An overview of the week in deals in the Irish technology sector, including the deal between Ryanair and Maxroam to slash roaming charges, and CA Technologies’ purchase of Arcot Systems.
Ryanair and Maxroam deal to slash roaming by 70pc
Passengers on Ryanair will now be able to reduce their mobile phone roaming charges by up to 70pc as a result of a new partnership deal the airline has struck with Maxroam.
Maxroam, a low-cost roaming SIM card provider, enables mobile phone users to make low-cost calls anywhere in the world and the company has struck deals in a number of verticals that enable users to make calls on land, at sea and in the air.
Ryanair’s 73 million passengers can now also significantly cut the cost of making and receiving calls, text/SMS messages or mobile data by buying a Maxroam SIM card.
Ryanair passengers can buy a ‘roaming bundle’ which includes a phone, SIM card and €10 call credit for just €29 on Ryanair.com.
Maxroam SIM cards can be used anywhere in the world (in a standard GSM mobile phone) while iPad and iPhone SIM cards are also available to allow all passengers to save even more with Ryanair.
CA Technologies buys Arcot Systems for cloud security
CA Technologies has signed an agreement to acquire Arcot Systems, a provider of advanced authentication and fraud prevention solutions through on-premises or cloud services.
The transaction was valued at US$200m and adds to CA Technologies’ Identity and Access Management portfolio.
Arcot’s services prevent fraudulent transactions for about 1 million online credit card transactions each day.
CA Technologies hopes that, by combining Arcot’s technology with their CA SiteMinder offerings, it can provide advanced capabilities to help reduce risk, support compliance and secure business transactions.
Intel to acquire Infineon business for US$1.4bn
Intel is acquiring German chip maker Infineon’s wireless solutions (WLS) business for $1.4bn, contributing to Intel’s strategy to make connected computing ubiquitous from smartphones to laptops to embedded computing.
WLS, a provider of cellular platforms to top tier global phone makers, will operate as a standalone business serving its existing customers.
Skyscanner and Hostelworld.com team up
Flight comparison website Skycanner.net has formed a partnership with hostel booking website Hostelworld.com, in order for Hostelworld.com to enhance its functionality and user experience for customers.
Skyscanner’s flight search tool will provide Hostelworld.com’s customers with comparisons on more than 670,000 flights across 600 countries.
Weedle awarded €200,000 to define future of search
Social media player Weedle and UCD scientists have been awarded a €200,000 innovation award to combine their expertise to enhance online search and connect technology.
With users in more than 60 countries after just six months, Weedle.com, the Irish-based social media company, is fast establishing its online presence as ‘The World’s Trusted Network of People with Skills’. They’ve even trademarked it!
“The UCD scientists based at CLARITY are leading experts in web search and information discovery systems which help distill vast quantities of online information into timely and accurate search results for users,” says Weedle co-founder and CEO Iain Mac Donald.
“Through this R&D partnership, we aim to improve the relevance and quality of Weedle’s search results generated for our users. Ultimately, this will lead to higher user satisfaction and enable Weedle to increase its pace of growth in countries around the world.”
