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More than 120 senior business and government representatives from the US and India met recently in Washington, DC to discuss expanding business opportunities in the defense technology and information technology areas. The discussions were held in conjunction with the "Dialogue on Defense Technology, Data Privacy, and Export Licensing" conference, hosted at the US Department of Commerce and the US-India Business Council. Participants in the defense technology roundtable explored US and Indian government policies concerning defense cooperation and procurement, as well as issues confronting US companies interested in the Indian market. During the data privacy roundtable, participants focused on various approaches to protecting data, an issue that is critical to the continued growth of information technology industries. The roundtable discussions gave the industry participants the opportunity to develop concrete policy recommendations for the US and Indian governments. The conference also included a session detailing the various aspects of US regulations and licensing procedures for munitions and other defense-related goods;
 
Apple Computer's first retail store in Europe will soon open on Regent Street in London's West End shopping district. The new Apple Store Regent Street "will offer the first opportunity to experience Apple's unique retail stores in Europe, where customers can shop for and learn about the company's innovative products and solutions," the company said in a press statement. "This new store," it said, "will also provide millions of people the opportunity to experience Apple's newest products like iPod photo and the iMac G5, and get help from the most knowledgeable Mac experts around."  The new store will pair the building's original stone facade with a modern retail interior of stainless steel, glass and stone, and feature two specially equipped studio classrooms offering hands-on technical instruction for Mac beginners and professionals alike, led by Apple experts; a 64-seat state-of-the-art theatre where customers can attend special events and workshops, and watch demonstrations of Apple's latest products; and a special "Kids Section" with eight computers running educational software and games;

San Diego-headquartered Sola International Inc. has announced the acquisition of certain net assets of Vision Systems Inc., including two prescription laboratories located in Atlanta, Georgia and Petersburg, Virginia. Vision Systems has annual sales of approximately $11 million, employs 70 people and processes approximately 850 orders per day. The purchase price consists of $2.6million in cash consideration and the assumption of $1.2 million of debt. Contingent payments total an additional $4 million. Sola International Inc. designs, manufactures and distributes a broad range of eyeglass lenses, primarily focusing on the faster-growing plastic lens segment of the global lens market, and particularly on higher-margin value-added products. The company's operations include manufacturing and distribution sites in 27 countries in Asia, North America, Europe, and South America serving more than 50 markets worldwide; and…

According to press reports, Fujitsu Ltd. and IBM Corp. aim to develop common autonomous computing technologies and start implementing them in their products next year. The two major computer companies said they will work toward "establishing a standard for the two key autonomous computing technologies." The first technology concerns collection of information on hardware and software problems. It encompasses both signs of impending problems and the time and nature of problems that have already occurred. The second technology deals with instructing the affected hardware and software to fix problems on their own based on the information gathered using the first technology. The two companies also plan to wield their considerable influence and pitch their common standards for use as industry standards. For example, Fujitsu and IBM aim to urge the Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards (OASIS) to adopt their common system problem information collection technology as an industry standard in 2005. OASIS counts more than 600 information technology firms as its members.

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