Author: Nick Farrell

The global PC market experienced growth in the third consecutive quarter, according to the latest figures from Gartner.

The beancounters at Big G noted a 1.9 per cent rise in shipments, totalling 60.6 million units in Q2 of 2024. IDC’s figures are even more encouraging, indicating a 3 per cent increase with 64.9 million units shipped.

Analysts such as Mikako Kitagawa from Gartner view this as indicative of market recovery. At the same time, IDC’s Ryan Reith credits the growth to the excitement around AI PCs and a significant commercial refresh cycle.

Regionally, the US market has reached its highest shipment volume since Q3 of 2022, achieving a 3.4 per cent growth. The EMEA region has also seen an increase, with a 4.8 per cent rise, but the Asia/Pacific market has faced a 2.2 per cent decline, mainly due to a slowdown in China’s market. When China is excluded, the global shipments have grown by over five per cent. Read more…

Infineon Technologies and Swoboda are collaborating to develop and market high-performance current sensor modules for automotive applications.

The partnership brings together Infineon’s top-tier current sensor ICs with Swoboda’s proficiency in developing and industrialising sensor modules, catering to the rapidly expanding market for sensing solutions in hybrid and electric vehicles.

Their joint efforts in high-performance current measurement solutions are set to hasten the time-to-market for high-volume applications, such as traction inverters, battery management systems, and other crucial automotive applications.

The inaugural product from this collaboration, the Swoboda CSM510HP2, will be a fully encapsulated current sensor module that significantly reduces footprint without sacrificing performance. Read more…

UK-based Capita has flogged off its standalone software business, Capita One, to MRI Software for £200 million.

The deal, about ten times Capita One’s 2023 EBITDA of £21 million, is expected to be completed by August 2024, pending shareholder approval and regulatory clearance.

Capita One provides software solutions for local authorities, education authorities, and housing associations. In 2023, it generated £55m in revenue and £19m in profit before tax.

The business helps public sector organisations improve efficiency, maximise revenue collection, and deliver cost-effective essential services. Read more…

Amperity and Microsoft have announced a new partnership to enhance AI-driven customer experiences, especially in retail.

The partnership aims to build customer loyalty, reduce churn, and increase customer lifetime value by using first-party data.

Amperity, known for its AI-powered Lakehouse customer data platform (CDP), and Microsoft Azure will work together to provide retailers with up-to-date customer data analytics. This will help shape future omnichannel experiences, engage customers before and after purchases, and encourage brand loyalty.

Amperity Strategic Partnerships SVP Curt Lockton said, “The synergy between Amperity and Microsoft is pushing the boundaries of AI-driven customer experiences and empowering brands to harness the full potential of their data to understand their customers, deliver personalised experiences and drive revenue.”

The Labour Party’s landslide victory in the general election promised to shake up the IT industry.

For those who came in late, Keir Starmer secured 412 seats, while the Conservatives suffered a heavy defeat, retaining only 121 MPs.

TechMarketView senior research director Dale Peters said: “Delivering economic growth and raising productivity will require the new government to create the conditions to support the appropriate application of digital technology and provide an environment where innovation can thrive.”

Labour’s proposed initiatives, such as the National Data Library and the new industry strategy for AI, could bring significant benefits to the IT industry. These plans, along with the removal of planning barriers for new data centres, signal a potential boost for the sector. Read more…

Cybersecurity, AI, and IT management outfit OpenText plans to lay off 1,200 employees and add 800 positions as part of a “business optimisation plan” to support its “growth and innovation plans.”

The business optimisation plan aims to strategically align the company’s workforce, resulting in a 1.7 per cent reduction to approximately 23,000 employees.

The plan is also expected to save about $200 million annually. Read more…

Managed service providers (MSPs) offer essential support to customers and should be recognised with higher margins, according to Kaseya’s CEO

Fred Voccola said that compared to other services used by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), such as legal and accountancy, MSPs are paid less despite playing an equally important role.

He said, “We have been on a journey for ten years. And there’s one mission that we have been on, the one North Star, the one guiding light that we’ve been going after, and that is to fix what we believe is wrong in the MSP industry.” Read more…

According to data presented by Stocklytics.com, the global data centre market is expected to grow by 30 per cent and reach a value of over $430 billion by 2028.

The report says that the widespread adoption of cloud computing has significantly transformed the data centre landscape. While it has reduced the number of organisations operating their own data centres, it has also spurred a surge in the global data centre count.

This is largely due to the aggressive infrastructure expansion by major hyperscalers like Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud Platform, and Amazon Web Services to cater to their growing customer base. Other tech giants, like Nvidia, have also reaped the benefits of this trend, with its GPUs becoming an integral part of modern data centres. Read more…

Software king of the world Microsoft has acquired a 48-acre plot of land at Skelton Grange and wants to build a new hyperscale data centre on it.

The £106.6 million deal, announced by real estate group Harworth, will be Vole’s second regional data centre project in the area.

The investment in Yorkshire aligns with Microsoft’s global strategy of expanding its data centre footprint to support AI’s ever-growing demands and overall business operations. The company plans to invest billions of dollars in data centres worldwide to meet this growing need.

Microsoft’s land purchase at Skelton Grange consists of two adjacent plots.

The first, spanning 27 acres, will be acquired by the end of 2024 for £52.9 million. The second, encompassing 21 acres is slated for acquisition in the first half of 2026 for £53.2 million. Read more…

According to research by Logicalis, most Chief Information Officers (CIOs) are actively investing in sustainability initiatives and technologies.

The channel player’s 10th annual CIO report revealed that 90 per cent of surveyed executives considers it essential to assess the sustainability credentials of new suppliers.

Despite economic uncertainties, the commitment to sustainability remains steadfast. For many customers, reducing carbon emissions aligns with achieving efficiencies across their IT infrastructure.

However, there are challenges. Customers aim to reduce energy and operational costs through sustainability practices but face obstacles such as collecting data scattered across their organisations and measuring digital estates against targets. Read more…

Telco distributor Fibreplus has announced an alliance with VIAVI Solutions to distribute select VIAVI instruments for fibre optic testing in the UK, including the T-BERD/MTS-4000 OTDR and SmartPocket V2 OLP-39 TruePON Power Meter.

This move aims to position Fibreplus better to meet customers’ demands for VIAVI equipment.

Fibreplus Associate Director Rhys Brine said the company was excited to continue our growth trajectory and our commitment to offering our existing and new customers a total service solution by partnering with VIAVI. Read more…

IT powerhouse Bechtle has announced its acquisition of Magnetic Media Network (MMN), an Italian IT solutions provider, to expand its footprint in the Italian market.

MMN, founded in 1989 and headquartered near Milan with a second site near Venice, has approximately 100 employees and annual revenues of €68.6 million (£57.67 million), significantly contributing to Bechtle’s growing European operations.

The acquisition quadruples Bechtle’s workforce in Italy and marks its first venture into the country’s IT service sector. Read more…

The Labour Party aims to hold tech companies accountable for compensating victims of online fraud and to eliminate existing regulations that primarily burden banks.

Online fraud costs the UK billions annually. Criminals exploit the internet anonymously, victimising people worldwide, and yet the Big Tech companies can avoid taking any responsibility due to weak laws.

In 2022, MPs urged tech giants like Facebook and Twitter to reimburse victims of fraudulent advertising. Current regulations need to be revised.

A leaked document reveals Labour’s criticism of tech companies for evading responsibility in combating online fraud and compensating victims. The focus is on authorised push payment (APP) fraud, where individuals unknowingly transfer money to fraudsters, often losing significant amounts that can have a devastating impact on their lives. Read more…