Business receipts in value terms of most of the major service industries showed increases of different magnitudes in the fourth quarter of 2009 when compared with the fourth quarter of 2008, according to the provisional business receipts indices released today (March 11) by the Census and Statistics Department (C&SD).

The Intellectual Property Department (IPD) today (March 11) held a seminar entitled "Recent Amendment to Hong Kong Copyright Law concerning Business End-User of Copyright Works" to promote corporate accountability and responsible governance in ensuring compliance with the copyright law in business establishments. About 300 participants from various industries attended the seminar.

The Secretary for Home Affairs, Mr Tsang Tak-sing, said today (March 11) that the HKSAR Government had accepted in principle the key recommendations of a consultancy study on football development and would allocate more resources to implement the recommendations to promote the development of football in Hong Kong.

The following is issued on behalf of the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority:

The task force on LPG vehicle stalling incidents, at its fourth meeting today (March 11), reviewed the work progress and analysed the findings of the investigation.

The following is issued on behalf of the Hospital Authority:

The Home Affairs Bureau (HAB) will hold two consultation sessions on March 13 (Saturday) and March 24 (Wednesday) respectively to brief the arts sector and the public and listen to their views on the logistical and publicity arrangements of the Nomination of Representatives of Arts Interests for the Hong Kong Arts Development Council (HKADC). All interested parties are welcome to attend.

Further investigation by the Department of Health today (March 11) into the suspected illegal sale of prescription drugs by wholesalers directly to patients has revealed that four more drugs were involved.

Mr. Perritaz joined Zurich in 1996 and in the following years held several roles in the global corporate business in Europe. From 2005 to 2007 he was Chief Operating Officer, Global Corporate, of Zurich Insurance plc (ZIP) in Ireland, leading the set-up of Zurich’s European ZIP branch network for the global corporate business. Since 2008 he has been Group Operations Manager at Zurich’s Corporate Center.

Under the terms of the agreement, the companies will work together using Cellzome’s EpisphereTM technology platform, to identify selective small-molecule drug candidates against targets from four different epigenetic target classes. The companies will share operational responsibility for the programs until identification of drug candidates, at which stage GSK will assume responsibility for any further preclinical and clinical development and commercialisation.

BT has announced today that the BT Foundation has developed an innovative corporate Volunteer programme, which under the name “ICT Volunteering”, aims to promote BT Spain’s employees’ charitable actions and favour the integration and development of underprivileged communities, through the use of information and communications technologies.

SANTA CLARA, Calif. - FileMaker and Bracket Science have teamed up to deliver an exciting bracket resource titled "Bracket Science Slam Dunk Charts by FileMaker Pro 11" The Facebook page gives college basketball fans a competitive edge in creating their championship tournament brackets thanks to FileMaker Pro 11, the best-selling easy-to-use database software, which now features integrated charting.

“This year’s Xplor 2010 Global Conference and Vendor Forum provides an excellent opportunity for attendees to capitalize on the wealth of knowledge within the Xplor vendor community,” said McGrew, Data-Driven Communications Segment Evangelist, Kodak. “We’re thrilled to emphasize the power of data-driven applications that use TransPromo and color variable data methods. We want attendees to learn how Kodak’s digital printing solutions combined with their existing data can help them create communications materials that drive higher response rates.”

Bucharest -- Avnet Technology Solutions, the solutions distribution leader and an operating group of Avnet, Inc. (NYSE:AVT), today announced an expanded distribution agreement with VMware, Inc. (NYSE: VMW), the global leader in virtualization solutions from the desktop through the data center and to the cloud, to include support for value-added reseller partners in Romania. Avnet is an existing distributor of VMware in Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic. By working with Avnet and VMware, channel partners can develop and deliver complete virtualization solutions that significantly improve the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of their end customers’ IT operations.

SAN RAMON, Calif. – Chevron U.S.A. Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Chevron Corporation (NYSE: CVX), today announced that it has commenced operations on the Discoverer Inspiration, an ultra-deepwater drillship, in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. The vessel has the capability to drill wells in 12,000 feet (3,650 meters) of water to a total depth of 40,000 feet (12,200 meters).