SpinVox service hits Apple's App Store - 13/05/2009

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Spinvox API produces quick results

The first SpinVox-enabled iPhone app hit the Apple App Store last week when nFinity launched QuickVoice Pro, the latest version of its award winning voice recorder.
Developed using the SpinVox API, the new feature enables QuickVoice Pro users to record voice messages with their iPhones, have them automatically converted to text by Spinvox, and then delivered to the desired inbox.
According to nFinity’s business manager, Kerrie-Lynn Corcoran, as downloads from the App Store surpassed a billion, the SpinVox API enabled nFinity to develop and launch a brand new revenue generating application in a matter of weeks, taking QuickVoice into new areas and strongly differentiating the product from its competitors.
The SpinVox API was launched at the Mobile World Congress in February 2009 and has attracted over 400 registration of interest from developers. In the pipeline are business efficiency, personal productivity, games and social networking applications on Apple iPhone, Nokia Series 60, and Microsoft Windows Mobile platforms.
SpinVox CEO Christina Domecq said the API “confirms SpinVox as the defacto standard for a new generation of speech products, delivering a reliable mass-market experience.”

Microsoft bond issue sparks takeover rumours

Microsoft launched its first bond issue on Monday, raising over $3.75bn and sparking rumours the company might be contemplating a takeover bid. Microsoft was rebuffed last year in a $47.5bn bid to acquire Yahoo! but management has since changed at the Internet firm and the two companies have reportedly discussed a potential partnership.
Microsoft chief executive Steve Ballmer has said repeatedly that he is open to a deal with Yahoo! on Web search, dominated by rival Google.
Business software firm SAP was seen as another potential target. The official word, however, was that the money would be used for 'general corporate purposes' and to fund its share buy-back plans.
With Microsoft holding $25bn in cash and short-term investments at the end of March and a reaffirmed triple A credit rating from Moody's, the deal was several times subscribed and paying yields between 2.97% to 5.21%.

Credit Suisse results buck trend

In marked contrast to the gloom pervading the global financial sector, Credit Suisse announced strong QI 2009 results, with net income of CHF2bn (£1.2bn) - doubling analysts' predictions.
The bank attracted new net assets of £5.4bn over the quarter, indicating confidence among private clients, but the key to success has been an impressive investment banking performance – the very activity that brought the industry to its knees.
The return on equity attributable to shareholders was 22.6% and diluted earnings per share were CHF 1.60.
CEO Brady Dougan said: "We are pleased with Credit Suisse's performance in the first quarter of 2009. We believe that these results, in particular our strong return on equity, show that our differentiated strategy and our robust, integrated and capital-efficient business model with a low risk profile can be a powerful generator of earnings."

Skype co-founders to launch venture fund

The latest entrepreneurs to don the venture capital mantle are Skype co-founders Niklas Zennström and Janus Friis. The pair are looking to raise $266m for a new fund called Atomico Ventures.
No strangers to the VC world, Zennström and Friis sold Skype to eBay for $4.1bn and went on to start P2P file-sharing programme Kazaa, which was sold to Sharman Networks.
According to the filing, the minimum investment is $13.3 million. The fund will focus on European consumer-faced technology businesses with big ambitions to disrupt industries, like Skype and Kazaa did.

PLUS primary market activity remains healthy

PLUS, London's youngest stock exchange, reported continuing activity on the PLUS-quoted market, its market for growth company stocks. New admissions, fundraisings and new company applications through March and April contributed to the sustained progress of the market.
Kuwait-based RAK Real Estate was admitted, becoming the largest PLUS-quoted company with a market cap of $600m. Another new comany, 3D Diagnostic Imaging, raised some £2m when it joined the market.
Paul Haddock, Head of Capital Markets, said: “Our market is attracting quality companies, healthy fundraising and other robust primary activity – clearly demonstrating that PLUS is a compelling alternative in the exchange landscape.”