AsiaNet Daily Summary

AsiaNet Daily Summary

SYDNEY, July 19 /AsiaNet/ --

Telematics specialist Imarda announced that it has acquired New Zealand telematics hardware company, Prolificx, in a stock-swap deal that values Prolificx at A$7.59 million (US$6.66 million).

HKC ANNOUNCES... HONG KONG: HKC (Holdings) Limited has signed a series of conditional agreements, in which Cerberus Asia Capital Management, LLC or its affiliates, will become the second largest shareholder while the two existing major shareholders, Creator Holdings Limited and Penta Investment Advisers Ltd., will commit additional capital. www.hkcholdings.com

NEW WEBSITE... BANGKOK: A free online consultation is featured in thailandwonders.com, a new website of the Tourism Authority of Thailand. The website aims to add virtual interactions between travellers and travel experts and assist prospective tourists who plan to visit to Thailand. www.thailandwonders.com

ONLINE CONCERT... SAN FRANCISCO: Friendster announced that it will broadcast the first ever Malaysian online concert, featuring singer Karen Kong. The concert will be broadcast in six episodes on Kong's Fan Profile on Friendster (www.friendster.com/karenkong). Friendster members can receive bulletins and messages regarding when each segment will be posted by becoming a fan of Kong on her profile. www.friendster.com www.friendster.com/karenkong www.friendster.com/fanprofiles

VALKYRIE BEGINS... LOS ANGELES: United Artists Entertainment LLC announced the start of principal photography in Berlin on the international production of "Valkyrie," a suspense thriller based on the true story of the daring German officers' plot to assassinate Hitler in 1944. www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20070718/LAW135-a www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20070718/LAW135-b

FRANCE ALLOWS... THE HAGUE: France is the latest country to allow family members of skilled international staff to work during an assignment. The changes, which apply to intra-group transfers and a new category for 'competences and talents', were part of the 2006 Immigration and Integration Law, implemented in May 2007. www.permitsfoundation.com

FALSE POSITIVES... SYDNEY: "As banks scramble to institute anti-money laundering procedures that will pass muster with the AUSTRAC regulator, they may be in for some nasty surprises when they see the operational expense surrounding 'false positives,'" observes Nigel Peach, a Sydney-based anti-money laundering expert at risk and compliance specialist Fortent.

POLICY PROPOSALS... WASHINGTON: More than 250 young people from 31 countries gathered in Washington, D.C., July 15-17 to showcase a remarkable international civic education program called Project Citizen. Empowering a New Generation for Democracy: The International Project Citizen Showcase was the culmination of months of work by students to create public policy proposals addressing problems in their communities, from Vancouver, Washington, to Yogyakarta, Indonesia. www.civiced.org/2007intlpcshowcase.html

GO211.COM ANNOUNCES... BOSTON: Go211.com (www.go211.com), the premier action sports social networking and online video share site, announces that it has been named the "Exclusive Behind The Scenes Portal" and the live Webcast of the event will be "Presented by Go211.com" for the 2007 Honda US Open of Surfing. Go211.com will be on location July 20-29th at Huntington Beach, CA to bring all the action of the event to Go211.com's community. www.go211.com www.usopenofsurfing.com

PEPSICO STRENGTHENS... PURCHASE, New York: PepsiCo announces an initiative that further strengthens its commitment to meeting consumers' health and nutrition needs by redefining how the company markets its products to children. www.pepsico.com www.smartspot.com

WGA ANNOUNCES... SINGAPORE: Leading experts from the World Glaucoma Association (WGA) launched the group's first consensus on intraocular pressure (IOP). The panel recognized that elevated IOP is the leading risk factor for glaucoma progression and accurate measurement of IOP plays a key role in assessing glaucoma risk and disease management.

DEBT RELIEF... TUCSON, Arizona: Announcement by Sovereign Advisers - The American Bondholders Foundation, LLC is pleased to announce a newly-created debt relief program to benefit companies indebted to the Chinese government or any of its state-owned enterprises. www.sov-advisers.com

GREEN ELEVATORS... FARMINGTON, Connecticut: Otis Elevator Company, a unit of United Technologies Corp., opened the world's first "green" elevator manufacturing facility, which will produce environmentally friendly elevator systems. www.otis.com

ALCAN AGREEMENT... MONTREAL: Alcan has announced an agreement with Hindalco Industries Limited, India (Hindalco) for the sale of its 45 per cent interest in Utkal Alumina International Limited (Utkal). The Utkal joint venture was established in 1992 and involves the development of a new bauxite mine and alumina refinery in the Indian state of Orissa (Utkal Project). Alcan expects completion during the third quarter of 2007. www.alcan.com

STARVIEW EXPANDS... SAN FRANCISCO: Starview Technology, Inc., the leading provider of Real-Time Process Intelligence solutions for the semiconductor and electronics industries, announced that it has expanded its global distribution and support by forming a new subsidiary in Japan. www.starviewtechnology.com

OXIANA REPORTS... MELBOURNE: Oxiana Limited has released its June 2007 quarterly report. www.oxiana.com.au

AsiaNet is a consortium of leading news agencies distributing unedited, translated news releases for worldwide clients. Visit www.asianetnews.net for full-text versions.

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