A digest of the top business and technology news stories from the past week.
iPad 2 sold out on day one – 70PC sold to new buyers
As many as 500,000 iPad 2 devices were sold in the US over the 12-13 March weekend after going on sale on Friday, 11 March. This trumps the 300,000 original iPads that were sold last year upon their weekend debut.
According to Fortune and analyst firm Piper Jaffray, all the iPad devices were sold in a single day, with stocks completely depleted by Saturday, 12 March.
Some 70pc of iPad 2 buyers were brand new to the iPad, compared with 23pc of iPhone 4 buyers who were new to the iPhone at launch.
Japanese earthquake sends tremors through consumer tech
The devastating Japanese earthquake and tsunami on 11 March could result in significant shortages of vital electronic components that drive the consumer electronics business globally, including NAND Flash memory, LCD panels and other parts and materials.
While there are few reports of actual damage at electronic production facilities, impacts on the transportation and power infrastructure will result in disruptions of supply, resulting in the short supply and rising prices, analyst IHS iSuppli warns.
Japan is the world’s largest supplier of silicon used to make semi-conductor chips – at about 60pc of the global total.
Facebook hires Google director
Social networking site Facebook has poached Amin Zoufonoun, director of corporate development at Google, to come look after its mergers and acquisitions.
According to a Reuters report, Zoufonoun, who has worked at Google since 2003, will lead the social networking company’s merger and acquisition efforts and will be responsible for hiring more people for the M&A team.
This is not the first time Facebook has hired employees of Google. The current chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg, vice-president of advertising and global operations David Fischer, and mobile head Erick Tseng are among the most notable past employees of Google who are now working for Facebook.
Lough Shore invests in NI software firm Geopii
A Northern Irish software company whose technology will help banks to start lending again with confidence has attracted an undisclosed investment from Lough Shore Investments.
Coleraine-based Geopii’s clients have US$100bn worth of assets under management. Ashley Moore, Geopii managing director, explained the company’s core technology is capable of providing the financial services industry with comprehensive portfolio analysis.
Geopii offers a solution designed to assist with the management, assessment, evaluation and viability of land portfolios. In particular, Geopii focuses on land and property in distressed market conditions.
Just-Eat secures US$48m in funding
Online takeaway ordering service Just-Eat has secured US$48m in funding, led by venture capitalists Greylock Partners and Redpoint Ventures.
The investment will be used to further Just-Eat’s rollout internationally and to increase its range of services both online and for partner restaurants.
The London-based company allows users to access the menus of a network of restaurants and order a takeaway directly from them online.
It’s represented in 10 countries across three continents, with more than 15,000 restaurants availing of the service. Currently, there are 646 Irish restaurants on the site.
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