Vertical IT Review

PPD and Microsoft to Deliver Innovative REMS Solution Based on Microsoft Technologies

2010-07-27T15:12:00.000-07:00

PPD Inc. and Microsoft have entered into an agreement to jointly implement an innovative technology solution designed to improve efficiency in managing U.S. Food and Drug Administration-mandated Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS) programs. The technology will be based on Microsoft Amalga Unified Intelligence System (UIS), a data aggregation platform that gives healthcare professionals access to the information they need when they need it, and Microsoft HealthVault, a personal health application platform that lets consumers gather, store and share health information online. When completed, this first-of-its-kind technology solution will provide biopharmaceutical companies with a long-term system for managing operational components of REMS programs while tracking large amounts of information collected from multiple sources, including the patient, healthcare provider and pharmacy. The robust solution will integrate PPD’s strategic, scientific, operational and regulatory capabilities in designing and implementing comprehensive REMS and risk management programs with Microsoft’s strong global software development expertise.

“Efficient, effective REMS programs require real-time access to information by multiple internal and external stakeholders,” said Mike Wilkinson, executive vice president and chief information officer for PPD. “We are committed to combining operational and scientific excellence with leading REMS-specific technologies for this rapidly evolving sector of our industry and are pleased to collaborate with Microsoft in this effort.”

FreedomPay Announces Real Time Availability of “Level 4” Data in Electronic Transactions

2010-07-06T15:24:00.000-07:00

FreedomPay announced that FreeWay™, the most powerful, flexible, scalable transaction and payment gateway available, now includes “Level 4” Data providing unparalleled visibility into the transactions that power global business. Level 4 Data goes beyond currently-available transaction data and provides intelligent business information to analyze the real business drivers behind every transaction. Level 4 Data includes specific details about the product sold, such as manufacturer, make, model, model year, part number, serial number, stock keeping unit (SKU), promotional or loyalty rewards, and other critical information. This detailed level of data allows companies to precisely identify the specific products, promotions, and loyalty programs that are driving sales increases; track service enhancements for preventative maintenance programs; analyze field service and repair efforts; plan for changes in inventory demand; and evaluate supply and demand chain analytics to the individual part number. The data can then be leveraged in planning efforts to focus on those initiatives and product lines that are fueling the most significant return on investment (ROI).Level 4 data builds on the progression of the payments industry, which began with simple payment data (“Level 1”), escalated to merchant and tax information (“Level 2”) and then advanced to rudimentary item and shipping detail (“Level 3”). Level 4 Data now provides the detail that is the most critical to the real business drivers in an increasingly sophisticated and demanding business environment.

Sam Bellamy, Chief Operating Officer of FreedomPay says, “Level 4 Data from FreedomPay transforms a purchase from a simple payment transaction to intelligent business information that may be analyzed, measured, monitored and leveraged to increase sales, improve efficiencies, reduce costs and drive real ROI to the bottom line.” Every time a business interacts with a customer, Level 4 Data is available. Now it can be captured and used as a strategic management tool through FreeWay™, a highly customizable gateway that seamlessly connects with other enterprise data sources, such as (Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems, Dealer Management Systems (DMS), point-of-sale (POS) systems, vending and payment terminals. The Level 4 Data may be off-ramped to any number of proprietary or third-party rules-based processing systems for payment settlement, data warehousing, and business intelligence.

Priority Health’s Member ID Card App Now Available on the iPhone App Store

2010-07-01T15:15:00.000-07:00

Priority Health introduced a mobile ID card app which is now available on the iPhone App Store. The mobile app, entitled “Priority Health Member,” provides members with access to an electronic version of their ID card. It is the first app to go live for the company and will be followed by apps for the BlackBerry and Android operating systems in the coming months. The app enables members to view an image of their ID card and send it electronically to their health care provider's office. It also enables the member to view contact information for his or her primary care physician with one-touch-calling capability. Members can also see a list of dependents and contact information for the Priority Health Customer Service department. This new tool is available for all Priority Health employer groups and individual members. It will require a one-time login with a request for a PIN. After the initial setup is complete, members will only need their PIN to access their ID card. down this new app from the Apple iTunes App Store portal

Planet DDS Announces AppointNow Dental Software Application

2010-06-29T14:18:00.000-07:00

Planet DDS, Inc. announced the new AppointNow application. The online application, used in conjunction Planet DDS’ web-based dental software scheduler, connects skilled virtual agents with patients through live online chat. Adding the human element to scheduling appointments is critical in ensuring that appointments are booked correctly for each dental office’s specific criteria. “Scheduling a dental appointment is a very complicated task. It involves a number of variables, many of which are unique to each practice,” says William Jackson, DDS, VP of Business Development at Planet DDS. “It’s easy to make an online appointment request, and there are a number of ways to accomplish that task on the web; but, to actually schedule an appointment has been technically daunting.” Visithttp://info.planetdds.com/appoint_now.html to learn more about how AppointNow integrates online patient self-scheduling with live chat. Here’s how it works: A dental office puts a ‘Book Appointment Now’ button anywhere where they do online marketing (i.e. their office website, online search directories, etc.). When a patient clicks on the ‘Book Appointment Now’ button, they are taken to the AppointNow application. AppointNow prompts the patient to enter all necessary information; then, passes this information to a live chat agent. The agent can ask or answer any further questions, and subsequently, books the appointment real-time. The appointment is confirmed via a printable summary page and a follow-up email, and the dentist is notified.

“We are very excited about the AppointNow application,” says Richard Lee, CEO at Planet DDS. “Dentists have told us that their patients want to book dental appointments like they do their other business activities - online. With AppointNow, the dentists and their patients have a solution.”

Navman Wireless Introduces iPhone Application for Fleet Tracking

2010-06-23T14:58:00.000-07:00

Navman Wireless today introduced an iPhone application for its OnlineAVL2 vehicle location software application. The Navman Wireless iPhone Application is now available from the iTunes App Store, at no cost, to Navman Wireless customers in Australia and New Zealand, giving them access to up-to-date information about their fleet from their iPhones. Navman Wireless has operations in 15 countries and is the only global AVL provider with an AVL (automatic vehicle location) application for the iPhone.

“The launch of the Navman Wireless iPhone Application marks an important milestone in making rich vehicle tracking applications available on a smartphone platform,” says Paresh Nagda, Navman Wireless CTO. “It’s the first of a new generation of applications on our product roadmap. These will give managers-on-the-move the information they need to make decisions about resources and the tools for communicating with people in the field, all available at their fingertips, wherever they happen to be.” Ian Daniel, Vice President Asia Pacific at Navman Wireless says the application was developed in response to requests from Navman Wireless Australasian customers. “The iPhone is extremely popular with business owners and managers across Australasia, and that represents an opportunity for us to make their lives easier. We understand that, while they want to have vehicle location information and communication capabilities available wherever they are, whenever they need them, they do not want to have to carry a computer with them to do so,” says Ian.

CareFusion, Cisco and Medtronic to Collaborate with West Wireless Health Institute

2010-06-22T13:25:00.000-07:00

The West Wireless Health Institute (WWHI) announced CareFusion, Cisco and Medtronic have joined its roster of Technology and Education (T&E) partners. Each company plans to work closely with the Institute's clinical and engineering teams on a variety of research, technology and educational initiatives focused on accelerating wireless health solutions. WWHI, founded in March 2009 with a $45 million gift from the Gary and Mary West Foundation, is one of the world's first medical research organizations dedicated to lowering health care costs by innovating, validating, advocating for, investing in and commercializing wireless health solutions. The nonprofit Institute is headquartered in San Diego, California, the global hub for wireless life science research and development.

"These companies clearly understand the power of wireless mobile devices and their potential to transform health care delivery," said Dr. Eric J. Topol, vice chairman of the board and chief innovation officer, West Wireless Health Institute. "While each partner is bringing unique expertise to the table, we know that our combined and shared efforts will generate creative solutions for improving care and lowering costs." The Institute is forging the T&E partnerships with like-minded stakeholders around the world to drive innovation and advance the emerging field of wireless health, with the goal of lowering health care costs. In addition to the companies announced today, GE Healthcare and Qualcomm are also T&E partners. The partnerships are based on the mutual exchange of ideas, technical assistance and expertise, and do not include any exchange of funds.

MarketSimplified to Showcase Next-Gen Cloud Hosted Financial Mobile Apps at SIFMA

2010-06-21T14:44:00.000-07:00

MarketSimplified Inc. will announce the next generation of Cloud hosted mobile apps at SIFMA’s Financial Services Technology Expo in New York. This year at the expo MarketSimplified will present on a topic seeking to unveil and explore the Co-Creation model by providing Mobility Solutions leveraging the Cloud that they are currently propagating. (June 22 @ The Hilton, New York, 11:15 AM – 12:15 PM). Within a span of one year, MarketSimplified has already partnered and deployed Mobile Trading Applications to 5 of the Top 10 brokerages in the US among others. Currently its footprint spans across various geographies including US, India, Singapore and the Middle East.

Marc Prosser, Chief Marketing Officer of FXCM stated, “Launching a mobile trading application was a major decision as we did not have clear visibility into infrastructure that would be required to support our clients. We had to have a scalable solution that would be able to support the activity of tens of thousands of clients on day one and MarketSimplified was able to provide us with this platform. The added benefit of working with a mobile expert like MarketSimplified is that they are focused on adapting their offering to changes in the market.They quickly allow us to release updates that clients are requesting to enhance our mobile offering. "FXCM’s mobile trade station II is an extension of the desk-top platform and enables clients to trade the currency market 24 hours a day 7 days a week. FXCM is one of the largest currency brokers with over 150,000 live accounts traded through the platforms offered currently with substantial number of clients on the mobile platform.”

Telguard Advantage Program Provides Independent Security Dealers with Wireless Alternative to Landline

2010-06-18T14:28:00.000-07:00

Telular Corporation launched its Telguard Advantage Program (TAP). The new program – open to security dealers of all sizes – focuses exclusively on giving independent dealers the necessary products and sales tools to expand their portfolio and meet the needs of today’s rapidly growing mobile market. The Telguard Advantage Program’s benefits are tied to its four membership levels. Designed to match the typical business cycles of an independent dealer, program partners receive profit boosting benefits immediately upon joining. Cellular service discounts are achieved after activation of just six Telguard units and the program’s deepest and broadest benefits by averaging only five installations each month. Calculated monthly, the independent dealer is in total control of the benefits they receive, with immediate rewards given for any increase in installations.“We are pleased to welcome Telular and its hundreds of thousands of alarm monitoring customers to the AT&T wireless network throughout the United States,” said Hamish Caldwell, executive director, product marketing management, AT&T Business Solutions. “Through AT&T Control Center, powered by Jasper, we have enabled the efficient deployment of data service to Telular’s cellular alarm communicators, providing a seamless customer experience. Our work with Telular is the latest example of AT&T’s efforts to accelerate the delivery of advanced mobile applications and solutions for traditional and emerging devices to businesses.”

“We designed the Telguard Advantage Program to offer independent security dealers the incentive and support to confidently offer cellular as an alternative by providing them the benefits previously reserved for large regional and national dealers,” said Shawn Welsh, vice president of marketing and business development, Telular. “Building on 25 years of experience in the wireless industry, we are enabling dealers to take advantage of the mobile trend by providing access to hardware and monitoring service discounts, priority support, education, lead generation, co-marketing and more.”

PlantCML® Deploys Next Generation VESTA® Emergency Call Processing Solution

2010-06-15T13:59:00.000-07:00

PlantCML®, an EADS North America company, announced the deployment of its next generation VESTA® emergency call processing solution at Brooke Army Medical Center (BAMC), Texas, the north campus of San Antonio Military Medical Center (SAMMC), located at the U.S. Army’s Fort Sam Houston. PlantCML’s full-circle security and communications technology will facilitate critical 9-1-1 call taking and dispatch processes, bolstering the emergency response capabilities of BAMC’s provost marshal’s office.

"We are proud to provide next generation emergency call processing solutions to Brooke Army Medical Center A state-of-the-art, 450-bed health care facility, delivering level-one trauma and graduate medical education, BAMC requires the most advanced communications technologies available. The VESTA solution, often selected by progressive military call centers, provides BAMC dispatchers full, touch-screen control of both wireline and wireless calls. It incorporates a number of standard and advanced PBX features with Automatic Number Identification/Automatic Location Identification (ANI/ALI) capabilities. “We are proud to provide next generation emergency call processing solutions to Brooke Army Medical Center,” said John Wherry, director of federal sales for PlantCML. “As a premier U.S. Army medical facility located on Fort Sam Houston, the ‘Home of Army Medicine’, BAMC must have the best communications tools at hand to provide life-saving emergency services. We are confident that our technology will help them do so and look forward to a long, successful relationship.”

Viscira Announces Version 2.0 of its Online Interactive Slide Kit Builder Application

2010-06-15T13:25:00.000-07:00

Viscira™ announced the release of Version 2.0 of its Interactive Slide Kit Builder application for pharmaceutical, biotech, and medical device customers. Viscira’s web-based software platform provides users with the ability to create and save custom presentations using approved slides through an intuitive graphical user interface. The ability to quickly create and save custom presentations in multiple delivery formats including PowerPoint, PDF, Flash, and other enhanced, new-media formats. Embedded programming logic which can require users to use certain slides in combination and include specific mandatory slides. Customizable access levels which allow specific users to view only certain slide groupings and perform only designated functions. The ability to publish any slide updates to all saved presentation slide decks in real time. A full companion administrative tool enabling authorized users to add/delete users, upload new slide decks, send notifications, and generate reports.

The Viscira Interactive Slide Kit Builder is a secure, web-based platform with a flexible technology architecture that has been designed to maximize functionality and ease-of-use for users. It can be seamlessly integrated into an existing client website or speaker extranet, and can be tailored to comply with specific customer workflow and regulatory compliance requirements. It can also be delivered as a stand-alone, offline application.

BNY Mellon's Pershing Unit Introduces NetX360™ for iPad™

2010-06-13T14:51:00.000-07:00

Pershing LLC has introduced a version of NetX360™ that is compatible with the Apple® iPad™, the latest application to enable its introducing broker-dealer customers and their investment professionals, as well as registered investment advisors, to access NetX360 via a mobile device. NetX360 is Pershing's innovative, open-architecture technology solution that enables its customers to manage their entire firm's brokerage and advisory business on a single, integrated platform.

NetX360 for mobile devices offers investment professionals and advisors the ability to trade equities and mutual funds, review order status, access their clients' accounts, balance information and investment holdings quickly and effortlessly from the palm of their hands. Investment professionals and advisors will also be able to access smart workflow functionality to keep track of various work tasks and view statements and other investor documents. This unique platform was previously introduced for the iPhone™, BlackBerry™, and Windows Mobile™ in 2009 and is scheduled to be available on Google's Android™ later this year. Suresh Kumar, chief information officer of Pershing, said, "Increasingly, financial professionals and advisors are turning to mobile devices to better support a wide range of business needs. The availability of NetX360 on the Apple iPad will provide our customers with the ability to access all of our capabilities no matter where they are, and provides them with the same level of security and encryption as their desktop NetX360 application."

AdvancedMD Announces Significant Performance Improvements in SaaS-based Medical Practice Optimization Software

2010-06-12T16:30:00.000-07:00

AdvancedMD^® Software and Akamai Technologies announced significant performance improvements to the AdvancedMD medical practice optimization software platform. In its ongoing effort to improve medical practice productivity and provide a superior practice optimization solution, AdvancedMD has performance-optimized its site and added Akamai’s Web Application Accelerator service to speed access to its solution across the public Internet. This technology intelligently routes data across efficient Internet paths, automatically re-routing around “traffic jam” areas on the web. Through these improvements, AdvancedMD has reduced bandwidth utilization out of its SaaS platform by 73%, as measured between April 2009 and January 2010. In addition, it has achieved a 30% improvement in average transaction round-trip time, a measure of application responsiveness. As a result, AdvancedMD offers a more scalable platform and customers experience these improvements as faster application response rates and a decrease in the burden on their own Internet connectivity capacity. During testing, data collected by Akamai demonstrated it could speed the performance of a sample user click-path by up to 150% in the US and up to 350% globally. A common software application response test procedure is to define a specific user click-path, which is a set of mouse clicks through the application to execute common tasks, like looking up a patient record, while measuring how quickly the application responds at each step. This test was repeatedly performed from different locations around the globe in order to estimate an average of the overall global experience.

Banks Prepare for Mass Adoption of Mobile Banking

2010-06-12T15:49:00.000-07:00

Several forecasts predict that by 2015, 50% or more of US mobile users will be conducting banking transactions from their mobile devices, and financial institutions are looking to cash in on consumers’ increasing desire to check account balances, pay bills and transfer funds with their phones. “The demographics, usage patterns and mobile device landscape are such that for mobile banking to reach the projected adoption levels, financial institutions will need to invest in a combination of SMS, mobile-optimized Websites and applications to effectively serve the needs of their existing customers and to attract new ones,” said Noah Elkin, eMarketer senior analyst and author of the new report,“Mobile Banking: Financial Services Firms Look to Cash In.”

Estimates of mobile banking adoption vary widely, but all point to healthy growth. Studies conducted in 2009 by Mercatus, Mintel Comperemedia and Experian Simmons put the usage rate between 7% and 11%. According to a January 2010 survey by Luth Research for the Mobile Marketing Association, mobile banking usage was 17% among the overall US population and 19% among mobile phone users. Research among smartphone users, however, reveals much more extensive mobile banking adoption. Data Innovation’s January 2010 “Mobile Money Study” found that nearly 70% of smartphone users had accessed mobile banking, payment or financial services in the past three months. Under the current growth rate, it is likely that mobile banking will eventually surpass PC-based banking, Mr. Elkin said. Financial services strategy and consulting firm Mercatus predicts the inflection point will occur in the US by 2015. In emerging markets, particularly those where mobile penetration exceeds that of PCs, the tipping point may come even sooner.

“Online and mobile banking go hand in hand today—but may not necessarily do so tomorrow,” Mr. Elkin said. “Currently, the two channels are closely intertwined. But increasingly, banks will begin to decouple their online and mobile offerings to capture non-online bank users and the sizable underbanked population that is more likely to favor mobile over PC-based Internet access.”

PCI DSS in a post-TKIP World - Retailers must tighten Wi-Fi security

2010-06-11T13:54:00.000-07:00

TKIP, the encryption method once required on all Wi-Fi® devices, soon will be prohibited. A white paper from Summit Data Communications explains the implications for retailers that rely heavily on Wi-Fi and must be compliant with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS). Wi-Fi Client Device Security and Compliance with PCI DSS “Retailers have relied on wireless local area networks since before the first Wi-Fi standards were ratified,” said Chris Bolinger, Summit VP of Business Development and the paper’s primary author. “TKIP is a key element of Wi-Fi security in many retail stores and distribution centers, but TKIP is not strong enough to satisfy PCI DSS requirements.”

When the original Wi-Fi encryption mechanism of WEP was found to be vulnerable to attack, the Wi-Fi Alliance® created a security specification called Wi-Fi Protected Access®, with Temporal Key Integrity Protocol (TKIP) as its encryption method. Like WEP, TKIP uses RC4 encryption, but TKIP is designed to address vulnerabilities of WEP by encrypting each data packet with a different key, preventing key reuse during a session, and ensuring that the message is not altered in transit between sender and receiver.

In late 2008, two German researchers reported that a vulnerability in TKIP could enable an attacker to decrypt individual packets that are encrypted with TKIP. In mid-2009, two Japanese researchers reported that they had expanded on the German researchers’ work and devised a way to mount a successful attack on TKIP. The latter report received a lot of media attention, with some articles claiming that TKIP can be cracked in less than one minute. In reality, neither of the reports demonstrated that a practical tool for cracking an actual TKIP key or deciphering TKIP-encrypted data packets is imminent. The two reports, however, were enough to sound the death toll for TKIP. The Wi-Fi Alliance has announced that it is phasing out TKIP, first on infrastructure devices and then on client devices. Beginning January 1, 2011, TKIP will be prohibited in Wi-Fi infrastructure except as a component of WPA2®, the successor to WPA. In a few years, TKIP will be prohibited in any Wi-Fi CERTIFIED™ device. Review the abstract or download the report via the Summit Communications portal

Alteryx® PaaS Delivers Geospatial Business Intelligence® Over the Web and Across the Enterprise

2010-05-24T14:44:00.000-07:00

Alteryx, LLC (formerly SRC) today put the power of the world’s fastest and most robust Geographic Business Intelligence technology platform into the hands of wider user communities via enhanced Web services capabilities demonstrated at the ICSC ReCON global retail real estate convention in Las Vegas. Enterprise customers using Alteryx in hosted, on-premise and hybrid environments will deliver custom applications to every level of user, partner and supplier within their organizations through the Alteryx menu-driven, Web wizard interface.

Customized modules demonstrated at ICSC ReCON, easily deployed as Web wizards via the Alteryx flagship SaaS subscription offering DemographicsNow.com, clearly showed how the use of business intelligence can rapidly expand into new applications and solve old business problems. For example, a non-technical realtor in the field can punch an address into a custom module to quickly assess if a particular location fits into a retail franchise’s target customer and expansion criteria. The broad capabilities and speed of this Web 2.0 platform are proving out new levels of responsiveness and business intelligence for a wide array of applications and users.“With unprecedented speed, flexibility and efficiency, now more easily deployed over the Web, the Alteryx engine delivers on the promise of enterprise-wide Business Intelligence and geospatial analytics in a true Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) environment,” said Alteryx CEO Dean Stoecker. “No longer limited to developers and DBA-level engineers, Alteryx Web services are empowering a large new community of users across departments in all types of businesses. Every-day managers can now define, optimize and deploy custom applications that bring best-in-class analytics to critical operational, marketing and business decisions that must be made today amidst shifting demographics and locations.”

Heartland Payment Systems® Launches State-of-the-Art Payment Card Security Technology

2010-05-24T13:47:00.000-07:00

Heartland Payment Systems® launched its new, state-of-the-art payment card security technology — making it available to merchants and business owners nationwide. Heartland has spent more than two years developing and ten months beta testing and iteratively improving this end-to-end encryption technology — called E3™ — that is designed to protect cardholder credit and debit card data, rendering scrambled data useless to cybercriminals.

“Heartland leveraged its unique experience and knowledge to develop E3 — and made the financial investment needed to protect this sensitive information. Data is protected from the point of swipe and through Heartland’s processing network — not just at certain points during the transaction flow." “Heartland leveraged its unique experience and knowledge to develop E3 — and made the financial investment needed to protect this sensitive information. Data is protected from the point of swipe and through Heartland’s processing network — not just at certain points during the transaction flow,” noted Bob Carr, Heartland’s chairman and chief executive officer. “We are making the highest degree of security available to every merchant regardless of size — without charging extra monthly or transaction fees and taxes. Additionally, because E3 does not allow card numbers to exist on or through a merchant’s system or network — when combined with our Self-Assessment Questionnaire (SAQ) assistance services — E3 reduces the cost of PCI compliance and the risk of non-compliance for business owners.”

In today’s world, protecting cardholder data is critical — for merchants and consumers alike. In the past two years, there were more than 650 reported breaches — a significant number considering many believe the majority of breaches are never reported. That number continues to increase daily because — in just a few brief seconds — from the time a customer swipes a credit or debit card to pay for a purchase until the transaction is complete, sensitive cardholder data can be vulnerable. If a business’ system is breached without encrypted card data, the owner may be forced to pay steep fines and deal with the stress and cost of legal issues, business recovery and rebuilding customer confidence — and potentially the possibility of going out of business.

Reval® Launches Version 10.0 For Saas-Based Derivative Risk Management and Hedge Accounting

2010-05-20T15:35:00.000-07:00

Reval announced today the spring release of its single-version, Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) platform, Reval^® 10.0. Updates in the new version provide the foundation for a go-forward platform planned since Reval’s acquisition of FXpress last fall. Reval 10.0 provides straight-through processing for front-office foreign exchange trading and confirmation from within Reval, minimizing errors caused by manual processes. Users can perform pre-trade hedge analysis, decide what to hedge, perform and confirm trades directly within electronic trading platforms, and move trades through middle and back office hedge accounting functions, without taking processing steps outside the system. Improved workflow also provides users the flexibility to categorize trades and hedges for reporting and accounting purposes, define trader and daily limits, and perform rate tolerance checks on trade input.“In addition to upgrading the technology behind Reval, we’ve begun to incorporate key functionality clients wanted to retain from FXpress’ FIRST^® platform,” explains Reval Chief Operating Officer Philip Pettinato. “With the exciting new features of Reval 10.0, we are continuing to shape the future of managing derivatives via SaaS, from pre-trade hedge analysis to post-trade hedge accounting.”

The new version enables corporate treasury and accounting departments to perform valuation and risk management tasks with sophisticated tools. With Reval 10.0’s new hardware and software framework, users can value complex financial instruments in seconds, gaining a 100-fold increase in speed. This framework supports a new Equity Module for pricing Index Futures and over-the-counter (OTC) Index Options using a stochastic volatility model and Monte Carlo simulation. It also opens the door for future financial tools that will leverage The Cloud via Reval’s SaaS environment.

Cost Savings from Mobile Health Monitoring to Reach $1.9B to $5.8B Globally by 2014

2010-05-11T14:03:00.000-07:00

According to Juniper Research’s Mobile Health Opportunities Report, public and private healthcare providers will be able to save between $1.96 billion and $5.83 billion in healthcare costs through the use of remote patient monitoring using cellular networks by the year 2014. The US and Canadian markets will generate the most cost savings, due to the inherent structure of their health systems, high healthcare costs, and more advanced remote monitoring roll outs: “The cost of a hospital bed, used as a proxy for cost, is much higher in the North American region, partly due to the role of health insurance in the US healthcare sector,” says Anthony Cox, Senior Analyst at Juniper Research and author of the report, “This has a direct impact on how much cost remote monitoring can save,” he says.

Under both a ‘base case’ and an ‘optimistic’ scenario, Mobile monitoring will save healthcare systems vast amounts of money in developed countries, finds the report, though the cost of mobile monitoring means that its deployment is questionable in developing regions. The mobile healthcare report includes analysis of the current state of play in the m Health market and contains six year forecasts for key areas within the mobile health sector and associated service revenues. Forecasts include the number of mobile monitoring events, revenues from mobile health monitoring, 2 scenarios detailing cost savings attributable to mobile health monitoring, number of health and fitness application downloads, health and fitness download revenues.

Software Earnings’ FFIEC Compliance Reporting Engine Provides Reporting Functionality

2010-05-04T14:01:00.000-07:00

Software Earnings announced the installations of their FFIEC Compliance Reporting Engine product at three banks in the Southeastern US which adds to their ever growing list of customers. FFIEC Compliance Reporting Engine will provide these banks the additional data collecting tools necessary for reporting, tracking, and analyzing multiple risk patterns from their RDC processes.

Superior Bank, Alabama; First Commercial Bank, Florida; and United Southern Bank, Florida, are running the Software Earnings solution in full production today. These three community banks have also deployed Software Earnings’ First Touch iCapture Remote Deposit Capture solution for their customers. Current Remote Deposit Capture software throughout the industry has a large product-gap. It is missing reporting functionality to stay in accordance with the FFIEC [“Risk Management of Remote Deposit Capture” guidelines. Financial institutions must be able to prepare specific reports during examination periods for their RDC customers and deposits. With Software Earnings’ FFIEC Compliance Reporting Engine product, financial institutions will be ready and compliant for 2010 audits. Software Earnings’ FFIEC Compliance Reporting Engine provides financial institutions with a system to quickly and accurately pull-together reports based on data gathered from their remote deposit capture deposits. FFIEC Compliance Reporting Engine is designed to co-exist with any remote deposit capture product on the market today. The system provides multiple-layer reporting functionality for remote deposit capture data that is both growth-centric and flexible.

“Software Earnings is our remote deposit capture vendor. Installation was fast and non-intrusive when we added FFIEC Compliance Reporting Engine. We needed a reporting system specifically aimed at our RDC activity. With the Compliance Reporting Engine, we have the capacity to develop the reports we need to be ready for our 2010 RDC examinations,” claims Jordan Hawkins, commercial banking officer of United Southern Bank.

Financial Services - Information Sharing and Analysis Center (May 3-5 in Ste. Pete Beach, Florida)

2010-05-03T12:22:00.000-07:00

The Spring 2010 theme is "Building A Layered and Integrated Defense Strategy." The goal of this year's meeting is to provide the FS-ISAC, FSTC, BITS membership with solutions and information sharing around effective layered and integrated security defense strategies to protect financial services firms, processors and their customers. As threats and attacks continue to negatively impact the operations of financial services firms, the FS-ISAC, FSTC, BITS membership continues to look for answers to their increasingly complex security needs. Visit the FS ISAC event portal for complete speaker, agenda and registration details

Connecture, Inc. Acquires Insurint to Transform Sales Automation for the Health Insurance Industry

2010-04-19T14:44:00.000-07:00

Connecture, Inc. announced today that it has acquired Insurint in a bold step towards transforming health insurance distribution. This combination creates the largest end-to-end sales automation provider in the health insurance market by joining Insurint, a leader in broker sales automation with Connecture, the leader in health insurance carrier sales automation. The strategic combination broadens Connecture’s suite of services that helps payers attract and maintain the growing number of consumers buying individual insurance plans through the broker channel. As the individual health insurance market continues to gain momentum, the company will offer health insurers and brokers a full range of options through a multi-carrier channel. Connecture comes to the relationship with over 80 health insurer customers who reach over 50,000 insurance agents. Together, the companies serve more than half of the nation’s leading insurance carriers including many Blue Cross Blue Shield carriers, WellPoint, Kaiser, United Healthcare, Humana One, and Assurant Health.

Through combining Connecture’s eApplication health insurer sales automation platform with Insurint’s multi-carrier quoting broker platform, the company will offer technology that fully automates the end-to-end quoting, application, and enrollment processes. The combination will offer straight-through processing from lead management to quoting and application through to enrollment and post-sale management, with a one-of-a-kind software solution specifically designed to meet the growing demands of the health insurance market. Benefits will include the opportunity for brokers to sell more business and reduce drop-off; true end-to-end automation for intermediaries, agents, and aggregators; and reduced frustration, friction, and cost in the marketplace.

“In this post-health care reform environment, it is critical that technology is leveraged to take cost and friction out of the membership acquisition and retention process. Public and private aggregators and brokers will continue to play a large role in the health insurance market if they leverage the benefits that technology has to offer. Our combined solution will enable those distribution channels to leverage such benefits,” explained Dan Maynard, Chief Executive Officer of Connecture. “We are excited to join forces with Insurint to bring this technology to market.”

Hypercom Payment Software Achieves PCI PA-DSS Security Approval

2010-04-13T14:33:00.000-07:00

Hypercom Corporation today announced that its high security SPOS32 payment software application, versions 3.0 and 3.1, are PCI PA-DSS validated and immediately available to support the Company’s Optimum countertop and mobile card payment product portfolio.

“SPOS32 is our premier, feature-rich and off-the-shelf payment application for the Optimum product portfolio; it can be widely used by our customers to help bolster their payment security.”

“The most effective security solutions, continual innovation and a singular focus on our customers are at the centerpiece of what we do. Achieving this stringent new security level further protects sensitive cardholder data, fortifies our ability to build market share and is directly in line with our continual and historic tradition of providing rigorous protection to merchants,” said T.K. Cheung, Vice President, Global Quality & Security, Hypercom Corporation. “SPOS32 is our premier, feature-rich and off-the-shelf payment application for the Optimum product portfolio; it can be widely used by our customers to help bolster their payment security.”

The Payment Card Industry (PCI) Payment Application Data Security Standard (PA-DSS) is a global set of security requirements for software vendors who develop payment applications. PA-DSS compliant applications do not store prohibited data such as track data, sensitive authentication data, or PIN data, helping merchants and agents who use them to immediately mitigate compromises and support overall compliance with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS).

This latest payment industry security milestone follows PCI PTS 2.1 security approval of Hypercom’s Optimum L4150 multilane payment terminals and L4150 Secure Keypad in January, and Hypercom’s receipt of the globally prestigious Sesame Award for its HyperSafe® Remote Key System (HRKS) last November. The Sesame Awards represent an unchallenged seal of approval in innovation and are regarded as the global standard for card manufacturers and related industries.

Unity Medical Announces New iPad Application to be Piloted by Leading Hospitals

2010-04-05T14:24:00.000-07:00

Unity Medical, Inc. today announced that two pioneering hospital systems will pilot the company’s new Medical Video jLog™ for the Apple iPad™, an innovative application that utilizes short form interactive video to explain common medical procedures such as CT scans, cardiac stent placements, and physical rehabilitation treatment. Florida Hospital for Children at Walt Disney Pavilion in Orlando and St. Luke’s Health System in Boise, Idaho will pilot customized versions of the jLog app starting Monday, April 5.

The Florida Hospital application consists of an animated sequence of five 2-4 minute videos and interactive Q&A featuring a young boy named Max and his bear friend Buddy as Buddy undergoes a CT scan. Videos are conversational, entertaining, age-appropriate, and provide children with a detailed overview of the procedure. A similar jLog for MRIs will soon be added.“ At Florida Hospital, we are continuously seeking new ways to enhance patient engagement and ultimately patient outcomes. Technology is a critical part of that mix,” said Marla Silliman, administrator of Florida Hospital for Children. “This application will support our patient resource specialists in ensuring that children and their parents understand and feel comfortable with important medical procedures and mitigate any potential fears or concerns they may have.”

The pilot program with St. Luke’s will initially include more than 20 jLogs, which includes content for patients undergoing heart and vascular procedures, and for those participating in physical rehabilitation programs. Patients can view videos and patient testimonials on iPads in the hospital or download content directly from the iTunes store to their iPad at home, for use anywhere they choose.

Gemalto Expands Range of Secure Linux POS Terminals

2010-04-05T13:29:00.000-07:00

Gemalto is expanding its MagIC3 range of Point-Of-Sale (POS) terminals. The new MagIC3 product is a cost-effective solution for wireless payment, requiring no extra subscription nor additional communication fees. Remarkably light and compact, with unmatched autonomy, MagIC3 W-1 delivers increased convenience in restaurants and outdoor retail outlets. Several important financial institutions are currently leading the new payment terminal deployment in Europe and in Asia.

“MagIC3 W-1 offers mobility, speed and ease-of-use that make it really convenient for retailers to present the terminal to their customers,” commented Frédéric Deman, senior vice president e-payment terminals at Gemalto. “Our customers have started deploying MagIC3 W-1 and we already received very positive reactions. Retailers using the Ethernet broadband connection expressed strong satisfaction with the transaction speed.”MagIC3 W-1 is part of Gemalto’s MagIC3 product family, which incorporates the Open&Sec technology running on LinuxTM. The MagIC3 product line leverages Internet Protocol (IP) technology and ensures high-level security in an open environment. It features Universal Serial Bus (USB) connections for instant plugging of peripherals such as check and barcode readers, WiFi dongles or electronic cash registers, making it a flexible and highly evolutive payment solution. The MagIC3 W-1 terminal comes equipped with an integrated Ethernet broadband connection to offer very high-speed secure transactions. Visit the Gemalto product portal for complete feature details

Aprima and Latric Systems Partnership Brings Electronic Health Record and Practice Management Solution to MEDITECH

2010-01-29T14:01:00.000-08:00

Aprima Medical Software today announced that Massachusetts-based Iatric Systems, Inc. (Iatric) the most successful company providing interface services to MEDITECH Hospitals, has selected it as its partner to bring Aprima’s single application EHR/PM solution to physicians affiliated with MEDITECH.

“We are extremely excited to have Aprima in our Vendor Partner Program”, said Buddy Bergeron, Associate Vice President of Business Development, Iatric Systems, Inc. “This relationship allows us to further expand our company mandate to bring new and innovative technology to the MEDITECH community thus allowing MEDITECH hospitals to gain even more benefits from their investment in the MEDITECH HCIS.” “Our formal partnership with Iatric is a logical progression for both of us since we have several joint customers who have been successful with our solutions,” said Michael Nissenbaum, CEO of Aprima. “The MEDITECH community will benefit by having a single point of contact in Iatric, a proven organization with whom they are familiar and comfortable,” he added. Aprima and Iatric formally entered into the agreement in December 2009.

Aprima’s unique, template-free design enables providers to follow their own protocols. Its adaptive learning feature speeds adoption and deployment. Its single database design affords users with the fastest access to clinical and financial data. Aprima’s flexible pricing plan makes sense for everyone from a solo rural practitioner to a multi-specialty urban practice. The Aprima press room provides complete partnership details