Net addresses come down to Earth, BBC News, July 29, 2005

One of the attractions of the internet is that it seems to make distance and location irrelevant. No matter where you are in the physical world as long as you are online you are the same place as everyone else in cyberspace, but lately that free-floating nature of the net has started to breakdown. Yahoo, MSN, Google and 192.com have started pushing local search services near where you are in the real world, they try to link the net address, or IP number to a physical location.

Full story at: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4665351.stm



Scalix Takes Linux Messaging Mobile, eWeek, July 30, 2005

Messaging and Collaboration software vendor Scalix has extended its Linux-based enterprise email and calendaring platform to wireless devices. This allows users of the Scalix email server to wirelessly access and synchronize their email, calendar, address book and PIM (personal information manager) data on a variety of wireless devices, such as Blackberry, Treo smart phones, HP's windows mobile-based iPags.

Full story at: http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,1841971,00.asp?kc=EWRSS03119TX1K0000594



MSN shows off Forthcoming Search, Mail Deliverables, Microsoft Watch, July 28, 2005

At Microsoft's financial analyst meeting, MSN officials demonstrated several new products and technologies that the company is expecting to deliver in the next few months. MSN’s officials demonstrated a beta version of a new mail client, as well as the adCenter platform, also in beta, that Microsoft is hoping to use to attract potential MSN and Microsoft.com advertisers. They also have new units such as social-networking app tentatively called "Friends of Friends", as well as an MSN Virtual Earth search enhancement called "Eagle Eye".

Full story at: http://www.microsoft-watch.com/article2/0,1995,1841517,00.asp?kc=MWRSS02129TX1K0000535




MSN's Enterprise Ambitions, InternetNews, July 30, 2005

Executives at Microsoft's Financial Analysts Meeting, held on Thursday, said that the company wants to extend Web-based services such as Hotmail to the enterprise. MSN services are getting enterprise-grade security and functionality. They have a new version of Web mail being tested internally by a few thousand people that looks more like Outlook, with a list of folders, previews and contact lists. The application includes built-in sender permissions (the user is alerted when receiving email from unknown sender and they can accept or block the email)....

Full story at: http://www.internetnews.com/ent-news/article.php/3524091



Skype Sets Video Bata Launch, InternetNews, July 29, 2005

VoIP Skype is slated to launch the public beta next month and that it has licensed compression codecs from On 2 Technologies, a video compression technology pioneer. Skype's video calling service is a video-enhanced PC to PC phone service and is expected to be free when it is offered commercially. The service offers broadcast quality viewing so callers can watch each other while talking on their PC-enabled Skype service. Compression techniques by the On2 codecs are key aspects that enable broadcast quality video calls.

Full story at: http://www.internetnews.com/xSP/article.php/3523871



Phishing attacks soar as viral onslaught wanes, The Register, July 29, 2005

The volume of phishing attacks on UK businesses in July increased 45 per cent, accordingly to email security company BlackSpider Technologies. BlackSpider detected more than 360,000 emails carrying a phishing threat in July, compared to just under 250,000 in June 2005. Virus-laden emails dropped slightly from 2.9 percent to 2.6 percent in July.

Full story at: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/07/29/blackspider_malware_report/



AOL dials up Web search for mobile phones, Zdnet, July 26, 2005

AOL is entering the mobile phone Internet search fray, testing a new service in the United States that will allow most cell phone users to search for Web content and local merchant information and do shopping comparisons all on their handsets. The new AOL Mobile Search Services will give mobile users access to the AOL Search service, Pinpoint Shopping Search and AOL Yellow Pages. It’s available on any Wireless Application Protocol-enabled phone, which is the majority of the mobile phones on the market.

Full story at: http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1035_22-5805754.html



Swisscom to Launch Series of New Services with Memova Messaging from Critical Path; New Services Designed to Improve the Consumer Experience as Fixed-Line and Mobile Increasingly Converge, Critical Path, July 28, 2005

Critical Path announced that Swisscom Fixnet Bluewin, a Multi-Service Provider, has singed an agreement with CP to deploy Momova Messaging with plans to launch a series of new consumer services for both broadband and mobile subscribers. The new services enabled by Memova Messaging create new opportunities for Swisscom and are designed to improve the consumer experience as fixed-line and mobile services increasingly converge.

Full story at: http://www.criticalpath.net/en/76/news/?news=736971