Saturday 30 October 2010

China reassures US on key 'rare earth' minerals

Could rare earth materials availability become an uncertainty for the future of some industries?

China reassures US on key 'rare earth' minerals
China has reassured the US it has no intention of withholding "rare earth" minerals from the market, the US Secretary of State has said.
China suspended export of the metals, key to the global high-tech industry, to Japan after a diplomatic spat.

Read the whole artile at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-11657982

Monday 18 October 2010

Terrorism and cyber attacks among top threats to UK

For businesses that rely on online transactions, the cyber-terrorism is a significant uncertainty for the future.

Terrorism and cyber attacks among top threats to UK

Terrorism and attacks on computer networks are among the biggest threats to the UK, Home Secretary Theresa May has said ahead of the publication of a new National Security Strategy
The strategy will form the background for Tuesday's Strategic Defence Review, setting out the shape of UK forces after expected budget cuts of 8%.

Read the whole article at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-11562969##

Thursday 14 October 2010

Microsoft's Bing deepens ties with Facebook

Good example of how Microsoft creates synergies between one of its SBUs (search engine) and facebook.com (which they do not own 100% but they are one of the main shareholders). This actually workds as a good example of how strategic alliances work, too. Interesting to note, that Microsoft has spent almost a decade trying to catch up Google and it seems that are not capable of developing the reource/capability in terms of technology and they are definetely lacking in terms of reputation; however creating synergies with the most popular networking site could help them boost Bing's popularity and usage.

Microsoft's Bing deepens ties with Facebook

Microsoft's Bing search engine has begun showing US users which sites and products their Facebook friends like.
The move is an attempt to make web search results more personal.
It is part of a four-year alliance between the two companies and marks another step in Microsoft's attempt to displace market leader Google.

Read the whole article at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-11540661