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For any feedback on our newsletter, or to discuss how we can help you with your technology PR, marketing, copywriting or surveys, please email me at hbutters@prompt-communications.com. We are always delighted to hear from you.

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Hazel Butters
Prompt Communications

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Technology Update

By Sean McManus and Lance Concannon

Turing Award won by first woman

The 2006 A. M. Turing Award, named after the father of modern computing and presented each year since 1966 by the Association for Computing Machinery, has been won by Frances Allen, making her the first woman to receive the award. She was awarded the prize for pioneering contributions to the theory and practice of optimising compiler techniques that laid the foundation for modern optimising compilers and automatic parallel execution.

The award includes a prize of $100,000 and is given to an individual who has made major and lasting technical contributions to the field of computing. Allen joined IBM in 1957 and became the company's first female Fellow Emeritus.

Tony Blair sends emails to critics

Tony Blair this week emailed signatories to two petitions signed on the Number 10 website. 1.7 million people signed a petition against road pricing and 28,000 signed a petition against ID cards. While Blair took a conciliatory tone in his response on road pricing, claiming that nothing has yet been decided, his response on ID cards was 1000 words explaining why the petitioners are wrong.

Someone in government has been very smart here: they've persuaded the PM's fiercest critics to opt in to receive emails from him about the very policies they oppose. The petitions are unlikely to change policy, but we're seeing a stark change in how government communicates with citizens: a shift from mass marketing to targeted messaging.

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Consumer Technology Update

By Dave Wilby

It's official, gaming is good for you and saves lives

First we're told by boffins at John Moores University that traditionally obese gameheads can actually shift up to 27lb a year, and now medical experts inform us that gamers make better surgeons! It's all about hand/eye control and the enhanced training certain video games provide for manipulating objects more precisely, apparently.

A serious in-depth feature in the February issue of weighty tome Archives of Surgery reveals a strong correlation between gaming skillz and a surgeon's ability to perform laparoscopic surgery and related procedures involving manipulating instruments through small incisions or body openings where the surgeon's movements are guided by screen.

News.com reports that out of 33 surgeons from Beth Israel Medical Center in New York that participated in the study, the nine doctors who played video games at least three hours per week made 37 per cent fewer errors, performed 27 per cent faster, and scored 42 per cent better in the test of surgical skills than the 15 surgeons who had never played video games before.

Viacom feeds Joost; ITV and Channel 4 next on menu?

US media conglomerate Viacom has agreed to provide content to video portal Joost, and UK broadcasters ITV and Channel 4 could be next to serve up programming to the much-hyped YouTube rival. Viacom will offer Joost youth content from MTV Networks, BET Networks and Paramount Pictures, including programmes such as Laguna Beach, Beavis and Butthead, Real World and Punk'd.

In January Viacom demanded YouTube remove 100,000 of its clips, but this latest agreement reflects the obvious interest of mainstream media companies in online video delivery. In the UK Channel 4 already offers a video-on-demand service, with the BBC and ITV planning similar launches in 2007, but the BBC is happy to fuel rumours that Joost might already be in talks with British broadcasters ITV and Channel 4.

PC World plans for green future, but is Vista really the way forward?

Business park computer retailer PC World announced plans this week to build an environmentally friendly, carbon neutral PC, but is already receiving criticism from some areas of the media for choosing to run power-hungry Vista on it. The shop claims it will offer the world's most energy-efficient and environmentally friendly PC, built with numerous recycled components.

Although few specification details are publicly available as yet, what is likely is that the PC's operating system will be Windows Vista, an OS that has been openly criticised for being power and hardware hungry. ZDNetUK garnered the opinion of a Green Party spokesperson who said: "It would be a good thing if PC World was to offer operating systems other than Vista. XP or no operating system preinstalled at all would be ideal."

Analysts believe that the majority of large computing vendors will launch green manufacturing manifestos this year in order to protect themselves from a torrent of incoming European and worldwide 'green technology' legislation. Gartner went on record at the end of 2006 claiming the best way for companies to insure themselves against supply chain disruption and legal trouble would be to adopt the most stringent laws in the world as their standard practice.

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US Media Report

By Kay Wilson

A serious satellite radio merger is on the cards as Sirius Satellite Radio plans to merge with rival XM Satellite Radio, if the deal is approved by regulators.

The stations are both subscription based channels and have spent huge amounts of cash hiring popular hosts such as Oprah Winfrey and Howard Stern.

Although they expect opposition from terrestrial radio, the firms argue that they face competition from audio devices such as digital music systems already and the deal will create more choices and better technology for their subscribers.

NBC Television Network has acquired Chuck Todd as political editor for its news division. Todd's role will include serving as an analyst for several of NBC News programmes. NBC also announced that as of April, recently retired NFL star Tiki Barber is joining The Today Show as a correspondent.

Hari Sreenivasan moves to CBS News from ABC News as a correspondent based in Dallas and Kiran Chetry becomes New York based correspondent and anchor for CNN. Chetry makes the move from anchor of FOX News.

PC Magazine is introducing 3 new columns by resident editors, Lance Ulanoff and Dan Costa, and analyst Sascha Segan. Susan O'Keefe has left her position of publisher at Telecommunications Magazine and moved to mBLAST, a marketing software producer.

In business media David Raikow has become senior editor of VARBusiness and as from March, Mike Mills will be editor of Washington Business Journal replacing John McCalla who died suddenly in January.

UK Media Report

By Annie Kasmai

Incisive Media has purchased VNU Business Publications, the UK branch of VNU. VNU's B2B IT, special interest computing and business finance publications will all be affected by this deal. This deal follows 3i's purchase of VNU Business Media Europe late last year.

John-Paul Kamath has been appointed as deputy technology editor at Computer Weekly, starting in his new role on Monday 26^th February.

Roanna Avison, news editor at Microscope, is leaving to join Reed's Commercial Motors. Chris Tindall, acting news editor at Commercial Motors, will work as a freelancer upon Avison joining the publication.