A new report from NSW's ICAC details five steps to help organisations avoid the corruption that can come when dealing with external IT contractors. [ + ]

Hybrid deployments represent the most efficient way to make use of cloud resources, according to University of Sydney researchers. [ + ]

User virtualisation solutions enable a level of mobility that wasn’t available to employees before. This, along with the ability to allow IT managers to centrally manage and set up any desktop regardless of device, platform or location, means IT teams also see huge resource benefits. [ + ]

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer announced last Friday that he will retire within the next 12 months. He will remain as chief executive until a successor is chosen. [ + ]

Big data is rapidly emerging as an important resource for enhancing customer relationships. Teamed with predictive analytics tools, it can be used to improve loyalty, increase sales opportunities and boost the bottom line. [ + ]

Startup Spring 2013 will be a three-week festival designed to promote local tech start-ups and encourage more Australians to become technology entrepreneurs. [ + ]

Users of now-defunct Kogan Mobile have turned to the internet to vent their frustrations, with some emailing sites like Technology Decisions with their comments and others trading barbs in forums over who is ultimately to blame for the carrier's downfall. [ + ]

Social channels can help election candidates reach new voters, but a bad online mistake can balloon into a major issue, according to a Queensland media research team. [ + ]

Around 120,000 Kogan Mobile prepaid customers will need to find a new provider, following the latest failure of an Australian telecom reseller - in this instance, ispONE. [ + ]

Successful business relationships depend on trust between buyers and sellers. However, the software industry has historically struggled with trust as it relates to the exchange of fair value. Many companies find themselves with unintentional overuse despite their desires and best intentions to avoid it. [ + ]

We've come a long way in just 40 years since the first ethernet network was created. That same year, the first mobile calls were made, ushering in the era of mobile data. But what's happening today and what's next? [ + ]

Demand for DDoS protection technology is booming in APAC, but doubts about the value of such solutions still linger in Australia and other markets. [ + ]

The NZ government's proposal to regulate lower wholesale broadband prices is an even-handed approach, which could be key to the success of its UFB fibre project. [ + ]

Networking vendor Cisco will cut 4000 jobs - 5% of its workforce - in a bid to free up resources for its faster-growing segments, and for future acquisitions. The announcement comes on top of an 18% year-on-year increase in fiscal fourth-quarter profits at Cisco. [ + ]

Growing competition in the A/NZ data centre market is putting pressure on providers to consolidate and move further up the services stack, according to IDC. [ + ]