TECHNOLOGY : View Posts

TOKYO, JAPAN – TAIYO YUDEN CO., LTD. and GE Ventures announced today that GE Ventures has licensed intellectual property (IP) to TAIYO YUDEN for fabricating substrates embedded with electronic circuits in late 2014. With this technology transfer, TAIYO YUDEN and GE will construct a joint development framework toward the commercialization of next-generation wirebondless, embedded electronics circuits.

TAIYO YUDEN will develop Si-, SiC- and GaN-based wirebondless embedded electronics circuits with the technology and the patent licenses provided by GE Ventures Licensing. Embedded electronic packaging technologies provide significantly improved electrical performance (for example, reduced parasitics), can increase functional density of the electronics circuits by more than a third, and can increase efficiency by over 10%.

“We are extremely pleased to have TAIYO YUDEN as an embedded electronics partner,” said Pat Patnode, President of Licensing at GE Ventures. “The strong demand for high performance electronics circuits continues to drive advance research, and GE is excited to partner with TAIYO YUDEN to bring wirebondless embedded packaging solutions to the next generation of electronics.” These embedded electronics circuits can be built into higher level power assemblies and systems for a wide variety of applications.

“TAIYO YUDEN will target power devices, Internet of Things (IoT), and wearable applications with this GE Power Overlay (POL) technology. This technology will allow additional new application opportunities leveraging the strength of Taiyo Yuden’s current packaging and assembly technology capability and experience,” said Hiroshi Kishi, Operating Officer, Research and Development Laboratory.

GE Ventures accelerates innovation and growth for partners by providing access to GE technologies and inventions through licensing and joint development partnerships. This advanced microelectronics embedding technology is being licensed to leading global manufacturing partners to provide advanced solutions back to businesses worldwide and also to GE, as part of the GE Store.

TAIYO YUDEN is a worldwide electronic component manufacturer with a wide application base for their technology. Since their inception in 1950, they have achieved growth by undertaking the research, development, manufacture and sale of various types of electronic components.

About GE Ventures
GE Ventures is committed to identifying, scaling and accelerating ideas that will make the world work better. Focused on the areas of software, advanced manufacturing, energy and healthcare, GE Ventures helps entrepreneurs and start-ups succeed by providing access to GE’s technical expertise, capital and opportunities for commercialization through GE’s global network of business, customers and partners. GE Ventures offers an unparalleled level of resources through its Global Research Center, including: 35,000 engineers; 5,000 research scientists; 8,000 software professionals; as well as 40,000 sales, marketing and development resources in over 100 countries. For more information, please visit geventures.com.

San Jose, CA and Irvine, CA — LeEco and VIZIO, Inc. announced today a definitive agreement under which LeEco would acquire VIZIO, Inc. for $2 billion USD. The VIZIO hardware and software businesses will be owned and operated as a wholly owned subsidiary of LeEco, while the VIZIO data business, Inscape, will spin out and operate as a separate, privately owned company.

Recently named one of Fast Company’s 2016 “Most Innovative Companies,” LeEco is a leading global company that provides breakthrough experiences through an open, integrated ecosystem enabled by its Internet and cloud platform. LeEco develops intelligent hardware that serves as the interface to connect individuals, interact with them and to enrich their lives through premium content and applications.

“LeEco believes in breakthrough technologies, a complete ecosystem and disruptive pricing. Acquiring VIZIO is an important step in our globalization strategy and building our North American presence,” said YT Jia, Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, LeEco. “From its inception, VIZIO introduced a disruptive business model that changed the industry and aligns with our vision of breaking boundaries to deliver consumer-focused products, software and services.”

Based in Irvine, CA and founded in 2002, VIZIO is a leading consumer electronics brand in North America, with #1 unit share in Smart TVs1 and #1 unit share in Sound Bars2. The company is focused on delivering the ultimate home entertainment experience through its ecosystem of hardware, software and services. The acquisition benefits both companies with VIZIO offering LeEco a steady install base of users and a brand that is both popular and successfully distributed throughout major North American retail channels. LeEco provides VIZIO immediate global scale to bring its innovations to consumers worldwide. Like LeEco, VIZIO shares a similar vision of creating premium products with the latest innovations and making them accessible for everyone – from budget-minded students to custom home theater cinephiles – without sacrificing quality or performance.

“Fourteen years ago, I mortgaged my house to start VIZIO and since then, it has grown into one of the most well-known and respected CE brands in North America. As an entrepreneur, I couldn’t be more proud of what has been accomplished,” said William Wang, Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, VIZIO. “As we enter a new chapter with LeEco, I’m humbled by the hard work and dedication of VIZIO shareholders and employees. Their unwavering faith in the brand and commitment to excellence is what made this venture possible. I’m excited to see how LeEco’s global reach and resources will elevate VIZIO as we continue to bring great technology, innovation and value to our consumers.”

The VIZIO executive management team will remain in place and will continue its operations as an independent subsidiary from its existing headquarters in Irvine, CA. The VIZIO brand and its portfolio of products will continue to be sold through its existing distribution channels and supported by the same North American-based, award-winning customer service. William Wang

will transition to Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Inscape, with focus on the continued expansion and growth of the brand’s data business.

As part of the definitive agreement, LeEco will acquire all of the VIZIO hardware and software operations, technology and intellectual property. The transaction is expected to close during the fourth quarter of 2016, and is subject to customary closing conditions. BofA Merrill Lynch acted as advisor to the special committee of the VIZIO board of directors, and Latham & Watkins LLP served as legal counsel for VIZIO on this transaction.

About LeEco
LeEco is a leading global technology company that provides breakthrough experiences through its open, integrated ecosystem of streaming content, platforms, and smart devices that fit perfectly into a broad spectrum of lifestyles. LeEco opens new opportunities for consumers by offering a wide array of next-generation connected products – including smartphones, TVs, bikes and cars – and content spanning sports, film and live entertainment. LeEco was recently named one of Fast Company’s 2016 “Most Innovative Companies,” and Alphr’s “Best of Mobile World Congress – Most Innovative Company.” To learn more, visit www.leeco.com and follow on Facebook and Twitter.

About VIZIO
VIZIO’s mission is to deliver the ultimate entertainment experience through our community of connected consumers, advertisers, and media content providers. Through our connected entertainment platform, VIZIO is transforming the way consumers discover and experience media content. Since our founding in California in 2002, VIZIO has built an industry-leading brand and sold over 70 million products, including televisions, sound bars and other devices. VIZIO is a leading CE brand in North America with the #1 unit share in Smart TVs1 and #1 unit share in Sound Bars2. VIZIO product leadership is highlighted by a number of industry reviews and awards: the VIZIO P-Series SmartCast Home Theater Displays are the highest-ranked LED/LCD display on CNET in 2016, having received an editors’ rating of 4.5/5 stars3; the VIZIO Reference Series achieved a 2016 Editors’ Choice award from Reviewed.com4; and the VIZIO D-Series earned a 2016 Editor’s Choice award from PC Magazine5. For more information, please call 888-VIZIOCE or visit www.VIZIO.com.

Today is a big day for Yahoo! This is the email that I sent to Yahoos around the world today. Given the interest around our journey to this point, I wanted to share more about today’s announcement. –Marissa

Dear Yahoos,

Moments ago, we announced an agreement with Verizon to acquire Yahoo’s operating business. This culminates a rigorous, thorough process over many months, and yields a great outcome for the company. Today’s announcement not only brings us an important step toward separating Yahoo’s operating business from our Asian asset equity stakes, it also presents exciting opportunities to accelerate Yahoo’s transformation. Among the many entities that showed interest in Yahoo, Verizon believed most in the immense value we’ve created, and in what a combination could bring our users, our advertisers, and our partners.

This is a good moment to reflect on Yahoo’s journey to date.

Yahoo is a company that changed the world. Before Yahoo, the Internet was a government research project. Yahoo humanized and popularized the web, email, search, real-time media, and more.

What really sets Yahoo apart is the shared passion to create great products for our 1B+ users, and in doing so, transforming the world for the better. You can clearly see that spirit, that commitment, that fight in the work we’ve done together over the past few years. We set out to transform this company – and we’ve made incredible progress. We counteracted many of the tectonic shifts of declining legacy businesses, and built a Yahoo that is unequivocally stronger, nimbler, and more modern. We tripled our mobile base to over 600 million monthly users, we invested in and built Mavens from basically zero in 2011 into $1.6B of GAAP Revenue in 2015, we streamlined and modernized every aspect of our consumer products, and, with Gemini and BrightRoll, we dramatically improved our advertiser products. This only scratches the surface of what we’ve achieved… and we all know how much hard work it took to get here.

It’s because of that hard work and resilience, that Yahoo will realize amazing opportunities in its next chapter.

This sale is not only an important step in our plan to unlock shareholder value for Yahoo, it is also a great opportunity for Yahoo to build further distribution and accelerate our work in mobile, video, native advertising, and social. As one of the largest wireless and cable companies in the world, Verizon opens the door to extensive distribution opportunities. With more than 100 million wireless customers, a shared view of the importance of mobile and video ad tech, a deep content focus through AOL, Verizon brings clear synergies to the table. And with their aggressive aims to grow global audience to 2B users and $20B in revenue within the mobile-media business by 2020, Yahoo’s products and brand will be central to achieving these goals. Joining forces with AOL and Verizon will help us achieve tremendous scale on mobile. Imagine the distribution challenges we will solve, the scale we will achieve, the products we will build, and the advertisers we will reach now with Mavens – it’s incredibly compelling.

The strategic process has created a lot of uncertainty, but our incredibly loyal and dedicated employee base has stepped up to every challenge along the way. Through the first half of the year, we met our operational goals and overachieved on plan. But, further, there are things that you cannot measure, like the passion of the people behind the products. The teams here have not only built incredible products and technologies, but have built Yahoo into one of the most iconic, and universally well-liked companies in the world. One that continues to impact the lives of more than a billion people. I’m incredibly proud of everything that we’ve achieved, and I’m incredibly proud of our team. For me personally, I’m planning to stay. I love Yahoo, and I believe in all of you. It’s important to me to see Yahoo into its next chapter.

As we work to close this agreement in Q1 2017, it’s more important than ever that we come together as one global team to continue executing on our strategic plan through the remainder of the year. We have delivered the first half of the year with pride, achieving our goals. Now, it is up to us to make Yahoo’s final quarters as an independent company count.

Yahoo is a company that changed the world. Now, we will continue to, with even greater scale, in combination with Verizon and AOL.

Thanks,

Marissa

Verizon to acquire Yahoo’s operating business
Transaction will create a new rival in mobile media technology reaching over 1B users* with a roster of the world’s most beloved brands

BASKING RIDGE, NJ, and SUNNYVALE, Calif. – July 25, 2016 – Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE, Nasdaq: VZ) and Yahoo! Inc. (Nasdaq: YHOO) today announce they have entered into a definitive agreement under which Verizon will acquire Yahoo’s operating business for approximately $4.83 billion in cash, subject to customary closing adjustments.

Yahoo informs, connects and entertains a global audience of more than 1 billion monthly active users** – including 600 million monthly active mobile users*** – through its search, communications and digital content products. Yahoo also connects advertisers with target audiences through a streamlined advertising technology stack that combines the power of their data, content and technology.

Lowell McAdam, Verizon Chairman and CEO, said: “Just over a year ago we acquired AOL to enhance our strategy of providing a cross-screen connection for consumers, creators and advertisers. The acquisition of Yahoo will put Verizon in a highly competitive position as a top global mobile media company, and help accelerate our revenue stream in digital advertising.”

Yahoo will be integrated with AOL under Marni Walden, EVP and President of the Product Innovation and New Businesses organization at Verizon.

Marissa Mayer, CEO of Yahoo, said: “Yahoo is a company that has changed the world, and will continue to do so through this combination with Verizon and AOL. The sale of our operating business, which effectively separates our Asian asset equity stakes, is an important step in our plan to unlock shareholder value for Yahoo. This transaction also sets up a great opportunity for Yahoo to build further distribution and accelerate our work in mobile, video, native advertising and social.”

Mayer added, “Yahoo and AOL popularized the Internet, email, search and real-time media. It’s poetic to be joining forces with AOL and Verizon as we enter our next chapter focused on achieving scale on mobile. We have a terrific, loyal, experienced and quality team, and I couldn’t be prouder of our achievements to date, including building our new lines of business to $1.6 billion in GAAP revenue in 2015. I’m excited to extend our momentum through this transaction.”

Tim Armstrong, CEO of AOL, said: “Our mission at AOL is to build brands people love, and we will continue to invest in and grow them. Yahoo has been a long-time investor in premium content and created some of the most beloved consumer brands in key categories like sports, news and finance.”

Under Armstrong, AOL has invested in and grown global premium brands, including The Huffington Post, TechCrunch, Engadget, MAKERS and AOL.com, and market-leading programmatic platforms – including ONE by AOL for both advertisers and publishers.

Armstrong added, “We have enormous respect for what Yahoo has accomplished: this transaction is about unleashing Yahoo’s full potential, building upon our collective synergies, and strengthening and accelerating that growth. Combining Verizon, AOL and Yahoo will create a new powerful competitive rival in mobile media, and an open, scaled alternative offering for advertisers and publishers.”

The addition of Yahoo to Verizon and AOL will create one of the largest portfolios of owned and partnered global brands with extensive distribution capabilities. Combined, AOL and Yahoo will have more than 25 brands in its portfolio for continued investment and growth. Yahoo’s key assets include market-leading premium content brands in major categories including finance, news and sports, as well as one of the most popular email services globally with approximately 225 million monthly active users****. Additional technology assets in the advertising space include Brightroll, a programmatic demand-side platform; Flurry, an independent mobile apps analytics service; and Gemini, a native and search advertising solution.

The deal is subject to customary closing conditions, approval by Yahoo’s shareholders, and regulatory approvals, and is expected to close in Q1 of 2017. Until the closing, Yahoo will continue to operate independently, offering and improving its own products and services for users, advertisers, developers and partners.

Verizon will generally issue cash-settled Verizon RSUs for Yahoo RSUs that are outstanding at the close.
The sale does not include Yahoo’s cash, its shares in Alibaba Group Holdings, its shares in Yahoo Japan, Yahoo’s convertible notes, certain minority investments, and Yahoo’s non-core patents (called the Excalibur portfolio). These assets will continue to be held by Yahoo, which will change its name at closing and become a registered, publicly traded investment company. Yahoo will provide additional information about the investment company at a future date.

Yahoo intends to return substantially all of its net cash to shareholders and will determine and communicate a specific capital return strategy at an appropriate time.

LionTree Advisors, LLC, Allen & Company LLC, Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Guggenheim Securities, LLC are acting as financial advisors to Verizon. Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP, Covington & Burling LLP and Winston & Strawn LLP are acting as legal advisors to Verizon.

Goldman, Sachs & Co., J.P. Morgan Securities LLC and PJT Partners are acting as financial advisors to the Yahoo Board and its Strategic Review Committee. Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati and Weil Gotshal & Manges LLP are acting as legal advisors to Yahoo. Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP is independent legal advisor to Yahoo’s Strategic Review Committee.

Yahoo will hold an investor call at 5:30 a.m. Pacific/8:30 a.m. Eastern today. Investors can dial in at (866) 593-9949 and investors outside the U.S. can dial in at (973) 935-8154, using the conference ID 55971720. The call will be hosted by Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer and Yahoo CFO Ken Goldman. Yahoo will also make the Chair of the Strategic Review Committee, Tom McInerney, and Yahoo Chairman of the Board Maynard Webb available for questions.

Verizon will announce second-quarter 2016 results tomorrow, July 26. To provide further context for investors about this transaction and other strategic initiatives, McAdam will participate in Verizon’s earnings webcast beginning 8:30 a.m. Eastern tomorrow. Access instructions and presentation materials, including Verizon’s earnings release, will be available at 7 a.m. on Verizon’s Investor Relations website, www.verizon.com/about/investors/.

*Based on Yahoo internal metrics, Jan. 2016 and AOL Internal, June 2016

**Yahoo internal user metrics, Jan. 2016

***Yahoo internal user metrics, Jan 2016

****Yahoo internal user metrics, Jan. 2016. Mail monthly active users includes 58M IMAP/POP only users – ie. Yahoo monthly users that access their mail using other companies mail application

About Verizon
Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE, Nasdaq: VZ), headquartered in New York City, generated nearly $132 billion in 2015 revenues. Verizon operates America’s most reliable wireless network, with 112.6 million retail connections nationwide. The company also provides communications and entertainment services over America’s most advanced fiber-optic network, and delivers integrated business solutions to customers worldwide.

About AOL
AOL is a media technology company with a mission to connect consumers and creators through open marketplaces. AOL uses data to disrupt content production, distribution and monetization. The company connects publishers with advertisers across its global, programmatic platforms, tapping into Microsoft inventory and original content brands like TechCrunch, The Huffington Post and MAKERS, which reach over 500 million monthly global consumers. Within its mobile advertising network alone, AOL has a reach of roughly 600 million users. A subsidiary of Verizon, AOL is shaping the digital future.

About Yahoo
Yahoo is a guide to digital information discovery, focused on informing, connecting, and entertaining users through its search, communications, and digital content products. By creating highly personalized experiences, Yahoo helps users discover the information that matters most to them around the world – on mobile or desktop. Yahoo connects advertisers with target audiences through a streamlined advertising technology stack that combines the power of Yahoo’s data, content, and technology. Yahoo is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California, and has offices located throughout the Americas, Asia Pacific (APAC) and the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) regions. For more information, visit the pressroom (pressroom.yahoo.net) or the Company’s blog (yahoo.tumblr.com).

Yahoo!, the Yahoo family of marks, and the associated logos are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Yahoo! Inc. Other names are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of their respective owners.

Machine learning is increasingly at the core of everything we build at Twitter. It’s powering much of the work we’re doing to make it easier to create, share, and discover the very best content so that every time you open Twitter you’re immersed in the most relevant news, stories, and events for you.

Today, we’re very excited to announce that we’re expanding our capabilities in machine learning by acquiring Magic Pony Technology, a London-based technology company that has developed novel machine learning techniques for visual processing.

Our acquisition of Magic Pony builds on other investments we’ve made in machine learning, beginning with the acquisitions of Madbits in July 2014 and Whetlab in June 2015. Magic Pony’s team will be joining Twitter Cortex, a team of engineers, data scientists, and machine learning researchers dedicated to building a product in which people can easily find new experiences to share and participate in.

Magic Pony’s technology – based on research by the team to create algorithms that can understand the features of imagery – will be used to enhance our strength in live and video and opens up a whole lot of exciting creative possibilities for Twitter. The team includes 11 PhDs with expertise across computer vision, machine learning, high-performance computing, and computational neuroscience, who are alumni of some of the top labs in the world.

We are continuing to build strength into our deep learning teams with world-class talent to help Twitter be the best place to see what’s happening and why it matters, first. We value deep learning research to help make our world better, and we will keep doing our part to share our work and learnings with the community.

Dell Boomi and Tech Mahindra today announced an alliance that enables organizations to more easily implement digital strategies and drive business transformation. As a “Dell Boomi Certified System Integrator”, Tech Mahindra, provider of innovative and customer-centric information technology services and solutions, is now able to offer its customers a platform that integrates any combination of cloud and on-premises applications without software, appliances or coding.

“Tech Mahindra specializes in enabling digital transformations for customers across industries that include manufacturing, telecom, healthcare and retail,” said Pritam Parvatkar, Global Head of Alliances & Partnerships at Tech Mahindra. “Our Customer Experience group’s large portfolio of integration solutions play a vital role in connecting on-premises and cloud applications to offer a seamless process experience for all stakeholders. Dell Boomi is the leader in the integration Platform as a Service (iPaaS) space, and our partnership with them will enable our enterprise clients to dramatically improve their customers’ experience across sales, service and marketing.”

The Dell Boomi Partner Program supports a global network of partners who recognize such a partnership will better enable them to support their own customers with the Dell Boomi AtomSphere® Integration Platform as a Service (iPaaS) solution. Program members include System Integrators, Independent Software Vendors and Managed Service Providers whose customers have a need for automating business processes by integrating applications.

With Dell Boomi iPaaS, Tech Mahindra’s solutions will now allow customers to:

Quickly and painlessly connect any combination of cloud and on-premises applications.
Create new integrations using a simple drag-and-drop interface.
Leverage Boomi Suggest to harness the knowledge of the Dell Boomi community to decrease new integration mapping times.
Use pre-built and standardized connectors to speed integration development.
Manage all integration processes from a single, unified view.
Easily test new integrations before rolling them out.
“Dell Boomi AtomSphere is a critical enabler of the digital transformations that enterprises increasingly recognize are essential for maintaining productivity, scalability and competitiveness,” said Chris McNabb, general manager at Dell Boomi. “By joining our network of partners, Tech Mahindra can now offer our platform to customers across its diverse global customer base.”

About Dell Boomi
Dell Boomi delivers the first and only multi-purpose PaaS for AtomSphere integration Platform as a Service (iPaaS), Master Data Management (MDM) and API Management, and enables customers to integrate any combination of cloud and on-premises applications without software, appliances or coding. Organizations of all sizes, from growing mid-market companies to very large enterprises, enjoy rapid time to value as a result of drastically reduced implementation times and substantial cost savings over traditional integration, MDM, and API management solutions. Visit http://www.boomi.com for more information.

About Dell
Dell Inc. listens to customers and delivers innovative technology and services that give them the power to do more. For more information, visit　www.dell.com.　

About Tech Mahindra
Tech Mahindra represents the connected world, offering innovative and customer-centric information technology services and solutions, enabling Enterprises, Associates and the Society to Rise™. We are a USD 4.0 billion company with 107,100+ professionals across 90 countries, helping over 800 global customers including Fortune 500 companies. Our innovation platforms and reusable assets connect across a number of technologies to deliver tangible business value to our stakeholders. Tech Mahindra is also amongst the Fab 50 companies in Asia as per the Forbes 2014 List.

We are part of the USD 16.9 billion Mahindra Group that employs more than 200,000 people in over 100 countries. The Group operates in the key industries that drive economic growth, enjoying a leadership position in　tractors,　utility vehicles,　information technology,　after-market　and　vacation ownership.

LOS ANGELES, KIND Financial, the leader in technology for cannabis compliance, today announced the launch of KIND Government Solutions with Microsoft Corp. to acquire government-facing contracts for seed to sale tracking.

Microsoft selected KIND to participate in its newly created Microsoft Health and Human Services Pod for Managed Service Providers. The goal of this relationship is to leverage each company’s resources to provide State, County, and Municipalities with purpose built solutions for track and trace (‘seed to sale’ in the cannabis industry) technology.

Matt D. Cook, Colorado’s former Senior Leader of Colorado’s Medical Marijuana Enforcement Division and author of Colorado’s groundbreaking medical marijuana laws and regulations, will serve as KIND’s ‘Special Advisor on Government Matters.’ Cook stated, “It is an honor to advise KIND Government Solutions as it helps governments tackle the issue of cannabis compliance. As a regulatory expert in the legal cannabis industry, I have chosen KIND Government Solutions as my preferred choice for track and trace solutions. In my opinion, their technology offers the most advanced software solution available and it provides government with critical tools to ensure transparency and accountability, which is imperative for government agencies managing a successful cannabis program.”

Kimberly Nelson, Executive Director State and Local Government Solutions from Microsoft said, “KIND’s strategic industry positioning, experienced team and top-notch-technology running in the Microsoft Azure Government cloud, made for an easy decision to align efforts. KIND agreed that Azure Government is the only cloud platform designed to meet government standards for the closely regulated cannabis compliance programs and we look forward to working together to help our government customers launch successful regulatory programs.”

KIND’s Agrisoft Seed to Sale for Government is the core of KIND’s platform for governments and regulatory agencies to regulate and monitor all aspects of cannabis compliance. Agrisoft Seed to Sale for Government collects and monitors the critical data needed to track compliance with the state and jurisdictional rules, laws and regulations governing cannabis-related businesses. “No one can predict the future of cannabis legalization, however, it is clear that legalized cannabis will always be subject to strict oversight and regulations similar to alcohol and tobacco; and, KIND is proud to offer governments and regulatory agencies the tools and technology to monitor cannabis compliance,” said KIND Financial Founder & CEO David Dinenberg, “I am delighted that Microsoft supports KIND’s mission to build the backbone for cannabis compliance.”

About KIND Financial
KIND Financial makes cannabis compliance easy by providing technology and tools that empower marijuana-related businesses to transact safely, securely and in adherence with the rules, regulations, laws and guidelines governing the cannabis industry. KIND’s Technology Platform facilitates the entire cannabis-business lifecycle through its Agrisoft Seed to Sale software, which provides retail operations, growers, and producers in the cannabis industry with the critical tools for plant tracking and management; and, full enterprise resource management across the organization. Agrisoft integrates seamlessly with the KIND Kiosk to provide cannabis businesses with safe and secure cash management and order-taking at the point-of-sale. Working together, the KIND technology platform provides cannabis businesses with an end-to-end solution that closes the loop between marijuana-related businesses, regulatory agencies, and financial institutions.

KIND Government Solutions is KIND’s government-specific division providing technology for cannabis tracking to governments and regulatory agencies such as Agrisoft Seed to Sale for Government which includes the tools government agencies need to monitor and regulate all aspects of the cannabis business life-cycle including plant management, point-of-sale transactions, and financial reporting.

REDMOND, Wash., and MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. — June 13, 2016 — Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT) and LinkedIn Corporation (NYSE: LNKD) on Monday announced they have entered into a definitive agreement under which Microsoft will acquire LinkedIn for $196 per share in an all-cash transaction valued at $26.2 billion, inclusive of LinkedIn’s net cash. LinkedIn will retain its distinct brand, culture and independence. Jeff Weiner will remain CEO of LinkedIn, reporting to Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft. Reid Hoffman, chairman of the board, co-founder and controlling shareholder of LinkedIn, and Weiner both fully support this transaction. The transaction is expected to close this calendar year.

LinkedIn is the world’s largest and most valuable professional network and continues to build a strong and growing business. Over the past year, the company has launched a new version of its mobile ​app that has led to increased member engagement; enhanced the LinkedIn newsfeed to deliver better business insights; acquired a leading online learning platform called Lynda.com to enter a new market; and rolled out a new version of its Recruiter product to its enterprise customers. These innovations have resulted in increased membership, engagement and financial results, specifically:

19 percent growth year over year (YOY) to more than 433 million members worldwide
9 percent growth YOY to more than 105 million unique visiting members per month
49 percent growth YOY to 60 percent mobile usage
34 percent growth YOY to more than 45 billion quarterly member page views
101 percent growth YOY to more than 7 million active job listings
“The LinkedIn team has grown a fantastic business centered on connecting the world’s professionals,” Nadella said. “Together we can accelerate the growth of LinkedIn, as well as Microsoft Office 365 and Dynamics as we seek to empower every person and organization on the planet.”

“Just as we have changed the way the world connects to opportunity, this relationship with Microsoft, and the combination of their cloud and LinkedIn’s network, now gives us a chance to also change the way the world works,” Weiner said. “For the last 13 years, we’ve been uniquely positioned to connect professionals to make them more productive and successful, and I’m looking forward to leading our team through the next chapter of our story.”

The transaction has been unanimously approved by the Boards of Directors of both LinkedIn and Microsoft. The deal is expected to close this calendar year and is subject to approval by LinkedIn’s shareholders, the satisfaction of certain regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.

“Today is a re-founding moment for LinkedIn. I see incredible opportunity for our members and customers and look forward to supporting this new and combined business,” said Hoffman. “I fully support this transaction and the Board’s decision to pursue it, and will vote my shares in accordance with their recommendation on it.”

Microsoft will finance the transaction primarily through the issuance of new indebtedness. Upon closing, Microsoft expects LinkedIn’s financials to be reported as part of Microsoft’s Productivity and Business Processes segment. Microsoft expects the acquisition to have minimal dilution of ~1 percent to non-GAAP earnings per share for the remainder of fiscal year 2017 post-closing and for fiscal year 2018 based on the expected close date, and become accretive to Microsoft’s non-GAAP earnings per share in Microsoft’s fiscal year 2019 or less than two years post-closing. Non-GAAP includes stock-based compensation expense consistent with Microsoft’s reporting practice, and excludes expected impact of purchase accounting adjustments as well as integration and transaction-related expenses. In addition, Microsoft also reiterated its intention to complete its existing $40 billion share repurchase authorization by Dec. 31, 2016, the same timeframe as previously committed.

Microsoft and LinkedIn will host a joint conference call with investors on June 13, 2016, at 8:45 a.m. Pacific Time/11:45 a.m. Eastern Time to discuss this transaction. The call will be available via webcast at https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/Investor and will be hosted by Nadella and Weiner, as well as Microsoft Chief Financial Officer Amy Hood and Microsoft President and Chief Legal Officer Brad Smith.

Morgan Stanley is acting as exclusive financial advisor to Microsoft, and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP is acting as legal advisor to Microsoft. Qatalyst Partners and Allen & Co. are acting as financial advisors to LinkedIn, while Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, Professional Corporation, is acting as legal advisor.

About LinkedIn
LinkedIn connects the world’s professionals to make them more productive and successful and transforms the way companies hire, market, and sell. Our vision is to create economic opportunity for every member of the global workforce through the ongoing development of theworld’s first Economic Graph. LinkedIn has more than 433 million members and has offices around the globe.

About Microsoft
Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT” @microsoft) is the leading platform and productivity company for the mobile-first, cloud-first world, and its mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more.

BELLEVUE, Wash.- In a nationwide simulcast to millions of Un-carrier customers today via the web and social media, T-Mobile (NASDAQ: TMUS) president and CEO John Legere unveiled the company’s eleventh iconic Un-carrier move—#GetThanked, a set of initiatives dedicated exclusively to thanking T-Mobile customers.

This Smart News Release features multimedia. View the full release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160606006153/en/

In another unprecedented first, Legere introduced Stock Up™, a first-of-its-kind program that could turn millions of T-Mobile customers into T-Mobile owners—something no other publicly traded company has done before. The Un-carrier is offering a FULL share of T-Mobile US (TMUS) common stock to millions of existing and new customers. And customers can grow their ownership up to 100 shares a year by doing what they’re already doing—recommending T-Mobile.

In addition, the Un-carrier announced T-Mobile Tuesdays, a new app that thanks T-Mobile customers with free stuff and epic prizes, every Tuesday. T-Mobile has partnered with some of the best and coolest brands to thank its customers every single week, including Gilt, Domino’s, StubHub, Wendy’s, VUDU, Fandango, Legendary Pictures and Universal Pictures, Lyft and more… with new gifts and more partners unveiled every Tuesday.

“Get ready for a gratitude adjustment, America! This Un-carrier move is all about giving you a good thanking! No strings. No gotchas. Just ‘thank you for being a customer!’” said John Legere, president and CEO of T-Mobile. “At T-Mobile, we already wake up every day working for our customers—so I’ve decided to make it official and turn T-Mobile customers into T-Mobile owners by offering them stock. And we’re thanking customers every week with cool stuff from brands people love. For free. Every Tuesday!”

T-Mobile’s also thanking customers with a full free hour of Gogo Wi-Fi on your smartphone on EVERY Gogo-equipped domestic flight—for all T-Mobile customers. That’s two-thirds (67%) of all connected domestic planes and millions of flights a year. Of course, texting on Gogo is still free for Un-carrier customers for the entire flight—but T-Mobile’s beefing it up with free in-flight messaging on iMessage, Google Hangouts, WhatsApp and Viber.

Most corporations say “thank you” with rewards and loyalty schemes that are not much more than thinly veiled attempts to manipulate customers into forking over more of their hard-earned cash. 7 in 10 (72%) people see through it and agree loyalty programs exist to squeeze more money out of them. That’s why 90% of comments about loyalty programs in social media are negative and why customers don’t bother to use well over half (58%) of the programs they’re on.

T-Mobile is turning all that on its head by saying “thank you” to customers and asking nothing in return. With Stock Up and T-Mobile Tuesdays, you don’t have to spend more, stay longer, collect points, or qualify for special, elite tiers to be thanked for being a customer. Un-carrier 11 is about T-Mobile showing its loyalty to customers—not the other way around.

Stock Up like a boss—up to 100 shares of T-Mobile stock

With this history-making move, T-Mobile wants to turn millions of its existing customers into shareholders, starting with everyone who is the primary contact on their eligible postpaid consumer smartphone account. And, tomorrow, new T-Mobile Simple Choice customers who switch to the Un-carrier will also automatically qualify for a full, free share of T-Mobile US stock when they open a new postpaid consumer smartphone account. Now, T-Mobile customers can share in the future of the company.

Beyond the initial share, customers can stock up… and up… and up… just by doing what they already do—recommend T-Mobile. T-Mobile customers are the #1 most satisfied overall in wireless and nearly three-quarters (71%) of them already say they’d recommend the Un-carrier. And 69% of customers say recommendations were the deciding factor in choosing T-Mobile. Starting tomorrow, T-Mobile is thanking these advocates by giving them another full share – up to 100 shares a year – of T-Mobile US stock for every primary account holder who takes their recommendation and switches to the Un-carrier. That’s roughly $4,200 in just one year, based on the current share price!

As a special thank you to its most loyal customers, T-Mobile’s giving those who’ve been with the Un-carrier for five or more years TWO full shares of T-Mobile stock for each recommendation until 2017.

“For me, there’s no higher praise than hearing a customer say they recommend T-Mobile to family and friends, so we wanted to get this right,” said Legere. “And, what better way to thank you than sharing in the future of our company?! Now, T-Mobile customers own the place!”

It costs nothing to get your shares or set up an account with T-Mobile’s brokerage partner, LOYAL3, and there are absolutely no fees to get or sell your share this year – and no fee to maintain your account as long as you’re an active customer. Your T-Mobile stock is completely free. It’s yours to do with what you want—you can hold on to it or sell it and pocket the cash whenever you choose.

Existing customers can claim their T-Mobile stock starting tomorrow, June 7, through June 21 in the T-Mobile Tuesdays app, and customers can learn more about growing their ownership when they recommend T-Mobile at www.t-mobile.com/StockUp.

T-Mobile Tuesdays—Free stuff. Every week.

If you’re a T-Mobile customer, Tuesday is about to become your very favorite day of the week. And it all starts tomorrow, June 7th—the first T-Mobile Tuesday.

First off, the Un-carrier’s treating customers to dinner and a movie every week. Which means T-Mobile customers can carry out a FREE medium two-topping Domino’s pizza, FREE small Wendy’s Frosty and FREE movie rental from VUDU, Walmart’s video on-demand service. And they can do it again next Tuesday. And the one after that. You get the idea.

“That’s right. We just did that. Until further notice, we’re treating our customers to dinner and a movie—all to say ‘Thank you’!” said Legere.

Each week, customers can count on T-Mobile Tuesdays to thank them with recurring gifts, a surprise gift from a new partner and a chance to win something epic. Of course, the Un-carrier will keep changing up the menu to keep your Tuesdays fresh, fun and full of gratitude with more partners like American Giant, Buffalo Wild Wings, Condé Nast, Fanatics, Fandango, Gilt, HotelTonight, JackThreads, Legendary Pictures and Universal Pictures, Lyft, Major League Baseball, MGM Resorts International, Samsung Electronics America, Inc., Shell, StubHub, The Clymb, The Grommet and Warner Brothers. That’s for starters.

The Un-carrier will unveil a surprise “thank you” for customers with a new partner each week. Gifts like free movie tickets, free gift cards, free subscriptions, free ride-sharing and more. Tomorrow, everyone can get a free ticket from Fandango to the opening weekend of this summer’s blockbuster movie, Warcraft—just for being a customer.

Finally, someone will win a truly epic prize every Tuesday. Tomorrow, one lucky person’s going to win a trip on a party bus to a private screening of Warcraft along with 40 of their closest friends with all the candy, popcorn and soda they can handle. Every week, you’ll have a chance to win something truly mind-blowing. Here are just a few examples of upcoming prizes:

a trip for two to Vegas to stay at Mandalay Bay with tickets to see UB40 at the Mandalay Bay Beach and roll VIP style at Luxor’s LAX Nightclub. Plus $100 in Lyft credits to get around town.
a trip to MLB All-Star week in San Diego for you and a lucky guest, including exclusive access to the Home Run Derby press conference and batting practice to see the top players up close and personal.
a once-in-a-lifetime expedition for you and your hiking buddy up the legendary Inca Trail to Machu Picchu in Peru, complete with accommodations, meals, and tours from The Clymb.
a trip to New York City to refresh your wardrobe with a $10,000 shopping spree with the help of an in-house stylist in the private Gilt showroom.
To see a calendar of possible prizes through June, check out newsroom.t-mobile.com/news-and-blogs/un-carrier-11.

T-Mobile has made it incredibly simple and easy for you to get these “Thank You” gifts through the free T-Mobile Tuesday mobile app. Just download the app and punch in your phone number, and you’re good to go. The app will even remind you when you have free stuff waiting. T-Mobile Tuesdays is open to all monthly postpaid, prepaid and business T-Mobile customers. And – remember – if you don’t get your Thank You gifts this Tuesday, you can always get ‘em next Tuesday.

To download the T-Mobile Tuesdays app and #GetThanked, visit the App Store or Google Play. And, customers who gloat about their gifts in social media can #GetThanked even more. When customers share pics of their T-Mobile Tuesday gifts using #GetThanked, the Un-carrier will plus up some of them in a big way – with extra Warcraft tickets, a blowout Domino’s party, free Lyft rides all month long and more.

#GetThanked at 30,000 Feet

T-Mobile customers can already text away at 30,000 feet on every Gogo-equipped domestic flight—all flight long. Since this game-changer launched in September 2014, millions of T-Mobile customers have sent in-flight texts—all absolutely free.

Now, the Un-carrier’s taking it one giant step further. Starting June 13, all T-Mobile customers can #GetThanked with a free full hour of Wi-Fi on their smartphones to surf, email, and post to their hearts’ content. And here’s the best part: it works on all Gogo-equipped domestic flights—that’s 4 million flights a year—for all T-Mobile customers!

T-Mobile and Gogo are also lighting up iMessage, Google Hangouts, WhatsApp and Viber so customers can use their favorite messaging apps to stay connected – in addition to SMS texting – at 30,000 feet. That’s right. Free messaging and texting, plus a free hour of Gogo Wi-Fi on your smartphone, all in mid-air and all courtesy of the Un-carrier.

For more information on T-Mobile’s in-flight offerings, please visit www.t-mobile.com/offer/free-in-flight-wifi-texting-uncarrier.

For more information on Un-carrier 11, check out www.t-mobile.com/GetThanked and the Un-carrier 11 media kit at newsroom.t-mobile.com/news-and-blogs/un-carrier-11.htm.

Partners Behind T-Mobile Tuesdays

Domino’s
“Pizza is the best ‘thank you’ we can imagine! That’s why we are excited to partner with T-Mobile in rewarding its customers in a big way on T-Mobile Tuesdays. Who knew Tuesday could be the best day of the week? Now it is!”

Dennis Maloney, Chief Digital Officer, Domino’s

Fandango
“We are thrilled to join forces with T-Mobile to thank their customers with millions of free opening weekend ‘Warcraft’ movie tickets as part of their T-Mobile Tuesdays campaign. At Fandango, we love movies, and free movie tickets is a wonderfully effective way to reward T-Mobile customers.”

Jason Davis, VP & GM, Fandango Rewards

HotelTonight
“We’re excited to partner with T-Mobile to help them thank their customers as part of T-Mobile Tuesdays. This is a great opportunity to team up with a like-minded company to do something really special. Like T-Mobile, we’re laser-focused on delighting our customers – offering them incredible service and great value unlike anyone else in our respective industries.”

Sam Shank, CEO and Co-Founder, HotelTonight

JackThreads
“JackThreads is all about partnering with like-minded brands who are dedicated to taking care of their guys. Our customers deserve more from the brands they love and I’m confident that JackThreads and T-Mobile are going to deliver it.”

Ryan McIntyre, Chief Marketing Officer, JackThreads

Lyft
“Treating people better is core to Lyft’s mission. We’re excited to team up with T-Mobile to help thank their customers with a friendlier way to get around town.”

Oliver Hsiang, Vice President of Partnerships, Lyft

Major League Baseball (MLB)
“MLB’s partnership with T-Mobile continues to deliver valuable benefits for our fans with the offering of MLB prizes and experiences through T-Mobile Tuesdays. We are excited to participate in T-Mobile Tuesdays, which is a significant new addition to T-Mobile’s ongoing effort to innovate the way it delivers service, benefits and a unique customer experience.”

Noah Garden, Executive Vice President, Business, Major League Baseball

Samsung Electronics America, Inc.
“Samsung prioritizes innovation, and T-Mobile’s new #GetThanked program delivers a truly innovative way of thanking customers. Samsung and T-Mobile have enjoyed a tremendous business relationship and we’re excited about giving some loyal customers an opportunity to get cutting-edge Samsung products as prizes.”

Travis Warren, Senior Vice President, Samsung Electronics America, Inc.

StubHub
“StubHub is dedicated to connecting people to inspiring events around the globe, and we think there’s no better way to do this than to team up with T-Mobile to reach an even broader audience. We’re extremely excited to participate in T-Mobile Tuesdays so together we can thank fans through the gift of incredible live experiences.”

Kirt Thomson, Director of New Business, StubHub

The CLYMB
“We’re thrilled to be partnering with T-Mobile, an innovative brand that we respect and admire. With T-Mobile Tuesdays they are cutting through the noise and showing their customers love and appreciation and The Clymb is supporting that cause and helping inspire the T-Mobile community to get outdoors and engage in some human-powered adventure. From the gear they might need on their local trail, beach, mountain or river; to planning and booking an epic trip to the other side of the world, we’re here to help with, and celebrate their adventures.”

Luis Vargas, Chief Brand Officer and President Travel, The CLYMB

The Grommet
“The Grommet is excited to be a part of T-Mobile’s #GetThanked campaign, providing the innovative consumer products we launch as thank you gifts and prizes. We hope to surprise and delight T-Mobile’s customers as we surprise The Grommet’s community every day!”

Jillian Balis, Chief Marketing Officer, The Grommet

VUDU
“With Binge On, we teamed up with T-Mobile to empower customers to enjoy movies and TV shows on VUDU without burning through their data plans. With T-Mobile Tuesdays, we’re helping customers #GetThanked with a rental of one of our more than 100,000 titles every week without burning through cash. We’re excited to offer a free rental for T-Mobile customers every Tuesday!”

Jeremy Verba, Vice President and General Manager, VUDU and Walmart.com Entertainment

Limited time offers; subject to change. Qualifying service required. At participating locations. Certain promotions may include restrictions/limitations; see specific offer for details. Stock Up: Must be majority age; T-Mobile Tuesday app required. One per primary account holder of qualifying postpaid consumer account with active voice service. New LOYAL3 account required; subject to LOYAL3 terms. Timely (15 days) redemption required; may take up to 60 days for shares to be added. Port-in required for new & referred customers. To make a referral, referring account must have qualifying, active, postpaid service through redemption; referred party must activate new qualifying service & be active for 15 days. T-Mobile has filed a registration statement (including a prospectus) with the SEC for the offering to which this communication relates. Before you redeem your offer, you should consult with your tax advisor and read the prospectus in that registration statement and other documents T-Mobile has filed with the SEC for more complete information about T-Mobile and this offering. You may get these documents for free by visiting EDGAR on the SEC web site at www.sec.gov. Alternatively, T-Mobile or LOYAL3 will arrange to send you the prospectus if you request by calling toll free 1-855-256-9253 or visiting https://rewards.loyal3.com/docs/t-mobile/prospectus.pdf. Prizes: NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. Void where prohibited. See Official Rules available at T-MobileTuesdays.com. Gogo: Requires capable device, Wi-Fi Calling functionality, valid e911 address, & 1 prior Wi-Fi call w/ current SIM card.

About T-Mobile US, Inc.
As America’s Un-carrier, T-Mobile US, Inc. (NASDAQ: TMUS) is redefining the way consumers and businesses buy wireless services through leading product and service innovation. The Company’s advanced nationwide 4G LTE network delivers outstanding wireless experiences to more than 65.5 million customers who are unwilling to compromise on quality and value. Based in Bellevue, Washington, T-Mobile US provides services through its subsidiaries and operates its flagship brands, T-Mobile and MetroPCS. For more information, please visit http://www.t-mobile.com.

Today at Computex, I joined Nick Parker and Alex Kipman on stage to celebrate incredible devices from across the Windows ecosystem – from PCs to gaming to IoT and beyond – and to share how the upcoming Windows 10 Anniversary Update will bring all new innovation, creating opportunities for modern computing devices.

We’ve been on an incredible journey with Windows 10 to deliver more personal computing, where you interact with your devices as naturally as you interact with the world around you, your experiences travel with you, and designed from the ground up with security in mind. With over 300 million active devices already running Windows 10, we’re off to a great start.

Today we focused on the next frontier – mixed reality. Providing devices with the ability to perceive the world, breaking down the barriers between virtual and physical reality is what we call mixed reality. Imagine wearing a VR device and seeing your physical hands as you manipulate an object, working on the scanned 3D image of a real object, or bringing in a holographic representation of another person into your virtual world so you can collaborate. In this world, devices can spatially map your environment wherever you are; manipulating digital content is as easy and natural as picking up a box or sitting at a table; and you can easily teleport into your next meeting or travel together as a team.

The market for virtual reality devices is expected to be 80 million devices per year by 2020. However, many of today’s devices and experiences do not work with each other, provide different user interfaces, interaction models, input methods, peripherals, and content. And most virtual reality experiences can’t mix real people, objects, and environments into the virtual world, making creation and collaboration difficult. This is because they lack the human, environmental and object understanding that is already built into Windows 10.

Today, we announced that Windows Holographic is coming to devices of all shapes and sizes from fully immersive virtual reality to fully untethered holographic computing. Today we invited our OEM, ODM, and hardware partners to build PCs, displays, accessories and mixed reality devices with the Windows Holographic platform.

For our partners, this creates new business opportunities, unlocking mixed reality experiences across devices. For developers, Windows Holographic apps can be written today with confidence that they will run on the broadest set of devices.

We are excited to be working with Intel, AMD, Qualcomm, HTC, Acer, ASUS, CyberPowerPC, Dell, Falcon Northwest, HP, iBuyPower, Lenovo, MSI and many others supporting great virtual reality experiences on Windows 10, and we are looking forward to opening up Windows Holographic to the partner ecosystem for the future.

Windows: The Only Mixed Reality Platform

Windows 10 includes Windows Holographic, the platform that powers the amazing mixed reality experiences available on Microsoft HoloLens today. It offers a holographic shell and interaction model, perception APIs, and Xbox Live services.

Consistent with our approach to Surface, our development efforts on HoloLens are designed to push the limits and create opportunity across the ecosystem.

We began shipping Microsoft HoloLens in March and customers across industries are embracing the potential of mixed reality already, including NASA, Volvo, Lowe’s and more. The development opportunity is significant – as all holographic apps are Universal Windows apps, and all Universal Windows apps can be made to run on the Windows Holographic platform. In fact, there are already hundreds of Universal Windows Apps in the Windows Store today that run on Windows Holographic. I’m so impressed by the creativity of the community using Windows Holographic today – some of my favorite examples range from gardening to architecture to fashion design to flying drones and other apps.

Welcoming our Partners to Mixed Reality

We would love for you to join us as we deliver this new world of mixed reality. Interested partners should go to WinHec.com to learn more and sign-up to join us at WinHEC this fall in Shenzhen and Taipei.

I can’t wait to see what our partners do with Windows Holographic.

By Terry Myerson / Executive Vice President, Windows and Devices Group
Read more at https://blogs.windows.com/windowsexperience/2016/06/01/opening-windows-holographic-to-partners-for-a-new-era-of-mixed-reality/#mJsVfVrgVDdro5Fg.99

Shanghai/ Los Angeles. While the digital world increasingly merges with our physical habitat the demand for sophisticated, integrative devices grows. However, for many businesses the true integration of the physical and digital worlds in their products still remains a key challenge. An industry that stands out in this respect certainly is telecommunications, with smart phones having become the harbinger of integrated experiences. To take this experience yet one step further, ZTE corporation’s mobile devices division has partnered with BMW Group daughter company Designworks to create ZTE’s new flagship smart phone, the AXON 7.

Seamless is the new black.
Innovation needs integration: In the future, business success will significantly depend on the ability of companies to offer truly integrated, seamless experiences. As a BMW Group daughter company and experienced wanderer between the worlds of many industries, Designworks is dedicated to creating premium interactions between information, products and people with creative solutions. This is what ZTE was looking for when they tasked Designworks with the product and user experience design for their new AXON 7. The result is a smart phone that is not just about superior casing, but equally about information design, resulting in an interface where function meets art.

The Design of AXON 7: An Emotional Icon of Digital Life.
Given the plethora of information at the user’s fingertips, AXON 7 was kept pure, sleek and simple and without a single tooled edge to snag the tactile experience. Its paper-thin form is elegant, comfortable to hold, and streamlined to fit within a user’s pockets. By focusing on and enhancing the human aspects of the user interaction with AXON, it offers a highly intuitive user experience that virtually “warms up” technology. It thereby creates an experience that is not only natural and desirable but also one that is memorable and will be closely linked to the ZTE brand.

Unique product features of AXON 7 include ZTE’s dual speaker layout, which is called out expressively in the design via refined grilles on either side of the phone. Designworks also optimized the authentication ritual which often is not very ergonomic, involving a risk of the user dropping the device. With the new AXON 7 authentication becomes intuitive and easy by tapping an index finger on the back of the phone where the user’s index finger naturally grips it. The recess around the fingerprint ID sensor provides haptic feedback to the user so he is able to locate the fingerprint ID sensor by feel without smudging the adjacent camera lens.

The design team´s premium and innovative approach to color, material, and finish treatment significantly contributes to the phone´s sensuous appeal: sophisticated rich premium finishes were chosen while the jewel-like detailing is inspired by handmade timepieces. Authentic materials were used to create a substantial, durable feel which highlights its superior craftsmanship. The AXON 7 is a smart phone that is timely and timeless in its appeal. It is unrivalled in the market and an emotional icon of digital life.

Designworks, A BMW Group Company
Designworks is a BMW Group company and a creative consultancy that’s been driving innovation for more than forty years. Acquired by BMW Group in 1995, Designworks enables its parent company as well as internationally-renowned clients outside the automotive industry to grow their businesses through design and creative consulting services. With clients including BMW, MINI, Rolls Royce, HP, Microsoft, Corsair, Coca Cola, Embraer, Neil Pryde, John Deere, Siemens Trains and Singapore Airlines, Designworks is deeply immersed in a broad cross-section of industries. With studios in Los Angeles, Munich and Shanghai, Designworks draws upon unique and vibrant resources of knowledge to create the future.
www.bmwgroupdesignworks.com

The BMW Group
With its three brands BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce, the BMW Group is the world’s leading premium manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles and also provides premium financial and mobility services. As a global company, the BMW Group operates 31 production and assembly facilities in 14 countries and has a global sales network in more than 140 countries.

In 2015, the BMW Group sold approximately 2.247 million cars and nearly 137,000 motorcycles worldwide. The profit before tax for the financial year 2015 was approximately € 9.22 billion on revenues amounting to € 92.18 billion. As of 31 December 2015, the BMW Group had a workforce of 122,244 employees.

The success of the BMW Group has always been based on long-term thinking and responsible action. The company has therefore established ecological and social sustainability throughout the value chain, comprehensive product responsibility and a clear commitment to conserving resources as an integral part of its strategy.
www.bmwgroup.com

ZTE Mobile Devices
ZTE Mobile Devices is a division of ZTE Corporation, a global telecommunications equipment, networks and mobile devices company headquartered in Shenzhen, China. ZTE is a publicly traded company listed on the Hong Kong and Shenzhen stock exchanges.

ZTE is one of the global leaders in the mobile handset manufacturing industry in the world, offering a complete range of mobile devices, including mobile phones, tablets, mobile broadband modems and hotspots and family desktop integration terminals. ZTE has partnered with over 230 major carriers, including the world’s top 50 carriers, and distributers in more than 160 countries and regions around the globe.

www.ztedevice.com

EMC World 2016 – LAS VEGAS – Avnet, Inc. (NYSE: AVT), a leading global technology distributor, today unveiled an industry-first EMC® software-defined storage solution featuring IsilonSD Edge. Designed for the fast-growing software-defined storage market, this new Avnet-developed offering will initially be available in the U.S. and Canada. Powered by storage expert EMC and utilizing industry-standard servers, the solution delivers a cost-optimized scale-out, network-attached storage (NAS) option for edge applications. Committed to solving for the needs of demanding file-based replication requirements, this solution is easily configured to serve the requirements of remote office/back offices (ROBO) for small, midsize and enterprise customers.

“Software-defined storage solutions are taking the market by storm. They exponentially increase options available to IT professionals and provide enterprise-grade reliability and performance. These solutions also optimize cost by using industry-standard and commercially available servers,” said Eric Barnhart, vice president of Avnet’s EMC solutions business unit in the Americas. “EMC continues to invest in innovative, software-defined storage solutions, such as IsilonSD Edge. EMC software-defined storage solutions are incredibly powerful. When combined with Avnet’s assembly, integration, logistics and financial services expertise, these solutions become truly unique in the marketplace.”

The new solution is designed to reduce the costs associated with scale-out-enabled storage, while significantly improving return on investment. This is achieved by using off-the-shelf platforms, which can now run the Isilon® OneFS® operating system, in the IsilonSD Edge form factor. This now gives customers the same enterprise capabilities that are available to them in the appliance form factor. Customers can now take advantage of cloud economics and scale through the Isilon CloudPools™ solution now in a software-defined form factor. This reduces overall storage costs with the Avnet Cloud Marketplace, Avnet’s one-stop shop that offers comprehensive solutions from leading cloud service providers, flexible payment models and a powerful cloud management toolset. This will flatten the cost curve and significantly boost the return-on-investment models for hybrid-cloud-enabled storage.

Additionally, Avnet will incorporate its consumption-based financial service – CapacityNow – into the solution. It enables organizations, both commercial and government, to acquire technology through a flexible managed service. CapacityNow was developed as an alternative to traditional leasing and financing, where the user can now align their payments with actual usage.

“How the IT industry solves complex storage requirements is being revolutionized by software-defined storage solutions,” said Sam Grocott, senior vice president, marketing, Emerging Technologies Division, EMC Corporation. “EMC selected Avnet to create new ways to bring IsilonSD Edge to market because of their proven ability to transform technology into true business solutions, easily and simply. Avnet is a global company at the forefront of technology, and its scale and reach will enable us to quickly bring highly differentiated solutions based on our technology to market that address the unique business needs of our customers.”

Avnet is an award-winning EMC distributor and supports EMC in Asia Pacific; Europe, the Middle East and Africa; Latin America and the Caribbean; and North America. Plus, 2015 marked the 15th anniversary of the Avnet and EMC partnership. Throughout this long-standing relationship, Avnet has helped EMC bring innovative solutions to market. For example, Avnet has enabled EMC partners to adopt their choice of converged and hyper-converged solutions, which allow partners to design and deploy new solutions that offer their SMB, mid-market and enterprise customers the cloud and data center benefits of hyper-converged infrastructure at the price points and sizes that align with their needs.

Avnet at EMC World 2016
At booth #751, Avnet featured live demonstrations of its new software-defined storage solution featuring IsilonSD Edge. Additionally, Avnet hosted an invitation-only partner appreciation event at LAVO, located at The Palazzo, Las Vegas. Avnet is a Silver-level sponsor of EMC World 2016 which was held at The Venetian in Las Vegas, May 2-5, 2016.

CANBERRA, Australia, – Northrop Grumman M5 Network Security, an Australian subsidiary of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC), has announced an agreement with HTC Corporation, a global innovator in smart mobile devices and technology.

With corporate, critical infrastructure and government organisations concerned about the increasingly hostile cybersecurity environment, the collaboration between Northrop Grumman and HTC will bring together market-leading capabilities to set a new standard of data security for mobile devices. The collaboration will enable the continued development of next-generation secure devices, enabling users to access highly sensitive data through intuitive applications on smartphones.

“We are extremely pleased to announce this collaboration with HTC,” said Ian Irving, chief executive, Northrop Grumman Australia. “Northrop Grumman Australia has become a global centre of excellence for secure mobile communications across our company. Our proven Secure Communications System earned the prestigious 2015 Eureka Prize for Outstanding Science for Safeguarding Australia. Combining high performance HTC commercial technology with our globally accessible security platform, developed from the Secure Communications System, will build on this success. Together we are a formidable team capable of developing world-leading security solutions to meet current and future requirements of industry and government.”

Northrop Grumman M5 Network Security is developing a range of high assurance solutions for Android-based platforms as part of its next-generation secure communications mobile program. In addition to addressing the commercial market, the program includes solutions designed to meet or exceed the highest U.S. government accreditation and certification standards.

Northrop Grumman is a leading global security company providing innovative systems, products and solutions in autonomous systems, cyber, C4ISR, strike, and logistics and modernisation to government and commercial customers worldwide. Please visit www.northropgrumman.com/Australia for more information.

Brussels, 20 April 2016 – The European Commission has informed Google of its preliminary view that the company has, in breach of EU antitrust rules, abused its dominant position by imposing restrictions on Android device manufacturers and mobile network operators.

The Commission’s preliminary view is that Google has implemented a strategy on mobile devices to preserve and strengthen its dominance in general internet search. First, the practices mean that Google Search is pre-installed and set as the default, or exclusive, search service on most Android devices sold in Europe. Second, the practices appear to close off ways for rival search engines to access the market, via competing mobile browsers and operating systems. In addition, they also seem to harm consumers by stifling competition and restricting innovation in the wider mobile space.
The Commission’s concerns are outlined in a Statement of Objections addressed to Google and its parent company, Alphabet. Sending a Statement of Objections does not prejudge the outcome of the investigation.

Commissioner Margrethe Vestager, in charge of competition policy, said: “A competitive mobile internet sector is increasingly important for consumers and businesses in Europe. Based on our investigation thus far, we believe that Google’s behaviour denies consumers a wider choice of mobile apps and services and stands in the way of innovation by other players, in breach of EU antitrust rules. These rules apply to all companies active in Europe. Google now has the opportunity to reply to the Commission’s concerns.”

Smartphones and tablets account for more than half of global internet traffic, and are expected to account for even more in the future. About 80% of smart mobile devices in Europe and in the world run on Android, the mobile operating system developed by Google. Google licenses its Android mobile operating system to third party manufacturers of mobile devices.

The Commission opened proceedings in April 2015 concerning Google’s conduct as regards the Android operating system and applications. At this stage, the Commission considers that Google is dominant in the markets for general internet search services, licensable smart mobile operating systems and app stores for the Android mobile operating system. Google generally holds market shares of more than 90% in each of these markets in the European Economic Area (EEA).

In today’s Statement of Objections, the Commission alleges that Google has breached EU antitrust rules by:
requiring manufacturers to pre-install Google Search and Google’s Chrome browser and requiring them to set Google Search as default search service on their devices, as a condition to license certain Google proprietary apps;
preventing manufacturers from selling smart mobile devices running on competing operating systems based on the Android open source code;
giving financial incentives to manufacturers and mobile network operators on condition that they exclusively pre-install Google Search on their devices.

The Commission believes that these business practices may lead to a further consolidation of the dominant position of Google Search in general internet search services. It is also concerned that these practices affect the ability of competing mobile browsers to compete with Google Chrome, and that they hinder the development of operating systems based on the Android open source code and the opportunities they would offer for the development of new apps and services.

In the Commission’s preliminary view, this conduct ultimately harms consumers because they are not given as wide a choice as possible and because it stifles innovation.

The Commission’s concerns
Licensing of Google’s proprietary apps
The Commission’s investigation showed that it is commercially important for manufacturers of devices using the Android operating system to pre-install on those devices the Play Store, Google’s app store for Android. In its contracts with manufacturers, Google has made the licensing of the Play Store on Android devices conditional on Google Search being pre-installed and set as default search service. As a result, rival search engines are not able to become the default search service on the significant majority of devices sold in the EEA. It has also reduced the incentives of manufacturers to pre-install competing search apps, as well as the incentives of consumers to download such apps.
Similarly, in its contracts with manufacturers Google also required the pre-installation of its Chrome mobile browser in return for licensing the Play Store or Google Search. Thereby, Google has also ensured that its mobile browser is pre-installed on the significant majority of devices sold in the EEA. Browsers represent an important entry point for search queries on mobile devices. Thus, by reducing manufacturers’ incentives to pre-install competing browser apps and consumers’ incentives to download those apps, competition in both mobile browsers and general search has been adversely affected.

Anti-fragmentation
Android is an open-source system, meaning that it can be freely used and developed by anyone to create a modified mobile operating system (a so-called “Android fork”). However, if a manufacturer wishes to pre-install Google proprietary apps, including Google Play Store and Google Search, on any of its devices, Google requires it to enter into an “Anti-Fragmentation Agreement” that commits it not to sell devices running on Android forks.
Google’s conduct has had a direct impact on consumers, as it has denied them access to innovative smart mobile devices based on alternative, potentially superior, versions of the Android operating system. For example, the Commission has found evidence that Google’s conduct prevented manufacturers from selling smart mobile devices based on a competing Android fork which had the potential of becoming a credible alternative to the Google Android operating system. In doing so, Google has also closed off an important way for its competitors to introduce apps and services, in particular general search services, which could be pre-installed on Android forks.

Exclusivity
Google has granted significant financial incentives to some of the largest smartphone and tablet manufacturers as well as mobile network operators on condition that they exclusively pre-install Google Search on their devices.
Google has thereby reduced the incentives of manufacturers and mobile network operators to pre-install competing search services on the devices they market. In fact, the Commission has evidence that the exclusivity condition affected whether certain device manufacturers and mobile network operators pre-installed competing search services.
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Background
This investigation is distinct and separate from the Commission’s ongoing formal investigation under EU antitrust rules of other aspects of Google’s behaviour in the EEA, including on the favourable treatment by Google in its general search results of its own other specialised search services, and concerns with regard to copying of rivals’ web content (known as ‘scraping’), advertising exclusivity and undue restrictions on advertisers.

Procedural background
Article 102 Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) prohibits the abuse of a dominant position which may affect trade and prevent or restrict competition. The implementation of this provision is defined in the Antitrust Regulation (Council Regulation No 1/2003), which can be applied by the Commission and by the national competition authorities of EU Member States.

Today, the Commission adopted a Decision to initiate proceedings in the Google Android investigation also against Alphabet Inc., Google’s parent company, which was created after proceedings had been initiated against Google. The Statement of Objections summarised above is addressed to both Google and Alphabet Inc.

A statement of objections is a formal step in Commission investigations into suspected violations of EU antitrust rules. The Commission informs the parties concerned in writing of the objections raised against them. The addressees can examine the documents in the Commission’s investigation file, reply in writing and request an oral hearing to present their comments on the case before representatives of the Commission and national competition authorities. Sending a Statement of Objections does not prejudge the outcome of the investigation, as the Commission takes a final decision only after the parties have exercised their rights of defence.

There is no legal deadline for the Commission to complete antitrust inquiries into anticompetitive conduct. The duration of an antitrust investigation depends on a number of factors, including the complexity of the case, the extent to which the undertaking concerned cooperates with the Commission and the exercise of the rights of defence.

SEATTLE– (NASDAQ: AMZN)—Eight years ago, Amazon introduced Kindle, making it possible for the first time to think of any book and start reading it in seconds. Since then, Amazon has introduced new Kindle e-readers that are smaller, lighter, and faster—all on a mission to make the device disappear so you can lose yourself in an author’s story. Today, Amazon took another step toward this mission: introducing Kindle Oasis—the eighth generation of Kindle—crafted from the ground up for readers, with an all-new, incredibly thin and light design, plus an included charging cover that delivers months of battery life. Kindle Oasis is available for pre-order today for $289.99 and will start shipping in the coming weeks. Meet Kindle Oasis at www.amazon.com/kindleoasis.

“To lean back and read for hours, you need a sanctuary from distraction,” said Jeff Bezos, Amazon.com Founder and CEO. “We want Kindle to disappear, and Kindle Oasis is the next big step in that mission. It’s the most advanced Kindle we’ve ever built—thin and ultra-lightweight, it gets out of the way so you can lose yourself in the author’s world.”

All-New Design—The Thinnest and Lightest Kindle Ever
The new Kindle Oasis is unlike any Kindle you’ve ever held. With an incredibly thin display and an ergonomic grip, Kindle Oasis weighs just 4.6 ounces and is just 3.4 mm at its thinnest point—30% thinner on average and over 20% lighter than any other Kindle. To achieve this, Kindle Oasis has a featherweight polymer frame that is plated with metal by structural electroplating—this makes the device incredibly light while ensuring it has the strength and rigidity of metal so it is resilient enough to take anywhere you want to read.

Designed for Comfortable and Extended Reading
Kindle Oasis is designed for extended reading sessions—with an entirely reimagined shape, Kindle Oasis shifts the center of gravity to your palm, to rest in your hand like the spine of a book so that the device feels balanced for one-handed reading. Effortlessly turn the page with either the touch display or physical buttons. Oasis is comfortable to read on with either hand—a built-in accelerometer detects whether you are reading with your left or right hand, and automatically rotates the page and page turn buttons to match.

Dual-Battery Design Delivers Months of Battery Life—Our Longest Ever
Kindle Oasis introduces a new dual-battery system—as soon as you connect the cover to Kindle Oasis, the battery in the cover begins recharging Kindle Oasis automatically. The battery in the cover uses a custom cell architecture that optimizes power and energy while keeping an incredibly small and light form factor and delivering months of battery life. You can charge the device and cover simultaneously while both are snapped together and plugged in. Plus, a new hibernation mode minimizes power consumption when your Kindle is inactive.

The included charging cover is made of high-quality leather and is available in black, merlot, or walnut. The cover opens like a book and fits closely around the bezel, waking Kindle Oasis when opened and putting it to sleep when closed. Twelve magnets form a secure and solid attachment between the device and cover, while ensuring it is easy to detach when you choose to read without the cover.

Next Generation Paperwhite Display
Kindle Oasis features the latest generation high-resolution 300 ppi Paperwhite display for crisp, laser-quality text. A redesigned built-in front light features 60% more LEDs for our brightest Kindle display ever and leverages new cylindrical diffractive patterns to increase the consistency and range of screen brightness for improved reading in all types of lighting. The new Paperwhite display on Oasis is the first Kindle display designed using a ground-breaking 200 micron display backplane that is as thin as a single sheet of aluminum foil, but is robust enough for you to throw in your bag and take with you on-the-go, combined with a custom cover glass engineered from chemically-reinforced glass.

The Kindle Family: Kindle, Kindle Paperwhite, Kindle Voyage, and Kindle Oasis
Kindle Oasis is the newest addition to the Kindle family. By design, Kindle e-readers are purpose-built for reading so you can lose yourself in a book. Unlike tablets and phones, dedicated e-readers don’t distract you with social media, emails, and text messages. They don’t beep at you or tire your eyes when you read for hours at a time. You can now choose from four different Kindle e-readers to find the one that is best for you:

Kindle, our most affordable reader, with a touchscreen display and all the latest features customers love about Kindle, including Whispersync, Smart Lookup, and Goodreads integration, just $79.99.
Kindle Paperwhite, the most popular and best-selling Kindle, features a high-resolution display and an adjustable front light, just $119.99.
Kindle Voyage, with a high resolution, high contrast display, an adaptive front light and page turns with PagePress buttons, just $199.99.
Kindle Oasis, the thinnest and lightest Kindle, with an all-new ergonomic design, page turn buttons, and an included leather charging cover which, when added, provides months of battery life through a unique dual-battery charging system, just $289.99.
All the Features Readers Love about Kindle

The new Kindle Oasis includes all of the features that have made the Kindle family the most popular e-readers in the world for eight years running:

Reads like a book—Thanks to a built-in front light, read without eyestrain or glare, even in bright sunlight.
Weeks of battery life—Battery life is measured in weeks, not hours.
No set-up required—Kindle arrives pre-registered so you can start reading immediately.
Whispersync—Saves and synchronizes your last page read, bookmarks, and annotations across all of your devices and Kindle apps, so you can always pick up where you left off.
Worry-free archive—Automatically backs up your Kindle books in the cloud, so you never need to worry about losing your books—re-download your books wirelessly anytime for free.
Goodreads—Kindle is integrated with the world’s largest site for readers and book recommendations, with over 50 million members, 1.3 billion books added, and 47 million book reviews.
X-Ray—Explore the “Bones of the Book”—see all of the passages across a book that mention relevant ideas, fictional characters, historical figures, places, or topics of interest.
Word Wise—Available on many popular English language titles, Word Wise makes it easier to enjoy and quickly understand more challenging books. Short and simple definitions automatically appear above difficult words, so you can keep reading with fewer interruptions.
Family Library—With Kindle and Kindle reading apps, you can access not only your own books, but also books from the Amazon account of a spouse or partner.
Kindle FreeTime—Gives parents a simple, engaging way to encourage kids to spend more time reading. Hand-select books for your kids to read, and achievement badges are earned when they hit reading milestones.
Time to Read—Tells you how much time it will take to finish a chapter or a book based on your personalized reading speed.
Vocabulary Builder—Compiles words you look up in the dictionary into an easy-to-access list. Use these lists to quiz yourself with flashcards and instantly see words in context.
Share your favorite passages—Share book recommendations, highlighted sections, and meaningful quotes with friends via Facebook and Twitter.
Smart Lookup—Integrates a full dictionary definition with other reference information via X-Ray and Wikipedia.
Custom-Built Typesetting Engine—Word and character spacing, with hyphenation, justification, ligatures, and kerning lays out the pages just as the author intended.
World’s Best eBook Store

Kindle e-readers come with instant access to the Kindle Store, which includes:

Massive selection—Millions of books, newspapers and magazines, including the latest best sellers, Kindle Singles, and more.
Kindle exclusives—Over 1,000,000 books are exclusive to the Kindle Store.
Lowest book prices—Over a million titles are $2.99 or less, over 2 million are $9.99 or less.
Kindle Unlimited—Enjoy unlimited reading of over 1,000,000 books and unlimited listening to a selection of thousands of audiobooks for just $9.99 a month.
Kindle First—Access new Kindle books a month in advance of their official release date. Customers can choose one of the featured books each month for $1.99, and Prime members can make their selection for free—yet another benefit of Prime membership.
The new Kindle Oasis is $289.99. It is available for pre-order around the world and will start shipping in the coming weeks. Order now at www.amazon.com/kindleoasis.

About Amazon
Amazon.com opened on the World Wide Web in July 1995. The company is guided by four principles: customer obsession rather than competitor focus, passion for invention, commitment to operational excellence, and long-term thinking. Customer reviews, 1-Click shopping, personalized recommendations, Prime, Fulfillment by Amazon, AWS, Kindle Direct Publishing, Kindle, Fire tablets, Fire TV, Amazon Echo, and Alexa are some of the products and services pioneered by Amazon. For more information, visit www.amazon.com/about.

Today both Foxconn and Sharp are pleased to announce the historic strategic alliance of two global technology leaders. The culture of both of our companies is defined by hard work, creativity and innovation. We are committed to restoring profitability and strengthening operations to once again make Sharp a leader in the global electronics arena and a world-class company with a positive outlook. Both our teams are on the same page working towards the same goal.

We are confident about our future together, as both Foxconn and Sharp have been working very closely and successfully since 2012.

Terry Gou, Founder and CEO of Foxconn, said, “I am thrilled by the prospects for this strategic alliance and I look forward to working with everyone at Sharp. We have much that we want to achieve and I am confident that we will unlock Sharp’s true potential and together reach great heights.”

Kozo Takahashi, President and CEO of Sharp, said, “I am pleased with our decision today to form a strategic alliance and merge both forces between Sharp and Foxconn to accelerate innovation with the “creativity and entrepreneurial spirit” of both our companies.”

Redwood Shores, Calif.— Empowering developers to build the next generation of big data analytics platforms, Oracle released a free and open API and developer kit for its Data Analytics Accelerator (DAX) in SPARC processors through its Software in Silicon Developer Program. The program also lets developers view sample use cases and program code, and to test and validate how DAX can speed up analytics applications while test driving Software in Silicon Technology.

“High performance data analytics are critical to a range of key use cases like click stream data, social media sentiment, buying behavior, and more,” said John Fowler, Executive Vice President of Systems, Oracle. “Through our Software in Silicon Developer Program, developers can now apply our DAX technology to a broad spectrum of previously unsolvable challenges in the analytics space because we have integrated data analytics acceleration into processors, enabling unprecedented data scan rates of up to 170 billion rows per second.”

With the release of the 32-core, 256 thread SPARC M7 processor, Oracle created a number of Software in Silicon features by building in higher-level software functions into processor design. One of the most exciting new capabilities introduced in the SPARC M7 processor as part of the Software in Silicon innovations in SPARC M7 is DAX, which delivers unprecedented analytics efficiency.

Data Analytics Accelerator on SPARC M7
DAX adds processing capability that can run selective functionality – Scan, Extract, Select and Translate – at incredibly fast speeds. The SPARC M7 DAX accelerates these analytics primitives on a dedicated physical unit separate from the standard compute cores.

Initial software development enabled DAX for Oracle Database 12c, and all the applications above it. This extends analytics acceleration to all Oracle, ISV, and customer applications.

Large scale scan and filter operations are made trivial by transparent use of 32 dedicated DAX co-processors in the SPARC microprocessor which operate at memory bus speeds of up to 160 GB/s between cache and DRAM. These accelerators, implemented for the first time on-chip for the highest level of performance and efficiency, can now be used by developers through APIs in Oracle Solaris 11, and applied to a variety of use cases.

As one notable example of Data Analytics Accelerator integration into machine learning and Big Data use cases, Oracle engineers have shown that the DAX can significantly accelerate Apache Spark, which has become one of the most popular methods for processing large data sets. Through this project, engineers used the DAX with Apache Spark to take one billion rows of data in memory and filter it into a 3D cube so fast that interactive data analytics are now possible.

SPARC M7 and DAX design advantages include:

Industry-leading delivered memory bandwidth: at an industry-leading 160GB/s memory bandwidth, the SPARC M7 processor provides enough capacity to feed both the DAX units as well as processor cores.

DAX offload: frees the processor cores for other processing.

Efficient decompressing combined with in-memory processing: putting decompression in the DAX unit is much faster than software implementations. Designing decompression with scanning means needless back and forth memory transfers are avoided. Results from the DAX are entered into the CPU cache for better CPU efficiency.

DAX range comparisons: many real-world database analytics queries are written to find data transacted between certain dates, or product cost ranges, etc. The DAX processes range comparisons at the same rate as individual comparisons. Other processors require additional computational time for each comparison.

Avoiding cache pollution: the DAX does much of its computation without needing to store intermediate data in a cache, freeing the CPU’s cache for other processing.

Partnerships with Developer Community and Leading Higher Education Institutions
Oracle continues to deliver traditional processor enhancements to improve performance of traditional workloads with more than 20 world record results over the competition. Software in Silicon can deliver previously unattainable step function improvements required in areas such as security and data analytics by embedding the functionalities to handle particular algorithms on the processor with greater performance and efficiency.

Oracle has also published several use cases with code samples to maximize developer productivity and expedite projects as well as a detailed example of DAX integration with Apache Spark. Resources can be accessed now via the Oracle Software in Silicon Cloud, a freely available cloud service for developers and researchers that provides direct access to this technology. Additionally, Oracle is partnering with leading higher education institutions such as Brown University, on innovative research projects with Software in Silicon.

“We are currently working on characterizing the performance of DAX across a suite of modern in-memory data layout schemes. After completing this study, we will work on the optimal use of DAX in accelerating interactive data exploration and visualization with the Tupleware main-memory database system and S-Store real-time stream processing system,” stated Ugur Centimenel, Chairman of the Computer Science Department, Brown University. “Through these studies, we will quantify the performance and scalability of M7 and DAX on real workloads involving sophisticated search and machine learning over large data sets.”

Open APIs for Oracle’s Data Analytics Accelerator are now available for free via the Software in Silicon Cloud. Developers can join the community now to get started on developing the next generation of big data and analytics applications.

Melbourne, Australia – Motorola Solutions (NYSE:MSI) and Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC) today announced that they will develop next-generation push-to-talk communications for the public safety market, creating a way for traditional radio communications to integrate and extend via LTE broadband networks.

Ericsson and Motorola Solutions together with Telstra, will do a concept trial of next-generation mobile broadband push-to-talk communications in Australia and collaborate in standards forums globally to develop an industry solution that will meet the requirements of public safety users.

The partnership brings together Ericsson’s flexible and efficient network infrastructure, Motorola Solutions’ depth of experience in providing mission-critical communications for public safety, and Telstra’s vast network resources and expertise in defining and deploying next-generation communications standards and capabilities.

Next-generation push-to-talk is an important component of emerging LTE-based public safety agency solutions. This technology will complement the mission-critical capabilities provided by the Land Mobile Radio (LMR) networks that agencies depend on today and extend those networks to a greater number of users carrying smart phones and other devices.

The changing dynamics of today’s public safety environment has seen the introduction of a growing number of data sources that need to be combined with traditional voice communications to help public safety agencies make better and faster decisions.

Delivering this combined information will help agencies to manage their resources in a way that maximises community safety and workforce productivity.

While today’s LMR systems will continue to play an important role for years to come, the interoperability of next-generation push-to-talk with existing TETRA and P25 systems will provide agencies with greater capacity in times of emergency.

Bruce Brda, executive vice president Products and Services with Motorola Solutions said his company’s involvement would advance both the standards and technologies needed to extend the reach of public safety’s mission critical LMR networks.

“This project is part of our vision for smart public safety, Next-Generation Mobile Intelligence, that is helping agencies deliver better community safety outcomes through a dynamic mix of technologies. Connecting a greater number of public safety officials will help to increase situational awareness and efficiency among first responders in the field.”

Mike Wright, Telstra Networks Group Managing Director said “Telstra plays a leading role in developing and defining the standards for new services including next-generation push to talk. In the future this technology will provide a platform to deliver greater multi-media communications to front line responders.”

“Providing a leading LTE public safety capability is a key objective for Telstra with its Telstra LANES® (LTE Advanced Network for Emergency Services) advanced network solution. A mission-critical push to talk capability is part of our vision for public safety communications via LANES® and delivers our mission-critical customers a compelling solution to extend voice to more of their staff.”

Per Narvinger Head of 4G/5G RAN, Ericsson’s said, “We are pleased to be working with our partner Motorola Solutions and to support Telstra’s early trials and introduction of next-generation push-to-talk to the Australian market. Ericsson has long supported LTE as the best path forward for public safety agency communications and this is another important step in this direction.”

The collaboration will provide standards-based features important to public safety users including:

Optimised push-to-talk latency to deliver voice communications with minimal delays.
Flexible talk group management integrated across both radio and broadband networks.
Call preemption for LTE devices such as smart phones, tablets and desk top computers.
Public safety agencies will benefit from providing more staff with access to next-generation push-to-talk and greater coverage as LTE networks are extended across Australia. Telstra plans to reach coverage across 99 per cent of Australia via its LTE networks by the end of June 2017.

About Motorola Solutions
Motorola Solutions (NYSE: MSI) creates innovative, mission-critical communication solutions and services that help public safety and commercial customers build safer cities and thriving communities. For ongoing news, visit www.motorolasolutions.com/newsroom or subscribe to our news feed.

HOUSTON, Feb. 23, 2016 – Honeywell (NYSE: HON) Process Solutions (HPS) and Palo Alto Networks® (NYSE: PANW) are collaborating to boost the cyber security capabilities of control systems used by industrial facilities and critical infrastructure.

Honeywell’s Industrial Cyber Security business is now offering the Palo Alto Networks Next-Generation Security Platform to industrial customers. The collaboration enables customers to better prevent cyberattacks against their Process Control Networks (PCN) and Operational Technology (OT) environments in order to protect their assets and maximize production uptime and safety.

The joint solution offers unrivaled process network traffic monitoring and advanced threat prevention across the automation environment. It combines Palo Alto Networks’ advanced and natively integrated security platform with Honeywell’s unique process control domain expertise to provide a cyber security solution tailored for industrial customers. This next-generation offering enhances Honeywell’s comprehensive portfolio of cyber security solutions, including its Industrial Cyber Security Risk Manager platform.

QUOTES

“The collaboration with Palo Alto Networks expands our ability to provide proactive intrusion prevention resulting in more robust protection for our customers. It is an example of Honeywell’s unique multi-vendor approach that integrates state-of-the-art technology with proven expertise so that customers can confidently rely on our cyber security capabilities, quickly and effectively prevent threats, and focus on their daily operations.”
– Jeff Zindel, vice president and general manager, cyber security, Honeywell Process Solutions
“Connecting vital infrastructure to the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) comes with tremendous benefit, but also associated cyber risks. Our work with Honeywell addresses the cyber risk with next-generation security designed to meet the needs of industrial customers and provide them with threat detection and prevention capabilities previously unseen in the industry.”
– Chad Kinzelberg, senior vice president of business and corporate development, Palo Alto Networks
Honeywell Industrial Cyber Security is the leading provider of cyber security solutions that help protect the availability, safety, and reliability of industrial facilities, critical infrastructure and the Industrial Internet of Things. Leveraging industry-leading process control and cyber security expertise and experience, highly advanced technology, and integrated partner security products, Honeywell delivers proven, complete solutions designed for the specific needs of industrial environments.

For more information about Honeywell’s Industrial Cyber Security Solutions and the Palo Alto Networks Next-Generation Security Platform, please visit the Honeywell and Palo Alto Networks websites.

About Honeywell Process Solutions
Honeywell Process Solutions (www.honeywellprocess.com) is a pioneer in automation control, instrumentation and services for the oil and gas; refining; pulp and paper; industrial power generation; chemicals and petrochemicals; biofuels; life sciences; and metals, minerals and mining industries. Process Solutions is part of Honeywell’s Performance Materials and Technologies strategic business group, which also includes Honeywell UOP (www.uop.com), a leading international supplier and licensor of process technology, catalysts, adsorbents, equipment, and consulting services to the petroleum refining, petrochemical, and gas processing industries.

About Honeywell
Honeywell (www.honeywell.com) is a Fortune 100 diversified technology and manufacturing leader, serving customers worldwide with aerospace products and services; control technologies for buildings, homes, and industry; turbochargers; and performance materials. For more news and information on Honeywell, please visit www.honeywellnow.com.

About Palo Alto Networks
Palo Alto Networks is the next-generation security company, leading a new era in cybersecurity by safely enabling applications and preventing cyber breaches for tens of thousands of organizations worldwide. Built with an innovative approach and highly differentiated cyberthreat prevention capabilities, our game-changing security platform delivers security far superior to legacy or point products, safely enables daily business operations, and protects an organization’s most valuable assets. Find out more at www.paloaltonetworks.com.

Barcelona, Spain – Today at Mobile World Congress, GE (NYSE: GE) announced the GE Digital Alliance Program, the first ever dedicated to growing the digital industrial ecosystem. This new alliance program is designed to connect systems integrators, telecommunications service providers, independent software vendors, technology providers and resellers with the technology and digital industrial expertise of GE. For the first time, GE alliance members will be able to train and certify their developers and begin building industrial apps with Predix, GE’s cloud platform for the Industrial Internet.

The program will also offer participants access to sales, marketing and technical resources from across GE Digital, as well as digital tools, training and enablement, online content and assets, Predix certification, developer sandboxes, joint deal registration and specific benefits based upon contribution level. This move brings Predix to the world’s largest developer ecosystem, unlocking new applications for the Industrial Internet.

“With the launch of the GE Digital Alliance Program, we are providing these alliance members with expanded access to GE Digital tools, technologies and domain expertise,” said Denzil Samuels, Head of Global Channels and Alliances, GE Digital. “The new alliance program is also designed to take us to the size and scale required to truly drive unprecedented growth, as well as certifying thousands of developers, implementers and consultants to give us the largest ecosystem of qualified technical capacity. We are excited to work closely with some of the most forward-thinking companies in technology to unlock unprecedented value for our customers.”

As part of the GE Digital Alliance Program, GE also unveiled new collaborations with Intel, Capgemini, TCS, Deloitte Digital, Infosys, Genpact, Softtek and Wipro Limited.

Intel and GE are forming a global strategic alliance to combine the power of Predix with Intel computing platforms and the world’s largest developer ecosystem. This alliance will bring jointly developed technologies to industries such as Intelligent Cities, Brilliant Manufacturing and healthcare. The move will produce a world-class products and solutions offering for industrial and commercial customers across the globe, unlocking tremendous economic opportunities for both companies.

“Intel and GE have been working on IoT standards and initiatives for several years to accelerate deployment, and those efforts are now paying off,” stated Doug Davis, senior vice president and general manager of IoT at Intel. “There are proven pilots moving to full deployment and formalized programs like the GE Digital Alliance Program are helping companies realize the value of the IoT.”

Capgemini and GE plan to accelerate growth for both companies globally. With GE’s Current, they intend for 200 developers to develop Predix software solutions, helping customers reduce power levels, generate power onsite, and drive new revenue streams through the use of sensors and networked systems in buildings and cities.

“As an early adopter of Predix, Capgemini supports GE Digital’s vision and plans to spark innovation to transform companies and industries,” said Tim Bridges, CEO of Application Services, North America, for Capgemini. “Our customers have a deep interest in embracing analytic and intelligent solutions to benefit from the limitless opportunities in the Industrial Internet world.”

TCS and GE will work together to create an innovative industry solutions ecosystem by leveraging TCS’ comprehensive business and digital expertise to enrich GE’s Predix platform. TCS has already developed new IoT solutions on Predix, such as Satellite Image Analytics, Supply Chain Monitoring, Prognostic Maintenance and Engine Telematics. Moreover, TCS has the largest pool of Predix trained experts and plans to ramp up an additional 1,000 developers in 2016. TCS is significantly expanding its global team to support the unprecedented growth in the Industrial Internet.

​​”TCS endeavors to digitally reimagine its customers business through innovative solutions,” said Anupam Singhal, vice president, Tata Consultancy Services. “We see great opportunities in leveraging our global industry expertise and assets, enriching GE’s Predix platform to drive favorable business outcomes for customers.”

Deloitte Digital and GE intend to work together to drive digital industrial transformation for mutual clients, leveraging GE Digital’s Industrial Internet products and vision along with Deloitte Digital’s proven strategic digital transformation experience and value delivery approach. A creative digital consultancy within Deloitte Consulting LLP, Deloitte Digital provides clients with a full-service solution for their business needs, combining strategically-driven creative solutions infused with business processes to enable delivery of comprehensive end-to-end offerings.
Infosys, as an early adopter of the Predix platform, has partnered with GE to deliver a range of services to customers – including Industrial Internet solutions for manufacturing, aviation, transportation and healthcare. The company has more than 100 technical staff trained on Predix development and plans to train an additional 500 developers on the platform in 2016, in addition to establishing Predix training for customers. This partnership will foster co-innovation of new applications with advanced concepts in digital twin, brilliant factory and AI. Predix reference solutions and an industrial version of its Aikido service offering will help manufacturers and other industrial enterprises simplify, automate and transform their businesses.

Genpact and GE join forces to create an end-to-end offering and joint go-to-market model to help clients transform through accelerated Industrial Internet adoption. As a GE spin-off, Genpact brings deep understanding of the industry domain and combines that with Data-to-Insight-to-Action analyticsSM, engineering and technology, along with its Lean DigitalSM approach to reimagine the Industrial Internet processes and systems to generate unparalleled business impact.

Softtek and GE will work together to drive increased efficiency and optimization for the Industrial Internet globally. “Softtek is proud to join the GE Digital Alliance Program,” said Beni Lopez, Chief Globalization Officer at Softtek. “This partnership will leverage Softtek’s global industrial and digital expertise to provide development and implementation services for GE Digital solutions. Softtek has developed several applications powered by Predix for water treatment calculations, asset monitoring and customer issue tracking to enable customers with improved visibility and analytics.”

Wipro and GE will join forces to create an industrial team of factory practitioners and technical experts to help accelerate the adoption of the Predix platform in the industrial marketplace. With a partnership history that goes back several decades, the two companies will build the most relevant set of industrial apps and integration templates to deliver the promise of cloud, analytics and mobility for manufacturing customers worldwide.

GE Digital also provided updates on existing agreements, now joining the newly formed Digital Alliance Program.
Accenture and GE jointly deployed the Intelligent Pipeline Solution, a breakthrough software solution that helps pipeline operators make informed decisions around pipeline safety and integrity. Columbia Pipeline Group is the first customer to utilize this technology across its 15,000-mile interstate pipeline network.

“Predix is a key platform in the IIoT ecosystem, and we are seeing it demonstrate value through innovative offerings such as the Intelligent Pipeline Solution,” said Paul Daugherty, chief technology officer, Accenture. “The new GE Digital Alliance Program will enable us to open up even more opportunities for clients worldwide who are looking at ways to benefit from the IIoT.”

Softbank Corporation (SoftBank) and GE introduced an Industrial Internet solution for LIXIL Total Service Co., Ltd, a subsidiary of LIXIL Corporation (LIXIL), which optimized the installer-arrangement for the home bathroom installation business, powered by Predix. SoftBank, Japanese service provider and Internet giant, became GE’s first strategic global partner to license the Predix platform in 2014. LIXIL is the first customer to benefit from this alliance.

AT&T, Verizon and Vodafone with GE are more securely connecting smart cities, railways and manufacturing plants to the Predix cloud. All three service providers are also Predix Connectivity-as-a-Service collaborators.

Cisco: “Cisco and GE continue to drive value for customers by delivering joint solutions based on the Predix platform and Cisco’s IoT-ready joint infrastructure and solutions,” said Tony Shakib, VP IoT Vertical Solutions, Cisco. “As digital industrial partners, the companies will introduce Predix-ready appliances integrated into Cisco’s IoT compute platform, as well industry-specific solutions like the brilliant factory offering.”
The exchange of knowledge, technology and resources available through the GE Digital Alliance Program will be facilitated through GE’s growing network of Digital Foundries located around the world, the first to open in Paris. This is another step in GE’s move to bring the Predix platform to the global developer community and grow the Industrial Internet ecosystem at large.

To join or learn more about the GE Digital Alliance Program, visit GE.com/digital/partners.

About GE Digital
GE Digital connects streams of machine data to powerful analytics and people, providing industrial companies with valuable insights to manage assets and operations more efficiently. World-class talent and software capabilities driving digital industrial transformation for big gains in productivity, availability and longevity.

We’re excited to announce an important milestone on SwiftKey’s journey. As of today, we have agreed to join the Microsoft family.

Microsoft’s mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. Our mission is to enhance interaction between people and technology. We think these are a perfect match, and we believe joining Microsoft is the right next stage in our journey.

Eight years ago we started out as two friends with a shared belief that there had to be a better way of typing on smartphones. We’ve come a long way since then; today hundreds of millions of people around the world, and many of the leading mobile manufacturers, rely on our language prediction technology. Our users have saved an estimated 10 trillion keystrokes across 100 different languages, which adds up to over 100,000 years of reclaimed typing time.

Our number one focus has always been to build the best possible products for our users. This will not change. Our apps will continue to be available on Android and iOS, for free. We are as committed as ever to improving them in new and innovative ways.

We owe a lot to the invaluable input of our users, including our 130,000-strong VIP community and the many thousands of others who have been with us since the start. Their energy, honest feedback and eagerness to share our products have been the driving force behind our growth.

At times like this people tend to focus on founders. However, the heart of our company is the awesome team who chose to share this journey with us. We want to take this opportunity to thank them for their dedication and hard work. We never would have come this far without you.

Jon Reynolds and Ben Medlock

SwiftKey co-founders