November 11, 2005

IN THE NEWS The Federal Communications Commission will not require IP phone service providers to disconnect customers without dependable 911 service, according to published reports. In other IP news, in response to a call that has been made by Info-Tech Research Group to enterprises to ban Skype, Richard Edward, lead analyst of Butler Group's Information Worker Communications and Collaboration practice, defends the company. He says that "the reason why Skype works as well as it does is because of these computers called Super Nodes--think of them as you would a local exchange, routing your call, etc. Any computer running Skype with...plenty of bandwidth and plenty of resources (memory, CPU) can become a Super Node, and this could result in this machine and its network segment becoming overwhelmed by Skype traffic. Skype is not the perfect enterprise VoIP solution, I don't think anyone said it ever was; but it's certainly a boon to small groups and the private individual." Accenture plans to expand its marketing sciences practice by acquiring Media Audits. Financial terms of the acquisition, which is subject to regulatory approval and expected to close in 30 to 60 days, were not disclosed. Jeffrey Merrihue, who currently leads Accenture's Marketing Sciences practice, has assumed the newly created position of CEO of the practice. Julian Spooner, currently the CEO of Media Audits, will assume the newly created role of COO of Accenture marketing sciences. RightNow Technologies and ISC Consultants have announced an agreement to provide ISC's Irene workforce management software to RightNow CRM customers, as an effort to help improve call and contact center performance. NEW PRODUCTS Citrix Systems has announced the availability of its new Smart Agent technology with release 6.0 of the Citrix Application Gateway. The Gateway provides converged business applications for delivery to screens and speakers of IP telephones, and with Smart Agent, to personal computers as well. Click-to-Call will be the first Citrix application to use Smart Agent technology. About one month ago, the company announced Citrix GoToAssist 7, the latest installment of its remote technical-support and professional-services solution. Firstlogic (to be acquired by Pitney Bowes), has unveiled IQ Watch, a data quality-based solution for simplified interdiction list compliance that includes reporting and auditing capabilities. The first release of IQ Watch supports 16 distinctive interdiction lists, including those from the U.S. Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC), U.S. FBI Most Wanted, European Union Consolidated List, and Interpol Most Wanted. Gryphon Networks has launched Privacy Advisor, a product the company describes as designed to transform a company's CRM application into an automated compliance and contact management tool. According to Gryphon, some of the benefits of Privacy Advisor, a component of the company's Integrated Compliance and Contact Management Platform, include the ability to track and respond to new legislation, while reducing the need for internal regulatory tracking, analysis, training, and implementation. UniPress Software has announced the latest version of its FootPrints Hosting Service. Features and enhancements to version 7 include the ability to define field level permissions by role and status, generate master contact records, and add new integrations to their FootPrints implementation with a new XML/SOAP interface. Additional enhancements from the midmarket provider of Web-based service desk automation software include more secure email capabilities, a new individual agent flashboard, an enhanced scheduling and availability matrix, more comprehensive escalations, additional project templates for training and resource management, and expanded reporting options. ON THE MOVE Salesforce.com has appointed Stephen Russell as CEO of the Asia-Pacific region. The company also appointed Shirley Young, president of business advisory company Shirley Young Associates, to its board of directors. Coremetrics has named Heather Brunner vice president of client services. D&B has made three executive appointments: Jim Burke as CMO and leader of global solutions; Sara Mathew as president of D&B International; and Michael Pepe, as president of D&B U.S. Related articles: Will Challenges With 911 Slow VoIP Adoption? Pitney Bowes Will Acquire Firstlogic Consulting Workforce Woes