telecommunications provider with four areas of focus: advanced telecommunications services for business, internet services, media (broadcast and content management and delivery), and specialist networks.

Kordia has experienced the highest growth rate in the NZ telecommunications industry and is currently the third largest telecommunications provider and internet wholesaler in New Zealand. Kordia NZ and Orcon have earned a reputation for driving innovation in the market with investments in local loop unbundling, implementation of a carrier grade international data network, delivery of a national Content Delivery Network and continued investments in the IP voice network.  The Kordia network is now one of the largest in New Zealand, and is supported by more than 800 expert staff in New Zealand and Australia and provides services to more than 100,000 New Zealand businesses and homes.

About Roaring Penguin
Founded in 1999, Roaring Penguin Software Inc. specializes in developing email filtering software.  The company focuses on fighting spam at the mail server, with the acclaimed CanIt and MIMEDefang product lines.  Today, Roaring Penguin develops, deploys and supports its spam- and virus-fighting products for customers that include enterprises, ISPs, MSPs, web hosts, and government offices.

SOURCE: ROARING PENGUIN SOFTWARE

For further information:

Bill White
Roaring Penguin Software Inc.
Tel:  +1 613-231-6599 ext 102
Email: billw@roaringpenguin.com

Government of Canada Invests in Major Science Facilities

Government of Canada Invests in Major Science Facilities

OTTAWA, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Jan. 22, 2013) - The Government of Canada, through the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI), is investing in maintenance and operating support for Canada's high-performing, internationally renowned research facilities. Canada's synchrotron research installation, a national high-performance computing platform, and a world-class underground neutrino and dark matter physics laboratory are all receiving funding from CFI's Major Science Initiatives fund. The investment will enable Canada's best and brightest researchers to carry out internationally competitive research, which will benefit Canadian families and businesses.

"Canada is a world leader in innovation," said the Honourable Gary Goodyear, Minister of State (Science and Technology). "By investing in major research facilities, such as these, our Government is helping Canada's research community reach new heights, address national priorities and meet global challenges."

The $145 million in funding announced today will help sustain scientific excellence at three major facilities:

  • The Canadian Light Source at the University of Saskatchewan, where researchers are working with the scientific community to promote the use of synchrotron light, creating industrial partnerships and innovation, and engaging in scientific and educational outreach in sectors ranging from mining to healthcare; 

  • Compute Canada Calcul Canada, a national network of computing resources designed to keep Canada competitive in digital research and analysis, working to ensure that Canadian researchers have the computational facilities and expert services necessary to advance scientific knowledge and innovation; 

  • SNOLAB, a world-class neutrino and dark matter physics laboratory located two kilometres below the Earth's surface in Sudbury, Ont., which is expected to generate $93 million in economic activity for the Ontario economy over the next five years. 

The funding announcement is in addition to the $32 million announced for Ocean Networks Canada in October 2012.

"These facilities are all major drivers of economic and scientific productivity in Canada," said Gilles G. Patry, President and CEO of the CFI. "We are pleased to be playing a role in their continued success."

About Major Sciences initiatives (MSI)

A major science initiative addresses a set of significant leading-edge scientific problems or questions. The scope of these areas of research-ocean and earth sciences, for example-is so significant and complex that it requires unusually large-scale facilities and equipment, substantial human resources, and complex operating and maintenance activities. These projects have a lifecycle extending many years. The funding for MSIs announced today is part of Budget 2010.

About the Canada Foundation for Innovation

The Canada Foundation for Innovation gives researchers the tools they need to think big and innovate. By investing in state-of-the-art facilities and equipment in Canada's universities, colleges, research hospitals and non-profit research institutions, the CFI is helping to attract and retain the world's top talent, to train the next generation of researchers, to support private-sector innovation and to create high-quality jobs that strengthen the economy and improve the quality of life for all Canadians. For more information, visit www.innovation.ca.

Contact Information

  • Ryan Saxby Hill
    Canada Foundation for Innovation
    613-943-5346 (office)
    613-294-6247 (mobile)
    ryansaxbyhill@innovation.ca

    Michele-Jamali Paquette
    Director of Communications
    Office of the Honourable Gary Goodyear
    Minister of State (Science and Technology)
    613-947-2956

    Media Relations
    Industry Canada
    613-943-2502

Dell Unveils Global BYOD Survey Results: Embrace BYOD or Be Left Behind

Dell Unveils Global BYOD Survey Results: Embrace BYOD or Be Left Behind

  • Singapore leads the list in putting users first, followed by UK, Australia, France and Italy; United States ranks lowest in the management of users as more important than devices
  • Nearly three-quarters of organizations deploying user-focused BYOD report improvements in employee productivity, customer response times and work processes.
  • Survey results prove as BYOD strategies mature and companies move beyond just managing devices to focus on users and applications, they reap bigger rewards and experience fewer setbacks.

Today Dell Quest Software announced the results of a global survey of IT executives to gauge the level of organizational maturity with existing Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) strategies, along with realized and anticipated benefits and problems. The findings conclude that approximately 70% of companies believe BYOD can improve their work processes and help them work better in the future, while an estimated 59% believe they would be at a competitive disadvantage without BYOD.

According to a survey of nearly 1,500 IT decision makers across the United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Australia, Singapore, India, and the Beijing region, organizations are optimistic about the potential corporate gains of BYOD, reporting they would be at a competitive disadvantage without it. Some of the key findings include:

  • An estimated three quarters of those polled stated that BYOD can only deliver massive benefits if the specific needs and rights of each user are understood; while only an estimated 17% of organizations encourage BYOD and who actively manage any device employees wish to use — showing they really understand the need to empower employees.
  • On average, survey respondents identified four personal gains for their employees, including more flexible working hours, along with the ability to foster creativity, speed innovation, and facilitate teamwork/collaboration.

Roger Bjork, director, Enterprise Mobility Solutions, Dell Software Group 
“We’re seeing dramatic changes in the way users interact with technology on their personal devices and the critical role BYOD plays in transforming business and IT culture. This global survey confirms what we have long suspected—companies that embrace a user-focused approach to BYOD may reap the biggest rewards, face the fewest obstacles and deliver real and immediate value in terms of greater efficiency, productivity and competitive advantage. Those slow to support BYOD or constrained by a device-centric approach may deal with greater challenges, including the risk of being left behind from a competitive standpoint.” 

Embracing BYOD Can Lead to Greater Gains, Fewer Setbacks

  • According to the survey results, companies with mature BYOD programs are most likely to achieve the most benefits; Beijing was the most optimistic in reporting potential gains.
  • Organizations that consider applications part of a robust BYOD strategy are more likely to link and manage devices per user, clearly define roles for their user community in one central database, track and support each user’s level of mobility, and deliver applications to users based on their role within the company.
  • A user-centric strategy can have a significant and positive impact reaping rewards for companies in data management and security, as well as employee productivity and customer satisfaction. Approximately 74% experienced improved employee productivity while an estimated 70% saw faster customer response times.
  • Companies who embraced BYOD programs experienced improved employee productivity, faster customer response times and improved operational efficiencies.
  • Companies with well-established BYOD policies are the least likely to experience any kind of setbacks, with over a quarter of this group experiencing none at all.
  • Over half of respondents state that BYOD has completely changed their IT culture (approximately 56%) and or business culture (approximately54%) in their organization.

How Worldwide BYOD Stacks up

  • The U.S., Beijing region and Australia represent the top three countries that encourage BYOD by actively managing and supporting any device that users want to bring into the corporate environment; France, Germany and the U.K. are the bottom three in providing this level of support.
  • The two technology areas most commonly implemented first for BYOD are desktop virtualization and mobile device management (MDM). France, Germany, Spain, Italy, and Australia implemented desktop virtualization first, while Singapore, India, Beijing, the U.K., and U.S. started with MDM.
  • In India and Beijing, all the organizations polled plan to, or already offer some support for personal devices.
  • Only an estimated19% in Germany said users would be required to purchase a support program for all personal devices—the only country lower than this is UK. However, around three in ten organizations in Germany state that their employees will not be required to adhere to any regulations when it comes to devices in their BYOD policy.
  • Beijing, India and France were the top three countries to report that any BYOD support policies would require employees to ready their own devices for corporate use.

 
Marist College Ashgrove Gives BYOD High Marks for Increasing Student Learning, Reducing IT Costs

  • Marist College Ashgrove, an independent, Catholic boarding and day college for boys from grades 5-12, was founded in 1940 to promote academic achievement and lifelong learning. The Queensland, Australia-based school relies on innovative technologies to ensure its 2,000 students, faculty and staff have access to the latest educational applications and systems.
  • An early adopter of VMware to virtualize its server environment, Marist also was quick to deploy Dell vWorkspace desktop virtualization to reduce administration and infrastructure costs, while facilitating anytime, anywhere access to curriculum.
  • More recently, Marist added Dell vWorkspace - MokaFive Suite to fuel an innovative BYOD program enabling students to purchase recommended laptops and tablets for use anywhere across its 20-building campus, or at home. Centralized, policy-driven management lets Marist’s IT team easily and securely deliver, control and support all types of devices including PCs, Macs, iPads, other tablet PCs, smartphones, and thin clients, even when users are often offline.
  • “BYOD can ensure educational excellence by making it easy for each student to communicate with teachers, collaborate with peers and complete coursework based on their own needs,” said John Lee, information technology supervisor at Marist College Ashgrove. “Dell Software’s mobility solutions have produced massive administrative savings ─ we can provision and manage secure application access in minutes instead of hours, which requires half the staff and much less IT infrastructure at a tenth of the cost of other BYOD similar solutions.”

Supporting Quotes: 

Carol Fawcett, chief information officer, Dell Software Group 
“In my previous role as CIO of Quest Software, our IT empowered nearly 4,000 employees across 60 offices in 23 countries to use their preferred mobile devices whether they were phones, tablets, or non-standard laptops to do their jobs. Instead of worrying about their devices, we focused on enabling access to the apps and data needed by the appropriate individuals regardless of device. We found this approach allowed us to be much more strategic and enabled us to focus on our biggest BYOD problems; security, access rights and data leakage. The results of this latest BYOD survey reinforce the importance of putting users first in order to develop the most effective policies and turn BYOD into a long-term, sustainable business benefit.” 

Dell’s broad systems management portfolio of PC, server, and thin client management now encompasses mobile device management helps IT organizations securely embrace the consumerization of IT and BYOD demands, while delivering fast and efficient results designed to maximize workforce productivity. Offering user-focused management for BYOD, Dell Quest enables organizations to implement a short and long term mobile strategy by helping them to assess, manage and support the entire dynamic user environment. For more information on Dell’s extended portfolio of mobile solutions including Dell Wyse Cloud Client ManagerDell Desktop Virtualization SolutionsDell KACE K3000, and Dell SonicWALL, visit dellmobilitysolutions.com.

About the research:
Dell Software acquisition Quest Software originally commissioned independent research agency Vanson Bourne to conduct the survey. Vanson Bourne interviewed 1485 senior IT decision makers across: the U.S., U.K., France, Germany, India, Spain, Italy, Australia, Singapore and Beijing. Both the private and public sectors were interviewed with a specific focus on: financial services; manufacturing; retail, distribution and transport; healthcare and education. Interviews took place from the 18th September-18th October 2012.

About Dell 
Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL) listens to customers and delivers innovative technology and services that give them the power to do more. For more information, visit www.dell.com.

IBM Reports 2012 Fourth-Quarter and Full-Year Results

IBM Reports 2012 Fourth-Quarter and Full-Year Results

ARMONK, N.Y. - 22 Jan 2013: Fourth-Quarter 2012:

·        Diluted EPS:

- GAAP: $5.13, up 11 percent;

- Operating (non-GAAP): $5.39, up 14 percent;

·        Net income:

- GAAP: $5.8 billion, up 6 percent;

- Operating (non-GAAP): $6.1 billion, up 10 percent;

·        Gross profit margin:

- GAAP: 51.8 percent, up 1.8 points; 

- Operating (non-GAAP): 52.3 percent, up 2.1 points;

·        Revenue of $29.3 billion, down 1 percent, flat adjusting for currency:

-  Up 1 percent excluding divested RSS business adjusting for currency;

·        Free cash flow of $9.5 billion, up $0.6 billion;

·        Software revenue up 3 percent, up 4 percent adjusting for currency;

·        Services revenue down 2 percent, down 1 percent adjusting for currency;

·        Services backlog of $140 billion, flat, up $1 billion adjusting for currency;

·        Systems and Technology revenue down 1 percent, up 4 percent excluding RSS:

- System z mainframe up 56 percent.

Full-Year 2012: 

·        Diluted EPS, up double-digits for 10th consecutive year:

- GAAP: $14.37, up 10 percent;

- Operating (non-GAAP): $15.25, up 13 percent;

·        Net income:

- GAAP: $16.6 billion, up 5 percent;

- Operating (non-GAAP): $17.6 billion, up 8 percent;

·        Revenue of $104.5 billion, down 2 percent, flat adjusting for currency;

·        Free cash flow of $18.2 billion, up $1.6 billion;

·        Growth markets revenue up 4 percent, up 7 percent adjusting for currency:

BRIC countries up 7 percent, up 12 percent adjusting for currency;

·        Business analytics revenue up 13 percent;

·        Smarter Planet revenue up more than 25 percent;

·        Cloud revenue up 80 percent. 

Full-Year 2013 Expectation:

·        GAAP EPS of at least $15.53 and operating (non-GAAP) EPS of at least $16.70.

IBM (NYSE: IBM) today announced fourth-quarter 2012 diluted earnings of $5.13 per share, compared with diluted earnings of $4.62 per share in the fourth quarter of 2011, an increase of 11 percent. Operating (non-GAAP) diluted earnings were $5.39 per share, compared with operating diluted earnings of $4.71 per share in the fourth quarter of 2011, an increase of 14 percent.

Fourth-quarter net income was $5.8 billion compared with $5.5 billion in the fourth quarter of 2011, an increase of 6 percent.  Operating (non-GAAP) net income was $6.1 billion compared with $5.6 billion in the fourth quarter of 2011, an increase of 10 percent.

Total revenues for the fourth quarter of 2012 of $29.3 billion decreased 1 percent (flat adjusting for currency) from the fourth quarter of 2011.  Without the impact of the divested Retail Store Solutions (RSS) business, revenue increased 1 percent, adjusting for currency.

"We achieved record profit, earnings per share and free cash flow in 2012.  Our performance in the fourth quarter and for the full year was driven by our strategic growth initiatives -- growth markets, analytics, cloud computing, Smarter Planet solutions -- which support our continued shift to higher-value businesses,” said Ginni Rometty, IBM chairman, president and chief executive officer.

”Looking ahead, we continue to invest to deliver innovations for the enterprise in key areas such as big data, mobile solutions, social business and security, while expanding into new markets and reaching new clients.  We are well on track toward our long-term roadmap for operating EPS of at least $20 in 2015.”” 

Fourth-Quarter GAAP - Operating (non-GAAP) Reconciliation

Fourth-quarter operating (non-GAAP) diluted earnings exclude $0.26 per share of net charges: $0.21 per share for the amortization of purchased intangible assets and other acquisition-related charges, and $0.05 per share for retirement-related items driven by changes to plan assets and liabilities primarily related to market performance. 

Full-Year 2013 Expectation

IBM said that it expects to deliver full-year 2013 GAAP earnings per share of at least $15.53; and operating (non-GAAP) earnings per share of at least $16.70.  The 2013 operating (non-GAAP) earnings exclude $1.17 per share of charges for amortization of purchased intangible assets, other acquisition-related charges, and retirement-related items driven by changes to plan assets and liabilities primarily related to market performance. 

Geographic Regions

The Americas’ fourth-quarter revenues were $12.5 billion, flat (up 1 percent, adjusting for currency) from the 2011 period.  Revenues from Europe/Middle East/Africa were $9.1 billion, down 5 percent (down 3 percent, adjusting for currency). Asia-Pacific revenues increased 4 percent (up 5 percent, adjusting for currency) to $7.0 billion.  OEM revenues were $679 million, down 5 percent compared with the 2011 fourth quarter. 

Growth Markets

Revenues from the company’s growth markets increased 7 percent.  Revenues in the BRIC countries — Brazil, Russia, India and China — increased 11 percent (up 14 percent, adjusting for currency). 

Services

Global Technology Services segment revenues decreased 2 percent (flat adjusting for currency) to $10.3 billion.  Global Business Services segment revenues were down 3 percent (down 2 percent, adjusting for currency) at $4.7 billion.

Pre-tax income from Global Technology Services increased 5 percent; pre-tax margin increased to 19.2 percent.  Global Business Services pre-tax income was flat; pre-tax margin increased to 17.2 percent.

The estimated services backlog at December 31 was $140 billion, flat (up $1 billion, adjusting for currency). 

Software

Revenues from the Software segment were $7.9 billion, an increase of 3 percent  (up 4 percent, adjusting for currency) from the fourth quarter of 2011.  Software pre-tax income of $4.0 billion increased 8 percent year over year.

Revenues from IBM’s key middleware products, which include WebSphere, Information Management, Tivoli, Lotus and Rational products, were $5.5 billion, an increase of 5 percent (up 6 percent, adjusting for currency) versus the fourth quarter of 2011.  Operating systems revenues of $709 million were flat (up 1 percent, adjusting for currency) compared with the prior-year quarter.

Revenues from the WebSphere family of software products increased 11 percent year over year.  Information Management software revenues increased 2 percent.  Revenues from Tivoli software increased 4 percent.  Revenues from Lotus software increased 9 percent, and Rational software increased 12 percent. 

Hardware

Revenues from the Systems and Technology segment totaled $5.8 billion for the quarter, down 1 percent from the fourth quarter of 2011. Excluding Retail Store Solutions (RSS), revenues were up 4 percent.  Systems and Technology pre-tax income was $1.0 billion, an increase of 23 percent.

Total systems revenues, excluding RSS, increased 4 percent. Revenues from System z mainframe server products increased 56 percent compared with the year-ago period; revenue in the growth markets increased 68 percent. Total delivery of System z computing power, as measured in MIPS (millions of instructions per second), increased 66 percent versus the prior year and represented the largest MIPS shipment quarter in the company’s history.  New workload specialty engines, including Linux, represented one-half of the MIPS shipped. Revenues from Power Systems decreased 19 percent compared with the 2011 period.  Revenues from System x decreased 2 percent. Revenues from System Storage decreased 5 percent.  Revenues from Retail Store Solutions decreased $239 million year over year as a result of the divestiture in the third quarter.  Revenues from Microelectronics OEM increased 4 percent. 

Financing

Global Financing segment revenues were down 2 percent (down 1 percent, adjusting for currency) in the fourth quarter to $535 million.  Pre-tax income for the segment increased 1 percent to $518 million. 

Gross Profit

The company’s total gross profit margin was 51.8 percent in the 2012 fourth quarter compared with 49.9 percent in the 2011 fourth-quarter period. Total operating (non-GAAP) gross profit margin was 52.3 percent in the 2012 fourth quarter compared with 50.2 percent in the 2011 fourth-quarter period, with increases in Services, Software and Hardware. 

Expense

Total expense and other income decreased 2 percent to $7.3 billion compared with the prior-year period.  S,G&A expense of $5.9 billion decreased 3 percent year over year compared with prior-year expense.  R,D&E expense of $1.6 billion increased 2 percent compared with the year-ago period.  Intellectual property and custom development income decreased to $227 million compared with $253 million a year ago. Other (income) and expense was income of $47 million compared with prior-year income of $44 million.  Interest expense decreased to $109 million compared with $113 million in the prior year.

Total operating (non-GAAP) expense and other income decreased 2 percent to $7.2 billion compared with the prior-year period.  Operating (non-GAAP) S,G&A expense of $5.8 billion decreased 3 percent year over year compared with prior-year expense. Operating (non-GAAP) R,D&E expense of $1.6 billion increased 1 percent compared with the year-ago period. 

*** 

Pre-tax income increased 8 percent to $7.8 billion; total operating (non-GAAP) pre-tax income increased 10 percent to $8.1 billion. Pre-tax margin was 26.7 percent, up 2.1 points; total operating (non-GAAP) pre-tax margin was 27.7 percent, up 2.6 points.

IBM’s tax rate was 25.5 percent, up 1.0 points year over year; total operating (non-GAAP) tax rate was 24.4 percent, flat compared to the year-ago period.

Net income margin increased 1.3 points to 19.9 percent; total operating (non-GAAP) net income margin was 20.9 percent, an increase of 1.9 points.

The weighted-average number of diluted common shares outstanding in the fourth-quarter 2012 was 1.14 billion compared with 1.19 billion shares in the same period of 2011.

In the quarter, IBM generated free cash flow of $9.5 billion excluding Global Financing receivables, up $0.6 billion year over year. 

Full-Year 2012 Results

Net income for the year ended December 31, 2012 was $16.6 billion compared with $15.9 billion in the prior year, an increase of 5 percent.  Operating (non-GAAP) net income was $17.6 billion compared with $16.3 billion in 2011, an increase of 8 percent.

Diluted earnings were $14.37 per share compared with $13.06 per diluted share in 2011, an increase of 10 percent. Operating (non-GAAP) diluted earnings were $15.25 per share, compared with operating diluted earnings of $13.44 per share in 2011, an increase of 13 percent. This was the company’s 10th consecutive year of double-digit EPS growth.

Revenues for 2012 totaled $104.5 billion, a decrease of 2 percent (flat adjusting for currency), compared with $106.9 billion in 2011. 

GAAP - Operating (non-GAAP) Reconciliation

Operating (non-GAAP) diluted earnings for the year exclude $0.88 per share of net charges: $0.55 per share for the amortization of purchased intangible assets and other acquisition-related charges, and $0.33 per share for retirement-related items driven by changes to plan assets and liabilities primarily related to market performance. 

Geographic Regions

From a geographic perspective, the Americas’ full-year revenues were $44.6 billion, a decrease of 1 percent (flat adjusting for currency) from the 2011 period.  Revenues from Europe/Middle East/Africa were $31.8 billion, a decrease of 6 percent (down 1 percent, adjusting for currency).  Asia-Pacific revenues increased 3 percent to $25.9 billion.  OEM revenues were $2.2 billion, down 18 percent compared with 2011. 

Growth Markets

Revenues from the company’s growth markets increased 4 percent (up 7 percent, adjusting for currency), and represents 24 percent of IBM’s total geographic revenue.  Revenues in the BRIC countries — Brazil, Russia, India and China — increased 7 percent (up 12 percent, adjusting for currency). 

Segments

Total Global Services revenues decreased 2 percent (flat adjusting for currency).  Revenues from the Global Technology Services segment totaled $40.2 billion, a decrease of 2 percent (up 1 percent, adjusting for currency) compared with 2011.  Revenues from the Global Business Services segment were $18.6 billion, down 4 percent (down 2 percent, adjusting for currency).  Software segment revenues in 2012 totaled $25.4 billion, an increase of 2 percent (up 4 percent, adjusting for currency).  Systems and Technology segment revenues were $17.7 billion, a decrease of 7 percent (down 6 percent, adjusting for currency); excluding Retail Store Solutions, revenues were down 5 percent (down 4 percent adjusting for currency).  Global Financing segment revenues totaled $2.0 billion, a decrease of 4 percent (down 1 percent, adjusting for currency). 

*** 

The company’s total gross profit margin was 48.1 percent in 2012 compared with 46.9 percent in 2011. Overall gross profit margins improved year over year for the 9th consecutive year. Total operating (non-GAAP) gross profit margin was 48.7 percent in the 2012 period compared with 47.2 percent in the 2011 period, with increases in Services and Software.

The weighted-average number of diluted common shares outstanding in 2012 was 1.16 billion compared with 1.21 billion shares in 2011.  As of December 31, 2012, there were 1.12 billion basic common shares outstanding.

Debt, including Global Financing, totaled $33.3 billion, compared with $31.3 billion at year-end 2011.  From a management segment view, Global Financing debt totaled $24.5 billion versus $23.3 billion at year-end 2011, resulting in a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.0 to 1.  Non-global financing debt totaled $8.8 billion, an increase of $0.8 billion since year-end 2011, resulting in a debt-to-capitalization ratio of 36.1 percent from 32.0 percent.

IBM ended 2012 with $11.1 billion of cash on hand and generated free cash flow of $18.2 billion excluding Global Financing receivables, up approximately $1.6 billion year over year.  The company returned $15.8 billion to shareholders through $3.8 billion in dividends and $12.0 billion of share repurchases.  The company’s balance sheet remains strong and is well positioned to support the business over the long term. 

Forward-Looking and Cautionary Statements

Except for the historical information and discussions contained herein, statements contained in this release may constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.  Forward-looking statements are based on the company’s current assumptions regarding future business and financial performance.  These statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially, including the following: a downturn in economic environment and corporate IT spending budgets; the company’s failure to meet growth and productivity objectives, a failure of the company’s innovation initiatives; risks from investing in growth opportunities; failure of the company’s intellectual property portfolio to prevent competitive offerings and the failure of the company to obtain necessary licenses; cybersecurity and data privacy considerations; fluctuations in financial results and purchases, impact of local legal, economic, political and health conditions; adverse effects from environmental matters, tax matters and the company’s pension plans; ineffective internal controls; the company’s use of accounting estimates; the company’s ability to attract and retain key personnel and its reliance on critical skills; impacts of relationships with critical suppliers and business with government clients; currency fluctuations and customer financing risks; impact of changes in market liquidity conditions and customer credit risk on receivables; reliance on third party distribution channels; the company’s ability to successfully manage acquisitions and alliances; risk factors related to IBM securities; and other risks, uncertainties and factors discussed in the company’s Form 10-Q, Form 10-K and in the company’s other filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) or in materials incorporated therein by reference.  Any forward-looking statement in this release speaks only as of the date on which it is made.  The company assumes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements. 

Presentation of Information in this Press Release

In an effort to provide investors with additional information regarding the company’s results as determined by generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), the company has also disclosed in this press release the following non-GAAP information which management believes provides useful information to investors: 

IBM results and expectations –

·      presenting operating (non-GAAP) earnings per share amounts and related income statement items;

·      presenting non-global financing debt-to-capitalization ratio;

·      adjusting for free cash flow;

·      adjusting for currency (i.e., at constant currency);

·      adjusting for the divestiture of RSS. 

The rationale for management’s use of non-GAAP measures is included as part of the supplementary materials presented within the fourth-quarter earnings materials.  These materials are available on the IBM investor relations Web site at www.ibm.com/investor and are being included in Attachment II (“Non-GAAP Supplementary Materials”) to the Form 8-K that includes this press release and is being submitted today to the SEC. 

Conference Call and Webcast

IBM’s regular quarterly earnings conference call is scheduled to begin at 4:30 p.m. EST, today.  The Webcast may be viewed at www.ibm.com/investor/4q12. Presentation charts will be available on the Web site shortly before the Webcast.  

Financial Results Below (certain amounts may not add due to use of rounded numbers; percentages presented are calculated from the underlying whole-dollar amounts).

Contact(s) information

Mike Fay 
IBM External Relations 
1 (914) 525-8476 
mikefay@us.ibm.com

John Bukovinsky 
IBM External Relations 
1 (732) 618-3531 
jbuko@us.ibm.com


























































































Vancouver-based DOSarrest Rolls Out New Website Monitoring Service

 

DOSarrest Rolls Out New Website Monitoring Service


VANCOUVER, Jan. 22, 2013 /CNW/ - DOSarrest Internet Security announced a new website monitoring service today called the "DOSarrest External Monitoring Service" or "DEMS". This new service is a real-time geographically distributed system, capable of monitoring a number of website performance metrics from three different geographic regions, every 60 seconds, utilizing six different sensors. This service may be purchased as a stand-alone product but is free for all DOSarrest customers that are subscribed to DOSarrest's industry leading DDoS protection service.

DOSarrest's CTO, Jag Bains states "This is a must have if you're using a CDN or are hosting some high-end, mission critical websites, and it's a perfect fit for our fully managed DDoS protection service. This combined with our existing traffic metrics gives us and our customers the best visibility in the DDoS protection services arena."

Jag Bains adds "Although there are similar types of services available from third parties, our customers can also choose to have the DOSarrest support staff investigate, pin-point and advise the customer on a plan of action, 24/7/365. No such service exists today that offers this type of customer support".

Mark Teolis, GM of DOSarrest comments. "It's a very intuitive and elegant design.  I use it myself to view the status of all of our customers' websites. At a glance and without a click, I can tell real-time if anyone is down from six different vantage points, and can easily drill down to a specific site and timeline of events for that site. Many Content Delivery Networks do not offer such a service to their customers. Their customers would have no idea if there was an issue accessing their website in a different region of the country or globe."

More information on this service can be found at:  http://www.dosarrest.com/dems

About DOSarrest Internet Security: DOSarrest founded in 2007 in Vancouver, BC, Canada is one of only a couple of companies worldwide to specialize in only cloud based DDoS protection services. Their global client base includes mission critical ecommerce websites in a wide range of business segments including financial, health, media, education and government. Their innovative systems, software and exceptional service has been leading edge for over 5 years now

SOURCE: DOSarrest Internet Security Limited

For further information:

Brian Mohammed
Director of Sales and Marketing
Toll free CAN/US 888 818-1344 ext. 203
Toll Free UK 0-800-635-0551 ext. 203
Mobile: 416-434-6174
www.dosarrest.com

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