BT will begin selling
the popular Blackberry from Research in Motion, the
companies announced on Monday. Blackberry handhelds and
software are already available from a number of
operators, chiefly mobile operators. In a separate
announcement, BT said it was changing its ticker symbol
for its New York Stock Exchange listed American
Depository Receipts (ADRs) from BTY to BT. BT Chief
Executive Ben Verwaayen was in New York on Monday to
brief analysts on the company's half-yearly results.
Dell has begun marketing a new range of
slimline blade servers, dubbed the PowerEdge 1855
series. The company said the blades would offer
companies more convenience in data-centre settings,
cutting down on space, cabling and power requirements,
and generating less heat than Dell 1U servers. The new
range is expected to put price pressure on server
rivals, including HP and IBM.
Research house Gartner has revised its
forecast downward for PC sales during 2004. The company
had expected growth of 13 percent in PC shipments over
2003, but on Monday it said the figure probably won't
exceed 11.4 percent growth, or a total of 182.7 million
units for the year. The company's revised numbers were
published following what it called a disappointing third
quarter. Gartner believes that consumers will be drawn
to devices like flat-panel TVs rather than home
computers; the company said that this year's PCs lack
the "must have" features that inspire purchases.
Inspired Broadcast Networks has announced that
consumers in the UK will be able to buy and download
music from its terminals and jukeboxes. Users will be
able to purchase tracks using cash, the company said,
and will be able to download the music onto devices
including mobile phones and digital music players. The
company said its technology was developed in conjunction
with Entertainment UK and is based on broadband
technology from BT. Inspired's joint CEO is Norman
Crowley, a past head of the now defunct e-business
consultancy Ebeon.
Oracle has announced its Oracle Healthcare
Transaction Base for Ireland, a data repository and
infrastructure aimed at healthcare organisations. The
company said the service would help organisations like
health boards and hospitals to join up disconnected
systems, and create a central repository of patient
information and clinical services.
Two Limerick businessmen, including founder John
Ahern of mobile messaging company Go2mobile, have
launched Thebusinessshop.ie,
a website its creators say will help anyone looking to
buy, sell or invest in an Irish business. The website's
backers, John Ahern and John Ryan, said the site will
function by charging a fee for listings, whether
participants are looking to place their business for
sale or source a business or franchise to purchase.
South Coast Television said on Monday that it
has received a digital broadcasting licence from ComReg
that will allow it to offer a 60-channel digital TV and
radio package to the Munster region. The company said
the digital package will initially be offered to the
23,000 subscribers to its analogue service, most of whom
are residents of Cork County and West Waterford.
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