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In the papers 24 September 
Tuesday, September 24 2002
by Sylvia Leatham


Global stock markets tumble, lead by weakening tech shares | Several Irish
institutes of technology are facing a cash crisis





The Irish Independent reports that several institutes of technology are facing a
cash crisis due to government cutbacks on spending. The Department of Education
and Science has refused to top up grant allocations, and institutes have been
informed they must not exceed their budgets. Dublin Institute of Technology has
been one of the hardest hit by the lack of funding -- it has slashed its
part-time teaching budget by EUR1.3 million, reduced overtime, curtailed
recruitment and may cancel some courses.



The paper also reports that Horizon Open Systems has appointed Roland Noonan as
its managing director. Noonan, who joined the company in 1991, succeeds Gary
Coburn, who has been appointed chief operating officer of Horizon Technology
Group.



The same paper says that three former Baltimore Technologies staff have teamed up
with Fred Hanna Jr, formerly of Fred Hanna's bookshop, to start a technology
company. Garrett Hussey, Hugh Larkin and Lisa Wilkinson, all of whom worked for
Baltimore, have joined Hanna in setting up Swiftxt. The company intends to sell a
product that allows consumers and logistics companies to track the delivery of
goods more accurately. Swiftxt is trying to raise EUR300,000 to take its product
to market. 



The same paper says that the number of students opting to take computer science
courses at some universities has fallen even lower than predicted. Trinity
College says that only about 20 students have taken places on its information and
communications technology course, out of a total quota of 120 places. In
addition, the number of students accepting places on the computer systems course
at the University of Limerick has halved to around 100.



In other news of the University of Limerick, the Irish Times reports that a
world-renowned expert in software engineering is to head a EUR6.4 million
research programme at the institute. Dr David Parnas will lead the five-year
programme, which will focus on improving software design. The programme will be
grant-funded by Science Foundation Ireland and is due to begin in October.



The same paper reports that US and European stock markets suffered heavy blows on
Monday. The Nasdaq Composite index hit a new six-year low during early trading,
as tech stocks were dragged down by more bleak corporate news and evidence that
the US economy had taken a turn for the worse. The Nasdaq lost 2.96 percent, to
finish at 1,184.97, closing below 1,200 for the first time since September 1996,
while the Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 1.43 percent. Meanwhile, nearly all
European markets suffered hefty losses. The ISEQ closed at 4010, a fall of 2.3
percent, London's FTSE finished down 3.1 percent, at a six-year low of 3,739.4,
while Germany's Xetra Dax index closed down almost 5 percent.



The paper also says that a Cork call centre owned by Starwood Hotels and Resorts
Worldwide is set to create 190 new jobs. Read the full story as reported by href="http://www.enn.ie/news.html?code=8630954">ElectricNews.net on Monday.




The Financial Times reports that Vodafone would be willing to increase its stake
in Cegetel, the owner of French mobile operator SFR, even if a transaction did
not give it management control, according to sources close to the company. The UK
mobile operator has already submitted an informal STG8 billion bid to purchase
the stake in Cegetel that it does not own. However, a rival bid from Vivendi
Universal, which also owns a 44 percent stake in Cegetel, has forced Vodafone to
be more flexible, and it is understood that Vodafone is open to increasing its
stake in SFR even if management control remains with Vivendi



The same paper reports that Microsoft has no plans to enter the computer services
business, contrary to analysts' speculation. Some analysts had predicted that a
move into services would be logical as Microsoft seeks to enlarge its focus on
higher-value software. However, company chief executive Steve Ballmer, has
insisted that Microsoft intends to stick with its software-only strategy and
would not move towards IT services. 



According to the Wall Street Journal, Intertainer, a company that distributes
movies on-line, has filed an antitrust suit against the film units of AOL Time
Warner, Sony and Vivendi Universal. The suit, filed in US District Court in Los
Angeles, claims that the three companies used their own on-line movie joint
venture, now called Movielink, to push up the price for licensing their movies to
rival on-line distributors.



The paper also reports that handheld device maker Palm's fiscal first-quarter
loss widened significantly on a 20 percent drop in revenue. For the period ended
30 August, Palm posted a net loss of USD258.7 million, or USD0.45 a share,
compared with a net loss of USD32.4 million, or USD0.06 a share, in the year-ago
period. Of that loss, USD219.1 million came from a non-cash charge to increase
the valuation allowance for the company's deferred-tax assets, a result of a
change in Palm's tax-planning strategy. The company said it anticipates breaking
even in its current quarter.