GLITR Monday, October 19, 2009

Your report for Monday, October 19, 2009

Waterford Township electrical contractor tries out green energy
Waterford Township-based Oak Electric Service Inc. said Friday that it has installed a wind turbine, solar power system and energy-efficient lighting at its headquarters to collect first-hand data on the benefits and savings of renewable power systems. The wind turbine is a Swift model from Grand Rapids-based Cascade Engineering. More.

Inforum: Michigan's lack of female execs hurts state's economy
The top executives and directors of Michigan's top 100 publicly traded companies remain overwhelmingly male, according to the results of the Inforum Center for Leadership's 2009 Michigan women's Leadership Index, to be released Monday. Women hold just 56 of 533 executive positions in the top 100 public companies in Michigan, a rate of 10.5 percent. Meanwhile, Inforum notes a McKinsey study that found McKinsey's extensive research finds that gender diversity “can have real implications for company performance.” More.

Southfield ISP buys WiMax provider
Southfield-based 123Net, a privately held communications service provider, announced the acquisition of Zing Networks Inc., a wireless Internet service provider and the sole 4G (fourth-generation) WiMax wireless Internet service provider in Metro Detroit. The addition of Zing’s wireless technologies not only builds on 123Net’s established customer base, but provides redundant services to its current business class customers who use fiber networks. 4G WiMax technology enables the delivery of voice, data and streaming multimedia to users on an anytime, anywhere basis. More.

Wayne State study finds adult stem cell therapy helps the paralyzed
A new study by a Wayne State University School of Medicine researcher details the outcome of adult stem cell grafts in spinal cord injuries and how the procedure led to increased mobility and quality of life for patients. The process involves the use of adult stem-like progenitor cells in the patient’s own nasal tissue. More.

UM's Zell Lurie Institute awards student entrepreneurs $50k
The Samuel Zell & Robert H. Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies at the University of Michigan Ross School of Business today announced the recipients of the Fall 2009 Eugene Applebaum Dare to Dream Grant Program, where students apply for funding to advance their innovative, high-potential business concepts toward launch. Grant recipients were awarded funding and resources totaling $50,000 based on business concepts and plans submitted to panels of judges made up of faculty, entrepreneurs and venture capitalists. More.

The Week Ahead: Busy October rolls along

Another October week, another jam-packed tech event calendar at your Great Lakes IT Report's IT Calendar, the state's most comprehensive tech event calendar, found at this link.

We start the week with two major conferences, one middle-aged and one new: the 47th annual session of the North American Network Operators Group, hosted by Merit Network and Arbor Networks, at the Hyatt Regency Dearborn, and the initial Business of Plugging In plug-in hybrid vehicle conference at Motor City Casino. Both run through Wednesday.

Tuesday, it's a major University of Michigan security event, SUM_IT 09. Thursday, another summit -- this one on physicians and electronic medical records, being held in Kalamazoo. The Engineering Society of Detroit gives us its annual economic outlook Thursday, the same day Lawrence Technological University offers us a co-op and internship expo and UM offers us a discussion on the economic recovery we're all hoping for.

The week ends busy, with TieCon Midwest, the regional entrepreneurship conference sponsored by TiE Detroit, at the Ritz-Carlton Dearborn Friday and Saturday. Yours truly will moderate a couple of panel discussions on Friday. The rest of the week I still haven't decided and am actively exploring time travel as an alternative to cloning.

See you out there!

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.

Waltonen Engineering gets TARDEC contract
Warren-based Waltonen Engineering Inc. said Friday it had won an Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity contract for engineering and manufacturing services by the United States Army's Tank Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center. A privately held business, Waltonen has extensive experience in creating innovative designs and engineering solutions for diverse industries including military, automotive, aerospace, heavy equipment, medical device, and consumer goods. More.

Auburn Hills firm's hydraulic hybrid goes into first service
Auburn Hills-based FEV, a leading developer of advanced powertrain and vehicle technologies, announced today the hydraulic hybrid technology it developed in conjunction with the Environmental Protection Agency and other partners will be put into full service at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey terminal at the conclusion of its development testing. The technology is installed on a yard hostler, a type of vehicle used in moving freight containers in marine ports, rail yards, distribution centers and warehouses. It is the first real-world use of hydraulic hybrid technology in this type of vehicle. More.

|Kalamazoo-Portage metro area helping lead U.S. out of recession
According to an MSNBC report released on Thursday, Oct. 15, the Kalamazoo-Portage Metro area ranked in the top metro areas in the nation leading the way out of the recession. Out of 384 metro areas studied in the nation, 79 were indicated to be in recovery according to August data on jobs, manufacturing and housing; the Kalamazoo-Portage Metro area was included in this group. Of the remaining metros, 270 have "moderating recession,” with the final 35 in full recession. More.

THE WORLD IN TECH

E-books gain a foothold at the Frankfurt Book Fair
While paper books still outnumber texts that can be read online or on dedicated readers like the Kindle or eBook, use of the electronic versions is growing. Many publishing firms unveiled electronic editions of their books for the first time this year at the 61st Frankfurt Book Fair. But many publishers, while they are certain that e-books will play a bigger role in their future, say it has yet to be seen just how big the trend will become. More.

States weigh campaign rules for Internet age
To promote his recent campaign for mayor of St. Petersburg, Fla., Scott Wagman bought an ad that popped up online when anyone ran a Google search for his opponents' names. He was hardly the first to employ the tactic, which didn't stop a rival campaign from complaining the ad did not have a "paid for by" disclaimer. The Florida Elections Commission ordered Wagman to remove it and pay a $250 fine, even though the required disclaimer was longer than the 68 characters allowed in the text of the ad, which wasn't "paid for" until someone clicked on it. Wagman is fighting the complaint, and his case adds to an ongoing debate about how "old media" rules governing campaign spending should apply to the "new media" of the Internet age. More.

Hurdles remain as FCC ponders Internet data rules
With Democrats in charge in Washington, supporters of so-called "net neutrality" rules seem poised to finally push through requirements that high-speed Internet providers give equal treatment to all data flowing over their networks. These rules -- at the heart of a five-year policy debate -- are intended to guarantee that Internet users can go to any Web site and access any online service they want. Phone and cable companies, for instance, wouldn't be able to block subscribers from using cheaper Internet calling services or accessing online video sites that compete with their core businesses. Yet making that happen is proving thorny -- and it's likely that the courts and perhaps even Congress will ultimately get involved. More.

For online bargains, working in groups produces deals
From karaoke to kickball, some things just don't work without a group of people. A startup wants to add one more to that list: Online bargain hunting. Groupon, whose name combines "group" and "coupon," offers daily deals on products and services, such as tailored shirts, meals at restaurants and paintball games. There is a catch: A certain number of people in a given city must sign up for the deal to go through. So far, Groupon is succeeding where others have failed. In less than a year, its group-buying business has turned a profit and is expected to be available in more than two dozen cities by the end of the year. More.

Stocks: Bank of America, GE results push shares lower
Stocks ended a strong week with a flash of selling after Bank of America Corp. and General Electric Co. signaled that businesses and consumers are still struggling to pay off their debts. The market slid Friday as quarterly results from the companies dented hopes that earnings would show strong signs of improvement in the July-September period. A rise in oil also helped the market end well off its lows, repeating a pattern seen earlier in the week. Despite the drop stocks still posted big gains for the week. Bank of America lost more than $2.2 billion in the third quarter. The bank wrote down almost $10 billion in bad loans, about $1 billion more than in the previous quarter. The loss was steeper than expected and the write-offs stirred fears that struggling consumers won't be able to increase their spending. Rivals Citigroup Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. also posted higher loan losses as part of their financial results this week. General Electric's report also revealed signs of credit weakness. More. The Nasdaq Composite Index (COMP) fell 16.49 points or 0.8 percent to 2,156.8. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ($INDU) fell 67.03 points or 0.7 percent to 9,995.91. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index ($SOX) fell 6.95 points or 2.1 percent to 322.83. The Morgan Stanley High Tech 35 Index (MSH) fell 6.91 points or 1.3 percent to 540.69. The NYSE Arca Pharmaceutical Index (DRG) fell 2.65 points or 0.9 percent to 295.29. The NYSE Arca Biotech Index (BTK) fell 0.15 points or 0.1 percent to 931.02. Finally, the Standard & Poor's 500 (SPX) fell 8.88 points or 0.8 percent to 1,087.68.

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