McAfee, one of the world's largest security technology companies, is set to take over Solidcore Systems, a provider of dynamic whitelisting technology.
Both the companies have entered into an agreement with McAfee paying $33 million in cash up front and an earn-out of up to an additional $14 million if certain performances targets are met. Following the agreement, McAfee expects to couple Solidcore's dynamic application whitelisting with McAfee blacklisting or graylisting capabilities to give customers a single security platform for dynamic application control across the enterprise. Solidcore uses dynamic whitelisting technology to protect against vulnerable or malicious applications and ensure that only pre-authorized software and code can run on servers, endpoints, fixed function devices and mobile devices.
This acquisition will provide McAfee with an added heft to tackle various security challenges and help users to safely connect to the internet, browse and shop the web more securely. Solidcore's strong foot hold in market will also help McAfee to extend its reach to ATMs, Point of sale (POS) systems, Multifunction Printers (MFPs), Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) systems, mobile and other embedded devices.
Post-acquisition, the Solidcore team will be incorporated into the McAfee Risk and Compliance business unit, headed by George Kurtz, SVP and GM of McAfee.
The acquisition, which is expected to close in the second quarter of this year, is McAfee's third major buy-out since it took over Secure Computing for $500 million in August 2008.
Agencies
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Monday, May 18, 2009
Will Seagate layoff 1100 jobs?
Seagate Technology said that it plans to cut about 1,100 jobs from its workforce in a move the computer storage maker expects will reduce costs by about $125 million a year.
The job-cutting move, which affects about 2.5 percent of Seagate's workforce, is aimed at helping the company stay on track toward being cash-flow and earnings positive within its fiscal year 2010. It builds on a 10-percent reduction in jobs announced in January.
As a result of the new plan, Seagate, which competes with storage company Western Digital Corp, expects to take restructuring charges of about $72 million, primarily in the quarter ending in June.
Analysts said Seagate needs to make additional cost cuts like this, which may help it address debt obligations.
"The move will help the company avoid tripping its net leverage ratio debt covenant that was already renegotiated earlier this year," said JP Morgan analyst Mark Moskowitz, in a note to clients. "Seagate shares still face hurdles that could test investors' resolve in the slower summer months."
Seagate has been no stranger to restructuring in recent months as it deals with slow sales in the personal computer industry, which most others has seen demand shrink during the global economic downturn.
Back in December it said it would halt some operations during the holiday season and cut some 5 percent of its workforce.
About one month ago, on the same day that it reported disappointing quarterly gross margins, it eliminated its dividend.
The elimination of the quarterly dividend is expected to trim costs by about $60 million annually, the company said.
In January it replaced Chief Executive Bill Watkins, and Chief Operating Officer David Wickersham resigned. Chairman Stephen Luczo, who relinquished the CEO role to Watkins in 2004, has returned to the position.
Agencies
The job-cutting move, which affects about 2.5 percent of Seagate's workforce, is aimed at helping the company stay on track toward being cash-flow and earnings positive within its fiscal year 2010. It builds on a 10-percent reduction in jobs announced in January.
As a result of the new plan, Seagate, which competes with storage company Western Digital Corp, expects to take restructuring charges of about $72 million, primarily in the quarter ending in June.
Analysts said Seagate needs to make additional cost cuts like this, which may help it address debt obligations.
"The move will help the company avoid tripping its net leverage ratio debt covenant that was already renegotiated earlier this year," said JP Morgan analyst Mark Moskowitz, in a note to clients. "Seagate shares still face hurdles that could test investors' resolve in the slower summer months."
Seagate has been no stranger to restructuring in recent months as it deals with slow sales in the personal computer industry, which most others has seen demand shrink during the global economic downturn.
Back in December it said it would halt some operations during the holiday season and cut some 5 percent of its workforce.
About one month ago, on the same day that it reported disappointing quarterly gross margins, it eliminated its dividend.
The elimination of the quarterly dividend is expected to trim costs by about $60 million annually, the company said.
In January it replaced Chief Executive Bill Watkins, and Chief Operating Officer David Wickersham resigned. Chairman Stephen Luczo, who relinquished the CEO role to Watkins in 2004, has returned to the position.
Agencies
Will restricting of H-1B hurt US economy?
Asserting that "handcuffing" employers from hiring talented workers will hurt the US economy, two experts have criticised proposals
to limit hiring of holders of H-1B visas coveted by Indian technocrats as "misguided."
"In order to grow the American economy and support the American workforce, Congress should expand and improve the H-1B visa programme," said James Sherk and Diem Nguyen.
As adding regulations to the H-1B programme would be a serious setback to US visa policy and would only end up hurting the US economy, the Congress should instead raise the cap from the current 65,000 to the 2001 quota of 195,000 visas a year, they said.
Sherk is a fellow in labour policy and Nguyen is a research assistant for foreign policy studies at The Heritage Foundation, a Washington think tank.
Referring to reports that two senators, Republican Chuck Grassley and Democrat Dick Durbin plan to introduce a bill that would limit the ability of companies to hire H-1B employees, the experts said an argument that H-1B visa recipients are a threat to American workers is "misguided."
"Given the current economic climate, handcuffing employers from hiring talented workers will hurt-not help-the economy, further delaying the ability of businesses to restart the national economic engine," Sherk and Nguyen said.
Many believe H-1B workers merely compete with Americans looking for work, the duo said. But "They are wrong. The US workforce is not a 'zero-sum game’, " they said.
"One hired H-1B worker does not mean an American is out of a job. In fact, the National Foundation for American Policy found that employers hired four new American workers for each new H-1B employee they hire."
Additionally, hiring H-1B employees does not lower the wages of American workers. Current law requires that when employers apply for H-1B visas
, they must attest that they will pay the visa recipient the same wage they would pay an American with similar skill sets.
Rather than limiting the ability of employers to hire H-1B workers by adding more rules and restrictions, Congress should ensure the federal government exercises appropriate oversight in enforcing current laws, Sherk and Nguyen said.
Preventing companies from hiring foreign workers harms the US economy's ability to rapidly adapt to marketplace demands, they said suggesting, "Companies must be able to hire persons best suited to fill positions based on their skill sets-not their nationality."
Agencies
to limit hiring of holders of H-1B visas coveted by Indian technocrats as "misguided."
"In order to grow the American economy and support the American workforce, Congress should expand and improve the H-1B visa programme," said James Sherk and Diem Nguyen.
As adding regulations to the H-1B programme would be a serious setback to US visa policy and would only end up hurting the US economy, the Congress should instead raise the cap from the current 65,000 to the 2001 quota of 195,000 visas a year, they said.
Sherk is a fellow in labour policy and Nguyen is a research assistant for foreign policy studies at The Heritage Foundation, a Washington think tank.
Referring to reports that two senators, Republican Chuck Grassley and Democrat Dick Durbin plan to introduce a bill that would limit the ability of companies to hire H-1B employees, the experts said an argument that H-1B visa recipients are a threat to American workers is "misguided."
"Given the current economic climate, handcuffing employers from hiring talented workers will hurt-not help-the economy, further delaying the ability of businesses to restart the national economic engine," Sherk and Nguyen said.
Many believe H-1B workers merely compete with Americans looking for work, the duo said. But "They are wrong. The US workforce is not a 'zero-sum game’, " they said.
"One hired H-1B worker does not mean an American is out of a job. In fact, the National Foundation for American Policy found that employers hired four new American workers for each new H-1B employee they hire."
Additionally, hiring H-1B employees does not lower the wages of American workers. Current law requires that when employers apply for H-1B visas
, they must attest that they will pay the visa recipient the same wage they would pay an American with similar skill sets.
Rather than limiting the ability of employers to hire H-1B workers by adding more rules and restrictions, Congress should ensure the federal government exercises appropriate oversight in enforcing current laws, Sherk and Nguyen said.
Preventing companies from hiring foreign workers harms the US economy's ability to rapidly adapt to marketplace demands, they said suggesting, "Companies must be able to hire persons best suited to fill positions based on their skill sets-not their nationality."
Agencies
Friday, May 15, 2009
Leela Group to invest Rs 100 crore to open IT campus
Hospitality major Leela Group will soon open a Rs.100 crore state-of-the-art IT campus in the Technopark here, a top group official said.
"The building is almost ready and we will open the campus very soon," V.J. Jayakumar, chief of Leela Group's operations in Kerala, told the media.
The 15-storey building will have 500,000 square feet built-up space and an additional 100,000 square feet for car parking.
"Already we have finalised talks with two IT companies, which will take space here. The total investment for the project is above Rs.100 crore," said Jayakumar, who was also the former chief executive of the Technopark.
Leela, which has top-end resorts in several cities in the country, has stepped into the business of IT infrastructure as part of its diversification strategy.
"In Mumbai and Bangalore we have been in the business of IT infrastructure. In Kerala, we have planned to invest Rs.260 crore in the sector and the first and second phases of our project at the Infopark campus in Kochi are complete," said Jayakumar.
"We have finished 90 percent work of the third phase and the next phase work has already started. In all, there will be more than 1 million square feet space in Kochi," he added.
The IT infrastructure division of the Leela Group comes under the Leela Lace Holdings and two of its subsidiaries - Leela Soft and Ocean Soft - manage the Infopark and the Technopark units.
Currently, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram are the leading IT hubs in Kerala.
Around 50 companies that employ more than 10,000 people operate in and around the Infopark campus in Kochi, while 160 companies with a total employee strength of 25,000 work in the Technopark.
As part of the state government's IT policy, IT parks will be set up in all 14 districts of Kerala.
Works have already begun for the district IT parks at Kollam, Trissur and Alappuzha.
According to the latest figures provided by the state-run Software Technology Parks India (STPI), software exports from Kerala has grown 43.41 percent to Rs.2,300 crore till February-end of last fiscal.
In 2007-08, the total software exports from Kerala stood at Rs.1,750 crore.
Agencies
"The building is almost ready and we will open the campus very soon," V.J. Jayakumar, chief of Leela Group's operations in Kerala, told the media.
The 15-storey building will have 500,000 square feet built-up space and an additional 100,000 square feet for car parking.
"Already we have finalised talks with two IT companies, which will take space here. The total investment for the project is above Rs.100 crore," said Jayakumar, who was also the former chief executive of the Technopark.
Leela, which has top-end resorts in several cities in the country, has stepped into the business of IT infrastructure as part of its diversification strategy.
"In Mumbai and Bangalore we have been in the business of IT infrastructure. In Kerala, we have planned to invest Rs.260 crore in the sector and the first and second phases of our project at the Infopark campus in Kochi are complete," said Jayakumar.
"We have finished 90 percent work of the third phase and the next phase work has already started. In all, there will be more than 1 million square feet space in Kochi," he added.
The IT infrastructure division of the Leela Group comes under the Leela Lace Holdings and two of its subsidiaries - Leela Soft and Ocean Soft - manage the Infopark and the Technopark units.
Currently, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram are the leading IT hubs in Kerala.
Around 50 companies that employ more than 10,000 people operate in and around the Infopark campus in Kochi, while 160 companies with a total employee strength of 25,000 work in the Technopark.
As part of the state government's IT policy, IT parks will be set up in all 14 districts of Kerala.
Works have already begun for the district IT parks at Kollam, Trissur and Alappuzha.
According to the latest figures provided by the state-run Software Technology Parks India (STPI), software exports from Kerala has grown 43.41 percent to Rs.2,300 crore till February-end of last fiscal.
In 2007-08, the total software exports from Kerala stood at Rs.1,750 crore.
Agencies
Will Aegis Buy Australia's UCMS Group?
Essar Group's back office arm Aegis Ltd has agreed to buy Australian business process outsourcing firm UCMS Group Ltd in a cash deal worth about A$54 million, the firms said in a statement on Friday.
Aegis, through affiliate firm Aegis BPO Services Australia Pty Ltd, will pay UCMS stockholders A$0.98 per share, a 133 percent premium over Thursday's closing price of A$0.42 per share, they added in the joint statement.
"Australia and New Zealand logically become a part of our growth strategy and offer an opportunity for Aegis to expand its footprint in this geography," said Aparup Sengupta, global chief executive officer and managing director of Aegis. The transaction is expected to close in in the third quarter and is subject to approvals from shareholders and the Supreme Court of Victoria and other customary closing conditions, they added.
With this acquisition, Aegis will have operations in India, Philippines, the United States, Costa Rica, Kenya and Australia. Last year, Aegis acquired outsourcing firm PeopleSupport Inc.
Agencies
Aegis, through affiliate firm Aegis BPO Services Australia Pty Ltd, will pay UCMS stockholders A$0.98 per share, a 133 percent premium over Thursday's closing price of A$0.42 per share, they added in the joint statement.
"Australia and New Zealand logically become a part of our growth strategy and offer an opportunity for Aegis to expand its footprint in this geography," said Aparup Sengupta, global chief executive officer and managing director of Aegis. The transaction is expected to close in in the third quarter and is subject to approvals from shareholders and the Supreme Court of Victoria and other customary closing conditions, they added.
With this acquisition, Aegis will have operations in India, Philippines, the United States, Costa Rica, Kenya and Australia. Last year, Aegis acquired outsourcing firm PeopleSupport Inc.
Agencies
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Will FII investment touch $2 billion-mark in 2009?
Investment by Foreign Institutional Investors in Indian equities has touched the two billion dollar-mark (nearly Rs 10,000 crore) so far this year, which includes a record single day net purchase of Rs 4,085 crore.
According to the latest available data on SEBI website, FIIs made net purchases worth $2 two billion or about Rs 9,973 crore so far in 2009, with the stock market seeing major investments in the past two weeks.
"FIIs have been in the buying mode for the last couple of months and after their initial sell-off in early 2009, have turned net buyers of Indian equities year-to-date. Positive trend is likely to continue well into FY'10," Angel Broking Head of Research Hitesh Agrawal said.
Yesterday, FIIs put in as much as Rs 4,085 crore ($838 million) in a single day with an over Rs 2,000 crore investment in shares of realty firms DLF alone.
Since the beginning of the new fiscal year, FIIs have started putting money in domestic stocks, including blue-chips like Housing Development Finance Corporation, private sector lender HDFC Bank and realty major DLF.
In May alone, FIIs made gross purchases of equities worth Rs 27,872 crore and sold shares of Rs 18,255 crore, resulting in a net investment of Rs 9,616 crore ($1.93 billion), as per the data available with SEBI.
Three foreign fund houses, Deutsche Securities Mauritius, Euro Pacific Growth Fund and Copthall Mauritius had purchased a total 9.15 crore shares representing 5.39 per cent in DLF for Rs 2,106.1 crore in open market transactions yesterday.
"We believe the positive trend will continue well into FY 2010. Notably, after having reduced their stake in many blue-chip companies in FY 2009 on account of the global liquidity shortage and economic slowdown concerns, FIIs are now coming back into market," Agrawal added.
The previous week also recorded the biggest weekly infusion by FIIs in the current calendar year. With a bulk investment of Rs 1,491 crore in a single day, FIIs remained net buyers in equities in the remaining days.
FIIs have turned net buyers from last week of April, after pulling out a hefty Rs 52,987 crore from Indian stock markets in 2008, which saw Sensex plunging 51 per cent.
Earlier, two Foreign fund houses Capital Group and Sansar Capital Mauritius bought HDFC shares worth Rs 316 crore, while Deutsche Securities bought Rs 422 crore shares of HDFC Bank.
Agrawal said if no further bad news comes, the world wide the markets would revive by 2010 if FII buying spree continues.
"Pre-empting this, FIIs will look at increasing their stakes in firms that are best placed to ride the recovery and large-cap stocks are preferred ones to begin with," he added.
Agencies
According to the latest available data on SEBI website, FIIs made net purchases worth $2 two billion or about Rs 9,973 crore so far in 2009, with the stock market seeing major investments in the past two weeks.
"FIIs have been in the buying mode for the last couple of months and after their initial sell-off in early 2009, have turned net buyers of Indian equities year-to-date. Positive trend is likely to continue well into FY'10," Angel Broking Head of Research Hitesh Agrawal said.
Yesterday, FIIs put in as much as Rs 4,085 crore ($838 million) in a single day with an over Rs 2,000 crore investment in shares of realty firms DLF alone.
Since the beginning of the new fiscal year, FIIs have started putting money in domestic stocks, including blue-chips like Housing Development Finance Corporation, private sector lender HDFC Bank and realty major DLF.
In May alone, FIIs made gross purchases of equities worth Rs 27,872 crore and sold shares of Rs 18,255 crore, resulting in a net investment of Rs 9,616 crore ($1.93 billion), as per the data available with SEBI.
Three foreign fund houses, Deutsche Securities Mauritius, Euro Pacific Growth Fund and Copthall Mauritius had purchased a total 9.15 crore shares representing 5.39 per cent in DLF for Rs 2,106.1 crore in open market transactions yesterday.
"We believe the positive trend will continue well into FY 2010. Notably, after having reduced their stake in many blue-chip companies in FY 2009 on account of the global liquidity shortage and economic slowdown concerns, FIIs are now coming back into market," Agrawal added.
The previous week also recorded the biggest weekly infusion by FIIs in the current calendar year. With a bulk investment of Rs 1,491 crore in a single day, FIIs remained net buyers in equities in the remaining days.
FIIs have turned net buyers from last week of April, after pulling out a hefty Rs 52,987 crore from Indian stock markets in 2008, which saw Sensex plunging 51 per cent.
Earlier, two Foreign fund houses Capital Group and Sansar Capital Mauritius bought HDFC shares worth Rs 316 crore, while Deutsche Securities bought Rs 422 crore shares of HDFC Bank.
Agrawal said if no further bad news comes, the world wide the markets would revive by 2010 if FII buying spree continues.
"Pre-empting this, FIIs will look at increasing their stakes in firms that are best placed to ride the recovery and large-cap stocks are preferred ones to begin with," he added.
Agencies
Will BT cuts 15,000 more jobs in 2009?
Britain's BT Group cut its dividend and said a further 15,000 jobs would go after a 1.58 billion pound ($2.4 billion) write down and restructuring at its Global Services unit drove it to a fourth quarter loss.
The group, which had for years looked for growth at its Global Services unit which supplies the IT needs of multinational companies, also said it would almost double its pension contributions to 525 million pounds ($794.1 million) a year.
BT, which has twice previously in the past year warned about profits at the Global Services unit, said earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation and contract and financial review charges were 1.35 billion pounds, down 14 percent.
Profit before tax on an adjusted basis was down 40 percent and on a reported basis showed a 1.28 billion pound loss.
To help meet its increased pension obligations, BT cut its final dividend to 1.1 pence to give a full year dividend of 6.5 pence, which was down 59 percent on last year.
The pension contributions will almost double from the previous 280 million pound annual payment to 525 million pounds a year for the next three financial years.
BT has been engaged in a three-yearly pension review to establish the size of its deficit and what it should contribute to the scheme on an annual basis, based on its asset values and liabilities.
The last review in 2006 put BT's deficit at 3.4 billion pounds and set annual contributions on a 10-year recovery plan at 280 million pounds.
BT said on Thursday the contributions would rise to 525 million pounds but did not reveal the new deficit from the three-year review.
A leading pensions expert said on Wednesday that BT's pension deficit now stood at 11 billion pounds
BT said its triennial pension funding valuation was at an advanced state of completion. It did give its pension position at March 31 on an IAS 19 accounting basis as a deficit of 2.9 billion pounds net of tax, compared with a surplus of 2 billion pounds last year.
"Three out of four of BT's lines of business have performed well in spite of fierce competition and the global economic downturn," Chief Executive Ian Livingston said.
"However this achievement has been overshadowed by the unacceptable performance of BT Global Services and the resulting charges we have taken."
Agencies
The group, which had for years looked for growth at its Global Services unit which supplies the IT needs of multinational companies, also said it would almost double its pension contributions to 525 million pounds ($794.1 million) a year.
BT, which has twice previously in the past year warned about profits at the Global Services unit, said earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation and contract and financial review charges were 1.35 billion pounds, down 14 percent.
Profit before tax on an adjusted basis was down 40 percent and on a reported basis showed a 1.28 billion pound loss.
To help meet its increased pension obligations, BT cut its final dividend to 1.1 pence to give a full year dividend of 6.5 pence, which was down 59 percent on last year.
The pension contributions will almost double from the previous 280 million pound annual payment to 525 million pounds a year for the next three financial years.
BT has been engaged in a three-yearly pension review to establish the size of its deficit and what it should contribute to the scheme on an annual basis, based on its asset values and liabilities.
The last review in 2006 put BT's deficit at 3.4 billion pounds and set annual contributions on a 10-year recovery plan at 280 million pounds.
BT said on Thursday the contributions would rise to 525 million pounds but did not reveal the new deficit from the three-year review.
A leading pensions expert said on Wednesday that BT's pension deficit now stood at 11 billion pounds
BT said its triennial pension funding valuation was at an advanced state of completion. It did give its pension position at March 31 on an IAS 19 accounting basis as a deficit of 2.9 billion pounds net of tax, compared with a surplus of 2 billion pounds last year.
"Three out of four of BT's lines of business have performed well in spite of fierce competition and the global economic downturn," Chief Executive Ian Livingston said.
"However this achievement has been overshadowed by the unacceptable performance of BT Global Services and the resulting charges we have taken."
Agencies
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)