For week 2 of Mar 2015 - the most interesting news was the launching of rapid 3D printer for prototyping by RS Components.
For this week / last week, here are / were the biggest news.
Email team@it-sideways.com for more info.
PR - Mar 18, 2015 - Accelya appoints John Johnston as Group Chief Executive Officer
Accelya, the leading provider of financial and business intelligence solutions to the Airline and Travel industry, recently announced the appointment of John Johnston as Group Chief Executive Officer. John’s induction in Accelya’s leadership team is a part of the succession plan of Philippe Lesueur, President Accelya Group, who will continue to remain on the Board of Accelya companies and serve as an advisor.
John Johnston was until recently, Chief Executive Officer of Champ Cargosystems and has been responsible for the creation and growth of CHAMP Cargosystems into the world’s largest dedicated IT provider to the Air Cargo Industry. During his career, John has held senior executive positions in several countries and has provided senior management and consulting services to a number of Global Airlines
Commenting on his appointment John Johnston, Group CEO said, “ Accelya is a great company and leader in its field, providing exceptional customer service. I am excited about the opportunity to drive further growth, expanding the global team and opening new markets.”
Ovum - Mar 18, 2015 - Facebook adds P2P money transfers to Messenger
By Eden Zoller, Principal Analyst, Consumer, Ovum
Facebook has introduced a person-to-person (P2P) mobile money transfer feature to its Messenger service. This is a shrewd move. Facebook Messenger is a popular application, and the convenience and simplicity of mobile money transfers offers a tangible benefit to consumers. Although the new feature is initially confined to the US, Facebook Messenger has a large and growing international base. In November 2014, 500 million people were using Facebook Messenger, and Ovum expects the app to reach more than 890 million users by the end of 2015. If the m-payments feature proves popular it will increase consumers’ use of and loyalty to Facebook Messenger, which is important, given the intense competition in the social messaging space. If this approach is successful, Facebook may add m-payment functions to WhatsApp.
Facebook is not the only player to have introduced m-payments into messaging applications. In fact, a host of its rivals, including PayPal-owned Venmo, Snapchat, Line, WeChat, and KakaoTalk have already done so. Moreover, several of these players have added m-payment services beyond P2P transfers and will no doubt look for further enhancements now that Facebook is on the scene. A further challenge for Facebook is trust; it has built the platform and cannot afford to have any teething problems when it comes to security and privacy.
The huge growth in Facebook’s advertising revenues, particularly those from mobile, means that it is under no immediate pressure to monetize payments directly. However, there is no doubt that it wants to do so in the longer term. It has been experimenting with payments for a number of years, gradually building its capabilities in this area, albeit with mixed results. For every robust initiative such as the “buy” button in ads it has made false steps such as Facebook Gifts and the now-defunct Facebook Credits virtual currency.
PR - Mar 17, 2015 - Asia Pacific Oil & Gas Security 2015 Forum@21st 22nd May.
The Asia Pacific Oil & Gas Security 2015 Forum organised by IRN on 21st-22nd May in Bangkok, will address all security issues that oil companies face while operating in the region, including highly topical sessions on safety and security in Southeast Asian Waters; cargo crime in Malaysia – the insider threat and maritime security in the South China Sea.
In February, the first successful oil tanker hijacking for 2015 was reported in the Strait of Malacca that separates Indonesia from Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand. Pirates siphoned 2,000 metric tons of bunker oil and five metric tons of diesel from the fuel tanker’s cargo, leaving an explosive package while escaping, which was fortunately only impromptu and didn’t hurt any of the crew.
PR - Mar 16, 2015 - Singapore - Tata Comm. delivers unified communications ‘on your terms’ at Enterprise Connect 2015
Tata Communications, a leading provider of A New World of Communications™ expands its unified communications (UC) portfolio with the launch of three new UC solutions: InstaCC Global™, Hosted Lync, and Click2RTC™ services. These new offers will debut at Enterprise Connect 2015 in Orlando, US.
Working with a number of leading industry partners including Sightcall, Acano, Sonus, Hookflash, Media Network Services, and Voicebase amongst others, Tata Communications continues to build on its innovative suite of UC services, supported by its tier 1 global network infrastructure to deliver world-leading connectivity, collaboration and productivity.
PR - Mar 16, 2015 - BDO Upgrades Phonebanking and Contact Center Infrastructure with Aspect's Unified Platform Solution
BDO Unibank, Inc. (BDO), one of the Philippines’ leading banks, has successfully completed a major upgrade of its contact center infrastructure to further improve its customer engagement and automate its core processes for better management of customer communications. The refitting is part of BDO’s objectives to continuously strengthen relationships with its customers.
For this endeavor, BDO has deployed technologies from Aspect Software, a US-headquartered, leading provider of fully-integrated customer interaction management, workforce optimization, back-office and award-winning cloud solutions.
PR - Mar 16, 2015 - Barracuda Security and Storage Solutions Now on VMware vCloud Air
Barracuda Networks, Inc. , a leading provider of cloud-connected security and storage solutions, announces that Barracuda NG Firewall, Barracuda Message Archiver, Barracuda Spam Firewall and Barracuda Web Application Firewall have achieved VMware Ready - vCloud Air™ status.
This designation indicates that the products have undergone technical validation within the vCloud Air environment, and are supported on VMware vCloud Air®.
Organisations extending workloads to the cloud face additional security challenges from an increased attack surface. Businesses need to secure email and applications, including the data they access.
With VMware Ready - vCloud Air products, Barracuda is providing easier management and security in hybrid environments.
PR - Mar 13, 2015 - Kaspersky: what extortionists demand for decrypting user data
Computer users in many countries are increasingly falling victim to so-called encryption malware – programs that encrypt important data on infected computers and then demand a ransom to decrypt it. In 2014, over 7 million attempts to carry out such attacks were made against Kaspersky Lab users alone. Kaspersky Lab experts have prepared an overview of the evolution of encryption malware, as well as advice on how to avoid being affected by this threat.
Encryption malware gets special attention because cybercriminals are continually changing the tools they use, including cryptographic schemes, code obfuscation techniques, executable file formats, and infection vectors. This type of malware is usually distributed via spam or attacks against remote administration systems. The persistence of this form of extortion is easily explained: unlike banking Trojans, which generate an ‘income’ only if the victim uses online banking, a piece of encryption malware, having once infected a computer, will always find something to encrypt and hold to ransom.
Cybercriminals prefer to be paid in the Bitcoin cryptocurrency, which offers them a sufficiently high level of anonymity.
PR - Mar 13, 2015 - APAC Venture Becomes the Preferred Partner for WeChat Official Account Management in Malaysia
WeChat, the leading mobile social communication platform with preferred partner, APAC Venture Sdn Bhd now enables its partners to utilize their highly customizable backend API to incorporate an array of functions and/or features according to their specific needs.
Designed to be entirely free for all partners, the WeChat Official Account application consists of Subscriptions and Service Accounts that caters to their partner’s specific needs and preferences. Interested brands and potential partners who are interested to start an Official Account on the platform, are encouraged to contact APAC Venture at wechat@apacventure.com, or visit http://apply.wechat.com/ to apply online.
PR - Mar 13, 2015 - Waze 3.9.4 Boosts its Performance by 85%
Today, Waze releases the 3.9.4 version, a global product update that focuses on speed, performance and optimisation. Route and rerouting calculation are now up to 85% faster!
Have you always wondered how long you will be stuck in a traffic jam? Waze has another new feature, which is a traffic status bar that quickly visualises your progress as you move through heavy traffic.
On top of that, Waze has the ability to restore your user account using the Cloud service on your devices. It will be easier to get into your account after reinstalling the application or when you’re buying a new phone. Just log in using your registered phone number (must be registered with a phone prior to log in) and your username and points will be there to greet you.
Waze 3.9.4 is available for Android and will be in the App Store for iOS this week.
PR - Mar 13, 2015 - MYHERO App Releases on iOS Platform!
MYHERO, Malaysia’s first community oriented social networking platform on safety, was first launched in Android platform on Jan 18, 2015.
The team have now launched the iOS version for the app. With the app now available on all three platforms; Android, iOS and web, users can look forward to a more extensive network of monitoring, reporting and protecting the safety of their loved ones as well as the community.
The team behind MYHERO, will also be announcing a few collaborations soon, which will further enhance the app’s power to engage users and help protect the overall wellbeing of our citizens.
PR - Mar 12, 2015 - Convergence Networks Sdn Bhd becomes a Blue Coat Distributor
Blue Coat Systems has partnered with Convergence Networks Sdn Bhd (‘Convergence Networks’) to expand its penetration in the Malaysian market, by providing IT security solutions that empower business entities to combat against cyber-attacks and data breaches. The distribution agreement allows both companies to work together to offer security and networking solutions – which include top advanced threat protection (ATP) and patented optimization technologies, for secure Web-based communications and accelerated delivery of business users’ applications.
For this week / last week, here are / were the biggest news.
- PR - Mar 18, 2015 - Accelya appoints John Johnston as Group Chief Executive Officer
- Ovum - Mar 18, 2015 - Facebook adds P2P money transfers to Messenger
- PR - Mar 17, 2015 - Asia Pacific Oil & Gas Security 2015 Forum@21st 22nd May
- PR - Mar 16, 2015 - Singapore - Tata Comm. delivers unified communications ‘on your terms’ at Enterprise Connect 2015
- PR - Mar 16, 2015 - BDO Upgrades Phonebanking and Contact Center Infrastructure with Aspect's Unified Platform Solution
- PR - Mar 16, 2015 - Barracuda Security and Storage Solutions Now on VMware vCloud Air
- PR - Mar 13, 2015 - Kaspersky: what extortionists demand for decrypting user data
- PR - Mar 13, 2015 - APAC Venture Becomes the Preferred Partner for WeChat Official Account Management in Malaysia
- PR - Mar 13, 2015 - Waze 3.9.4 Boosts its Performance by 85%
- PR - Mar 13, 2015 - MYHERO App Releases on iOS Platform!
- PR - Mar 12, 2015 - Convergence Networks Sdn Bhd becomes a Blue Coat Distributor
Email team@it-sideways.com for more info.
PR - Mar 18, 2015 - Accelya appoints John Johnston as Group Chief Executive Officer
Accelya, the leading provider of financial and business intelligence solutions to the Airline and Travel industry, recently announced the appointment of John Johnston as Group Chief Executive Officer. John’s induction in Accelya’s leadership team is a part of the succession plan of Philippe Lesueur, President Accelya Group, who will continue to remain on the Board of Accelya companies and serve as an advisor.
 |
| John Johnston, CEO of Accelya |
John Johnston was until recently, Chief Executive Officer of Champ Cargosystems and has been responsible for the creation and growth of CHAMP Cargosystems into the world’s largest dedicated IT provider to the Air Cargo Industry. During his career, John has held senior executive positions in several countries and has provided senior management and consulting services to a number of Global Airlines
Commenting on his appointment John Johnston, Group CEO said, “ Accelya is a great company and leader in its field, providing exceptional customer service. I am excited about the opportunity to drive further growth, expanding the global team and opening new markets.”
Ovum - Mar 18, 2015 - Facebook adds P2P money transfers to Messenger
By Eden Zoller, Principal Analyst, Consumer, Ovum
Facebook has introduced a person-to-person (P2P) mobile money transfer feature to its Messenger service. This is a shrewd move. Facebook Messenger is a popular application, and the convenience and simplicity of mobile money transfers offers a tangible benefit to consumers. Although the new feature is initially confined to the US, Facebook Messenger has a large and growing international base. In November 2014, 500 million people were using Facebook Messenger, and Ovum expects the app to reach more than 890 million users by the end of 2015. If the m-payments feature proves popular it will increase consumers’ use of and loyalty to Facebook Messenger, which is important, given the intense competition in the social messaging space. If this approach is successful, Facebook may add m-payment functions to WhatsApp.
Facebook is not the only player to have introduced m-payments into messaging applications. In fact, a host of its rivals, including PayPal-owned Venmo, Snapchat, Line, WeChat, and KakaoTalk have already done so. Moreover, several of these players have added m-payment services beyond P2P transfers and will no doubt look for further enhancements now that Facebook is on the scene. A further challenge for Facebook is trust; it has built the platform and cannot afford to have any teething problems when it comes to security and privacy.
The huge growth in Facebook’s advertising revenues, particularly those from mobile, means that it is under no immediate pressure to monetize payments directly. However, there is no doubt that it wants to do so in the longer term. It has been experimenting with payments for a number of years, gradually building its capabilities in this area, albeit with mixed results. For every robust initiative such as the “buy” button in ads it has made false steps such as Facebook Gifts and the now-defunct Facebook Credits virtual currency.
PR - Mar 17, 2015 - Asia Pacific Oil & Gas Security 2015 Forum@21st 22nd May.
The Asia Pacific Oil & Gas Security 2015 Forum organised by IRN on 21st-22nd May in Bangkok, will address all security issues that oil companies face while operating in the region, including highly topical sessions on safety and security in Southeast Asian Waters; cargo crime in Malaysia – the insider threat and maritime security in the South China Sea.
In February, the first successful oil tanker hijacking for 2015 was reported in the Strait of Malacca that separates Indonesia from Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand. Pirates siphoned 2,000 metric tons of bunker oil and five metric tons of diesel from the fuel tanker’s cargo, leaving an explosive package while escaping, which was fortunately only impromptu and didn’t hurt any of the crew.
PR - Mar 16, 2015 - Singapore - Tata Comm. delivers unified communications ‘on your terms’ at Enterprise Connect 2015
Tata Communications, a leading provider of A New World of Communications™ expands its unified communications (UC) portfolio with the launch of three new UC solutions: InstaCC Global™, Hosted Lync, and Click2RTC™ services. These new offers will debut at Enterprise Connect 2015 in Orlando, US.
Working with a number of leading industry partners including Sightcall, Acano, Sonus, Hookflash, Media Network Services, and Voicebase amongst others, Tata Communications continues to build on its innovative suite of UC services, supported by its tier 1 global network infrastructure to deliver world-leading connectivity, collaboration and productivity.
PR - Mar 16, 2015 - BDO Upgrades Phonebanking and Contact Center Infrastructure with Aspect's Unified Platform Solution
BDO Unibank, Inc. (BDO), one of the Philippines’ leading banks, has successfully completed a major upgrade of its contact center infrastructure to further improve its customer engagement and automate its core processes for better management of customer communications. The refitting is part of BDO’s objectives to continuously strengthen relationships with its customers.
For this endeavor, BDO has deployed technologies from Aspect Software, a US-headquartered, leading provider of fully-integrated customer interaction management, workforce optimization, back-office and award-winning cloud solutions.
PR - Mar 16, 2015 - Barracuda Security and Storage Solutions Now on VMware vCloud Air
Barracuda Networks, Inc. , a leading provider of cloud-connected security and storage solutions, announces that Barracuda NG Firewall, Barracuda Message Archiver, Barracuda Spam Firewall and Barracuda Web Application Firewall have achieved VMware Ready - vCloud Air™ status.
This designation indicates that the products have undergone technical validation within the vCloud Air environment, and are supported on VMware vCloud Air®.
Organisations extending workloads to the cloud face additional security challenges from an increased attack surface. Businesses need to secure email and applications, including the data they access.
With VMware Ready - vCloud Air products, Barracuda is providing easier management and security in hybrid environments.
PR - Mar 13, 2015 - Kaspersky: what extortionists demand for decrypting user data
Computer users in many countries are increasingly falling victim to so-called encryption malware – programs that encrypt important data on infected computers and then demand a ransom to decrypt it. In 2014, over 7 million attempts to carry out such attacks were made against Kaspersky Lab users alone. Kaspersky Lab experts have prepared an overview of the evolution of encryption malware, as well as advice on how to avoid being affected by this threat.
Encryption malware gets special attention because cybercriminals are continually changing the tools they use, including cryptographic schemes, code obfuscation techniques, executable file formats, and infection vectors. This type of malware is usually distributed via spam or attacks against remote administration systems. The persistence of this form of extortion is easily explained: unlike banking Trojans, which generate an ‘income’ only if the victim uses online banking, a piece of encryption malware, having once infected a computer, will always find something to encrypt and hold to ransom.
Cybercriminals prefer to be paid in the Bitcoin cryptocurrency, which offers them a sufficiently high level of anonymity.
PR - Mar 13, 2015 - APAC Venture Becomes the Preferred Partner for WeChat Official Account Management in Malaysia
WeChat, the leading mobile social communication platform with preferred partner, APAC Venture Sdn Bhd now enables its partners to utilize their highly customizable backend API to incorporate an array of functions and/or features according to their specific needs.
Designed to be entirely free for all partners, the WeChat Official Account application consists of Subscriptions and Service Accounts that caters to their partner’s specific needs and preferences. Interested brands and potential partners who are interested to start an Official Account on the platform, are encouraged to contact APAC Venture at wechat@apacventure.com, or visit http://apply.wechat.com/ to apply online.
PR - Mar 13, 2015 - Waze 3.9.4 Boosts its Performance by 85%
Today, Waze releases the 3.9.4 version, a global product update that focuses on speed, performance and optimisation. Route and rerouting calculation are now up to 85% faster!
Have you always wondered how long you will be stuck in a traffic jam? Waze has another new feature, which is a traffic status bar that quickly visualises your progress as you move through heavy traffic.
 |
| Waze 3.9.4 Traffic Jam Bar |
On top of that, Waze has the ability to restore your user account using the Cloud service on your devices. It will be easier to get into your account after reinstalling the application or when you’re buying a new phone. Just log in using your registered phone number (must be registered with a phone prior to log in) and your username and points will be there to greet you.
Waze 3.9.4 is available for Android and will be in the App Store for iOS this week.
PR - Mar 13, 2015 - MYHERO App Releases on iOS Platform!
MYHERO, Malaysia’s first community oriented social networking platform on safety, was first launched in Android platform on Jan 18, 2015.
The team have now launched the iOS version for the app. With the app now available on all three platforms; Android, iOS and web, users can look forward to a more extensive network of monitoring, reporting and protecting the safety of their loved ones as well as the community.
 |
| MyHero Logo |
The team behind MYHERO, will also be announcing a few collaborations soon, which will further enhance the app’s power to engage users and help protect the overall wellbeing of our citizens.
PR - Mar 12, 2015 - Convergence Networks Sdn Bhd becomes a Blue Coat Distributor
Blue Coat Systems has partnered with Convergence Networks Sdn Bhd (‘Convergence Networks’) to expand its penetration in the Malaysian market, by providing IT security solutions that empower business entities to combat against cyber-attacks and data breaches. The distribution agreement allows both companies to work together to offer security and networking solutions – which include top advanced threat protection (ATP) and patented optimization technologies, for secure Web-based communications and accelerated delivery of business users’ applications.
 |
| Blue Coat’s country manager, Ivan Wen (Right) and Convergence Networks’ managing director, James Lee (Left) |
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