NewsFactor Business

Is Google Dashboard Really Transparent or a PR Stunt?

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 14:06:46 -0500

A new product that gives users a new level of insight into what the world's biggest search engine knows about them was launched Thursday. Google Dashboard lets users see reports on the data Google has collected on them.

In a blog post, Google said the Dashboard is an improvement on past efforts like the Privacy Center to give users access to retained information. Dashboard is "an effort to provide you with greater transparency and control ... (and) designed to be simple and useful," the posting said.

"The Dashboard summarizes data for each product that you use (when signed in to your account) and provides you direct links to control your personal settings," Google wrote. At launch, Dashboard included 20 Google products, including Gmail, Calendar, Docs, Web History, Orkut, YouTube, Picasa, Talk and Reader.

Privacy Settings Hard to Find

While Dashboard offers a new level of user access to their data, it's also raising privacy concerns about how secure the service is. "If you want to make that stuff private -- or just find out if it's even possible to make it private -- you have to go deep into the settings of each Google app. If you don't already know where to go to change this setting, you may not get there," complained Robert X. Cringley on InfoWorld.

Google's programs contain scads of potentially damaging information about users. For instance, an article on the Dumb Little Man site details how a burglar could easily discover when a Google Calendar user is away from home just by looking at a public calendar and using a few easy research techniques. The author details his pursuit of one user like this:

"In literally 20 minutes, I now know the name, address, phone number, and schedule of this woman. If I can do it, you can be ... sure...

Internet, Cell Phones Don't Increase Isolation, Study Says

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 14:07:33 -0500

If you're worried that your employees or children are disengaging from the world by using the Internet and cell phones, relax. A new study from the Pew Internet and American Life Project found that these technologies have not increased social isolation in the U.S.

The Personal Networks and Community Survey is the first to examine this issue. It found that the amount of "severe isolation" has hardly changed since a previous study, which was conducted in 1985 before these technologies emerged. About six percent of adults, roughly the same as in 1985, report they have no one in their life that they consider "especially significant" and with whom they can discuss important issues in their lives.

Larger Discussion Networks

The study found that Internet-based activities and cell-phone ownership led to "larger and more diverse" discussion networks. And the use of social media is more likely to lead to discussion networks among people from different backgrounds, such as those of another race or a member of another political party. Facebook and blog writing were specifically cited as helping a person have a more diverse social network.

In spite of worries that using a global Internet would tend to limit people's local activities, the study found little or no such impact. Internet users, for instance, are as likely to visit neighbors as non-Internet users, and cell-phone users, people who use the Internet often at work, and bloggers are more likely to belong to a young group, a charitable organization, and the like.

Some kinds of social networking, such as MySpace or Facebook, have become a kind of neighborhood involvement, according to Pew. Any frequent Facebook user, for instance, can describe using the service to keep up with friends, even if they live nearby. In fact, the Internet is used as much for contact with people in...

TioLive Unveils SaaS ERP/CRM Solution

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 09:25:09 -0500

Dover (USA), Paris (France) -- November, 4th 2009 - Nexedi, the company behind ERP5, the Open Source Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) solution in use for over seven years by large organisations such as a multi-national Central Bank spanning eight countries as well as Infoterra (EADS�Astrium group), Beteire Flow (Abertis group) and The Artois-Picardie Water Agency, is proud to present TioLive, a SaaS (Software as a Service) version of ERP5 available immediately through the Web.

TioLive: On-line Enterprise Management Software for Free. TioLive is marketed by TIOLIVE�LLC (Dover, USA), a fully owned subsidiary of Nexedi SA (France). TioLive has been designed to eliminate all the complexity of mission critical ERPs such as ERP5. With TioLive, a small organisation with little or no budget can access a mature ERP,�CRM�and CMS environment, custom-configured to its needs, in less than 10 minutes. Hosting service on�TioLive servers is provided for free without time restrictions. TioLive software is Open Source.�It has no license costs for extra users. "TioLive introduces unprecedented progress in enterprise management and economic competitivity. Job shops and startup companies can now benefit immediately from the same level advanced information infrastructure as the largest corporations, without even spending a cent". According to Jacques Honore, TioLive Community Manager, "As your company grows so does your data.�The TioLive Premium subscription provides extra storage space for your data and value added services such as mobile access. At $49�/ month for the whole company and for any number of users. This price is well below any competitor offer."

TioLive: a Global Business Application. TioLive provides all the tools for companies to run their daily business:

People and Contacts.

Psst! Private-Sale Shopping Sites Are Hot

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 07:02:23 -0500

During last year's bleak holiday shopping season, fashion designer Lauren Merkin greatly overestimated the number of handbags she'd sell in upscale retail stores such as Neiman Marcus and Bloomingdale's.

She found a good way to sell them elsewhere without consigning them to a bargain-basement rack that might tarnish the brand in the eyes of would-be customers. All year, she's been selling the excess goods for half-price on the members-only Web site Gilt Groupe, during 36-hour sales that are hidden from the view of the general public. "What we're selling is first-rung, but if it sits around at a sale I think the consumer gets the wrong impressions about the product," Merkin says.

Saddled with overstock from the retail recession, makers of luxury apparel, home furnishings, and other high-end goods are selling their wares at reduced prices through Gilt Groupe and other private shopping sites. Many of these companies help fuel pent-up demand by limiting membership, forcing would-be clients to park on a waiting list or be referred by existing members.

Lure for Bargain-Hunting Fashionistas

Luxury brands can use these members-only sites to hide markdown prices from retail shoppers willing to pay the full amount, while attracting scores of wannabe fashionistas willing to wait for haute couture at a low price. "The brands they offer are of such high quality, and because they're at discount prices it makes them much more attainable," says Meghan Donovan, a 24-year-old San Francisco resident who shops on Gilt.com.

The private-sale model also makes sense for Gilt Groupe and other sites that act as middlemen, because they carry no inventory and earn a wide margin on sales. Combined revenue at Gilt Groupe, Rue La La, and Ideeli, three of the top four players in the U.S., is expected to exceed $300 million this year. That, along with sales at other private-sale...

Microsoft Will Eliminate 800 More Jobs Worldwide

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:53:45 -0500

Software giant Microsoft said Thursday it will cut 800 positions worldwide. The latest round is part of Microsoft's previously announced move to eliminate 5,000 jobs or five percent of its workforce.

Microsoft has been eliminating jobs for nearly two years to reach a healthier operating position and save $1.5 billion a year. The Redmond, Wash.-based business needs to make the job cuts because of decreased sales, specifically in enterprise IT. Microsoft announced it would begin the major cuts in January after reporting a $465 million shortfall in OEM revenue, according to the company's financial reports.

"Earlier this year, we announced that in order to reduce costs, increase efficiency, and prioritize our focus areas, we would eliminate approximately 5,000 positions by June 2010," said Microsoft spokesperson Lou Gellos in an e-mail. "Today, we are eliminating around 800 positions spread across multiple businesses and locations and have completed our reduction plan sooner than we had anticipated 11 months ago."

More Cuts Possible

In May, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said the company was close to achieving the 5,000 cuts. The most recent head count taken on Oct. 23 shows 91,005 employees worldwide, down 1,758 from the reported 92,763 it had just four months ago and the 95,000 it had in January.

While Microsoft is still hiring in specific areas of the company, it may have to reduce the number of employees again, the spokesperson told us.

"At the same time we continue to hire in priority areas, but also understand that continuing to manage our businesses closely, as we always do, can mean additional head-count adjustments," Gellos said.

Analysts say the move makes sense. "I think the past year has been difficult for technology companies of any size," said Charles King, principal analyst with Pund-IT. "Even for a company that has long been profitable and successful like Microsoft,...

Commerce Search Aims To Help Retailers Boost Sales

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:54:00 -0500

As part of its quest to organize the world's information, Google is upping its commitment to organizing everything you can buy. On Thursday, the search giant announced Google Commerce Search, a new hosted enterprise search product that will help customers find products at online retail stores and e-commerce sites.

Google noted that, while the last 15 years have seen advances in e-commerce, the search methods used for e-commerce have been a barrier to growth. "The average online retailer conversion rate is just three percent," the company said, "but could potentially be five to 10 times higher" by improving the shopping experience for consumers and the conversion rate for retailers.

Real-Time Marketing

Commerce Search uses proprietary ranking technology to analyze products and provide "the most relevant match" in what the company said would be subsecond response times to customer searches. The idea is that faster and more accurate searches increase conversions, since customers are less inclined to leave the site or use complex navigation.

In addition to speed and accuracy, the new search product offers aids, such as sorting, spell checker, and synonym suggestions. Results can be filtered by category, price, brand or other parameters. In addition, administrators can update marketing approaches in real time to create product promotions that follow search trends. Retailers can also customize web-site searches through an API.

The product can be implemented and scaled up very quickly, since it is cloud-based. Scaling can be an issue for retailers, particularly with the huge bump of the Christmas holiday season, where spikes in traffic are hard to predict. David Girouard, president of Google Enterprise, told news media that the company is "excited" to bring the product to market in time for the holidays.

As might be expected, Commerce Search also integrates with such Google tools as Google Analytics and Google Product Search, its consumer-facing...

Chrysler: Yes, We're Making Money

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 07:08:11 -0500

Chrysler Group talked about some jazzy vehicles in the long-winded rollout of its five-year plan Wednesday, but the biggest shock came not from styling and interiors, but from dollar signs: The company said it is solvent and profitable.

CEO Sergio Marchionne said Chrysler had $5.7 billion on hand at the end of September, up from $4 billion June 10, when the company was formed from partnering the best assets of the old Chrysler with Italy's Fiat Group to emerge from Chapter 11. Fiat -- for its expertise, but no cash -- got a 20% stake and control.

Chrysler also had an operating profit of $200 million in the third quarter, he said -- earnings before taxes, interest payments and depreciation.

How? Marchionne, also CEO of the Fiat Group, said the new Chrysler is "very parsimonious."

The automaker gave assurances that it will post ongoing profits by 2011. And in a radical departure from the industry's usual secrecy, laid out its product intentions through 2014. The moves were meant to keep Chrysler out of the obituary columns until it can boost sales and earnings and regain momentum.

It must come across as vigorous and viable, or people won't buy its products and lenders won't lend. Wednesday could have been a last chance.

Chrysler, of course, has had many last chances: In the 1970s, when it had no high-mileage small cars at a time of fuel shortages. In the 1980s, when the company was broke but didn't say so and CEO Lee Iacocca worked for $1 a year while persuading the government to guarantee loans. In the '90s when Daimler-Benz pretended to merge with Chrysler while plotting instead to absorb it.

But now it has seemingly exhausted government -- that is, the taxpayers' -- patience and, in fact, has nowhere to turn.

For all that's at stake, for all the...

A Growing PayPal May Soon Overshadow Parent eBay

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 07:11:59 -0500

Most people know eBay Inc. for its online marketplace, where deals abound on everything from gadgets to antique furniture. But soon, eBay's biggest business will likely be PayPal, the online payments service that has been growing steadily even as the economy has stumbled.

EBay has spent much of the past two years trying to improve its faltering marketplace business, hoping to increase buyers' trust and clean up the look of its Web site. In the meantime, PayPal has thrived as more consumers and merchants use it to send money online.

Its growth is expected to continue in spite of competition from Amazon.com Inc. and Google Inc., which have services that online retailers sometimes offer alongside PayPal.

PayPal bills itself as a shopper's online wallet. Users set up accounts and link them to bank accounts and credit cards, making it easy to transfer cash into the account. Then users can make payments through PayPal using either their cash balances or the underlying credit card. PayPal users can also send cash to someone based on as little information as an e-mail address or cell phone number.

But unlike what happens with a credit or debit card online, PayPal doesn't share your financial information with merchants. That brings peace of mind to people who might otherwise worry about shopping at a site they've never heard of.

PayPal, which began in 1998 as a way for people to beam cash from one Palm Pilot to another, was bought by eBay for $1.5 billion in 2002 and has been a steady performer. The service charges fees for certain transactions, and in the most recent quarter it reported $688 million in revenue, a 15 percent jump from last year. As of the end of September, 78 million people had active PayPal accounts, up from 65 million a year ago.

To try to...

Cisco Forecasts First Revenue Growth in a Year

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 07:16:00 -0500

Cisco Systems Inc. doesn't want Wall Street to interpret its forecast for its first quarterly revenue growth in a year as evidence that the U.S. and other economies are roaring back.

A slow improvement in orders is under way but the pace is still slow and the recovery is fragile, executives from the world's No. 1 maker of computer-networking equipment told analysts Wednesday.

Cisco forecast that revenue will grow 1 percent to 4 percent in the current quarter, which ends in January. That would translate to revenue of $9.2 billion to $9.5 billion. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters were expecting a decline from last year.

Cisco's results are seen as a gauge of how large corporations and government agencies and Internet providers are managing their technology budgets. Rising sales suggests they are loosening the pursestrings to buy Cisco mainstays such as routers and switches, which direct data traffic.

Cisco's CEO, John Chambers, said orders are rising again after passing a "tipping point" in the downturn this summer.

Cisco executives urged caution, though, saying sales could still sputter if the economic recovery wobbles.

"There's still uncertainty in the economy on a global basis," Cisco's chief financial officer, Frank Calderoni, said in an interview. "It's not completely back to normal levels, and with that kind of uncertainty, you really have to take things quarter by quarter."

Cisco's numbers for the fiscal quarter ended Oct. 24 indicate that the company is still suffering from the downturn, which has forced its biggest customers to rein in spending, but is seeing green shoots that pleased investors.

Cisco's net income dropped 19 percent to $1.8 billion, or 30 cents per share. Excluding one-time charges, Cisco earned 36 cents per share. Revenue fell 13 percent to $9 billion.

Wall Street was expecting even steeper declines, though. Cisco's shares climbed 82 cents, or 3.5 percent, to $24.11...

Productivity Gains May Be Bad News for Job Seekers

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 07:17:19 -0500

Companies across the economy are finding ways to do more with fewer workers, dimming hopes that hiring will take off anytime soon.

Employers became leaner and more efficient in the third quarter. Wages, meantime, remain flat or falling. The result is that productivity -- output per hour of work -- jumped at the fastest pace in six years.

The good news for companies, though, is bad news for the jobless. As long as companies can get their workers to produce more, they have little reason to hire -- at least until consumer spending picks up. And the squeeze on incomes could depress consumer spending, putting the economic recovery at risk.

Productivity rose at an annual rate of 9.5 percent in the July-September quarter, the Labor Department said Thursday. That was much better than the 6.4 percent gain economists had expected. Unit labor costs fell at a 5.2 percent rate.

Still, while companies aren't doing much hiring, they're also not cutting as many workers. The number of newly laid-off workers filing claims for unemployment benefits last week fell to the lowest level in 10 months

The 9.5 percent productivity rise followed a 6.9 percent surge in the second quarter and was the fastest since a 9.7 percent increase in the third quarter of 2003.

The gain reflected that the overall economy, as measured by the gross domestic product, grew for the first time in a year -- at an annual rate of 3.5 percent. The higher output came as companies continued to lay off workers. That meant employers produced more with fewer workers.

The 5.2 percent drop in unit labor costs marked the third straight decline and was larger than the 4 percent decrease economists were expecting.

Productivity is the key ingredient to rising living standards. It lets companies pay their workers higher wages. The increases are financed by...