Google’s three-dimensional virtual world system Lively does not seek to be another Second Life. Gartner believes its primary purpose is to lure social network users away from Facebook and MySpace.

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Cloud computing is fraught with security risks, according to analyst firm Gartner. Smart customers will ask tough questions, and consider getting a security assessment from a neutral third party before committing to a cloud vendor, Gartner says in a June report titled “Assessing the Security Risks of Cloud Computing.”  
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While much of the attention in the U.S. smart phone market is on the next-generation iPhone, which is expected to be revealed by Apple Inc. on Monday, the global leader for smart phone sales is still Nokia Corp., analyst firm Gartner Inc. said in a report released today.
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With the increased consumer traffic that social networks are generating on the Internet, retailers must have a position on social networks, according to Gartner. Although social networks have tended to center on younger demographic groups, they are expanding into wider groups that matter to a broader base of retailers such as career-based social networks, shopping-based social networks, and employee groups.
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Worldwide PC shipments totaled 71.1 million units in the first quarter of 2008, a 12.3 percent increase from the first quarter of 2007, according to preliminary results by Gartner, Inc. “The U.S. results were in line with our expectation, indicating that the PC market was modestly affected by the U.S. recession, although there was no fundamental change in market conditions,” said Mika Kitagawa, principal analyst for Gartner’s Client Computing Markets group.
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Worldwide PC shipments are forecast to total 293 million units in 2008, up 10.9 percent from last year - 2007 shipments were 264 million units, according to Gartner. However, analysts warned that growth could fall into single digits if global economic headwinds strengthen.
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The worldwide market for semiconductor assembly and test services (SATS) grew for the sixth consecutive year in 2007, according to preliminary results by Gartner, Inc. Worldwide SATS revenue was up 7.4 percent at $20.6 billion. For the sixth year in succession, the SATS market continued to outpace the overall semiconductor market by more than 50 percent (overall semiconductor revenue grew 2.9 percent in 2007).
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Organizations need to think carefully before they deploy virtual environments such as Second Life, because of issues with access and use, according to Gartner Inc. Gartner said that the allure of environments such as Linden Lab’s Second Life can be intoxicating for users and, in some cases, for organizations, but IT managers need to exercise caution and consider other options. “Second Life is acceptable for pilots and prototypes,” said James Lundy, managing vice president at Gartner. “However, current technical issues would have a significant impact on any organisation that wanted to use it in a production environment, and we are advising companies to evaluate alternatives.”
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Businesses need to resist the temptation to exclude their employees’ access to Web 2.0 technologies and services if they are to benefit from the considerable creativity that Web 2.0 can unleash, according to Gartner. They should secure, rather than block enterprise access to the Web 2.0 global ecosystem. Many IT organizations are responding to the demand for Web 2.0 technologies. According to a Gartner Executive Programs survey of 1,500 CIOs worldwide, half of the respondents said they plan to invest in Web 2.0 technologies for the first time in 2008.
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Worldwide sales of mobile phones to end users surpassed 1.15 billion units in 2007, a 16 per cent increase from 2006 sales of 990.9 million, according to Gartner. Mobile phone sales at the end of the year were consistent with the yearly trend, as fourth quarter sales reached 330 million units. The mature Western Europe and North America markets are driven by operator contract terms and replacement cycles and will account for just 30 per cent of the global mobile devices market in 2008.
Nokia achieved its long-term target of 40 per cent market share in the fourth quarter of 2007 when it sold slightly more than 133 million phones across the world. Despite some component shortages, Nokia increased its market share sequentially in all regions except North America, which remains a challenging market for the vendor. In emerging markets, products such as the 1110, the 1600 and the 2630 were in demand by consumers, while in mature markets such as Western Europe high-end phones like the N95, N82 and N73 were sought-after devices. In 2008, Nokia will need to continue to improve its portfolio, offering not only more applications and functions, but also novel designs and improved user interfaces.
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