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Google tests different things with its search interface all the time. Sometimes we cover the tests, and sometimes we don’t. Frankly there are just too many to keep track of. Matt Cutts has said that Google runs 20,000 search experiments a year.

This one is kind of interesting though, as it completely removes URLs from search results pages (apparently unless there is authorship involved).

Tecno-Net tipped Search Engine Roundtable with a couple screen caps like the one below:

SER’s Schwartz posted about it on Search Engine Land here.

I don’t see Google actually making this change overall. It makes results less informative. What do you think? Should Google get rid of URLs on results pages?

Photobombs are nothing new to the internet, but it’s rare that a celebrity participates in ‘ruining’ a tourist photo.

This week, a woman became internet-famous for a short time after a friend of hers posted a picture of her standing in front of the George Washington statue in Boston Public Garden to Reddit. The catch is that acting legend Kevin Spacey had randomly joined the photo moments before it was taken.

The purported friend, who has since deleted his or her Reddit account, stated that Spacey simply jogged up to the woman, shouted “Photobomb!” and continued jogging.

The Reddit comments for the picture were soon filled with jokes based on Spacey’s movie and TV characters. One of the best (by Reddit user mister_durden) referenced Spacey’s character in American Beauty who asks for workout advice by saying, “I just want to look good naked.” Another referenced Spacey’s most recent character in the Netflix series House of Cards, who works out using a rowing machine.

Thunderbolt, you were a tech with near unlimited promise when first introduced, but what have you done with all that power? Since my first Thunderbolt-equipped Mac, I’ve essentially been using the ports as straight up Mini DisplayPort replacements, and using them exclusively for powering external screens. But now the Belkin Thunderbolt Express Dock has arrived, and Thunderbolt finally makes sense. Pricey, $300 sense, mind you.

• 2 Thunderbolt ports, with daisy-chain capabilities to connect up to 5 additional Thunderbolt devices.
• Gigabit Ethernet port
• 3 USB 3.0 ports
• 1 FireWire 800 port
• 3.5mm headphone output and mic in ports

The Belkin Thunderbolt dock’s design is understated, and will fit with the rest of your black and aluminum standard Mac kit. It’s basically just a box with rounded edges, a cable management channel running through the middle underside of the device, and a row of ports at the back, but it works and it can tuck nicely under your MacBook if you’re using a desktop stand, or underneath the screen of your iMac. There’s even a pair of flashing indicators for network traffic on the Ethernet port, which makes me nostalgic for the days of desktop PC towers that told you everything you needed to know with just a series of blinking lights.

If anything it’s a little bulky, but considering everything it’s bringing to the table, that’s not really all that surprising. Note that this also requires an AC adapter to work, so you’ll have to clear up space on your office power bar.

Computer makers don’t tend to be looking for more ways to fit extra ports in their hardware designs, and the Retina MacBook Pro and MacBook Air lines are perfect examples of where things are headed. As a result, I find myself with only two USB ports on an $1,800 computer, no Ethernet port, a single input for both mic and headphones, and no Firewire 800 for my legacy devices, like portable hard drives. The Belkin Thunderbolt Express Dock fixes all those things.

The three USB 3.0 ports are possibly the best part of the arrangement, as they more than double to total load-out of USB ports on your average lightning-equipped MacBook Pro. Even with an iMac, you get 7 USB ports total instead of just three, turning it into a dream machine for someone like a video, design or audio professional who probably has tons of accessories they need to connect and/or switch out at any given time. The first time you don’t have to decide which crucial USB accessory to unplug in order to charge your iPhone, the Dock proves its worth.

The Thunderbolt daisy-chaining also means I can still attach my 27-inch iMac as an external monitor, though that means the chain ends there. But if I had a Thunderbolt drive with two ports, I can easily slot that in between the two, and still use the display as the terminal end of the chain. Finally, the return of Firewire 800 and the Ethernet provide some much-needed tools for using more old-school, but still very effective technologies, including the various Firewire 800 external drives I have sitting around.

All of these ports and additional bits worked flawlessly in my experience, and the headphone jack actually seems to operate as an external sound card to some degree, boosting volume levels and giving you more flexibility in terms of playback options.

If you ever feel like your Mac doesn’t have enough hardware input/output options, then the Belkin Thunderbolt Express Dock is for you. It took long enough to get here, and it’s pretty expensive at $299 (plus the price of Thunderbolt cable, which ships separately). The Matrox DS1 is another option at $249, but it only has one Thunderbolt port and just one USB 3.0, though it adds both an HDMI and DVI-D output. For my money, the Belkin is the way to go, especially if you use your Mac as your main workstation.

The SensAbues DrugTrap is out to foil your drugged-up driving experiences.

The breathalyzer. Anyone pulled over on suspicion of driving under the influence knows it all too well. Since the 1980s, police have used the tool, first developed in 1967, to detect alcohol content in the blood. Until now, breath samples have only really been accurate in terms of alcohol, but Swedish researchers have just published a study which touts the abilities of the new product, a breathalyzer for drugs.

The product and research comes from Stockholm’s Karolinska Institute, who used their drug-detecting breathalyzer to detect the presence of a wide variety of illegal drugs – with accuracy. They were even able to detect a host of other drugs with a little less accuracy.

Researchers tapped 47 participants from the Stockholm Drug Emergency Clinic, collected blood and urine samples (for comparison), and had them blow into their device. Researchers say that they were able to accurately detect these substances: amphetamine, methamphetamine, morphine, heroin, THC, Diazepam, Oxazepam, cocaine, and benzoylecgonine.

And with less accuracy, these: Codiene, MDMA, Methadone, Nicotine, Continine, Zolpiden, and MDPV (bath salts)

Here’s how SensAbues describes the technology:

During normal breathing microparticles are formed from the airway liquid fluid by the closure and opening of bronchioles. These particles form a bioaserol that is carried out in the exhaled breath. These bioaerosol particles can be selectively collected by a unique filter technique developed at the Karolinska Institute. Collected particles can be used for drugs of abuse detection by analysis with high sensitivity technique, e.g. liquid chromatography – mass spectrometry.

“Until now, sampling for drug testing has been a complicated, lengthy or intrusive process: urine samples have to be collected under surveillance; blood tests that have to be taken by trained medical staff. SensAbues offers a sampling device for easy and rapid sampling on site, a sampling procedure difficult to adulterate, and analysis by mass spectrometry for legally defensible results,” says SensAbues.

It could be only a matter of time until police everywhere are able to quickly and easily breathalyze you for anything. Yeah, science?

[IOP Science via Digital Trends]

DRM, or digital rights management, isn’t well-liked among consumers. More often than not, it punishes legitimate consumers while doing nothing to stop piracy. Most legacy content industries still insist that DRM is needed to stop piracy, but is it really needed?

Last year, Tor Books UK went completely DRM free. At the time, the publisher said that it was removing DRM from its e-books because it was a “constant annoyance” to its customers. It also said that DRM prevented customers “from using legitimately purchased e-books in perfectly legal ways, like moving the from one kind of e-reader to another.”

It’s been a year since Tor Books removed DRM from its products. Did the publisher suddenly see a sharp increase in piracy? Is the company finding that its business is failing because of its move? Will publishers that still insist on DRM look at them and say “Told you so” while sporting a malicious grin?

In all actuality, none of the above occurred as removing DRM has had no discernable effect on the publisher. Tor UK’s Editorial Director Julie Crisp said just as much in a blog post this week:

As it is, we’ve seen no discernible increase in piracy on any of our titles, despite them being DRM-free for nearly a year.

Crisp never outright says that sales increased when Tor UK removed DRM, but she does say that it has endeared readers and authors to the publisher:

The move has been a hugely positive one for us, it’s helped establish Tor and Tor UK as an imprint that listens to its readers and authors when they approach us with a mutual concern—and for that we’ve gained an amazing amount of support and loyalty from the community.

Of course, some publishers will argue that Tor’s experience with ditching DRM is the exception. They’ll argue that DRM is necessary to stop piracy, but we already know that DRM does nothing to stop piracy. Instead, in the words of Charles Stross, DRM is a “monopoly” that reduces readers’ freedom while hampering competition.

Even with Tor’s evidence, DRM will still be used for many years to come. Legacy industries refuse to even entertain the idea that DRM may be negatively affecting legitimate customers opting instead to continue beating the anti-piracy war drums.

[h/t: TechDirt]

Continuing its quest to make its public cloud services more attractive to enterprise users, API-enamored Amazon has added another interface to the mix. Businesses that pay for AWS support can use the new API to tailor their support cases and automate how they are handled.

According to an Amazon Web Services blog post Thursday:

“If you are signed up for the Business or Enterprise level of AWS Support, you can use this API to create new support cases, check on the status of open cases, and resolve cases. You can also add and retrieve information for existing cases. The AWS Support API also gives you access to best practices recommendations generated by the AWS Trusted Advisor. You can get the list of checks, access the latest results, and re-run the checks to refresh the results. This has been a much requested feature for customers who wish to integrate support case management into their in-house ticketing systems, and with the release of Support APIs we have delivered on this request.”

AWS support customers can also access their Trusted Advisor recommendations via this API. Trusted Advisor is a monitoring tool that gives customers tips about how to most efficiently deploy their AWS resources.

Enhancing customer support will be key to AWS in the future. Startups and a growing number of bigger, older companies use AWS for test and dev. But when it comes to big production deployments, the knock on Amazon’s public cloud infrastructure is that, when it comes to deploying big, important applications, it may not always be the most trusted — or even the least expensive — venue. That’s why Amazon is doing its best — with its AWS: Reinvent show and new tools — to show AWS as not just cost-efficient, but more importantly a flexible and reliable site for production work loads.

Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:
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The Washington Post Company posted bleak quarterly earnings on Friday. The newspaper division saw an operating loss of $34.5 million, newspaper division revenue fell four percent from a year ago, and while online revenue was up the entire company barely eked out a profit.

While most of the losses arose as a result of pension and restructuring expenses, the company’s core business remains distressed. Print advertising revenues fell 8 percent, and while circulation declined by seven percent. A small bright spot comes in the form of a 16 percent increase in online display advertising at a time when such revenue is flat or falling at other newspapers.

While the Washington Post’s earnings reflect a familiar story of the declining newspaper business, they are particularly discouraging because the paper does not appear to have a turnaround plan on the horizon. While the New York Times has been experimenting with its digital paywall for over a year, and now has plans to create different pricing tiers, the Post’s plan to raise online digital subscription revenue remains amorphous. The company plans to launch a paywall this summer, but the model appears so leaky that it is unlikely to bring in significant money any time soon.

At the same time, while the New York Times has cut away all its non-core assets to focus on the flagship brand, the Washington Post Company is also figuring out how to turn around Kaplan, its troubled education segment.

Correction: The first paragraph of this post was updated to correct descriptions of profit and loss.

Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:
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As we recently reported, the awesome developers over at Paranoid Android have come up with an incredible new feature for their ROM inspired by Facebook’s Chat Heads. They are calling it “Halo” notifications and they’ve described it as the first step to solving Android’s lack of true multitasking. It works by forwarding all notifications system-wide to the Halo bubble. Clicking the Halo bubble opens a tiny applet where you can respond to any notification.

Halo will be included in upcoming builds of the popular Paranoid Android rom which is available for a plethora of devices. One lucky user got his hands on an early build and was nice enough to film a demonstration. Hit the break for the video and check back for more news on this feature as we get it.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Come comment on this article: Paranoid Android’s new Halo notification system gets demoed in video

Intel (INTC) announced that the board of directors has unanimously elected Brian Krzanich as its next chief executive officer, succeeding Paul Otellini. Intel announced last November that Otellini would retire. Krzanich will become the sixth CEO in Intel’s history beginning May 16. Krzanich has been Intel’s chief operating officer since January 2012, and has progressed through a series of technical and leadership roles since joining Intel in 1982.

“Brian is a strong leader with a passion for technology and deep understanding of the business,” said Andy Bryant, chairman of Intel. “His track record of execution and strategic leadership, combined with his open-minded approach to problem solving has earned him the respect of employees, customers and partners worldwide. He has the right combination of knowledge, depth and experience to lead the company during this period of rapid technology and industry change.”

As chief operating officer, Krzanich led an organization of more than 50,000 employees spanning Intel’s Technology and Manufacturing Group, Intel Custom Foundry, NAND Solutions group, Human Resources, Information Technology and Intel’s China strategy. The board of directors also elected Renée James, 48, to be president of Intel. ”I look forward to partnering with Renée as we begin a new chapter in Intel’s history,” said Krzanich. “Her deep understanding and vision for the future of computing architecture, combined with her broad experience running product R&D and one of the world’s largest software organizations, are extraordinary assets for Intel.”

Intel Invests in FeedHenry

This week Irish cloud-based mobile enterprise application provider FeedHenry announced that it has secured $9 million in funding in a round led by Intel Capital. Existing investors include VMware, Enterprise Ireland, and other private investors. The new funding will provide FeedHenry with the capital to accelerate the international roll out of its mobile application platform that draws on critical cloud-based technology. FeedHenry provides a next generation mobile application platform that helps businesses build mobile app solutions that integrate securely to their business through the cloud.

“ Increasingly, enterprises are viewing mobile apps as transformative to their business operations” commented Cathal McGloin, CEO, FeedHenry “As organizations evolve towards more complex apps with connections to multiple backend systems, the need for a cloud-based mobile application platform is compelling. This new investment will give us the means to continue to innovate and expand the capabilities of our platform to better serve our growing customer base.”

I love turn-based strategy because it gives players time to ponder their decisions and because almost all choices open up new avenues of action, new ways to interact with the game world and progress towards a goal.

Eador – Masters of the Broken World is an example of the potential of the genre, but also of how hard it is to create a… (read more)

The Micron P420m is a new PCIe all-flash I/O accelerator to improve overall performance in enterprise servers. (Photo: Micron)

Micron Technology (MU) announced a new PCIe all-flash I/O accelerator to improve overall performance in enterprise servers, appliances and storage platforms. The new Micron P420m combines consistent performance with the inherent power efficiency of an all-flash system to deliver improved economics for enterprise data centers.

The P420M is a fast and consistent performer, delivering more than 3,200 web server requests per second. It features ultra-low latency performance that enables fast and predictable response times to information frequently used in data center environments. The low-profile accelerator card comes in a half-height, half-length form factor and will be available in 350GB, 700GB and 1.4TB capacities. The P420m will be showcased at EMC World, May 6-9 in Las Vegas.

“The P420m is a true workhorse – it delivers where performance matters most,” said Ed Doller, VP and general manager of Micron’s Enterprise SSD division. “Introduction of the P420m is a testament to our commitment to storage innovation for all levels of integration. We’ve expanded our portfolio to address the changing storage needs of today’s data centers, regardless the workload.”

The P420m uses Micron’s Extended Performance and Enhanced Reliability Technology (XPERT) architecture, which closely incorporates the storage and controller through highly optimized firmware algorithms and hardware enhancements.  It’s ASIC controller was custom-designed, and has advanced 25-nanometer (nm) multilevel cell (MLC) NAND flash technology, DRAM, firmware and drivers to create a truly vertically integrated solution. The vertical integration begins with intimate knowledge of the NAND media and extends all the way to the end-system design, manufacture and drivers. This end-to-end involvement ensures delivering the ultimate level of storage quality and efficiency.

The latest installment of the always superb Bad Lip Reading takes on AMC’s hit zombie series The Walking Dead. Er…walkers, not zombies.

Anyway, it proves something I’ve been saying all along. This show would be so much better if the zombies walkers could talk. Seriously, just think about it. How hilarious/creepy would it be if mid-intestinal-foraging, one of the zombies walkers just looked up and said something. Anything. And then went back to munching on flesh. Good thing we have BLR to finally give the dead some dialogue. And before you ask, yes, Andrea is just as annoying as always in this clip.

[BadLipReading]

The world’s leading ad agencies are positioning themselves  in Brazil, Russia and China — countries that are expected to provide almost a third of the growth in global advertising over the next three years. That’s according to a report by S&P Capital IQ Equity Research, a unit of publishing giant McGraw Hill.

Most major advertisers already have a foothold in these BRIC economies, where the advertising market is projected to grow by an average 10.7 percent  a year over the next three years — more than three times the growth rate in  the developed world.  Over the next 15 years,  big emerging markets will add $200 billion to the global ad spend, S&P Capital IQ reckons.

Hopes, unsurprisingly, are pinned on the soccer World Cup in 2014 and the 2016 Olympics, both hosted by Brazil. Russia hosts the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi and Football World cup in 2018 and both these events are expected to boost ad spending. The behemoths of the ad world have prepared for this, says Alex Wisch, an analyst at S&P Capital IQ:

    The global agencies have already developed a solid foundation in the BRICs, so the heavy lifting on the investment ramp is largely behind them.

(Graphic under creative commons)

Accordingly, S&P Capital IQ has a ‘buy’ recommendation on advertising agencies Publicis, Interpublic and Omnicon while advising a “hold” on WPP.

Emerging markets currently account for a small proportion of the global ad market which is estimated to be worth more than $500 billion. Despite faster growth that will remain the case, S&P Capital IQ says, noting that in absolute spending terms, North America will contribute as much to global advertising expenditure as China, Brazil and Russia combined over the next three years.

While Europe looks set for more disappointment, the report predicts faster momentum in North American markets as economic recovery gathers steam. One reason is digital advertising — internet advertising, digital marketing and data services  –which is better established in the United States.

The outlook is  ‘cautiously optimistic’ for global advertising agencies, driven by further expansion in higher growth markets, the report concludes.

Watch that ad space…

Do you guys have any Green Day? Really? Yeah, like the early Knitting Factory stuff. Not this Dookie garbage. Yeah, I liked them before they sold out. What about Neutral Milk Hotel? Is the new album any good? Yeah, I know, dude. What’s the Avery Island junk? Serious bummer after Aeroplane.

What else you got? Staples is selling Cube 3D Printers for $1,299? Seriously? That is total bull. I remember when I used to see 3D printers in like hackerspaces down in Alphabet City and now they sold out like that? Damn. People do anything for money.

I mean that’s totally stupid. Real fans are all totally into 3D printing but when you get it all corporate you lose so much cred, you know? Like how the Pixies sold out and like imploded. I know. Makerbot would never sell their stuff at Best Buy. Who’s going to buy one? Some stockbroker jerk in a suit? Those dudes are legit punk.

But man, I’m telling you: 3D printing is totally over. I saw the first Shapeways stuff come off the line back in 2007 when they played the Netherlands and I was totally there when the guys at Form Labs launched the Form:One on stage at CBGB. For these guys to totally sell out is absolute garbage. Man, what’s next? Is Oasis going to write a song about PLA? Is Staples going to sell 3D printers next to those big jugs of pretzels? So dumb.

Whatever. Put on “Dry the Rain.” Maybe we can move some of these CDs out of here to make room for our corporate shill BS 3D printer. Jeeze.

North Carolina-based Plexus Capital, a firm focused on providing growth capital to lower middle market businesses, has raised $150 million from LPs, the firm announced Friday. The capital will be combined with leverage from the Small Business Administration in the same amount to create Plexus Fund III, with total available investment capital of $300 million, the firm said.

PRESS RELEASE
Plexus Capital, which specializes in providing growth capital to lower middle market businesses across the nation, has been named the U.S. Small Business Investment Company (SBIC) of the Year for 2013. In announcing that Plexus is the top SBIC of more than 300 in the nation, Small Business Administration (SBA) Administrator Karen Mills cited “Plexus Capital’s hard work, innovative ideas and dedication.” Plexus Capital will receive the SBIC of the Year Award June 21 during the 50th Anniversary of National Small Business Week.

The North Carolina-based firm has just completed raising $150 million in private capital from its long standing limited partners. Pending final SBA approval, this private capital will be combined with leverage from the SBA in the same amount to create Plexus Fund III, with total available investment capital of $300 million. Plexus invests across a broad range of industries and typically in privately-held, lower middle market businesses across the United States. Plexus Capital meets strict SBA licensing criteria in order to provide subordinated debt and equity capital as an SBIC serving small businesses across the nation.

“Being named the nation’s Small Business Investment Company of 2013 speaks to the value we are providing to our investors and small businesses across the country,” said Plexus Capital Managing Partner Bob Anders. “Plexus is distinguished by our focus on relationships, our determination to create access to growth capital for U.S. middle market businesses, and our proven ability to continue to earn the confidence of our investors. With investments in more than 50 businesses, and experience managing through all economic cycles, we have proven ourselves to be patient investors with the experience it takes to succeed.”

The SBA selected Plexus Capital for the honor based on its award criteria which included portfolio company revenue and employment growth, strong commitment to overall business growth, management of portfolio companies, and participation in the small business community.

About SBICs The Small Business Investment Company (SBIC) program, administered by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), is a private-public partnership created in 1958 to fill the gap between the availability of growth capital and the needs of small businesses. The SBA’s Investment Division licenses qualified private equity fund managers and provides them with access to low-cost, government-guaranteed capital to make investments in U.S. small businesses. (see http://www.sba.gov/content/faqs)

About Plexus Capital With offices in Charlotte and Raleigh, N.C., Plexus Capital has $550 million under management and invests in middle market, high-growth companies located across the United States. Plexus Capital most often funds growth, acquisitions, leveraged buyouts, management buyouts, and stock repurchases. The firm launched its first fund in 2005. For more information see www.plexuscap.com/. Please feel free to contact either Robert Gefaell at (704) 927-6247 or Mike Becker at (919) 256-6342 if Plexus can be of assistance to you or your clients for financing needs.

The post Plexus Capital Raises $150M from LPs appeared first on peHUB.

Disney has given the order to cease production of their licensed items in what they call “high risk” countries; namely, Bangladesh, Ecuador, Venezuela, Belarus and Pakistan. Bangladesh is the first to go, with the latter four losing factories by next spring.

The company’s decision comes at a time when horrific factory accidents are on the rise; last November a fire at Tazreen Fashions Factory in Bangladesh’s capital, Dhaka, left 112 people dead, and another fire in Pakistan killed 262 garment workers just two months before. With the news of last week’s factory collapse that killed more than 400, Disney made the decision in order to back health and safety conditions.

“After much thought and discussion we felt this was the most responsible way to manage the challenges associated with our supply chain,” said Bob Chapek, president of Disney Consumer Products.

Although the news won’t be taken lightly by those who are in favor of big companies sourcing from countries where the jobs are desperately needed, Disney reps say they aren’t averse to working with Bangladesh in the future; however, they will only be working with factories which are in a partnership with the Better Work program. Run by the International Labor Organization, it ensures health and safety conditions for factory workers.

Image: Disney.com

Slayer guitarist Jeff Hanneman passed away on Thursday at the age of 49. Fans around the web are expressing their grief, sharing memories, and of course, listening to Slayer.

With that, it seemed like a fine time to reflect on this ad Google released last October for Chromebooks, which makes use of Slayer’s “Raining Blood”.

The ad was obviously Halloween-themed, and says: “For little devils. For scaring off viruses. For spooky-fast startup. For undead battery. For horror movie marathons. For no fear of crashes. For no phantom files. For no software nightmares. For a fun size. For no haunting hassles. The $249 laptop from Google. For everyone.”

Probably not what the band had in mind when they wrote the song, but it shows just how far Slayer’s influence really does go.

Here’s a roundup of recent headlines from the data center industry around the world:

Salesforce.com announces UK Data Center.  Salesforce.com (CRM) announced that  it has signed an agreement with NTT Europe to establish a European data centre in the U.K. The facility is scheduled for completion in 2014. As demand for cloud computing rises in Europe, Salesforce.com will support the company’s cloud computing services across its growing customer base in Europe, Middle East and Africa. ”Europe was salesforce.com’s fastest growing region in our fiscal year 2013, delivering constant currency revenue growth of 38 percent,” said Marc Benioff, Chairman and CEO, salesforce.com. “We are doubling down on Europe with the announcement of our new data centre in the U.K., which will support continued customer success in EMEA.” Robin Balen, Managing Director of NTT Europe’s Wholesale Data Centre Business, said ths SAlesforce.com facility will be ”powered 100% by renewable energy sources.”

Telecom New Zealand acquires data centers.  Telecom New Zealand announced that it has  signed a conditional agreement to acquire privately-owned New Zealand IT infrastructure and data centre company Revera Limited for NZ$96.5 million. The Revera brand will be retained and Revera will continue to run as a standalone business.  ”We’re pleased to have a computing infrastructure company with the track-record and reputation of Revera joining our team and strengthening our group,” said Simon Moutter, Telecom Chief Executive. “Telecom is refining its business strategy to become a future-oriented, competitive provider of communication, entertainment and IT services delivered over its networks and the Cloud. This acquisition adds a respected brand that deepens our IT services portfolio for business customers, particularly with regards to Cloud services. Both Gen-i and Revera will be better positioned to respond to evolving customer needs in the areas of big data and cloud computing.”

Allstream Offers Cisco UCS Service.  Cisco (CSCO) announced that Canadian communications provider Allstream has launched a Hosted Collaboration Solution (HCS) as a hosted and fully managed unified communications and collaboration solution. Allstream HCS brings the Cisco Unified Communications and Collaboration suite of applications to Canadian businesses through a new, cost-effective, cloud-based delivery model. The new offering allows Allstream customers to operate Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS) including integrated voice, video, presence and mobility applications for compatible desktop and mobile devices. ”Businesses are looking for ways to improve and simplify their communications and allow their people to collaborate easily and with a high degree of mobility,” said Dean Prevost, President, Allstream. “Allstream Hosted Collaboration Solution is backed by the security and reliability of our national 30,000 kilometre IP fibre network and, being a cloud-based service, offers the benefit of being an operating vs. capital expense, allowing customers simpler budgeting and greater flexibility in their IT services.”