Featured Report: Consumers won't pay for useless apps

Fierce Developer
August, 30,2012
by:Shane Schick
Consumers may be downloading apps in mass quantities, but that doesn't mean they aren't concerned about quality, according to a recent report from Strategy Analytics. The company's latest Wireless Media Lab research study showed stability, ease of use and overall usefulness were among the key ingredients for demonstrating value to consumers of mobile apps. More than 80 percent of respondents said they also want highly useful apps to come free of charge. Less than 10 percent pay for mobile apps, said Taryn Tulay, an analyst with Strategy Analytics
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This Week's Wireless Industry News
Fierce Wireless
Nokia unveils Lumia 920 and 820, its first Windows Phone 8 smartphones Sept,5,2012
by: Phil Goldstein
NEW YORK--Nokia (NYSE:NOK) unveiled its first two smartphones running Microsoft's (NASDAQ:MSFT) Windows Phone 8 software, its latest effort to kick start its smartphone business. As expected, Nokia announced two new smartphones, the high-end Lumia 920 and the mid-range Lumia 820, which it will try to use to bolster momentum both for the platform and for the company in North America and other key markets. Read more

RCR Wireless Americas
Reality Check: Is cloud for me?
Sept,4,2012
by: Aldo Navarro Zuquini Junior
The question in the headline is not a simple one, but before answering it, you need to know the answers to some other questions: What kind of cloud is best for my company? What does my company need? Let us discuss them.

What kind of cloud is best for my company?
There are two major different kinds of clouds: public and private. The basic difference between them is where the systems are located. In public cloud computing, you don’t know where the systems are, meaning you don’t know the location of the data centers. You pay only for the systems you use, as a service, and you access all of them through the Internet.
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Ars Technica
Ban this: Apple lists 8 Samsung devices it wants kept out of the US
Aug, 27, 2012
by: Jacqui Cheng
Apple has now identified eight of Samsung's devices that it wants to have banned from sale in the US following its patent victory last week. But while the jury in Apple's court case against Samsung said Samsung had willfully infringed in most cases, Apple has apparently focused its attention on devices that are mostly unavailable in the US already
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Monday: Mobile and Social Media Marketing

Wednesday: Wireless Industry News

Friday: Healthcare,M-Health,Security News

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Featured Report: New BlackBerry 10 Devices Impress - But Can They Save RIM?

CIO Mobile
August, 28,2012
by: Al Sacco
CIO.com's Al Sacco went hands-on with RIM's first BlackBerry 10 smartphones, and both the hardware and software are unique and innovative. But the devices still might not be enough to revive RIM and the BlackBerry brand. Here's why. You may not have noticed, but BlackBerry-maker Research In Motion (RIM) has been on a media blitz during the past few weeks, showing off its upcoming BlackBerry 10 smartphones to select reporters and bloggers in "off-the-record" demonstrations.
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This Week's Wireless Industry News
Fierce Mobile Content
Mozilla redesigns Firefox browser for Android tablets
Aug,29,2012
by:Jason Ankeny
Mozilla released a revamped Firefox browser optimized for tablets running Google's (NASDAQ:GOOG) Android, promising significant speed and performance improvements. Based on the same open technology platform as Firefox's desktop counterpart, the Android tablet browser touts a personalized start page and a more streamlined user interface highlighted by a new Awesome Screen that delivers the user's browsing history, bookmarks, passwords and data. The browser also supports Firefox Sync, enabling users to synchronize data and customized preferences across multiple devices--in addition, consumers can select between the desktop and mobile version of a website by selecting "Request Desktop Site" from the browser menu. Read more

RCR Wireless Amercias
To boost social business capabilities, IBM pays $1.3B to buy Kenexa
Aug,28,2012
by: Roberta Prescott
Looking to enhance its social business vertical, IBM (NYSE: IBM) announced the acquisition of Kenexa Corporation (NYSE: KNXA) yesterday. The companies have entered into a definitive agreement, under which IBM will pay a cash price of $46 per share or a net price of approximately U.S.$1.3 billion. “The adoption of social business technology is supporting the growth of big data and the need for analytics in the enterprise,” IBM said in a statement, adding that its recent global study revealed that 57% of CEOs identified social business as a top priority, and more than 73% are making significant investments to gain insights into available data.
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Flurry
iOS and Android Adoption Explodes Internationally
Aug, 27, 2012
by: Peter Farago
The rate of iOS and Android device adoption has surpassed that of any consumer technology in history. Compared to recent technologies, smart device adoption is being adopted 10X faster than that of the 80s PC revolution, 2X faster than that of 90s Internet Boom and 3X faster than that of recent social network adoption. Five years into the smart device growth curve, expansion of this new technology is rapidly expanding beyond early adopter markets such as such as North America and Western Europe, creating a true worldwide addressable market. Overall, Flurry estimates that there were over 640 million iOS and Android devices in use during the month of July 2012.
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Wednesday: Wireless Industry News

Friday: Healthcare,M-Health,Security News

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Current Subscribers Please share this newsletter with your Clients and Friends

Are Your Leadership Skills Enough to Lead Your Company Through a Crisis?

Are Your Leadership Skills Enough to Lead Your Company Through a Crisis?

Get Tips During Free Webinar Hosted by SBA and Agility Recovery Solutions

Advisory Date: December 5, 2011
Contact: Carol Chastang (202) 205-6987
Advisory Number: MA11-32
Internet Address: http://www.sba.gov/news

WASHINGTON – Being a small business owner also makes you the person in charge of making sure everything flows without a hitch, from product development to the safety of your employees. Yet in the midst of a crisis or in the aftermath of a disaster the plans you made to keep your business open could become lost in the shuffle of stress and chaos.

On Tuesday, December 20, Agility Recovery Solutions and the U.S. Small Business Administration will host a webinar focusing on best practices to help those in leadership positions navigate the road to recovery. Agility president and CEO Bob Boyd will share real-world disaster recovery scenarios and engage participants in a discussion on practical strategies to develop the wisdom and skill needed to become a more resilient leader.

SBA has partnered with Agility to offer business continuity strategies via its “PrepareMyBusiness” website. Visit www.preparemybusiness.org to access past webinars and get additional preparedness tips.

The SBA provides disaster recovery assistance in the form of low-interest loans to homeowners, renters, private nonprofits and businesses of all sizes. To learn more, visit www.sba.gov/disaster.

WHO: Bob Boyd, President and CEO, Agility Recovery Solutions

WHAT: “Management Obligations during Disaster Recovery” will be presented by Boyd. A question and answer session will follow.

WHEN: Tuesday, December 20, 2011 – 2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. EST

HOW: Space is limited. Register at https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/311203496

New Obama Administration Initiative to Spur Job Creation

New Obama Administration Initiative to Spur Job Creation and
Accelerate Economic Growth in 20 Regions across the Country

16 Federal agencies come together to support development of
high-growth industry clusters in 21 states

Date: September 22, 2011
Release number: 11-52
News Media Contacts: DOC: Shira Kramer, 202-482-4883, SKramer@doc.gov
DOL: Josh Lamont, 202-693-4661, Lamont.Joshua.R@dol.gov
SBA: Hayley Meadvin, 202-205-6948, Hayley.Meadvin@sba.gov


WASHINGTON – The Obama Administration today announced the winners of the $37 million Jobs and Innovation Accelerator Challenge, a multi-agency competition launched in May to support the advancement of 20 high-growth, regional industry clusters. Investments from three federal agencies and technical assistance from 13 additional agencies will promote development in areas such as advanced manufacturing, information technology, aerospace and clean technology, in rural and urban regions in 21 states. Projects are driven by local communities that identify the economic strengths of their areas, with funding awarded to the best proposals.

These public-private partnerships are expected to create more than 4,800 jobs and 300 new businesses, as well as retain another 2,400 jobs and train approximately 4,000 workers for careers in high-growth industries, according to grantee estimates. Each of the 20 awards average about $1.8 million per project, and winning clusters will contribute another $13 million in total matching funds.

“The winning projects of the challenge are innovative and impressive. The grants announced today demonstrate the Administration's commitment to accelerate the development of strong industry clusters that promote robust economic environments and help develop a skilled workforce,” said U.S. Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis. “This is the type of investment the President is calling for as part of his continued commitment to job creation.”

Strong regional clusters grow from dynamic public-private partnerships that bring together business leaders, universities, non-profits, government officials and other strategic partners to help regions capitalize on shared strengths to enhance the local economy, create jobs, and compete globally.

“The Jobs and Innovation Accelerator Challenge brings the public and private sectors together to build on America’s regional strengths and create local jobs in key industries of the future,” Acting U.S. Commerce Secretary Rebecca Blank said. “This initiative is a shining example of how the federal government is working collaboratively and leveraging existing resources to enhance local efforts to build public-private partnerships that support economic growth and job creation.”

Originally a $33 million initiative, the Challenge has grown to $37 million with increasing commitments from federal funding partners. The Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration is investing $19.5 million for technical skills training; the Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration is investing $14.5 million in Economic Adjustment Assistance funds; and the Small Business Administration (SBA) is investing $3 million in technical assistance.

“SBA has a long history of support for regional clusters, and the Jobs and Innovation Accelerator Challenge is an important next step,” said SBA Administrator Karen Mills. “I am pleased that SBA is contributing funding to bring underserved small businesses into regional clusters across the country. By working with other federal agencies, we can link, leverage, and align our resources to give small businesses the tools they need to work together, grow and create jobs.”

The Jobs and Innovation Accelerator Challenge is just one example of how the Obama Administration is collaborating to ensure a smarter use of federal resources to foster regional innovation in support of sustainable economic prosperity. Strong industry clusters – such as the Research Triangle in North Carolina or Silicon Valley in California – promote robust economic ecosystems and the development of a skilled workforce, both of which are critical to long-term regional success.

The winning projects of the Jobs and Innovation Accelerator Challenge announced today include:
• Rockford, IL: Rockford Area Aerospace Cluster
• Southeast, MI: Southeast Michigan-Advanced Energy Storage Systems Initiative
• Pittsburgh, PA: Southwestern Pennsylvania Revitalization
• Northeast, OH: Northeast Ohio Speed-to-Market Accelerator
• FL: Space Coast Clean Energy Jobs Accelerator
• Knoxville & Oak Ridge, TN: Advanced Composites Employment Accelerator
• Milwaukee, WI: Milwaukee Regional Water Accelerator Project
• MO and KS: KC Regional Jobs Accelerator
• GA: Atlanta Health Information Technology Cluster
• AR, MO, OK: The ARK: Acceleration, Resources, Knowledge
• St. Louis, MO: St. Louis Bioscience Jobs and Innovation Accelerator Project
• OR and WA: Portland Regional Clean Tech Advance Initiative
• San Diego, CA: San Diego-Imperial Valley Renewable Energy Generation Training and Demonstration Center
• Puget Sound, WA: Washington Interactive Media Accelerator
• Hudson Valley, NY: New York Renewable Energy Cluster
• Finger Lakes, NY: Finger Lakes Food Processing Cluster Initiative
• MT, ND, SD: Upper Missouri Tribal Environmental Risk Mitigation
• South Central, KS: Center for Innovation and Enterprise Engagement
• Northeast, MN: Minnesota's Mining Cluster
• Northern, Maine: GreenME

The Jobs and Innovation Accelerator Challenge is part of the Obama Administration’s Regional Innovation Cluster Initiative, an interagency, place-based effort coordinated by the White House. The following federal agencies are collaborating to support this competition: U.S. Department of Agriculture; U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration, International Trade Administration, Minority Business Development Agency, and National Institute of Standards and Technology Manufacturing Extension Partnership; U.S. Department of Defense; U.S. Department of Education; U.S. Department of Energy; U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development; U.S. Department of Labor; U.S. Department of Transportation; U.S. Department of Treasury; Environmental Protection Agency; National Science Foundation; and Small Business Administration.

For more information on the Jobs and Innovation Accelerator Challenge, click here.

Non-profit Organizations Receive SBA PRIME Grants to Assist Micro Entrepreneurs

Non-profit Organizations Receive SBA PRIME Grants to Assist Micro Entrepreneurs

Release Date: September 8, 2011
Contact: David J. Hall (202) 205-6697
Release Number: 11-50
Internet Address: http://www.sba.gov/news

WASHINGTON, D.C. – One hundred nonprofit organizations from 44 states and the District of Columbia received grants under the Program for Investment in Microentrepreneurs Act (PRIME), the U. S. Small Business Administration announced today.

Grants will be used to provide business-based training and technical assistance to low-income and very low-income entrepreneurs to help them start, operate, or grow a small business. Grants will also be used to better equip community-based nonprofit organizations to provide training.

“In the midst of the economic downturn the country has been experiencing, SBA’s PRIME grants are an increasingly important tool in our toolbox to help small businesses,” said SBA Administrator Karen G. Mills. “With these grants to nonprofit organizations, more entrepreneurs will have access to the training and technical assistance they need to have their businesses grow, succeed, create jobs and promote stronger local economies.”

PRIME grants are intended to help qualified community-based organizations provide training to small businesses with five or fewer employees that are economically disadvantaged, and businesses owned by low-income individuals, including those who live on Indian reservations and tribal lands.
The PRIME grants competition was open to all 50 states and territories, with about $7.9 million available for PRIME grants this year. Approximately $6.3 million was awarded to grantees that received funding in previous years to allow them to continue work in their communities begun in FY2009 and FY2010. Grants totaling approximately $1.67 million were awarded for new projects.

Grants ranged up to $227,500 this year and require a 50 percent match by each recipient organization. The PRIME grant is open to microentrepreneur training and technical assistance providers in all 50 states and U.S territories, and has a one-year performance period, with four 12-month options. For a complete list of new and option year PRIME grants, visit http://www.sba.gov/content/prime-grantees and click on “2011.”

For more information about all of the SBA’s programs for small businesses,
visit the SBA’s website at http://www.sba.gov.

SBA Brings Matchmaker Conference to Tampa to Connect Small Business

SBA Brings Matchmaker Conference to Tampa to Connect Small Business Manufacturers with Export Specialists

Release Date: August 29, 2011
Contact: David Hall (202) 205-6687
Release Number: 11-47
Internet Address: http://www.sba.gov/news

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Small Business Administration will host the second of its Export Matchmaker Trade Fair & Conference series in Tampa, Fla., on September 14. The program is designed to provide small business manufacturers and suppliers an easy and inexpensive means for exporting their products by matching them with trade intermediaries from across the country.

“One of President Obama’s goals in the National Export Initiative is to double U.S. exports in five years,” said SBA Administrator Karen Mills. “In these challenging economic times, and with 96 percent of the world’s population living outside the U.S., it just makes sense for Florida’s small businesses to export.”

These trade intermediaries – export management companies, export trading companies, foreign sales brokers and agents – are export specialists that will either buy a company’s products and sell them in foreign markets or represent a company’s products abroad through a distribution agreement or similar contract.

Engaging with an export management company or export trading company can be the most cost-effective means for small businesses to either begin exporting or expand export sales, because they do not need to commit additional personnel or resources to the effort. In fact, indirect marketing via trade intermediaries can make exporting as easy as making a domestic sale.

The Tampa event follows the first Matchmaker conference conducted last year in Jersey City, NJ. The SBA is encouraging trade intermediaries from across the country, as well as foreign buying missions and other trade facilitators such as foreign consulates and bi-national chambers of commerce, shippers, and other trade-related service organizations to meet with small business manufacturers and suppliers at the event.

The conference is cosponsored by the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Commercial Service, the Florida District Export Council and the Florida Small Business Development Center Network. For more information and to register for the event visit: www.sba.gov/exportmatchmaker-florida.

Registration Opens for 29th Annual MED Week Conference

Registration Opens for 29th Annual MED Week Conference

Release Date: August 31, 2011
Contact: Tiffani Clements (202) 401-0035
Release Number: 11-48
Internet Address: http://www.sba.gov/news

WASHINGTON – Registration for the 29th annual Minority Enterprise Development (MED) Week conference that will bring business leaders and top minority business owners to Washington in September is now open, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) announced today.

The MED Week conference, hosted jointly by SBA and the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Minority Business Development Agency will take place Sept. 27-30, at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel in Washington, D.C.

The theme for this year’s MED Week event is “Emerging Industries & Markets: A Blueprint for Success,” and its focus will be on helping minority-owned small businesses expand their operations and establish a presence in the global marketplace while helping them weather current economic climate.

“MED Week celebrates the accomplishments of outstanding minority entrepreneurs and leaders and provides a platform for small, minority-owned businesses to learn about business growth strategies, receive premier training and networking opportunities,” said SBA Administrator Karen G. Mills.

“MED Week is more important than ever before as minority-owned firms are seen as a valuable asset and significant source of job creation for the country,” said MBDA National Director David Hinson. “Business owners, corporations, federal agencies will all be in attendance seeking to be a part of the solution to ‘Win the Future’ for America.”

Keynote speakers include Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, and U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan. Corporate executives from Honda, General Motors, Chrysler, Northrop-Grumman, Raytheon and Lockheed Martin also will participate in industry-specific workshops on increasing supplier diversity. The conference also will include sessions on high-speed rail construction projects, public utilities and green business.

SBA will present workshops on improving access to its lending and government contracting programs, and increasing business growth by using social media. SBA will participate in a roundtable entitled “Doing Business with the Government.” There will also be a business expo and tradeshow, business-to-business matchmaking sessions and a Small Business Town Hall to discuss the Small Business Jobs Act. For more information on MED Week workshops, or to register for the conference, visit www.medweek.gov.

SBA Expands Entrepreneurship Boot Camp for Vets

SBA News Release
PRESS OFFICE

*************

SBA Expands Entrepreneurship Boot Camp for Vets
Announces Two New Programs for Women Vets, Guard, Reservists and Families

*************
Release Date: November 10, 2010
Contact: Dennis Byrne (202) 205-6567
Release Number: 10-63
Internet Address: http://www.sba.gov/news

*************

WASHINGTON – With thousands of service men and women returning from
wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the U.S. Small Business Administration and
Syracuse University are expanding their Entrepreneurship Boot Camp for
Veterans with Disabilities (EBV) to a seventh school, Louisiana State
University, and launching two new entrepreneurship programs for women
veterans and National Guard and Reserve members and their families.

According to the SBA, nearly one quarter of veterans indicate they are
interested in starting or buying their own small business, and that percentage
is even higher among women veterans. With that in mind, the growing
partnership between SBA and Syracuse University provides training on how to
start and grow a small business to veterans, with programs targeted to
service-disabled veterans, women, National Guard and Reserve members and
their families of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

“When you consider the leadership and management skills our veterans
develop while on active and reserve duty, it’s no wonder we see more of them
pursuing their dreams as entrepreneurs and small business owners,” SBA
Administrator Karen Mills said. “Through our partnership with Syracuse
University we are continuing to strengthen the tools and resources available to
them.”

“We often speak about the sacred trust we have with our service men and
women, and one way we honor that trust is ensuring they have every possible
opportunity for success,” Mills continued. “When it comes to entrepreneurship,
their success also means success in driving economic growth and creating
jobs.”

In 2009, SBA partnered with Syracuse University, providing a three-year
cooperative agreement providing funding totaling $450,000, to support the
university’s year-long EBV program on six campuses. Now in the second year
of the partnership, with SBA’s support, the “boot camp” is expanding to a
seventh campus, E.J. Ourso College of Business at Louisiana State University.
The other five campuses are: the University of Connecticut School of
Business, Mays Business School at Texas A&M, UCLA Anderson School of
Management, Florida State University’s College of Business, and the Krannert
School of Management at Purdue University.

Created and delivered by a network of some of the best business schools in
the country, it is designed to leverage the skills, resources and infrastructure
of higher education to offer experiential training in entrepreneurship and small
business management to veterans. Last year, the first year SBA partnered
with Syracuse University, 129 service-disabled veterans participated in the
program. Since the program’s inception, more than 320 wounded warriors have
graduated to date and more than 150 businesses to date have been launched
by graduates.

Additionally, SBA is also providing $2.6 million through a cooperative agreement
over three years for two new programs supporting veteran entrepreneurs. The
first, Women Veterans Igniting the Spirit of Entrepreneurship (V-WISE),
focuses on training, networking and mentorship for women veterans. The
three-day, off-site training program, online training and network support
structures will be delivered in several locations around the nation, and
anticipates serving up to 1,400 female veterans over a 36-month period.

The second new program, Operation Endure & Grow, targets National Guard
and Reserve members, their families and business partners. The goal of this
program is to mitigate the economic hardship of deployed members and their
families. The eight-week online course will focus on the fundamentals of
launching and/or growing a small business for those who will sustain the
business when the service member is deployed, injured or killed. Initially 550
individuals are expected to participate. In total V-WISE and Operation Endure
& Grow will serve over 1,950 individuals and their families.

The expansion of SBA’s partnership with Syracuse University builds on more
than $1.25 billion in loan guarantees for veterans in its flagship 7(a) and 504
programs, and through its Patriot Express loan pilot initiative. In three years
Patriot Express has supported nearly $550 million in loans to more than 6,500
veterans and spouses looking to establish or expand their small businesses.

SBA reaches out to veterans through its 68 local SBA district offices, 16
Veterans Business Outreach Centers nationwide, and its partnership with 1,000
Small Business Development Centers and some 12,000 SCORE – Counselors to
America’s Small Businesses volunteers. SBA has numerous programs creating
government contracting opportunities for vet-owned small businesses. For
more information visit www.sba.gov/vets and www.sba.gov/reservists.