Comms Dealer

C4L has broadened its data centre network footprint having joined forces with Digital Realty.

The move is C4L's first link-up with an official Technology Partner, enabling it to leverage Digital Realty's data centre and colocation facilities in the UK and Europe.

The partnership gives Digital Realty access to C4L's privately owned fibre coreTX network.

C4L's CEO Simon Mewett said: "This partnership represents more than two companies benefitting from collaborating expertise and ownership, it benefits those customers who are already loyal to us, proving that as a customervoriented infrastructure provider we are constantly evolving our service."

Digital Realty's MD for EMEA Bernard Geoghegan added: "By optimising our data centre connectivity credentials this collaboration helps us to continue to build our clients' data advantage and power commercial growth."

Pictured: C4L Business Development Director Matt Delargy presents Scott Newcombe, European Sales Director from Digital Realty, with a Technology Business Partner plaque.

Some 90% of ICT decision-makers are changing their cloud buying behaviour as a direct result of allegations of large scale clandestine cyber-surveillance. A study published by NTT Communications says that even the US customers want local.

The survey of 1000 ICT decision-makers from France, Germany, Hong Kong, United Kingdom, and the USA found these key points:

1. Almost nine in ten (88%) of ICT decision-makers are changing their
cloud buying behaviour, with over one in three (38%) amending
their procurement conditions for cloud providers
2. Only 5% of respondents believe location does not matter when it
comes to storing company data
3. More than three in ten (31%) of ICT decision-makers are moving data to locations where the business knows it will be safe
4. Around six in ten (62%) of those not currently using cloud feel
the revelations have prevented them from moving their ICT into the cloud
5. ICT decision-makers now prefer buying a cloud service which is located in their own region, especially EU respondents (97%) and US (92%)
6. Just over half (52%) are carrying out greater due diligence on
cloud providers than ever before
7. One in six (16%) is delaying or cancelling contracts with cloud
service providers
8. More than four fifths (84%) feel they need more training on data
protection laws
9. 82% of all ICT decision-makers globally agree with proposals by
Angela Merkel for separating data networks

Len Padilla, Vice President Product Strategy, NTT Communications in Europe, said, "Our findings show that the NSA allegations have hardened ICT decision-makers' attitudes towards cloud computing, whether it is modifying procurement policies, scrutinising potential suppliers or taking a heightened interest in where their data is stored."

He continued, "Despite the scandal and global security threat, business executives need to remember that cloud platforms do help firms become more agile, and do help foster technology innovation, even in the most risk-averse organisations. ICT decision-makers are working hard to find ways to retain those benefits and protect the organisation against being compromised in any way. There is optimism that the industry can solve these issues through restricting data movement and encryption of data."

Tech Data Europe will supply Google's indirect channel across Europe with services around the Chromecast media streaming device.

Chromecast has just gone on sale in the UK, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Denmark, Sweden and Finland.

Through the agreement, Tech Data Mobile Solutions will provide complete fulfilment services, including logistics, transportation management, forecasting, procurement consolidation, inventory management, invoicing and collection.

"Tech Data Mobile Solutions is pleased to be selected by Google to manage their end-to-end supply chain operations and distribution of Chromecast throughout Europe," said Rod Millar, senior VP Tech Data Mobile Solutions.

As part of the agreement, Tech Data Mobile Solutions has created a dedicated central account management team and a collection of services, including forecasting, procurement and supply chain reporting, that enables Google retail specialists to commercially manage all European sales through a single Tech Data operational interface.

Dawn McMorrow has joined Jabra UK & Ireland Business Solutions as UK&I Marketing Manager.

She arrives from TD Azlan where she held the role of Cisco Marketing Manager for Tech Data's Enterprise Division, Azlan.

McMorrow has also worked for Westcon, McAfee and Juniper Networks.

Jabra Business Solutions UK & Ireland MD Nigel Dunn said: "Dawn brings with her a great understanding of channel marketing and has excellent experience, having worked with enterprise distributor TD Azlan. She also has fantastic knowledge of working for vendor organisations which is invaluable to her new role at Jabra.

"To complete all of those attributes, Dawn also has sales experience which makes a really great balance for this role.

"Together with her in-depth knowledge of Cisco, who are one of our key Strategic Partners, Dawn has a great understanding of the IPT and UC market space and this is Jabra's sweet-spot."

New findings from leading hi-tech analysts Juniper Research reveal that Tablet Hybrid devices will ship nearly 50 million units by 2018, rising from an estimated 9.5 million in 2013.

Tablet Hybrids combine the mobility of a tablet with the functionality of an Ultrabook and can have the screen removed to perform as a slate.

The new report, Tablets & Hybrids: Market Prospects 2014-2018, observed that the tablet market is becoming increasingly diverse as new form factors emerge. This small scale evolution in the grey area between the Tablet and Ultrabook market is extremely appealing to a niche demographic, mostly business users and gamers.

These demographics are also the most able and willing to spend on new devices. The latest Galaxy Tab-Pro is an example of such a proposition - a business-friendly tablet together with a dedicated keyboard and mouse.

Meanwhile, in the mainstream Tablet market, the significant drop in the price of Tablets has meant that several governments and schools are now providing students with either free or subsidised tablets.

Schemes include the government of Thailand's One Tablet PC per Child policy or the Aakash tablets subsidised by the Indian government. Consequently, the tablet is now seen also as an educational tool in certain markets. It is also perhaps indicative that the future of education is more towards research and interactive programmes.

Other key findings suggest that Hybrid ASP will remain stable over the forecast period due to the more affluent demographics. In addition, the report says that retailers are increasingly launching low cost tablets as a gateway to their online services via widgets and pre-installed features. With Hudl a recent example offered by British retailer Tesco.

Media Logistics Platform (MLP), a newly coined term by analyst firm Ovum to define the logistics software businesses that manage the processes of production, ingest, post-production and transfer of media and data will hit £400m by 2018.

Adrian Drury, Consulting Director & Practice Leader: IT, Media & Telecoms at Ovum, said:   "Just as the Online Video Platform (OVP) market has seen rapid growth and an accelerated journey to maturity, so the MLP market is now set for growth as premium media companies look to solve the media management and logistic challenges that are today acting as an impediment to growth. In this study we look at the rapid uptake of this platform and predict massive growth across all territories for these services."

As cloud and file based-workflows become mainstream, MLPs are a vital service segment of the premium media market. With a current potential value of £100m across the core markets of Europe, North America, APAC, South America and Middle East and Africa, the total addressable market is set to quadruple in value over the next four years to be worth £400m by 2018.

As a response to disruptive threat of new media players such as Google, Amazon, Apple, Netflix and Spotify, many traditional media companies have created new personalised, multi-screen services. Consumers have embraced these new services and this is now core business to content owners. The media market is moving towards a model of mass personalisation and this has driven investment in developing platforms to deliver personalised media services, as well as creating a market segment of hosted platforms to deliver these services, labeled the Online Video Platform market (OVP).

However the growing maturity, audience volume and revenue yields from these multiscreen services is exposing failings of traditional systems and processes for media management and logistics and this is becoming a choke point for growth of multiscreen services as all parties in the media supply chain wrestle with the cost and complexity of format and platform fragmentation.

"Any premium media company who wants to continue to grow will need to get these services right. The core driver for growth will be the growth of multi-screen media end markets, the growing complexity of media management and the increasing maturity of technology and platform strategy at media companies," says Drury.

AT&T, Cisco, GE, IBM and Intel have formed the Industrial Internet Consortium to improve integration of the physical and digital worlds.

The open membership group is focused on breaking down the barriers of technology silos to support better access to big data with improved integration to more easily connect and optimize assets, operations and data to drive agility and to unlock business value across all industrial sectors.

"We are at the precipice of a major technological shift at the intersection of the cyber and physical worlds, one with broad implications that will lead to substantial benefits, not just for any one organisation, but for humanity," said Janos Sztipanovits, director, E. Bronson Ingram Distinguished Professor of Engineering and Institute for Software Integrated Systems (ISIS), Vanderbilt University.

"Academia and industry understand the need to identify and establish new foundations, common frameworks and standards for the Industrial Internet, and are looking to the IIC to ensure that these efforts come together into a cohesive whole."

The intial charter has a set of noble aims around Internet of Things that include:
• Utilising existing and creating new industry use cases and test beds for real-world applications
• Delivering best practices, reference architectures, case studies, and standards requirements to ease deployment of connected technologies;
• Influencing the global standards development process for internet and industrial systems;
• Facilitating open forums to share and exchange real-world ideas, practices, lessons, and insights;
• Building confidence around new and innovative approaches to security.

Unified Communications vendor Swyx has unveiled the fourth release of its SwyxWare 2013 solution which includes among other enhancements integration with the collaboration tool TeamViewer within the Swyx client.

By clicking on SwyxWare's collaboration button, the user can activate the pre-installed TeamViewer application and start an online meeting within a few seconds and display documents to view or share in real-time.

"For colleagues working from home, sat on different floors in the same office or in other locations, it is becoming increasingly important to initiate web conferences via a mouse click during a call to review and edit documents together," said Thomas Köhler, product manager at Swyx. "Our flexible Plug-In makes this easy by integrating the popular collaboration software."

In addition to the TeamViewer-integration the new version R4 includes enhancements in the areas of CTI-pairing and integration with Microsoft PowerShell. Due to the newly introduced Bulk administration, recurring administrative tasks or changes can be implemented efficiently to all or specific users, said the vendor. A total of 145 commands are integrated in the new version of SwyxWare.

The first comprehensive and co-ordinated effort to tackle nuisance calls has been unveiled today by Culture Secretary Maria Miller.

The Nuisance Calls Action Plan sets out new measures being taken by Government, regulators, consumer groups and industry to tackle nuisance calls.

For the first time, the Culture Secretary will consult on lowering the threshold for when action can be taken against firms making nuisance calls. Thousands of people are plagued by nuisance calls each month and the consultation could see the bar significantly reduced making it easier for sanctions to be imposed.

Alongside the Action Plan Justice Secretary Chris Grayling has also today unveiled plans to impose fines of hundreds of thousands of pounds on claims management companies which use information gathered by unsolicited calls and texts and other bad practices.

Culture Secretary, Maria Miller said: "Nuisance calls must stop. At best they are an irritation and an unwanted intrusion, at worst they cause real distress and fear, particularly to the elderly or housebound.

"People need to feel safe and secure in their homes. The rules are clear - people have the right to choose not to receive unsolicited marketing calls. We will work to ensure their choice is respected."

The Action Plan brings together Government, regulators, consumer groups and industry in the first ever comprehensive and co-ordinated effort to clamp down on nuisance calls.

There continues to be a very substantial number of complaints with 120,310 made between April and November 2013 to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), the regulator responsible for unsolicited marketing calls.

In January this year, there were also 2,507 complaints about silent and abandoned call made to Ofcom, which is the regulator responsible for those calls.

The Action Plan, led by Communications Minister Ed Vaizey, outlines the action already being taken against the companies responsible for nuisance calls and new measures to help deal with the problem.

New measures to tackle the problem include:

• Consulting later this year on lowering the threshold for when the ICO can fine companies. Currently calls must cause 'substantial damage' or 'substantial distress';

• Next week regulations will be laid in Parliament to simplify how Ofcom can share information with the ICO and the Insolvency Service about rogue companies;
•
Richard Lloyd, Which? Executive Director, will chair a task force to investigate how consumers give and withdraw consent to receiving marketing calls.

• The Ministry of Justice will tomorrow launch a consultation on whether regulated companies that breach Claims Management Regulation Unit rules should face fines up to 20 per cent of their annual turnover for offences including using information gathered by unsolicited calls and texts, providing bad services or wasting time and money by making spurious or unsubstantiated claims. This will mean fines of hundreds of thousands of pounds, and potentially millions in some cases.

Announcing the fines plans, Justice Secretary Chris Grayling said: "It is time to stop these claims companies from plaguing hardworking people's lives and wasting everyone's time - the scale of these fines shows just how serious we are about stopping them.

"The Claims Management Regulator already takes tough action against companies which break the rules, suspending and closing down rogue firms, but now these fines will give us an extra weapon to drive bad behaviour out of the industry."

Richard Lloyd, Which? Executive Director said: "This Action Plan is a victory for the 110,000 people who backed our campaign to call time on the menace of nuisance calls and texts.

"Millions of consumers are bombarded by these calls, often because they weren't aware that their personal information might be used in third party marketing, so I'm delighted to be chairing a task force of experts to review how consumers give and withdraw their consent to be contacted.

"We now look forward to regulators using their new powers to help stop this growing problem. It's also important that people continue to report complaints so regulators can crack down on companies who break the rules."

FCS Chief Exec' Chris Pateman has entered the Cloud 100, the global community of the 100 most influential ICT industry leaders, chosen by Cloud World Series, organisers of the Cloud World Forum events.

Pateman said he was 'surprised and delighted' to learn the news.

"I take it as a hugely encouraging sign for the health and inclusiveness of this industry that my insights from a lifetime in and around channel and distribution chains are valued alongside the contributions of individuals with more obvious skills in IT development and infrastructure management," he said.

"FCS is the voice of the UK business-to-business communications industry. Now the channel has a voice at the cloud community's top table, I'm going to do my best to ensure the future development of cloud solutions takes the maximum possible account of the channel and the broader supply chain. The more closely we can bring clever solutions together with sales expertise, the more value we can deliver to everyone in the industry."