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The Irish Independent reports that sales at WorldCom's European operations have fallen 50 percent since the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the US last month. Lucy Woods, chief executive of WorldCom International, said that although there is usually a dip in sales in the July/August period, a decline of this proportion is unusual. The drop has reinforced speculation that the US company could be preparing to sell off its European business.
The paper also reports that Sx3, the Viridian Group's IT services business in Northern Ireland, has won three major contracts in the local government sector in England. Portsmouth and Peterborough City Councils have both selected Sx3 as their IT partner, while Bromley has selected Sx3 as its ICT support partner. The contracts are worth over STG13 million to Sx3.
The same paper says that the Department for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources is to consider the use of new wireless technologies for the delivery of broadband access to the Internet. Minister Dermot Ahern will accept proposals for pilot trials of wireless local access network (WLAN) from technology and communications companies up to 30 August, and the trials will run for a year. According to the Department, successful groups will be given funding to explore and demonstrate the potential for the deployment of the technology.
According to the Irish Times, Irish citizens will not be allowed enter the US without a visa from October 2004 unless a microchip containing biometric data is embedded in new passports. Legislation signed into law by President Bush in May will require all 28 States in the US government's visa-waiver programme to provide biometric data, such as fingerprints or iris scans, on all newly issued travel documents. The new law is aimed at tightening up security following the terrorist attacks on 11 September.
The paper also reports that Microsoft is set to release hundreds of pieces of technical data relating to its Windows operating system as part of a proposed antitrust settlement. Brad Smith, Microsoft's general counsel, said that Microsoft was "obligated as a company to continue to move forward to meet our obligations under the agreement, even as we are waiting for a final decision." The data will be released this month, with some available free of charge on-line, and the remainder requiring a licensing fee.
According to the Irish Examiner, Vodafone Group has apologised for an incident during a Tri-nations rugby match involving two streakers who wore nothing but the company's logo. The streakers ran on to the field during the Australian Wallabies' Bledisloe Cup match against New Zealand and disrupted play until they were caught by security. Both had the Vodafone logo and the name of a new mobile product painted on their bodies. Vodafone, sponsor of the Wallabies, said it sanctioned plans for a cheeky PR stunt ahead of the match but did not know the two men would do anything illegal. A police spokeswoman said one man was charged with obscene exposure, while the second man was issued with an infringement notice.
The Financial Times says that a special investigation by the Finnish government into Sonera's disastrous investment in a German 3G licence has cleared ministers and senior officials of involvement in the decision. Last month Sonera, which is 53 percent owned by the state, wrote off USD4.2 billion of investments in 3G licences, mainly in Germany. The investment has been described as the biggest mistake in Finnish corporate history, and the government has been accused being intimately involved. Kimmo Sasi, minister of transport and communications, said the government did not discuss the matter and no instructions about it were given to the company's management or board of directors. A separate inquiry into the matter is expected to be launched by Finland's Attorney General.
The same paper says that Deutsche Telekom has insisted there are no grounds for a lawsuit against it over payments made to top managers and former chief executive Ron Sommer. The telecommunications group was responding to reports that two Stuttgart lawyers had filed a lawsuit against it over a 2001 stock option plan. The company said it strongly rejected allegations that payments to senior executives had been against the interests of shareholders.
The Wall Street Journal reports that AOL Time Warner is expected to name Jonathan F. Miller as chief executive of America Online, a sign the media company needs an outsider to reform a culture that was tightly knit and insular. Miller is a veteran cable executive, whose career has ranged from the National Basketball Association's cable operations to Nickelodeon and the Home Shopping Network. Miller will be one of the first outsiders to join America Online in a senior position.
The Sunday Business Post reported that financial software company Fineos has laid off around 20 of its 250 staff, due to poor market conditions. Seventeen jobs were cut from the company's Irish office, which employs 210 staff. Fineos also cut positions at its British office in Surrey and at its smaller office in the Netherlands. Jarlath Dooley, head of business operations, said the company's market had slowed as corporate buying decisions took longer to complete.
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