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Industry News
Sinotrust Contributes to the First Release of the Report on the Development of China Automobile Circulation Industry (2009-2010) - Marking for the Absence of the Blue Book of China Auto Circulation Industry
On June 25, the 2009-2010 Report on the Development of China Automobile Circulation Industry, jointly compiled by the China Automobile Dealers Association (CADA) and Sinotrust International Information & Consulting (Beijing) Co., Ltd., was first released in Beijing. The launch of the Report (Blue Book of China Automobile Circulation Industry) makes up for the years of absence of the blue book that reflects the annual development of the automobile circulation industry.
To read the full story click on the attachment
Sinotrust is a member of BIIA
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Beijing, June 11, 2010: On June 11, Experian, a global information service provider and Sinotrust's strategic partner, announced its 2010 Annual Report that made an overall review and analysis of Experian’s business conditions, financial conditions, future trends, etc. in 2010.
At the same time, the Report also released the case of Sinotrust’s customer satisfaction solutions for renowned auto maker Guangqi Honda in China.
To read the full story click on the attachment
Sinotrust is a member of BIIA
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Beijing, June 1, 2010----On April 22, the 2010 Q1 “China Automotive Industry Climate Monitor Index” was released in Beijing—the fifth quarterly release since its establishment. As of May 31, this report has drawn extensive attention from more than 350 domestic and foreign media.
The ”China Automotive Industry Climate Monitor Index” was jointly complied by the National Statistics Bureau of China and Sinotrust International Information & Consulting (Beijing) Co., Ltd. in early 2009. Being authoritative and comprehensive, the Index quantitatively reflects the future trends and changes of the automobile industry in China.
To read the full story click on the attachment
Sinotrust is a member of BIIA
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INFOGROUP has closed on its acquisition by affiliates of CCMP Capital Advisors, LLC and announced its new executive leadership team and Board of Directors.
Clare Hart has been named Infogroup's President and Chief Executive Officer. Ms. Hart is considered an innovator and leader in the world of interactive data and business information services. She most recently served as President of the Dow Enterprise Media Group, which generated over $700 million in annual sales and comprised Dow Jones Indexes, Dow Jones Newswires, Factiva, Dow Jones Licensing and Financial Information Services units. Prior to that appointment she was a founding member and ultimately President and Chief Executive Officer of Factiva, when it was a joint venture of Dow Jones and Reuters.
Ms. Hart's new leadership team will include current Infogroup executives that have contributed to the company’s success in the past as well as several newly appointed executives with highly relevant business experience. The leadership team includes the following current Infogroup executives:
- John Copenhaver, President, Infogroup Small Bsuiness Group
- Jim DeRouchey, President, Licensing
- Phil Garlick, President, OneSource
- Mike Hilts, President, Infogroup Interactive
- Ann Kennedy, Senior Vice President, Product Innovation
- Winston King, Senior Vice President, General Counsel
- Slade Kobran, Chief Marketing Officer
- Ed Mallin, President, Infogroup Services Group
- Tom McAlister, Chief Information Officer
- Lisa Olson, Senior Vice President Corporate Communications
Newly appointed leadership team executives include:
- Richard Hanks, Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer – Mr. Hanks joins Infogroup from Dow Jones, where he was Chief Commercial Officer of its Enterprise Media Group and prior to that was Chief Financial Officer of Factiva.
- Marc Litvinoff, President, Research Group and Opinion Research – Mr. Litvinoff rejoins Infogroup, where he previously led the Guideline and Find/SVP divisions of its Research Group. Opinion Research is a leader in offering primary and secondary market and business research, strategic intelligence and expert insights for its long-standing Fortune 1000 clients.
- Franklin Rios, President, Enterprise Solutions Group – Mr. Rios comes to Infogroup from Vertis, where he was Vice President & General Manager, Interactive Sales and Marketing. He will be leading Infogroup's Enterprise Solutions Group, which provides consumer and business data, lead-generation and multi-channel marketing services to Fortune 1000 class companies.
- Susie Robinson, Senior Vice President, Human Resources – Ms. Robinson joins Infogroup from Dow Jones, where she was Vice President, Human Resources for the Enterprise Media Group. Prior to Dow Jones, she was Vice President, Human Resources at Wyeth Pharmaceuticals.
Serving on Infogroup's new Board of Directors will be the following highly successful business leaders:
- Steve Cone, Chief Marketing Officer, The Brierley Group and former Chief Marketing Officer of Epsilon Data Management. Over his 35 year career he has developed highly successful marketing campaigns for such companies as Citigroup, American Express, Fidelity, Apple and United Airlines.
- Clare Hart, Infogroup's President and Chief Executive Officer.
- Jarvis Hollingsworth, Partner, Bracewell & Guiliani, board member of the University of Houston System Board of Regents, and former board member of the Teacher Retirement System of Texas Pension Fund and Houston Bar Foundation.
- Mike Iaccarino, President, Chief Executive Officer and Director, Mobile Messenger and former President and Chief Executive Officer of Epsilon from 2001 to 2009.
- Steve Murray, CCMP Capital’s President and Chief Executive Officer and board member of ARAMARK Corporation, Generac Power Systems, Jetro Holdings and Warner Chilcott.
- Bob Myers, Partner, McCarthy Capital and board member of AmeriSphere Multifamily Finance, BlueLine Media Holdings, CoSentry.net, Guild Mortgage Company and MarketSphere Consulting. Held senior executive positions at First Data Corporation and Western Union for 17 years.
- Kevin O’Brien, CCMP Capital Managing Director, investment committee member, and co-head of its consumer/retail and media practice, and board member of CareMore Medical Enterprises, LHP Hospital Group, KRATON Polymers and National Surgical Care.
- John Warner, Principal, CCMP Capital and board member of Chromalox, MetoKote and Quiznos Sub.
- Rich Zannino, Chairman of Infogroup’s Board of Directors, CCMP Capital Managing Director, investment committee member, and co-head of its consumer/retail and media practice, board member of IAC and Estee Lauder, and former Chief Executive Officer and board member of Dow Jones & Company.
About Infogroup Infogroup is the leading provider of data and interactive resources that enables targeted sales, effective marketing and insightful research solutions. Our information powers innovative tools and insight for businesses to efficiently reach current and future customers through multiple channels, including the world’s most dominant and powerful Internet search engines and GPS navigation systems. Infogroup’s headquarters are located at 5711 South 86th Circle, Omaha, NE 68127. For more information, call (402) 593-4500 or visit http://www.Infogroup.com.
About CCMP Capital
CCMP Capital Advisors, LLC, is a leading global private equity firm specializing in buyouts and growth equity investments in companies ranging from $500 million to more than $3 billion in size. CCMP Capital focuses on five primary industries: Consumer/Retail; Industrial; Energy; Healthcare; and Media. Selected investments under management include: ARAMARK Corporation, Chaparral Energy, Francesca’s Collections, Edwards Limited, Generac Power Systems, Jetro Holdings, LHP Hospital Group and Warner Chilcott. CCMP Capital’s founders have invested over $13 billion since 1984. CCMP Capital's latest fund, CCMP Capital Investors II, L.P., closed in September 2007 with commitments of $3.4 billion. CCMP Capital has offices in New York, Houston and London. Through active management, its global resources and its powerful value creation model, CCMP Capital has established a reputation as a world-class investment partner. For more information, please visit http://www.ccmpcapital.com. CCMP Capital is a registered investment adviser with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Source: Company press release
BIIA comment: A significant shift in strategy in renewed pursuit of growth can be expected which may cause some further upheaval in the competitive landscape in the targeted sales, marketing and research solutions business.
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A new study assesses the accuracy and completeness of the data available from leading U.S. compilers of business data, including D&B, InfoGroup, NetProspex, Jigsaw and Demandbase.
To read the study click on the attachment
Ruth P. Stevens can be reached at:
email: ruth@ruthstevens.com
http://www.ruthstevens.com
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Nielsen has been reappointed as New Zealand’s supplier of television audience measurement (TAM) services, winning an eight-year contract from SKY, TVNZ and TVWorks.
The contract starts July 1st. The new service will, by 2011, include live viewing, an option for time-shifted from DVRs, and an expanded sample from 500 to 600 homes. It will also gear up for the country’s switchover to digital TV in 2012.
‘The new devices that viewers are introducing into their homes will now be matched by the next generation of measurement technology, enabling Nielsen to provide us with the gold standard in media measurement’, comments Rick Friesen, Chairman of the Broadcasters' negotiation Committee and Chief Executive of the New Zealand Television Broadcasters’ Council.
Rolando Stalli, CEO of Nielsen Television Audience Measurement, says the firm is delighted with the networks’ continued confidence and adds: "New Zealand is an important market for Nielsen and we value our long term relationships with all users of the TAM service."
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The general consensus from CEO comments on Q1 results is that the credit crunch is still with us, but the situation is stabilizing. Experian’s CEO Don Roberts proclaimed in a recent analysts’ meeting: “I don’t see a return to the Go-Go days of 3 to 4 years ago” referring to the high growth period leading up to the credit crunch.. His solution lies in diversity: less reliance on the financial services sector for growth, more verticals, greater product innovation and a global footprint.
Revenues for credit rating services seem to be on the verge of a turnaround, however based on what is in store for the credit rating industry from a regulatory environment point of view, their business model is likely to change dramatically.
The US Senate passed a landmark WALL STREET REFORM BILL which includes a poison pill for credit rating companies in form of a liability provision: Investors could bring private rights of action against rating agencies for a knowing or reckless failure to conduct a reasonable investigation of the facts or to obtain analysis from an independent source. Up to now credit rating agencies claim that their ratings are opinions and not investment recommendations or advice. The implications will be more cautious ratings, perhaps even no ratings for certain entities, government and municipals or entire new industries which cannot come up with sufficient historical performance data.
Notwithstanding the imminent ‘thumb of government’ a number of companies have indicated their interest in entering the credit rating business: Morningstar (see page 15), Bloomberg, Coface, Kroll, Hearst and not to be left out KPMG and PwC. What makes them think they will do better?
You can read the full story in the June 2010 - I issue of the BIIA newsletter, to be published on June 14th.
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ATLANTA, June 2, 2010 - Equifax Inc. (NYSE: EFX) announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to sell substantially all of the assets of its Direct Marketing Services division to Alliance Data Systems (NYSE: ADS) for $117 million, subject to working capital and other adjustments. The all-cash transaction is expected to close in approximately 30 days, upon satisfaction of customary closing conditions.
Equifax expects the transaction will result in a one-time after-tax gain upon closing of approximately $0.08 per share, and that the divestiture will be dilutive to 2010 second half earnings per share by approximately four cents per share. The company intends to use the proceeds from the transaction for general corporate purposes.
Equifax’s Direct Marketing Services division is a leading supplier of proprietary data-driven, integrated marketing solutions operating through three units: Equifax Direct Marketing Solutions LLC and Equifax Marketing Solutions, LLC (together “DMS”) and Equifax Database Services, Inc. (“DBS”). DMS provides U.S. consumer demographic information and DBS provides database implementation and hosting services. Combined 2009 revenues of the business units were US$84 million, down 10% from prior year.
Alliance Data Systems is a leading provider of loyalty and marketing solutions derived from transaction-based data. The company is headquartered in Dallas, TX. Upon closing, the Direct Marketing Services division will be integrated into Epsilon, an Alliance Data business that provides data-driven digital and database marketing services.
Source: Equifax Press Release
Equifax is a member of BIIA
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Online yellow pages and local search sites have relied on the WAND Local Search Taxonomy for years to help resolve user queries and return relevant business results.
Now, WAND is providing our customers unprecedented control over the WAND Local Search Taxonomy and the results that their local search or online yellow pages sites return. With WAND’s My Taxonomy Tools, customers can log-in to the web-based interface and begin to customize elements of taxonomy including:
- Creating custom keyword overrides to point specific keywords, which may be important to a specific advertiser, to any heading they choose. Do you want the keyword “Automobile repairing” to go to your heading “Muffler Repair”? It’s easy to do.
- Adjust the emphasis of the categories that a keyword brings back. Boost the relevance of some categories while decreasing the relevance of others to tune your search results. Would you like to display your category “Wineries” above your category “Liquor Stores” for a search for “Chardonnay”. Not a problem.
- Automatically create keyword variations to capture all the possible ways a query may be presented. For example, if you want the keyword “Auto Repair” to point to a certain category, the WAND My Taxonomy Tools interface will also create variants such as “Car Repair”, “Automotive Repair”, “Automobile Repair” and more for you to append to your request.
Any changes made in WAND My Taxonomy Tools will be baked into your own taxonomy update for the very next day. Your version of the WAND Local Search Taxonomy can continue to develop over time while still benefiting from the changes WAND is making on an ongoing basis.
This is an easy way to leverage the tremendous value of the WAND Local Search Taxonomy and our ongoing updates while still retaining the flexibility to customize and tune your own results.
Contact WAND today at mleher@wandinc.com or (303) 623-1200 x267 for a demo of My Taxonomy Tools
DID YOU KNOW THAT WAND OFFERS MAPPING SERVICES BETWEEN MANY DIFFERENT TAXONOMIES?
Most people know that WAND has mapped hundreds of taxonomies, such as UNSPSC, SIC, NAICS, and countless yellow pages headings, to our WAND Product and Service Taxonomy.
What many people don’t know is that WAND can map any two taxonomies together, as long as they share a common subject domain, on a services basis. Our proven process yield highly accurate results.
Do you need to map two or more taxonomies together? Contact http://www.wandinc.com to learn how WAND can help.
Wand is a member of BIIA
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Beijing: Sinotrust, China’s largest automotive marketing solutions provider has created a new department – Business Decision Solution (BDS). The new department now has three functional teams, Business Intelligence & Data Mining Team, Data Management Team and Database Marketing Team to support clients with new databased decision solutions.
Introducing the unique value of this new department, Tony LIU, Senior Vice-President and head of automotive business of Sinotrust, said “Currently in auto market, both mass marketing and targeted marketing are becoming database-driven. During the transformation process, auto manufacturers need new services, such as professional consulting, business intelligence, data mining, data management and marketing campaign management. With 16 years of expertise in auto marketing research, integrated resources and strong researcher team, Sinotrust has become the most reliable partner for auto manufacturers.”
Source: SINOTRUST (a BIIA member). To read the full story click on the attachment
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After its spat with the People’s Republic of China, Google thinks its battle with China is now a distant affair and concentrates on India. India has Google’s second largest employee base in the world. The country is a top priority market at the Google board level.
Google's MD Shailesh Rao, stated recently: "There are other more mature markets and there are fast developing markets on the internet penetration front but not very often does one get the kind of headroom that exists in India. But on the other side of the ledger, there are countries like Brazil and China which have outpaced us in terms of penetration. Recognizing the power of the medium the US has set in motion its national broadband plan, India could really benefit from a platform like that. For a country with a huge young population, growing a cheap platform like a national broadband scheme could be transformational."
"We (Google) need a story just like the telecom or information technology industry had years ago. The latter’s story was jobs. We need an Internet story. And now is the perfect time because we have reached a milestone, a threshold, for us to aspire for more. For instance awakening the huge small business community in India can be a transformational move. They don’t want fantasy propositions, they want nuts and bolts value."
"If we (Google) can help them scale, it will provide a massive push to development. India is a true triple threat. It is a centre of operations, great engineering capability and huge head count. The IPL on YouTube was a watershed moment. Not only was it a global board level decision, but also elevated the level of dialogue. It went to 200 countries and is already the most viewed live event Google has done, ever."
Yes, Google has its own objectives and needs India’s broadband infrastructure to materially improve its position. However India has different objectives. It needs jobs for its underemployed masses. Internet services help to achieve greater productivity (at the expense of employment), a development India does not like to see.
Source: Google discussion on LinkedIn (BIIA Group)
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TransUnion, a global leader in credit and information management, announced on April 29, 2010 that the Pritzker family business interests have reached an agreement with Chicago-based Madison Dearborn Partners, LLC. Under the terms of the agreement, Madison Dearborn Partners will acquire a 51 percent equity stake in TransUnion. The Pritzker family business interests will retain approximately 49 percent ownership of the Company.
"Madison Dearborn Partners and the Pritzker family share a long-term view of TransUnion and a belief that our partnership, combined with the strength of TransUnion's leadership and dedicated team of associates, will be a catalyst for the acceleration of TransUnion's strategy and growth," said Penny Pritzker, Chair of TransUnion.
"We look forward to partnering with the Madison Dearborn Partners team to capitalize on the numerous growth opportunities before us."
The industry had expected a major shift in ownership for some time but more in form of an IPO, or a marriage with another information company, but not an exit via a private equity company.
The Pritzkers are nearing the end of a decade-long quest to divest and divide the family empire by 2011. The 11 heirs of Jay Pritzker -- who died in 1999 after building up a portfolio estimated at $15 billion -- reached an agreement in late 2001 to divest the family's assets according to a formal arrangement that includes annual meetings of family shareholders, regular financial reports and an arbitration process.
In the most recent of the major divestitures, the Pritzkers took the Hyatt Hotel chain public in November, raising $950 million. In March 2008, the family sold a majority interest in the Marmon Group industrial conglomerate to Berkshire Hathaway Inc. for $4.5 billion. And in 2006, the family sold Conwood, a smokeless tobacco company, for $3.5 billion.
TransUnion is the third-largest of the three major credit bureaus, according to analysts. Experian, which has credit information on about 300 million consumers, reported 2009 revenue of $3.9 billion. Equifax reported revenue in 2009 of approximately $1.8 billion and has information on more than 400 million worldwide credit holders. TransUnion’s annual revenue are approximately US$ 1.4 bn to US$ 1.5 bn and maintains information on 500 million people worldwide.
Source: TransUnion Press Release and Press Commentary
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Wednesday 14 April, 2010, London, New York, Hong Kong -- Ascend, the principal provider of data, analytics and advice to investors who finance aircraft today launch the first industry-standard Aircraft Ratings, enabling increased scrutiny in calculating risk associated with aircraft financing.
Through dramatically increased levels of transparency on aviation finance risk, Ascend’s Aircraft Ratings are likely to help reduce the sector’s reliance on government funding and help avoid bankruptcies, by underpinning improved levels of bank lending.
Complete and actionable, Ascend’s new Aircraft Ratings provide a forecast for two key variables on an aircraft’s Expected Annual Depreciation and Implied Downside Volatility. Analysis on each aircraft includes historic price movements, GDP, oil prices, inflation, aircraft fleet size, noise and regulatory compliance along with Ascend’s vast experience in aviation and aircraft valuation. Three hundred and twenty-three ratings are assigned across 61 aircraft types.
Aircraft Ratings provides a credible companion to Ascend’s industry-standard Base Value forecast, enabling increased scrutiny in calculating risk. By splitting expected annual depreciation from potential downside volatility, Aircraft Ratings gives investors a clear statement of an aircraft’s investment merit. Aircraft Ratings will serve as a unique metric for making “apples to apples” relative value comparisons between aircraft investment options
”We’re now able to provide an objective, independent measure of aircraft value risk, which supports a bank’s aviation division to lobby for increased capital allocation,” says Andy Golub, Head of Risk Advisory, Americas. “The rating gives the bank a better understanding of their risk position compared to other methods that punish all aircraft within crude groups equally.”
“Banks are not losing on their aviation investments but they remain sceptical about aviation lending as a risk. With Aircraft Ratings we think we can help encourage increased lending by demonstrating to banks how they can quantify and manage their risks,” says Golub. “For loans backed by top rated aircraft, commercial banks will be able to reduce the amount of Basel II capital reserves required and provide the most competitive lending term to their customers.
For an example of aircraft ratings and the table of ratings, please click here…
http://www.ascendworldwide.com/download/pdf/Ascend-AircraftRatings-example.doc
Lloyds-TSB Development Capital has effectively doubled its investment in Ascend. Having put in some GBP 10 million during 2005 to support the buy-out of the original loss-adjuster Airclaims business of which Ascend, rebranded and relaunched in 2006, was then a part, LDC now has an investment of GBP 12m in the Ascend side of the business. 20% per annum growth over the past three years and the development of significant new contracts through its new offices in Hong Kong (China is now a key growth market), New York and the City of London give real cause for post-recession optimism. Source: Outsell Inc.
Ascend is a member of BIIA
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Ex-Wall Street Journal executive Clare Hart is slated to become the new CEO of Infogroup. Her appointment at Infogroup, however, is contingent on shareholders and regulators approving the sale to CCMP. The deal has the backing of the Infogroup board and co-founder Vin Gupta, owner of 36% of the company’s shares. Nevertheless two shareholders, with a combined stake of 8%, objected to the sale criticizing the valuation of the business and the timing of the proposed deal.
Current CEO Fairfield stated in an internal memo that he had “utmost respect for the leadership within CCMP and Clare Hart, the prospective CEO”. Hart spent more than 25 years with Dow Jones, latterly as executive vice president and head of the company’s enterprise media group, which housed the newswires and Factiva business information service. The Enterprise group of the Wall Street Journal was merged with its consumer media counterpart prompting Hart’s departure from the company.
In the BIIA Newsletter March 2010 / II we reported that Infogroup had been taken private by private equity firm CCMP for US$ 460 million. The price is less than one times revenue and comes as the result of a long-running drama that heated up with an investor lawsuit, the departure of long-term CEO Vin Gupta, and the disarray and distraction it caused for the management. The board of directors had put the company up for bid and it was rumored some months ago that the bidding list had grown to approximate 40 companies including the likes of D&B and Acxiom. Based on the purchase price the bidders list must have evaporated and industry insiders speculate now what CCMP has up its sleeve to rejuvenate the ailing company. Obviously Clare Hart appears to be their ‘secret weapon’.
Source: http://www.research-live.com - BIIA Newsletter March 2010 / II
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Thomson Reuters will on Wednesday (April 14, 2010) unveil the biggest overhaul of its markets division since the merger that formed the financial and professional information group was completed two years ago this week.
A series of product launches starting next week and culminating in the autumn will bring together products from the former Reuters and Thomson Financial for the first time into two simplified platforms, one aimed at enterprises such as large banks, the other aimed at individual users such as small hedge funds.
The web-based platforms, which replace traditional terminal commands with online search, were part of a drive to cater to “the 23-year-old at Goldman Sachs who grew up with Google”, said Devin Wenig, chief executive of Thomson Reuters Markets. They are also aimed at distinguishing Thomson Reuters from Bloomberg, its arch-rival, which invested heavily through the financial crisis but has remained committed to its one-size-fits-all terminals.
On May 11 Thomson Reuters will make Insider, an online video product it has been testing since last year, available to all its customers. In addition to the company’s own media staff, Insider will allow outsiders such as brokerages to offer videos of their analysts.
A desktop platform, Eikon, will launch in the autumn and offer a wider range of data, greater personalisation, and improved risk management, collaboration and emerging markets features.
“The industry is in a hugely different place from where it was in April 2008, and we think a lot of the changes are permanent and structural,” Mr Wenig said. “Big banks are disappearing but we’ve created 1,000 new accounts in ... six months.
Source: The Financial Times Wednesday April 14th, 2010 Issue
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/4852e342-4735-11df-b253-00144feab49a.html
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Following the maxim “Everything starts with an Address” Charles Prescott, of the PRESCOTT REPORT (http://www.prescottreport.com has initiated an address association.
On Wednesday, April 7, the Steering Committee of the new Address Association began its work. Using the on-line conferencing facility donated by FEDMA, the seven volunteers, experts all, led by the group's organizer, Charles Prescott, discussed at length the mission, priority of projects, and the name of this new association.
The majority of the discussion focused on the mission statement of the organization. This sets out broad policy goals of advocacy and education for the group - based on the underlying premise that an address is a basic human right. Much of the world's population, perhaps 60% of it, does not have an address, and in many countries this means that for many social and political purposes, you do not exist.
To read the full press release click on the attachment
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Equifax Inc. (NYSE: EFX)announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to sell its Equifax Enabling Technologies LLC unit, consisting primarily of the APPRO suite of loan origination software ("APPRO"), to CRIF Corporation, an affiliate of CRIF S.p.A., an Italian credit reporting firm.
The sales price is $72.4 million, subject to adjustment. The transaction is expected to close in April, upon satisfaction of customary closing conditions. Equifax intends to use the net proceeds from the transaction for general corporate purposes. The divestiture is not expected to have a material impact on adjusted EPS for full-year 2010.
APPRO is a leading provider of comprehensive loan origination systems for financial institutions and is based in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. CRIF Corp., with headquarters in Tampa, is a provider of decision support systems, business information solutions, credit management, direct marketing and credit collection services. CRIF S.p.A., is based in Bologna, Italy, and is a leading provider of banking credit information in Europe, including business and commercial information and credit and marketing management services.
About Equifax (http://www.equifax.com)
About CRIF (http://www.crif.com/en/Default.aspx)
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Alibaba.com just released its 2009 financial results with a revenue increase of an impressive US$567.5 million, a 29% increase over last year’s US$440 million. Net income fell significantly dropping from US$169 million to US$148 million - down more than 12%. On the upside, fourth quarter net income was up nearly 49% at US$41.2 million. Alibaba is also sitting on a pile of cash – US$1.1 billion. That should see them through any recession, or alternatively branching out in supporting services such as information content, or moving into transaction based trade finance for SMEs.
Alibaba also added 9.6 million registered users in 2009 – a year-on-year increase of 25%. The company now has 47.7 million registered users. 11.5 million on its International Marketplace and 36.2 million on its China Marketplace. The International Marketplace, which generates most of the revenues, saw registered users grow by 46% last year.
Source: Alibaba Press Release
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Alacra, Inc., a leading provider of online business information solutions, announced the launch of PulsePro, a web application that advances existing intelligence gathering techniques. From the deluge of web-based news alerts, headlines and press releases, Alacra PulsePro accurately extracts only pertinent business events, including analyst comments, CEO remarks, M&A rumors and debt restructurings.
Designed as a current awareness and idea generation tool for wealth and asset managers, investment bankers, and professional services executives, Alacra PulsePro improves upon incumbent intelligence gathering solutions with a proprietary, four-step insight distillation process: source curation, event detection, semantic analysis, and human editorial oversight. Alacra launches PulsePro, a subscription-based service, with a month-long ‘Open Access’ period, allowing professionals full premium access, free of charge through April 15, 2010.
"The volume of useless information a business professional needs to plow through each day is staggering,” commented Steven Goldstein, CEO of Alacra, Inc. “By carefully vetting our sources and accurately extracting key business events, PulsePro dramatically improves the signal-to-noise ratio."
Originally released as ‘Street Pulse,’ a free web application spotlighting company-specific comments by sell-side, ratings agency and industry analysts, plus influential bloggers, the enhanced, subscription-based PulsePro offers added functionality, including.
SOURCE: ALACRA PRESS RELEASE
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The online store was announced March 9th, which marks another step in Google's crusade to convert the world to "cloud computing," the idea of running applications in Web browsers instead of installing them on individual hard drives. The information entered in the programs also is stored in data centers run by third parties such as Google.
More than 50 software makers have agreed to sell their Internet programs through Google, which will keep 20 percent of the sales. The prices are expected to range from $50 annually to several hundred dollars annually per user. Google Inc. will sell the online services of other business software makers in an effort to fill its own product gaps and persuade more companies to rely on applications piped over the Internet.
According to Google, approximately 25 million people working for more than 2 million businesses, government agencies and schools use Google's online applications. Google will not say how many users pay for the service, but the number is growing rapidly. The company's revenue from software licensing and other non-advertising sources totaled $762 million last year, more than quadrupling from $181 million in 2007.
Source: Press Reports
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According to PaidContent, Bloomberg, on a mandate to move into various verticals beyond its core, has acquired Fairfax, VA-based government data publishers Eagle Eye Publishers.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but this is Bloomberg's third acquisition in the last few months, after BusinessWeek (for its consumer push) and New Energy Finance, a UK-based green/energy publisher. This comes as reports about Bloomberg’s $100 million push into government news and data, through a purported portal/effort called Bgov, have been leaking out. Bloomberg also bid for CQ last year before it was bought by RollCall, but backed off after the asking price. EEP, founded in 1986, provides federal procurement data on a subscription basis.
Founded in 1986, Eagle Eye provides critical market intelligence – databases, training, studies, reports, lists, software and business development consulting – to help vendors build strong, productive relationships with government buyers
Source: PaidContent
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First-of-its-kind integration with Microsoft applications transforms the way legal research is conducted
NEW YORK, NY, February 01, 2010 - LexisNexis®, a leading global provider of content-enabled workflow solutions, today announced Lexis® for Microsoft Office - a new set of research capabilities that will enable legal professionals to access content and services from LexisNexis and other sources while operating directly within Microsoft Office applications. Legal professionals can now find, analyze and act upon legal content while working within Microsoft Office Outlook, Microsoft Word and Microsoft Office SharePoint Server.
Input from hundreds of customers and other legal professionals shaped the development of Lexis for Microsoft Office, which was specifically designed to address their need to work more efficiently and productively, and ultimately serve clients better. Customers can now access vital information from the LexisNexis® services, the open Web as well as designated law firm or corporate files in one place and with the click of a button - eliminating time and energy intense searches across disparate sources and applications.
"Lexis for Microsoft Office is a significant leap forward in the transformation of legal technology - both in what it delivers and how it is being created," said Michael F. Walsh, CEO of LexisNexis U.S. Legal Markets. "Working closely with our customers, we've created a whole new way to access and use the trusted information they need directly from their day-to-day desktop applications. This frees them to focus on legal reasoning and strategy, responding faster to client issues and questions, and confidently managing legal matters."
About LexisNexis
LexisNexis® (http://www.lexisnexis.com) is a leading global provider of content-enabled workflow solutions designed specifically for professionals in the legal, risk management, corporate, government, law enforcement, accounting and academic markets. LexisNexis originally pioneered online information with its Lexis® and Nexis® services. A member of Reed Elsevier [NYSE: ENL; NYSE: RUK] (http://www.reedelsevier.com), LexisNexis serves customers in more than 100 countries with 18,000 employees worldwide.
http://www.lexisnexis.com/media/press-release.aspx?id=1121.asp
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The International Association of Outsourcing Professionals (IAOP) just predicted that a flurry of delayed outsourcing deals is expected to get the green light and start moving quickly through sourcing and RFP stages early in 2010. Burton Crapps, a BPO specialist commented recently on the prospects of outsourcing firms.
If and perhaps when, the effects of an improved economic forecast begin to impact on outsourcing business, players will find a lot has changed. Continuing economic uncertainty will motivate client firms to demand shorter term contracts, currency exchange protection and the flexibility to dissolve relationships quickly. Watch for lots of merger activity as Outsource Service Providers (OSPs) try to ramp up for larger scale projects and a move up the value chain. Belt-tightening pressures over the last two years have undoubtedly damaged relationships between OSPs and even their best clients, so current-year re-negotiations will have to be done tenderly, with an increased focus on rebuilding priorities for collaboration and value.
This last trend, according to Crapps, is not necessarily a bad thing. More than ever before, he predicts, companies will be on the look-out for “partners that can provide extra value, innovative services that are outside the traditional, and companies with visionary leadership”. He added: “2010 and beyond will force all of us to re-think the leadership of companies, and break out of the traditional thinking that led to our current situation. I believe that companies must link with BPO partners that are able to see and sustain beyond the ordinary and lead into new market areas.” Burton Crapps points out: “I do in fact believe that many US firms are looking to other markets such as South America for outsourcing as opposed to India.” “Regrettably, we all realise that the quality of the India BPO services market has declined in recent years, and the economic downturn has alerted many US companies to look for alternatives.”
To read the full story click on the attachment
Burton Crapps is Managing Director of the Atlanta-based Purlieu Solutions Group and has spent his last 20 years working in just about every global software services and BPO niches.
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Full Year 2009 Segment Results for North America:
Core and total revenue for full-year 2009 was $1,309.7 million, down 4 percent from the prior year period both before and after the effect of foreign exchange:
- Risk Management Solutions revenue of $808.9 million, down 2 percent both before and after the effect of foreign exchange;
- Sales & Marketing Solutions revenue of $385.5 million, down 8 percent both before and after the effect of foreign exchange; and
- Internet Solutions revenue of $115.3 million, down 4 percent both before and after the effect of foreign exchange.
Full Year 2009 Segment Results for International:Core revenue for full-year 2009 was $355.4 million, up 23 percent from the prior year period before the effect of foreign exchange (up 13 percent after the effect of foreign exchange):
- Risk Management Solutions revenue of $262.9 million, up 18 percent before the effect of foreign exchange (up 7 percent after the effect of foreign exchange);
- Sales & Marketing Solutions revenue of $89.1 million, up 42 percent before the effect of foreign exchange (up 37 percent after the effect of foreign exchange); and
- Internet Solutions revenue of $3.4 million, down 3 percent before the effect of foreign exchange (down 20 percent after the effect of foreign exchange).
Operating income before non-core gains and charges for full-year 2009 was $485.5 million, down 5 percent from the prior year period. On a GAAP basis, operating income was $482.5 million, down 6 percent from the prior year similar period. The decrease was primarily due to lower revenue and increased investment spending, partially offset by reengineering savings.
Strategic Technology Investment: The Company announced a two-year strategic technology investment program aimed at strengthening its leading position in commercial data and improving its current technology platform to meet the emerging needs of customers.
Once completed, the program is expected to accelerate revenue growth and reduce expenses by improving data quality and timeliness, increasing the speed of product innovation and significantly reducing technology costs. The Company anticipates spending $110 to $130 million over approximately the next two years to complete the program, with $45 to $55 million of the spend occurring in 2010. Approximately 60% of the spend will be recognized as an increase to D&B's non-core expenses and the remainder as capital expenditures. The Company expects annual cost savings of $35 to $50 million once the investment is complete.
"We have an opportunity to transform our customer value proposition," noted Ms. Mathew. "We intend to act decisively on this opportunity, even as the economic outlook is still cloudy, as we are confident it will enhance long term shareholder value and strengthen our competitive advantage even further," concluded Ms. Mathew.
To read the full release click on the link: http://investor.dnb.com/releasedetail.cfm?ReleaseID=443157
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Google finally drew a line in the sand by declaring it will no longer censor results on Google.cn, the world’s biggest internet company has set in train a confrontation with the Chinese authorities that could well lead to the closure of its local search service – though some industry observers cautioned that US diplomatic pressure may still yield some sort of compromise. Don't bet on it.
In a blog post explaining its move, Google said that “over the next few weeks we will be discussing with the Chinese government the basis on which we could operate an unfiltered search service within the law, if at all.” It added: “We recognize that this may well mean having to shut down Google.cn, and potentially our offices in China.”
By its own internal estimates its share of searches stands at only around 20 per cent, well behind market leader Baidu, and according to most external measures it is falling further behind. With online advertising in China lagging well behind development elsewhere, Google’s China business probably only accounts for around $200m of its annual revenues. It has taken a series of setbacks to bring Google to the point of turning its back on its hard-won foothold in China. Last year it skirmished with Chinese authorities over claims that its local service was failing to crack down enough on pornography, leading to sanctions that threatened to put it even further behind Baidu. The final straw, according to Google itself, came with what it claimed had been “a sophisticated and targeted attack on our corporate infrastructure originating from China that resulted in theft of intellectual property from Google”.
The EXIT Threat:
For Google, China is “truly immaterial”, says a spokesperson for the company. At least, that is, when it comes to its direct business significance. This statement alone can be taken as an insult. On the other hand such remarks are usually typical reactions of US companies when they cannot make it in a foreign market. Instead Google should talk first, remain committed to the market, abide by local laws, use more local partners and listen to Chinese users. In the long run it will prevail, because market forces usually determine the outcome over time, which most likely will lead eventually to changes in the law.
Government rebukes Google: China’s government has insisted that foreign internet companies should be able to operate on the Mainland providing they do so "according to the law". Speaking after Google threatened to quit the country, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu insisted that the internet was "open" in China. "China like other countries administers the internet according to law," she said. "China's internet is open and the Chinese government encourages development of the internet."
Google and Chinese Government in talks: Google said it has begun talks with the Chinese government about the company’s plan to stop censoring results from its search engine, after saying it may quit the country because of cyber attacks.
A commercial affair becomes a political spat: In the past week, the Chinese government has tried to avoid a political fallout by treating the issue as a strictly commercial affair, and official media had been advised not to play it up. But the government may have concluded this strategy is not working. The internet remained abuzz with analysis of the political implications of the Google affair. China has signaled a change of approach to the Google crisis, with state media describing the company’s threat to pull out of the country as a political conspiracy by the US government (White House’s Google).
What some experts say: Google thinks that it has the moral high ground, the world will be behind it and China may have to bend to world opinion. But will it? It will be interesting to learn who in the end will blink first. Google’s China operations may be “officially terminated” in February, but experts believe that the Chinese government will block Google’s main site.
Source: Press Commentaries
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Baidu, Inc. (Nasdaq: BIDU), the leading Chinese language Internet search provider, today announced its plan to establish a new independent company to provide licensed online video to Chinese Internet users.
The new company will work closely with content providers to provide copyrighted premium video content including movies, TV series, sporting events, animation and other varied content to Internet users through an advertising supported model. Mr. Yu Gong, formerly president and chief operating officer of China Mobile's 12580 business, has been appointed chief executive officer of the new company.
"As China's Internet industry evolves, we have seen increasing demand for high-quality video content on our search platform. By establishing this new company, we will be able to better serve our users and customers with superior content and focused resources," said Xuyang Ren, Baidu's vice president of marketing and business development. "I am very excited to work with Mr. Gong, who has strong experience in the internet industry in China, to grow our new company into a leader in the field through product innovation and a robust network of partnerships with leading content providers in China and globally." Mr. Yu Gong added, "Online video is a rapidly growing sector in China and I believe Baidu's search platform will provide a solid foundation for the new company to address the increasing demand for premium content. I am very excited to embark on this new venture."
Prior to serving as president and chief operating officer of China Mobile's 12580 business, Mr. Yu Gong was chief operating officer of SOHU.com, Inc. Mr. Gong is a Beijing native and holds a Ph.D. in Automatic Control and Application from Tsinghua University.
About Baidu
Baidu, Inc. is the leading Chinese language Internet search provider. As a technology-based media company, Baidu aims to provide the best way for people to find information. In addition to serving individual Internet search users, Baidu provides an effective platform for businesses to reach potential customers. Baidu's ADSs, each of which represents one Class A ordinary share, are currently trading on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol "BIDU."
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Gartner has announced the acquisition of the Burton Group for approximately $56 million in cash (approximately 1.9 multiple). Burton Group has approximately 41 research analysts, 40 sales and client service associates, and projected 2009 revenues of $30 million.
The acquisition of Burton Group is expected to expand Gartner's product and service offerings, and increase its IT research market opportunity. The combination is also expected to drive operational efficiencies and cost savings. Gartner financed the acquisition using cash and borrowings under its existing line of credit.
Gartner has bought Burton Group on the heels of acquiring AMR. This is great news for Gartner but not such great news for centralized buyers or AR professionals. The market continues to get more top heavy with a few big players and a long tail at the lower end with many small companies with revenues of less than $5M.
Source: Gartner Press Release
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6 January, 2010 Tokyo, Japan – Experian announces that it has purchased an 88.5% stake in A-Care Systems, Inc., a leading email marketing company in Japan. A-Care Systems, Inc. will form part of Experian CheetahMail, the company’s permission-based email marketing and customer intelligence services.
A-Care Systems, Inc. is Japan’s largest pure play permission-based email campaign management and distribution company, delivering emails, hosting ASP client data and email marketing-based research. Founded in 1999, A-Care Systems, Inc. has a leading position in fast growing market of mobile marketing communications. The company has over 1,000 clients across several sectors, including manufacturing, retail and e-commerce and employs over 160 people, from its headquarters in Tokyo.
The acquisition of A-Care Systems, Inc. is a further step in Experian CheetahMail’s strategy to expand its new media targeted marketing activities globally. It extends the geographic reach into the key market of Japan, the second largest for marketing services spend globally. Following this acquisition, Experian is the largest permission-based email marketer globally with offices in 10 countries including the major markets of the US, the UK, France, Spain and Germany, in addition to a growing footprint across Asia Pacific with operations in Singapore, Hong Kong, Australia and New Zealand.
Source: Experian Press Release
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The service is designed to help SMEs to upgrade their websites, select search keywords, track web traffic and analyse consumer behaviour.
Hong Kong, 12th November: Google announced last week that it would launch a HK$100 million (US$13 million) investment plan targeting Hong Kong-based small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) to provide them with search engine marketing solutions. The initiative named, “Google Online Marketing: Exploring New Business Opportunities” will target the more than 270,000 SMEs in Hong Kong.
A Marketing-interactive article quoted John Liu, vice president of sales, Greater China Region for Google; SMEs “should take advantage of this opportunity to look for innovative, cost-effective and flexible ways to market themselves and their product offerings.”
As part of the initiative, Google will offer a one month free trial of its Adwords platform and provide the SMEs with online marketing training including helping businesses upgrade their websites, select search keywords, track web traffic and analyse consumer behaviour. Google recently launched a similar campaign in mainland China targeting the SME sector there. As part of that initiative, Google held a 27 city roadshow across China to promote the initiative.
Source: Marketing-Interactive article
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Hong Kong, 16th November: Recent comScore data reveals that Asia now has the largest number of Internet users and it is also the region with the fastest growing online population. There are now 484 million Internet users in Asia and the region accounts for 41% of the 1.2 billion Internet users worldwide.
According to an article in Marketing-interactive, in the first nine months of this year, the number of Internet users in Asia grew by 22% and China and Japan led the way. China, which has the world’s largest number of Internet users, posted a 31% increase to reach just over 221 million. Japan recorded an 18% increase to 68 million and the number of users in India jumped by 17% to nearly 36 million.
The article quoted Will Hodgman, comScore executive vice president Asia-Pacific, "With most markets in the region experiencing double-digit growth, marketers and advertisers have the opportunity to capitalise on the potential of the online channel to reach and engage a surging number of people engaging in a variety of consumer activities online, including reading content, watching video, playing online games, engaging with brands, conducting financial transactions and making online purchases."
Source: Marketing-interactive article
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infoGROUP: (NASDAQ: IUSA), a provider of proprietary business databases to the local search, navigation and directory service industries today announced that Planet Discover has licensed the entire U.S. Business Database of 14 million records for its search-based directory and event system software deployed on media company websites.
"We continually strive to improve the functionality and quality of our products and deploying infoGROUP Business Database reinforces our commitment to providing a superior local search experience on our clients’ sites," said David Lenzen, President and CEO, Planet Discover. "The additional services available through our partnership with infoGROUP will also help us diversify our product offering and allow us to pursue new market opportunities."
"Planet Discover search technology combined with infoGROUP’s consumer friendly data, including standardized company names for simple and precise searching, logical categorization and low number of out of business locations will prove to be a tremendous asset to the media industry," said Jim DeRouchey, President, infoGROUP Licensing.
About Planet Discover
Planet Discover is a leading provider of local search, online advertising, and modular content-enabling applications. Planet Discover applications and technology enable publishers to leverage their assets, while building profitable revenue streams and strengthening their position as the best source for local information. Planet Discover is a Gannett company.
For more information, please contact Jim DeRouchey, President of Database Licensing, at 402-537-7915 or jim.derouchey@infousa.com: mailto:jim.derouchey@infousa.com .
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Sinotrust organizes seminar at Industrial Automation Show – Shanghai Hannover Messe International GmbH in the theme "Move ahead towards the General Trend – On How to Look for Potential Growth Points"
To read the full story click on the attachment
http://www.sinotrust.cn
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In late 2007 BIIA wrote: “The growth party is over!”
As the credit crunch entered its third year, analysts and shareholders were waiting with baited breath whether the downward slide continued. According to the latest Q3 results it has!
To read more click on the attachment
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IMS Health Inc., which is the world’s leading provider of market intelligence and market research to the pharmaceutical and health-care industries, has agreed to be acquired for $5.2 billion, including the assumption of debt.
The agreement calls for IMS shareholders to receive about $4 billion - $22 cash for each share of IMS common stock - a 31 percent premium over Wednesday's close.
Yesterday, shares closed up $3.92, or 23.32 percent, to $20.73. The acquirers are private-equity firm TPG Capital and the investment board of the Canada Pension Plan.
The deal with TPG Capital and the CPP Investment Board, which invests funds not immediately needed by the Canada Pension Plan, is expected to close by the end of the first quarter of 2010. The cash portion of the deal represents the biggest leverage buyout this year based on data from Thomson Reuters.
IMS Health, which has operations in more than 100 countries, had $2.3 billion in 2008 revenue. The company last month reported a third-quarter loss because of restructuring costs and said revenue slid 6 percent to $540.8 million.
On October 20th IMS announced that it was exploring a variety of strategic options and had retained financial advisors.
Source: Company Press Release
http://ir.imshealth.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=67124&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1344989&highlight=
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Equifax Inc., (NYSE: EFX) , announced it has acquired Rapid Reporting Verification Company, a privately-held national provider of IRS tax transcript information and social security number authentication services.
The addition of Rapid Reporting will enhance Equifax's ability to provide lenders with improved products, quality and services to help them better control fraud. Equifax will pay $72.5 million in cash for the company.
"More than ever, today's lenders need better tools to determine creditworthiness before qualifying a loan,"said Trey Loughran, Equifax's senior vice president, Corporate Development. "Rapid Reporting's capabilities will allow us to offer lenders new and improved products, as well as more advanced fraud management services."
Based in Fort Worth, TX, Rapid Reporting offers products including IncomeChek, which provides IRS verification of income tax information, and DirectChek, which provides Social Security Administration verification of social security numbers and also meets USA Patriot Act compliance requirements. Operating through a secure Web-based portal, these products offer financial institutions an efficient and cost-effective means to confirm borrower identity and income.
"This transaction is a logical next step for our company," said Jay Meadows, president and CEO of Rapid Reporting. "The combination of Rapid Reporting's assets with Equifax's mortgage-related and employment verification services will enable us to effectively mitigate fraud and offer more advanced products for mortgage lenders."
"Overall, this transaction will enable us to compete more effectively in a dynamic and rapidly changing market and offer even more effective, value-added fraud verification services," said Loughran.
About Rapid Reporting:
Founded in 1998 and headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, Rapid Reporting is a national provider of definitive income, identity and employment verification services for mortgage lenders to help combat fraud.
In 2007, the company won the 2007 Fix-It Award for a technology solution that solves an industry problem. Core offerings include IncomeChek, which is used to verify income through information obtained from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), DirectChek, which meets USA Patriot Act compliance and verifies identity via a direct comparison of the SSN to the Social Security Administration (SSA) database and searches of over 15 billion records in public and private databases for identity fraud and abuse, and EmploymentChek, the company's newest offering that combines live, person-to-person telephone contact and comprehensive database research to verify borrower employment. All services operate over a secure Web-based portal, which is audited daily for security purposes, and both IncomeChek and DirectChek are available through RapidChek, a web services platform that allows companies to access both solutions through a single interface.
Rapid Reporting formed and continues to build relationships with government agencies, such as the IRS and the Social Security Administration (SSA), to gather electronic data for verification purposes. Rapid Reporting's executive team led the successful lobbying efforts to secure the continuation of the enumeration verification system (EVS) with the SSA database. For additional information, call 888.749.4411 or visit http://www.rapidreporting.com
Source: Equifax Press Release
EQUIFAX IS A MEMBER OF BIIA
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Beijing, 26th October: Baidu, a leading Chinese language Internet search provider, has announced its results for the quarter ended 30th September. Revenues grew to US$187.3 million, an increase of 39% compared with the same quarter in 2008. The company’s operating profit was US$76.4 million, a 42% increase over the same period last year. Baidu's active online marketing customers increased by more than 11% to 216,000. Revenue per customer this quarter jumped to US$864 – an increase of just over 25% versus the third quarter of 2008.
Baidu's net income was US$72.2 million, up 42% compared with the same quarter last year. Diluted earnings per share were US$2.07. The company’s management is forecasting revenues in the fourth quarter to be between US$174 million and US$180 million, an increase of more than 30% over the fourth quarter of 2008.
Source: Baidu press release
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Joins Oracle PartnerNetwork -- WAND DataFocus™ Solution provides pre-built domain specific foundation taxonomies to improve out-of-the-box performance of Oracle Secure Enterprise Search -- Advanced taxonomy management tools further extend and customize the user experience.
Denver, CO (PRWEB) October 27, 2009 -- WAND, Inc., has announced the immediate availability of its DataFocus solution for Oracle Secure Enterprise Search. Now also a member of the Oracle® PartnerNetwork, WAND will provide a turnkey taxonomy management, authoring and rules creation application that integrates with Oracle Secure Enterprise Search. WAND will also provide foundation taxonomies covering enterprise and industry specific domains that address virtually every major product and service industry. The industry leading taxonomies are translated to 13 languages enabling indexing of documents in multiple languages to a common concept. Installation and integration of the solution can be accomplished in as little as five days.
The WAND DataFocus solution can help to significantly improve the relevance of search results, thereby dramatically increasing information workers' productivity. Users can zero-in on the exact information they are looking for and filter out irrelevant information from search results.
Taxonomies provide a data model for indexing unstructured data within Oracle Secure Enterprise Search. This replicates the organization of unstructured data with the same logic as that of a domain expert. With 15 years of classification experience, WAND has developed more than 40 taxonomies across all industries and domains, including Health Care, Agriculture, Oil and Gas, Retail, Records Retention/Compliance, Government Services and many more.
The company maintains and expands its taxonomies with a team that includes domain experts, library scientists, taxonomists, lexicographers and computational linguists. New taxonomies are developed on a regular basis.
In combination with the DataFocus taxonomy management tool, the entire integration enables Oracle Secure Enterprise Search users to customize the foundation taxonomies and create rules for the classification of the actual corpus of documents within Oracle Secure Enterprise Search. DataFocus enhances the power of Oracle relational models by providing a data model for unstructured information. It automates the process of adding advanced taxonomy metadata to documents in Oracle Secure Enterprise Search for intuitive retrieval and navigation.
"Taxonomy is an essential ingredient for maximizing the value of an enterprise search engine. Relevance of results in many cases can be more than doubled and documents that were hidden before now become visible in the search results using concept based thesaural relationships," said Ross A. Leher, WAND's CEO and Chairman. "We are excited about this partnership because it will allow Oracle Secure Enterprise Search customers to leverage WAND's pre-built taxonomies to extend the capabilities of the platform and get even better search results."
About the Oracle PartnerNetwork:Oracle PartnerNetwork is a global business network of more than 20,000 companies that deliver innovative software solutions based on Oracle software. Through access to Oracle's premier products, education, technical services, marketing and sales support, Oracle PartnerNetwork Specialized provides partners with the resources they need to be successful in today's global economy. Oracle partners are able to offer their customers leading-edge solutions backed by Oracle's position as the world's largest business software company. Partners who are able to demonstrate superior product knowledge, technical expertise and a commitment to doing business with Oracle can apply to qualify for Specializations.
About WAND, Inc.:
Since 1995, WAND has developed structured multi-lingual vocabularies with related tools and services to power precision search and classification applications on the internet. WAND's Taxonomy library contains more than 40 domain specific taxonomies including 33 different industry vertical packages, jobs, travel, retail, medical, and general enterprise search topics with more domains being added on a regular basis. WAND is based in Denver, Colorado.
For a video overview, complete listing of available domains and further information, please visit:
http://www.wandinc.com/OracleSESDataFocus
Trademarks
Oracle is a registered trademark of Oracle Corporation and/or its affiliates.
WAND INC. IS A MEMBER OF BIIA
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London/New York, October 14, 2009
NEW YORK (October 14, 2009) - Thomson Reuters today confirms that it is has made a formal offer to acquire a leading global financial insight commentary business, Breakingviews. This offer, for an undisclosed sum, has been accepted by Breakingviews’ directors, who are unanimously recommending the offer to their shareholders. The transaction is expected to complete within eight weeks.
Breakingviews will be managed by the Reuters news organization and will further enhance and build upon Reuters own fast-growing global commentary service. In 2008 Reuters established an international commentary team, which has become a highly valued part of Reuters global, multimedia news and information offering.
"Based on the recent success of our strategy to move into commentary and the positive feedback we have received from Thomson Reuters clients, we are now seeking to accelerate our global commentary offering. The acquisition of Breakingviews brings together two of the most respected and influential teams of business, financial and political news commentators in the world and understandably, we are very excited about the opportunity this presents. We expect the combined talent and editorial strength of the enlarged team to enable us to become the world’s premier financial commentary service," said David Schlesinger, editor-in-chief, Reuters.
Devin Wenig, CEO, Thomson Reuters Markets, said, "We are committed to extending our leadership in global news by continuing to invest in covering markets faster and more comprehensively. By adding Breakingviews to our existing commentary service, Thomson Reuters will provide our clients with deeper critical insight and analysis."
The combined Reuters Breakingviews Commentary team will operate under the Breakingviews brand. The separate stand-alone brand will allow Reuters to continue to ensure that there remains a clear distinction between the organization’s news service and commentary offering. Breakingviews will continue to represent the commentary and opinion of the author, while Reuters reporting will continue to represent the traditional sourced news and analysis that has been its staple for more than 150 years.
The combined Reuters Breakingviews commentary service will be made available to Thomson Reuters premium desktop clients immediately following the closing of the transaction. Thomson Reuters also intends to build on Breakingviews’ syndication relationships with many of the world’s leading newspapers.
Hugo Dixon, editor-in-chief, Breakingviews, who will be running the combined commentary team, said: “This combination will give us an enormous opportunity to enhance the impact of our agenda-setting insight. Breakingviews will have a much larger group of commentators, be in more of the world’s financial capitals and have access to Thomson Reuters’ unrivalled customer base.”
About Thomson Reuters
Thomson Reuters is the world's leading source of intelligent information for businesses and professionals. We combine industry expertise with innovative technology to deliver critical information to leading decision makers in the financial, legal, tax and accounting, healthcare and science and media markets, powered by the world's most trusted news organization. With headquarters in New York and major operations in London and Eagan, Minnesota, Thomson Reuters employs more than 50,000 people and operates in over 100 countries. Thomson Reuters shares are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: TRI) and New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: TRI). For more information, go to http://www.thomsonreuters.com.
About Breakingviews
Breakingviews was founded in 1999 to provide online financial commentary aimed at a professional audience. It is one of a handful of journalism websites to have successfully introduced a subscription model. The company also has a thriving syndication business. Branded Breakingviews columns appear in 15 leading publications around the world. The company continued to grow through the financial crisis with revenue rising last year by 23%. Since its inception, Breakingviews has been influential on a broad range of stories including the TMT bubble, numerous takeover sagas, the credit bubble and subsequent banking crisis, and how the financial system should now be reformed.
CONTACT
Thomson Reuters and Breakingviews
Courtney Dolan
Head of Public Relations, Editorial
+1 646 223 8406
courtney.dolan@thomsonreute
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HDBC (D&B’s joint venture with Huaxia Credit in China) released a web based solution branded D&B D-U-N-S Registered specifically focused on building trust on the web. This solution easily allows visitors to business web sites to build trust via a seal program indicating that subject company is registered with D&B.
By clicking on the seal the visitor is presented with information verified by D&B. Base on the strong brand recognition of D&B globally, companies in China are confident of the impact D&B D-U-N-S Registered has on their web site. Businesses that are looking to expand their business cross border value the strength of D&B as a global leader in helping customer decide with confidence and understand businesses and individuals around the world trust D&B to provide that insight.
Due to the success of the program in China, D&B has extended the 2009 launch to include the markets of the United States, Hong Kong, Taiwan, India, Mexico, Brazil & Argentina.
D&B has also launched two new mobile solutions for the markets of Japan and China to empower the mobile professional with D&B insight. Now for the first time ever, customers in China and Japan can access key D&B business information wherever they are via their mobile device.
If you would like more information about these new offerings, please contact Dave Kovacs at D&B kovacsd@dnb.com .
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ID Analytics' scores offer alternative data sources and advanced analytics to fine tune decision making
CHICAGO and SAN DIEGO, Oct. 5 /CHICAGO and SAN DIEGO, Oct. 5 /PRNewswire/ -- TransUnion and ID Analytics, the leader in on-demand identity intelligence, announced TransUnion will include ID Analytics' collections, credit, and identity risk solutions in TransUnion's portfolio of service offerings. ID Analytics' scores provide TransUnion customers with unique, real-time insight into consumers' fraud risk and creditworthiness across the entire lifecycle including origination, portfolio management and collections.
The two companies are jointly delivering a suite of solutions that reduce credit losses, improve collection efforts, and reduce costs associated with fraudulent transactions.
To read the full release click on the attachment
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Washington, September 14, 2009 - A new report from IFC and the World Bank shows by focusing on building and reforming credit reporting, collateral registries, and payment and securities systems, more than half the population in emerging markets could have access to financial services within 10 years and enjoy financial transaction cost reductions of nearly 80 percent.
The report, Financial Infrastructure: Building Access through Transparent and Stable Financial Systems, maps financial intermediation systems and the size of the financial systems market. It provides an expanded data index for measuring financial infrastructure and identifies reforms.
Financial institutions process payments, check potential borrowers’ past experiences with credit, and evaluate the suitability of proposed loan collateral. Consumers pay bills, buy houses, remit earnings, and save for retirement. All of these formal financial transactions rely on a foundation of institutions, information, technologies, and rules and standards—the infrastructure of financial intermediation.
These systems are analyzed in the report, drawing on efforts of the World Bank Group in payment and securities settlement systems, remittances, credit reporting, and secured transactions and collateral registries. The report makes recommendations for reform to make the system more efficient and reliable, thereby reducing costs and increasing access to financial services.
These underlying systems of financial infrastructure touch at least every fifth person in emerging markets. Today, credit bureaus cover 390 million people, remittances over 700 million, and payment systems one billion people. In financial terms, bureaus support nearly $800 billion worth of credit and the value of remittances reached $328 billion in 2008.
"Properly functioning financial infrastructure is critical for efficient and increased access to financial services," said Peer Stein, IFC Manager for Access to Finance Advisory Services. "And this report shows not only where we could be in terms of access to finance, but it provides a roadmap for achieving these gains at a global, country, and institutional level."
The report is available online at http://www.worldbank.org/financialinfrastructure
About the World Bank Group
The World Bank Group is one of the world's largest sources of funding and knowledge for developing countries. It comprises five closely associated institutions: the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the International Development Association (IDA), the International Finance Corporation (IFC); the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA); and the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID). Each institution plays a distinct role in the mission to fight poverty and improve living standards for people in the developing world.
For more information, please visit http://www.worldbank.org, http://www.miga.org, and http://www.ifc.org.
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Leading analytics provider tops category for fourth consecutive year
MINNEAPOLIS—August 18, 2009 - FICO (NYSE:FICO), the leading provider of analytics and decision management technology, announced today that it once again ranked number one in worldwide market share for a critical category of analytics applications, according to a newly published report from technology analyst firm IDC.1 FICO dominated the category for the fourth year in a row with a 24.4% market share, more than three times as much as the nearest competitor.
Entitled “Worldwide Supply Chain, Production Planning, Services Operations and Workforce Analytics Applications 2008 Vendor Shares,” the IDC report examines the financial performance of business analytics providers across multiple categories for the period from 2006 to 2008. The services operations segment of the market, which FICO led, includes applications that automate tasks related to repeatable business processes in specific service industries. FICO's ranking is based upon calendar 2008 license and maintenance revenue for the company’s Decision Management Applications.
"Vendors in the services operations analytic applications market must be able to provide best practice decision-making capabilities within their offerings while developing functionality in line with the industry de facto standards for core BI features," said Dan Vesset, VP, business analytics research at IDC. "It is not enough to simply be an expert in BI functionality or to have strong business process expertise. Success in the analytic applications market requires a vendor to have expertise in both fields. FICO's ability to apply business analytics solutions to customer relationship and risk management processes within a few key industry segments is a big reason for the company's top spot in this market."
"Service industries are experiencing unprecedented economic pressure to increase efficiencies and reduce costs," said Jane Johnson, vice president at FICO. “FICO has maintained a commanding lead in analytics applications for this critical category, and for good reason: we possess deep understanding of our clients’ requirements, and deliver the value they require to succeed."
According to IDC, the combined market for supply chain, production planning, services operations and workforce management analytics reached $4.3 billion in 2008. The services operations segment that FICO led accounted for approximately $1.3 billion of that total.
About FICO
FICO (NYSE:FICO) transforms business by making every decision count. FICO's Decision Management solutions combine trusted advice, world-class analytics and innovative applications to give organizations the power to automate, improve and connect decisions across their business. Clients in 80 countries work with FICO to increase customer loyalty and profitability, cut fraud losses, manage credit risk, meet regulatory and competitive demands, and rapidly build market share. FICO also helps millions of individuals manage their credit health through the http://www.myFICO.com website.
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Paris, August: UFI, the global association of the exhibition industry, has released the results of its third “Global Economic Crisis Barometer Survey of the Exhibition Industry.” The number of survey participants who recorded falling revenues for prior activity increased from 66% in 2008 to 76% for the first half of 2009. In addition, 83% expect revenue decreases in the second half of 2009. UFI reports that the industry in Asia is more optimistic largely because Asia was impacted earlier in 2008 than in Europe and the Americas.
More than half (57%) of the survey respondents expect their operating profits to decrease by more than 10%, while just 5% of the survey respondents were anticipating a “more than 50%” drop in 2009 operating profits. In terms of cost cutting, 49% of respondents are trying to cut costs by more than 10% compared to 40% three months ago.
There is a sense of optimism, however, for the 2010 outlook as 53% anticipate economic recovery for the exhibition industry next year, while 47% expect recovery will be delayed until 2011 or later. Survey respondents in Asia were the most optimistic with some 65% expecting the exhibition industry to recover in 2010.
Source: UFI report
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Beijing, August 26, 2009
"Free Thinking and Practice in the Age of New Reality Marketing" --- Elements Senior Workshop, jointly organized by Sinotrust, a leading supplier of marketing solutions and credit solutions in China, and Experian Group, Sinotrust's strategic partner, was held in Beijing Shangri-la Kerry Centre Hotel.
Managerial, marketing and technological elites from famous domestic and overseas enterprises in such mainstream fields as automobile, banking, insurance, retailing, e-business, aviation, telecom and IT, etc, gathered together and collectively discussed marketing technology, application and development under the context of economic revival.
To read the full story click on the attachment
SINOTRUST IS A BIIA MEMBER
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China National Bureau of Statistics and Sinotrust Jointly Release '2009 Q2 China Automotive Industry Climate Index'
To read the full release click on the attachment
SINOTRUST IS A BIIA MEMBER
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Coface, the leading international credit insurance and credit management services group, announced the launch of a new rating agency for corporations at the May 2009 Coface Credit Risk Conference in Hong Kong.
Hong Kong is to be one of the first five countries and regions (with France, Germany, UK and Dubai), where Coface introduces its new rating service.
The new service consists of a corporate rating, similar to the ratings proposed by the "Big 3" rating agencies: Standard & Poor’s, Moody’s and Fitch Ratings, and expressed with letters in a standard scale (from AAA to D).
However Coface’s rating business model is different. “We will only propose our rating to companies we already assess and monitor on a day-to-day basis, because Coface has a high credit exposure through its credit insurance clients,” said Jerome Cazes, CEO of Coface.
Source: Coface Press Release
To read the full story click on the attachment
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CRIF Continues U.S. Expansion with the Acquisition of Aimbridge Indirect Lending, LLC and Member Lending Acceptance, LLC
Founded in 1984, Aimbridge® Lending Solutions is a provider of integrated multi-channel, multi-lender auto buying and lending services which markets auto loans and insurance products through partnerships with financial institutions and auto dealerships. Aimbridge’s turn-key solutions include indirect auto loan origination processing, funding, and loan closing, direct lending systems, after hours underwriting support services, imaging and document management technologies, and aggregated online inventory shopping and lending websites. Aimbridge’s proprietary workflow management systems allow lenders and dealers to work together seamlessly within the AppLine™ and AimbridgeConnect™ online portals. The company successfully operates in 16 major US markets and is headquarted in Denver, Colorado.
Visit http://www.aimbridge.com for additional information on Aimbridge® Lending Solutions and its wide array of products and services.
To read the full story click on the attachment
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Following its Q2 Earnings Release Dun & Bradstreet stock in afternoon trading Friday was moving at $72.27, down $10.51, or nearly 13%, on volume of 1.85 million shares. Average daily turnover is about 600,000 shares.
Core revenue results for the second quarter of 2009 reflect the following by solution set:
Risk Management Solutions revenue of $264.7 million, up 3 percent before the effect of foreign exchange (down 2 percent after the effect of foreign exchange); Sales & Marketing Solutions revenue of $109.5 million, down 1 percent before the effect of foreign exchange (down 3 percent after the effect of foreign exchange); and Internet Solutions revenue of $31.1 million, up 1 percent before the effect of foreign exchange (flat after the effect of foreign exchange).
In light of difficult North American market conditions D&B revised its Full Year 2009 Guidance as follows:
Core revenue down 1 percent to up 1 percent, before the effect of foreign exchange, compared with original growth of 2 percent to 5 percent, before the effect of foreign exchange; Operating income down 3 percent to up 1 percent, before non-core gains and charges, compared with original growth of 5 percent to 8 percent, before non-core gains and charges; Diluted EPS growth of 1 percent to 5 percent before non-core gains and charges, compared with original growth of 9 percent to 12 percent, before non-core gains and charges; and Free cash flow of $285 million to $315 million, excluding the impact of legacy tax matters, compared with original guidance of $360 million to $375 million, excluding the impact of legacy tax matters.
D&B acquires ICC UK and Ireland for US$ 16 million from BISNODE, Sweden. BISNODE is D&B’s partner in Nordic countries, Germany, Austria and Central Europe
Source: http://investor.dnb.com/releasedetail.cfm?ReleaseID=399909
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Bisnode has signed an agreement to divest its operations in credit solutions company ICC to D&B UK. ICC is a leading provider of business-critical information for risk and credit decision-making and operates in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The divestment will provide a minor capital loss after the value of intangible assets attributable to business combinations are deducted. The transaction is carried out as a sale of shares and an asset deal. The transaction remains subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to close by 31 August 2009.
ICC is a provider of risk and credit information. Their leading integrated technology provides intelligent analysis of data, allowing their clients to set foundations for efficiency. ICC’s annual revenue is approximately 160 MSEK with 200 employees.
“This divestment is in line with our strategy to focus on businesses that can achieve significant synergies within the group. We believe ICC has good potential and that D&B UK will provide ICC opportunities for solid growth.” says Johan Wall, CEO of Bisnode.
Source: BISNODE
http://www.bisnode.com
http://www.bisnode.com/en/News--Press/Bisnode-press-releases/2009/Bisnode-divests-operations-in-ICC/
BISNODE is the franchise holder for D&B businesses in Nordic, Germany, Austria and Central Europe
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Revenue in the second quarter decreased 12.4% to $1.5 billion. Net income for the second quarter of 2009 decreased 22.7% to $164.1 million compared to the same period last year.
"Strength in U.S. higher education, the global corporate bond market and at Platts, our worldwide energy information sevice, were offset by softness in the elementary-high school market, structured finance and advertising in the second quarter," said Harold McGraw III, chairman, president and chief executive officer of The McGraw-Hill Companies. "In the face of challenging economic conditions, we reduced costs and expenses by 9.5% in the second quarter. Cost containment will be a priority all year.
The Outlook: "In view of weakening market conditions in advertising and school education, we now expect revenue to decline 5.5% to 6.5% in 2009. Previously, we had anticipated a decrease of 4.0% to 5.0%. We are also refining our guidance for earnings per diluted share. Previously, the range was $2.20 to $2.30. With continued tight cost controls, the new forecast is $2.20 to $2.25, excluding the second quarter restructuring charge and the divestiture of Vista Research, although it appears we will come in at the low end of the range."
Standard & Poor's: "Revenue for this segment declined 8.4% to $673.8 million in the second quarter compared to the same period last year. Operating profit decreased by 8.8% to $276.4 million reflecting a pre-tax loss of $13.8 million from the divestiture of Vista Research and a pre-tax net benefit of $0.4 million from restructuring charges. Operating profit in the second quarter of 2008 included a pre-tax restructuring charge of $15.2 million. Foreign exchange rates reduced revenue in the second quarter by $26.0 million, and operating profit by $8.0 million.
"Revenue for Standard & Poor's Credit Market Services, which provides independent credit ratings, credit risk evaluations and ratings-related information and products, declined by 9.9% to $457.4 million in second quarter compared to the same period last year.
"Revenue for Standard & Poor's Investment Services, which provides comprehensive value-added financial data, information, investment indices and research, was off 4.9% to $216.4 million in the second quarter compared to the same period last year.
Source: Company Press Release
http://investor.mcgraw-hill.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=96562&p=irol-news
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CHICAGO, July 28 /PRNewswire/ -- TransUnion today applauded the importance of U.S. District Court judge Ann D. Montgomery's dismissal of legal complaints brought by Fair Isaac Corp. in its lawsuit against VantageScore Solutions LLC, Experian Information Solutions Inc. and TransUnion, LLC.
The court's decision to dismiss these complaints marks a significant victory for the principles that rest behind the development of VantageScore and, more importantly, for consumers and lenders who want and deserve choice.
To read the full story click on the attachment
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On July 24, the United States District Court in Minneapolis dismissed the antitrust and false advertising claims asserted by FICO against Experian, Trans Union, and VantageScore Solutions LLC in connection with the introduction and sale of the VantageScore scoring system. These claims had constituted the substantial majority of FICO's claims in the lawsuit.
Although the Court will allow FICO's claim for trademark infringement to go to trial, it ruled in the defendants’ favor on a crucial legal issue with respect to that claim. In addition, at the trial, Experian will present its counterclaim (which was not affected by the Court’s ruling) that FICO committed fraud in applying for its trademark.
Source: Experian Press Release. To read the full story click on the link: http://press.experian.com/documents/showdoc.cfm?doc=3585
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MINNEAPOLIS—July 22, 2009—FICO (NYSE:FIC), the leading provider of analytics and decision management technology, today announced that its FICO® 08 credit score will be available at all three national credit reporting agencies by the end of July. FICO noted that since the first credit reporting agency introduced the FICO 08 score early this year, over 400 lenders have begun using or testing FICO 08 scores, including five of the seven largest U.S. banks and four of the five largest credit card issuers.
FICO 08 scores are expected to provide up to twice the improvement in predictive power compared to FICO’s previous revisions to its FICO® scoring model. This improvement will increase the ability of lenders to reduce losses within current portfolios and to acquire more profitable new customers. The strongest improvements in risk prediction over current FICO scores are achieved in key consumer segments such as those opening new accounts or having prior derogatory information. In addition, this newest generation of FICO scores includes refinements to help lenders better evaluate consumers who are comparatively new to credit.
Source: http://www.fico.com/en/Company/News/Pages/07-22-2009.aspx
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CHICAGO, July 9 /PRNewswire/ -- The TransUnion Credit Risk Index, a statistic developed to measure the changes in average consumer credit risk within various geographies, increased 1.98 percent from 124.79 in the fourth quarter of 2008 to 127.26 in the first quarter of 2009.
On a year-over-year basis, the Credit Risk Index increased 7.10 percent (from 118.83 in the first quarter of 2008), the largest increase for that time period in this decade. The Credit Risk Index is defined as the weighted average probability of 90-day delinquency or worse among consumers in a given region relative to the nation as a whole.
To read the full story click on the attachment
Source: http://www.transunion.com
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Beijing, 25 June 2009 - HUAXIA International Credit Group and CRIF today announced the establishment of a new joint company in the Chinese domestic market, Huaxia CRIF China, which provides advanced consumer credit information services and credit risk management solutions.
To read the full story click on the press release
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CRIF, a leader in credit services, and FLS Services (FLS), a major provider of indirect lending software to financial institutions, today (June 8th, 2009)announced that CRIF has acquired FLS. As part of the agreement, FLS will operate as a wholly-owned subsidiary of CRIF.
About FLS
FLS Services is a leading provider of indirect lending products, underwriting in excess of $1 billion in loans annually. Visit: http://www.flsservices.net
About CRIF
CRIF is a global company specializing in the development and management of credit reporting, business information and decision support systems. Established in 1988 in Bologna (Italy), CRIF has an international presence, operating over four continents (Europe, America, Africa and Asia). For additional information, please access contact communication@crif.com or visit http://www.crif.com.
To read the full story click on the attachment
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CRIF, S.p.A., one of the largest providers of business information in Italy, acquired D&B’s Italian business for $11 million in cash, net of certain liabilities at closing. D&B’s domestic Italian operations generated approximately $48 million in revenue and approximately $1 million in operating income in 2008.
Simultaneous with closing this transaction, D&B entered into a ten year commercial arrangement to provide CRIF with global data for its Italian customers. This transaction has no impact on D&B’s previously issued 2009 financial guidance.
Essentially CRIF will manage D&B’s franchise in Italy and becomes part of the global D&B information network. The deal confirms D&B’s strategy to work, in mature markets with little growth potential, with partners and to focus on key global markets which offer significant growth potential.
Source: D&B SEC Filing http://investor.dnb.com/sec.cfm and CRIF Press Release (see attachment)
CRIF & D&B ARE BIIA MEMBERS
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Experian: New scores outperform other offerings by as much as 60 percent
Costa Mesa, Calif., June 15, 2009 — Experian®, a global information services company, announced the launch of three highly predictive credit scores that enable members of its Small Business Credit ShareSM program to quickly identify financial accounts that are most likely to become delinquent. Powered by Experian’s extensive business data and advanced analytics capabilities, the new portfolio risk scores help clients reduce costs and maximize revenue by allowing them to address accounts that could pose future business risks.
http://press.experian.com/documents/showdoc.cfm?doc=3536
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BISNODE published its first quarter results and Johan Wall, CEO commented: “The beginning of the year has been characterized by a challenging market climate. In spite of this, we enjoyed a continued positive development with both growth in revenue and stable profitability during the first quarter.”
“On 1 January 2009 we introduced a new organization based on geographical regions. The aim is to increase the Group’s opportunities to realize both revenue and cost synergies. Parallel to this, we have worked on the integration of German Wer Liefert Was (WLW), which was acquired at the end of last year. Both, the launch of the new organization and the integration of WLW, are proceeding according to plan.”
Bisnode’s Credit Solutions products delivered strong growth and higher profitability. Lower demand for marketing services is creating pressure on Marketing Solutions. Busode’s Q1 revenues increased by 14% outperforming its business information rivals in Europe.
To read the full story click on the link: http://www.bisnode.com/en/News--Press/Bisnode-press-releases/2009/Bisnode-Interim-report-Q1-2009/
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21 May 2009: Veda Advantage today announced the proposed acquisition of personal security specialists Secure Sentinel, part of Vero Insurance Limited, a Suncorp Group company.
Secure Sentinel provides loss assistance and retrieval services for financial cards, mobile phones, documents and personal valuables in one package. Its focus is on preventing identity theft rather than the recovery process.
To read the full story click on the attachment
VEDA ADVANTAGE IS A BIIA MEMBER
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BIIA Member CRIF is awarded the modernization of Bangladesh Bank's credit information bureau.
Dhaka and Bologna, 27 May 2009 - CRIF has been awarded the international tender for the modernization of the credit information system of the Bangladesh Bank, the country’s central bank. After an extensive process of evaluation and selection, CRIF’s proposed solution was chosen as the preferred option from the list of international players.
To read the full story click on the attachment
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CHICAGO, May 26 /PRNewswire/ -- Today TransUnion introduced DecisionCentre(SM), a new ASP decisioning software solution to help financial institutions throughout the globe balance the risks and rewards of lending. TransUnion DecisionCentre's customizable program is designed to help organizations quickly enhance and streamline their risk management strategies, address portfolio growth, increase collections efforts and reduce fraud.
TransUnion DecisionCentre will be deployed in several global markets, including India, South Africa, Mexico, Dominican Republic and Canada. With its pre-configured collections and portfolio review modules, the automated TransUnion DecisionCentre works with several languages and currencies, providing international markets with robust rules, workflow and decisioning engines that can leverage multiple data sources and host a variety of analytical and scoring models.
To read the full story click on the attachment
Source TransUnion http://www.transunion.com
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STAMFORD, Conn., Apr 20, 2009 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Standard & Poor's Ratings Services recently announced that it has fully integrated VantageScore(R) into LEVELS(R) 6.6, Standard & Poor's U.S. mortgage analytical model. VantageScore is the borrower credit score jointly developed by the three national credit reporting companies (Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion).
VantageScore was designed as a benchmark of borrower credit risk and likelihood of repayment. It is derived using a statistical method based on the borrower's credit history and leverages the same algorithm across all three major credit reporting companies. Its scoring methodology provides lenders with a consistent interpretation of consumer credit files across all three major credit reporting companies and the ability to score a broad population.
Standard & Poor's conducted an analysis of VantageScore to determine whether the score was an appropriate measure of borrower risk. This independent analysis found that VantageScore is an acceptable option for Standard & Poor's in its ratings analysis for US residential mortgage backed securities.
SOURCE: VantageScore Solutions, LLC
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MUMBAI, India, May 14 /PRNewswire/ -- To enable credit grantors to make loan decisions with greater confidence and reliability at a time of new challenges, Credit Information Bureau India Limited (CIBIL) and TransUnion today announced the launch of the CIBIL TransUnion Personal Loan Score. Developed by CIBIL and TransUnion, the new offering is the first score of its kind for the Indian market. The CIBIL TransUnion Personal Loan Score is the only offering to provide analytics on the likelihood of applicants or customers becoming 91 days delinquent on a personal or consumer loan over the next 12 months.
SOURCE: TransUnion
Web site: http://www.transunion.com/
http://www.cibil.com/
To read the full story click on the attachment
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TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras, May 13 /PRNewswire/ -- TransUnion announced the introduction of the first generic credit score for Honduras, helping banking and financial institutions to better evaluate the credit worthiness of Hondurans. TransUnion Score Predictivo will predict the likelihood of a consumer becoming past due (90 days or more) on one or more lines of credit, including credit cards, personal, home and auto loans within the next 12 months. This scoring model represents the second one introduced by TransUnion into countries where no generic scoring system existed. The first one was in India in November 2007. Source: TransUnion
To read the full story click on the attachment
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First Source Solutions restructured into four independent business units - Healthcare industry vertical, Telecoms & Media industry vertical, Banking, Financial Services & Insurance (BFSI) industry vertical, and Asia Business Unit (ABU) effective March 2009. The new organization structure is expected to further facilitate development of domain expertise and a business strategy that mirrors industry opportunities and dynamics.
The company also announced its quarter results for the period ending March 31, 2009. To read the full press release please click on the attachment.
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CRISIL’s Board of Directors, at its meeting held on February 25th, 2009, approved the Audited Financial Results for the year ended December 31, 2008.
CRISIL registered a consolidated total income of Rs. 536.19 crore for the year, as against Rs. 413.49 crore in the previous year, an increase of 29.67 per cent. Consolidated profit after tax for 2008 is Rs. 140.57 crore, as against Rs. 83.66 crore in the previous year, an increase of 68.03 per cent.
All CRISIL businesses recorded a year of robust growth. CRISIL’s Ratings revenues grew at over 50% driven largely by the strong traction seen in Bank Loan Ratings (BLR).
Despite the turmoil in global financial markets, Irevna, CRISIL’s offshoring division, added several strategic and high potential clients. The domestic research arm, CRISIL Research grew significantly through its launch of new reports and by focusing on high value customized research. CRISIL Risk and Infrastructure Solutions Ltd (CRIS), CRISIL’s wholly–owned subsidiary, increased its global footprint through execution of mandates in Mauritius, Indonesia, Vietnam, Tanzania and Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The total headcount across the CRISIL group increased to 1956 as at December 31, 2008 from 1750 in the previous year.
To read the full release click on the attachment
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Microsoft Corp. announced revenue of $13.65 billion for the third quarter ended March 31, 2009, a 6% decline from the same period of the prior year. Operating income, net income and diluted earnings per share for the quarter were $4.44 billion, $2.98 billion and $0.33 per share, which represented an increase of 3% and declines of 32% and 30%, respectively, when compared with the prior year period.
Growth comes to an end after 34 years of continued revenue growth. The decline in Microsoft's quarterly revenues on a year-on-year basis came as its PC software and internet divisions took bigger hits than expected from the economic downturn, according to figures for the third quarter of the company’s financial year published on Thursday.
http://www.microsoft.com/msft/earnings/FY09/earn_rel_q3_09.mspx
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The Reserve Bank of India has after almost one year delay seen fit to improve transparency in credit transactions in India by granting four licenses for credit bureau operations. In a short statement the RBI named the four companies.
"The Reserve Bank of India has, on April 16, 2009, issued 'in-principle-approval' to
four companies to set up credit information companies (CICs).
These are:
(i) Credit Information Bureau (India) Ltd.,
(ii) Equifax Credit Information Services Pvt. Ltd,
(iii)Experian Credit Information Company of India Pvt. Ltd, and
(iv) Highmark Credit
Information Services Pvt. Ltd.
The Reserve Bank of India had invited applications from companies interested in
continuing/commencing business of credit information under the Credit Information
Companies (Regulation) Act, 2005. It received 13 applications. The Reserve Bank set
up a High Level Advisory Committee (HLAC) for expert opinion on the applications
received and recommending the names of the companies which the Reserve Bank
could consider for granting Certificate of Registration for setting up or continuing as a
credit information company.”
Source: Reserve Bank of India
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Experian managed to report organic growth based on constant exchange rates in the second half, driven by strength in emerging markets, good progress on countercyclical initiatives and strong performances in non-financial verticals.
At constant exchange rates, total revenue growth for the half was 5%, with organic revenue growth of 4%. For the full year the company expects to achieve its objectives of broadly maintaining margins, growing profits and generating strong cash flow, while delivering a good earnings outcome.
At actual exchange rates the overall growth was down 6%.
Management stated that it sees some signs of stabilization in the financial services sector which it hopes to translate eventually into improved consumer lending activity. For now, the environment remains fragile, and we continue to be cautious about the immediate outlook for organic revenue growth. Following the announcement Experian’s shares fell 16¾p to 450p on the London Stock Exchange.
50% of Experian’s revenues come from financial services sector in the USA and the UK, which are negatively impacted by the credit freeze. Experian’s aim is to seek solace in diversification (industry verticals and geographic expansion). It achieved notable growth from its consumer direct business, which provides online credit scores for consumers in return for a monthly fee. This business has seen subscribers in the UK increase from about 800,000 a year ago to 1.5m and in the US increase from 7m a year ago to 9m. It has also seen strong growth in credit checking in emerging markets such as Brazil, where organic revenue in credit services rose 16 per cent. In the UK growth from credit services was flat, although it has managed to offset the fall by providing credit checking to sectors such as utilities and insurance. Experian however cancelled its plans to launch a credit bureau in Canada.
Source: Experian Press Release April 16th, 2009
For further analysis refer to the BIIA Newsletter April 2009 Issue
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McLean, VA and Denver, CO – January 15 – Concept Searching, developers of concept based search, automatic classification, semantic metadata generation, and taxonomy management software and WAND, Inc. developers of structured multi-lingual vocabularies spanning a wide range of industries have announced a strategic alliance.
To read the full story click on the attachment
http://www.wandinc.com A BIIA Member
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Australian lenders – bank and non-bank – need to review their credit scoring models in light of the global economic crisis or run the risk of higher bad debts and prolonging the credit drought currently being experienced by consumers and small business.
This is the finding from one of Australia’s leading credit scoring experts who argues that many lenders are operating scoring models that were built on boom time assumptions and expectations which are now largely irrelevant.
Credit scoring has become a key element in credit assessment processes of most domestic credit providers and scoring is pervasive throughout the developed world.
To read the full story click on the attachment
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Dun & Bradstreet Australia has acquired the 53% of FCS OnLine shares it did not hold making it the sole owner of the business as it looks to further integrate its credit reporting and identity verification businesses.
To read the full story click on the attachment
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Marlin Associates (M&A) has just published its Mergers & Acquisitions Outlook for Middle Market Technology and Digital Information 2009-2010. According to the principals of M&A the outlook is encouraging in spite of the depressed general mood in the venture capital (VC) and private equity (PE) sectors.
In its commentary M&A state that the outlook for mergers & acquisitions among middle market (and smaller) tech and digital information firms will continue to be better and recover faster than the broader merger and acquisition market.
It is back to basics: Due diligence reviews are extensive and transactions taking longer to close. In many instances the challenge is for both the buyer and seller to see the strategic fit, the strengths and potential, and to shepherd a transaction all the way to closing. In this environment the ability to get and sustain the enthusiasm of all parties in the process is more important than ever.
In spite of tough market conditions, M&A 'ventures' to make four predictions:
- The IPO market for middle-market tech and digital information firms is AWOL* and will remain absent through 2010. (*Absent Without (Official) Leave)
- VC and PE players will stay on the sidelines for larger deals through 2010—but they will remain open to investments in smaller firms.
- M&A prices for tech and digital information transactions will be grounded in economic reality, but strong mid-market tech companies will still command strong prices.
- Strategics (not financial sponsors) will make up the vast bulk (98%+) of both buyers and sellers through 2010. Virtually all deals will be under $250 million.
M&A says: Succeeding in this environment, much less achieving appropriate values, is no game for the inexperienced or faint of heart. It takes discipline and expertise. As stated at the beginning: It is back to basics!
Courtesy Marlin Associates
To read the full story click on: http://marlinllc.com/outlook/MA_Outlook_09-10.pdf
or click on the attachment
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February 23, 2009 (Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA) Fair Isaac Corporation (NYSE: FIC), the leading provider of analytics and decision management technology, today announced that it was awarded eight new patents in the last four months for inventions in fraud detection, search technology, rules management and bioanalytics.
The new patents include two technologies used in the new Fair Isaac® Falcon® Fraud Manager version 6, which produces a 44 percent improvement in fraud detection model performance, increased fraud detection and fewer false-positives. The first, "Cascaded Profiles for Multiple Interacting Entities," relates to the generation of enhanced profiles used in fraud detection which powerfully reflect interactions and relationship of key entities. The second, "Self-Learning Real-Time Prioritization of Fraud Control Actions," uses adaptive models to learn new fraud patterns in real-time and by constantly re-weighting predictive fraud variables related to activity based on real-time case feedback.
The new portfolio also includes an additional patent in transactional profile analytics, entitled "Enhancing Delinquent Debt Collection Using Statistical Models of Debt Historical Information and Account Events." This patent describes an automated system using predictive modeling based on real-time profiles (common to Falcon fraud models) including the use of unstructured data to optimize the use of collection resources on a portfolio of delinquent debt accounts.
The company also received its first Japanese patent for "Context Vector Generation and Retrieval," adding foreign coverage to four Fair Isaac U.S. patents related to search tools. This invention is an improved system and method for generating and retrieving "context vectors," which are widely used search tools, including for Web-based searching.
New technology incorporated into the Fair Isaac Blaze Advisor® business rules management system was also patented as "Relational Logic Management System," a computer-implemented method to reconcile rule sets in models of business processes.
In bioanalytics - an area Fair Isaac now focuses on licensing to other companies - Fair Isaac's original FastPanel® technology received its first three patents, each with the title "Devices for Generating Detectable Polymers," related to using DNA to diagnose upper respiratory and gastrointestinal diseases in humans.
"In challenging times, industry leaders maintain and protect their investments in R&D," said Henry Morris, senior vice president, Worldwide Software and Services Research for IDC. "Eight new patents in four months indicates a healthy pace of innovation, underscoring Fair Isaac's continuing commitment to advance the practice of decision management."
"Patents highlight the value we place on innovation and collaboration," said Dr. Mark Greene, Fair Isaac CEO. "These new patents underscore the impact of our R&D investment, and also the depth of our commitment to helping our clients solve real-world challenges."
Fair Isaac now holds 80 patents, nearly double the portfolio of two years ago. The company filed for 10 more patents in the past four months, and currently has 160 patent applications pending in the U.S. and other countries.
About Fair Isaac
Fair Isaac Corporation (NYSE:FIC) transforms business by making every decision count. Fair Isaac's Decision Management solutions combine trusted advice, world-class analytics and innovative applications to give organizations the power to automate, improve and connect decisions across their business. Clients in 80 countries work with Fair Isaac to increase customer loyalty and profitability, cut fraud losses, manage credit risk, meet regulatory and competitive demands, and rapidly build market share. Fair Isaac also helps millions of individuals manage their credit health through the http://www.myFICO.com website.
Source: Fair Isaac Press Release
FAIR ISAAC IS A MEMBER OF BIIA
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India is planning to raise the literacy of India pupils with a laptop priced at US$20.00.
Inida’s laptop “Sakshat” considerable undercuts the “US$ 100” Children’s Machine and the EeePC made by Asustek in Taiwan. The new device is intended to boost distance learning to fulfil India’s educations needs. (Source: FT)
Computer literacy will mean that eventually no one will read a printed paper – at least the younger generation – with a profound impact on the Indian newspaper and print media industry.
Hugo Dixon, Editor-in-chief and Chairman, Breakingviews.com gave some insights not long ago about the “Lost generation” and hinted that the age group under 30 – may never read papers, when he spoke to an audience at the the SIIA Global Information Industry Summit 2008 about the future of financial journalism.
To view his presentation go to: http://www.biia.com/library.php#242
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Which pricing strategies address falling demand in an economic downturn? The pundits generally say 'wake up, pay closer attention to customers, and be more targeted in your pricing.' Good ideas certainly, but what should you do specifically? Which price initiatives do, or do not, work?
From working with clients in industries which entered the recession early (e.g. print media, construction and commodity capital goods) we believe there are five key strategies, generally requiring intelligent use of tools, to combat falling revenues. The key to success, in all cases, is not to assume that market-facing management becomes magically smarter. You may need tools to change behaviors.
So, the answers occur in strategy + tool combinations. Most of them focus on understanding the customer buying decision, which is the driver of price sensitivity. Know the decision, and you can optimize your pricing.
To read the full story click on the attachment
Abbey Road Associates is a business consulting firm specialized in pricing and pricing strategy. We offer highly evidenced strategic and tactical pricing recommendations to companies across a wide range of industries. Recent assignments have been in the entertainment, telecom, computing, information services, software, consumer products and transportation industries. They have focused on new price structures, new product pricing, pricing processes, discounting reduction/improvement, new market penetration, bundle configuration and pricing, and countering price attacks.
Abbey Road Associates is a member of BIIA
http://www.abbeyroadassociates.com/
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Moody's Q4 revenue was down 20%, annual revenues for 2008 were down 22%. Operating income for the year declined by 34%.
CEO Raymond McDaniel stated: "Weak credit market conditions that prevailed throughout most of 2008 were exacerbated in the fourth quarter by the broader downturn in global economic activity." He also stated that unusually challenging conditions are likely to persist through much of 2009.
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Equifax reported 4th quarter consolidated revenue was down by 4%. Revenues of the US core business declined by 9%. Full year revenue was up 5%, EPS increased 4%, and operating margin was 26.4%.
Richard F. Smith, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer opened the Q4 Earnings Call with the statement "Our customers are hurting". He continued: "2008 was one of the most challenging business environments we have ever faced." In view of the uncertain economic condition Equifax declined in providing guidance for 2009.
Source: Equifax Press Release
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ALIBABA.COM Q3 REVENUES UP 37%
Hong Kong, 11th November: Hong Kong-listed Alibaba.com announced its third quarter results on Tuesday. For the quarter ended 30th September, the company recorded revenues of US$114.1 million, which is a 37% increase year-on-year. Net income grew 49% to US$45.1 million.
GLOBAL SOURCES Q3 REVENUES UP 11%
Hong Kong, 13th November: Global Sources announced its third quarter results on Thursday. For the quarter ended 30th September, revenues were US$37.6 million, an increase of 11% over the same period last year. GAAP net income dropped 55% to US$2.3 million in the third quarter of 2008.
For the nine months ending 30th September, revenues were US$141.9 million, rising 17% over the first nine months of 2007. GAAP net income was US$18.9 million, a 19% increase compared with the same period of 2007.
HC INTERNATIONAL Q3 REVENUES DOWN 5%
Beijing, 12th November: Hong Kong-listed HC International has released its results for the quarter ended 30th September. Revenues were US$11.0 million, a decrease of 5% compared with the same quarter of 2007. Net income was US$511,000, an increase of more than five times over the third quarter 2007.
For the nine months ended 30th September, revenues were US$32.7 million, a 4% increase over the first nine months of 2007. Net income was US$950,000 compared to a loss of US$1.7 million in the first nine months of 2007.
HC International entered into a joint venture with Dun & Bradstreet International to add value added content to its product portfolio.
Source: Business Strategies Group, Hong Kong, http://www.bsgasia.com
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Hugo Dixon, Editor-in-chief and Chairman, Breakingviews.com gave a keynote address at the SIIA Global Information Industry Summit 2008 and on the future of financial journalism. He spoke about the “Lost generation” and that the age group under 30 – may never read papers. Even the older generation is increasingly adopting emails. When it was just news, newspapers could retreat into comment, but growth of internet comment means inexorable hollowing out of influence.
To read the entire presentation click on the attachment
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THE BIIA WEBSITE http://WWW.BIIA.COM CARRIES REGULAR NEW ITEMS ABOUT BIIA MEMBERS, USERS, INDUSTRY MEMBERS AND REGULATIONS
SEE PRESS SECTION: http://www.biia.com/press.php
SEE INDUSTRY LIBRARY: http://www.biia.com/ourIndustry.php
FOR DETAILLED MEMBER NEWS AND NEWSLETTER ARCHIVE GO TO MEMBER NEWS: http://www.biia.com/memberNewsPW.php
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SINGAPORE 2007-04-13: 3RD CREDIT BUREAU CONFERENCE:
Navigating Globalization: The Opportunities, Risks and Challenges
D&B Singapore and ASME, The Association of Small and Medium Size Enterprises, held a 3rd SME Credit Bureau Conference on April 13, 2007 at the Raffles Convention Center in Singapore. The conference aims were to equip local SMEs with the tools and resources they need for business readiness and for minimizing the risk of globalization. Attendees heard from a panel of experts as they discussed case studies and share success stories on key issues in globalization – the opportunities, risks and challenges. The globalization theme for this year’s SME Credit Bureau conference reinforced the government’s call for SMEs to venture abroad for sustained growth in the long term and aims to give SMEs a leg up in penetrating international markets.
During the conference D&B Singapore launched a publication: “The Top 1000 Performing Companies in Asia Pacific”. The publication, which ranks the top 1,000 companies in 12 countries based on their ROE, serves as a basis to benchmark your profitability metrics and to develop a strategy to achieve overall efficiency in utilizing the funds invested by investors / shareholders. In addition the conference organizers presented awards to the top 10 best performing companies in Singapore.
In her opening speech, Mrs. Lim Hwee Hua, Minister of State for Finance and Transport stressed the fact that the Singapore SME community is a key pillar of the local economy. It contributes 42% of our GDP, and employs more than half of Singapore’s workforce. SMEs are generally doing well. As a group, the top 500 SMEs here have increased total turnover by 30% to $13.5 billion and almost doubled net profits to $630 million over the past 5 years. SMEs, however, face strong challenges, in the context of an increasingly globalised economy. While the rapid growth of trade links and the increase in global financial integration have provided greater opportunities, this has also widened the field of competition for all businesses. To stay competitive, SMEs have to keep up with innovation and technology changes; they also have to develop capabilities to expand into overseas markets. Minister Lim Hwee Hua cited several key initiatives which are designed to better enable SMEs to launch and grow their business in Singapore. These initiatives to include: improving access to financing for SMEs; creating a business-friendly tax regime; tapping on business ideas from abroad; and providing broad support for businesses.
The Singapore SME Credit Bureau is one of the most advanced business models for serving the needs of SMEs.
To read the full speech, please click on the attachment: OPENING REMARKS
Sources: http://www.dnb.com.sg – http://www.asme.org.sg
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Infoserve, a leading player in the UK local search market, has teamed up with taxonomy company WAND as part of the development of its new business search website, http://www.infoserve.com. WAND’s local search taxonomy database, which contains over 1.4 million keywords, will be used alongside Exorbyte’s approximate search technology, to give users of Infoserve.com the most specific of search results.
For example, on http://www.infoserve.com, Internet users will be able to search for business listings using the most obscure keywords and phrases, such as shampoo, which will return results in a variety of categories, including hairdressers, beauty products, cosmetic manufacturers, hairpieces and wigs, hairdressers’ equipment and supplies, and carpet cleaners.
Multimedia company Infoserve, which has its headquarters in Leeds, specialises in helping small and medium sized businesses promote themselves to people searching online for local goods and services. It lists around 2.7 million businesses across its family of websites, which collectively receive more than 24 million visitors a month. Its network includes the websites of a number of major online media partners such as the Daily Telegraph, the Daily Mail, as well as Football League Interactive (FLi) and Sky TV.
Wand’s custom built, carefully structured, taxonomy will allow consumers to search for businesses via one of 70,000 categories and return accurate, relevant results. Infoserve believes that Wand’s technology, coupled with other software developments, will enable it to become a pioneering UK business finder.
On Infoserve’s new website, all businesses will receive a free basic listing which includes company name, address, and telephone number. For businesses keen to maximize their web presence and improve their Internet marketing, enhanced listings are available which includes priority placement in each category, full colour logos and pictures, and additional information pages, along with a link to the business’ website.
Source: EPS Insights: http://www.epsltd.com Infoserve: http://www.infoservegroup.com/news/index.html http://www.wandinc.com
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AMP Capital exits and Carnegie Wylie & Company CWC) acquires a majority shareholding in Dun & Bradstreet Australia and New Zeeland (DBA), in a move which marks out a broader financial services role for the investment banking and corporate advisory firm. Management will retain its shareholding.
Information industry members have been waiting impatiently for news about the pending ownership change in D&B Australia and New Zealand. Industry insiders had speculated for some time whether the D&B Corporation would reacquire the company to protect its brand. It appears D&B did not and competing information companies did not succeed either. Instead D&B Australia and New Zealand remains in the hands of local investors who are expected to invest in the future growth of the company.
To read the full story, please click on the attachment.
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Steven W. Alesio, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of D&B announced on November 3rd, 2006 during the Q3 2006 Earnings Conference Call, the creation of a joint venture in China with Huaxia Credit International. The joint venture is expected to create the largest commercial credit information company in China in terms of revenue and the size of the China database. By leveraging its DUNSRightTM process, D&B is expecting to generate more value added from an expanded China data base. To have a local partner with good ‘Guanxi’ is an excellent move, which will provide D&B with a considerable competitive edge over local and foreign competition.
Huaxia International Credit Group was founded in August 1993. It is headquartered in Beijing, has subsidiaries, branch companies and offices in Shanghai, Guangzhou, Chongqing and Changping District of Beijing respectively. The group consists of member companies including Huaxia International Credit Consulting Co., Ltd., Huaxia International Market Research Co., Ltd., Huaxia International Consumer Credit Consulting Co., Ltd. and Huaxia Account Receivable Management Co., Ltd. The group has an International Business Division, Credit Management Consulting Division and other business divisions. Huaxia Credit is a leading provider of business information and credit management services in China. By leveraging advanced information technologies, an experienced work force, extensive reporting network and dynamic databases, Huaxia Credit provides domestic and overseas business credit reports, sales leads, market research reports, consumer credit reports, database marketing, consulting services to businesses, insurance companies, multinationals, commercial banks, government departments in and outside China and has gained national and international recognition. Huaxia Credit is managed by its Chairman and cofounder Dr. Cao Xiaoning, an energetic entrepreneur who committed himself in 1993 to the pioneering task of promoting credit risk management in China. He is a well known personality at international credit information industry conferences and has become a leading authority on credit management and information services in China. Source: Huaxia Credit website
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Fair Isaac files an antitrust suit against TransUnion, Experian and Equifax
TransUnion, Experian and Equifax worked together to develop a tri-bureau generic credit scoring system called VantageScore. While credit scoring systems exist in the market today, including several that are produced by the individual companies themselves, VantageScore marks the first time that the three companies joined forces to produce a model that scores consumers consistently across all three companies. Many people wondered as to why Fair Isaac was not invited. If the FICO score was the industry standard, what prompted three important users to create their own standard? Now Fair Isaac has filed suits against Equifax, Inc., Experian Information Solutions, Inc., TransUnion LLC—the three major credit reporting companies—and VantageScore Solutions LLC, the company that has licensed the VantageScore system to Fair Isaac's three competitors.
Fair Isaac claims that the three credit reporting companies have used false marketing to mischaracterize Fair Isaac's FICO scores, which have long been considered the industry standard. Equifax, Experian and TransUnion also currently control the price a lender pays to receive a FICO and a VantageScore, which Fair Isaac believes puts the three reporting agencies in an unfair position to promote the VantageScore at the cost of fair competition with the FICO score. In a statement, Fair Isaac CEO Tom Grudnowski said that his company has "competed against the credit reporting agencies' scoring products for many years, and [is] happy to compete on a level playing field." Grudnowski added, "The recent agreement between the three powerhouse agencies unfairly threatens our ability to compete."
Equifax, in a press release, stated that it found Fair Isaac's accusations to be "without merit" and that the company "plans to vigorously defend itself and VantageScore Solutions LLC." Equifax added that the creation of VantageScore was a direct result of customer demand for "a more consistent, objective and better performing approach to credit scoring." TransUnion made a statement expressing similar beliefs, stating that the company was "not surprised" by Fair Isaac's use of litigation. Experian withheld comments.
Source: Company Websites and Press Releases
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Three consumer credit reporting companies - Equifax, Experian and TransUnion - worked together to develop a tri-bureau generic credit scoring system. Soure: http://www.vantagescore.com
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Analysis reveals a record 2 year low in slow payment and declining trends in late payment among key industries with increased credit utilization as per Dun & Bradstreet Hong Kong Ltd.
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Consumer credit reporting has become a hot issue in recent times. Increased public and media awareness of this issue is a result of the many different stakeholder views and D&B's recent work in arguing for a parliamentary inquiry into Australia's consumer credit reporting system
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Effective, transparent and accountable credit reporting is critical to the nation's economic growth. And allowing credit providers to make lending decisions based on the most reliable and accurate information is fundamental to ensuring Australia's economy is not undermined by unsustainable credit growth
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There has been a dramatic decline in business to business trade payments this year, signalling greater cash flow and credit risks for business, with small business the most likely to feel the impact
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There has been a further decline in business to business trade payments this year, signalling greater cash flow and credit risks for business
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SHORT HILLS, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 21, 2005--D&B (NYSE: DNB), the leading provider of global business information, tools and insight, today announced that its global commercial database, the largest in the world, now contains 100 million business records.
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The latest edition of the EPS Market Monitor research program on Business-to-Business publishing predicts a growth rate of 6.6% (CAGR) through 2009 fuelled by a continued strong growth demand in the Information Services segment.
The 116-page report describes a global market which grew to $32.9 billion in 2004 - on a three-year compounded basis (2002-2004); the growth was 9% in USD and 4% in adjusted currency. The five largest players; VNU; Reed Business Information; Experian; IDG and IMS Health, generated 35% of total industry revenues in 2004.
EPS foresees a number of drivers contributing to continued growth in the B2B media and information services industry over the next five years, including:
1) Growing demand for B2B advertising (particularly online);
2) B2B trade publishers' paid content initiatives;
3) Increased demand for content-based workflow and data analysis tools;
4) International expansion, particularly in emerging Asia Pacific markets;
5) Expanding needs for credit/risk information; and
6) Industry responses to the threats and opportunities presented by paid search advertising vehicles.
"While making clear the performance metrics of the major players," said Steve Sieck, managing partner of EPS-USA and director of the Market Monitor program. "This report also indicates the strength of sector specialists in verticals where content and service elements are becoming more and more concentrated".
About EPS: With offices in London and New York, EPS is the only consultancy which has concentrated its whole attention specifically on the information industry. Unlike any other provider of this type of service, we offer nearly 20 years' experience and relationships with the key players in the publishing world.
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Chinese government officials and credit managers had expected to hear about a European Union role model of an enterprise credit information system. Instead Dr. Dieter Suedhofen (Verband Creditreform Germany) had to disappoint his audience by presenting a kaleidoscope of individual country specific systems with widely dispersed attributes, quality and reliability characteristics. For his audience it was incomprehensible that the European Union had failed to create an integrated, uniform and reliable public and private sector enterprise information system.
Where does the European Commission stand on this subject? Several years ago the European Commission stated in a special report that well functioning public sector information was essential to provide the necessary transparency in investment and trade credit decisions in support of the movement of capital, goods and people. The EU Commission lamented in its report that EU businesses were at a disadvantage versus their US competitors because European public sector was highly fragmented and incompatible due to different legal systems and technical platforms. In order to provide some remedy, the EU Commission issued a directive in 2005 that specifies guidelines concerning public sector information / private sector information relationships and to foster greater cooperation and partnerships between these sectors.
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Virginia Wong, Director - Sales & Marketing of D&B China presented an overview of the credit and payment situation in China, current credit management practices in China, and an overview of China's credit infrastructure.
For further information contact Virgina Wong: wongv@dnb.com
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United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)
Commission on Enterprise, Business Facilitation and Development; 10th Session, Geneva 21-23 February 2006
On February 23rd, Joachim C. Bartels, Managing Director of BIIA was part of a panel that discussed E-Credit Information, Trade Finance and E-Finance: Overcoming Information Asymmetries. Bartels delivered a short presentation on ‘Bridging the Digital Divide in Credit Information’. The presentation outlined the current state of information in developing countries and the need for a concerted effort in bridging the digital divide between public sector information, the private sector information content and the lending sector. Bartels also addressed the current plight of SMEs in gaining access to financing. The core of the presentation featured the Thai public sector/private sector partnership (Business Online) as a useful role model in turning public sector data into knowledge in support of economic development.
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Infocredit D&B is holding the 2nd SME Credit Bureau Conference on May 19th, 2006 at the Suntec Singapore International Convention & Exhibition Centre, Ballroom I, 1 Raffles Boulevard Suntec City, Singapore. For further information contact Audrey Chia audrey.chia@icdnb.com.sg
Learn about the latest credit advisory, credit score and rating services
Find out how the SME Toolkit, developed by the IFC / World Bank Group, can help to develop and advance your business
Understand financing options for SMEs
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Moody's KMV and eCredit have announced to market a set of intergrated credit solutions for corporations.
Moody's KMV, the world's leading provider of quantitative credit risk measurement and management solutions to lenders, investors and corporations, in partnership with eCredit, a leading provider of online workflow solutions for credit and collections professionals, have announced a set of integrated credit solutions for corporations. The solutions integrate Moody's KMV CreditEdge® and RiskCalc™ advanced credit risk analysis tools with eCredit's automated credit and collections management suite. Subscribing eCredit customers can seamlessly access Moody's KMV RiskCalc and CreditEdge, delivering visibility into clients' exposures across all portfolio segments.
"Our partnership with eCredit has created one of the most robust and flexible automated credit decision products," said Andrew Huddart, President of Moody's KMV. "Moody's KMV brings the industry's most powerful analytics and the cleanest data together with eCredit's efficient workflow tools to take corporate clients to the leading edge of credit risk management." "Predictive and reliable information is essential to the practice of sound credit risk management," said Jeff Dickerson, eCredit, President and CEO. "The combination of sophisticated analytics from Moody's KMV with flexible credit automation software from eCredit is without rival in the marketplace and enables companies to take risk management to the next level."
Through this partnership, corporations can receive for each of their clients a credit score from eCredit coupled with a Moody's KMV EDF™ (Expected Default Frequency) credit measure, giving the corporation better insight into decisions on extending credit to clients. Moody's KMV EDF credit measures assess probability of default over a specified period of time. The CreditEdge® integration furnishes EDF credit measures for a corporation's public clients, based on market data. The RiskCalc™ integration provides EDF credit measures for a corporation's nonpublic clients based on private firm financial statements that exist within eCredit.
May 08 2006
http://www.moodyskmv.com
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Baycorp Advantage (ASX:BCA) has agreed to sell its debt collection business, Baycorp Advantage Collections Services (BCS), for A$97 million to Trans Tasman Collections (TTC), a consortium including Allco Equity Partners (ASX:AEQ) and Deutsche Bank Capital Partners. The sale follows the conclusion of a competitive sale process, which included an evaluation of both trade sale and initial public offer options.
http://www.baycorpadvantage.com
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China International Institute of Multinational Corporations (CIIMC), a renowned organization known for the publication of the world’s famous “World Economic Development Declaration”, and the world’s leading global business credit rating institution, D&B Corporation (D&B), jointly announced the launch of the “China International Credit Enterprises” toady at the press conference held at the Great Hall of the People.
Email: enquiry@dnb.com
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