America Online made another move in the instant-messaging battle, this one opening a door to the potentially lucrative corporate sector.
The online giant has agreed to integrate the AOL Instant Messenger service with Novell's popular directory software that is used to manage and control access, programs, and other applications on business networks, Novell said Wednesday.
Also:
Sony developing plastic hard-drive disks
Online pollsters feud- - - - - -
The agreement is a coup for the once-struggling Novell and highlights AOL's (AOL) aggressive push to move AOL Instant Messenger, or AIM, into the corporate market from its now-prevalent consumer use. For Novell (NOVL), the deal highlights the growing importance of its directory software, known as NDS, as networks and the Internet grow and become increasingly complex.
Together, the companies said, AOL's success in creating simple ways of using the Internet and Novell's NDS will allow for business users to zap messages back and forth securely, using encryption.
According to market research firm International Data Corp., 80 percent of Fortune 1000 companies now using directory services to manage and secure their networks already rely on NDS. Revenue for directory services is forecast to reach US$5 billion by 2000, according to IDC.
The agreement comes as AOL and PC-software juggernaut Microsoft are embroiled in a bitter battle over instant messaging. Microsoft (MSFT) recently introduced its own instant-messaging software, called MSN Messenger, and allowed its users to talk to AIM users and those using AOL's online service. AOL responded by shutting MSN Messenger users out if its network, claiming it was a violation of their network and of their users' privacy.
- Back to topPlastic is the word: Sony said Thursday it is developing the world's first plastic disks for computer hard drives.
The Japanese business daily Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported that the cost of making plastic disks with a storage capacity of 5 GBs would be 30 to 40 percent lower than for conventional aluminum disks. A Sony spokesman said the production cost is likely to be lower because plastic disks do not need the same polishing process, but he would not say how much cheaper.
On the Tokyo stock market, news of the development helped boost the share prices of both Sony and Nippon Zeon, the company that will supply the chemicals used to make the disks. Analysts were lukewarm about the news, however, saying Sony has not completed development of the disk and evaluation of the technology is difficult at this stage. The company did not say when it would begin production.
4. Back to topNo, we're No. 1: The online arm of pollster Louis Harris & Associates has accused Greenfield Online of defamation.
Harris Interactive said that Greenfield's claim that its site is "the world's largest Internet-based marketing research panel" is false and misleading, according to the suit filed in US District Court in the Western District of New York.
In the lawsuit, Harris Interactive also claims that Rudy Nadilo, President of Greenfield Online, falsely and publicly accused Harris Interactive of unethical activity, namely sending unsolicited email seeking people to take part in its surveys.
"To a company which depends on maintaining the highest reputation and goodwill with the Internet community, an accusation of spamming is damaging and can be ruinous," the suit said.
Greenfield said the suit came as a surprise, and in a statement, Nadilo added, "we are confident it is without merit."
6\. [Back to top](#top)*Reuters contributed to this report.*
