GLITR Thursday, August 27, 2009

Your report for Thursday, August 27, 2009

Supplier diversification funding to create 550 new jobs
Gov. Jennifer M. Granholm and Michigan Economic Development Corp. president and CEO Greg Main Wednesday announced that the Michigan Supplier Diversification Fund will help three companies -- Morley Companies Inc., Motor City Stamping and Mark One Corp. -- expand operations and create jobs. The program addresses the current lack of bank financing available to companies that are attempting to diversify. The fund is a multi-faceted initiative designed to help Michigan manufacturers and auto suppliers diversify into emerging sectors. More.

Clean Energy Coalition gets $15 million to 'green' Michigan fleets
The Clean Energy Coalition, an Ypsilanti-based nonprofit organization promoting clean energy technologies, was awarded a $15 million grant from the United States Department of Energy for its Michigan Green Fleets project, which aims to expand the use of alternative fueled and advanced technology vehicles across Michigan. The Michigan Green Fleets project will assist nine project partners in purchasing 271 alternative fuel vehicles, including hybrids and compressed natural gas cars, trucks and buses, and install 19 alternative fueling stations across the state of Michigan. All told, more than 5 million gallons of fossil fuel and nearly 500 million pounds of vehicle emissions will be displaced and reduced over the project’s four-year life cycle. More.

U.S. Postal Service tests Azure Dynamics vehicle
Oak Park-based Azure Dynamics Corp., the hybrid and electric drive train developer for medium-duty trucks, Wednesday announced that its Balance Hybrid Electric vehicle is the newest addition to the United States Postal Service fleet. USPS operates the largest civilian vehicle fleet in the world with over 220,000 vehicles traveling more than 1.2 billion miles a year. USPS consistently looks for opportunities to reduce the environmental impact of its fleet while also lowering operating cost, and is testing the Azure product to advance both efforts. More.

Grant Thornton Southfield office offers guide to green tax incentives
Grant Thornton LLP’s Southfield office is offering a guide to green tax incentives and credits that businesses and individuals can take advantage of at the federal and state level. The green tax incentives and credits for businesses and individuals white paper focuses on federal incentives for ordinary businesses, as well as items that specifically benefit the manufacturing, development and energy industries. Information on incentives for consumers and individuals is also provided. More.

East Lansing firm takes one step to reverse the brain drain
East Lansing-based GiftZip.com will be getting even greener come September. The electronic gift card company started by 2008 MSU MBA Sam Hogg will be adding yet another Spartan to its roster, but this hire will be the first at the executive level. John Gwillim, a 2007 MSU finance alum, will be joining the team in the coming weeks as Chief Operations Officer and will oversee the day-to-day activities of the company. He is tasked with ensuring the long term profitability of GiftZip.com. Gwillim joins GiftZip.com from Boston-based BNY ConvergEx, a successful 2006 Bank of New York spin-off providing software for hedge fund trading. More.

Michigan startup offers new Web meeting technology

A new Michigan-based technology company, GloBiz Insights, is offering life Web meeting technology.

GloBiz Insights allows companies to share strategic information, knowledge, and insights to successfully operate globally. GloBiz Insights is a feature-rich live Web meeting and video conferencing solution designed to be economical and easy to use.

* One hundred percent browser based -- no software to install.
* Full featured video, audio and text conferencing.
* All you need is an Internet connection.
* No downloading, installing or configuring software.
* Voice over Internet Protocol, streaming video, whiteboard and desktop share.
* Full session record for later playback.

GloBiz is offering a "virtual tour" using its technology showing off its live Web meetings and their possibilities. Just visit on Thursday, Sept. 27 any time between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. Eastern time.

For more information, visit www.GloBizInsights.com.

Note: For information on how you can sponsor content in the Blue Box, contact Jeff Lasser at (248) 455-7319 or jeff.lasser@cbsradio.com

New DartAppraisal.com partnership streamlines appraisal process
DartAppraisal.com, the Troy-based provider of nationwide residential real estate valuations, today announced their integration to the Oxford, Miss.-based mortgage technology company FNC Inc., a pioneer in real estate collateral information technology. FNC's clients are among the largest mortgage industry lenders, including MetLife Bank, Union Bank, and Wachovia. More.

More safety could come in every vehicle category from Continental radar
Continental, the German auto supplier with its United States headquarters in Auburn Hills, Wednesday announced the development by Continental, the development of a new "mid-range radar" that promises advanced safety features in cars at every price point. Until recently, technologies such as the intelligent Adaptive Cruise Control system were mostly found in the premium segment vehicles. The new mid-range radar generation, developed by Continental, can operate to the front, the rear and to the side, thus allowing the integration of a variety of advanced driver assistance functions. More.

WSU College of Nursing turning grant dollars into jobs
The Wayne State University College of Nursing is taking steps to help resolve the nursing shortage in Michigan while making healthcare a driving force to aid the state’s economy. Two programs, the Nursing Corps Initiative and No Worker Left Behind, each offer prospective students unique opportunities to enroll in programs that will help them adapt to a new knowledge-based economy. Master’s and Ph. D students accepted in Nursing Corps are provided with tuition money and a stipend. In return for their participation in the 16-month accelerated nursing program, students must spend five years as nursing faculty in Michigan once they complete the program. More.

THE WORLD IN TECH

Lending Tree says Google will soon compete on loan referrals
LendingTree, which allows prospective borrowers to get quick offers from multiple lenders, claims Google is about to get into the same business. A LendingTree lawsuit against a separate technology provider claims that it has learned Google plans to launch such a service later this month or in early September. The lawsuit claims that LendingTree has received screen shots -- pictures of a computer screen -- showing a trial version of Google's service that indicate Google will give customers loan offers and contact information for lenders. Google Inc. issued a written statement Wednesday saying it is "working on a small ad unit test" involving a limited number of mortgage-related searches. More.

AP review: New Mac software not really a radical change
While Microsoft Corp. prepares to release the next incarnation of Windows on Oct. 22, Apple Inc. is cutting ahead, launching a new version of its operating system for Mac computers on Friday. Apple's new Snow Leopard software isn't as big of a step forward from its predecessor as Windows 7 will be from Windows Vista. The most important changes in the Apple operating system are under the hood, allowing software developers to rewrite their programs to run much faster. Snow Leopard is a relatively cheap upgrade, costing $29 for an individual user who has Leopard, the previous operating system. A "family pack" for five users costs $49. For Mac owners using the older Tiger operating system, switching to Snow Leopard costs $169, or $229 for a family pack. What's the catch? Well, part of the reason Snow Leopard can promise faster, better applications is that it's designed for Macs with Intel chips, which Apple started using in early 2006. It won't run on older Macs with the previous PowerPC family of chips. The launch of the new operating system is a hint to get a new computer. More.

'Phishing' drops; are scammers switching tactics?
Internet criminals might be rethinking a favorite scam for stealing people's personal information. A report being released Wednesday by IBM Corp. shows a big drop in the volume of "phishing" e-mails, in which fraud artists send what looks like a legitimate message from a bank or some other company. If the recipients click on a link in a phishing e-mail, they land on a rogue Web site that captures their passwords, account numbers or any other information they might enter. IBM's midyear security report found that phishing accounted for just 0.1 percent of all spam in the first six months of this year. In the same period in 2008, phishing made up 0.2 percent to 0.8 percent of all spam. More.

Cell phone users rack up accidental data charges
Verizon Wireless is looking into ways to prevent subscribers without data plans from accidentally starting up the Web browser on their phones and racking up $1.99 in fees each time. On many phones, including ones on other carriers, it's easy to inadvertently hit a button that brings up the Web browser. "It is obvious to us that we need to fix this aspect of our service," spokesman Tom Pica said. He said the company is refunding data charges to subscribers who complain. Customers of the No. 2 carrier, AT&T Inc., have the same problem. More.

Stocks: Shares eke out small gain, Dow higher for 7th straight day
The stock market is running out of reasons to go higher. After rocking between gains and losses Wednesday, the Dow Jones industrials managed to rise for a seventh straight day, marking another high for the year. But there was hardly any excitement. The Dow rose just 4 points, while other major indexes gained less than 1 point despite positive reports on home sales and factory orders. An increasingly cautious mood has gripped the market in recent days, following a period of fervid buying this spring and summer that sent stocks up more than 45 percent since early March. While economic data is showing modest improvement, investors are worried stocks may have overshot the economy's recovery. More. The Nasdaq Composite Index (COMP) rose 0.2 points or less than 0.1 percent to 2,024.43. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ($INDU) rose 4.23 points or less than 0.1 percent, to 9,543.52. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index ($SOX) rose 2.46 points or 0.8 percent to 302.99. The Morgan Stanley High Tech 35 Index (MSH) rose 1.27 points or 0.3 percent to 503.21. The NYSE Arca Pharmaceutical Index (DRG) fell 0.51 points or 0.2 percent to 285.2. The NYSE Arca Biotech Index (BTK) jumped 28.47 points or 3.1 percent to 937.35. Finally, the Standard & Poor's 500 (SPX) rose 0.12 points or 0.1 percent to 1,028.12.

All contents copyright 2009 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS Radio & Eye logo trademarked and copyright 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. Written and edited by Matt Roush, Technology Editor, WWJ Newsradio 950, Detroit. GLITR may contain material from the Associated Press, CNET, News.com, MarketWatch.com or Reuters, used by permission. For coverage comments or news tips, e-mail Matt Roush at mnroush@cbs.com or call (248) 455-7380. For marketing and advertising queries, or with general questions or concerns, contact Pete Kowalski, WWJ's station manager, at prkowalski@cbs.com. To subscribe, e-mail Matt Roush or Georgeann Herbert at gherbert@cbs.com.

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