The fund will be managed by Handmark out of its Kansas City and London offices in partnership with Samsung Electronics. The companies are searching for games that best showcase Samsung mobile phones and the advanced features they offer. Both current and new content ideas are encouraged, taking timing and cost into consideration.

“We know there’s a wealth of great ideas out there waiting to be discovered,” said Chris Barnett, senior vice president of Global Sales and Strategic Partnerships for Handmark. “This is a fantastic opportunity for anyone, including big brands, mobile developers or any individual with a unique, creative idea to make it a reality.”

“Samsung recognizes the importance of content and applications for today’s mobile phone users,” said Ho Soo Lee, executive vice president for Samsung Electronics’ Media Solution Center. “We are pleased to broaden our partnership with Handmark to help lead the Global Venture Fund, using their expertise to support us capturing great ideas and raise the standard of mobile innovation.”

In addition to funding those selected, Handmark will also provide assistance with development, testing and certification, as well as distribution of the application through the Samsung Application Store.

To submit a proposal or for more information, visit www.handmark.com/company/samsungfund. The deadline for entries is November 20, 2009 at 5 PM CT.

• AirTight Networks
• Allen Corp. of America
• Buysec
• Correlog
• Courion
• Damballa
• Evidian
• Hitachi
• Liquid Machines
• NSSPlus
• Quest Software
• Tier-3
• Validity

In addition, the following 8 partners now have “McAfee Compatible” solutions and have been promoted to Technology Partner status in the program. McAfee has worked with these partners to validate their integrations for their adherence to compatibility best practices.

• Absolute Identification
• eIQnetworks
• Guardium
• HBGary
• Intellitactics
• Prevari
• Triumfant
• Verdiem

McAfee has also welcomed the following five partners to its Sales Teaming Program. Partners in the Sales Teaming Program complement the McAfee product portfolio, and enable the McAfee sales force and channel to drive more complete security solution relationships with enterprise customers.

• Absolute Identification
• ArcSight
• eIQnetworks
• Intellitactics
• Verdiem

Across North America, Europe, the Middle East and Australia, McAfee now has 80 SIA partners committed to helping customers drive operational savings with McAfee Compatible products.  To learn more about how partners are working with McAfee, please visit the SIA partner directory page.

“The Security Innovation Alliance is the leading open security platform in the industry, and is proving its success in the development of interoperable security solutions,” said Ed Barry, senior director of the McAfee SIA partner program. “In comparison with last year, we have now more than doubled the number of partners in SIA. Our customers and channel partners can now rely on a partner ecosystem which delivers solutions far more comprehensive than any that can be obtained from any single security vendor.”

In support of the SIA partner ecosystem, McAfee is hosting its second annual SIA Developer Conference in Las Vegas today. The Developer Conference will be held in conjunction with FOCUS 09, McAfee’s user conference, which is being sponsored in part by over 20 SIA partners showcasing completed and upcoming integrations. As part of the Developer Conference, McAfee will also be announcing the winner of its 2009 SIA Most Innovative Partner Award to the SIA partner that today best leverages the McAfee security and compliance management platform to deliver joint customer value. The winner will be highlighted on the McAfee SIA Web site after the announcement is made.

To further articulate SIA’s value, on October 9 at FOCUS 09, SIA Partners Absolute Software, ArcSight and SignaCert will join McAfee for a panel discussion titled, “Visibility and Velocity—Unlocking the Value of Integrated Solutions.” This session will discuss how McAfee works with multiple vendors to integrate products to lower the cost of ownership and operation through integration; provide an open platform for security integration; and leverage this open platform to deliver cross-product integration benefits.

LG MOBILE WORLDCUP hopes to reinforce its reputation as the world’s premiere event of its kind with various activities this year under the unifying catchphrase “Sharing Fun Through Mobile Technology”. During the festival’s run, participants can take part in various activities such as game tournaments, a user-created “Mobile Pop Art” competition, a photo contest, a celebrity-studded gala concert as well as the texting competition.

This year, LG expanded MOBILE WORLDCUP from four to sixteen participating countries and a total prize pool of US $1 million, the largest purse for an event of its kind. The first National Championship will be held at the Jakarta Theater in Indonesia on the 15th of August four weeks after the commencement of the national league and other related mobile events. The 200 fastest texters will compete for the final prize of 100 million rupiah (approximately US $9,900). The National Championship will continue from July to October across five continents and 13 countries, including Vietnam, Malaysia, South Africa, Mexico, Spain, Portugal, Colombia, Argentina, Brazil, Peru, Russia, China and South Korea.

The final World Championship will be held in the U.S. in November with the champions from 16 national rounds –- including the U.S. and Canada where winners have already been named — competing for the maximum prize of US $100,000. The ultimate competition to find the world’s fastest texter will take place using LG mobile devices in front of a live audience over several rounds. As a result of the excitement around the event and significant prizes, the company expects worldwide interest in LG MOBILE WORLDCUP this year to reach as much as 6 million participants.

LG launched MOBILE WORLDCUP in 2008 as a unique global event to celebrate a mobile culture and lifestyle enhanced by LG’s state-of-the-art wireless technology. MOBILE WORLDCUP 2008 enjoyed widespread support and exposure with more than 700,000 contestants in South Korea, Brazil, Canada and the United States.

Design entrees will be accepted in two categories: 1) Practical Category – realistic designs that have the potential to be commercialized within 1 to 2 years; and 2) Dream Category – futuristic designs reflecting free and imaginative ideas. Outstanding works will be recognized and awarded with cash prizes.

The panel of judges include product designer Toshiyuki Kita, art director Manabu Mizuno, Nikkei Design Magazine’s chief editor Kazuya Shimokawa, and art director and the Japan Design Association’s chairman Katsumi Asaba. Entry submissions will be accepted starting from June 5 to July 31, 2009. Outstanding works will be exhibited at CEATEC JAPAN 2009 in October 2009.

LivingInHD.com is a social networking site designed to demystify High Definition and “unconfuse” the consumer. Members share insights, opinions and advice with others interested and enthusiastic about the world of HD. The site also helps people find creative inspiration on how to use their HD products in exciting ways, as well as interact with technical experts, view a wide range of useful member-created How-To Videos about products and projects, and participate in in-depth communal conversations about experiences, ideas and creative discoveries.

Current and new members of the LivingInHD.com community will be eligible to register daily for the Living In HD 30×30 contest..  More information about the contest, including complete contest rules and requirements, can be found online at http://www.livinginhd.com/go/promo/30×30entry.

In addition to the 30×30 contest, Panasonic is now accepting applications for additional Living in HD Family program participants. Eligible participants for the program can be a family, couple, single person, group of friends, co-workers – anyone who is enthusiastic about becoming a part of this special HD community. Interested individuals and groups can apply online at http://www.livinginhd.com/hd/app/registerForm.htm.

Yesterday in Warsaw, Poland, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer announced that the Imagine Cup 2010 Finals will take place in Poland, a country with a track record of producing highly skilled IT students as well as successful Imagine Cup entrants.

“The Imagine Cup inspires students to use their creativity to help change the world for the better by discovering new ways to use technology to address some of the world’s toughest challenges,” Ballmer said. “Some of the greatest innovations and companies of tomorrow will be created by today’s students. The Imagine Cup presents a fantastic opportunity for them to compete with students from around the world.”

Students will participate in categories ranging from software design and games development to multimedia and self-expression. Their work will showcase new solutions to many of the world’s most difficult issues, while giving them the opportunity to win generous cash prizes.

This year, Microsoft is calling on participants to bring their ideas to life in nine categories, each catering to a different talent:
•

Software Design. Students create real-world software and services applications that use Microsoft tools and technology — including mobile devices. Competitors are asked to demonstrate innovation on the Microsoft .NET Framework and Microsoft Windows platform as they conceive, test and build applications that will help improve the world they live in.
•

Embedded Development. Students develop their own embedded device designed to function for the betterment of all. This invitational challenges students to go beyond the PC desktop and work in both hardware and software environments to build an embedded solution using Windows Embedded CE 6.0 R2 and the provided embedded platform.
•

Game Development. Students create a new game that uses Microsoft XNA Game Studio 3.0 and Microsoft Visual Studio. This category offers students who’ve always enjoyed playing games a chance to create their own game and, at the same time, help change the global community.
•

Robotics and Algorithm. This invitational is a mathematical obstacle course where students must navigate a series of brainteasers, code challenges and algorithmic puzzles to demonstrate their ability to understand the potential of robots in our world.
•

IT Challenge. Students are challenged to develop, deploy and maintain IT systems that are elegant, functional, robust and secure. This demanding competition requires students to demonstrate their knowledge and skills in the science of networks, databases and servers. They also need to show their analytical abilities and make tough decisions in IT environments.
•

MashUp. The object of the MashUp competition is to create a new and useful Web 2.0 application. Students will use Microsoft PopFly to leverage current third-party data and services available on the Internet to create a new and unique tool that is effectively accessed by other Internet users.
•

Photography. In this competition, students communicate a story that explores a critical issue through a photo essay of inspiring still images.
•

Short Film. This category challenges students to create an original short film and also demonstrate excellence in filmmaking at all levels from concept art to polished editing.
•

Design. Students create an innovative design for easier-to-use machines that help improve human interactions. Students are encouraged to use the power of technology as means to manifest their creativity.

After advancing through the online, local and regional Imagine Cup competitions, qualifying students will gather in Egypt at the Imagine Cup Worldwide Finals in July 2009 to present their entries to a panel of judges from academia and the technology industry. Prizes for Imagine Cup 2009 will total more than $180,000 (U.S.) across the nine categories.

Free Student Training and Certification

This year, Microsoft Learning is offering students who compete in the Imagine Cup free education resources, training and certification on Microsoft technologies. Students can access these resources at https://www.dreamspark.com/Learning/freetraining.aspx.

Imagine Cup Sponsors

The Imagine Cup is being supported by a range of partner organizations including Paramount Digital Entertainment, Mesh Services & Live Framework, Microsoft Accessibility Business Unit, Microsoft Education Product Group, Microsoft Interoperability, Microsoft Learning, Microsoft Research External Research, Microsoft Parallel Computing Platform, Microsoft Robotics, Microsoft Unlimited Potential Group, Windows Embedded Business, Windows Mobile and Microsoft XNA Game Platform Group.

Other winners included Ubisoft’s hauntingly beautiful update of the “Prince of Persia” franchise, which won the prize for Best Visual Arts, and Ready at Dawn’s portable action-adventure, “God of War: Chains of Olympus,” winner of the Best Handheld Game award. EA Redwood Shores’ shocking horror title, “Dead Space,” won the prize for Best Audio award.

Additionally, successful independent developer 2D Boy, winner of the 2008 Independent Games Festival’s Design Innovation award and Technical Experience award, snagged this year’s Game Developers Choice award for Best Downloadable game for “World of Goo.”

The Game Developers Choice Awards, which honor the very best games of the year, are voted on by developers and created for developers. They are produced and hosted by the GDC and presented by Gamasutra.com and Game Developer Magazine, with the aid of a distinguished Advisory Committee that includes many of the world’s top game creators, and each award is decided by thousands of votes from game professionals worldwide.

This year, Hideo Kojima, the Corporate Officer, Executive Producer and Director of Kojima Productions and creator of the seminal Metal Gear series was presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award for his influence on the craft of game development and his twenty years of work on Metal Gear and other notable franchises.

In addition, Harmonix co-founders Alex Rigopulos and Eran Egozy, co-developers of a groundbreaking decade-plus long line of music games culminating in the Rock Band franchise, received the Pioneer Award for their work; and Tommy Tallarico, co-founder of the Video Games Live concert series and founder of the Game Audio Network Guild (G.A.N.G.), received the Ambassador Award for helping to advance the game audio community.

The recipients of the 9th Annual Game Developers Choice Awards are:

Game of the Year
Fallout 3 (Bethesda Softworks)

Best Game Design:
LittleBigPlanet (Media Molecule)

Best Writing:
Fallout 3 (Bethesda Softworks)

Best Technology:
LittleBigPlanet (Media Molecule)

Best Visual Arts:
Prince of Persia (Ubisoft Montreal)

Best Debut Game:
LittleBigPlanet (Media Molecule)

Best Handheld Game:
God Of War: Chains Of Olympus (Ready at Dawn)

Innovation Award:
LittleBigPlanet (Media Molecule)

Best Audio:
Dead Space (EA Redwood Shores)

Best Downloadable Game:
World Of Goo (2D Boy)

Recipients for the evening’s special awards were:

Lifetime Achievement Award
Hideo Kojima

Pioneer Award
Alex Rigopulos and Eran Egozy

Ambassador Award
Tommy Tallarico

“Over the past nine years, the Game Developers Conference has become the premiere video game award show because it gives voice to those who understand games better than anyone; the people who make them,” said Meggan Scavio, content director of the Game Developers Conference. “The games being recognized here are virtuoso efforts that have truly advanced the state of video games. Our congratulations to all the talented and hardworking teams that put so much of themselves into their art.”

At the event, Ojanperä will deliver “Developing for the Era of Social Location,” affirming the exciting possibilities available to software developers interested in the convergence of social networking, physical location and mobility using Nokia platforms.

Additional keynote speakers include Lee Williams, Executive Director of the Symbian Foundation, who will address the “Evolution of Open Mobile Platforms”; and Michael Halbherr, Vice President of Nokia Location Based Services, who will discuss “Unleashing Innovation for the World with Maps.”

The latest Nokia Developer Summit agenda includes experts from the world of mobile technology and is available at www.developersummit2009.com/agenda.

Attendees at the Nokia Developer Summit will receive the latest updates about publishing to the Ovi Store through www.publish.ovi.com, a self-service publishing tool that provides developers with an easy way to distribute and monetize their applications and content to millions of consumers using Nokia devices.

“The 2009 Nokia Developer Summit will gather developers from around the world to learn about the latest technologies and business opportunities that only Nokia can offer,” said Rob Taylor, Head of Forum Nokia. “The Summit brings developers, global network operators, business partners and Nokia experts together in a truly collaborative learning environment that explores how Nokia can help developers improve their business and tap into the growth in mobile application development opportunities worldwide.”

In addition, software developers attending the 2009 Nokia Developer Summit will learn about:

- Advanced technical information about Nokia technologies and development platforms, including Ovi, Flash Lite, Web Runtime, Qt, maemo and Nokia touch-screen interfaces;

- Partnership opportunities with Nokia, as well as funding opportunities for developers through Nokia’s venture capital arm, Nokia Growth Partners; and

- Marketing and promotional opportunites through Forum Nokia plus revenue sharing and pricing strategies for Ovi Store.

Developer attendees can also schedule one-on-one meetings at the Summit with Nokia technology and business experts to answer open questions. In addtion, attendees can participate in special hands-on lab exercises in the latest mobile technologies and platforms that promise to substantially broaden the software development and business horizons of mobile developers who attend the event.

On Day Two of the Summit, attendees will have the opportunity to watch an elite group of developers selected by Forum Nokia, as they go face-to-face in a 24-hour “Hackathon” competition to complete Web Runtime widgets for the home screen of the new Nokia N97. The ideas for the “Hackathon” build upon the best widget ideas selected from more than 1,000 concepts submitted by consumers around the world for the Nokia N97 Widget Design Competition. The winning widgets created during the “Hackathon” will be distributed through the Ovi Store.  Additional details about this contest are available at http://2009.nseries.com.

For more information and to register in advance for the 2009 Nokia Developer Summit, visit:  www.developersummit2009.com.

The International Forum Design evaluates products against a number of criteria including design quality, workmanship, innovation, environmental compatibility, ergonomics, choice of material, universal design appeal, and functionality. As an independent institution, iF has been rewarding design in industry as well as providing a window to the latest design developments and trends for more than 50 years.

“It is an honor to receive this prestigious nod from a reputable international organization like iF,” said Claudine Wolas-Shiva, senior marketing manager, Consumer Ink Jets, Epson America. “Epson strives to bring innovative features and stylish products to the market across the globe and the recognition is appreciated.”

For more information on the Epson products, visit www.Epson.com.