|
Troubled on-line recruitment agency StepStone announced a proposed share offer that will see it raise between EUR25 and EUR35 million in new funds. The effort to secure the much needed funding consists of an EUR25 million directed share issue and a following up EUR10 million rights issue. At present, the company's board has received binding subscriptions totalling EUR21.8 million, it said on Thursday. The subscriptions have come from various investors including the three largest current shareholders; GeoCapital, Orkla ASA and Investor AB. The company said further subscriptions from investors are possible. Earlier this month StepStone said that it was in financial peril and needed new funding to survive through to profitability. With that news, the company also said it was closing its UK office leaving the future of its Irish office in question.
Nokia and Lycos Europe are to work together to develop multimedia messaging services. Lycos Europe has recently launched its mobile channel giving its communities additional mobile services. Lycos' new channel is currently built around its mainstay SMS service which is one of the leading SMS Web to phone and phone to Web service in Europe. The new deal will give Lycos Mobile users new MMS features and MMS content.
AOL Europe and Monster.com announced a strategic alliance to provide members on AOL Europe's properties in the UK, France and Germany with Monster.com's career management tools and resources. This deal replicates the AOL-Monster relationship in the US and tailors it to the specific needs of the European market.
Microsoft released Xbox on Thursday, its highly anticipated home video games console. The release of the much publicised product is expected to result in serious competition in the industry as Nintendo releases CameCube this weekend, which along with Xbox and Sony's market leading Playstation 2, will look to capture a portion of the fruitful sector. Microsoft said as many as 30 games will be available for Xbox by Christmas, but admitted that demand may outpace supply for both games and consoles.
British Telecommunications announced the completion of the sale of its interest in Maxis Communications in Malaysia on Thursday. BT said that it sold its 33.33 percent stake in Maxis Communications Berhad to its partner in Maxis, Usaha Tegas Sdn Bhd, for STG350 million in cash. This follows the recent completion of the sale of BT's 44 percent stake in Bharti Cellular Limited (BCL) in India to BCL's majority shareholder, Bharti Televentures Ltd, for STG114 million in cash. The STG350 million received from the sale of the stake in Maxis is being used to reduce BT's net debt which stood at STG16.5 billion at the end of September. BT purchased its stake in Maxis Communications Berhad (formerly Binariang Bhd) in 1998 for around STG280 million.
The Nasdaq Stock Market on Thursday reported net income of USD7.9 million for the quarter ended 30 September 2001, compared with net income of USD22.0 million for the third quarter of 2000, a decrease of 64.1 percent. Diluted earnings per share were USD0.07 for the third quarter of 2001, compared with USD0.18 for the third quarter of 2000. Annualised return on average stockholders' equity was 6.1 percent for the third quarter. Total revenues for the third quarter were USD197.7 million, a 2.5 percent decrease on the same period last year. Total expenses for the quarter were USD191.0 million, an increase of 18.0 percent from the USD161.8 million the prior year. These expense increases were anticipated and represented investments in technology and global initiatives.
Nokia and eurosport.com on Thursday agreed to develop eurosport.com content adapted for multimedia messaging services (MMS). In the near future, subscribers to the Eurosport MMS service will be able to receive sports headlines with colour images and audio clips directly on their phones.
Betdaq, the betting exchange has launched a Chinese language version of its sports betting service. The translation into traditional Chinese is backed up by a full member service function, based in Dublin's International financial services centre.
BT received final court approval prior to the demerger of the mmO2 business on Thursday. The demerger process involves the creation of two new holding companies: one for the BT Group businesses and one for the mmO2 businesses through a court-approved Scheme of Arrangement.
NTT DoCoMo and IBM Lotus Software are to study the feasibility of jointly developing and globally marketing mobile multimedia business solutions. The companies signed a memorandum of understanding regarding these matters on Wednesday. Specifically, NTT DoCoMo and IBM Lotus Software will explore the feasibility of developing solutions to run business applications on NTT DoCoMo's mobile networks, including the FOMA third-generation (3G) mobile network. They will also explore possibilities for incorporating mobile technology in various business applications.
Ericsson is to sell its cable modem business to Canadian-based Aastra Technologies Ltd. The agreement with Aastra for transfer of Ericsson's consumer cable modem design, marketing and sales resources is a result of Ericsson's ongoing product portfolio review.
|
