September 30, 2009

Kaspersky Lab has announced the strategic collaboration with Microsoft MSN. Kaspersky Lab will provide KAV 2010 activation codes free with six months licenses to all Windows Live Messenger users in China, so that they can chat with each other in a clean and safe environment. It is estimated that more than 20 million Chinese users will benefit from the collaboration.

IM software is a now a key communication tool. Virus, spam and other malicious programs have targeted IM products. A careless click on a link that contains a Trojan or virus could lead to the intrusion of a malicious program. The development of malicious programs has become a real business, therefore to fight against this; antivirus technology has become an indispensible tool. As for the IM industry, security will play an important role in its development. The product that provides comprehensive protection against threats will be the first-choice of customers.

Microsoft’s Windows Live Messenger plays an important role in the IM industry and so does Kaspersky Lab in the IT security industry. Kaspersky Lab has always been a golden partner to Microsoft and this further collaboration between the two giants will not only provide comprehensive protection to more than 20 million Chinese users, but it will also create more business opportunities for both companies in China and strengthen the process of localization.

Harry Cheung, the Managing Director of Kaspersky Lab APAC says, “Microsoft has been cooperating with Kaspersky Lab for many years, the new collaboration was formally completed during the 10th anniversary of MSN. We hope all users in China can be offered comprehensive protection while increasing their awareness of the need for internet security”. Liu Zhenyu, the V.P. of Microsoft MSN says, “MSN has been advocating a trustworthy cyber world, and Kaspersky Lab is responsible for Internet security. The cooperation between Kaspersky and MSN indicates our common interest in the development of the cyber world, and it will guarantee better protection to millions of Windows Live Messenger users”.

Kaspersky Antivirus 2010, the product integrated with the next generation of Internet security technology is provided to Windows Live Messenger users in China for free. It is one of the latest products released in the middle of July, with the technology employing such innovations as a virtual keyboard, IM protection, anti-phishing capability, URL filtration and other innovative technologies, providing users stable and reliable protection.

Microsoft has announced the appointment of John Bessey as the new managing director of its Philippine subsidiary.  Bessey will officially take on his new role on October 1^st2009.

Bessey will be taking over from Rafael “Pepeng” Rollan who has been Microsoft Philippines’ managing director since 2007.  Under Rollan’s leadership, the local subsidiary experienced consistent growth and saw the expansion of its citizenship initiatives aimed at enabling underserved communities to get access to technology, as well as the implementation of projects dedicated to enhancing local education.

“I feel very fortunate to have the opportunity to lead a very strong and dedicated team in the Philippines,” said Bessey.  “At the same time, I am excited at the prospect of further exploring opportunities where our customers, partners and the country can benefit from technology.  Over the years, we have seen how technology can impact people’s lives and we will continue our initiatives in empowering the underserved sectors and helping improve the Philippines’ IT infrastructure.”

With a career spanning some 20 years in the IT industry, Bessey joined Microsoft New Zealand in 2006 as partner director for small and medium-sized businesses.  As part of the leadership team, Bessey was instrumental in making New Zealand a successful Microsoft subsidiary.

Prior to Microsoft John spent more than 10 years at Gen-i, one of Microsoft’s largest partners in New Zealand, working in both New Zealand and Australia. John was involved in running every part of the large systems integrator, giving him deep insights into how Microsoft can really connect and add value to our partner business.

John has a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Auckland University and a Post Graduate Diploma in Business (Marketing) from the Auckland University Business School.

Ken Wye Saw, Vice-President, Sales and Marketing, Microsoft Asia-Pacific said: “John possesses the skills and capabilities needed to take the company to greater heights.  With his passion and dedication, I am optimistic John will significantly contribute to the growth of our business in the Philippines and lead in delivering our mission of empowering people and businesses all over the world to realize their full potential through technology.”

Gurango Software has been named to the 2009 Microsoft Dynamics President’s Club for three consecutive years, receiving recognition from Microsoft Corp. for its dedicated commitment to customers.  This honor reflects Gurango Software’s success in extending the Microsoft Dynamics platform to drive business advantages to companies worldwide.

This recognition came during Microsoft’s Worldwide Partner Conference in New Orleans. It is a prestigious club, recognizing a small group of Microsoft Business Solutions partners worldwide for achieving a high level of sales and business performance while maintaining a constant dedication to customer satisfaction and innovation.

“Microsoft is proud to congratulate Gurango Software Corp. on being named to the 2009 Microsoft Dynamics President’s Club,” said Doug Kennedy, vice president, Microsoft DynamicsPartners. “This accomplishment is a result of Gurango Software’s demonstrating unparalleled commitment by investing in the success of Microsoft Dynamics, our customers and solutions.

Gurango Software is serving clients globally, helping growing organizations improve the productivity of their employees and reduce costs by providing robust, integrated solutions built on the Microsoft technology platform.

“Microsoft Dynamics President’s Club is one of many accomplishments our team has achieved in the last year. This accomplishment stands for our commitment to our customers and our employees.” Our performance as a team has also come into fruition when we received Microsoft Dynamics highest honor- the prestigious Presidents Club award” said Fermin Taruc, COO, Gurango Software Corporation.

Gurango Software is a Philippine-based global company that offers a full range of software sales, distribution and support services. Gurango Software’s unique business model offers three pillars of services: software development, global distribution, and professional staff support. In the Philippines, Gurango Software aspires to be the dominant value-add reseller (VAR) of Microsoft Business Solutions packaged applications. Gurango Software’s team members are proficient in the Microsoft Dynamics GP, CRM and AX product labels, as well as carefully selected vertical applications.

Well, we can all sleep a little easier now that Microsoft and Yahoo have finally announced details of the search deal they have worked on for months (and that has kept some of us on the edge, as tidbits of the story had an unsavory habit of breaking on weekends). All of the details, and then some, can be found by following the links in this week’s top entry. Otherwise, with the Black Hat conference under way, there was a load of security news, with DefCon to follow this weekend (no rest for the weary).

1. Microsoft and Yahoo sign search deal, take on Google, CEOs: Devil was in details of Yahoo, Microsoft search tie-up and Microsoft-Yahoo deal: Why you stand to lose: After tracking this would-be news for about a year, all we feel is relief that it was finally announced. Now we can shift attention to whether Microsoft and Yahoo’s big search deal, once approved by regulators, will work out for them and for users.

2. Clampi Trojan revealed as financial-plundering botnet monster: The news of a massive botnet associated with more than 45,000 Web sites and capable of stealing financial data is one of those instances that makes us wish that superheroes were real and that we could sic Batman on the bad guys and just end this nonsense once and for all.

3. Sensitive data compromised by SSL encryption flaws: Flaws in the software that uses SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) encryption could compromise sensitive personal data, security researchers said. The problem apparently is in the way SSL has been implemented into many browsers and also in the X.509 public key infrastructure system. (And there is more unsettling security news ahead in numbers five and eight.)

4. Apple: Jailbreaking could knock out transmission towers and EFF: Apple’s claim that jailbroken iPhones can crash cell towers a ‘hill of beans’: There’s nothing quite like a public spate to spice up the headlines. Apple told the U.S. Copyright Office as part of a review of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act that unauthorized modification of the iPhone OS — so-called “jailbreaking” — could cause major network disruptions, including the possibility of crashing transmission towers. The claim was made in response to a request by the Electronic Frontier Foundation that such modifications do not violate the DMCA and should be permitted. So, the EFF responded to Apple by saying, more or less, “get real!”

5. Extra ‘&’ in Microsoft development code gave hackers IE exploit: “The bug is simply a typo,” said Michael Howard, a principal security program manager at Microsoft, to explain how an extra “&” in development code has enabled hackers to exploit Internet Explorer for weeks.

6. IBM to buy BI software partner: IBM plans to buy SPSS, the analytics software specialist, for US$1.2 billion. The companies had announced just last month that IBM will embed SPSS technology into its business intelligence and performance management tools.

7. Intel rushed to create Atom chip, executive said: Intel was behind the competition in developing chips for mobile devices and so had to speed up its process, which led to development of the successful Atom chip, an Intel executive revealed.

8. iPhone SMS attack to be unleashed at Black Hat: iPhone hacker Charlie Miller showed at the Black Hat conference how to take over one of the smartphones using a series of malicious SMS (short messaging system) messages exploiting an unpatched bug. Although more work would have to be done for a hacker to do anything seriously bad using the flaw, such things seem always to just be a matter of time.

9. Facebook etiquette: 10 rules for better socializing: Although etiquette rules for social networking, e-mail and other aspects of Web life would seem to be, more or less, the same as the manners employed apart from cyberspace, those of us who have been assaulted on our Facebook pages by revelations regarding the type of deodorant a “friend” fancies have come to realize that some lessons are called for.

10. Microsoft details how to upgrade between Windows 7 SKUs: Microsoft’s deal with Yahoo wasn’t the only news from the software company this week. Microsoft also released details on how people can upgrade to a different version of Windows 7. Users can purchase a package with an upgrade key, which gives them the ability to trade up to the next version of the OS. Upgrading will cost $79.99, $89.99 or $139.99 depending on what version a user selects.

Yahoo! and Microsoft announced an agreement that will improve the Web search experience for users and advertisers, and deliver sustained innovation to the industry. In simple terms, Microsoft will now power Yahoo! search while Yahoo! will become the exclusive worldwide relationship sales force for both companies’ premium search advertisers.

For Web users and advertisers, this deal will accelerate the pace and breadth of innovation by combining both companies’ complementary strengths and search platforms into a market competitor with the scale to fuel sustained development in search and search advertising. Users will find what they care about faster and with more personal relevance. Microsoft’s competitive search platforms will lead to more value for advertisers, better results for Web publishers, and increased innovation and efficiency across the Internet.

Carol Bartz, Yahoo! CEO

Under this agreement, Yahoo! will focus on its core business of providing consumers with great experiences with the world’s favorite online destinations and Web products.

“This agreement comes with boatloads of value for Yahoo!, our users, and the industry. And I believe it establishes the foundation for a new era of Internet innovation and development,” said Yahoo! CEO Carol Bartz. “Users will continue to experience search as a vital part of their Yahoo! experiences and will enjoy increased innovation thanks to the scale and resources this deal provides. Advertisers will also benefit from scale and enjoy greater ease of use and efficiencies working with a single platform and sales team for premium advertisers. Finally, this deal will help us increase our investments in priority areas in winning audience properties, display advertising capabilities and mobile experiences.”

Providing a viable alternative to advertisers, this deal will combine Yahoo! and Microsoft search marketplaces so that advertisers no longer have to rely on one company that dominates more than 70% of all search. With the addition of Yahoo!’s search volume, Microsoft will achieve the size and scale required to unleash competition and innovation in the market, for consumers as well as advertisers.

Steve Ballmer, Microsoft CEO

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said the agreement will provide Microsoft’s search engine, Bing, the scale necessary to more effectively compete, attracting more users and advertisers, which in turn will lead to more relevant ads and search results.

“Through this agreement with Yahoo!, we will create more innovation in search, better value for advertisers, and real consumer choice in a market currently dominated by a single company,” said Ballmer. “Success in search requires both innovation and scale. With our new Bing search platform, we’ve created breakthrough innovation and features. This agreement with Yahoo! will provide the scale we need to deliver even more rapid advances in relevancy and usefulness. Microsoft and Yahoo! know there’s so much more that search could be. This agreement gives us the scale and resources to create the future of search.”

“This deal fits the long-term strategic direction of Yahoo! to remain the world’s leading online media company and Carol Bartz has the full and unanimous support of the Yahoo! Board behind this deal,” said Roy Bostock, chairman, Yahoo! Inc. “This is a significant opportunity for us. Microsoft is an industry innovator in search, and it is a great opportunity for us to focus our investments in other areas critical to our future.”

The key terms of the agreement are as follows:

• The term of the agreement is 10 years;
• Microsoft will acquire an exclusive 10-year license to Yahoo!’s core search technologies, and Microsoft will have the ability to integrate Yahoo! search technologies into its existing Web search platforms;
• Microsoft’s Bing will be the exclusive algorithmic search and paid search platform for Yahoo! sites. Yahoo! will continue to use its technology and data in other areas of its business such as enhancing display advertising technology.
• Yahoo! will become the exclusive worldwide relationship sales force for both companies’ premium search advertisers. Self-serve advertising for both companies will be fulfilled by Microsoft’s AdCenter platform, and prices for all search ads will continue to be set by AdCenter’s automated auction process.
• Each company will maintain its own separate display advertising business and sales force.
• Yahoo! will innovate and “own” the user experience on Yahoo! properties, including the user experience for search, even though it will be powered by Microsoft technology.
• Microsoft will compensate Yahoo! through a revenue sharing agreement on traffic generated on Yahoo!’s network of both owned and operated (O&O) and affiliate sites.
  • Microsoft will pay traffic acquisition costs (TAC) to Yahoo! at an initial rate of 88% of search revenue generated on Yahoo!’s O&O sites during the first five years of the agreement.
  • Yahoo! will continue to syndicate its existing search affiliate partnerships.
• Microsoft will guarantee Yahoo!’s O&O revenue per search (RPS) in each country for the first 18 months following initial implementation in that country.
• At full implementation (expected to occur within 24 months following regulatory approval), Yahoo! estimates, based on current levels of revenue and current operating expenses, that this agreement will provide a benefit to annual GAAP operating income of approximately $500 million and capital expenditure savings of approximately $200 million. Yahoo! also estimates that this agreement will provide a benefit to annual operating cash flow of approximately $275 million.
• The agreement protects consumer privacy by limiting the data shared between the companies to the minimum necessary to operate and improve the combined search platform, and restricts the use of search data shared between the companies. The agreement maintains the industry-leading privacy practices that each company follows today.

The agreement does not cover each company’s Web properties and products, email, instant messaging, display advertising, or any other aspect of the companies’ businesses. In those areas, the companies will continue to compete vigorously.

The transaction will be subject to regulatory review. The agreement entered into today anticipates that the parties will enter into more detailed definitive agreements prior to closing. Microsoft and Yahoo! expect the agreement to be closely reviewed by the industry and government regulators, and welcome questions. The companies are hopeful that closing can occur in early 2010.

The companies have established a Web site at choicevalueinnovation.com to provide consumers, advertisers and publishers with additional information about the benefits of the agreement.

Microsoft officially opened its Windows Marketplace for Mobile application store to software developers on Monday as the giant software maker moves to catch up to the success of Apple’s iPhone App Store.

Microsoft is now accepting submissionsof mobile phone software applications from registered developers in 29 countries and is offering prizes for the most popular applications as judged by downloads, revenue, usefulness and more, said Todd Brix, leader of Windows Marketplace for Mobile at Microsoft, in a blog posting.

Developers can start uploading applications to Windows Marketplace now and will probably have to wait about 10 business days for certification or a detailed explanation of why a program was not accepted, according to Brix.

“Our strategy for all of this is pretty straightforward; we want to create a global marketplace for Windows Phones where developers and users meet to sell and buy high quality and high value applications that make work easier and life more fulfilling,” said Brix.

Software developers can include their own marketing materials with their applications and will be able to earn money on sales.

People buying software on the site will be able to download applications to their PCs or mobile phones, use a variety of payment options, and enjoy a money back guarantee, said Brix.

Brix estimates the software customer base for Windows mobile phone applications is around 30 million people.

Apple runs the world’s largest mobile phone application store. Over a billion software applications have been downloaded from the App Store, which is available in 77 countries, has 65,000 applications and serves 45 million

Microsoft is taking the unusual step of rushing out two emergency security patches ahead of its regularly scheduled updates on August 11.

The patches will include a critical fix for Internet Explorer as well as a related Visual Studio patch rated “moderate” urgency by Microsoft.

“The Internet Explorer bulletin will provide defense-in-depth changes to Internet Explorer to help provide additional protections for the issues addressed by the Visual Studio bulletin,” Microsoft said in a blog posting late Friday.

The patches are set to be released on Tuesday at 10 am West coast time.

Microsoft didn’t say exactly what it was fixing. The company typically doesn’t rush out these “out-of-band” emergency updates unless the bug is being exploited by cybercriminals; however, in this case the flaws being patched are not being leveraged in attacks, according to Microsoft.

The problem appears to lie in a widely used Windows component called the Active Template Library (ATL). According to security researcher Halvar Flake, this flaw is also to blame for an ActiveX bug that Microsoft identified earlier this month. Microsoft issued a kill-bit patch for the problem on July 14, but after looking into the bug, Flake determined that the patch didn’t fix the underlying vulnerability, so new attacks are possible.

Whatever the issue, the new patch should be a top priority for IT staff next week. “When Microsoft goes to an out-of-band patch, I think it’s sensible for people to apply it,” said Roger Thompson, chief research officer with AVG Technologies.

Microsoft didn’t give a reason for the rushed update but it may be trying to stay ahead of any public disclosure at next week’s Black Hat security conference in Las Vegas. The emergency updates are set to be released the day before the Black Hat Briefings, where researchers Mark Dowd, Ryan Smith, and David Dewey will talk aboutbrowser security issues.

According to security experts, thousands of Web sites have been used to launch on-line attacks that exploit the ActiveX vulnerability patched in July. The flaw was first reported to Microsoft more than a year ago.

Microsoft’s “Laptop Hunter”ads are under the microscope this week. Microsoft’s chief operating officer, Kevin Turner, reportedly said Apple’s legal department called to complain about the commercials. Apple, Turner’s quoted as saying, claimed the spots were based on outdated pricing informationand were therefore inaccurate.

Love ‘em or hate ‘em, the “Laptop Hunter” ads have certainly gotten their share of attention. Still, we think Microsoft’s done better in the past. We dug up five old ads — some real, some internal company jokes — that we find far more amusing. See if you agree.

It looks like the image of a woman throwing up after inadvertently viewing pornography was too controversial for Microsoft. As of this morning, the online-only ad forInternet Explorer 8 called O.M.G.I.G.P. — oh my God! I’m gonna puke–has been pulled from all Microsoft and third-party video Web sites–including the dedicated IE8 site, Browser for the Better.

A few days ago Microsoft’s IE8 ad campaign started making headlines with its four online only ads featuring former Superman Dean Cain. Two of the ads–F.O.M.S. and S.H.Y.N.E.S.S.–had been up since June 10, but the ad campaign only caught media attention earlier this week. The most outrageous spot was O.M.G.I.G.P., which depicted a woman who couldn’t stop vomiting after inadvertently viewing hardcore pornography on her husband’s computer. Dean Cain then walked into the scene and suggested this situation could have been avoided by using IE8′s private browsing feature.

So why did Microsoft pull the video spot? True, O.M.G.I.G.P. was a little on the disgusting side, but it was hardly controversial or subversive for the online world of 2009.

Here’s what a Microsoft spokesperson said via e-mail: “We make a point of listening to our customers. We created the OMGIGP video as a tongue-in-cheek look at the InPrivate Browsing feature of Internet Explorer 8, using the same irreverent humor that our customers told us they liked about other components of the Internet Explorer 8 marketing campaign. While much of the feedback to this particular piece of creative was positive, some of our customers found it offensive, so we have removed it.”

Behind the Ad
The ads were developed by the Indiana-based advertising firm Bradley and Montgomery, and were directed by former Police Academy star and standup comedian Bobcat Goldthwait. Since his acting days, Goldthwait has turned to directing including stints on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, The Man Show, and several of his own movie projects. The Internet Explorer ads were his first shot at commercials, and were created in consultation with the creative team at BAM, according to a Brandweek interview with Goldthwait.

When I first discovered that Goldthwait directed the IE8 ads, I was amused but not particularly surprised. O.M.G.I.G.P. feels like the type of humor that would appeal to Goldthwait. Not necessarily because of the puking scene, but because of the honesty behind the suggestion that the private browsing feature found on many Web browsers is ideal for keeping your online porn habits a secret from other people who might share your computer. Private browsing temporarily stops your Web browser from recording your online history and erases any tracking cookies from your online session.

User Outrage? Really?
I’m surprised that Microsoft pulled the ad due to user outrage. Microsoft itself admitted that user reaction to the ad was fairly lighthearted, although some people said it was mildly disgusting. So where could the outrage over O.M.G.I.G.P. be coming from? Well, the online spots were also tied to a larger campaign on the ‘Browser for the Better’ Web site. Microsoft promised to donate eight meals to Feeding America–a domestic hunger charity–for every user download of IE8 that came frombrowserforthebetter.com. Is it possible the plug was pulled because there was negative reaction to associating a puking scene with a hunger charity? I asked Microsoft for further clarification, but they declined to comment on my theory. That doesn’t mean I’m right mind you, but it’s possible. Why do you think it was pulled?

By Ian Paul

Microsoft has done it again: the company has released another set of baffling and mystifying ads, but this time they’re actually funny. The software giant released four new ads to promote Internet Explorer 8 starring Lois and Clark’s Dean Cain as a 1960′s style ad man–no doubt inspired by AMC’s Mad Men. So far the new ad campaign is an online-only affair, and uses the tagline ‘Browse Better.’

The ads highlight IE8 features using mock situations and cutesy acronyms like F.O.M.S.–fear of missing something–for IE8s web slices, and S.H.Y.N.E.S.S.–sharing heavily, yet not enough sharing still–for the browser’s accelerator feature. But the king of all four ads is O.M.G.I.G.P.–oh my God! I’m gonna puke–for IE8sprivate browsing feature; private browsing temporarily stops your browser from recording your online activities including your Web history and tracking cookies.

O.M.G.I.G.P. is the most honest ad we’ve seen from Redmond in a long time. Microsoft openly acknowledges in the spot the most common reason to use private browsing: hiding your online porn tracks. I’m not going to go into detail about what happens in the ad, but let’s just say the title O.M.G.I.G.P. is taken very literally.

The new campaign is also tied to Microsoft’s dedicated IE8 Web site called, Browser for the Better. For every copy of Internet Explorer 8 downloaded from the new site between now and August 8, Microsoft will donate eight meals to Feeding America, a domestic hunger-relief charity.

Since the launch of Internet Explorer 8, Microsoft’s browser has struggled with dwindling popularity, as users turn to other Web browsing alternatives like Mozilla’s Firefox and Opera. Will this new campaign help turn IE8′s fortunes around? Check out the ads below and judge for yourself.