FT.com / Companies / US & Canada - Google acquires wiki pioneer JotSpot

FT.com / Companies / US & Canada - Google acquires wiki pioneer JotSpot:

"Google acquires wiki pioneer JotSpot

By Richard Waters in San Francisco

Published: November 1 2006 02:00 | Last updated: November 1 2006 02:00

Google's steady encroachment into the corporate software market continued on Tuesday as it announced the acquisition of JotSpot, a three-year-old private company that runs wikis, or communal web pages.

The acquisition also opens a new front in the competition between Google and Microsoft, further rounding out the internet company's package of 'productivity' and collaboration tools that are coming to resemble an online version of the Office desktop software.

ADVERTISEMENT

Founded by Joe Kraus - whose earlier creation, the internet portal Excite, experienced one of the most dramatic rises and falls of the dotcom era - JotSpot is one of several 'Web 2.0' companies that have aimed their services mainly at corporate rather than individual users.

Wikis are web pages that can be written or edited by a group, making them a potentially useful tool for workers in different locations who are trying to collaborate.

As such, they reduce the need for large numbers of group emails and attachments, which have become the bane of many office workers' lives.

The acquisition echoes Google's recent purchase of Writely, an online word processing service, which was relaunched last month as Google Docs and packaged with an undated version of the company's spreadsheet service.

JotSpot's service will also be moved onto Google's software architecture, and will be integrated with these and other Google services, said Mr Kraus.

He added that the push for tighter integration was part of a broader effort at Google, begun by its co-founder Sergey Brin, to move from releasing large numbers of stand-alone services to building tighter integration and 'richer' features into the services Google already has,

Google has said that its aim is not to replace Microsoft's Office, but to create a range of services that are more suited to online collaboration between groups of workers. JotSpot has so far sold its service to 2,000 companies, said Mr Kraus, but the fees will be dropped now that it is part of Google.

He added that the wiki service was likely to fit closely with the company's word processing and spreadsheet services, which are aimed at a 'crossover market' of both consumers and small businesses."

Staples opens digital copy services centers - 10/19/2006 - Purchasing

Staples opens digital copy services centers - 10/19/2006 - Purchasing: "Staples opens digital copy services centers
By Staff
Purchasing
October 19, 2006




ADVERTISEMENT
Click here!

Prices

DSP PRICES ARE FALLING

RFID READERS READY TO DIP

More >>

As a way to help purchasing further consolidate its supply base, Staples now offers its contract customers digital copy and print services.

Through Staples Digital Copy Services, office buyers at mid-sized to large businesses can get high-quality on-demand copy and print services with quick turn-around and delivery, says Lisa Hamblet, vice president of business-to-business services for Staples in Framingham, Mass.

Staples has opened two new digital production centers equipped with digital technology. One in Edison, N.J., serves customers in the mid-Atlantic region of the U.S., while the other in City of Industry, Calif., serves customers on the West Coast.

Staples started offering Digital Copy Services to contract customers in December, 2004, when it opened its first pilot center in Sharon, Mass. The center provides customers with marketing collateral and brochures, training manuals, employee handbooks, college course guides, full-color presentations, signage and postcards. In the 18 months it's been open, the center has experienced double-digit sales growth which the company expects to continue over the next five years.

"