Business News Holding

Tag: online

  • Sohu Selects 3Com's H3C For Next-Generation Data Center


    3Com is to build a next-generation data center for Sohu, one of China’s premiere online community destinations.

    Sohu made its decision after a two-month field test of 3Com’s recently launched H3C data center solutions — including the S12500 Series core switch line and the S5800 Series 10-gigabit switch series.

    Sun Dehe, vice president of the H3C network product line, said Sohu was impressed with the performance levels and reliability the data center network products’ unified architecture delivered.

    He said the first third-generation interactive Chinese search engine launched by Sohu requires:

    • a data center platform that can support storage of 10 billion Web pages
    • a Web page update and rating system
    • high-performance, concurrent access to and from numerous server clusters
    • flexible expansion in years ahead

    Dehe said that since a traditional data center architecture could not meet these requirements, Sohu decided to utilize the H3C next-generation data center architecture for its new Internet data center (IDC) equipment room.

    "H3C had a long-term plan in mind when it began developing its next-generation data center solutions for enterprise customers," he said.

    "For example, our unified switching architecture enables users to more easily design future-oriented applications – a characteristic required of Sohu’s data center.

    "We believe more customers will adopt H3C next-generation data center solutions to take advantage of this and other technological breakthroughs to maximize the efficiency and performance of their data centers."

  • Movavi Expands Free Online Media Conversion Service


    Movavi has announced an expansion of its popular online video conversion service.

    The upgraded Online.movavi.com service now enables users to fine tune a number of conversion parameters – codecs, resolution, video and audio quality, bitrate, and other key elements demanded by more sophisticated users.

    The multimedia processing tool developer said all new functionality is accessible through a new Customization link, which opens a separate window, enabling users to make the necessary changes without leaving the main site.

    Natalia Khudyakova, Moscow-based Movavi’s CEO, said the functionality extension is a part of our strategy for the development of Online.movavi.com.

    She said the goal is to create the most fully-functional and easy-to-use free online video conversion service.

    "In line with this goal, we have removed the requirement for users to register with an email address before starting the conversion, and have also added support for HD video," she said.

    Additional enhancements to Online.movavi.com planned for the near future include image manipulation and online storage for users’ media files.

  • Sony Adds Web Connectivity to Bravia Range


    Sony has extended its BRAVIA HDTV range to include a new model that for the first time lets viewers access online services.

    The Z5500 uses Sony’s AppliCast technology to connect via its Ethernet port to the Internet.

    The HDTV can display RSS feeds and, through its XMB (XrossMediaBar) on-screen interface, provides a choice of widgets that can be simultaneously viewed while watching TV.

    Hiroshi Sakamoto, vice president, TV Marketing EuropeSony, said that alongside a pre-installed analogue clock and calendar, the Z5500 can download other networked widgets.

    The list includes: calculator, alarm, world clock and picture frame online, which allows you to display an image that is stored online when the TV is in Picture Frame Mode.

    The Z5500 also comes equipped with CI Plus interface, enabling broadcasters to offer premium content directly to TVs without the need for a separate set-top box.

    There’s also an integrated MPEG 4 AVC HD tuner for watching HD broadcasts without the need for a set-top box.

    The Z5500 will be available in three screen sizes (40-inch, 46-inch and 52-inch).

  • Zoho Expands Mobile Device Coverage For Business Apps


    Zoho has extended mobile support for its free web applications to all the major smartphone platforms.

    Initially only available for the iPhone and Windows Mobile, Zoho Mobile now supports Android, BlackBerry and Symbian mobile platforms as well.

    It offers six apps geared towards collaborative business productivity:

    • Zoho Mail
    • Zoho Calendar
    • Zoho Writer
    • Zoho Sheet
    • Zoho Show
    • Zoho Creator

    Zoho’s Raju Vegesna said mobility was an important aspect for its on-line applications.

    The company has so far launched 19 different applications — from CRM to Mail, Reports, and Wikis.

    He said all its current and future mobile initiatives will be available under Zoho Mobile as mobile support is expanded to all upcoming applications.

    Zoho is entering an increasingly competitive market, with Google upgrading its apps’ mobile experience.

    Microsoft has also been making noises about providing mobile support for its Office products.

    Zoho is certainly taking the right approach by ensuring that its apps function across all the major mobile platforms.

  • HD Version of iPlayer Expected Soon


    The BBC is planning on offering a high-definition version of its iPlayer – possibly by April.

    While the move has been mooted since the online catch-up TV service was launched in 2007, it seems likely the HD service will shortly become a reality.

    Jana Bennett, director of BBC Vision, confirmed that the HD edition was imminent during a panel discussion at the recent FT Digital Media and Broadcasting Conference.

    Other developments with the iPlayer include being added to Freesat, a move expected to take place later this year.

    While the step-up to HD may be welcomed by viewers, it’s unlikely to be viewed favorably by the UK’s broadband Internet Service Providers.

    The popularity of the iPlayer has already put strains on bandwidth – so the arrival of higher resolution video is certain to make the download situation worse.

  • Virtualisation Provides Effective Disaster Recovery Solution


    SecurStore has warned that companies need to ensure a reliable IT disaster recovery plan is in place when times are tough.

    The online, automated and managed data backup and recovery specialists said that the current economic difficulties meant that customer service is going to be the all important differentiator throughout 2009.

    It said the list of what can go wrong in the working environment is extensive, so it was essential to ensure that services ccould still be provided to clients in the event of power failures, natural disasters or sabotage is paramount.

    Alexander Eiriksson, COO of SecurStore, said many companies were living dangerously, operating without a reliable backup and recovery plan, which he described as a major risk.

    He said companies that are using 30-year old tape backup technologies are just as insecure since tapes notoriously suffer from reliability issues.

    Virtualisation technology is increasingly being seen as a cost-effective and immediate disaster recovery plan.

    Using Virtualisation, companies need fewer servers leading to a reduction in hardware maintenance and reduced IT employee working time.

    It also simplifies IT management, minimises space and saves power, all leading to reduced costs.

    "Gartner recently published a report that ranked Virtualisation as third in a list of 10 technologies that CIOs will focus on to realise value from existing assets," said Eiriksson.

    He said specialists such as SecurStore offered simple, cost effective agent-less, online backup and recovery solution that enabled organisations to maximise their virtualisation strategy while achieving superior data protection and recovery management without performance degradation.

  • Skype and IBM collaborate on LotusLive


    Skype has announced that it is to integrate Skype functionality with IBM’s LotusLive.

    The new cloud services from IBM are designed to help individuals build communities to work more effectively and efficiently across and beyond their own companies.

    Effectively, Skype’s voice and video calling adds real-time communications capabilities to LotusLive.

    Employees of companies using LotusLive will be able to use Skype to initiate voice and video calls by clicking on their contacts’ Skype names or phone numbers within LotusLive.

    Future possibilities include the ability to import Skype contact information into IBM cloud services to enhance online collaboration.

    Scott Durchslag, Skype’s chief operating officer, said the collaboration showed how serious Skype is about bringing the benefits of ‘anytime, anywhere, any mode’ Internet communications to the enterprise environment.

  • Younger viewers ditching TV for mobile media

    Smartphone.biz-news.com asked Christian Harris, CEO of mobile video provider Gorillabox, for his views on the mobile TV market

    More and more younger viewers are eschewing traditional TV schedules and embracing new technology – mobile TV, DVRs, online streaming and downloading – to set their own viewing schedules.

    So much so, that research just released reveals the average age of those watching TV in the US has tipped 50 for the first time.
    The study of the big five US broadcast networks by research firm Magna Global shows the average viewer no longer falls within the 18-49 demographic so sought after by advertisers.
    While average viewing age figures for the UK are not available, research by entertainment analysts Attentional shows viewing time among those aged 16-34 has been declining faster than other age groups.

    This is a situation of which Christian Harris, CEO of mobile video provider Gorillabox, is fully aware.
    He believes that mobile viewing will rapidly become a prime means of consuming content for the 14-28 market.
    “Significant consumer segments don’t consume media on radio or TV any more,” he said. “It is either web or mobile.
    “For this audience, mobile is a key channel for content. To serve the mobile channel for this audience, mobile broadcasting is a primary capability.
    “The question isn’t ‘why should you?’ – it’s ‘why wouldn’t you?’”

    Last month, Gorillabox partnered with the AIDS charity 46664 and mobile operator 3 to provide mobile TV content from Nelson Mandela’s birthday concert.
    Video of artists such as Amy Winehouse, Razorlight, Annie Lennox and Queen was streamed live over mobile networks across the UK from London’s Hyde Park.
    Gorillabox was responsible for the deployment of content on the streaming platform, billing integration and customer care, while 46664 marketed the service and worked with Gorillabox on making the live video content available from the concert.

    Harris said the mobile portal improved accessibility to music videos from some of the world’s biggest musicians and celebrities.
    “Large-scale events need to be fully supported by multi-channel content distribution,” he said.
    “This used to be radio and TV and more recently web. However, this now also includes mobile.”
    A recent survey by mobile TV and video solutions provider QuickPlay Media revealed significant barriers hindering users from consuming TV and video content on their mobile phones – factors included lack of awareness of the services that are on offer and the perceived high costs involved.
    But the survey showed that demand for mobile TV existed with 65 per cent of those questioned, who said they would be willing to watch an advertisement if it meant that the content was free or discounted.

    The 3G iPhone could have a significant impact on the mobile TV market as research shows that many iPhone owners have accessed TV and video content with greater frequency than subscribers using other types of mobile handsets.
    With added 3G capability, the iPhone brings with it some attractive attributes to the mobile TV market, including video-friendly specifications, access to a rapidly increasing range of Apple TV and video content and the ability to support multiple methods of delivering TV and video (sideloading, indoor WLAN and high-speed 3G cellular data access).

    Harris said Gorillabox runs its own delivery technology called the G-box platform .
    Developed in-house, he said the platform could handle any content or media format over GPRS or 3G networks to any mobile phone in the European Union and the US.
    He said Gorillabox was able to deliver live and on-demand media from any location in the world via its UK data-centre to mobile devices.
    “We also enable the discovery of the services via mobile search,” he added.
    “Our objective is to make the event as visible and reachable as possible and, where appropriate, provide advertising and billing.”
    There’s no doubt mobile TV content is going to become increasingly accessible.
    Christian Harris asked “why wouldn’t you watch mobile content?” – we would be really interested to hear your views?