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EU backs Microsoft and Yahoo search partnership

Microsoft won unconditional European Union approval yesterday for its planned search deal with Yahoo to challenge market leader Google.

Under the terms of the partnership struck in July last year, Microsoft’s Bing becomes the search engine for both while Yahoo focuses on attracting big advertisers.

Google had 90 per cent of the global search market versus 7.4 per cent for a combined Yahoo and Bing, according to November data from web research firm StatCounter. – (Reuters)

Intune to design cloud computing network

Intune Networks, the Irish maker of telecoms equipment for high bandwidth transmission, has won a major EU-funded research contract to design a telecoms network for cloud computing.

Intune is part of a consortium that includes telecoms operators Telefónica in Spain and PrimeTel in Cyprus. The consortium also includes Italian software company Nextworks, and the University of Essex and University Autonoma Madrid. It will design and demonstrate a network that will allow the next generation of technology and communications services to be rolled out.

Amazon launches Kindle option for BlackBerry devices

Amazon.com is launching a new free Kindle application that will give customers access to more than 420,000 books on a range of BlackBerry devices.

Called “Kindle for Blackberry”, the application allows customers using BlackBerry devices on ATT, Sprint, T-Mobile, Verizon and other US carriers easy wireless access to Kindle books, most for $9.99 or less.

“Since the launch of our popular Kindle for iPhone app last year, customers have been asking us to bring a similar experience to the BlackBerry,” said Ian Freed of Amazon Kindle. – (Reuters)

Dial2Do service in bundle deal

Dial2Do has won a deal that will see its voice-controlled services bundled with Jabra headsets and speakerphones in Britain.

Using the service, Jabra SP200, CRUISER and BT2080 customers will be able send and listen to e-mails, texts and Twitter updates by simply speaking into their device.

Dial2Do allows users to send and listen to e-mail and text messages as well as post to social networking sites using voice only. Users dial a UK local access number, speak the desired command, and then messages converted into text are sent to the recipient.

The Dublin firm already has similar deals in place with headset makers BlueTrek, Enustech and Jawbone.

Lecture on Germany and innovation

Germany’s experience of entrepreneurship as a driver of innovation will be highlighted at an Engineers Ireland lecture next Monday, February 22nd.

The keynote speaker, Prof Peter Russo, chairman of the Strascheg Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the European Business School in Frankfurt, will discuss Germany’s business success stories and failures, and how innovation affects business recovery.

Anna Scally, tax partner in KPMG and a member of the Taoiseachs Innovation Taskforce, will also speak.