Immersion Disappoints, Hints At Potential Settlements For Basic Haptics

Read the whole article at Seeking Alpha

>>Last week on Thursday evening, Immersion Corporation (IMMR) delivered disappointing Q2 2012 results, below consensus and management's expectation as far as revenues. The company widened its guidance for 2012, to incorporate both the possibility of a result inferior to previous expectations, as well as potential upside from Basic Haptics royalty agreements/settlements before year's end.

First, a quick look at some of the highlights from Q2 2012 earnings:

TeleCity Group delivers a solid 1H 2012, acquires Tenue Oy, a Finnish data centre operator

Read the whole post at TR: 

>>Today, TeleCity Group announced its results for the first half of 2012.


In line with expectations, the company delivered solid growth both in revenues and EBITDA.

Here is a quick look at some of the highlights:

What RIM Must Do to Make BlackBerry 10 a Success

from www.techvibes.com:

>>A MOBILE GAMER'S DREAM
The newest Samsung devices can utilize the world leader in haptics technology known as Immersion. Around since 1993, it has Montreal and San Jose offices. Haptic technology allows for “feel” when you press a touchscreen. Samsung's latest models demoed haptic gaming at the latest Google I/O conference in California, making an experience similar to that of the PlayStation controller that vibrates while you play.
RIM must come up with something awesome on the gaming side to attract both developers and more youthful technology oriented consumers. Sony's newest product allowed for PS3 games to be played on the new VITA via a Wi-Fi connection, but was everything except a phone. Immersion has released a mobile SDK.

Trends and shipment forecast for 2H 2012 smartphone market

from DIGITIMES: 

>>Global smartphone shipments will top 630 million units in 2012, representing on-year growth of 35%, which is more more moderate annual growth than seen in previous years. Smartphone shipments in 2010 and 2011 both enjoyed growth of more than 60%. Growth will decelerate in 2012 due to the high base, as well as a slowdown in consumer spending in Western Europe.

In the second half of the year, global smartphone shipments will reach 344 million units and quarterly shipments during 2012 will register sequential growth through the last quarter of the year. The shipment ratio for the first and second halves of 2012 is estimated at 4.5:5.5.

Quarterly shipments during 2012 will manage on-year growth through the last quarter of the year. But the growth will slow at a gradual pace and likely decelerate to 22% in the fourth quarter.

Immersion upgraded to Hold from Sell at Capstone

from www.theflyonthewall.com:

>>Capstone upgraded Immersion based on valuation.

Data Center Related Stocks Halftime Post-Earnings Performance: Solid Uptrend

Read the whole article at Seeking Alpha: 

>>Half of the stocks under our coverage in the data center related sector reported earnings last week, including the companies that are considered the bellwethers for the network-neutral, REIT and CDN sub-sectors, Equinix (EQIX), Digital Realty (DLR) and Akamai (AKAM), respectively.
Before reporting the highlights for each of them, here is a short summary of how all companies performed in term of Y/Y growth, and against analysts' expectations:

Equinix, le plus grand datacenter de France

from /www.entreprises.ouest-france.fr: 

>>Le plus grand datacenter de France entre en service, mercredi, à Pantin (93). Equinix, le leader mondial, a relié cette ferme informatique de 12 000 m2 à son centre de Saint-Denis. C’est le repaire des grands noms du web.

Cramer's Six Stocks in 60 Seconds: EQIX

from The Street:

>>He said that data center purveyor Equinix remains the best-performing cloud computing play despite Monday's analyst downgrade.

Equinix downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Citigroup

from Yahoo: 

>>Citigroup downgraded Equinix citing valuation and limited revenue growth upside relative to expectations. The firm raised its price target for shares to $200 from $180.

Strong Demand for Smartphones in Second Quarter Continues to Drive the Worldwide Mobile Phone Market, According to IDC

The worldwide mobile phone market grew 1% year over year in the second quarter of 2012 (2Q12), as Samsung and Apple shipped almost half of the world's smartphones. According to the International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker, vendors shipped 406.0 million units in 2Q12 compared to 401.8 million units in the second quarter of 2011.

http://www.idc.com/getdoc.jsp?containerId=prUS23624612

Equinix's Journey To $3 Billion Sounds Achievable

Read the whole article at Seeking Alpha:

>>During its recent analyst day in New York, Equinix's (EQIX) management sounded quite upbeat on the company's long term growth prospects. After a four-fold rise in revenues since 2007, the company is now guiding to reach $3 billion in sales in 2015, almost a double compared to 2011 revenues.
After a quick look at Equinix's past performances, we'll try to break down a few reasons why we believe the company is well positioned to reach this ambitious target.

Equinix Delivers Another Solid Quarter, Expands In Brazil

Read the whole article at Seeking Alpha: 

>>Equinix (EQIX) delivered another solid quarter last Wednesday night, and guided above consensus for Q3 and full year 2012.
Let's have a quick look at some of the highlights of the quarter:

• Revenues of $466.3M (+18.1% Y/Y, +3% Q/Q) slightly missed consensus of $ $467.1 million. On an FX-neutral basis, Q2 revenues increased 4% Q/Q and were up 22% over the same quarter of last year. Negative currency trends impacted the quarter for about $3 million, compared to FX guidance rates;
• Q2 EPS of $0.76 beat consensus by $ 0.15 per share;
• The company guided for revenues of $492 million to $498 million in Q3, above consensus of $485.2 million (including $13 million to $15 million of revenue attributed to the Asia Tone and ancotel acquisitions), and increased 2012 guidance to greater than $1,920.0 million;

Nokia's Better-Than-Expected Cash Performance A Trap For Investors?

Read the whole article at Seeking Alpha: 

>>Nokia (NOK) recently delivered mixed earnings, which surprised investors, on the positive side, thanks to the company's strong net cash balance of €4.2B ($ 5B) at quarter's end, marginally down from €4.9B ($5.9B) in Q1 2012, in spite of a net loss of €1.41B ($ 1.7B) in the quarter.
The stock bounced on the news, to give back most of its gains the following day.

Equinix Change to REIT Seen Saving $312 Million in Taxes

from Bloomberg: 

>>“Tax efficiency is the most important attribute of being a REIT, so that’s certainly a positive,” said Clayton Moran, an analyst at Delray Beach, Florida-based Benchmark Co., who recommends buying the shares. “REITs are valued at a premium given that they’re highly recurring dividend plays.”

Toshiba REGZA T-02D smartphone launches in Japan

from Engadget: 

>>Confusingly announced by Fujitsu, the Toshiba Regza T-02D will settle into a wall of similarly bright-colored, good-looking smartphones in NTT DoCoMo stores starting this week.

Nomura Securities Starts Equinix (EQIX) at Buy; Strongly Positioned Vs Peers

from www.streetinsider.com

>> PT $210.00.

Analyst, Mike McCormack, said, "Equinix is strongly positioned among peers with what we believe are the most attractive carrier-neutral data center assets. Through acquisitions and organic growth, we believe the company has built the scale and depth to continue taking share in the carrier-neutral data center market. Equinix has some of the world’s largest enterprises, carriers and content providers as customers, thus enabling the company to provide connectivity that we believe is unmatched in the industry. Although not fully insulated from broader macro weakness, the defensive nature of the company’s revenue model should provide investors an added level of comfort."

Nomura Analysts Begin Coverage on Equinix (EQIX)

from www.dailypolitical.com

>> Equities research analysts at Nomura initiated coverage on shares of Equinix (NASDAQ: EQIX) in a research note issued to investors on Thursday. The firm set a “buy” rating on the stock.

Goldman Sachs Reiterates Neutral on Equinix (EQIX)

from www.dailypolitical.com: 

>>Equinix (NASDAQ: EQIX)‘s stock had its “neutral” rating reaffirmed by Goldman Sachs in a research note issued on Tuesday.

HiWave’s haptic touch panels deliver tactile feedback for improved user interaction with aerospace electronic systems

Complete hardware and software platform enhances safety, reduces cost, and increases robustness in cockpit and passenger entertainment systems
Cambridge, UK, July 9, 2012: HiWave Technologies (LSE:HIW), the provider of electronic devices that deliver innovative sound and touch technologies to user interfaces on electronic display systems, announces the launch of a haptics (touch feedback) platform for control panels and touch displays in aerospace applications. The integrated hardware/software platform enables systems designers to replace conventional mechanical buttons with touch switches and brings haptic feedback to panels and displays so that users perceive the positive experience of mechanical movement, even though none is present.
For cockpit electronic systems, HiWave’s Bending Wave touch/haptics provide greatly improved user feedback and safety than existing touch controls. The company’s force-related haptics enable touch detection and tactile sensation from non-moving touch switch arrays, even with gloved hands. As no mechanical movement is present there is no physical wear, reducing maintenance costs. HOTAS (Hands On Stick And Throttle) functions can be contextually mapped onto sensor arrays, and MHDDs (Multi Function Head Down Displays) can have full multi-level touch and gesture recognition with 3D haptic response. Passenger aircraft in-flight entertainment systems benefit similarly from this patented haptic technology.
The evaluation platform incorporates HiWave’s HIHXC14C02-8 or HIHXC09C005-8 haptic actuators, which attach to the touch interface panel or switch array, and a HiWave haptic controller integrated circuit which resolves touch input and delivers the haptic signals to the actuators.
HiWave’s Bending Wave actuators create waveforms across the touch panel or switch to create any of a range of switch sensations such as the feel of a mechanical switch or button. Additionally, if desired, audio cues can be simultaneously overlaid. A significant benefit of HiWave’s combined touch and Bending Wave Haptics is that the panel can be robustly constructed with no moving or separate parts that would be the case with traditional buttons and switches. No physical movement is necessary as bending waves create the tactile sensation locally in the touch panel. This reduces cost, increases ruggedness and product lifetime. As with HiWave’s other haptic platforms, this is achieved with a high level of mechanical efficiency by HiWave’s patented inertial exciters, resulting in crisp tactile sensation with low power consumption.
HiWave’s algorithms processed in its haptic control chip enable feedback responses to be defined by the designer and implemented by HiWave to replicate a wide range of button or key-press press sensations, or textures to convey information to the user. HiWave’s bending wave technology is the only solution that delivers true wideband haptics for the richest tactile sensation, as well up to 15kHz for audio playback. A range of audio feedbacks – from simple pings and clicks to mp3 files containing spoken instructions and music - can also be delivered without additional speakers by using the touch panel as the sound emitter.
James Lewis, CEO of HiWave said:
“Aerospace and defence is an important market, recognising and adopting the very best solutions for user interface to enhance operational effectiveness and flight safety. But the in-flight entertainment systems in passenger jets also need easy to use robust touch and haptic user interface to give passengers the easiest access to information and entertainment, and save cost caused by system failures. Our haptics and touch solutions bring clear advantages in this environment.”
HiWave continues to patent its haptics and touch technology breakthroughs, and will demonstrate its solutions to major aerospace and defence companies at the Farnborough International Airshow, 9-15 July.

 http://www.hi-wave.com/news/tactile_feedback_for_aerospace_electronic_systems.php

Asia Equinix's Highest Growth Market, CEO Says

From Bloomberg:

>>July 10 (Bloomberg) -- Stephen Smith, chief executive officer of Equinix Inc., talks about the demand for services in Asia and the company's growth strategy. He speaks with Susan Li on Bloomberg Television's "Asia Edge."

Major Outage for Salesforce.com

from DCK:

>>Salesforce.com is experiencing a significant outage today, leaving many customers unable to access the company’s services. The downtime was triggered by a power outage at an Equinix data center in Silicon Valley.
..

Equinix, which hosts most of Salesforce.com’s infrastructure,  acknowledged that it had a brief power failure.
“This morning Equinix experienced a power issue that lasted about one minute and affected approximately one quarter of one Silicon Valley data center,” the company said in a statement. “Although our recovery was swift, recovery time for individual customers in our data centers varies considerably, depending upon their specific deployment configurations. We deeply regret the impact and inconvenience this incident caused our customers.”

Equinix Eyes More Acquisitions in India, Korea, Middle East

from WSJ India

>>Chief Executive Steve Smith said in an interview Tuesday the Redwood City, Calif.-based company expects to acquire or open data centers in markets such as India, Korea, Russia and the Middle East once it completes its business development reviews in these markets.

Equinix (EQIX) Initiated At 'Buy' By Deutsche Bank, $225 PT

from www.istockanalyst.com/

>>Feldman said his bullish view is based on two key factors. A positive outlook for global data center demand. As the only truly global provider of retail colocation facilities, EQIX seems well positioned to benefit from an outsourcing trend driven by rapid IP traffic growth, and from favorable pricing due to the deep ecosystems in its IBXs.
Despite EQIX's outperformance year-to-date, current valuation does not appear to price-in any upside from a REIT conversion, which the analyst views as likely in 2014. In other words, he sees attractive upside if EQIX converts and limited downside if it does not.

Apple Reveals Wildly Intelligent Multi-Tiered Haptics System

from www.patentlyapple.com:

>>Tiered Haptics Could be applied to Flexible OLED Displays Including Video Glasses

According to Apple, the display screen noted in FIG. 10 may be any suitable type of display screen which may allow haptic interaction. For example, in some embodiments, the display screen may be a flexible organic light emitting diode screen (OLED), a graphene sheet, or any other suitable flexible display screen or any suitable combinations thereof. In some embodiments, display screen 1002 may be substantially inflexible, and may not form contoured screen surfaces. In some embodiments, display screen 1002 may include a protective cover such as, for example, clear plastic (e.g., Lexan) or any other suitable substantially transparent material. Common usages of Lexan include space and sports helmets, clear high-performance windshields and aircraft canopies, and bullet-resistant windows. 

 Update May 4, 2012: The video below covers the basics of Haptics that may be of interest to some.

Equinix looking closely at REIT conversion

from Reuters

>>Changing a company's capital structure to turn it into a REIT is complex. Equinix would need to get approvals from its shareholders and the Securities and Exchange Commission, apart from a final nod from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
"We are increasingly convinced that a transition is possible based on our discussions with an independent tax and accounting expert," Cowen and Co analyst Colby Synesael said.

Galaxy to power record $5.9 bln profit

from Reuters: 

>>Soaraway sales of the Galaxy smartphone will drive record quarterly profit of $5.9 billion at Samsung Electronics, though the South Korean tech giant is fretting over how Europe's debt crisis is denting demand in its biggest market for televisions and home appliances.

Immersion Hit By A Sell Downgrade: Why It Could Be Misleading

Read the whole article at Seeking Alpha: 

>>Last week, Immersion Corporation (IMMR) was was downgraded to sell by Capstone Investments.
Subsequent to this negative recommendation the stock, which was previously trading in the $7 range, lost about 20% of its value in a few days, as shown in the following chart:

Data Center Related Stocks Close A Strong First Half Year

Read the whole article at Seeking Alpha: 

>>Dupont Fabros Technologies (DFT) was the best performing data center related stock in June 2012, having gained slightly more than 12% in this month alone.
Network-neutral providers Interxion (INXN) and Equinix (EQIX) come next, with performances of 9% and 8%, respectively.
CDN providers Akamai (AKAM) and Limelight Networks (LLNW) also performed positively in the month, having gained roughly 8%.
Here is a complete review of all stocks under our coverage, which highlights a month relatively positive for the sector:

Jamba's Turnaround Seems Close To Complete

from Seeking Alpha: 

>>Jamba Inc. (JMBA) has traditionally been a restaurant retailer serving smoothies and some snacks. The company was hit hard by the recession as its aggressive growth caught up with it. Comparable company store sales declined during the crisis and JMBA underwent a management shake-up.
The new CEO, James White, has revamped the business plan and the company is now focused on being a healthy active lifestyle brand. He has implemented a turnaround that focused on franchise store growth, cost controls and the development of a consumer product platform through licensing deals with leaders in the consumer product space. The market is not fully recognizing the enormous transformation at JMBA.
JMBA shares trade at a meaningful discount to my estimate of a conservatively calculated intrinsic value ($2.60) around 25% higher than the current share price.

Equinix's Analyst Meeting Details The Journey To $3 Billion In Revenues

Read the whole article at Seeking Alpha: 

>>Last week Equinix (EQIX) held its fifth Investor Analyst Day at the Times Center in New York City, followed by a visit to the NY4 and NY5 data centers, the following day.
Almost 300 investors and financial analysts participated at the event, which included several guests, such as Geoffrey Moore, high tech consultant and author of "Crossing the Chasm" and "Escape Velocity," and a member of the Akamai (AKAM) board of directors, and a few customers, such as Tricia San Cristobal from Bloomberg, Richard Estes from BNY Mellon (BK), Peder Ulander from Citrix (CTXS) and John Wick, Global Network Solutions at Syniverse, who highlighted their experience with the company and the value of the Equinix's partnership to their business.

Hibernia Atlantic Expands Its Global Express Platform into Equinix Data Center in Tokyo

from marketwatch: 

>>SUMMIT, N.J. & DUBLIN, Jun 27, 2012 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- --Key Points:

--Hibernia's low latency financial network extended using Equinix Tokyo data center

--Offers financial firms secure, low latency access in the center of global financial trading activity

--Hibernia extends its global Ethernet service into Tokyo, Singapore and Hong Kong

Hibernia Atlantic, a provider of global capacity services, announces today the expansion of Hibernia's Global Express Platform into the Equinix TY2 Tokyo International Business Exchange(TM) (IBX(R)) data center. This extends Hibernia's low latency network from other key Equinix locations such as Chicago, Secaucus, and Slough, offering Hibernia's clients, including exchanges, banks, execution venues, hedge funds and market data providers, ultra low latency trading between Tokyo and other key cities.

"Equinix is an integral part of the financial services marketplace with a presence across the top 16 financial markets worldwide," states Joseph Hilt, Senior Vice President of Financial Services for Hibernia Atlantic. "By connecting our secure, diverse low latency network into Equinix's premium facility, we can further ensure our customers are in the center of global financial trading activity."

Platform Equinix(TM) provides secure, carrier-neutral data centers across 38 markets worldwide. Equinix's TY2 facility is strategically located to accommodate demand for bandwidth and high capacity connectivity throughout the region. In the Asia-Pacific region, Equinix currently operates data centers in Hong Kong, Singapore, Sydney and Tokyo, and recently announced it is expanding into Shanghai.

"We are pleased that Hibernia has chosen Equinix's TY2 data center to expand into the Asia-Pacific region," comments John Knuff, General Manager, Global Financial Services at Equinix. "Hibernia Atlantic has been part of Equinix's well-established, global financial ecosystem and now our financial customers in Japan will be able to connect quickly to Hibernia's Global Express Platform that offers fast and secure connectivity to major financial centers around the world."

Hibernia Atlantic recently expanded into Asia Pac-Rim, connecting its high capacity, secure network across the Pacific Ocean. Now Asian financial companies can quickly access other key financial routes, such as Chicago to Tokyo and Tokyo to London.

Built upon over 24,000 kilometers of submarine and terrestrial fiber network, Hibernia Atlantic provides simplified global reach to key cities throughout North America, UK, mainland Europe and Asia. Hibernia offers rapid installation to over 60 global exchanges and low latency entry points plus 120 international carrier telecom facilities.

Interactive Data Reduces Latency With New Asia Ticker Plants

from Yahoo: 

>>HONG KONG--(Marketwire -06/27/12)- Interactive Data Corporation, a leading global provider of managed ultra-low latency IT and market data services to facilitate electronic trading today announced that its ticker plants in Asia are now live. Based in two data centres in Hong Kong, the new ticker plants offer a significant reduction in the latency of PlusFeed(SM), Interactive Data's low-latency, consolidated global data feed.

With increasing adoption of electronic trading in Asia, market data has become a crucial issue. Firms require high quality data at the desired speed from across the region. The new ticker plants, located with Pacnet at MEGA-iAdvantage and with Equinix in their HK1 facility, provide Interactive Data's clients with lower latency access to Asian venues covered by PlusFeed, as well as to a wide range of additional international sources.
Interactive Data's new low-latency co-location facilities in Hong Kong will also offer international clients the option to co-locate their applications alongside the ticker plants. This will enable them to obtain optimised low-latency delivery of Asian data via the Interactive Data sites in Hong Kong.
...
Direct or cross-connect access to a wide range of global exchanges is also available in Asia through Interactive Data's Points of Presence (POPs) with leading global providers of data centers and technology services, including Equinix, Inc. (EQIX), Interxion, Telex and KVH.

Goldman Cuts Smartphone Growth View on Economic Downturn

from http://blogs.barrons.com/

>> Smartphone units may total 649 million, down from her prior 668 million estimate, representing 38% growth, down from 42% growth.

Capstone Investments Downgrades Immersion (IMMR) to Sell

from: http://www.streetinsider.com


>>Capstone Investments downgraded Immersion (NASDAQ: IMMR) from Hold to Sell.

Jamba Juice opens new location in Philippines

from http://fruitjuice.drinks-business-review.com:

>>Jamba Juice, a California-based restaurant retailer, has opened its third outlet in the Philippines at the SM Mall of Asia on 23 June 2012.
Located besides the SM Ice Skating Rink, the new outlet is more like a stall with only few chairs and tables.

Jamba Juice Philippines marketing director Mark Gamboa told the ABS CBNnews.com that the opening of the new branch is part of the company's commitment to expand the availability of the California brand.


The company also plans to come up with 37 more stores in the country within the next one decade.

Equinix, Rackspace Added to Dow Jones Internet Composite Index

NEW YORK, June 7, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Dow Jones Indexes, a leading global index provider, today announced the results of the regular quarterly review of the Dow Jones Internet Composite Index and its two subindexes, the Dow Jones Internet Commerce Index and Dow Jones Internet Services Index.


InterNAP Network Services Corp., NIC, Inc. and RealNetworks, Inc. will be removed from the Dow Jones Internet Composite Index and subindex Dow Jones Internet Services Index and replaced by Equinix, Inc., LinkedIn Corp. Cl A and Rackspace Hosting, Inc.

Read more: http://www.benzinga.com/pressreleases/12/06/g2652292/tripadvisor-equinix-linkedin-rackspace-added-to-dow-jones-internet-comp#ixzz1xC6K5nRW

Nokia Asha 305 - comes with haptic?

from www.phonearena.com:

>>

• Notifications:
  • Haptic feedback, Music ringtones (MP3), Polyphonic ringtones, Vibration, Flight mode, Silent mode, Speakerphone

Artificial Muscle’s touch sensors can deepen the bass in headphones

from http://venturebeat.com:

>>Artificial Muscle is a partner with Immersion, a pioneering haptics firm that has a lot of patents in the fundamental technology behind touch feedback. Artificial Muscle, on the other hand, has developed technology for putting an actuator, or tiny motor, on a thin plastic film. The company can print circuitry that, when you apply power to it, makes a motor move back and forth. When attached to a solid mass such as a battery, it can make a device vibrate.
“Immersion develops the IP for the platforms such as Android,” said Schapeler. ”We create the technology and energy-efficient actuator to bring it into mobile devices.”

WIRED: Equinix

http://www.petermccollough.com/blog/tag/equinix/

Vertel, Australia's leading Carrier Grade Ethernet over microwave network provider, has established a site at Equinix data centre in Sydney.

from www.itwire.com:

>>Vertel is a government accredited provider of MEF compliant Carrier Grade Ethernet services for mission critical networks.

Vertel, Australia's leading Carrier Grade Ethernet over microwave network provider, has established a site at Equinix data centre in Sydney.

Vertel's core network will now be distributed between Equinix and Global Switch providing even greater resilience and guaranteed network availability for its customers. By establishing both a fibre and microwave connection Vertel has assured complete path diversity – a business continuity strategy being adopted by many of their Government and Enterprise customers.

Further benefits include an expanded choice of peering opportunities. Incorporating a 10Gig of cross connect capacity via the Equinix Ethernet Exchange for the provisioning of global interconnections with carriers, ISP and service providers.

Establishing relationships with multiple providers is easy using Vertel's MEF compliant Layer 2 Carrier Ethernet and co-location services.

For more information:

• www.vertel.com.au

PayPal lines up 15 retailers for mobile payments, will let you buy Jamba Juice smoothies with a smartphone

from Engadget: 

>>Starting next month, 15 extra US retailers will be happy to see you slap down your smartphone (not literally, we hope) instead of a credit card.

Android- and iOS-Powered Smartphones Expand Their Share of the Market in the First Quarter, According to IDC

IDC P/R:

>>FRAMINGHAM, Mass. May 24, 2012 – Smartphones powered by the Android and iOS mobile operating systems accounted for more than eight out of ten smartphones shipped in the first quarter of 2012 (1Q12). According to the International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker, the mobile operating systems held shares of 59.0% and 23.0% respectively of the 152.3 million smartphones shipped in 1Q12. During the first quarter of 2011, the two operating systems held a combined share of 54.4%. The share gains mean that Android and iOS have successfully distanced themselves from previous market leaders Symbian and BlackBerry, as well as Linux and Windows Phone 7/Windows Mobile.

Deutsche Börse expands European network

from: www.automatedtrader.net:

>>Deutsche Börse is to set up an additional access point to its trading network in the Equinix ZH4 data centre in Zurich. This access should be ready for use in the third quarter. SIX Swiss Exchange already uses the Zurich data centre operated by Equinix as a co-location centre for its customers.

Top 100 Cloud Services Providers List 2012: Ranked 10 to 1

from www.talkincloud.com:

>>4. Equinix, Redwood City, CA, USA: Equinix connects more than 4,000 enterprises, cloud, digital content and financial companies including more than 700 network service providers. Top Exec: Stephen Smith, CEO

NYI Expands with Direct Access to Equinix Financial Ecosystem

NYI (http://www.nyi.net), New York's premier data center provider, has expanded its portfolio of colocation, dedicated servers, managed services, and business continuity solutions with direct access to the Equinix International Business Exchange™ (IBX®) in Secaucus, known as NY4, one of the key locations in the Equinix financial ecosystem. NYI customers can now augment their customized deployments with the same sub-millisecond network used by more than 680 Equinix financial services customers, including buy-side and sell-side firms, hedge funds, execution venues, market data suppliers, network providers and trading technology vendors.
"By leveraging Platform Equinix, NYI is able to offer its managed services into new markets by tapping into our ecosystem for new business opportunities,” said Jim Poole, general manager, global networks and mobility for Equinix. "Equinix is pleased to provide a high-performance data center environment to support NYI as it continues to expand its business delivering high-touch managed services for customers in dense metropolitan areas like New York City."
"By expanding with Equinix, NYI can offer customers even more efficient, personalized solutions with improved throughput, performance and cost savings. We look forward to many future deployments with Equinix," said Phillip Koblence, VP Operations, NYI.
With facilities in New York City and Bridgewater, NJ, NYI specializes in customized solutions for companies in financial services, technology and healthcare. To find out more, visit: http://www.nyi.net.

 http://www.prweb.com/releases/new-york/equinix-financial-access/prweb9536315.htm

Jamba Juice to open at Denver airport

The lounges that will close later this year include the Aviator's Lounge locations in the main terminal and on Concourse B.
The lounge in the terminal will become Jamba Juice and the Concourse B lounge will reopen as the Aviator's Sports Bar, a full service barbecue restaurant.

Read more: Denver airport will close three of four smoking lounges - The Denver Post http://www.denverpost.com/breakingnews/ci_20656388/denver-airport-will-close-three-four-smoking-lounges#ixzz1vIela6JJ

5 new stores set to open at Miracle Mile Shops on the Strip

from www.lasvegassun.com:

>>Jamba Juice just opened a new smoothie and sandwich shop.

Equinix CEO: 'Ecosystems' Our Secret Sauce

from http://news.investors.com:

>>IBD: Equinix recently acquired six data centers, including one being built in Shanghai as well as other assets in Hong Kong and Singapore, from Asia Tone for $230.5 million. Why pursue that deal?
Smith: The real driver was to get into Shanghai and eventually into Beijing. The Shanghai data center will be open in the second half of 2012.
This (China) is by far the No. 1 market that our current existing customers have interest in having Equinix capability.
IBD: Equinix gets about 20% of revenue from companies in the financial services sector. Is that a factor in expanding into China?
Smith: It's a mix of (telecom) network, financial and enterprise (corporate) customers. Big multinational companies want to have a footprint in the PRC (People's Republic of China).

Hedge Fund Star Touts Top Tech Stock

from www.thestreet.com:

>>Equinix is a datacenter specialist, which Laffont referred to as the "core" during a keynote presentation at the Ira Sohn conference. Data warehouses have become strategic and the company is considered "beachfront property," he added.

  Equinix has spent $2 billion buying data centers, and it generates 30% return on equity. Laffont believes over the next four to five years the company's revenue could reach $4 billion and its share price could hit $500 a share. The fund manager is the largest holder of Equinix stock.

The Forbes Fast Tech 25

from Forbes: 

>>No surprise, given the current obsession with the cloud, to find some cloud infrastructure plays, in particular Equinix and Rackspace.

Google Can Survive Too Much Innovation. You Can't

from Forbes:

>>James White, CEO of the Jamba Juice chain of stores, and his team use a well-disciplined “stage gate” process to de-risk each idea, from conception through testing. An example is its steel-cut oatmeal, launched in January 2009. Jamba began working on the product back in 2007, wanting to improve the increasingly popular breakfast part of its menu. The company field-tested the oatmeal in its San Francisco Bay Area stores in September 2008, then in Chicago in December 2008, before launching it the next month.  The product was perfect for Jamba’s strategy of capturing breakfast to make the most of its fixed overhead. With good market test results, management wasn’t surprised when the oatmeal became one of the most requested morning menu items and was named by Good Morning America as the best fast-food oatmeal product.

Most Data Center Related Stocks Positive In April

Read the whole article at Seeking Alpha: 

>>April 2012 was another positive month for most data center related stocks, with Internap (INAP) and both CDN players representing the only exceptions to the rule.
Here is a quick look at how all stocks under our coverage behaved last month:

Jamba Juice joins McCormick Place retail lineup

from www.chicagotribune.com:

>>McCormick Place is adding some new retail amenities to its mix, with Jamba Juice the latest addition, the convention center's board was informed Monday morning.

The juice and smoothie retailer opened on the level just under the main concourse linking the North and South buildings May 1, according to David Causton, the center's general manager.

Greece Euro Exit: Free Will Or Fate, The European Way?

Read the whole article at Seeking Alpha: 

>>In Greek mythology the Moirai were the goddesses of fate, who personified the inescapable destiny awaiting each human being.
Zeus, however, was the only god obeyed by the Moirai, as he had the power to change everyone's fortune. In other words, in the world of ancient Greece fate did not just happen, as the chief sky-deity could interfere and engineer a different destiny. For the better or for the worse…

TMX Atrium adds Canadian market data feeds to Equinix NY4

from www.automatedtrader.net:

>>TMX Atrium has expanded its infrastructure and is delivering Canadian market data into the Equinix NY4 data centre in Secaucus, New Jersey.

Can Jamba Hold Out Against the Big Two?

from www.msnbc.msn.com:

>>I think if Jamba can execute that strategy well, it should be headed for better things. The main challenge for the company will be to be establish itself as a well-recognized brand -- the way people know a Starbucks or a McDonald's. It won't be a simple job, but it is something Jamba will have to do to remain competitive.

Senseg E-Sense Haptic Technology Heading to Android not Apple iPad?

Ville Makinen, chief technology officer and founder of Senseg, said his company was currently working with Android device makers. However, he refused to name which company would first incorporate the technology or dismiss Apple as a potential customer.

"There are multiple Android devices. That's our current main platform," Makinen told IBTimes UK at an event held by Mobext and InMobi. "But I cannot comment on the actual brands that will bring it out to consumers first."

Read more: http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/articles/339604/20120510/senseg-ipad-e-sense-haptic-technology-feel.htm#ixzz1uYKeUdUJ

The future of touch – How haptic feedback could change mobile UX forever

from http://thenextweb.com:

>>Sheehan showed me a demo application on his Nexus S that allowed for in-app highlighting via haptics. For instance, if you have an email inbox that’s overloaded, a developer could tie in with the Immersion SDK to have an email app that produces a vibration when an important contact’s email scrolls past on your screen. The demo that I used had light vibration for the scrolling movement, but it ramped up in intensity as I got closer to the highlighted contact’s message.
It’s one of those ah-hah moments where things just made sense. Why weren’t we getting this sort of touch-intensive feedback already?
The next demo was of something that could easily be a Facebook photo gallery. While flipping through pictures, I would feel increasing levels of feedback based upon how many comments a picture had. No comments? No vibration. Numerous? A quick buzz told me that something was going on, and I should tap the picture to bring up the comments display.

Alog Implements New Platform From Juniper Networks to Support Exponential Network Growth

SAO PAULO, BRAZIL, May 08, 2012 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) -- To support its 40 percent year-over-year growth in its communication network, Brazilian-based Alog Data Centers today announced a $1.2 million USD implementation of Juniper Networks(R) MX routing platform with support from integrator Binario.

With data centers in Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Tambore, Alog is a provider of collocation services, managed hosting and highly complex cloud computing services. Alog has 1,300 customers and 3,600 square meters in their data center environment with more than 3,200 square meters of modular designs for collocation. The Alog Network gives customers a scalable, robust and stable environment to do business.

"This partnership came together to support the increasing demand from our customers in a way that extends our industry leading high quality services offering," said Raphael Bittencourt S. Costa, area manager of Network Engineering at Alog.

According to Bittencourt, of the multiple platforms and technologies tested, the Juniper Networks MX Series proved to be superior in terms of capacity, while the Junos(R) operating system showed the most stability. "With the new platform, today we can expand our processing capacity by 11 times from what it was," said Bittencourt.

"Binario's support of this project was crucial," Bittencourt continued. "The integrator provided all the testing at their facilities and was responsible for part of the capacity-building and training of our team." Among the benefits provided by the project are guarantee of increased network capacity without impacting the end user, stability of the whole environment, traffic safety data, and greater resilience.

So why should a relative newcomer like Jamba Juice be so celebrated and welcomed?

from www.mb.com.ph:

>>James White, Jamba Juice chairman, president and CEO, and Thibault de Chatellus, SVP-International, were here recently, and marveled at the reception their first stores at Bonifacio High Street in Taguig and at the Alabang Town Center were getting. “We love the Philippines as a market. It’s a great fit for the brand,” he shares, adding, “We couldn’t have asked for better partners; one of our best, globally.”

...

The response so far has been so encouraging to the group. They had invested “a lot” in training, bringing an initial seven people to the U.S. to train, just to deliver this experience. Now focusing more on expansion, the group aims to have six outlets operating, in more locations, making the “smile” more accessible, including the soon-to-open branch at the Mall of Asia, by the end of the year.

BlackBerry 10 OS: Milestone Or Delaying The Gravestone?

Read the whole article at Seeking Alpha:

>>This week Research In Motion's (RIMM) new CEO, Thorsten Heins, unveiled the BlackBerry 10 operating system during the company's World Conference in Orlando, Fla.
According to the video presentation released, the new BlackBerry, expected to be on sale later in the year, has a touch screen, prompting the obvious question: How will longtime BlackBerry fans react to the phone's lack of a more traditional physical keyboard?

Equinix to expand hubs for world’s bourses

from FT:

>>RTS-Micex, the Russian exchange, and the Johannesburg Stock Exchange have already announced plans to open a point of presence in Equinix’s Slough data centre near London. ASX, the Australian exchange, has a similar hub in Chicago to attract the city’s futures traders.
“Points of presence suggest a commoditisation in the market,” said Terry Keene, chief executive of iSys Integration Systems, a capital markets consultancy. “You’re at the classic buy-or-build dilemma.”

Worldwide Smartphone Market Continues to Soar, Carrying Samsung Into the Top Position in Total Mobile Phone and Smartphone Shipments, According to IDC

from IDC:

>>Samsung reclaimed the smartphone leadership position and established a new market record for the number of smartphones shipped in a single quarter. Propelling the company forward was continued expansion of its Galaxy portfolio in nearly all directions - new and old smartphones, product and market segmentation, and multiple price points, screen sizes, and processor speeds.

Chart: Top Five WW Smartphone Vendors, 1Q 2012, Five Quarter Market Share Changes (Units)Description: Source: IDC Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker, May 1, 2012Note: Vendor shipments are branded shipments and exclude OEM sales for all vendors.IDC's Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker provides smart phone and feature phone market data in 54 countries by vendor, device type, air interface, operating systems and platforms, and generation. Over 20 additional technical segmentations are provided. The data is provided four times a year and includes historical and forecast trend analysis. For more information, or to subscribe to the research, please contact Kathy Nagamine at 1-650-350-6423 or knagamine@idc.com. For more information about this tracker go to: http://www.idc.com/tracker/showproductinfo.jsp?prod_id=37Tags: IDC, Tracker, Mobile Phone, Mobile Phones, Mobile Phone Tracker, 1Q201 ...Author: IDCcharts powered by iCharts

Equinix Delivers Another Very Strong Quarter

Read the whole article at Seeking Alpha: 

>>Equinix (EQIX) reported Q1 2012 results last week on Wednesday, beating its own forecast, analysts' expectations and increasing 2012 guidance.
Here is a quick look at some of the quarter's highlights:

• Q1 revenues were $452.2 million, a 5% increase Q/Q and a 25% increase over the same quarter last year;
• Adjusted EBITDA was $215.2 million, an increase of 9% over the previous quarter and a 29% increase over the same quarter last year;

Stephens Upgrades Equinix to Overweight

from www.dailypolitical.com:

>>Equinix (NASDAQ: EQIX) was upgraded by Stephens from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research note issued on Thursday.

Citigroup Boosts Equinix Earnings Estimates

from www.dailypolitical.com/:

>> Analysts at Citigroup (NYSE: C) increased their earnings per share (EPS) estimates on shares of Equinix (NASDAQ: EQIX) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday. The firm currently has a “buy” rating and a $180.00 price target on the company’s shares.

Jim Cramer Vs. Data Center Sector: If You Can't Beat Them, Join Them

Read the whole article at Seeking Alpha: 

>>In the past few years, few people have been completely wrong on the data center sector like Jim Cramer. Back in October 2009, he covered Equinix (EQIX) in his "sell block" on CNBC, with several negative comments on the whole industry that can be resumed by the following highlights:

Get out of the data-center stocks.
I think the data center industry is in decline.
I see an industry that's about to be brought low by new technology, so I think you should sell, sell, sell.
(the video is still available at Data Center Knowledge, at this link)

Jefferies Raises Equinix's PT

from http://www.benzinga.com: 

>>In the report, Jefferies commented, "EQIX reported 1Q12 results that beat our/Street ests across the board. These results highlight why we like the stock from an execution perspective and its valuation relative to growth. Additionally, we continue to believe there is optionality on potential conversion to REIT structure. We expect Equinix to discuss the issue in greater detail at the June 20 Analyst Day. We reiterate our Buy rating and are raising target price to $175."

Read more: http://www.benzinga.com/analyst-ratings/analyst-color/12/04/2531510/update-jefferies-raises-equinixs-pt#ixzz1tEJTtEtm

Estimate A Company’s CDS (Risk Indicator)

Read the whole instablog at Seeking Alpha: 

>>Ploutos recently published a very interesting article here at Seeking Alpha:

Credit Default Swap Spreads And S&P 500 Constituents

This article discusses an institutional topic, credit default swap spreads, in a way that hopefully connects with individual investors. Credit default swaps are insurance-like agreements where the seller of protection agrees to compensate the buyer of protection in the event of a default by the underlying company. In exchange, the seller of protection is paid quarterly premiums over the life of the contract. The standard contract is five years, and the spreads below will reference this tenor, but maturities are often quoted from 3 months to 10 years. The higher the premium paid, then the greater the likelihood of default by the underlying company as priced by an institutional marketplace.

The article goes on examining what CDS Spreads may mean for investors, why they are important while evaluating a business risk profile, and even why an increasing CDS Spread may be good news for shareholders, and bad news for bondholders, under special circumstances.

From Bloomberg, I can pull in credit default swap spreads on 288 of the 500 constituents.

Private investors, unfortunately, face a harder time when looking for CDS data.

Apple, Samsung: IHS, Strategy Analytics Can’t Agree Who’s No. 1

from http://blogs.barrons.com:

>>Strategy Analytics this morning reports that Samsung sold 44.5 million phones, putting it in the top spot ahead of Apple. IHS iSuppli, on the other hand, says they estimate Samsung sold only 32 million units. Hence, IHS put out its own press release saying Apple retained the smartphone crown.

Strategy Analytics announces:

Samsung shipped 44.5 million smartphones and overtook Appleto become the world’s number one smartphone vendor by volume.

IHS writes:

Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. in the first quarter overtook Nokia Corp. to become the world’s largest cellphone brand for the first time. However, Samsung remained in second place in the smartphone segment of the cellphone market, behind Apple Inc.

Samsung Q1 2012 results

from the c.c.: 

>>YoY
· Smartphone growth to continue (over 30%↑YoY)

Jamba splits with Nestlé, targets consumer products

from http://nrn.com:

>>White said Jamba’s relationship with Nestlé has been “very strong and collaborative,”
But given the size of the giant global manufacturing brand, White said he was concerned that, “Jamba will not always be a top priority.”
The energy drink line has not been without challenges. Jamba first introduced the energy drinks in 2008 with Nestlé, but the beverages were pulled citing manufacturing problems. It took another two years to get the latest version to market.

Read more: http://nrn.com/article/jamba-splits-nestl%C3%A9-targets-consumer-products#ixzz1tDqFHdrt

Samsung overtakes Nokia as world's top handset vendor -Strategy Analytics

from Yahoo: 

>>Samsung sold 93.5 million handsets in the first quarter, taking 25.4 percent of the global mobile phone market, Strategy Analytics said.
Nokia sold 82.7 million phones and had 22.5 percent of the market, followed by Apple's 9.5 percent.

Stifel Nicolaus raised its target on Equinix

from http://wallstcheatsheet.com:

>>Equinix, Inc. (NASDAQ:EQIX): Stifel Nicolaus raised its target on Equinix, as the firm thinks that the company reported strong Q1 results which indicate that its growth momentum is continuing. The firm reiterates a Buy rating on the stock.

Immersion Strengthens Its Position In Japanese Smartphone Market

Read the whole article at Seeking Alpha: 

>>Last week, Immersion (IMMR) announced the launch of the haptic-enabled DoCoMo Medias ES N-05D smartphone and DoCoMo Medias Tab N-06D tablet in the Japanese market. These devices are manufactured by NEC Casio Mobile and NEC, respectively.
NTT DoCoMo is Japan's premier provider of mobile services, with roughly 60 million customers in its domestic market alone. It is one of the world's largest mobile communications operators.
NEC and NEC Casio Mobile Communications were announced as new licensees during Immersion's latest conference call:

We are also excited to announce NEC as the latest OEM to join our expanding mobile customer base, with the introduction of its first devices leveraging TouchSense 3000.

SIX Swiss Exchange upgrades platform; introduces co-lo services

SIX Swiss Exchange has successfully completed the upgrade of its trading platform. The upgrade was developed in collaboration with Nasdaq OMX.

At the same time, SIX Swiss Exchange is launching a co-location service for the new platform in association with Equinix. Starting today, SIX Swiss Exchange offers participants the most modern trading technology in the world.
SIX Swiss Exchange has successfully completed the upgrade of its SWXess trading platform with the X-stream INET technology developed by NASDAQ OMX. SIX Swiss Exchange is the first exchange globally to combine the triedand- tested capabilities of the X-stream platform with INET trading technology - the world's fastest.

On April 23, SIX Swiss Exchange launched equity trading using the very latest technology. With this step, SIX Swiss Exchange is investing in the future and in the international growth of Switzerland as a highly successful trading center. Together with the new co-location service, the system upgrade means that much higher order volumes (capacity) can be matched and executed in a significantly shorter time (latency). This is supported by the efficient and standardized trading protocols, which are also in use at various trading venues. Tests under trading conditions have shown that average round-trip latency is just 37 microseconds.
Each and every participant benefits from this low latency, which is unparalleled on any exchange world-wide. Thanks to low latency, participants can put their investment decisions into effect and adjust and reduce their investment risk even faster. Rapid trading, and market data that is distributed with equally low latency, are also key to participants investing or market-making in ETFs, ETPs or structured products. The latest enhancements allow price movements in underlyings to be identified more quickly, and the corresponding investment and market-making decisions to be executed more effectively.

Current differences in system performance which have resulted from non-Swiss participants' geographical distance from the trading platform, for example, will be a thing of the past following the launch of the co-location service. Existing and new SIX Swiss Exchange clients can now operate their trading systems in close proximity to the Exchange's matching engine, with the same performance for all.
Christian Katz, CEO SIX Swiss Exchange: "We have seen the number of participants, the number of securities listed and the number of trading transactions rise strongly in the last two years. By upgrading our trading platform and launching our co-location service, we are keeping pace with the expansion of SIX Swiss Exchange. Today represents the next major milestone in our continuous pursuit of best-in-class services. Client focus combined with state-ofthe- art technology are essential to attracting additional liquidity. Right now, we are setting a new standard for trading, risk management and the future growth of SIX Swiss Exchange."
Lars Ottersgård, Senior Vice President NASDAQ OMX Market Technology: "SIX Swiss Exchange has always been in the technology forefront and today's technology upgrade truly reinforces their position in the global exchange arena. The ultra-low latency enabled by X-stream INET, in combination with functionality and throughput advantages, puts SIX Swiss Exchange in a prime position to attract new volumes and members to its markets."
Marco Dottarelli, Managing Director, Equinix (Switzerland) GmbH: "Switzerland continues to be one of the most competitive financial centers in the world. With Platform Equinix we are fully committed to fulfill the specific requirements of exchanges and other financial services institutions. The Xstream INET platform and the colocation service inside our Zurich data center will provide an even more attractive offering to the financial services community. This guarantees very low latency and the possibility for market participants to increase their trading capacity constantly."

Large enterprises handing off data center builds

from www.networkworld.com:

>>Even companies such as Google and Yahoo, which are known for building their own cutting-edge data centers, are supplementing in-house development with third-party providers including Equinix, which specializes in network-neutral data centers and interconnection services.
"They'll come to Equinix for the network hubs when they need low latency and access to multiple networks," says Mark Adams, chief development officer at Equinix. "We're a critical component in many of the major content companies' architecture and infrastructure."

HTC moving away from QWERTY keyboards in future smartphones

from www.mobileburn.com:

>>"As a company, the QWERTY keyboard we're moving away from in general."

Zellweger then went on to say that the future of QWERTY on smartphones will likely revolve from newer haptic technologies that are being worked into software based, on-screen keyboards. He also feels that hardware-based keyboards, while still somewhat in demand, would not allow HTC to move forward the designs of its smartphones.

"We feel that putting too much effort into that [QWERTY] would take away from our devices."

Equinix Spreads Cloud Love

Stifel Nicolaus removed Equinix from its Select List,

from http://wallstcheatsheet.com:

>>Equinix, Inc. (NASDAQ:EQIX): Stifel Nicolaus removed Equinix from its Select List, citing valuation. However, the firm maintains a Buy rating on the stock.

Samsung Outsold Apple In Smartphones In Q1, Analyst Says

from Forbes: 

>>Next Tuesday, Apple will report results for the March quarter. The Street is expecting the company to sell in the vicinity of 32-33 million iPhones for the quarter. That’s a lot of smartphones. But it might not be anywhere close enough to make the company the calendar Q1 smartphone champion.
ACI Research analyst Edward Zabitsky asserts in a research note that Samsung in the quarter sold over 40 million smartphones, grabbing the title of global smartphone unit king.

Touch Technology

from chicagotonight.wttw.com:

>>Imagine a game of Angry Birds in which you could actually feel the tension of a slingshot before propelling a squawking fowl into a group of thieving pigs.
That’s exactly the kind of ‘feeling’ researchers hope to add to touchscreen devices one day.

Equinix Price Target Increased to $180.00 by Analysts at Citigroup

from http://zolmax.com:

>>Equities research analysts at Citigroup (NYSE: C) boosted their price target on shares of Equinix  from $154.00 to $180.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the stock.

InMobi Selects Carpathia Hosting as Strategic Worldwide Managed Hosting Partner

InMobi's secure, scalable environment currently includes hundreds of servers, hosting over 1.5 Gbps of network traffic and is spread among Equinix data centers in San Jose and London, with the proposed addition of Hong Kong in the near future. By leveraging Carpathia to deliver managed infrastructure and network as a service, InMobi was able to expand into new geographic markets and avoid significant capital expenditures, while maintaining the highest level of support for its critical infrastructure.

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/inmobi-selects-carpathia-hosting-as-strategic-worldwide-managed-hosting-partner-2012-04-17

HiWave announces stereo Bluetooth wireless speaker design; delivers 2 x13W burst audio and over 30 hours playback

HiWave Technologies, the provider of electronic and transducer solutions for audio and haptic touch, has announced a stereo Bluetooth wireless speaker reference design that provides 2 x13W burst power and runs for 30 hours (around 45 albums) from its small, 2200mAh Li-ion battery. Speakers based on the design enable users to stream audio from Bluetooth enabled phones, tablets and laptops.

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/hiwave-announces-stereo-bluetooth-wireless-speaker-design-delivers-2-x13w-burst-audio-and-over-30-hours-playback-2012-04-16

A closer look at Equinix’s ecosystems

Read the whole post at Telecom Ramblings: 

>>Equinix finished 2011 with 4,317 customers, excluding smaller clients inherited through the Virtu acquisition in East Netherlands.  While looking at customer count may not be necessarily indicative of revenues, the exercise of analyzing this metric may be interesting to see local strengths, as building ecosystems (or communities of interests, as TeleCity calls them) is one of the best ways to ensure the success of a data center, especially if you have magnet customers among them.

Nokia And RIM: A Tale Of Two Pasts

Read the whole article at Seeking Alpha: 

>>Nokia (NOK) and RIM (RIMM) share a similar fate, a kind of backward evolution which is turning them into entities less suited to survive in today's smartphone market: both companies seem to represent the past of something (consumer and enterprise handsets, respectively), rather than players with a viable future, and several analysts have already started writing their obituaries.

Both companies changed the handsets market, at one stage, through their contribution to the development of GSM and the introduction of the first "smartphones" (Nokia), and by marrying email with mobility (RIM). Customers, however, have turned their back to their most recent offerings, and both companies are struggling, with new CEOs, to reinvent themselves into something different.

A quick look at both companies' great pasts.

Samsung says to unveil new Galaxy S smartphone on May 3

from Yahoo: 

>>Samsung Electronics Co (KSC:005930) said on Monday it would unveil the third-generation of its flagship smartphone Galaxy S on May 3 in London, banking on a heavy marketing campaign heading into the summer Olympics in the city.
Samsung became the world's top smartphone maker last year on the back of strong sales of Galaxy lineups and the latest edition comes after it released Galaxy S II in late April last year.
The South Korean firm sold over 40 million Galaxy smartphones since the model was released in June 2010.

OpenMarket co-locates Sydney data centre to meet customer demand

from www.techworld.com.au:

>>OpenMarket Australia country manager, Jonathan Morgan, told Computerworld Australia the company also chose the location due to close proximity to its Sydney head office. The company began its Australian operations in March 2010 when OpenMarket acquired the holdings of MX Telecom. It currently has five staff and two offices in Sydney and Melbourne.

“The facility is primarily for Australian companies who wish to have local processing but it might also be used by Asian customers who have the same requirements,” he said. “Over time, it will be used to replicate the gateways we have in the US, Europe and Singapore so it will become one of our six global data centres.”

Chicago Board Options Exchange plots move to Secaucus

from www.nj.com: 

>>Hence the move to Secaucus. Doing so will shave execution times down to as low as 100 to 300 microseconds, said Gerald O’Connell, chief information officer at CBOE. A millisecond is a thousandth of a second, while a microsecond is a millionth of a second.

Gerald O'Connell, chief information officer of CBOE

The exchange’s main electronic trading platform will be moved into a facility known as NY4, an otherwise anonymous warehouse that sits alongside Secaucus Road. The size of several football fields, the two-story building is a modern marvel of electrical systems, fiber optics and air-conditioning to keep countless computer cabinets running day and night, O’Connell said. And it is all mostly unmanned.
Already, CBOE houses two of its electronic exchanges at NY4 – its secondary options market C2 came online there when it was launched in 2010, and it moved an associated stock exchange there from Chicago last year. In addition to its flagship options platform, the exchange also will move the matching engines for its futures exchange and single-stock futures exchange to Secaucus. Meanwhile, it completed its purchase of the National Stock Exchange in Jersey City in January. Operations, however, still will be monitored from Chicago, where its backup facilities will remain.

Bond Fair Pricing, YTM, Risk and CDS Calculator

Bond Fair Pricing, YTM, Risk and CDS Calculator

An easy-to-use tool to calculate a bond fair pricing, its YTM or get a risk indicator (CDS spread) for any issuer.

The application is structured into two parts.

The first part of the application calculates the "fair pricing" of a bond given a few basic inputs, like CDS spread (issuer risk), coupon, coupon frequency and maturity value and date.
The "fair pricing" is a relatively complex calculation that combines the perceived risk of the issuer with the assumed (and updated) risk-free asset (AAA government bonds for European issuers or Treasury bonds for US Companies), and resulting in a price indication, that, however, does not take liquidity into consideration.

The second part of the application calculates the CDS spread based on inputs like coupon, coupon frequency, issuer price, market price and maturity date and value.
Knowing the updated CDS spread for a specific issuer may be useful as it allows an immediate comparison with other issuers (both in the same sector or in different sectors), or even sovereign issuers – which can also be calculated with this tool.

KEY FEATURES
- Calculate a specific bond’s fair pricing based on a few simple inputs.
- Estimate the up-to-date market default risk (CDS) associated with a bond issuer, based on simple inputs related to one (or more) of its bonds.
- Accurate YTM available in both calculations.



Available at this link. 

3 steps to creating the next big app

from www.fiercedeveloper.com:

 >>One way to create a more engaging and immersive experience can be borrowed from the video game console world. For years haptic effects have provided realistic rumble or force feedback in video games. For gamers, it gives a sense of realism as they engage in virtual surroundings. The technology has made its way into mobile devices; recently Grand Theft Auto III from Rockstar Games used haptic effects to create a console-like gaming experience on Android devices where users can feel every punch and kick they land in a fight. The key to success is to enhance the action of the app with haptics, and not overwhelm the user, and by using proper haptic design tools and techniques, the developer can minimize battery impact.

Wells Fargo Reiterates an 'Outperform' on Equinix (EQIX); Channel Checks Indicate Compelling Data Points

from ww.streetinsider.com: 

>>Wells fargo maintains an 'Outperform' on Equinix price target range raised from $150-160 to $192-205.

Analyst, Gary Powell, said, "It sounds like EQIX continues to gain traction with managed hosting/cloud providers and that the ecosystem is slowly helping EQIX improve growth in the enterprise segment, which has historically lagged other verticals. In addition, demand in key markets like Silicon Valley, Washington, DC and New York are strong and trends in Chicago are improving. Lastly, we heard EQIX won a couple of larger deals that could help trends in Q2/Q3.

Jamba recent sell-off a buying opportunity, says Capstone

from www.theflyonthewall.com:

>>Capstone would use recent weakness in Buy rated Jamba as a buying opportunity. The firm believes its discounted valuation is unwarranted and notes the company is entering a new growth stage following its turnaround efforts. Price target raised to $2.50 from $2.20.

Smartphone sales to touch 1 billion-unit mark in 2014: Credit Suisse

from Yahoo:

>>Global smartphones annual sales will cross the billion-unit mark in 2014, helped by strong demand from China and the launch of cheaper low-end handsets, Credit Suisse said.
..

The analysts also expects Samsung — the world's number two smartphone maker — and Huawei to gain market share.
But they said there are increasing signs of vulnerability for Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc, HTC Corp and Sony Corp, and predicted a rapid decline for BlackBerry maker Research In Motion.

The 10 Biggest Tech Innovations of the New York Auto Show

from www.wired.com: 

>> We told you about Cadillac's CUE infotainment system when it debuted late last year. This was the first chance we had to try it out, and we came away cautiously impressed.
In the CUE cockpit we sampled, button presses were accompanied by light haptic feedback. Superfluous controls faded away after 15 seconds of non-use, freeing up screen space for an easy-to-read display. Move your hand closer to CUE's center touchscreen and all those menus will reapear. We especially liked a new row of preset buttons that allows you to program navigation destinations and phone numbers alongside radio stations – something that BMW has been doing for years.

The Chicago Board Option Exchange Moves To New York

Read the whole article at Seeking Alpha: 

>> Following a similar move made in July 2011 and related to its CBOE Stock Exchange [CBSX] operations, the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) will now move its primary options trading platform from Chicago to the Equinix's (EQIX) New York metro NY4 data center.
This additional move is related to competitive reasons and member demand, as explained in an article published by Traders Magazine.com:

Samsung's Profit Hits Fast Track

from WSJ:

>>

Samsung, the world's biggest technology company by revenue, on Friday told investors that it expects its operating profit for the January-March quarter to be between 5.6 trillion won (around $5 billion) and 6.0 trillion won.
That would beat its quarterly record 5.3 trillion won operating profit set in last year's October-December quarter and be nearly double the operating profit of last year's first quarter.

...

Even so, analysts on Friday noted that Samsung's guidance on operating profit likely meant that the cellphone unit accounted for more than half of the company's overall profit in the first quarter. Some analysts said the unit's operating margin likely climbed above 20% for the first time since 2004.

What's Next For Data Center Stocks?

Read the whole article at Seeking Alpha: 

>>
The stock market closed one of its best quarters on record, with Q1 2012 achieving the strongest performance since 1998. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500 Index and the Nasdaq composite finished the first quarter up 8%, 13% and 19%, respectively.
Data center related stocks also performed very well, with most companies achieving double-digit returns, and more than half of the names under our coverage surpassing returns of 20%, beating even the most challenging benchmark, the technology related Nasdaq composite.

Researchers suggest haptics and audio for discreet password input

from Engadget: 

>>Researchers Andrea Bianchi, Ian Oakley and Dong-Soo Kwon have some ideas for overcoming that little problem though, and recently put together a video demonstrating a few of the possibilities they've come up with. All of those rely on haptic input systems -- either on their own or in conjunction with some audio output (through headphones for privacy).