Briefs: January 10, 2005

HP's REYNOLDS STEPS DOWN FROM CHANNEL POST

Reynolds, who will remain with HP on a part-time basis, said she relinquished her post to spend more time with her family. "I asked HP if they would support me in making a work/life balance change," she said. "I am going to a part-time role to spend more time with my little girl."

LaRocca, like Reynolds, will report to John Thompson, HP's vice president and general manager, Solution Partners Organization Americas.

MICROSOFT MAKES INROADS IN SECURITY SPACE
Microsoft took two baby steps into the security software market last week by officially launching a beta-test version of its newly branded Windows AntiSpyware product and unveiling plans to make available this week a consolidated tool for removing known viruses and worms.

The beta-test version of Windows Anti-Spyware, which was available for download last Thursday, is a spyware-prevention, -detection and -removal solution from Giant Company Software, which Microsoft acquired last month. Microsoft would not say when the final product will ship.

The new tool, meanwhile, consolidates three fixes that Microsoft previously offered for removing three known viruses and worms—Blaster, MyDoom and Download.ject. It will be available through the Microsoft Download Center, Windows Update and Automatic Update.

E-BAY URGES CONSUMERS TO RETHINK E-WASTE DISPOSAL
Online auction site eBay last week unveiled its Rethink Initiative at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

The Rethink Initiative is a computer recycling effort that looks to educate visitors to eBay's Web site about the importance of preventing retired, broken or discarded PC components from winding up in landfills, said Meg Whitman, president and CEO of eBay.

Whitman said eBay is dedicating a page of its site to the Rethink Initiative. There, visitors will find information on the dangers of releasing the toxins and heavy metals used in PC components into the environment. Information on PC disposal methods such as trade-in programs, donations to charity and local recycling centers will also be available on the Rethink page, Whitman said.

Intel, Apple Computer, Gateway, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Ingram Micro, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the nonprofit Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition, UPS and the U.S. Postal Service each have also pledged their support of the initiative.

IBM SOFTWARE ACQUIRES SRD, BOOSTS ANALYTICS OFFERING
IBM said it acquired SRD, a provider of identity resolution software.

Terms of the deal weren't disclosed. The move adds SRD's technology to the analytics arsenal of IBM Software's Data Management Group. SRD's identity resolution software provides a view into associations between various individuals and relationships that otherwise might not be visible, according to IBM.

IBM plans to use the SRD technology for homeland security, national intelligence, law enforcement applications and fraud prevention in banking and insurance, an IBM spokeswoman said. SRD's software is based on SQL and J2EE technology.

The SRD deal represents IBM Software's 20th acquisition in four years and the seventh for IBM's Information Management division, which bought Venetica and Alphablox last year, Green Pasture and CrossAccess in 2003, and Informix in 2001.

NETGEAR, LINKSYS JUMP ON THE MIMO TECHNOLOGY BANDWAGON
WLAN equipment vendor Netgear said it will introduce products that incorporate MIMO (Multiple Input, Multiple Output) antenna technology to increase wireless speed and range.

Netgear was the second vendor to make such an announcement last week. Linksys likewise unveiled MIMO-based products. Both vendors timed their announcements to coincide with the Consumer Electronics Show.

Netgear said in a statement that its RangeMax MIMO technology was developed by Video54. The company said the technology uses seven MIMO antennas that automatically adjust antenna configurations to respond to varying conditions of the wireless network, including radio interference.

Netgear made no specific claims about the increased performance of its new equipment. In contrast, Linksys said that its MIMO products will increase data speeds by as much as eight times.

Netgear said it would ship its first products with the new technology in the spring. It provided no pricing information.

ORACLE CLAIMS PEOPLESOFT PRIZE AS ACQUISITION DEAL CLOSES
After 18 months of often-bitter battle, Oracle now claims PeopleSoft as its own. PeopleSoft shareholders tendered more than 97 percent of outstanding shares in favor of Oracle's $10.3 billion cash bid, according to Oracle. Oracle planned to close the acquisition last Friday, according to a statement.

The combined company is viewed as the world's second-largest enterprise software application provider after SAP. But it is expecting additional competition from the Microsoft Business Solutions group in applications as well as IBM in infrastructure/middleware.

Industry watchers expect there to be significant layoffs in the San Francisco Bay area, where both companies are based, as well as more executive changes as Oracle works to absorb its prize. Oracle CEO Larry Ellison, aiming to allay concerns that Oracle would dismantle PeopleSoft's applications, last month promised to "oversupport" both PeopleSoft's current and next-generation products.

Oracle Co-President Charles Phillips has already sent letters to PeopleSoft partners seeking to reassure them that Oracle will continue to value PeopleSoft's applications and expertise.