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Juniper Networks on Monday will roll out three products for mobile network providers to get a bigger slice of the 3G, 4G and LTE upgrade revenue pie. The big picture: Juniper, which primarily competes with Alcatel-Lucent and Cisco for wireless business, sees networks converging. According to Mallik Tatipamula, vice president of service provider marketing at Juniper, the mobile network will look a lot like the fixed line broadband infrastructure. These so-called converged networks are growing in clout overseas and are likely to catch on in the U.S. in a few years. With that in mind, Juniper is launching three products at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona Monday: Juniper Traffic Direct: Traffic Direct is designed to manage data traffic from smartphones, netbooks and notebooks. The idea is to offload bulk data traffic to the Internet to ease wireless network congestion. Availability: Second quarter. Juniper Media Flow: This product operates as a content delivery network to deliv

Microsoft has removed one group of patches it released as part of this week’s Patch Tuesday — MS10-015 (KB977165) – from its Windows Update service until it can investigate reports by some users that it is causing havoc with their PCs. Microsoft provided an update on the Microsoft Security Response Center (MSRC) blog on February 11 about its actions, after a day of reports by users with problems, including some XP users claiming blue-screen-of-death (BSOD) issues seemingly resulting from application of the KB977165 patch. Microsoft claimed the number of users experiencing problems as a result of the path were “limited.” More from the blog post by Jerry Bryant, Senior Security Communications Manager Lead: “(W)e have not confirmed that the issue is specific to MS10-015 or if it is an interoperability problem with another component or third-party software. Our teams are working to resolve this as quickly as possible. We also stopped offering this update through Windows Update as soon

At Macworld 2010, Gregg Fiddes and David Halpin of Quickoffice demonstrate the company’s new mobile productivity application for Apple’s iPhone. Users are able to read and edit Microsoft Word and Excel documents and access cloud services like Dropbox, Google Docs, and Box.net. Source : zdnet

Irving Wladawsky-Berger is a former chief strategist at IBM and he has also worked as GM of IBM’s supercomputer group. In this post: Extreme Scale Computing he explains the challenges that supercomputers face in reaching the next stage: 1,000 times more powerful than current petaflop (1 followed by 15 zeros) supercomputers. The challenge in getting to this next stage of ‘exascale computing,’ is power consumption and heat generation. And that means we will need a new type of architecture. Massively parallel architectures, using tens to hundreds of thousands of processors from the PC and Unix markets have dominated supercomputing over the past twenty years. They got us into the terascale and petascale ranges. But, they will not get us to exascale. Mr Wladawsky-Berger says: “Another massive technology and architectural transition now looms for supercomputing and the IT industry in general.” The reason that this is not just a supercomputer problem, but also one for the IT industry, is

Over on Groklaw, we get a glimpse into how Apple’s iTunes Store caused a huge stir amongst the top brass at Microsoft. Thanks to emails released as part of an antitrust case against Microsoft, we are left with a candid record of how the executives at the Redmond giant felt about Apple’s entry into digital content. Two emails in particular are worth reading. The first is by Bill Gates himself: —– Original Message —– From: Bill Gates Sent: Wed 4/30/2003 10:46 PM To: Amir Majidimehr; Dave Fester Cc: Will Poole; Christopher Payne; Yusuf Mehdi; David Cole; Hank Vigil Subject: Apple’s Jobs again.., and time to have a great Windows download service… Steve Jobs ability to focus in on a few things that count, get people who get user interface right and market things as revolutionary are amazing things. This time somehow he has applied his talents in getting a better Licensing deal than anyone else has gotten for music. This is very strange to me. The music co

Hewlett-Packard has officially opened its newest green data center in northeast England, cooled entirely by cold wind blowing off the North Sea. HP Enterprise Services says its new 360,00 sq. ft. Wynyard center is 40 percent more energy-efficient than conventional data centers thanks to its harnessing of wind to lower temperatures of IT equipment and plant rooms. Data centers are long-known to be electrical power hogs and worse, major carbon emissions culprits. Traditional data centers use thousands of megawatt hours per year — so much in total that if they were classed as a separate industry, they would be the sixth-largest user of electricity. Much of that energy usage and emissions are the result of cooling systems. HP’s data center, located near the town of Billingham, is trying to take a more intelligent approach by harnessing natural — and quite cold — winds. How cold is cold? The system keeps the hall at a constant 24 degrees Celsius, or approximately 75 degrees Fahrenheit. The

Redbox DVD kiosks are gaining significant traction with revenue jumping 73 percent in the fourth quarter and accounting for the bulk of Coinstar’s 2009 revenue. Coinstar, which owns Redbox, has parlayed its distribution with grocery stores and other outlets into a boon for the Redbox kiosks. CoinStar, which made its name by presenting its green coin counting kiosk, could arguably be renamed Redbox. To wit: Coinstar reported fourth quarter revenue of $328 million, up 43.9 percent from a year ago. Of that sum, DVD revenue (Redbox) was $231.8 million, up 73.2 percent from a year ago. For 2009, Coinstar reported revenue of $1.1 billion, up 50.3 percent from a year ago. Redbox accounted for $773.5 million of that sum, up 99.1 percent from a year ago. There are 8,700 Redbox DVD kiosks deployed in the field. Those moving parts added up to fourth quarter net income of $5.5 million, or 18 cents a share, That tally includes a charge of 14 cents a share. Wall Street was expecting earnings of

Motorola on Thursday said it will split into two separate companies in the first quarter of 2011, roughly a year from now. The company had initially planned to spin off the mobile devices unit on its own. Now Motorola plans to spin off the mobile devices and home units into one company led by Sanjay Jha, co-CEO of Motorola. Jha will have a portfolio of mobile devices and home entertainment technology such as the company’s set-top boxes. The second company will comprise Motorola’s enterprise mobility solutions and networks businesses ( statement ). That company will be led by Motorola co-CEO Greg Brown. Brown and Jha will assume their roles as CEO of their respective divisions effective immediately. Motorola shareholders will get shares of both companies via a tax-free stock dividend. Both companies will use the Motorola brand. Source :zdnet

[ UPDATE : Microsoft has withdrawn the update KB977165 from the Windows Update for this week. I've updated my patch removal instructions below to remove this update first.] Reports are coming in that an update released this week by Microsoft for the Windows XP is causing problems for some users. The problem is particularly nasty in that it causes a BSoD ( Blue Screen of Death ) with the error “ PAGE_FAULT_IN_NONPAGED_AREA ” and then sends the system into an endless cycle of reboots. So, which patch is causing the problem? At present we don’t know, so the best fix it to uninstall all of the updates that were applied during this month’s Patch Tuesday. If you’re suffering from this problem then there is a fix, albeit a convoluted one. Boot your XP system from the CD/DVD and enter the Recovery Console . At the Command Prompt type: CHDIR $NtUninstallKB977165$\spuninst At the Command Prompt type: BATCH spuninst.txt At the Command Prompt type: systemroot While step 2 removes the mos

Quick, what do Salesforce.com, TiVo, WebMD and One Block Off the Grid all have in common? Answer, they’ve all received venture backing from the same firm, New Enterprise Associates . In the case of One Block Off the Grid, the investment comes in the form of a $5 million, Series A funding round. Now, you’re asking, what or who is One Block Off the Grid ? I’ve actually mentioned them several times here in this blog, because their model is rather unique. One Block is, at its core, an advocacy group for residential solar installations. Around since 2008, the group goes into a neighborhood to build interest in solar and find possible buyers. Once it figures out who’s interested, it help negotiate group discounts and connects interested consumers with solar installers. The group started in a very grassroots format in San Francisco, but has branched out into communities across California, as well as Austin, Texas, and Aspen Colorado. So far, the group has directly influenced 600 resident

Nokia has been helping the Iran government with surveillance technology to track mobile phone users since this issue became known by the media in June of 2009. A European Parliament resolution on Wednesday hits Nokia Siemens point blank: In a resolution adopted on Wednesday, the MEPs said the hardware was instrumental in the “persecution and arrests of Iranian dissidents”. Surveillance in Iran is especially worrisome because surveillance techniques, applications and devices could be used to violate human rights that the EU requires its signatory nations — and corporations - to abide to. Some Members of the European Parliament are considering harsher penalties against the company. In a BBC article posted today : Nokia Siemens said the technology that it had installed was similar to that used “in all EU member states and the US”. “When you set up a modern network - as an operator - if you want a licence to operate you have to have a standard surveillance capability in the network

Listen here (MP3, 30.1 MB, 33:05 minutes) Google Buzz was the big tech news of the week so Kevin, James, and I kicked off MobileTechRoundup show #197 giving our thoughts and experiences with the new service. Kevin also talked about the Swype text input system on Android that is launching on the myTouch 3G. James received news that Skyfire bought the Steel browser for Android so we may soon see Skyfire moving from Windows Mobile and S60 to Android. Quickoffice also added a few web services for document support and Kevin was pretty pleased to hear this. I am very interested in seeing how well Quickoffice and Documents To Go look on the iPad in comparison to the iWork apps. Virtualization on the iPad was also discussed and may be swaying iPad purchase decisions. Source :zdnet

And just when I was starting to wonder if there would be any cool news to come out of Macworld today, along comes Google with news of a pretty hefty update to the Mac version of the Chrome browser. OK, maybe that’s not a Macworld announcement - but it is reason for Mac fans to celebrate., The wait for Chrome has been a long time coming and though a beta version has been out for a couple of months, it hasn’t offered all the extras that came with the Windows version. The release, which is available for download now , is boasting the availability of more than 2,200 extensions for Chrome, as well as bookmark synchronization. From the Google Chrome blog : Those of you who use several computers will now be able to keep your bookmarks synchronized between them. If some of your computers aren’t Macs, don’t worry: bookmark sync works in Chrome for Linux and Windows too. We also added bookmark and cookie managers in a way that feels completely at home on the Mac. For technically-oriented user

SAP’s John Schwarz, who ran SAP’s BusinessObjects unit, has resigned. Meanwhile, the company named Gerhard Oswald as chief operating officer in the second management shakeup in a week at SAP. On Sunday, SAP CEO Leo Apotheker left the company. He was replaced by co-CEOs Jim Hagemann Snabe and Bill McDermott. It’s been a busy week for SAP. Dennis Howlett detailed the play-by-play from CEO Leo Apotheker’s resignation on Sunday to Plattner’s conference call Monday morning . Also see : Can SAP rebuild trust and innovation ? SAP: New leadership, same old story ? All SAP resources and alerts . Among the latest moving parts ( statement ): Oswald becomes chief operating officer to replace Erwin Gunst, who stepped down for health reasons. Oswald had been in charge of SAP service and support. Oswald joined SAP’s executive board in 1996 and has a contract that runs through 2011. Schwarz stepped down effective immediately. Peter Lorenz, executive vice president of small and midsized enterpris

Recently, we explored some new thinking around the concept of “Lean IT,” in which lean principles (doing things simpler, faster, better, cheaper) are applied to IT management and operations. A bank put a CIO in charge of lean, reports millions in savings Conversely, IT also can facilitate lean initiatives in other parts of the enterprise. In fact, it can even more firmly nail down lean practices into day-to-day operations. A new report from McKinsey & Co. explains why and how. The report’s authors, Nicklas Ilebrand, Tor Mesøy, and Remco Vlemmix, point out that lean and IT are “complementary in the effort to streamline, standardize, and integrate process improvements.” Thus, CIOs should lead company-wide lean efforts, they urge: “Allowing IT to play a central role in developing and driving the implementation of lean projects can help organizations in many industries better address two problems that have long plagued such initiatives: high complexity and poor sustainability.”

SAP continues to be a major player in large-scale business software (mostly ERP), but its difficulties adapting to the new Web-powered world became apparent on Sunday when SAP CEO Leo Apotheker resigned from the German software company. My colleague Larry Dignan over at ZDNet wrote that SAP is now in a game in which it has to rebuild trust and innovation . In place of Apotheker, SAP appointed two co-CEOs: Bill McDermott, head of sales, and Jim Hagemann Snabe, head of product development. Dignan asked the obvious question about these two: “Are McDermott and Snabe the revolutionaries that will rip up the old enterprise software playbook and cannibalize their existing businesses? Probably not. SAP needs a rethink and has the funds to endure one. The big question is whether the will is there to make it happen.” So I’d like to throw this topic out to the community, since I know we have a lot of TechRepublic members who are using SAP, and ask whether you think these leadership changes

WAN acceleration made my list of the top IT trends to watch in 2010 because it can provide clear ROI and benefits that employees and company leaders will notice immediately. So let’s take a look at what WAN acceleration can and can’t do, how it works, and the ways it can benefit your organization. What is WAN acceleration? Well, the first thing to realize is that what we’re going to call WAN acceleration in this episode is referred to by several different terms in the industry. You’ll hear different vendors call it things like WAN optimization, Application Acceleration, and Bandwidth Acceleration. Cisco even refers to it as Wide Area Application Services, or WAAS. My favorite term for it is WAN caching. Of course, no one in the industry actually calls it that, but that’s the crux of what’s going on here. WAN acceleration can drastically improve the speed of file transfers and the performance of many applications for your branch offices and remote workers. And since at least half, and b

To say this film has heavy echoes of Harry Potter is an understatement. Although, the Greek-gods premise lets the filmmakers indulge in some visually whizzy sequences that keep this rather lightweight action movie entertaining. Percy (Lerman) is a New York teen whose mother (Keener) has never told him that his father is the god Poseidon (McKidd) and his best pal Grover (Jackson) is actually a protector satyr. When Zeus (Bean) discovers that his lightning bolt has been stolen, he blames Percy. So Percy has to learn quickly who he is so he can find the lightning thief and restore peace to feuding brothers Poseidon, Zeus and Hades (Coogan). In addition to Grover, he gets help from a professor-centaur (Brosnan) and his fellow demigod Annabeth (Daddario). Snappy and often quite funny, this film rarely pauses for breath, propelling Percy into a parallel world in which he holds a prominent position and extraordinary power as the child of one of the big three. And yet he's still a surly te

Shah Rukh Khan -starrer 'My Name Is Khan' opened to a huge response in Bangalore Friday but got a lukewarm response in other parts of Karnataka like Hubli, Belgaum and Davangere. The film opened to a great response in all the six multiplexes and 11 single screens in Bangalore. Bijan Bose, Regional Head-Film cell (South India) told IANS: 'The response for the weekend is fantastic. Even the online bookings have been extremely good. We hope this trend will continue in the next seven days.' Abid, programme head of Inox, said 'MNIK' is getting very good response in two INOX multiplexes in Garuda Mall and Swagath Complex. 'We are running nine shows in the Garuda Mall and five shows in Swagath Complex INOX cinemas. We are getting good inquiries for Saturday and Sunday through online bookings and advance bookings,' he said. The lukewarm response in many cities in North Karnataka was due to the disturbances created on account of Sri Rama Sena Chi

mayor of a Brazilian town has banned Carnival revelers from playing funk or rap music during the traditionally free-wheeling celebrations that kick off around the country on Friday. Mayor Jose Neto of Sao Lourenco in southeastern Minas Gerais state told Globo television he was banning songs that incite violence and disrespect authority and wanted to protect more traditional Carnival music, such as samba. Anyone caught listening to funk -- a pounding beat often with sexual lyrics popular in Rio de Janeiro's slums -- or rap during the Carnival period would have to turn it off or face arrest and up to six months in prison, he reportedly said. "They are mass gatherings that demand better coordination, control and security that a public festival like Carnival doesn't allow us to adopt," Neto told Globo TV. Funk music has long been frowned upon by police and city authorities in Rio and faced crackdowns because of its association with slum gangs who use parties to sel

Shiv Sena activists indulged in stone pelting in several parts of Mumbai, including Shah Rukh Khan 's offices in Khar-Danda near Bandra, and called for a Mumbai shutdown to protest the release of the actor's 'My Name Is Khan' here Friday. Police said that some people came and pelted stones at Shah Rukh's Red Chilliz Entertainment where police had deployed security since the past few days. Shiv Sainiks also pelted stones at some cinema halls screening the movie including Amar in Govandi, and Ashish in Chembur, as well as public and private buses in Chembur, Ghatkopar, Andheri, Jogeshwari and Parel areas of the city. Groups of Sainiks went around several parts of the city attempting to enforce a shutdown of shops and commercial establishments, including in Vikhroli, Parel, Sion, Chembur, Mahim, Goregaon Jogeshwari and Borivli areas. A showroom of the Hyundai vehicles in Govandi in north-east Mumbai was also targeted by the Sena activists and damaged in sto

Actor Leonardo DiCaprio is planning to utilise this year in taking care of himself after his recent movie projects have left him physically and emotionally drained. The actor is cutting back on his workload after filming serious movies 'Shutter Island' and upcoming sci-fi thriller 'Inception' took its toll on his wellbeing, reported imdb.com. DiCaprio, who has been working consistently since he was 17, insists he is excited by the prospect of an empty schedule. 'These last couple of films have taken a lot out of me, so I don't know what I'm going to do next. This year is going to be the year of really taking care of myself because I've reached 35 and I've taken a lot of things seriously, maybe too seriously at times, so I'm going to make sure that whatever I do next and whatever choices (I make) are really right for me,' said the actor.

British singer Amy Winehouse has given away her 11 cats because they were getting out of control. The singer, who flew out to Jamaica to work on her third album earlier this week, has given two of her beloved pets to goddaughter Dionne Bromfield and called an animal shelter asking them to pick up the others from her London home, reported contactmusic.com. 'Amy was pretty upset about it because she loved them dearly, but she had to give them up. They were climbing all over the place, breeding and generally getting out of control,' said a source.

The protests planned by right wing activists against the release of Shah Rukh Khan -starrer 'My name is Khan' petered out in Gujarat by Friday evening and the film was being screened across the state. Apprehensive exhibitors decided to suspend the morning show of the film in Ahmedabad after threats. In Vadodara and Surat, however, the film ran as per schedule to packed houses. The regional Mahagujarat Janata Party (MJP) and the Bajrang Dal had announced they would protest and even prevent the release of the film in the state. Subsequently the local unit of the Shiv Sena and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) also joined the agitation, pulling down banners and tearing posters of the film here. Bajrang Dal activists tore down posters of the movie at City Gold cinema hall here. Ten of them were arrested and booked for the violence, with the administration sending a clear message that miscreants would be dealt with firmly. There were also reports of the film's posters

The fourth instalment of 'Spider-Man' movie, due for release in 2012, will be made in 3-D. Contactmusic.com reports that the movie will be directed by Marc Webb. ''Spider-Man' is the ultimate summer movie-going experience and we're thrilled the filmmakers are presenting the next instalment in 3D,' said Jeff Blake, chairman of Sony Pictures worldwide marketing and distribution. ''Spider-Man' is one of the most popular characters in the world and we know audiences are eager and excited to discover Marc's fantastic vision for Peter Parker and franchise.' Tobey Maguire, who starred in the previous three 'Spider-Man' films as the protagonist, and director Sam Raimi announced recently they would not be taking part in the project.

Hundreds of thousands thronged cinema halls across India Friday to see Shah Rukh Khan 's 'My Name is Khan', with Mumbai too giving the thumbs down to the Shiv Sena that called for its boycott to protest the Bollywood megastar's advocacy of Pakistani cricketers. Although all 63 theatres in Mumbai played it safe and cancelled the first show of the day, they started showing the movie by noon, enabling cinema buffs to enjoy the heart warming story of Indian Muslim Rizwan Khan (SRK) in the post-9/11 US. Even as police scuffled with Shiv Sena activists outside some Mumbai theatres and halls in Pune and Aurangabad refused to touch the movie, most Shah Rukh fans across the country lauded 'My Name is Khan'. Many in Mumbai, the Bollywood capital, felt that the Shiv Sena had erred in questioning Shah Rukh's credentials as an Indian. 'We are with Shah Rukh Khan. What the Sena is doing is absolutely wrong. In fact, Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray should a

Oscar winning actress Kate Winslet will make a comeback on television with a mini-series based on James M. Cain's novel 'Mildred Pierce'. The 'Titanic' star began her acting career on British TV in the 1990s before breaking into Hollywood movies. Now she will feature as a proud single mother in Depression-era Los Angeles in 'Mildred Pierce', reported contactmusic.com. Ilene Landress will produce the series for US network HBO, while Todd Haynes and Jon Raymond are helming the script. Filming on the series is due to start in New York in April.

Actress Jessica Simpson has laughed off ex-boyfriend John Mayer's comments about their sex life saying the singer-actress was like a 'cocaine drug' to him. Dailystar.co.uk reports, Mayer, who dated Simpson for nine months before splitting in 2007, opened up about their love life in a candid interview with Playboy magazine - he described her as 'crazy' in bed. 'Simpson was like a drug. And drugs aren't good for you if you do lots of them. Yeah, that girl is like crack cocaine to me. 'Sexually, it was crazy. That's all I'll say. Did you ever say, 'I want to quit my life and just f**kin' snort you? If you charged me $10,000 to f**k you, I would start selling all my s**t just to keep f**king you.'' But Simpson has taken the comments in her stride. In a video posted on TMZ.com, the singer is shown laughing when asked about the compliments, but insists she has 'no comment'.

Bollywood superstar Shahrukh Khan has issued a fresh tweet a short while ago, saying that the regret that he had expressed earlier for the disturbances surrounding the release of his latest film-My Name is Khan (MNiK) -- was not directed at the right-wing Shiv Sena, but meant for his fans. Khan expressed his regret on social networking site Twitter over his alleged remarks favouring the inclusion of Pakistani players in the third edition of the cash-rich Indian Premier League (IPL) tournament. "I thank you all for this... apologise for giving stress over the last few days... and now truly know the meaning of being humbled. Lov you all so much," Shah Rukh posted on his twitter. Wishing his fans, he wrote: "...a big thanks. Happy Birthday... best of luck for exams... and happiness. I am humbled by this show of love and kindness. So don't know what else to say. Overwhelmed and promise will make India proud with my hard work," he wrote. The film, which tells t

Valentine's Day and the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) don't really go well together. But the party's vice president is all set to release a music album on love on the eve of Valentine's Day Saturday. 'The song in Hindi is from my forthcoming Hindi movie 'Juloos', the 'muhurat' (launch) of which will be held at midnight Friday,' said an excited Vageesh Saraswat, MNS vice president. The highlight will be a song 'You Are My Valentine', which is said to be based on 'Unending Love' - a poem penned by Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore. Saraswat said that love is a universal concept and goes beyond national, political or ideological boundaries. Through the song, an attempt would be made to immortalise the saga of love for all times. 'Juloos', with a big starcast drawn from Hindi, Marathi and Bhojpuri film industries, will start rolling from Saturday after the launch at midnight, he said. It has been produced by P

Coinciding with his troubles with the Shiv Sena, Bollywood megastar Shah Rukh Khan now courts problems on another front, with a Muslim cleric issuing a fatwa Friday seeking a boycott of his latest film 'My Name is Khan'. Syed Noor-ur-Rehman Barkati, the Shahi Imam of Tipu Sultan Mosque in Kolkata, issued the edict against Shah Rukh for endorsing the products of a company owned by Ashok Todi - the father-in-law of graphic designer Rizwanur Rahman, who died under mysterious circumstances barely a month after marrying Todi's daughter Priyanka. 'He has lots of money. Why is he becoming the brand ambassador of a company owned by such a controversial man? I am issuing a fatwa to all Hindus and Muslims to boycott the movie,' Barkati said at a media meet here. The death of Rizwanur, whose body was found Sep 21, 2007 along the railway tracks at Patipukur near the city's suburb of Dum Dum, sparked outrage following allegations that Todi had influenced several pol

In the backdrop of his reigning popularity in Kerala with all his Telugu films, including the recent Arya 2, finding success with his Malayalee fans, Tollywood's youth icon Allu Arjunhas given an interview to a Malayalam private TV channel for the first time as a Shivaratri special today (Friday). Talking about his inspiration from Malayalam films which walk away with many prestigious National Awards every year with their quality and originality, Allu Arjun said he simply adores Malayalam films and the great artists Mohanlal, Mammootty and Suresh Gopi. "I watch a lot of Malayalam movies and am really inspired by their quality and originality. I am looking forward to do a straight Malayalam film in the near future," added Allu Arjun, who had a tremendous opening this year in Kerala with Arya 2, which was released in around 65 screens and grossed Rs. 67 lakhs in just three days. Arya 2 has found popularity similar to what Malayalam superstar Mammootty and Mohanlal receive f

The release of debut director Ashok's multi-starrer Aakasha Ramanna, starring comedy king Allari Naresh, Shivaji, Rajiv Kanakala, Meera Jasmine and Gowri Pandit in the lead roles, is much delayed! It was initially expected on April 9 last year, and was then postponed at the final moment to June 19. Due to some financial constraints, producer Manyam Ramesh of Manyam Entertainments has not been able to release the film so far. According to latest reports, the makers are taking efforts to release the film on March 19. It is the story of a youth who writes anonymous letters and creates trouble for people. In one such occasion, he too faces major troubles. How he manages to get out of his predicament forms the crux of the plot, producer Ramesh said. Story and screenplay are by the director himself. Also in the cast are Madhu Sharma, Nagababu, M.S. Narayana, Venumadhav, Raghubabu, Satyam Rajesh, Srinivasa Reddy, Rao Ramesh, Tarjan, Raghu, Qayyum, Venu, Sana, Geeta Singh, Banda Jyothi and

'Thala' Ajith's most-awaited flick Aasal (also spelt Asal) released worldwide on February 5. The movie is produced by Sivaji Productions and directed by Saran, with music by Bharadwaj. The cast also includes Prabhu and Yuhi Sethu. Aasal brings the Ajith-Saran combo together for the fourth time after Kadhal Mannan, Amarkalam and Attagasam. Sameera Reddy and Bhavana are the two leading ladies. The film is a complete entertainer with action, suspense, love and betrayal Aasal opened in 500 screens worldwide. In Chennai, the film graced 13 screens. For the first time, the Star has involved himself thoroughly with the script and dialogues of his movie. In fact, watch out for his name under the list of writers for Aasal! The latest we hear is that Aasal has topped the Malayasian box office. In fact, this is the second Tamil actor's movie after Superstar Rajinikanth to be at the No. 1 spot in the box office. Aasal was released in across 35 cinema theatres in Malaysia by Lotus F

'My Name Is Khan' opened to packed houses in about 70 halls in the capital and its suburbs, except for a cinema hall in west Delhi that was vandalised by some drunk youths. The hype around the film, thanks to the Shiv Sena's stand-off with superstar Shah Rukh Khan, attracted curious cinemagoers in droves to watch the film. According to police, the youths who attacked the cinema hall were not affiliated to any political group. 'I was not scared about security when I decided to go for the film. First of all, there has been no problem in Delhi and secondly, there is police all round,' Purva Mehta, who came to watch the film at PVR Priya, told IANS. The theatre saw 80-90 percent occupancy and long queues of people who wanted to see the film. It reaffirmed the fact that Delhiites are eager to watch the Shah Rukh and Kajol starrer, Mehta said. Kaveri Jha, a housewife, said the hype around the film has led to more people going to watch it. 'After so much hype has been

Megastar-turned-politician Chiranjeevi is likely to undergo a cosmetic surgery called lipoplasty at a private hospital in Hyderabad. The surgery is meant to remove fat from the human body. Over the years, the Praja Rajyam president has put on a lot of weight and now he has made his mind to undergo liposuction. It is heard that the Praja Rajyam chief, who won the Tirupati constituency in 2009 General Elections and who is standing for a unified Andhra in the current Telangana Agitation, is planning to go to Kerala for rest once the surgery is done.

French model/singer Brigitte Bardot has called one of President Nicolas Sarkozy's oldest friends a "big, fat wide-boy liar" after he claimed to have slept with her at the height of her fame. Bardot, 75, was infuriated by Patrick Balkany's claim in his autobiography released last month, and his repeating it on radio and television. The 61-year-old controversial and flamboyant mayor-MP of a Paris suburb, portrays himself as a Don Juan who wooed a host of beauties, in his book, 'Une Autre Verite, La Mienne' (Another Truth, Mine). Among his conquests he cites Shirley MacLaine, the film star, and Bardot, who fell for his charms at the zenith of her seductive powers. "I must have been 18. She was a star hounded by the paparazzi. We had gone together to a soiree in Deauville [a chic Normandy seaside town]. I was proud to have her on my arm," the Sydney Morning Herald quoted him as writing. "'Listen,' she whispered in her inimitable voice, '

Nearly 200 people held a protest here Friday against the Shiv Sena and its leaders Bal Thackeray and his son Uddhav for targeting actor Shah Rukh Khan and his latest film 'My Name is Khan'. The protesters, who termed themselves Shah Rukh's fans, gathered near Delite cinema in Daryaganj area in central Delhi and raised slogans against the Shiv Sena. Effigies of Bal and Uddhav Thackeray were also burnt. They said Shah Rukh has not said or done anything wrong against anyone or the country. Shoaib Iqbal, the legislator from Matia Mahal assembly constituency, was also part of the protest. Activists of the Shiv Sena have vandalised several theatres in Mumbai that were to screen 'My Name Is Khan'. The Sena is opposing the film's release after Shah Rukh refused to apologise for saying that Pakistani cricketers should have been included for the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket matches.

Shah Rukh Khan-starrer 'My Name Is Khan' released all over Orissa Friday amidst stray protests by the Bajrang Dal. A large number of movie buffs were seen queuing up for tickets despite the protests. The Bajrang Dal protested the release of the movie in Berhampur town, where activists tore posters, burnt effigies of Shah Rukh and shouted slogans against him. The morning show of the movie has been stopped in Ashoka, Gautam and Sakti talkies in Berhampur, 170 km from state capital Bhubaneswar. In Sambalpur, the screening of the movie was not allowed by protesters in the Ashoka Talkies. Hundreds of Bajrang Dal activists thronged in front of the movie hall shouting slogans against the Bollywood star for his alleged 'comment' regarding Pakistani cricketers. 'Even cricketers like Sachin are not saying Pakistani players should play or not. But Shah Rukh Khan is batting for Pakistani players and acting like an agent of Pakistan,' said Sudhir Ranjan Bahidar, a Bajrang Da

Unmindful of the Shiv Sena protests against Shah Rukh Khan, thousands of Mumbaikars Friday trooped out to watch 'My Name Is Khan' and were clearly awestruck. Movie buffs were unanimous in their opinion that the Shiv Sena had erred in questioning Shah Rukh's credentials as an Indian and said the megastar was being wrongly targeted. 'We are with Shah Rukh Khan. What the Sena is doing is absolutely wrong. In fact, Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray should apologise to him for creating problems for him,' said a woman who came out of the Fun Republic cinema in the afternoon. Making similar demands for an apology from the Sena for attempting to disrupt the movie, other patrons challenged the Sena's right to question Shah Rukh's 'Indian' credentials. 'Who are they to question his patriotism? He is an Indian, will always remain an Indian and we are all with him. Goondaism and terrorism will not work in this country. The Sena people should also go and watch th

Bhavana, who made heads turn with her first Tamil film Chithiram Pesuthadi, is all set to debut in Sandalwood. She will reportedly make her debut with the sensational Puneet Raajkumar in his upcoming Jackie. The film directed by Suri is expected to be a commercial entertainer. After capturing the hearts of Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam fans, the pretty lass is now gearing up to impress the Sandalwood audiences. It looks like destination Sandalwood for many heroines! Recently, South sensation Nayantara signed her debut Kannada movie with Upendra.

Recently, we reported that actor Vikram's upcoming film 24 with director Vikram Kumar of Yavarum Nalam fame has been dropped due to the tiff between the duo. The latest buzz is that the actor has moved on and signed his next venture with director Bhoopathi Pandian of Devathayai Kanden, Thiruvilayadal Aarambam and Malaikottai fame. The venture will be produced by Mohan Natrajan; Ileana, whose dates are already with the producer will be the heroine. Reportedly, the film is titled Raja Vesham. Devi Sri Prasad will create the music and camera will be handled by Vaithy.

Nadodigal, one of the surprise hits of 2009, was remade by director Samuthirakkani in Telugu with the title Shambo Shiva Shambo. The movie will also see a Kannada makeover soon. The latest we hear is that the movie will be remade in Hindi as well. If reports are to be believed, ace director Priyadarshan will take up the task; however official confirmation is awaited. Reports also suggest that the production company Woodpecker Pictures and Entertainment bought the rights of the film from Global Infotainment. The movie is expected to hit screens for Diwali.

It came as a shock when Silambarasan walked out of K.V. Anand's upcoming Ko recently. Later, Jiiva took up the task. Now the latest we hear is that the shooting of Ko is underway in Mongolia. S. Kumar and R. Jayaraman of RS Infotainment, who produced Gautham Menon's Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa, are producing the film. Karthika, daughter of yesteryear beauty Radha, will be the heroine. The movie is expected be a commercial entertainer on the lines of K.V. Anand's earlier venture Ayan. Sources close to the producer reveal that the title Ko means 'king' in Tamil. Anand will again team up with the writer-duo Subha and Harris Jayaraj for Ko.

Srikanth's long delayed Rasikkum Seemane will hit screens today (Feb 12). The film is directed by R.K. Vidyadaran of Vaitheeswaran fame and stars Srikanth and Navya Nair in the lead roles. Sources say that in Rasikkum Seemane, Srikanth will play a character with negative shades for the first time in his career. Navya Nair, who usually plays homely roles, is reported to have gone glamorous for this film. The film, produced by Thirumalai, was earlier titled Ettappan. Since, there were some protests from the Ettappan community, the title was changed to Rasikkum Seemane. Aravind Akash also plays an important role in the film.

Vanessa Redgrave is set to receive this year's Bafta Fellowship for her contribution to cinema. Redgrave, 73, actress has acted in over 80 movies, including 1977's Julia for which she bagged the best supporting actress Oscar. David Parfitt, chairman of the British Academy of Film and Television, said Redgrave was "a hugely talented and respected actress". She will receive the honour at the Bafta awards gala on February 21. "I'm truly delighted - it's such an honour to be recognised in this way," the BBC quoted Redgrave, as saying. She added: "Looking through the list of past recipients shows what a wonderful accolade this is. "The fact that Alfred Hitchcock was the very first recipient makes it even more special as my father made his first film with him." Redgrave, the daughter of actors Sir Michael Redgrave and Rachel Kempson, first received critical acclaim for her stellar performance in Morgan: A Suitable Case for Treatment. She bec

Hugh Hefner and his editorial team at Playboy have compiled the annual roster of the hottest women in the world. The list this year consists of 26 actresses, reality TV stars, musicians and models, and while Holly Madison received an honourable mention her fellow "Girls Next Door" Bridget Marquardt and Kendra Wilkinson did not, reports Fox News. The list had models Bar Refaeli, Ida Ljungqvist, Karissa Shannon, Kristina Shannon, Alina Puscau, and Crystal Harris, and singers Beyonce, Aubrey O'Day, Katy Perry, Nicole Scherzinger, and Alicia Keys. Actresses Scarlett Johansson, Tara Reid, Sasha Grey, Olivia Wilde, Megan Fox, Lisa Rinna, Anna Paquin, Jessica Alba, Christina Hendricks, Camilla Belle, Angelina Jolie, and Carmen Electra were also on the list. And so were reality TV stars Kim Kardashian, Joanna Krupa, and Holly Madison.

While the people of Maharashtra gave a thumbs up to the Shah Rukh Khan starrer 'My Name Is Khan,' senior Congress leader and Revenue Minister Narayan Rane Friday demanded that the Election Commission cancel the registration of Shiv Sena. In a letter to the Chief Election Commissioner, Rane pointed out that the Sena's agitation over the issue of non-Maharashtrians was 'unconstitutional' and was completely contrary to its own constitution and the laws of the country. 'The Shiv Sena has raised the issue of non-Maharashtrians from Mumbai... Now, the party should make it clear if they still believe in national integrity by raising this issue,' Rane said in his letter dispatched Thursday to the Election Commission. He pointed out that the Sena was recognised as a state political party by accepting certain rules and the constitution, it agreed to the ideology of democracy and belief that all citizens should be equal before the law. 'It was stated that they beli

Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan has apologised to his fans for putting them through stress over the controversy clouding his film 'My Name Is Khan'. 'I thank you all for this... apologise for giving stress over the last few days... and now truly know the meaning of being humbled. Lov you all so much,' Shah Rukh posted on his twitter. Wishing his fans, he wrote: '...a big thanks. Happy Birthday... best of luck for exams... and happiness. I am humbled by this show of love and kindness. So don't know what else to say. Overwhelmed and promise will make India proud with my hard work,' he wrote. The film, which tells the story of a Rizwan Khan (Shah Rukh) coping with events in post 9/11 America, released Friday with over 2,000 prints. It opened amid uncertainty in 63 theatres in Mumbai following protests by the Shiv Sena, which has opposed the film to protest Shah Rukh's comments favourig the inclusion of Pakistani cricketers in the Indian Premier League. &

His heavily kohl rimmed eyes and randy act in 'Ishqiya' have won him a fresh swarm of fans. Move over Circuit. Enter Babban. "The 'soorma' in the eyes suits the character of Babban perfectly," opines Arshad Warsi in a newspaper chat. "It effectively brings out the naughtiness of the character and also portrays the menacing side of Babban." His intimate smooching scene with Vidya Balan has shocked prudish viewers and set tongues wagging in the grapevine circuit (hah, pun). "I was very uncomfortable and was petrified doing it," confesses Warsi. "But Vidya is a doll and coz' she's a friend, we sorted it out. I'm glad that we did the scene with full honesty." Rumours were rife that spouse Maria Goretti was expressly unhappy with the cinematic liplock. "No normal wife is going to like it," admits Warsi. "Maria was very uncomfortable, but not unreasonable." Spouse grouse, Warsi?

He's earned spectacular net gains. And can create history with a racket, oops, sorry, racquet!! Leander Paes, the 'Tsar of Tennis,' will be on court… and will be courting cinema too!! Reportedly, the tennis ace has already canned a month long schedule for his B town debut! And there are bevy of cine babes who would gladly shuttle (ah, pun) between cities to be cast alongside Rhea Pillai's hubby. Amrita Rao ranks foremost. In a media talk, Rao lavishes lush praise on Paes stating, "I'd love to do a movie opposite him. But it would have to be more of an action film with stunts and adventure sports. If the reigning superstar and poster boy of tennis plans to take up acting, I'm sure that he will give our leading heroes a run for their money with his sheepish smile and dapper persona." Guess, no row over casting Rao.

She's proved her celluloid magic in 'Paa' and 'Ishqiya'. And both flicks have undeniably confirmed Vidya Balan's credentials as a performer of merit. Whistling Woods International (WWI) played host as students of histrionics hurled a fusillade of queries at the versatile Vidya. "It feels great to be here," said Balan. "The nice thing is that I got to articulate the whole process that I go through during the process of acting. While acting, one must remember that 'small is big'. For one to look real while acting, the emotions portrayed must not look too loud. Acting is not about emotions, but about feelings. Once you realise that, everything happens naturally."

'1 800 Love'. That, incidentally, happens to be the name of producer Madhu Mantena's next offering. And the canny producer has been locked in a major tussle with director Abbas Tyrewala regarding the title, ever since the film flagged off. Tyrewala's take was that the title, a telephone code number, was the apt choice for the subject, which details the story of it's lead actors: John Abraham and Pakhi (Tyrewala's spouse). Since the tale unfolds to the audience through a series of telephonic conversations, Tyrewala stuck to his guns. Mantena's fear, though, is that the audience might not be able to connect with it and worse, could find it rather vague and strange. "We are still debating," an irked Mantena told the media. Originally scheduled to be canned in the US, was ultimately filmed in London. The filming is complete and the flick is being readied for a July release. The telephonic conversations in the Mantena flick have been shown using split s

It's been a global route to success. And life's handing out a fab deal to Deol. The risk taking actor is pleased as punch with his 'Road, Movie' garnering acclaim at the Toronto, Tokyo, Doha and Berlin international film fests. "I'm playing Vishnu, a man who doesn't want to get into his father's business of selling hair oil," a delighted Deol tells the scribe tribe. "He speeds off in a worn out truck to a far flung destination in the desert and meanwhile discovers that his uncle had been showing films in the outdoors to villagers during his week long drive." Fresh from the success of 'Dev.D' and 'Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye!' Deol had dashed off to Rajasthan for the filming of 'Road, Movie', but… the soaring Celsius set in great fatigue too. "It was a truly hot summer in the deserts," he bares. "It was hard work and great fun too."

Comedian Russell Brand's joke about the state of Amy Winehouse's liver has topped a list of the greatest on-stage quips at the Brit Awards. MySpace users were asked to choose from a shortlist of the most amusing and cringeworthy comments since the event began in 1977. Brand, who hosted the show in 2007, landed the spot after he famously joked about the 'Rehab' singer: "Amy Winehouse - her surname's beginning to sound like a description of her liver." Brand's gag came ahead of Robbie Williams challenging Liam Gallagher to a punch-up as he stepped on stage to collect an award in 2000. Liam stood third for his 1996 remark at host Chris Evans: "It will take more than Ginger Bollocks to throw us off." "The Brits are a national institution and millions of us tune in every year, not just to see who wins and who loses but to see who trips up on stage and who gives the wittiest speeches - the best of which linger in the memory long after the cere