Latest World Headlines: Shaw Capital Management | Oops: Microsoft accidentally reveals secret social project

http://venturebeat.com/2011/07/14/microsoft-social-project-tulalip/

DATE: MON July 18, 2011

Microsoft is working on a social/design project called Tulalip, according to details from a splash page that was accidentally published to Socl.com recently.

As of Thursday, Microsoft has taken down the splash page and replaced it with a message acknowledging the project.

“Thanks for stopping by. Socl.com is an internal design project from a team in Microsoft Research which was mistakenly published to the web. We didn’t mean to, honest,” the message states.

While I believe that publishing the splash page was an accident, I don’t believe Tulalip is simply an “internal design project”.

The splash page (pictured above) describes the Tulalip service as a way for users to “find what you need and share what you know easier than ever”. There are options to connect the service with both Facebook and Twitter. The page also contains two rows of images that look very similar to the “Tiles” interface design found on Microsoft’s new Window’s Phone 7 operating system.

Also, the splash page’s domain name is shorthand for “Social”.

I think it’s obvious that Microsoft is planning to do much more with Tulalip than it’s letting on. The company was unavailable for further comment on its plans for Socl.com at the time of publication.

If you’ve got a theory on what Microsoft is up to, please sound off in the comment section.

Update: A Microsoft spokesperson responded with the following statement: “Socl.com is an internal design project from one of Microsoft’s research teams which was mistakenly published to the web. We have no more information at this time.”

Via Fusible, Search Engine Land

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Latest World Headlines: Shaw Capital Management | Google Music Is (Finally) Here

http://mashable.com/2011/05/10/google-music/

May 13, 2011

At long last, the worst-kept secret in the musicStay tuned for more Google Music details, including screenshot galleries, coming up shortly on Mashable. industry has been confirmed: Google has launched its music service.

On Tuesday at Google I/O, the company took the wraps off Google Music Beta. Currently, that site is invite-only, but users will be added to the platform soon. The product is “free for a limited time.”

The service will be available starting on Android devices and via the web. Click here to see screengrabs of Google Music on Android.

The service will be available starting on Android devices and via the web. Click here to see screengrabs of Google Music on Android.

Rumors of Google Music first fell on our eager ears in June 2010, at which time we learned Google was buildinga music service with an Android twist. And while building such software is clearly not a problem for Google’s high-functioning genius engineers, the company was still settling the terms of the deals with labels inSeptember 2010 … and in November 2010 … and in December 2010 … and in April 2011. A less optimistic crew of journalists would have begun to doubt whether Google Music would, in fact, ever see the light of day.

However, we were seeing enough proof vis-a-vis Android screenshots that the product itself was launch-ready, even if labels were not. Google Music was spotted on a Gingerbread device earlier this year, when gadget geeks saw a “music sync” option on an Android device. Music streaming options appeared on another device not too long afterward.

Currently, here’s what we are being told about Google Music, which looks and feels exactly like an iTunes in the cloud:

• It will run on all Android devices, including tablets and mobiles
• You’ll be able to create custom playlists
• You’ll be able to edit track info, get play counts, etc.
• Music will be available when you’re offline, too
• Users can upload and store songs to a cloud-based directory
• Users can wirelessly and automatically sync playlists from the web to connected devices and vice versa

Stay tuned for more Google Music details, including screenshot galleries, coming up shortly on Mashable.

Latest World Headlines: Shaw Capital Management | Industrial Bank of Korea Goes Live with Calypso for Front Office Support

http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20110327005005/en/Industrial-Bank-Korea-Live-Calypso-Front-Office

March 27, 2011 08:00 PM Eastern Daylight Time

- South Korean Bank to use Calypso for developing and automating FX, credit and commodity derivatives business

- Calypso Fast-Track leveraged to reduce implementation timelines and costs

SAN FRANCISCO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Calypso Technology Inc., the global capital markets platform provider, announced today that Industrial Bank of Korea (IBK), the majority government-owned South Korean bank, has gone live with the Calypso system to support its front office functions. The software solution has been selected to provide the bank with the opportunity to develop their commodities and credit trading businesses and automate the processes on their FX derivatives desk, allowing them to enhance the overall scope of products offered to their client base.

“We look forward to working with IBK and assisting them as their business expands and diversifies.”

IBK was seeking an open, scalable and flexible solution which would seamlessly integrate with existing in-house systems and support multiple asset classes for future growth and development. The system will help eliminate and streamline manual processes, reducing operational risks and addressing performance issues incumbent to an ageing infrastructure. The system will help achieve increased straight-through-processing (STP) from front-to-back. The Calypso Front Office solution delivers extensive functionality including pricing, trade capture, Calypso Workstation (one-stop shop for trading, cash positions, P&L modeling and simulation) and desk level market risk functionality incorporating historical VaR and stress testing scenarios.

Throughout the implementation process, Calypso’s rapid deployment solution, Calypso Fast-Track, was leveraged to deliver strong project methodology, providing business specifications, documentation, market-standard configurations, and local language training. Working alongside Korea-based consultant-partner NOA-ATS, Calypso ensured that the implementation was in a short timeframe of 6 months and on budget.

Dr. Hyung Seok Hahm, Trading Department & Project Initiator, IBK, commented, “Calypso Technology has delivered a flexible platform that brings performance and robustness to our existing FX derivatives desk, and that allows us to expand into new business areas, respectively credit and commodity derivatives. We have chosen the Calypso system among many solutions for a number of reasons. First, Calypso Technology is a market leader for credit derivatives. Secondly, they are able to provide first level support locally onsite. And the Calypso system also meets our requirement that the solution should be flexible and able to integrate our in-house pricing engines.”

“This project is a testimonial of Calypso Technology’s commitment to the East Asian markets and of our ability to provide services and local support,” added Charles Marston, CEO and chairman, Calypso Technology. “We look forward to working with IBK and assisting them as their business expands and diversifies.”

About Calypso Technology, Inc.

Calypso Technology is the premier global capital markets platform provider for financial institutions of all types. The Calypso platform incorporates a full range of seamless front-to-back office functions for OTC derivatives and treasury products – including pricing, trading, risk, processing, clearing, margining, securities financing, collateral, cash management, liquidity, reporting and accounting. It is the emergent standard for global capital markets businesses and the ideal foundation for innovation and future growth.

The Calypso platform supports a diverse range of 120+ clients in over 40 countries – banks, central banks, sovereign funds, asset managers, insurers, hedge funds, brokers, prime brokers, exchanges, clearing houses, processing services and other service providers. With 15 offices and over 500 employees, Calypso is committed to industry-renowned levels of customer service, research, development and innovation. “Calypso” is a registered trademark of Calypso Technology, Inc in the United States, the European Union and other jurisdictions.

Contacts

Cognito Europe

Charlie Morrow

+44 (0)20 7438 1100

or

Cognito US

Binna Kim / Renee Sieli

+1 646 395 6300

calypso@cognitomedia.com

Latest World Headlines: Shaw Capital Management | Is the Japan Crisis Completely Overblown?

http://seekingalpha.com/article/258639-is-the-japan-crisis-completely-overblown

March 16, 2011 | about: AAPL, TM, VZ

In times of extreme emotion it can be productive to take a step back and analyze the numbers. On the sixth day of this nuclear crisis doctors have tested radiation levels in approximately 150 people who were in close vicinity of the Fukushima Daiichi site. Authorities have taken measures to decontaminate 23 people according to the International Atomic Energy Agency. The population was evacuated in a radius of 12 miles. People within 18 miles have been asked to remain indoors. The latest radiation readings in Fukushima showed a drop to 60 microsieverts per hour. To put that kind of exposure in context, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission allows dose limits of 10,000 microsieverts per nuclear event. The average American receives annual exposure of 6,200 microsieverts. Investors need to understand how to separate a human crisis from an economic crisis. The Japan tragedy will be limited to a human crisis. These kinds of numbers are not worthy of widespread economic fear.

What is our worst case scenario? After the explosion at Chernobyl, the biggest nuclear power plant disaster of all time, 28 firefighters and emergency workers died from acute radiation sickness in the first three months. Ten years after the Chernobyl event the U.N. released a 1,200 page report pointing out that there were 1,000 cases of leukemia in the village right next to Chernobyl and 998 of them were cured. Chernobyl totally exploded, it had no containment building, the fear that the cloud of radiation would kill tens of thousands of people and deform children never materialized.

I have lost count of the number of sensationalized media headlines that are doing their part to sell content. Very few, if any of the actual stories are as dire as the headlines suggest. When we’re talking about 23 people getting decontaminated and an evacuation region of 12 miles there is no reason to overreact. It’s interesting to watch the media skew the public’s sense of reality. Allow me enlighten your perspective. Did you know that 37,000 people in the U.S. die of flu-related causes every year? Do you want to know how many people die in the world ever day? According to the 2010 World Population Data Sheet we lose 156,000 people every 24 hours. Over 56 million people die every year and yet somehow the economy keeps on ticking.

I’m a big believer that the contagious spread of irrational fear is the single best reason to buy stocks. Our hearts go out to any who suffer and we all know that Japan faces a long road to recovery but to suppose that this natural disaster is a long term reason to sell stocks is foolish. The media has done another great job of spreading the doctrine of fear. The economic truth is that more than $200 billion will be poured into the Japanese economy and this proud nation will rebuild itself. The economic truth is that many businesses have already reopened in Tokyo. Toyota (TM) will resume business by next week. The Nikkei rallied 5.7% overnight. Don’t allow the 15 stock photographs of devastation lead you to believe that the entire country is in ruins. This world deals with natural disasters every year and more often than not those disasters turn into an economic stimulus for the region. $200 billion getting spent on Japan might as well be called QE3.

Meanwhile I went into my local Apple (AAPL) store this morning and the good news was that they received a new shipment of iPad 2’s, the bad news was that they had already sold out. Reports of lines at Apple stores in New York City and San Francisco continue for the sixth straight day. Analysts are declaring that the supposed tablet wars are already over as Apple’s lead appears insurmountable. At such a time in Apple’s history, any irrational weakness in the stock is representative of a buying opportunity. At the April earnings report Apple will be reporting sales of Verizon (VZ) iPhones in addition to iPad 2’s for the first time. Today is March 16th and the stock is down another $12. This selloff is a gift. We are ready to begin putting our 76% allocation of cash to work. Today we are purchasing a 5% allocation of AAPL May 2011 $330 calls. We plan on being fully loaded by the end of next week.

Disclosure: I am long AAPL.