Dell Unveils Latitude XT2

According to Techeblog.com, Dell officially unveils the Latitude XT2, which includes a 12.1-inch LED backlit capacitive touch-screen with EM Digitizer pen, up to 5GB of DDR3 1066MHz, up to 120GB 5400RPM SATA disk or 128GB SSD, 802.11a/g/n WiFi and gigabit Ethernet, [and weighs] 3.78-pounds (1.72-kg) with 6-cell battery.

Looks like Dell’s 12.1-inch Latitude XT2 has now been globally launched. The tablet convertible has got a multitouch screen.

Business-class Machine HP Compaq tc4400

The HP Compaq tc4400 is a proficient mobile computer designed for mission-critical business environments. This Tablet PC boasts solid construction, compact design and excellent security features that meet the standards of corporate computing.

You can count on this device to keep your assets secured and can be use as your partner device in travel marketing as the tc4400 uses the HP Mobile Data Protection System 3D technology, which quickly detects abrupt motion to prevent the hard drive from crashing and avoid data corruption or loss.

Features

2.16GHz Intel Core 2 Duo Processor
Up To 2GB DDR2-533/667 Memory Support
12.1″ XGA Wide Viewing Angle LCD
Upto 120GB SATA Hard Disk Drive
Gigabit Ethernet
Wi-Fi
Bluetooth 2.0 Interface
285 x 235 x 34.3mm, 2.08Kg

Would You Like to Make $5,000 a Month Posting a Link on Google?

Would You Like to Make $5,000 a Month Posting a Link on Google?

Get paid $5 to $30 for every website link that you post on Google. No one needs to buy anything from you or Google in order to get paid. Weekly paychecks are sent you can work from your home computer or anywhere with internet access.

Thank you for visiting my site. This is Kevin Hoeffer. I grew up in the Karachi, 05 area. This is my story on how filling out one simple online form changed my life. Basically I actually make around $5,500 to $7,000 a month from Google. Not a ton of money. But, very solid and good. I was able to replace my previous job’s income, working less than 10 hours a week on my computer at home.

I was not interested in some fly by night get rich quick business opportunity, pyramid scheme or anything to do with network marketing. You know the ones that want you to try to sell stuff to your friends and family members. I just wanted a legitimate honest way for me to earn extra income from home. I am here to spread this word. Hopefully my story can inspire you to try what I discovered. Read on.

Above is a photo of my wife and I. We were putting off our wedding for 2 years now because we didn’t have enough money (neither did our parents). We recently got married all while still being paid. I found out you can actually get the same Earn Google Cash kit that I got.. but for free*. Well, actually you do have to pay a buck for some shipping cost. *

Step 1: Go to this link, fill out a basic online form and hit submit at Earn Google Cash Kit. Pay the $1.95 for. *

Step 2: Follow the directions on Earn Google Cash Kit and set up a Google account. Then they will give you the website links to post. Start posting those links. Google tracks everything.

Step 3: Google will start sending their first check to you in about 48 hours. Or you can start to have them wire directly into your checking account. (Your first checks will be about $500 to $1,500 a week. Then it goes up from there. Depends on how many links you posted online.)

My Story

A year ago I was an account manager for a (drum roll) a pipe manufacturing company. Not exactly what I dreamed of when I was growing up. The job I had before that, I used to work in at a mortgage company. That job I did like. Initially I was one of the processors and then started working in the sales department. That was really exciting 5-6 years ago. I was trying to learn the ropes as a salesperson and then eventually I really did start to make some money. I was doing well 3-4 years ago. Then as you know the mortgage industry just took a huge down turn. Along with every other industry and jobs available.

So, I took an extremely low paying job as an account manager at a pipe manufacturing company. This time I did have a slight base pay at the company. I was sSelling something that I was not particularly excited about and made a small commission. My wife eventually lost her job so we had to move from our small apartment to an even smaller apartment.

Credit cards started to max out. Pulling even more cash out of other cards just to make another credit card’s minimum payment. We initially owed around $12,000 which was not too good to start with. However, even though we had made our minimum monthly payment every month with all the interest fees and late payments our balance never went down. Within the year and a half we went from being in a little debt to an extreme amount of $33,500 in debt. Our monthly payment exceeded $800 a month and the balance was not going down at all. We did not know what to do. Our rent alone was $1200 a month, meanwhile our credit card bill was over $800. And out of the $800 minimum payment that we were making, most of it was going to all the interest and fees. We never got to go out for dinner or do anything fun anymore.

How I got my life turned around

I’ve always seen internet offers all the time talking about some great business opportunity. I always wondered if any of that stuff really worked. Things that are supposed to make you millions of dollars instantly. Spam, scam emails about sending someone out of the country your personal information so that a president of a bank can send you $10 million dollars next week, a stock that you never heard of becoming the next Microsoft, trying to get you to sell anything under the sun. I even constantly read emails about the government giving away free* grant money. Like the country is any shape to just give money away to us. I did not have the money or the time to waste on scams and stuff that just does not work.

I realized the best thing to do is instead of hoping if a company that you are looking at, is going to be around tomorrow. The best thing to do is just go with a big, reputable company. After looking at several different companies, I had one that is real and legit. So are you ready to find out what I discovered and benefit? Read on.

Google - How can you go wrong with a company that is publicly traded on the stock market. That fact alone made me and my wife feel at ease, when I went ahead and got that program. I knew that a company like Google was solid and the opportunity to make money with them could not have been a bunch of BS.

To make a long story short on my result of Google is that within four weeks, I was generating $5,500 a month at home. All I do is post the links Google gave me. I don’t even have to sell anything. Did you read that? Yes, no one actually needs to buy anything from you, me or Google. Just post the website links and get paid. You can do the same and they are looking for a bunch of people to do that for them independant from them.

Now, I have seen scams out on the Internet that talk about making $50,000 a month online. But that is exactly what they are - scams. This is my story of my real life where I am now generating a legitimate income from home that easily replaced my previous job’s income. Here’s a check from early last year I got.

About 6 months after our wedding we bought our first new car!

How to get started

Step 1: Go to this link, fill out a basic online form and hit submit at Earn Google Cash Kit. Pay the $1.95 for shipping. *

Step 2: Follow the directions on Earn Google Cash Kit and set up a Google account. Then they will give you the website links to post. Start posting those links. Google tracks everything.

Step 3: Google will start sending their first check to you in about 48 hours. Or you can start to have them wire directly into your checking account. (Your first checks will be about $500 to $1,500 a week. Then it goes up from there. Depends on how many links you posted online.)

Can you say “I can afford $1.95″ to have become completely debt free* and cash in your pocket. Yes!!! You see, I am just doing my part and let the word out so that you don’t have to go through what I ended up going through. And yes it is legitimate you can generate between $5,500 to $7,500 a month just working a few hours a day posting links on Google. The system did show me how. So just do it.

I hope you have as much success with this as I did!

- Kevin

An MP3 Player That Looks Like A Credit Card

MP3 players in various shapes and sizes have been made and enjoyed even today. Some have even been as big or small as credit-cards but the newest kid (please read ‘model’) on the block actually masquerades as a credit card complete with the typical pattern and numbers. It has an ultra-thin fusilage and can be worn around the neck. We hear, only the edges of this item reveal its true identity. It has an OLED display with dimension of 85 x 54 mm.

So far, there is very little information on this device (we do wonder why the makers are keeping it so low profile). However, we are quite certain to expect a cool looking gadget that we geeks would love to own. After all, hasn’t Japanese technology already given us a whole range of electronics that are both durable and very trendy!

There is no word on the price and availability. Some are saying that perhaps this one is just part of a Tokyo Flash concept for a Bluetooth adapter inspired by a previous credit cards styled MP3 player. We will spill more beans on this in the near future.

Other Earths Can Be Found ‘Anytime Now’

The old Doppler Effect method of discovering planets only measured the velocity of the planet when gravitational pull causes the parent star to wobble as the planet orbits it. According to planet researchers, there are significant limitations to Doppler searches. Scientists assert that readings from the Doppler cannot reveal the ‘angles of inclination of the orbital planet to the line of sight.’ Without this information, the actual physical size of the planet cannot be determined. Scientists are already at the stage of detecting Venus-size planets, and will soon get to Earth-size ones.

The Anglo-Australian California and Carnegie Planet Searches (AAPS) which is the ‘world’s largest and most prolific team of planet hunters’ discovered what it calls transit searches or the technique to finally find the elusive angle of inclination.

Upon calculating the angle of inclination when a planet transits in front of its parent star, and as it passes the line of sight from Earth, scientists will be able to determine the planet’s ‘eccentricity’ or ‘how elliptical or round its orbital path is.’

David Latham of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics believes that “It could happen almost any time now. We now have the technological capability to identify Earth-like planets around the smallest stars.”

Launched in early March, NASA’s Kepler space observatory is one such facility that is poised to likely find Earth-like planets in the vast universe. NASA has been following the dictum of ‘follow the water.’ Since water is an imperative for life, the agency is of the assumption that life-supporting planets lie on a ‘habitable zone’ or that distance from the star where it is not too hot for water to evaporate nor too cold for water to freeze.

Apple Might Release A Touchscreen Notebook This Summer

When it comes to rumors, there is absolutely no stopping. This time it’s not the rumors about your favorite singer or a Hollywood celebrity but about a Touchscreen Netbook from Apple. Just like history repeats itself, rumors too repeat themselves. According to the latest report by Commercial Times, which was passed along by DigiTimes, an Apple Netbook is perhaps expected by the third quarter of this year.

Apparently, this information comes from another reliable source; Wintek, the company slated to provide the touch panels for the device. The Netbook itself is likely to be made by Quanta Computer.It’s not sure if the rumors can be believed or not. However, The Commercial Times did spill the beans to the original iphone. Nevertheless, if you go by the past records, then you may surely not like to believe them considering the amount of wrong information provided by them.

I do not understand why so much of rumors and hype have to be buzzed around this product when nothing about is yet sure. Who is anyways interested in some pale rumors such as this? At least I am not interested!

MiMo Is a Great Display to be Used in Cars

If you were looking for a great display, you must try and check out the awesome Nanovision MiMo Slim. It is not just portable, but is also slim and sleek and the form factor is mind blowing. The key feature of a MiMo display is that it runs only on a single and standard USB connection.

It is also bright and vibrant, and comes with amazing resolution and high contrast LED display. You could try video conferencing like there is no tomorrow. The touchscreen only helps you to lessen your work and you wouldn’t have to push those ugly buttons. You could use it in a horizontal or a vertical mode depending on your convenience.

It can be used in your car and needs no wiring. This has a seven inch display which is not only cool but also quite functional. I would say, don’t hesitate but just go ahead and get this before the stocks are out. The pricing is not mentioned but you could visit and get more information. This is the best computer display you could get for your car!

Foldable TV Screens Are On The Horizon

This is truly amazing stuff. Flexible TV screens mean foldaway cell phones and tiny computers! With paper thin screens like this the possibilities are endless. Sony has designed this organic light emitting diode screen that is only 2.5 inches and weighs a mere 1.5 grams. While they have no specific product in mind currently and this is only a prototype, I imagine a real application is only around the corner.

Business Uses for Cell Phones You Didn’t Know

By Marc Saltzman

Little known cell phone features can help your business, such as voice memos, syncing your contacts in case your computer crashes, and GPS navigation.

If you’re only using your mobile phone to place calls, check e-mail or surf the Web, you’re not taking advantage of all it can do for you and your growing business.

Yep, just as it’s estimated we only use about 10 percent of our brains, you’re probably overlooking many -- if not most -- of your phone’s handy hidden features.

Here we explore a few business-related uses of your cell phone that you might not know about, or use.

Tethered modem

Can’t find a coffee shop to log online with your laptop while on the road? Rather than using Wi-Fi, many people are connecting their phone to their notebook computer to use it as a modem -- even while in the back of a taxi.

“Most newer phones offer this feature -- connecting it to your laptop with USB or Bluetooth so you can log online -- but not many people are doing it yet,” says Erez Zevulunov, director of MIT Consulting, a Toronto-based technology solutions firm. “And now with cell phone bandwidth rivaling broadband modems, such as with 3G phones, speed isn’t an issue anymore.”

Be sure to check with your carrier first to make sure your data plan covers this feature, and find out what the roaming charges are when out of town.

Backup data

Speaking of connecting your phone to a computer, you can carry around many if not all of your contacts and calendar appointments with you -- software is often provided by the phone manufacturer. Furthermore, it’s also a convenient way of protecting your PC files in case something happens to the machine, such as damage caused by fire, flood, theft, virus, or power surge.

Many phones today also offer expandable memory, such as a 2GB MicroSD card, which is enough to store thousands of documents, spreadsheets, and presentations. Make sure, however, to compress all of these files into a password-protected .zip or .rar file -- just in case you lose your phone.

“Productivity features usually depend on how ‘smart’ the phone is, such as those with an open operating system, but many basic, conventional phones have data back-up services to protect against information loss,” says Nathan Dyer, senior analyst for enterprise mobility at the Boston, Mass.-based Yankee Group.

Memo taking

Many entrepreneurs and small and mid-sized business owners come up with a great idea while on the go, but don’t have a quick way to document it before the epiphany is lost. Guess what -- your phone likely has recording functionality buried in one of those option menus.

“I know lawyers who have stand-alone digital recorders and I ask them ‘why bother?’” says Zevulunov. “You can easily dictate for an hour or more, especially with expandable memory cards, which you can then download to your PC to archive.”

Mobile phones are also ideal for recording boardroom meetings and important conversations.

Also consider the free Jott voice memo service. When you’re out and about and need to send a message to someone (or “jott” a note to yourself), simply call a toll-free number, say your message clearly, and your speech will be converted into text and then e-mailed and text-messaged to the recipient.

GPS navigation

“More and more phones have embedded GPS capabilities that are extremely useful for turn-by-turn directions and locating addresses,” says Dyer. As an example of the latter, if the important client you’re taking out for lunch has a yen for Japanese food, you can quickly find the nearest one with a couple of button presses.

In fact, cell phones with integrated GPS will likely be as common as a built-in camera. Increasingly popular services include TeleNav, which costs about $10 a month, and don’t forget phones like the iPhone offer Google Maps with satellite imagery.

“Even if your phone doesn’t have built-in GPS it probably has Bluetooth so you can pick up an inexpensive receiver to keep on your dashboard,” says Zevulunov.

BlackBerry Applications for Business

By Marc Saltzman

By adding new applications, such as GPS and location-based services, businesses can now distribute BlackBerrys to staff and locate and dispatch workers, manage work orders, process electronic time sheets, and monitor assets.

Suffice it to say, the BlackBerry has become an indispensible tool for millions of small and mid-size businesses, largely in part to its reliable push-mail solution that delivers messages to your phone as soon as they arrive in an inbox.

But in order to maintain its competitive edge, the Waterloo, Ontario-based Research in Motion understands it needs to open up its doors to third-party applications to help businesses remain productive while on the go.

“There has been phenomenal growth in applications available for the BlackBerry platform,” confirms Tyler Lessard, director of independent software vendor alliances at Research in Motion. “We are signing new partners every day and being approached constantly by people who are looking for ways to increase the mobile capabilities of their applications using the BlackBerry solution.”

The following are a few recommended applications that can help you and your employees stay in touch, keep organized and remain competitive, wherever business takes you. Be sure to check with your cell carrier for availability and pricing.

TeleNav

Rather than purchase a separate GPS unit to help you navigate from point A to B without getting lost, or finding relevant location-based info, a GPS-enabled BlackBerry lets you have it all on one device. Small and mid-size businesses "especially benefit from services like TeleNav because they save on travel time and they reduce the need for road warriors to call in for guidance,” says Carmi Levy, senior vice president for strategic consulting at AR Communications, a Toronto-based marketing communications firm. “[Employees] work more independently, consuming less office time and spending more time in front of customers.”

eOffice from DynoPlex

eOffice lets you easily access and manage all your documents, wherever and whenever -- all stored remotely on your office PC, through a password-protected virtual hard disk on the Internet. As if it were stored locally on the smartphone, you can now retrieve, review, edit, and save documents -- such as Microsoft Word or Excel files. “Attachments are an increasingly frequent reality for anyone who sends and receives e-mail, and although the basic BlackBerry OS allows Office files to be viewed, the experience is severely limited,” says Levy. “DynoPlex’s eOffice is often good enough that users can leave their laptops at home and travel lighter on business trips.”

SpinVox

This voicemail-to-text service can save you time because there’s no need to dial in to pick up your voice mail. Instead, an accurate transcript of the voicemail message is text messaged to you automatically so you can simply read the message on your BlackBerry. After all, you might be in a meeting and unable to answer that important call from a client, your boss, or a member of your staff. Well, now you can discretely glance at a text message which has the content of the voicemail message on your phone.

Nuance Voice Control from Nuance Communications

Consider it an alternative to using your thumbs to type your way through all of your BlackBerry’s functions -- such as making calls, drafting an e-mail or adding a calendar entry -- as you can use the power of your voice to take command. Your spoken words are transcribed into text for, say, an e-mail message, or you can choose to send your voice clip as an e-mail attachment. “Voice-activated control and navigation can remove the last barrier to on-the-road productivity -- the tiny keyboard -- from potential objections to wider mobile deployment,” explains Levy.

WebMessenger from Apptix

This all-in-one instant messaging (IM) client supports a broad range of services, including AOL, MSN, Yahoo, Google Talk, ICQ, and Jabber. For small and mid-size businesses with mobile employees that need to routinely interact with the home office in real-time, "the presence awareness offered by an always-on IM client can be a compelling driver of productivity,” says Levy. “Road warriors can get answers to their questions more quickly, which allows them to spend more time servicing customers and less time waiting around.”

Other BlackBerry applications to check out:

• “We find that organizations are interested in applications that access [small business] CRM and accounting packages such as Goldmine, ACT, and Quicken,” says RIM’s Lessard.
• Impatica Showmate allows mobile professionals to deliver PowerPoint presentations directly from their BlackBerry smartphone.
• MobiMate’s Worldmate Live and Handmark’s PocketExpress can greatly enhance personal productivity and efficiency while traveling with tools that include flight status updates, rental car information, and world weather.
• Virtual Reach's Viigo is an RSS reader that can track, download, and display critical pieces of regularly updated content, such as news, stock values, and sports.

Going Blu-ray

It’s 2009 and about time we upgrade to the world of true 1080p movie watching with a proper Blu-ray player. Here are this year’s fresh picks.

After you go Blu-ray, you will never look at a regular DVD quite the same way again. One of the worthy units in the market is the Samsung BD-P1500 player. It can output a video resolution of up to 1080p and it’s got high definition multimedia interface (HDMI) output to accommodate all of that HD goodness. Although its inability to play DivX, MP3, WMA or JPEG files is despairing enough. This basic black box doesn’t boast many visual adornments, but it is classy in its understatement.

The video end is well covered, with HDMI 1.3, component video and composite video outputs and on the audio front, you get HDMI, optical digital and stereo analog. Samsung BD-P1500 lacks a coaxial digital audio output and multichannel analog audio outs (This is an issue for anyone who has an older, non-HDMI-equipped A/V receiver and desires the ability to listen to high-resolution audio tracks.) The player sports an Ethernet port and an USB port, which can be quite useful additions.

The Ethernet port can be used to access internet and the USB port connects enables storage devices to manage data. Since the BD-P1500 has an Ethernet port, a network setup will be required. But don’t fret, as the player’s default settings automatically obtain the needed information from a server and you will be required to make changes only if you want to manually input your network information. If you choose your shop right, then BD-P1500 should cost you around Rs 14,000. Its picture performance at this price is brilliant.

Next in line is the Blu-ray player from Denon, a world leader in consumer electronics, which has released three high-end players. The Denon DVD-2500 BTCI offers 10-bit video processing for scaling of standard DVDs up to 1080p and will output both bitstream and LPCM (Linear Pulse Code Modulation) for the new audio codecs as well as all the legacy ones like Dolby Digital and DTS. It can also play CDs, Kodak picture and Fuji Color CDs, WMA and MP3 CDs, DVDs and of course, Blu-rays.

The image detail and colours were spot-on, while the uncompressed audio was far superior to the standard DTS. Result, a wider soundstage with improved detail and the bass of explosions are unbelievable. It lacks internal and mountable memory or an Ethernet port, so if you must have the downloadable add-ons for your entertainment, then look elsewhere. Otherwise, it costs approximately Rs 45,000.

The new Philips BDP7200, which seems like a tiny machine when compared with Denon-2500 BTCI, supports 1080p playback and allows you to pass Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD bitstream over HDMI. Frankly, there’s a lot to like about the BDP7200. A relatively quick and very stable Blu-ray player, it’s easy on the wallet too. At Rs 20,000, it figures in a snug price spectrum. Philips has included a lot of auto modes to remove guesswork for the average consumer.

If HDMI is your video output of choice, the default resolution setting is Auto, which causes the player to output the highest resolution your TV will accept. Other choices include 480p, 720p, 1080i and 1080p. The player’s analog audio set-up menu lets you set output speaker size, distance and level for the front, centre, surrounds and subwoofer. The BDP7200 also gives no trouble while launching or playing the interactive games on it. It moved through the game experience without freezes, stutters, or excessive delays.

The BDP7200 supports picture-in-picture playback, but lacks access to web. Ultimately, the lack of an Ethernet port is the make or break issue in today’s Blu-ray players. If you really want access to BD-Live web content, a functionality which is available in the Sony PlayStation 3 then go for Samsung BD-P1500.

Microsoft filing for fewer H1-B visas

As the US Citizenship and Immigration Services started accepting applications from Wednesday for the much sought-after H-1B work visas for professionals, software giant Microsoft said this year it is filing less petitions for work visas under this category.

This is primarily because of the current economic situation in the country, Microsoft said. “Given the economic downturn, we are filing substantially fewer H-1B applications than we filed last year,” Microsoft General Counsel Brad Smith wrote in a blog posting on microsoftissues.com.

Unlike previous years, Smith said a solid majority of Microsoft’s applications this year are for employees who are already working for Microsoft in the US, so that it can retain their talent and specialised skills in this country rather than risk losing them to a foreign competitor.

Observing that Microsoft would be creating several thousand new jobs this year, Smith said the software giant would hire majority of them from the US but would also hire talented professionals from overseas so as to remain competitive in the market.

“To succeed and continue adding jobs in the highly competitive global technology business, Microsoft and other US companies must be able to hire top talent wherever it is located,” he said.

Making a strong case for H-1B visa holders, Smith said, while the number of visa holders is very small compared to the US workforce, their contribution is huge. For example, last year 35 per cent of Microsoft’s patent applications in the US came from new inventions by visa and green card holders. The situation at other US technology leaders is probably very similar.

A recent study, he argued, found that for every H-1B position requested, US technology companies increase their employment by five new jobs.

He said importance of the high-skilled workers has not changed despite the dramatic changes in the economy

IBM develops new protocol, users can talk to web

Giving a new dimension to the internet, the Indian research arm of the US-based IT giant IBM has developed a technology that will allow users to talk to the web and create voice sites using mobile phones.

"People will talk to the web and the web will respond. The research technology is analogous to the internet. Unlike personal computers it will work on mobile phones where people can simply create their voice sites," IBM India Research Laboratory Associate Director Manish Gupta told PTI.

For this technology, IBM has developed a new protocol -- Hyperspeech Transfer Protocol (HSTP) -- which is similar to the Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP).

"India now has over 360 million cell phone subscribers. Last month we added 15 million," he said pointing out that the research technology targets ordinary mobile phone users, all of whom may not be literate.

The spoken web is a network of voice sites or interconnected voice and the response the company got in some pilot projects in Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat and the kind of innovations that people came up with were just mind-boggling, Gupta said.

Fidelity shortlists IBM, HP for its tech captive

IBM and HP are the two firms that the global financial services provider Fidelity Investments is understood to have zeroed-in to sell its technology solutions captive unit in India. The financial services firm has ruled out Indian players like Infosys, Wipro among others, said a source close to the development. The deal could be close to $100 million (over Rs 500 crore) with an assured revenue component or a multi-year outsourcing deal to the buyer.

“The deal should close by the end of March as the due diligence has started. Fidelity has ruled out Indian players as the company wants an firm that has global presence in at least 40 countries,” said the source. The technology solutions group with close to 2,400 people, is part of Fidelity Research & Management Company (FMR) India, which provides captive back office support to Fidelity in the US.

When contacted, an official spokesperson said: "I cannot comment on the specific names but I can confirm that we are evaluating sourcing options with leading global technology service providers that will help us maximise the value we can offer to our customers, shareholders and employees in the long term. We are always looking for opportunities to expand our global footprint.”

The captive--Fidelity Business Services India-- was set up in India in 2001 in Gurgaon and later expanded to Bangalore in November 2003 and subsequently into Chennai as well. Along with a captive Fidelity also has existing relationship with Indian IT vendors like. As a part of its consolidation process the company had closed its Gurgaon centre last year and had asked it employees to relocate at Bangalore and Chennai.

Meanwhile IBM and HP spokesperson said that they do not comment on rumours and speculation.

The Fidelity company spokesperson said the sale of the technology solutions operations captive was not being done due to cost pressures but as “...part of our global business transformation strategy to explore options to optimise our technology delivery model, including that contained in our captive unit in India”.

In a similar trend last year, Citigroup and Aviva--insurance firm--sold their captives to Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and WNS respectively last year.

Scattered layoffs in IBM can touch 4,600: report

Technology giant IBM is resorting to "scattered layoffs" and the total could be nearly 4,600 employees in North America even though the company has reported surprisingly strong quarterly profits in January, a media report says.

"Big companies also routinely carry out scattered layoffs that are small enough to stay under the radar... And IBM is one such company," the New York Times said.

Interestingly, after reporting strong quarterly profits in January, its Chief Executive Samuel J Palmisano in an e-mail message to employees said that while other companies were reducing jobs, his company would not. "Most importantly, we will invest in our people," he wrote.

But the next day, the New York Times said, "More than 1,400 employees in IBM's sales and distribution division in the United States and Canada were told their jobs would be eliminated in a month. More cuts followed, and overall, IBM has told about 4,600 North American employees in recent weeks that their jobs are vanishing."

Quoting J Randall MacDonald, IBM's senior vice-president for human resources, the newspaper said, "It was routine for the company to lay off some employees while hiring elsewhere

IBM-Sun: Part cheap, part fearful

IBM is bracing for impact. The tech conglomerate is pondering a bid for Sun Microsystems. Sure, combining the two big producers of computer servers promises substantial cost cuts. And Sun’s depressed valuation and substantial cash pile are no doubt tempting for the blue-chip IBM. But Cisco’s entrance into the already crowded server market is probably the key - especially for Sun.

First the cheap part, for IBM at least. Prior to the technology giant's interest leaking, Sun had lost about 70% of its market capitalisation over the course of a year.

Assuming IBM paid a premium to Sun's undisturbed price of around 100%, as news reports suggest, IBM would be paying an extra $3.7bn for control.

That should pale beside potential synergies. If IBM could cut 10% of Sun’s bloated cost base, it would save $1.25bn a year. The value of these savings today should be more than double that premium. That suggests a deal could look like a bargain - as long as Sun’s decline doesn’t accelerate.

Then there's the defensive aspect. Servers already bring in low margins for producers, and they keep falling. Virtualisation software means one server can now do the job of many. Users are also switching to cheap off-the-shelf hardware instead of more expensive – and profitable - specialised kit.

This last trend has particularly hurt Sun. The worldwide server market declined 3% in 2008, according to research outfit IDC, while Sun’s hardware sales fell 7%. Luckily for Sun, its smaller services business is steadier. But with hardware sales stagnating almost across the board in major markets, a deal with IBM could stop Sun disappearing over the horizon.

The market shifts won't be lost on IBM, either. Aside from anything else, Cisco has now entered the server market. For the four firms that dominate the market - IBM, HP, Sun and Dell - that means a tough business is about to get tougher. Hooking up with Sun - especially at a modest price - is one way to take on a new rival

Satyam board meets; no word on short-list

The government-appointed board of Satyam Computer Services today met to scrutinise the bids for the troubled IT major but did not make any names public

The board, along with investment advisors Goldman Sachs and Avendus, met “to weed out the prospective suitors that submitted expressions of interest (EoIs) but failed to meet the criteria, including showing the required cash back-up”, said a source close to the development.

Board Chairman Kiran Karnik walked away without commenting. Sources said six-seven bidders had been shortlisted.

Yesterday, three Indian players, Larsen & Toubro, the Spice group and Tech Mahindra, had independently confirmed that they had completed the second round of the bidding process by putting in Rs 1,500 crore in an escrow account. Global majors like IBM and Hewlett-Packard are also understood to have entered the second round, but this could not be independently confirmed. Other names floating included KKR Private Equity Investors.

Based on the EoIs, the eligible bidders will be given access to certain business, financial and legal diligence material relating to Satyam after they execute a non-disclosure and non-solicitation agreement, a stand-still agreement and a “no-claims” undertaking.

iGate, which had participated in the first round of bidding, backed out from the second round. Earlier, the Hindujas group had decided to opt out of the race.

All the bidders are understood to have asked the board for a complete disclosure of all liabilities. Tech Mahindra has even sought a record of the forex losses and whether the company has any inter-corporate deposits. Most bidders, however, believe the bidding process is a “shot in the dark” since the restated financial statements are unlikely before June, despite a huge team of Deloitte and KPMG forensic experts on this job.

Forrester says L&T, IBM top in Satyam race

Based on the available data and interactions with some bidders and Satyam Computer Services’ clients, independent technology and market research firm, Forrester, believes that engineering giant Larsen & Toubro and IT major IBM are front-runners to acquire the troubled company.

Among large Indian business conglomerates, “Larsen & Toubro is a clear leader,” said Sudin Apte, head of Forrester India.

By and large, all firms in the running would be in a position to pay the required money, possibly even a premium, said Forrester, adding that L&T had the most service overlap and relevant IT industry experience. Its reputation, ability to manage mergers and acquisitions, and relationships with government agencies made it the most likely winner, said Apte, adding, “Its early approach to investors like LIC will make it easier to pull through the 31 per cent equity deal. Others in this camp have limited IT services experience.”

Among onshore global IT services firms, IBM was the front-runner, said Apte. “Though most firms in this group are not officially commenting, multinational services firms have emerged as an interesting group from the clients’ perspective. Factors like size, client relationship and service line overlap are in favour of firms like IBM. Most firms in this camp also have a good experience of handling mergers and acquisitions (M&As) in India,” he said.

IBM bought Daksh BPO and a niche testing firm. Since most foreign firms in the race are headquartered in the US, they will score well on clients’ corporate governance concerns, says Apte.

On private equity (PE) firms, Apte said: “While PEs can surely pull off the deal commercially and even retain Satyam’s independent status, clients will lack confidence in this group. Doubts about PEs selling stakes immediately after the lock-in period, giving preferential treatment to their portfolio companies over existing clients, and lack of technical IT service businesses will be other challenges.”

General Atlantic Partners, he said, stood tall in this group, with its long experience offshore and first-hand experience of investments in Patni and Hexaware. This camp also has the potential to use this deal as the first step in future industry consolidation

Satyam: IBM, WL Ross tie-up buzz gets stronger

Scam-hit company may prune revenues by 10-15%.

Even as the shroud of secrecy over the bidding process for Satyam Computer Services stays, the buzz around two independent bidders — IT giant IBM and Wilbur Ross & Co, the private equity (PE) firm promoted by billionaire investor Wilbur Ross — joining hands has grown stronger over the past couple of days.

The buzz refuses to die down even though other PE players, investment bankers and analysts say such an alliance is highly unlikely.

“IBM and WL Ross entering into an agreement is not possible, as IBM is a listed company and cannot do something like this. But WL Ross may look at selling to IBM if it is successful in getting Satyam,” said a banker not connected with the case.

On the litigation issue, he said, “Litigation is not a big issue for WL Ross and there is a perception that they will be able to find their way out of the litigation maze. The idea is to buy Satyam and stay invested for three-four years, work on it by getting a new management, and then sell to a player like IBM. In all probability, they may be working with IBM on this,” a leading PE player said on condition of anonymity.

While IBM (which is understood to be in the race through a law firm) said “it does not comment on speculation”, a highly-placed source in the company said, “IBM has traditionally never joined hands with funds to make an acquisition”. Besides we have a lot of cash to go alone, he added.

Wilbur Ross, meanwhile, is understood to have completed the due diligence of the scam-tainted IT company. When contacted, a company official declined comment.

Ross, known for restructuring failed companies, specialises in leveraged buyouts. He first invested in India in 2006, when he put $37 million in OCM India. His second investment was $100 million in SpiceJet in August 2008.

Satyam, incidentally, is expected to prune its revenues by 10-15 per cent before it announces its audited results for the current financial year, according to sources privy to the development.

The IT outsourcing firm’s revenues for the second quarter of FY09 stood at Rs 2,819.29 crore, as against Rs 2,031.72 crore in the corresponding quarter last year, a year-on-year growth of 39 per cent.

The government-appointed board of Satyam has sought an extension till June 30 to disclose the company’s third quarter (October-December) results, which are currently being restated following the accounting scam that broke out in January this year. “An approval from the exchanges is expected anytime now,” said a company official.

“The action has now shifted to Mumbai from where the Satyam board members, along with the company’s investment bankers, Goldman Sachs and Avendus Capital, are participating in the process through virtual conferences,” said a source from Satyam. The bidders for Satyam can inspect the documents virtually, using video conferencing and the internet through Satyam “data rooms”