F5 تستحوذ على شركة Volterra مقابل ما يقرب من 440 مليون دولار نقداً و60 مليون دولار من الحوافز

شركة F5 تتوقع نمواً بما يقارب 10 بالمائة في إيراداتها خلال الربع الأول من السنة المالية 2021

دبي، الإمارات العربية المتحدة، 11 يناير 2020: أعلنت اليوم كل من شركة F5 Networks (رمزها في مؤشر ناسداك: FFIV) والرائدة في طرح الحلول الأمنية الخاصة بالتطبيقات، وشركة البرمجيات الناشئة Volterra، التي توفر منصة الحوسبة الطرفية كخدمة، الأولى من نوعها على مستوى العالم، عن اتفاقية نهائية تستحوذ F5 بموجبها على كافة الأسهم الصادرة والقائمة في شركة Volterra ذات الملكية الخاصة مقابل ما يقرب من 440 مليون دولار نقداً، وحوالي 60 مليون دولار من الحوافز على شكل مدفوعات أسهم آجلة للمؤسسين والموظفين في Volterra. ومن خلال استحواذها على المنصة التكنولوجية التي توفرها شركة Volterra، ستتمكن F5 من إنشاء منصة طرفية متطورة مصممة خصيصاً للمؤسسات ومزودي الخدمات، توفر مستويات حماية عالية تهدف بشكل أساسي إلى تطوير عمل التطبيقات على نطاق غير محدود.

ومع صفقة الشراء هذه، رفعت F5 من توقعاتها حول إيراداتها طويلة الأجل للسنوات المالية 2021 و 2022، كما أكدت على أهدافها التشغيلية المستقبلية، بما في ذلك التزامها بتحقيق نمو في الأرباح من رقمين لكل سهم من دون اعتماد مبادئ المحاسبة المقبولة GAAP. كما أكدت الشركة على التزامها بإعادة مليار دولار من رأس المال على مدى العامين المقبلين، بما في ذلك البدء بعمليات شراء عاجلة لأسهمها بقيمة 500 مليون دولار في السنة المالية 2021. كما أصدرت F5 تقريرها الأولي عن الربع الأول من العام المالي 2021 ونتائجه المالية التي تنص على توقعات الشركة لإيرادات قائمة وغير قائمة على مبادئ المحاسبة المقبولة GAAP ضمن نطاق 623 و 626 مليون دولار. مدفوعة بشكل جزئي بحوالي 68% من نمو عائدات البرمجيات القائمة على مبادئ المحاسبة المقبولة GAAP و 70% من عائدات البرمجيات الغير قائمة على هذه المبادئ.

وفي هذا السياق قال فرانسوا لوكو-دونو، الرئيس والمدير التنفيذي لشركة F5: "الحلول الطرفية الحالية لا تتناسب مع احتياجات العملاء من المؤسسات اليوم. لقد حان الوقت بالفعل للابتعاد عن الأنظمة الطرفية المغلقة التي لا تؤدي إلا إلى استمرار المعاناة عند إنشاء التطبيقات وتشغيلها وحمايتها. من خلال منصة Volterra، يمكننا تطوير رؤيتنا الخاصة بالتطبيقات القابلة للتكيف باستخدام منصة Edge 2.0 التي توفر حلولاً للواقع المعقد متعدد السُحب الذي يعاني منه عملاء المؤسسات. سوف تعمل منصتنا على إنشاء برنامج قائم على السحابة SaaS لمواجهة أكبر نقاط الضعف التي يواجهها عملاؤنا. النجاح الذي حققته F5 على مستوى التحول نحو البرمجيات قد وضعها في موقع يسمح لها بتوفير إمكانيات منصة Edge 2.0 وإعادة تحديد مكانتها التنافسية".

وقد تمت الموافقة من قبل مجلس إدارة كل من شركتي F5 و Volterra على تنفيذ الصفقة التي تتوافق مع الموافقات التنظيمية وغيرها من شروط الصفقات المعتادة. ومن المتوقع إغلاق الصفقة بشكل نهائي خلال الربع الأول من عام 2021.

National COVID-19 Immunisation Campaign begins in Seychelles

 

Seychelles, one of the top tourist destinations for GCC travelers, leaps towards immunization as the country launched its national COVID-19 Immunization Campaign on Sunday, January 10, 2021.

Being the first country in Africa to start a COVID-19 national vaccination program, Seychelles aims to be the first country in the world to vaccinate 70% of the over 18 years of age population in order to achieve herd immunity.

Leading by example, is the President of the Republic of Seychelles, H E Wavel Ramkalawan, as he takes the SinoPharm COVID-19 Vaccine, making him the first Head of State in Africa to take the first jab.

The campaign launch, held at the Seychelles Hospital started on a high note as about a hundred people including leaders, health workers, media personalities received their first shot of the SinoPharm COVID-19 showing their support towards the country’s immunization efforts.

Following the launch, the Ministry of Health will roll- out the administering of the Vaccine to key groups in the country as of Monday, January 11, 2021, starting with Health Care Workers and other front-line groups including the tourism industry operators.

President Ramkalawan restated the need for the country to unite as a nation and to rally behind the Health Authorities to help curb the spread of this deadly virus, protect the lives of all citizens and restore economic development in the country.

Attending the ceremony was the Former President of the Republic, Mr Danny Faure, who thanked President Ramkalawan for having him present and receive the vaccine. This greatly shows solidarity in the country, from previous to present leaders, as it battles the COVID-19 pandemic.







President Ramkalawan also gave special thanks to the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan for the donation of 50,000 doses of the Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine, which was offered during President Ramkalawan’s visit to Abu Dhabi in December.

The President added that this is a testimony of the excellent friendly ties that exists between the two nations that have been further consolidated through continuous support for the mutual benefit of both peoples.

“With such a robust vaccination campaign, Seychelles aims to be the first country in the world to vaccinate at least 70% of its over 18 population. From there we will be able to declare Seychelles as being COVID safe,” President Ramkalawan emphasized.

The president added that the UAE Government would also be donating another batch of vaccines to the country soon.

President Ramkalawan also thanked the Indian Government for an offer of 100,000 doses of the Oxford Astra-Zeneca vaccine which is due to arrive in the country at the end of January.

Speaking of the vaccination Seychelles Minister for Foreign Affairs and Tourism, Mr Sylvestre Radegonde mentioned the importance of this move by the government for the industry.

"The COVID-19 immunization campaign is an important milestone for the restart of our tourism industry as the country balances its efforts to maintain its tourism activities and protect its population from further spread of the virus. The world has not come to a standstill and there are people who are still keen to travel. We need to fast rebuild our industry for our economic prosperity depends on it." said Minister Radegonde.

Minister Radegonde further restated the need for the tourism industry partners to remain vigilant for their safety and the safety of the population.

The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF): Palestine has become the first country in the Middle East to register Sputnik V vaccine

 

MOSCOW, Jan. 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/Knowledge Bylanes -- The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF, Russia's sovereign wealth fund) announces the registration of the Russian Sputnik V vaccine against coronavirus by the Ministry of Health of the State of Palestine.


The vaccine was registered under the emergency use authorization procedure without additional clinical trials in the country. Sputnik V had been registered under the same procedure earlier in Algeria, Argentina, Bolivia and Serbia.

Sputnik V delivery to Palestine is planned for the first quarter of 2021 with the first batch expected to arrive within a month. Supplies of the vaccine will be facilitated by RDIF's international partners in India, China, South Korea and other countries.

Kirill Dmitriev, CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, said:

"The Sputnik V vaccine's high quality and efficacy are stimulating growing interest from more and more countries. This translates into a wider geography of its registration, delivery and production. We are happy that on top of Europe, Africa, Asia and Latin America Sputnik V will now also be present in the Middle East. This will allow us to further combine forces for a quicker joint victory over the coronavirus infection by guaranteeing access to an effective and safe vaccine for more countries and their people."

Sputnik V was registered thanks to a number of key advantages:
Efficacy of Sputnik V is over 90%, with full protection against severe cases of COVID-19.
The Sputnik V vaccine is based on a proven and well-studied platform of human adenoviral vectors, which cause the common cold and have been around for thousands of years.
Sputnik V uses two different vectors for the two shots in a course of vaccination, providing immunity with a longer duration than vaccines using the same delivery mechanism for both shots.
The safety, efficacy and lack of negative long-term effects of adenoviral vaccines have been proven by more than 250 clinical studies over two decades.
Over 1.5mn people have already been vaccinated with Sputnik V.
The developers of the Sputnik V vaccine are working collaboratively with AstraZeneca on a joint clinical trial to improve the efficacy of AstraZeneca vaccine.
The Sputnik V vaccine has been approved in Russia, Belarus, Serbia, Argentina, Bolivia and Algeria, the process to approve the vaccine in the EU has been initiated.
There are no strong allergies caused by Sputnik V.
The storage temperature of Sputnik V at +2+8 C means it can be stored in a conventional refrigerator without any need to invest in additional cold-chain infrastructure.
The price of Sputnik V is less than $10 per shot, making it affordable around the world.

Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) is Russia's sovereign wealth fund established in 2011 to make equity co-investments, primarily in Russia, alongside reputable international financial and strategic investors. RDIF acts as a catalyst for direct investment in the Russian economy. RDIF's management company is based in Moscow. Currently, RDIF has experience of the successful joint implementation of more than 80 projects with foreign partners totaling more than RUB2 tn and covering 95% of the regions of the Russian Federation. RDIF portfolio companies employ more than 800,000 people and generate revenues which equate to more than 6% of Russia's GDP. RDIF has established joint strategic partnerships with leading international co-investors from more than 18 countries that total more than $40 bn. Further information can be found at www.rdif.ru

Middle East accountancy and finance profession is for the most part ‘inclusive’, finds ACCA

 

Almost eighty per cent of respondents based in the Middle East from the accountancy and finance professions say they believe their industry is inclusive and open to all, according to a new survey - Leading Inclusion by ACCA (the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants).

ACCA conducted a series of research questions and roundtable discussions and assessed opinions from 10,000 ACCA members, affiliates and future members on a wide range of issues relating to diversity and inclusion, starting with the question ‘Are we truly a profession that is open to all?’ Out of those surveyed, 511 respondents were from the Middle

Forty-four per cent of Middle Eastern survey respondents felt within the profession there was an issue that needed to be addressed. And nearly half of respondents felt their working environment was free from harassment and discrimination. However, only a third thought their organisation makes it easy for individuals from diverse backgrounds to be accepted. Only 32 per cent felt that their organisations made it easy for people of different backgrounds to be accepted. And almost 34 per cent of respondents believed their organisations promoted diversity and inclusion policies, but didn’t think these were essential to daily operations. While there has been progress within the Middle East region, the report also found almost half of respondents stated there was not equal opportunity to succeed within their respective organisations.

ACCA’s report offers recommended actions to promote diversity and inclusion in organisations, from establishing a diversity and inclusion policy which sets out organisational principles to leadership principles that sets the tone from the top and holding leaders accountable – individuals make the difference; organisations can provide the frameworks.  The report also suggests actions that accountants can take to develop this agenda.

Fazeela Gopalani, ACCA’s head of Middle East says: 

‘The foundation of ACCA in 1904 was to create a professional body for accountancy professionals open to all. The value of inclusion remains at the core of everything we do. ACCA’s commitment in December 2020 to the UN Sustainable Development Goals is one aspect of this. Goals 5 and 10 particularly speak to aspects of diversity and inclusion and how we need to work together to address some of the fundamental issues that this planet faces.

‘Fundamentally we need to appreciate the diversity embraces a wide range of facets of our society. To focus on one is to ignore the importance of the rest. In the Middle East, we can see from this survey there has been steady progress made and we’re heading in the right direction with the diversity agenda, but there is no room for complacency. Although, it is good to see over two-thirds of those asked have said accountancy and finance professionals had a positive role to play.’

Clive Webb, author of the report and senior insights manager at ACCA adds: ‘The pandemic is impacting our society in many ways.  The impact on social justice is starting to be felt in many ways too, and our report argues, this is something in which accountants must play a fundamental role. As accountancy and finance professionals, it’s important that we apply our robust and ethical lens to the challenges of the diversity agenda.  By focusing on the symptoms of the issues rather than the causes we run the risk of not making substantive and lasting change when it is very necessary. I truly hope this report places these important issues centre stage so we can take the dialogue and engagement further.’

Global findings show:

• 41 per cent of respondents believe there are diversity issues to be addressed, and a further 22 per cent considered that there might be an issue.  

• 81 per cent of respondents in Africa believe the profession is inclusive, compared with 67 per cent in Western Europe, 67 per cent in the Caribbean and 69 per cent in Central and Eastern Europe.

• Results for Asia Pacific shows further contrasts with 81 per cent of the respondents in Vietnam feeling that there was an issue to be addressed, 76 per cent in mainland China and 68 per cent in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of China in contrast to 51 per cent in Malaysia and 50 per cent in Singapore. For many in the region the issue has been focused on several areas, such as the role of women.

• 43 per cent of respondents aged 18 – 35 believe there are issues to be addressed, compared with 31 per cent aged 56 and over.

• 50 per cent said having a variety of different perspectives was the biggest benefit of a diverse and inclusive workforce, followed by better decision making and better employee engagement.

• 41 per cent of respondents said the organisation that they work for makes it easy for people from diverse backgrounds to be accepted.

• Just over half – 52 per cent - said everyone in their organisation have equal opportunity to succeed.

NTT to Exhibit Online at CES 2021, the World’s Most Influential Tech Event

With “IOWN—Breakthrough Innovation for Human Well-being” as its theme, NTT will present the value and the progress of its efforts to realize the concept.

TOKYO--(BUSINESS WIRE/AETOSWire)-- NTT Corporation (NTT)(TOKYO:9432) will exhibit at CES 2021, the world’s most influential tech event, which will be held online from Monday, January 11 to Thursday, January 14, 2021(EST). This is the second attendance at the CES for NTT following last year. Through presentations and videos, NTT will showcase as follows:

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210107005949/en/

Spotlight Session [Live]:
“NTT vision for moving IOWN forward”
Jun Sawada, President and Chief Executive Officer, NTT
Jan 12, 10:15–10:45am (EST) / Jan 13, 0:15–0:45am (JST)
Jun Sawada talks about how NTT is moving the IOWN initiative forward and its future prospects, hosted by top NTT INDYCAR SERIES driver Takuma Sato.
The IOWN initiative introduces photonics-electronics convergence technology into devices like LSI, silicon chipsets, as well as networks to achieve faster information processing and ultra-low energy consumption.
As a result, it is expected to develop a more flexible computing and communications infrastructure, and make more accurate predictions about the future by cyber physical interaction.

Exhibitor Presentation [On-demand]:
“The IOWN initiative for smart world in the future”
Katsuhiko Kawazoe, Executive Vice President, Head of Research and Development Planning, NTT
Katsuhiko Kawazoe presents how breakthrough innovation in optical technologies help make IOWN a reality, utilizing three key platform technologies and five use case scenarios.

Showcase Gallery [On-demand]:
Video presenting IOWN-related examples
NTT will showcase IOWN Use-case in the area of Healthcare, Environment and Energy, Agriculture, Sports & Entertainment, Mobility by short movies.

NTT will also launch “NTT R&D CES 2021 Special Room” on the “DOOR”, its 3D typed owned media that showcases IOWN-related videos and introduction video of the “DOOR”. The “DOOR” can be available through VR devices, smart phones and PCs. NTT’s contents of CES 2021 will be accessible on the “DOOR” after the middle of February, 2021.

إن تي تي بصدد المشاركة عبر الإنترنت في معرض الإلكترونيات الاستهلاكية سي إي إس 2021، الحدث الأكثر تأثيراً في العالم في مجال التكنولوجيا

تحت عنوان "الشبكة البصريّة واللاسلكية المبتكرة ’آي أو دبليون إن‘- ابتكار ثوري لرفاهية الإنسان"، ستعرض "إن تي تي" أهمية الجهود التي تبذلها والتقدم الذي تحرزه لتحقيق المفهوم.

طوكيو – (بزنيس واير/"ايتوس واير") – تعتزم شركة "إن تي تي" (المدرجة في بورصة طوكيو تحت الرمز TOKYO:9432) المشاركة في معرض الإلكترونيّات الاستهلاكيّة "سي إي إس 2021"، وهو الحدث الأكثر تأثيراً في العالم في مجال التكنولوجيا، والذي سيُعقد عبر الإنترنت من الإثنين 11 يناير إلى الخميس 14 يناير 2021 (بالتوقيت الشرقي). وتعد هذه المشاركة الثانية لـ"إن تي تي" في معرض "إس إي إس" بعد مشاركتها الأولى في العام الماضي. وستعرض "إن تي تي" ما يلي، من خلال مجموعة من العروض والفيديوهات:

يحتوي هذا البيان الصحافي على وسائط متعددة. يمكنكم الاطلاع على البيان الكامل هنا:

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210107005949/en/

جلسة تسليط الضوء [مباشرة]:

"رؤية شركة ’إن تي تي‘ لدفع الشبكة البصريّة واللاسلكيّة المبتكرة ’آي أو دبليو إن‘ قدماً"

جون ساوادا، رئيس شركة "إن تي تي" ورئيسها التنفيذي

12 يناير بين 10:15 و10:45 صباحاً (بالتوقيت الشرقي) / 13 يناير بين 0:15 و0:45 صباحاً (بتوقيت اليابان)

يتحدث جون ساوادا عن كيفيّة قيام "إن تي تي" بدفع مبادرة "آي أو دبليو إن" قدماً وعن آفاقها المستقبليّة، وسيحاوره تاكوما ساتو، أحد أفضل السائقين في بطولة السيارات "إن تي تي إندي كار".

وتكشف مبادرة "آي أو دبليو إن" عن تكنولوجيا تلاقي الفوتونيّات-الإلكترونيّات في الأجهزة، مثل شرائح السيليكون المتكاملة الواسعة النطاق، بالإضافة إلى الشبكات، لتحقيق معالجة أسرع للمعلومات واستهلاك متدنٍّ جدّاً للطاقة.

ونتيجةً لذلك، يُتوقّع تطوير بنية تحتية أكثر مرونة للحوسبة والاتصالات، والتوصل إلى توقعات أكثر دقة حول المستقبل من خلال التفاعل المادي السيبراني.

العرض الخاص [على الطلب]:

"مبادرة الشبكة البصريّة واللاسلكيّة المبتكرة ’آي أو دبليو إن‘ لعالم ذكيّ في المستقبل"

كاتسوهيكو كاوازوي، نائب الرئيس التنفيذي ورئيس تخطيط الأبحاث والتطوير لدى "إن تي تي"

يعرض كاتسوهيكو كاوازوي كيفيّة مساعدة الابتكار الثوري في التقنيّات البصريّة في تحويل الشبكة البصريّة واللاسلكيّة المبتكرة إلى حقيقة، باستخدام ثلاث تقنيّات أساسيّة للمنصات وخمسة سيناريوهات لحالات الاستعمال.

معرض [على الطلب]:

فيديو يقدّم أمثلة مرتبطة بالشبكة البصريّة واللاسلكيّة المبتكرة

ستعرض شركة "إن تي تي" حالات استعمال الشبكة البصريّة واللاسلكيّة المبتكرة في مجالات الرعاية الصحية، والبيئة والطاقة، والزراعة، والرياضة والترفيه، والتنقلية، وذلك من خلال فيديوهات قصيرة.

وستقوم "إن تي تي" أيضاً بإطلاق "غرفة ’إن تي تي‘ للأبحاث والتطوير الخاصة بمعرض الإلكترونيات الاستهلاكية ’سي إي إس 2021‘ عبر الوسائط الإعلامية الثلاثية الأبعاد "دي أو أو آر" التي تمتلكها الشركة، والتي تعرض فيديوهات مرتبطة بالشبكة البصريّة واللاسلكيّة المبتكرة وفيديو تعريفي حول "دي أو أو آر". وتتوافر وسائط "دي أو أو آر" من خلال أجهزة الواقع الافتراضي، والهواتف الذكية، والحواسيب المحمولة. ويمكن الوصول إلى محتويات "إن تي تي" لمعرض "سي إي إس 2021" عبر "دي أو أو آر" بعد منتصف فبراير 2021.