Toshiba announces biggest loss

TOKYO (May 09 2009): Japanese high-tech giant Toshiba Corp announced Friday its biggest ever loss and warned it would remain mired in the red this year because of weak demand computer chips. The group, which owns US nuclear plant maker Westinghouse, suffered a net loss of 343.6 billion yen (3.5 billion dollars) in the year to March, against a year-earlier profit of 127.4 billion yen

Telstra names new chief executive officer

SYDNEY (May 09 2009): Australian telecoms giant Telstra on Friday named a company insider to replace its outgoing chief executive in a move seen as aimed at healing a rift with the government

Magic gadget places six connections in single SIM

ISLAMABAD (May 09 2009): One must wonder if told that it is possible for you to use six cellular connections with single Subscriber's Identity Module (SIM). Experts say that there is a Magic Gadget available in the market, which enables you to have multiple connections in it. You can easily purchase the device and its driver with the instructions manual from the local markets

Zong extends support to LUMS music society

KARACHI (May 09 2009): ZONG, the first international brand of China Mobile, has extended its support to the Music Society of LUMS in celebrating its 10th anniversary on May 9 and 10

IN SHORT: Google tightens bonds with YouTube users

SAN FRANCISCO (May 11 2009): Google is routing YouTube users further into the online search giant's Internet world. People signing up for YouTube accounts automatically get matching Google accounts, YouTube software engineer James Phillips said in an official blog post on Thursday announcing the new development

Hewlett-Packard, RIM form Blackberry alliance

WASHINGTON (May 11 2009): US computer giant Hewlett-Packard and Canada's Research In Motion (RIM) announced an alliance on May 4 to provide applications and services for the popular Blackberry smartphone

Hackers taking advantage of Windows 7: Microsoft

SAN FRANCISCO (May 11 2009): Microsoft said on May 7 that cyber-criminals are already hawking booby-trapped versions of just-released Windows 7 operating system software. "It's so important for customers to get their copies of Windows from a trusted source," Joe Williams, general manager, World-wide Genuine Windows at Microsoft, said in an interview posted at the company's official website

Ministry wants zero duty on 40 computer items

ISLAMABAD (May 11 2009): The Ministry of Information Technology (MoIT) has proposed zero duty for at least 40 items related to computer and mobile accessories in the next year''s federal budget. The Ministry has also suggested that mobile banking should also be exempted from Federal Excise Duty (FED).

Egypt's Orascom Telecom buys $140 million of Mobilink's debt

CAIRO (May 11 2009): Egypt's Orascom Telecom said on Sunday its Pakistan unit had repurchased up to $140 million in senior notes at a 27 percent discount to face value. The unit, Pakistan Mobile Communications Limited (Mobilink), will spend around $100.6 million to buy back almost $138 million of senior notes due in 2013, OT said in a statement....

Microsoft says Windows 7 on track for holidays (Reuters)

SEATTLE - Microsoft Corp is on track to release its new Windows 7 operating system in time for the holiday shopping season, an executive said on Monday, confirming talk it is ahead of its own conservative schedule for replacing the unpopular Vista system

Google digging deeper to improve search results (AP)

SAN FRANCISCO - Google Inc. is about to add more features to its already dominant Internet search engine _ and some of the changes could give Web surfers less reason to click through to other sites. That scenario might upset the creators of the material highlighted in Google’s results

Broadband maintains 24pc revenue rise

OVER 15% of revenues generated by mobile opera-tors globally came from non-voice services in 2008. According to the latest data made available by In-forma Telecoms & Media’s World Cellular Data Metrics report, actual revenues comprising data services, reached US$188.7bn in 2008, representing a 24% year-on-year increase....

Teradata helps government make strategic decisions’

ISLAMABAD: Teradata, through its data warehouse, creates an environment on the basis of which decisions are taken by the government to increase investment and employment opportunities across the country. ...

Verizon, Frontier in $8.6 billion land line deal

WASHINGTON (May 14 2009): US telecom giant Verizon announced on Wednesday it has agreed to sell its land line service in 14 US states to Frontier Communications in an all-stock deal valued at 8.6 billion dollars. Verizon said in a statement that the sale of its traditional telephone business in the 14 states will allow the company to concentrate on providing wireless, broadband and high-speed Internet services.

LCCI budget proposals: Telecom sector demands withdrawal of SIM card sale activation tax, cut in FED.

MUHAMMAD RIAZ LAHORE (May 14 2009): The withdrawal of activation tax of Rs 500, being charged at the time of sale of SIM card, and reduction in taxes like federal excise duty will help in further growth of telecom services to the under-served people of Pakistan, besides giving a boost to government revenue. ...

SingTel sees Pakistan market consolidating

SINGAPORE (May 15 2009): Singapore Telecommunications said on Thursday it was eyeing acquisitions after warning that revenue growth in its home market would slow....

British telecoms axes up to 15,000 extra jobs after plunging into red

LONDON (May 15 2009): British telecoms operator BT said on Thursday it will cut up to 15,000 more jobs, or 10 percent of its staff, after posting an annual net loss of 83 million pounds in its 2008-2009 financial year. BT added in a results statement that it had already cut 15,000 jobs over the last 12 months, which was 5,000 more than previously announced in November, while total lay-offs could total 30,000.

Google to reshoot Japan Street Views after privacy complaints

TOKYO (May 15 2009): US Internet giant Google has decided to reshoot Street View photos in Japan following complaints from people who said public images of their homes violated their privacy. The company's Japanese unit announced the decision Wednesday, saying it would take new photographs with the cameras set lower so the images accessible via net-based maps would not show photos looking into people's houses.

PTCL to change local codes

KARACHI: Pakistan Telecom-munication Company Limited (PTCL) will increase a digit ‘3’ in its numbers of Karachi and Lahore to enhance its capacity to widen subscribers’ network....

Bank Alfalah inks accord for data warehouse

ISLAMABAD: Bank Alfalah Limited on Friday signed an agreement with Teradata Corporation for the expansion of the Bank’s Teradata Enterprise Data Warehouse. The signing ceremony was held at the Bank Alfalah head office. ...

Google unveils new search tools for computer, phone

SAN FRANCISCO (May 18 2009): Google Inc unveiled a slew of new and future features on May 12, including one that will allow people to better co-ordinate Internet searches on their cellphones and computers and another that will produce sophisticated automated research reports....

China deploys secure computer operating system: report

WASHINGTON (May 18 2009): China has installed a secure operating system known as "Kylin" on government and military computers designed to be impenetrable to US military and intelligence agencies, The Washington Times reported on May 12....

MoU to install 900km optic fibre in Balochistan

ISLAMABAD (May 18 2009): Speakers at function on the World Telecommunication and Information Society Day Sunday urged government and parents to make children aware of the advantages and disadvantages of the use of internet. The World Telecommunication and Information Society Day was celebrated on Sunday....

PTCL is world-class telecom company

Islamabad—The Pakistan Telecom Communication Company limited (PTCL) is a world-class telecom providing international standard services to its clients, PTCL Senior Executive Vice President Human Resource and Administration Mazhar Hussain said. Addressing to the staff in Mega Incentive Plan Road Show here on Sunday, he asked PTCL staffers to work hard to keep up its high marked image....

PTA ends PTCL’s Internet bandwidth monopoly…

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Telecom Authority (PTA) has decided to allow the Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and DSL operators to buy Internet bandwidth from backbone operators other than the PTCL, thus settling a two-year row of the ISPs versus the PTCL.

Mobilink introduces mobile navigational solutions

Staff Reporter Islamabad—Mobilink, Pakistan’s market leader in cellular services and part of Orascom Telecom has announced the launch of Pakistan’s first cell-phone based navigation service ‘Mobi Track.’ The introduction of Mobi Track, the cell phone based mobile navigation solution with street level navigation and search facility, is another milestone for Mobilink which continues to reiterate its commitment to providing cutting edge communication solutions to its customers in Pakistan. ...

Telefonica with solid first quarter results

MADRID (May 14 2009): Telefonica beat market expectations with a 9.8 percent rise in first-quarter net profit, as strong Latin American business helped offset Spanish weakness and allowed it to stick to full-year forecasts. Results at Europe's largest telecoms company by market capitalisation should boost confidence, analysts said on Wednesday, given forecast cutting at European rivals