June 22, 2022

Zoom Unveils Platform Evolution; Launches New Packaging and Translation Feature

Zoom One is a new offering that brings together options for persistent chat, phone, meetings, whiteboard, and more into a single, secure and scalable package
All-new translation feature allows meetings to be translated between English and any of the 10 languages, or from those languages into English

SAN JOSE, Calif., June 22, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Zoom Video Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZM) today unveiled the latest evolution of its communications platform with the introduction of Zoom One, a new offering that brings together persistent chat, phone, meetings, whiteboard, and more into secure and scalable packages. Additionally, Zoom also launched an all new translated and multi-language captions feature.

“Simplicity is at the core of everything we do. As the Zoom platform has evolved from a meeting app to a comprehensive communications platform, it was clear that introducing new packaging like Zoom One was the next step in the company’s evolution,” said Greg Tomb, President, Zoom. “By bringing together chat, phone, meetings, whiteboard, and more in a single offering, we are able to offer our customers solutions that are simple to manage, so they can focus on business issues that matter most.”

“Businesses continue to realize the time and cost saving a single provider can offer. According to Omdia’s latest end user survey, 40% of organizations are prioritizing investments around eliminating multiple cloud-based UC solutions that may be deployed within their organizations,” states Brent Kelly, Principal Analyst, Omdia Research. “The need to simplify business operations is a market trend that we see as being increasingly important, and Zoom One’s tiered bundles and common management console aligns well to this customer demand.”

Zoom One’s intuitive experience
Purpose-built to work together, Zoom One’s intuitive experience offers customers the choice between six tiered offerings according to their business needs.

Zoom One Basic provides free 40-minute Zoom Meetings for up to 100 attendees, persistent Zoom Chat for team messaging, limited Zoom Whiteboard for synchronous and asynchronous work, and real-time transcription.
Zoom One Pro provides everything Zoom One Basic offers without Meeting time limits, plus cloud recording.
Zoom One Business provides everything Zoom One Pro offers, plus Zoom Meetings for up to 300 attendees and unlimited Zoom Whiteboards.
Zoom One Business Plus provides everything Zoom One Business offers, plus Zoom Phone Pro with unlimited regional calling and Zoom’s all-new translation feature.
Zoom One Enterprise and Zoom One Enterprise Plus provide everything Zoom One Business offers with larger meeting capacity and additional features, like Zoom Webinars, to help modern businesses scale. Zoom One Enterprise Plus also includes Zoom Phone Pro with unlimited regional calling.

Zoom One Basic, Pro, Business and Business Plus plans are available for purchase online today. To purchase Zoom One Enterprise or Enterprise Plus, customers can speak to an account executive directly. For more information, visit https://zoom.us/pricing.

“If you provide a complete suite of reliable and easy-to-use communication tools that people can use to do their jobs, they are less likely to be using one-off solutions outside of our offerings – which in turn simplifies our support and delivery model,” said Rob Kerr, chief information officer at Cooley, a global law firm with 3,300 employees in 17 offices across the United States, Asia, and Europe. “Zoom’s secure portfolio of unified video, chat, whiteboarding, and telephony solutions aligns our global teams and allows Cooley to better serve its clients.”

For more information on the new, simplified offerings or to find the plan that is best suited for your business, visit the Zoom blog.

Introducing translated & multi-language captions
Launching first in Zoom One Business Plus and Zoom One Enterprise Plus packages, Zoom’s translated captions will allow users to view captions translated into the language of their choice. At launch, translations will be available between English and 10 additional languages, or from any of the 10 languages to English. The ability to translate directly to and from English is known as bi-directional translation. Translated captions display at the base of the screen while in a Zoom Meeting.

The bi-directional translations are available in the following languages: Chinese (Simplified), Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Russian, Spanish, and Ukrainian.

To access the translated captions feature, Zoom One customers must upgrade to either the Zoom One Business Plus (in applicable countries) or Zoom One Enterprise Plus packages.

Zoom also extended its automated captioning – the ability to caption in real-time what a speaker is saying in the same language as the one spoken – to include 10 additional languages. Automated captions previously were supported in English, but now can be displayed in the additional 10 languages referenced above. Multi-language automated captions are available in Business Plus, Enterprise, and Enterprise Plus packages with additional support for other plans coming soon.

About Zoom
Zoom is for you. Zoom is a space where you can connect to others, share ideas, make plans, and build toward a future limited only by your imagination. Our frictionless communications platform is the only one that started with video as its foundation, and we have set the standard for innovation ever since. That is why we are an intuitive, scalable, and secure choice for large enterprises, small businesses, and individuals alike. Founded in 2011, Zoom is publicly traded (NASDAQ:ZM) and headquartered in San Jose, California. Visit zoom.com and follow @zoom.

Zoom Public Relations
Candace Dean
Corporate PR Lead
press@zoom.us

June 22, 2022

ApplyBoard and Ireland Join Forces to Educate the World

The global education technology platform launches in Ireland to deliver innovation within the international education sector

Kitchener, Ontario, Canada, June 22, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Today, ApplyBoard, the global technology platform powering an education revolution, is thrilled to announce Ireland as its latest study abroad destination. This is the fifth study abroad destination that ApplyBoard has expanded to as part of its ongoing mission to educate the world.

ApplyBoard is excited for this opportunity to help Ireland grow and reach its international education goals. To date, five higher education institutions in Ireland have partnered with ApplyBoard: Trinity College Dublin, University College Dublin, Maynooth University, University College Cork, and the University of Limerick. ApplyBoard looks forward to building more momentum within Ireland’s international education sector.

“With a highly-regarded education system, rich history, and innovative culture, Ireland has so much to offer international students,” says Martin Basiri, CEO and Co-Founder of ApplyBoard. “Building this strong relationship with Ireland signifies an important step in expanding new opportunities for future students, supporting the long-standing legacy for excellence in the Irish education sector, and continuing to break down barriers to education for countless students around the world.”

Now, students and recruitment partners can look forward to having access to Ireland’s higher education institutions on the ApplyBoard Platform.

“ApplyBoard is incredibly well placed to partner with University College Dublin (UCD), to promote Ireland, to connect with international students who are looking for an educational experience that sets them apart and provides them with a competitive advantage,” says Una Watkins, Director International Student Recruitment, UCD. “Sharing our values in putting students first and supporting the success of all students, we very much look forward to working alongside ApplyBoard as they empower people around the world to study abroad and access the very best education.”

“Ireland is becoming an increasingly popular study destination for international students as the world-class standard of our education is matched by the post-study work opportunities available in Ireland,” says Giles O’Neill, Head of Education in Ireland. “ApplyBoard puts the student at the heart of what they do and keeps them there — this is a mission that we share and something that I am sure we can build on together into the future.”

ApplyBoard recognizes the need to continue to scale and expand its diversity of tech offerings to propel the international education sector forward. Most recently, ApplyBoard announced the acquisition of TrainHub, an education industry training ecosystem, to help strengthen international student recruitment. ApplyBoard also launched the ApplyBoard Insights Dashboard, a SaaS tool that leverages the latest study abroad data to help higher education institutions make important choices in international student recruiting.

To learn more about ApplyBoard growing in Ireland, visit here: www.applyboard.com/resources/ireland-resources

About ApplyBoard

ApplyBoard empowers students around the world to access the best education by simplifying the study abroad search, application, and acceptance process to more than 1,500 institutions across Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Ireland. ApplyBoard, headquartered in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada, has helped more than 300,000 students from more than 125 countries along their educational journeys since 2015. To learn more, visit: www.applyboard.com

– 30 –

Alessandra Manieri
ApplyBoard
226 220 9826
alessandra.manieri@applyboard.com

June 22, 2022

Anaqua to Acquire Practice Insight to Round Out its Law Firm IP Management Solutions

Acquisition will enhance both AQX and PATTSY WAVE as IP practice management platforms for law firms by adding fully integrated IP time and billing capabilities

BOSTON, June 22, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Anaqua, the leading global innovation and intellectual property (IP) management technology provider, today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Practice Insight Pty Ltd, and its intelligent time capture software WiseTime, from IPH Limited.

In leveraging Practice Insight’s technology for integrated IP time and billing functionality, Anaqua continues its investment in both AQX^® Law Firm and PATTSY WAVE^® as end-to-end IP practice management solutions, while adding WiseTime, Practice Insight’s flagship autonomous time capture tool to its suite of standalone offerings.

“This acquisition underscores our steadfast commitment to meeting the evolving needs of the law firm market,” said Bob Romeo, CEO of Anaqua. “We have listened very carefully to practitioner feedback across the globe, and it is clear that law firms are seeking IP management solutions that offer advanced reporting and analytics, integrated document management, secure cloud hosting, collaborative client portals, intuitive user experience – and integrated time and billing. With the acquisition of Practice Insight, we will now have all of these features fully integrated into both AQX Law Firm and PATTSY WAVE.”

The Practice Insight team, led by co-founder and current CEO Thomas Haines, will maintain its footprint in Perth, Australia, joining Anaqua’s global R&D organization.

“Our companies share a deep passion for leveraging technology to drive efficiency within IP operations,” said Haines, a former practicing patent attorney, who will join Anaqua as Vice President and continue to lead the Practice Insight team. “We have quickly developed a strong rapport with the Anaqua team and look forward to joining the organization, as we execute against our shared vision for an end-to-end IPMS for law firms.”

“WiseTime’s service offering strongly aligns with Anaqua’s suite of IP management software and will provide the team growth opportunities,” said Andrew Blattman, IPH CEO and Managing Director. “We wish the team every future success as part of Anaqua.”

The transaction is conditional on regulatory approvals and other usual conditions and is expected to complete early in the third quarter.

About Anaqua
Anaqua, Inc. is a premium provider of integrated intellectual property (IP) management technology solutions and services for corporations and law firms. Its IP management software solutions, AQX and PATTSY WAVE, both offer best practice workflows with big data analytics and tech-enabled services to create an intelligent environment designed to inform IP strategy, enable IP decision-making, and streamline IP operations, tailored to each segment’s need. Today, nearly half of the top 100 U.S. patent filers and global brands, as well as a growing number of law firms worldwide use Anaqua’s solutions. Over one million IP executives, attorneys, paralegals, administrators, and innovators use the platform for their IP management needs. The company’s global operations are headquartered in Boston, with offices across the U.S., Europe, and Asia. For additional information, please visit anaqua.com, or on LinkedIn.

About WiseTime (also known as Practice Insight)
As a member of IPH, WiseTime (also known as Practice Insight) has been at the forefront of developing IP business intelligence software, including its flagship offering WiseTime, a seamless and automated timekeeping solution. For more information, please visit wisetime.com, or on LinkedIn.

About IPH Limited
IPH is the Asia Pacific’s leading intellectual property services group, comprising a network of member firms working in eight IP jurisdictions and servicing more than 25 countries. The group includes leading IP firms AJ Park, Applied Marks, Griffith Hack, Pizzeys and Spruson & Ferguson, and the autonomous timekeeping business, WiseTime, and employs more than 900 people working in Australia, China, Hong Kong SAR, Indonesia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore and Thailand. For more information, visit IPH Limited, or on LinkedIn.

Company Contact:
Amanda Hollis
Director, Communications
Anaqua
617-375-5808
ahollis@Anaqua.com

June 22, 2022

Anaqua annonce l’acquisition de Practice Insight pour compléter ses solutions de gestion de la PI à destination des cabinets d’avocats

Cette acquisition viendra renforcer le positionnement d’AQX et PATTSY WAVE, les plateformes de gestion de la propriété intellectuelle à destination des cabinets d’avocats et conseils en propriété intellectuelle, en ajoutant des fonctionnalités de facturation du temps entièrement intégrées.

BOSTON, 22 juin 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Anaqua, leader mondial de l’innovation et de la gestion de la propriété intellectuelle (PI), annonce aujourd’hui la conclusion d’un accord définitif pour l’acquisition de Practice Insight Pty Ltd, et de son logiciel de saisie intelligente du temps WiseTime, auprès de IPH Limited.

En s’appuyant sur la technologie de Practice Insight qui propose une fonctionnalité intégrée de facturation du temps passé aux activités de propriété intellectuelle, Anaqua continue d’investir dans AQX^® Law Firm et PATTSY WAVE^® pour en faire des solutions de gestion de cabinet conseils de bout en bout. WiseTime, l’outil phare de saisie du temps de travail de Practice Insight, viendra s’ajouter à la suite de logiciels indépendants d’Anaqua.

“Cette acquisition souligne notre volonté de répondre à l’évolution des besoins du marché des cabinets d’avocats et conseils”, a déclaré Bob Romeo, PDG d’Anaqua. “Nous avons écouté très attentivement les commentaires des professionnels à travers le monde, et il est clair que les cabinets recherchent des solutions de gestion de la PI capables d’offrir des outils de reporting et d’analyse avancés, une gestion intégrée des documents, un hébergement cloud sécurisé, des portails clients collaboratifs, une expérience utilisateur intuitive – et une facturation intégrée. Avec l’acquisition de Practice Insight, nous aurons désormais toutes ces fonctionnalités entièrement intégrées à la fois dans AQX Law Firm et PATTSY WAVE.”

L’équipe de Practice Insight, dirigée par le co-fondateur et actuel PDG Thomas Haines, maintiendra sa présence à Perth, Australie, et rejoindra l’organisation globale de R&D d’Anaqua.

“Nos sociétés partagent une passion profonde pour l’utilisation de la technologie afin d’améliorer l’efficacité des opérations de propriété intellectuelle”, a déclaré Haines, un ancien conseil en brevets, qui rejoindra Anaqua en tant que vice-président et continuera à diriger l’équipe Practice Insight.” Nous avons rapidement développé des liens étroits avec l’équipe d’Anaqua et nous sommes impatients de rejoindre l’organisation, pour développer notre vision commune d’un logiciel de gestion de la propriété intellectuelle de bout en bout pour les cabinets d’avocats et conseils.”

“L’offre de services de WiseTime s’aligne fortement avec la suite logicielle de gestion PI d’Anaqua et offrira à l’équipe des opportunités de croissance”, a déclaré Andrew Blattman, PDG et directeur général d’IPH. “Nous souhaitons à l’équipe beaucoup succès au sein d’Anaqua.”

Cette opération demeure soumise aux approbations réglementaires et autres conditions usuelles. Elle devrait être finalisée au début du troisième trimestre.

À propos d’Anaqua
Anaqua, Inc. est un fournisseur de premier plan de solutions et services technologiques intégrés de gestion de la propriété intellectuelle (PI). Ses logiciels, AQX et PATTSY WAVE, combinent les meilleurs outils pour définir une stratégie de propriété intellectuelle avisée. Ses technologies, qui reposent notamment sur des workflows et des capacités d’analyses avancés, offre un environnement de travail intelligent conçu pour une prendre de meilleures décisions et optimiser les opérations de PI. Aujourd’hui, près de la moitié des 100 premiers déposants de brevets américains et des marques mondiales, ainsi qu’un nombre croissant de cabinets de conseils dans le monde utilisent les solutions Anaqua. Plus d’un million de décideurs, avocats, parajuristes, gestionnaires et innovateurs utilisent la plateforme pour leurs besoins de gestion de la PI. Le siège de la société est situé à Boston, avec des bureaux aux Etats-Unis, en Europe et en Asie. Pour de plus amples informations, veuillez consulter le site anaqua.com, ou LinkedIn.

À propos de WiseTime (également connu sous le nom de Practice Insight)
En tant que membre de l’IPH, WiseTime (également connu sous le nom de Practice Insight) a été à l’avant-garde du développement de logiciels de veille économique dans le domaine de la propriété intellectuelle, y compris son offre phare WiseTime, une solution de comptabilisation du temps transparente et automatisée. Pour plus d’informations, veuillez consulter wisetime.com, ou LinkedIn.

À propos d’IPH Limited
IPH est le principal groupe de services de propriété intellectuelle de la région Asie-Pacifique. Il comprend un réseau de cabinets membres travaillant dans huit juridictions de propriété intellectuelle et desservant plus de 25 pays. Le groupe comprend les cabinets de propriété intellectuelle AJ Park, Applied Marks, Griffith Hack, Pizzeys et Spruson & Ferguson, ainsi que l’entreprise autonome de gestion du temps WiseTime, et emploie plus de 900 personnes en Australie, en Chine, dans la région administrative spéciale de Hong Kong, en Indonésie, en Malaisie, en Nouvelle-Zélande, à Singapour et en Thaïlande. Pour plus d’informations, visitez le site IPH Limited, ou LinkedIn.

Contact de la société :
Amanda Hollis
Directeur, Communications
Anaqua
+1-617-375-5808
ahollis@Anaqua.com

June 22, 2022

UN: Education Disrupted for 222 Million Children

GENEVA — A United Nations study finds 222 million children and adolescents worldwide have had their education disrupted by multiple crises.

Education Cannot Wait, the United Nations global fund for education in emergencies and protracted crises, produced the study. When the organization was created in 2016, the number of crisis-affected children whose education had been disrupted stood at around 75 million.

ECW Director Yasmine Sherif says multiple crises over the past six years have boosted the number to 222 million among more than 40 countries.

“Conflicts are raging around the world — we know that, but they also are more and more protracted. But the growing record high number of refugees and internally displaced, as a result of conflicts and climate-induced disasters, have also contributed to this number, as have, of course, the COVID-19 pandemic,” Sherif said.

The study finds 78.2 million children worldwide have dropped out of school entirely. Education experts say those children are unlikely to resume their education, resulting in a detrimental impact on their prospects and earning capacity.

Sherif says she has visited countries where most children currently are out of school, and she has seen what happens to children in crisis-ridden countries such as Mali, Chad, the Central African Republic and South Sudan.

“When you do not go to school, you are very exposed to being — if you are a boy — forcibly recruited into armed groups, terrorist groups, militia, government groups,” she said. “And, if you are a girl, you are exposed to becoming part of a gender-based violence at homes, sexual violence, trafficking, early marriages, and early childbirth.”

Sherif says the new data must be a wake-up call for all leaders and policymakers as more children are being left behind due to crises. She says the international community must do more to support their educational needs, or there will be far-reaching negative impacts for human and economic development.

Source: Voice of America

June 22, 2022

Rwanda Hosts Showcase Commonwealth Summit, Dimmed by Rights Concerns

Rwanda is preparing to welcome leaders of 54 nations for a Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting Friday in the capital, Kigali.

The Commonwealth was formed in 1931 as the British Empire began to break up and nations claimed their independence. Its stated aim is working toward shared goals of prosperity, democracy and peace. Rwanda and four other countries are not former British colonies.

This week’s summit, which has been postponed twice since 2020 owing to the coronavirus pandemic, is being overshadowed by concerns over human rights abuses in Rwanda and Britain’s plans to send asylum seekers to the African state for processing there.

“The Rwandan government has been very keen to have (the meeting) in person so it can showcase the country and showcase the capital,” says Professor Philip Murphy, the director of the Institute of Commonwealth Studies at the University of London.

Rwanda President Paul Kagame “wants the kind of kudos of being attached to an organization that claims that it’s values-based, it claims that it supports human rights, democracy and the rule of law… And clearly he’s a very controversial figure. Rwanda’s human rights record is questionable and controversial.”

Rwanda denies the government commits human rights abuses. Supporters of Kagame say hosting the Commonwealth meeting is another milestone in the country’s rapid development since the 1994 genocide, in which around 800,000 people were killed.

Human rights

Civil society groups in Rwanda complain of a lack of media and political freedom.

Rwandan journalist Eleneus Akanga fled the country in 2007 after the government closed his newspaper. “My crime was reporting the truth. I had written a story, or I sought to write a story about journalists that were being beaten by unknown people. And it turned out that these journalists thought that the government was beating them up using state agents. I found out later that they were going to charge me with espionage.”

Akanga then fled to Britain and was granted political asylum in 2007.

Asylum deal

Earlier this year, Britain signed a deal with the Rwandan government to send back asylum seekers arriving on its shores for processing in Rwanda. The first flight was due to depart last week but was blocked minutes before take-off by the European Court of Human Rights.

Critics say the policy breaches refugee law. The British government says the policy is legal and will deter migrants.

“When people come here illegally, when they break the law, it is important that we make that distinction. That is what we are doing with our Rwanda policy,” British Prime Minister Boris Johnson told reporters June 18.

British ties

Britain has forged close ties with Rwanda since the latter joined the Commonwealth in 2009, says Murphy.

“Kagame has got strong links with the British Conservative party. He’s got a lot of supporters there. So I think that this asylum deal probably developed on the back of that special Commonwealth relationship,” Murphy said.

Exiled journalist Eleneus Akanga says the policy is contradictory.

“It is astonishing when you see the British government, which has given people like myself asylum, now being the same government that is out there telling us that somehow, Rwanda has transformed so much so that it is a country they are willing to send the most vulnerable asylum seekers that there could be to, because they believe the situation has changed. And we know it hasn’t,” Akanga told VOA.

Overshadowed

The Commonwealth meeting will be overshadowed by the dispute over Britain’s asylum policy, says Commonwealth analyst Murphy.

“In a way it’s focused international attention on Rwanda’s human rights record,” he told VOA. “Since the 1990s the Commonwealth has tried to reinvent itself as an organization that’s united more by common values than by common history. The problem is it hasn’t been very good at policing those values.”

Source: Voice of America