Village Gamer

Corel® has launched PhotoVideoLife.com, a new web community where Corel® VideoStudio® Pro X4 users can share and trade video templates and content. An extension of the Corel Guide included in VideoStudio Pro X4, PhotoVideoLife.com provides users with extra tips, tricks and tutorials as well as product updates, news and commentary. PhotoVideoLife’s ongoing goal is to make the movie-making process faster, easier and more fun for X4 users.

“VideoStudio fans love movie templates, and why not? They make any video project faster, easier and more enjoyable,” said Greg Wood, Senior Product Marketing Manager for VideoStudio. “These templates, combined with X4’s effects, ease-of-use and speed will help make the creation process even smoother. When you start with a good looking template and a bit of know-how, it’s easy to create a funny video for a friend, a recap of a family weekend, or a video blog, in just a few minutes. Making video editing easier and more fun is exactly why we created PhotoVideoLife for our users.”

New movie template trading site PhotoVideoLife.com enables users to:

• Browse and select templates to quickly build your video production
• Provide an exciting new look to an existing video production
• Upload your own video creations to share with other users
• Read the PhotoVideoLife blog to help get the most out of VideoStudio Pro X4
• Participate in the PhotoVideoLife blog by leaving comments and helpful advice for other VideoStudio Pro X4 users
• Link to Corel support options and learning resources

Launched in February 2011, VideoStudio Pro X4 is the newest version of Corel’s consumer video editing software. It pushes the performance envelope by delivering increased speed and usability as well as cool creative tools like Stop Motion, Timelapse and drag and drop templates.

“We believe that VideoStudio Pro X4 is a big step forward in making video editing easier and more fun, regardless of your experience,” explained Wood. “The VideoStudio team wants to help our users reach their creative potential by giving them powerful tools that are simple and fun to use, plus the knowledge to apply them with confidence.”

Download a free, fully-functional trial version.

CAD Crowd, an online matching service that helps companies hire global CAD workers, is pleased to announce a partnership with CADENAS GmbH. With CADENAS’ innovative new design catalogue technology, the CAD Crowd Part Community has successfully been launched. Pre-existing designs will allow companies to use the library of pre-constructed CAD models for reduced costs, reduced lead time as well as enhanced productivity for engineers and technologies. The CAD Crowd Part Community now allows CAD Crowd clients access to over 300 catalogues of 3D CAD standard design parts. Best of all, these drawings are provided free to engineers, architects, drafters and CAD technologists.

Toronto’s BeAnywhere Inc. a remote access and remote support technologies provider for SMB and Domestic Users, has launched its most recent version of Support Express, the Windows remote support solution for companies of all sizes.

With BeAnywhere Support Express, companies can deliver instant, on-demand remote support to any computer in the world, even through firewalls or non-standard Internet configurations. Support providers or internal helpdesk departments can manage, maintain and control unattended computers, as well as assisting several machines simultaneously to increase productivity. Support Express uses a blazing fast, proprietary peer-to-peer network protocol that is up to 30% faster than similar technologies. It is fully compatible with Microsoft’s User Account Control and Active Directory technologies, supporting every Windows operating system from 2000 up to Windows 7. It supports detailed reporting and video recording of the sessions in the cloud, as well as several methods of connection.

BeAnywhere Support Express 2 is the result of several months of development and beta testing in close contact with BeAnywhere’s community of users. “Over the last months, the response of our users has been amazing, with hundreds of comments, suggestions and requests arriving after each new beta version we published,” said Ruben Dias, CEO of BeAnywhere, Inc. “This new version combines the performance of our network with dozens of new features and enhancements that bring the remote support experience to a whole new level.”

The last version of Support Express adds several features and refinements like:

• Immediate support request notification with exclusive InstaConnect technology and a new applet, 20% faster.
• Enhanced Reboot & Reconnect with autologon allows the remote technician to perform unattended reboots and log back into Windows without knowing the system credentials or requiring a local user to log in locally, even from the support applet and without administrator permissions.
• New full screen mode, perfected with the feedback from the community of users.
• Revamped disconnect procedures now make locking the remote machine optional.

Support Express is available in four plans, including one free edition, and can also be purchased on a pay-as-you-go basis.

Burnaby’s 3D3 Solutions has announced the official launch of FlexScan3D 3.0, the latest version of its 3D scanner software. The company developed the proprietary 3D scanning technology to power its line of HDI 3D Scanners. The software is also available exclusively for engineering and development companies to build custom white light 3D scanners for industry applications.

“FlexScan3D has the ability to interface directly with off-the-shelf cameras and a projector to build a custom 3D scanner,” said Thomas Tong, President of 3D3 Solutions. “There is a wide range of supported hardware options available so users can choose the best combination of speed, accuracy, and cost for their particular application. With the release of FlexScan3D 3.0, we want to offer advanced 3D scanning at an affordable price.”

Major developments for FlexScan3D 3.0 include:

* Photogrammetry Alignment: Align 3D scan data automatically and accurately using photogrammetry dots by eliminating the tedious task of manual data alignment.

* Multi-head 3D Scanning Using Multiple Scan Heads from a Single PC: FlexScan3D has the ability to control multiple 3D scanners from a single PC to acquire data from several directions. The scanned data is then automatically aligned and merged.

* 64bit Native Core: Process 3D scan data faster and at higher resolutions compared to previous versions of the software.

* Newly Designed User Interface: The new user interface generates complex 3D models fast with a streamlined work flow.

* Deviation Analysis: Advanced reporting feature with mesh to mesh comparison.

* High Resolution Color Texture Capture: Automatically generates ultra high resolution color maps using a Digital SLR as a texture camera.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=STVohz-W8YA]

FlexScan3D 3.0 Software and the HDI 3D Scanners, which includes with the new version of the software, are now available for purchase. 3D3 Solutions will showcase FlexScan3D 3.0 at Rapid 2011 Conference & Exhibition, which takes place in Minneapolis this May 24th through 26th.

Dave Shworan, the CEO of QuoteMedia Ltd., an Arizona-based company with offices in Parksville, Vancouver and Toronto, along with Ungad Chadda, Senior Vice President of the Toronto Stock Exchange, opened TSX  trading today in celebration of the selection of QuoteMedia as the market data and applications provider for TSX InfoSuite™.

“Toronto Stock Exchange is excited to have QuoteMedia open the market today to celebrate the recent launch of TSX InfoSuite,” said Mr. Chadda. “We value QuoteMedia’s expertise as a Canadian data aggregator and their robust and dynamic financial solutions, which is why TSX decided to partner with them on this value-added initiative for our issuers.”

TMX Group Inc. and QuoteMedia, Inc. previously announced the launch of TSX InfoSuite, a new market data and shareholder solution powered by QuoteMedia, which was introduced to enhance the suite of services for TSX and TSX Venture Exchange listed companies.

“We are very proud to have been selected to work with TMX Group to create, host and manage the new TSX InfoSuite services,” said Mr. Shworan. “The selection of QuoteMedia to be the market data and service provider to TMX Group and its issuers is a gratifying validation of our company’s abilities.”

Dovico Software has announced significant updates to both of its project and time management softwares; Dovico Timesheet and Dovico Planning & Timesheet. In these new releases, customers are now able to track time and expenses in multiple currencies. And with each expense entered into the system, you can now attach a receipt.

The new multiple currency features have already impressed long time multinational customers like Allianz and AON Global. These companies, which have staff employed all over the world, can now review, compare and analyze their costs in any currency. For a company like Technology Engineers, Inc. whose employees all stay close to home, and which has world-wide clients, the multi-currency features are equally beneficial when preparing contract bids or invoicing.

“Dovico’s goals in these product releases were to assist companies in managing, not only their time, expenses and projects, but also help them manage these in the reality of corporate expansion and outsourcing.” said Yves Doucet, CEO at Dovico.

Available as either a hosted service or an on-premise installation, both products are available for a free 30 day trial.

Features

• Analyze and bill projects when you use more than one currency to pay employees, or to bill your international clients.
• Track and budget project costs in any currency.
• Analyze and report on any project, in any currency.
• Enter expenses purchased from anywhere in the world.
• New simplified navigation with frequently used views just one click away.

Don’t miss your chance to vote for Game of the Year for the 2011 Canadian Videogame Awards.  Voting is open to the public until midnight, Friday, May 13th (note: Facebook Connect is required to vote).

The five 2011 Game of the Year finalists are:

·       Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood
·       Dead Rising 2
·       FIFA 11
·       Mass Effect 2
·       Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Conviction

There are still great seats available for the 2011 Canadian Videogame Awards – and tickets start at just $30.00.  Come out next Wednesday night and enjoy an evening with the top developers and publishers in Canada! The show will be hosted by Victor Lucas and his team from The Electric Playground, and you can even get some autographs post-show!  Internationally renowned Video Games Live will be back to provide the musical entertainment AND Nintendo will be offering attendees a special opportunity to play The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D for Nintendo 3DS.  

Don’t miss the 2011 Canadian Games Conference – there is still time to register.  This year’s event features sessions in business, production, design, programming, social games, and iPhone games, as well as a special line-up of “Best of GDC” speakers, and offers visionary keynotes, an expo hall, and evening networking events.  The Conference takes place May 19-20th at the Vancouver Convention Centre.

Just over a month ago Tiny Hippo became part of the RIM family, and the developers have announced that they are adding support for BlackBerry WebWorks 2.0.0 to their flagship product, Ripple Mobile Environment Emulator. This support includes most of the APIs in the WebWorks stack as well skinning for 3 supported BlackBerry devices (The BlackBerry Torch, BlackBerry Bold, and the BlackBerry PlayBook). Check out Ripple’s docs page to see the extent of the WebWorks support as well as what else is new in this release.

Decapod Studios has released a free version of its hit match 3 title Murphid for Windows Phone 7. The full version of Murphid is also available for 99 cents.

• Engaging Campaign spawning more that 70 levels of marble blasting madness.
• Three game modes for players to choose from to suit their playing style.
• More than 10 powerups to help players redefine the game field and wreak havoc in a blink of an eye.
• 8 exclusive Awards to boost the replay value further by throwing extra challenges at the player.
• Pre-filled Leaderboard to give the game nostalgic, old-school touch.
• Awe-inspiring HD visuals with full widescreen support.
• Charming sound effects to create the ambience.
• Adaptive gameplay technology for challenging and fun gaming expirience for players of all ages.

If you don’t have WP7, you can always play Murphid on your Xbox 360, too – it’s available in the Games Marketplace for only 80 MS Points.

Roaring Penguin Software Inc. has announced the release of CanIt 8.0.5. which adds several major improvements to the CanIt Archiver software. Several major new features were added including:

• CanIt-Archiver keeps an audit trail of searches and message accesses. Administrators and end-users can see the audit trail. (End-users can only see audit trails relating to their own archive.)
• CanIt-Archiver has a hook for archiving internal email that normally would not be seen by CanIt.
• CanIt-Archiver stores only one copy of duplicate messages received on a given day for a given realm.

CanIt Archiver, “The Uninteruptible E-mail Supply”, is a highly configurable e-mail archiving solution focused on e-mail continuity. CanIt Archiver ensures that e-mail is accessible in the event of a mail server outage and queues e-mail to make sure that it is delivered when mail service is restored.

CanIt 8.0.5 is available as:

* CanIt-PRO, an anti-spam software solution suitable for small and medium business.
* CanIt-Domain-PRO, spam filtering software for MSPs to host anti-spam for their customers.
* Hosted CanIt, a fully outsourced, hosted anti-spam service.

Scott is a retired volunteer firefighter and my grandfather, father and two uncles were volunteer firefighters, so we are both very happy to see that construction has officially begun on a permanent, national memorial to pay tribute to Canada’s fallen firefighters, thanks to an investment by the Government of Canada. The announcement was made today by Pierre Poilievre, Member of Parliament (Nepean-Carleton), on behalf of the Honourable James Moore, Minister of Canadian Heritage and Official Languages, as part of an official sod-turning ceremony alongside the Canadian Fallen Firefighters Foundation.

“No job is more important than protecting the lives of Canadians and their families,” said Minister Moore. “This memorial will be a permanent reminder of the sacrifices firefighters across Canada make to keep us safe.”

“Our gratitude to those who put their lives on the line to make Canada safer is often difficult to express,” said Mr. Poilievre. “This memorial will serve to remind all Canadians of the men and women who put their lives at risk for their communities.”

The Canadian Fallen Firefighters Foundation is building the monument in the Lebreton Flats area of the National Capital Region, near the Canadian War Museum. This monument, the only official memorial to Canada’s firefighters, will be located at the exact location where the Great Fire of 1900 was finally brought under control after destroying 1400 buildings and killing seven people in Ottawa, and destroying 1300 buildings in Gatineau.

The Government of Canada announced funding of $2,529,800 for the construction of this monument in 2009. This funding is being providing through the Commemorate Canada component of the Department of Canadian Heritage’s Celebration and Commemoration Program. This component provides financial support to initiatives of national significance that commemorate various aspects of Canadian history.

US-based Black Duck Software has partnered with Toronto-based Softworx Technology Group in order to expand the delivery of its software and services in Canada.

Softworx is a provider of ALM development tools and platforms designed to increase developer productivity, provides products and services that speed collaborative development in multi-source development environments. Under terms of the agreement, Softworx will offer products and services for open source governance and management with the Black Duck® Suite.

“The strategic use of open source software is fast becoming a measure of development competency,” said Phil Odence, vice president of business development, Black Duck. “We are pleased to add Softworx, a leader in delivering ALM products and services, as a partner as we expand our offerings to Softworx customers in Canada.”

Black Duck recently announced the availability of the Black Duck Suite 6, the company’s enterprise-class management and governance platform, which enables enterprises to realize the compelling benefits of free and open source software (FOSS) use in development. The Black Duck Suite 6 mitigates the challenges and complexity associated with enterprise-scale multi-source development via “learned” code matching and automated identification of FOSS, among many other features.

Toronto has leapt into the number two spot in the world in the just-released PwC survey of “Cities of Opportunity” – the consultancy’s fourth analysis “of the trajectory of 26 cities, all capitals of finance, commerce and culture.” New York is slightly ahead of Toronto in first place, while San Francisco, Stockholm and Sydney round out the top five.

In its analysis, PwC ranked cities in ten categories – measures designed, as PwC describes it, to favour “holistic capital market centres with vibrant economies and strong quality of life.” According to PwC, “Our thesis is that a successful city going forward will balance both social and economic strengths so the people and infrastructure support each other.”

Toronto ranks particularly highly in two of the categories most closely correlated with global competitiveness: Intellectual Capital & Innovation (2nd) and Health, Safety & Security (2nd). “The successful modern urban economy,” says PwC, “is reliant on, if not yet solely the product of, intelligence and social well-being.”

Toronto also ranks highly on Demographics and Liveability (#3), Lifestyle Assets (4th), Ease of Doing Business (5th), Sustainability (5th) and Cost (5th).

The PwC report sums up with the observation that, “to sustain success, cities today must continually attract and retain highly educated, technologically adept and digitally connected knowledge workers who increasingly make up the core of their human capital and whose definition of quality of life is exacting and not easily compromised… More than a centre of global business and finance alone, Toronto is a community in which people want to live and expect to lead rich and meaningful lives.”

Samsung Electronics Canada and Zip.ca has announced an exclusive partnership that will soon provide Canadians the ability to enjoy thousands of movies and TV episodes streamed from Zip.ca to Samsung’s SMART Televisions, Blu-ray players and Home Theatre products.

“Realizing the changing entertainment landscape and the demand for online entertainment, this new partnership will help Canadian’s access Zip.ca’s expansive catalogue and underscores our goal of developing smart technologies that deliver content with convenience to meet consumers needs,” said David Vitale, Head of Marketing, Samsung Electronics Canada.

A Zip.ca app will be available on Samsung’s Internet connected TV and Home Theatre products soon, offering Zip.ca members the ability to instantly watch movies and TV episodes from Zip.ca.

“For the past year, Samsung and Zip.ca have been working together to solidify a service that would provide Canadians with the latest movies and TV programs at the mere push of a button,” said Scott Richards, CEO, Zip.ca. “Consumers want outstanding technology to watch their favourite programs, so Samsung was a natural choice for this partnership.”

MEGA Brands Inc. has announced that holders of its 10% senior secured debentures passed an extraordinary resolution today approving amendments to the indenture governing the debentures. The amendments, among other things, allow the Corporation to increase available borrowings for working capital purposes under its existing asset-based credit agreement and are effective as of today. The extraordinary resolution was approved by approximately 92% of the votes cast in person or represented by proxy at the special meeting of debenture holders.

When the polls closed on Monday evening Jack Layton had made historic gains.  It was a trend in popularity and leadership that the two-week online election game Ballot Blitz had shown from the beginning. Layton finished at the top of Onestop Media Group’s Ballot Blitz leaderboard on Play Onestop with 36%.

Ballot Blitz was an election themed arcade game which posted poll results based on the animated candidates’ popularity.  Users were asked to play as one of five party leaders – Stephen Harper, Michael Ignatieff, Elizabeth May, Jack Layton and Gilles Duceppe – while the other four candidates whizzed across the scene attempting to steal votes.

Layton’s luster was not confined to Ballot Blitz. He and his party rose to the top of almost every poll on PlayOnestop.com’s polling section as well.  These polls measured several leadership qualities including integrity in a fun way.  For example, most users did not believe Layton would attempt to ring 9 items through an 8 item express checkout line.

Susan Varty, Principal of Wordtree Consulting, has joined HeadStart Solutions Inc. as Director of Digital Strategy. Wordtree is now operating under HeadStart to contribute content marketing, social media initiatives and services for HeadStart’s clients.

“Our partnership will enhance our recruitment and employer branding offerings for our existing client base, as well as attract new clients in the emerging digital technology space. I’m looking forward to working with Sue who brings a wealth of experience in content and social media communications.  This makes it a perfect match for us to collaborate and build upon HeadStart’s foundation,” says Marc Roginsky, Founder and President of HeadStart.

Best Buy Canada is hosting The Windows Experience Tour at select Best Buy stores in Ontario and Quebec. Beginning May 6^th until June 26^th, the tent activation will be set up in the parking lots of select stores where customers can check out the hot new hardware while experiencing how Windows 7 and free Windows Live services can help them create, connect and share using their PC and the cloud. In addition, customers can speak with Windows brand ambassadors and Best Buy blue shirts and have the chance to win prizes including one of seven ultimate jet-setter experiences to a music festival somewhere around the globe, or many other prizes as part of the Rock the Globe contest.

Two Best Buy locations will feature a Windows “tailgate” parking lot party, complete with a free barbeque and music. The parties will be at the Newmarket location on May 14^th and May 15^th and the Leaside location on May 21^st.

Dates and locations of the Windows Experience Tours:

May 6 – 8: Sherway – 167 North Queen Etobicoke
May 13 – 15: Newmarket – 175 Green Lane East, Newmarket
May 20 – 22: Leaside – 147 Laird Drive East York
May 27 – 29: Laval – 1560 boulevard Le Courbusier Laval
June 3 – 5: Woodbridge – 7850 Weston Road Woodbridge
June 10 – 12: Sherway – 167 North Queen Etobicoke
June 17 – 19: Kitchener – 215 Fairway Road South Kitchener
June 24 – 26: St. Catherine’s – 420 Vansickle Road St. Catherine’s
June 24 – 26: Ottawa East – 380 Coventry Road Ottawa

3D character animation solutions developer Di-O-Matic Inc has released its complete line of character animation plugins with support for the recently released Autodesk 2012 products. As an Autodesk Authorized Developer, Di-O-Matic has updated its complete plugins product line to be fully compatible with the newest offering from Autodesk and is happy to release these updates after the recent official Autodesk release.

The new Di-O-Matic plugins compatible with Autodesk 2012 products feature significant enhancements over previous versions as most plugins received significant updates in addition to now being compatible with the newest Autodesk 2012 releases.

Key updates include:

* Voice-O-Matic,

Di-O-Matic’s automatic lipsync solution plugin for any character rig in 3ds max, Maya and Softimage has received several updates and now offers significantly better results than before.

* Morph-O-Matic v2.4,

Di-O-Matic’s morphing solution for 3ds max featuring a new Game Engine Scripting API for easier integration with game engines via MAXScript.

* Character Pack v1.5,

From muscle simulation to automatic lip synchronization, this all in one suite gathers all of Di-O-Matic’s 3ds max plugins for only 999$, a saving of more than 1400$ if purchased separately.

All Di-O-Matic plugins are available for purchase directly from the Di-O-Matic online store or through any of Di-O-Matic’s authorized resellers worldwide. All Di-O-Matic commercial products come with floating licensing options and one year of premium support.

Registered users with an active support package can request the latest version of their plugins by filling the required form, while registered users with an expired support package can simply renew their support package to get the latest version.

All of you who are waiting to get more details on the next Assassin’s Creed title from Ubisoft Montreal need to take part in the studio’s viral marketing effort. The studio will reveal more information the more people share the AC Reveal app on Facebook. The images so far have been typically cryptic – reflecting the Subject 16-styled video puzzles Assassin’s Creed players have become familiar with. There is an image of what looks to be Jerusalem – is it the city under 16th century Ottoman rule? This could fit neatly at the tail end of Brotherhood, should the developers be continuing the Ezio story, that is. However, there are also flashes of the Phaistos Disc, which points to Crete – and a hint of the current Greek flag does seem to flash on the screen – but it didn’t come into use until the 1800’s. The armoured hand appears to belong to Altair, whose name is flashed across the screen in Arabic – or is it someone new to the franchise? Is that the Apple of Eden glowing in the image’s centre – or just the sun viewed through Eagle Vision?

There is the speculation that the next Assassin’s Creed will be titled Revelations, which is of course being fueled by Ubisoft’s social media corps. At press time the unlock graph was only at 11% – if you are at all curious about what the studio will reveal and have a Facebook account, share with your friends and get them to share with their friends so we can all have  a closer look – as the Unlock level increases, there are more clues added to the cinematic.

While I’m pondering the next direction for Assassin’s Creed, here are today’s news briefs and reminders:

Today is the final day to apply for the Canada Media Fund-presented Canadian Interactive Showcase at INplay 2011, which will be held in Toronto on May 17th & 18th. Registration for the conference is still open – register online to save $100.00 off the door price.

Microsoft Game Studios has revealed the official site for its Vancouver studio, which might be hiring, by the way – I say might because the MGSV site says there are no positions open, but the MGS Careers page says there are. According to the new site, the Vancouver studio is ‘dedicated to making games for “core” gamers. Our mission is to push the limits of proven and unexplored game development and show the world what’s possible on Microsoft’s game consoles.’ This makes me happy – I can look forward to new titles for my 360 – as long as they aren’t for Kinect, because we don’t have yet have that peripheral.

SIGGRAPH 2011 has begun posting the Birds of a Feather activities for the conference this August. Check out the offerings, and if you would like to see a group meetup added, you are invited to submit your suggestion to the conference committee. Don’t forget, SIGGRAPH 2011 is August 7th through 11th in Vancouver. Make It Home.

Okino Computer Graphics has announced that its 3D DCC/Animation/Skinning and CAD/MCAD/Architectural conversion software PolyTrans-for-3ds-Max (for 3ds Max 2012 & 3ds Max Design 2012), and PolyTrans-for-Maya (for Maya 2012), are now fully qualified and shipping to customers. This is a general notice to those Okino customers who have not upgraded to the 2011/2012 releases yet, and for those not aware of Okino?s software for 3ds Max & Maya.

Virgin Mobile Canada and Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Canada are digging up some real treasure with their next A-list benefit for Virgin Mobile Members across Canada. As part of an ongoing program delivering the latest movies first, Virgin Mobile has already offered its Members access to advance screenings for hits like I Am Number Four. On May 18, winning Members will have the opportunity to catch the most anticipated film of 2011, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, before its general release on May 20, 2011.

A total of 140 winners and their guests from Toronto, Montréal, Ottawa, Edmonton, Calgary, Winnipeg and Vancouver will get the chance to see the action-packed flick – starring Johnny Depp and Penélope Cruz – before anyone else. Plus, one super-lucky Member and their plus one will get some serious VIP treatment: travel and two nights stay in L.A., walking the red carpet at the Hollywood movie premiere of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides and access to a super exclusive after-party. Follow Virgin Mobile’s Twitter at @virginmobilecan to see all the latest tweets from the VIP Member while they walk the plank – or red carpet – at the premiere.

To enter for the chance to be at one of the pre-screenings or walk the red carpet at Disneyland as Virgin Mobile’s Red Carpet Reviewer, visit The Lounge on Virgin Canada’s site or the Facebook Contest tab on Facebook. More big time opportunities are always around the corner with the hottest new movies getting delivered to Virgin Mobile Members. The next big blockbusters coming soon to a theatre near you: the 3-D horror remake Fright Night and the high adrenaline Hugh Jackman action film Real Steel.

Dr. Ann Cavoukian, Ontario’s Information and Privacy Commissioner, will unveil details about a new extension of Privacy by Design, called Privacy by ReDesign, in a keynote speech at a premier Canadian privacy event, in Toronto on May 5.

At the same time, the Commissioner will address recent concerns over location tracking in popular smart phones and mobile devices. This hotbed topic will also be featured at a session on the privacy implications of mobile computing led by the Commissioner’s Office. Renowned privacy experts will attend to discuss the protection of privacy in today’s world of ongoing technological advances. It is all taking place at The International Association of Privacy Professionals‘ (IAPP) Canada Privacy Symposium at Ryerson University.

“The fabled demise of privacy has been widely portrayed of late, which reinforces the reality that we need to reframe how we present the privacy equation,” says Commissioner Cavoukian. “This is precisely why it’s time for Privacy by ReDesign right now! It will help organizations rethink and redesign privacy into their existing, legacy systems and business practices.”

Since the 1990’s, Commissioner Cavoukian has advocated for organizations to proactively embed privacy into technology right from the outset, a concept called Privacy by Design. International privacy regulators unanimously passed a landmark Resolution in 2010 recognizing the made-in-Ontario solution as a Global Privacy Standard. The U.S. Federal Trade Commission now recommends Privacy by Design for protecting online privacy.

The Commissioner’s Office is leading many timely sessions at the event including:

* Addressing the Privacy Implications of Mobile Computing
* Biometrics: Enhancing Privacy, Security and Trust through Privacy by Design (Related to this, roll out has begun across Ontario of a new privacy-protective facial recognition system to support customers enrolled in Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation’s voluntary self-exclusion program)

* Embedding Privacy Protection into a Risk Management Framework (At this session, a new white paper will be introduced, showing how IBM implemented Privacy by Design, moving it from a theoretical concept to a practical solution)