Wires: News and Products for August 20, 2004

In the news... Microsoft announced that it is delaying distribution of Windows XP Service Pack 2 via its Automatic Update service by at least nine days--until August 25, the earliest--to give corporate customers more time to temporarily block automatic downloading of SP2 by their employees. Microsoft sent customers an email on August 16 (the day it had planned to make SP2 available through automatic distribution), with the details of the decision. The software provider said that many big companies aren't ready to make the move and need more time to put in place tools to block automatic updates to SP2 until they can fully test their internal applications. MicroStrategy announced that a Norfolk, VA, federal judge has found Business Objects guilty of misappropriating highly confidential MicroStrategy documents. The court has ordered Business Objects to cease and desist from further use of MicroStrategy's trade secrets. The court concluded that "Business Objects acquired constructive or actual access to a significant amount of MicroStrategy's proprietary and confidential information, including internal email, descriptions of software architecture, sales documents, competitive intelligence, and PowerPoint presentations." A number of MicroStrategy's most sensitive documents were discovered by the court to have been circulated among Business Objects' top executives. OpenPages, a provider of enterprise governance and compliance management solutions, has partnered with Cognos to extend the capabilities for monitoring Sarbanes-Oxley compliance processes. OpenPages will combine OpenPages' Sarbanes-Oxley Express (SOX Express) and Cognos ReportNet to provide corporate management with insight into the current state of company operations and quarterly Sarbanes-Oxley assertions required for compliance. VoiceObjects AG, a provider of the voice application management system (VAMS) for voice-recognition telephone services, has opened an Americas subsidiary to expand within the Canada, U.S., and South American markets. The new U.S. office, a subsidiary of the company's German headquarters, will be located in Burlington, MA. New products... Trillium Software announced the availability of Trillium Software Discovery Version 4, a data discovery solution with automated data monitoring, business rule validation, trend analysis, and the generation of alerts when data quality anomalies are found. The solution's business rule validation allows users to define their own unique business rules, measure how well their data supports them, and identify exceptions to those rules that must be rectified. Trillium Software Discovery integrates directly with the Trillium Software System for data matching, standardization, and linking. Convergys introduced its Customer Training For-Profit Solution (previously DigitalThink learning solutions), a suite of learning services designed for companies that provide training services for their products and services. The solution can be used by the client to train employees on new and upgraded product offerings, and by retailers as on-site kiosks, to educate customers on the functionality of products before they are purchased. Convergys can also add e-learning courses to the solution, to adjust accordingly to clients' business needs. Salesboom.com, an application service provider, has added a new comprehensive project management feature to its CRM-related solutions available through its Internet-based service. The project management solution, which features functionality similar to Microsoft Project, is a new tool that enables expenditure tracking and resource management, as well as full integration into Salesboom.com reporting and analytics tools. Nuasis has made available Nuasis NuContact Center 2.0, a solution that includes SIP and Linux to support integration to core call center and enterprise software applications. The system handles customer inquiries via the phone, email, Web, and fax. Additional capabilities include a real-time statistical integration interface for third-party monitoring and alerts applications, and agent capacity increases to accommodate 500 agents per system across multiple locations. Previewed at the ICCM show, Genesys introduced the Info Mart, a solution that provides datamining and analytical capabilities. The technology offers a single repository for enterprisewide interactions, interaction details in a multidimensional star-schema format, the ability to perform ad hoc and complex queries, integration with external data stories through predefined data hooks, and support for standards-based business intelligence tools and reporting software. eGain Communications has validated the integration of its knowledge management solution, eGain Knowledge, with the Action Request System platform for automating and managing service-management business processes from BMC Software's Remedy product line. This joint solution is designed to improve first-call resolution, increase call handling and wrap-up times, and reduce the need for agent training and research time. Pragmatech Software launched its e-Proposals Server Version 6, a solution that uses Microsoft Word and Microsoft PowerPoint to automatically assemble personalized documents, based on XML or HTML requests submitted over the Web. The new version of the server features scalability and availability for large enterprises; queue management (including error handling with up to three retries and email notification to administrators of failures); direct and remote monitoring of server activity; configuration diagnostics and logging; MS SQL Server support for queue- and audit-history databases; and configurable security options. Watch360 Systems introduced a new Internet service that automatically keeps companies informed about their competitors' actions and plans. Watch360 monitors the Web sites of specified companies and sends a daily email to customers, listing new reports, news, press releases, management changes, seminars, product updates, and more. Related articles: