Britvic Soft Drinks has entered into a five year outsourcing deal with France-based IT services company Atos Origin. Following the deal, Atos will host Britvic’s UK systems. These include its Siebel, SAP and other linked applications for back-office dealings. Valued at £15m, the deal is a follow-up to the three year contract that the two firms had signed up for with regard to applications management.

Rob Pritchard, Britvic’s IT director said that the deal was an affirmation of the fact that Atos Origin’s services were in line with Britvic’s need for flexible, cost-efficient IT systems.

Market researcher Mintel foresees half of UK households using a communications bundle by the year end. This trend is expected to push the bundle market value to £8bn. The growth in the bundles market was being accelerated by the simplified cost and supply savings that the bundles offered.

Matt King, a senior analyst at Mintel has a theory that links recession with the growing interest in in-home leisure. According to him, bundling has proven to be a method that preserves the entertainment value offered by Internet and pay-TV, by making these services available to families at much affordable rates.

Blue-sky thinking on Cloud Computing. A new series of three focused articles from Fifosys – demystifying the rhetoric on Cloud Computing  

The benefits  

Yes, the Cloud concept of hosted environments can deliver significant benefits for your business – and this is why we think so
by Mitesh Patel,
managing director, Fifosys Limited 

With the intention of developing integrated security products for both on-premise use and the cloud, GFI Software has acquired Clearwater, Fla.-based Sunbelt Software. Sunbelt CEO Alex Eckelberry has disclosed that areas where the technological expertise of both the firms could be put to effective use are being identified. He added that he intended to lead Sunbelt’s VIPRE technology product operations, even after the merger.

Based in Malta, GFI Software makes available products related to Web and e-mail security. Sunbelt Software on the other hand, provides antivirus and anti-spyware security software.

Even printers have hard drives. When you dispose of them, or send them back to the leasing company, remember to wipe clean the hard drive. (or get expert advice if necessary).

More and more people are beginning to realise the potential sources for loss of sensitive data. This short video first played on CBS television highlights how your print servers and copiers can provide a rich source of data for competitors and criminal gangs to exploit:

With thanks to Bradley Wright at Veritas Consulting for showing us this video.