Stories by: Len Rust

During the late 1980s and early 1990s I often travelled in China and saw the country as it was before the economic takeoff. Now the pace of change is incredible, especially in the lead-up to the 2008 Olympic Games.

The WiMAX broadband wireless access technology is expected to begin gathering momentum in the Asia/Pacific region, with WiMAX services revenues estimated to grow from $US58 million in 2007 to $US5.46 billion by 2012, according to Springboard Research. That growth translates to a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 148 per cent for the period.

ADAPTIVE SOLUTIONS is a consulting company that builds, secures, and maintains business networks and IT systems. The company's project methodology is based on six independent and multi-disciplined roles: strategic management, project management, implementation, testing, user experience, and release management. Clients include Greenway, Krost, Shaw of Australia, and TMG.

Fifty-four per cent of organisations around the world are still neglecting one of their most profitable assets: data, according to Experian QAS, This is mirrored for Australian organisations, with 45 per cent of businesses unable to confirm that a documented strategy exists to keep their contact data accurate and up-to-date.

Australian businesses are producing more hardcopies today than five years ago, reinforcing that years after talks of paperless offices began, the concept remains an elusive dream, according to IDC.

Green IT is a growing global phenomenon, with customers now seeking out IT vendors whose offerings are more energy-efficient, more material-efficient, less hazardous, designed for greater recyclability, and supported by end-of-life recycling programs, according to IDC's green IT research team.

Asia has seen fast growth in demand for international capacity in recent years, driven mainly by consumer Internet demand. According to Ovum, investment in new Asian cables was dormant between 2002 and 2006 as a glut of capacity was slowly used up. However, during 2007 a number of new trans-Pacific and intra-Asian cable investments were announced.

Almost a quarter of the world's population -- roughly 1.4 billion people -- will use the Internet regularly in 2008. This number is expected to surpass 1.9 billion unique users, or 30 per cent of the world's population, in 2012, according to IDC's Digital Marketplace Model and Forecast.

The spotlight this week falls on RosterLive, Virtual.Offis, Aurion Corporation, Distribution Central, APA Management Systems, Omni Meta

The Indian market is experiencing substantial growth and will reach a value of more than $US1.5 billion by 2010, according to a report from consulting company and data centre market specialist BroadGroup

Worldwide mobile gaming revenue is on pace to total $US4.5 billion in 2008, a 16.1 per cent increase from 2007 revenue of $US3.9 billion, according to Gartner. While mobile gaming revenue will continue to lag behind other value-added entertainment services -- such as music and adult content -- the market still has much potential.