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In this issue. . .

* Europe around the Clock
* “Always On” with Wireless Technologies
* European Clout in Privacy Standards
* Toward Low-Cost Solar Cells
* The Search for Workable E-Commerce Strategies
* The Semantic Web
* Early Detection of Schizophrenia
* Help for Hunt-and-Peck Consumers
* A New Direction for E-Health
* The Rise of DVD-Video
* Pressures on Mobile Carriers


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(Full text of SRIC-BI publications is available to
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Europe around the Clock

Though Europe is not yet a 24-hour society, new flexibility
is emerging in work and shopping hours. Customer-service
reps are increasingly available outside of traditional
hours, retailers are opening their doors around the clock,
and employers are more open to work schedules that depart
from the normal 9-to-5 routine. (Prospects for the 24-Hour
Society in Europe)
http://www.sric-bi.com/BIP/Bulletin/B294.shtml#2318


"Always On" with Wireless Technologies

Third-generation mobile cellular technology promises
always-on functionality and streaming audio and video at
unprecedented speeds. However, the high expense of network
deployment and the lack of a killer application could 
derail the wireless industry if infrastructure providers and
cellular carriers move too quickly or fail to live up to
media hype. (Third-Generation Wireless in the United States:
Market Boon or Impending Disaster?)
http://www.sric-bi.com/BIP/Bulletin/B294.shtml#2319


European Clout in Privacy Standards

Under the European Union’s Data Protection Directive, all
firms that access information about Europeans must meet
strict privacy standards. To retain access to Europe’s 360
million consumers, governments around the world are
embracing the EU dictum and overhauling their
data-protection laws. (Europe Advances Consumer Data
Protection Worldwide)
http://www.sric-bi.com/BIP/Bulletin/B294.shtml#2320


Toward Low-Cost Solar Cells

Polymeric solar cells and organic dye-sensitized solar cells
may soon offer a low-cost alternative to  expensive
inorganic silicon-based solar cells. The polymeric cells use
either a single conjugated polymer or blend such a polymer 
with another molecule such as a fullerene or dye. (April
2001 Photovoltaics Viewpoints)
http://www.sric-bi.com/Explorer/PV.shtml


The Search for Workable E-Commerce Strategies

Most companies are both buyers and sellers in the online
market. As a result, they may need more than one e-commerce
strategy to remain competitive. For example, though
suppliers are often reluctant to offer their goods through 
exchanges, they may have little choice but to participate if
their key accounts elect to buy goods in online auctions.
(E-Business: Key Applications and Business Models)
http://www.sric-bi.com/BIP/Bulletin/B294.shtml#2321


The Semantic Web

Tim Berners-Lee, the developer of the original Web
information architecture, has a proposal to help overloaded
users deal with the morass of undifferentiated data on the
Web. The Semantic Web harnesses the power of the computer to
sort, manipulate, and transform information. (Scan 2145: The
Semantic Web)
http://www.sric-bi.com/BIP/Bulletin/B294.shtml#scan


Early Detection of Schizophrenia

A new diagnostic system uses neural networks to analyze
brain images for signs of schizophrenia. If further research
duplicates the extremely accurate results of early trials,
the system could find use in early treatment of the 
disease. (April 2001 Neural Networks Viewpoints)
http://www.sric-bi.com/Explorer/NN.shtml


Help for Hunt-and-Peck Consumers

Vicinity Corporation’s Speech Business Finder will allow
users to find a business location via voice commands over
the phone and then obtain pricing information and make the
purchase.  The speech-enabled product provides an 
alternative to punching keystrokes into a phone pad to find
information and a user-friendly way to conduct e-commerce
transactions. (April 2001 Speech Recognition Viewpoints) 
http://www.sric-bi.com/Explorer/SI.shtml


A New Direction for E-Health

A second generation of electronic-health companies is
questioning the wisdom of relying solely on advertisers to
pay for information sites for consumers. Instead, they are
looking for ways to meet the needs of revenue-generating 
customers such as physicians’ offices and pharmaceutical
companies. (E-Health: From Boom to Bust...to Profitability?)
http://www.sric-bi.com/BIP/Bulletin/B294.shtml#2322


The Rise of DVD-Video

DVD is bringing digital video to the masses. Indeed, DVD
promises to surpass other digital formats, and recordable
DVD may soon deliver benefits that most people currently
associate only with personal video recorders. (DVD-Video: 
Sunset for VHS Movies)
http://www.sric-bi.com/DF/summaries/DVDVideo0501.shtml


Pressures on Mobile Carriers

How can mobile-communications carriers pay for the
infrastructure and spectrum necessary to develop
next-generation services? Mobile technology 
must show it can improve productivity if mobile industries
are to grow sufficiently to allay the concerns of service
providers and network-equipment makers. (Mobile’s Challenge:
Rescue the Telecom Industry)
http://www.sric-bi.com/DF/summaries/MobileChallenge0501.shtml


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Copyright 2001 by SRI Consulting Business Intelligence.