Bring magic and wizardry to life with the new PlayStation_®Move title out now 

SYDNEY, 24 May 2012: Bringing the magic of PlayStation_® to life in time for the school holidays, Sony Computer Entertainment Australia (SCE Aust.)today conjures a world of magic and wizardry with the launch of Sorcery™ in stores nationally.

As the latest addition to the PlayStation_®Move motion controller required software line-up on PlayStation_®3 (PS3™), Sorcery delivers a magical action-adventure experience using an intuitive gesture-based spell-casting system allowing players to chain basic spells together into powerful combinations. Sorcery puts the power in the players’ hands using the PlayStation Move motion controller as a wand to conjure and command powerful magic as they brave the dark world of the Faerie Kingdoms. On their journey, players will encounter a multitude of enemies, solve ingenious puzzles, learn powerful spells, and craft strange potions immersing them in a unique fantasy adventure like never before.

BBC science expert and children’s TV host, Steve Mould, who created a series of videos that bring to life the science behind the magic in Sorcery said: “The Move controller is the perfect way to interact with the wand and gets you moving about. When I first played with it, I thought of loads of ways to connect the spells and alchemy in the game to real-world science. The hard part was narrowing it down to my four favourite experiments!”

Patrick Lagana, Marketing Manager, Sony Computer Entertainment Australia added, “Sorcery has remained an eagerly anticipated title for PlayStation Move on PS3 since it was first announced and we’re thrilled to offer this unique title to gamers everywhere today.  Built from the ground up with PlayStation Move in mind from the beginning, Sorcery takes full advantage of our motion controller’s precision to provide a compelling gaming experience that is sure to capture the imaginations of players of all ages.”

As a young sorcerer’s apprentice, it is up to the player to master the arcane arts and fight back the foul creatures of the magical realm where the story of Sorcery takes place. The Sorcery feature set begins with the PlayStation Move motion controller, which players use as a magic wand to cast extraordinary spells, brew enchanted elixirs, solve clever puzzles, and defeat the forces of darkness. The gesture-based casting system allows users to chain together basic spells into powerful combinations–freeze and shatter enemies, electrocute them with lightning called down from the heavens, or incinerate them in a lethal firestorm. Players can also collect magic items, learn new spells, and concoct upgrade potions to turn their humble apprentice into an unstoppable magic force.

8 million new malicious software samples have been detected since January 2012 due to unrelenting spammers and hackers

Since the start of the new year, PC malware (malicious software) has already reached the highest levels in four years, according to the McAfee Threats Report: First Quarter 2012. The report exposes a disturbing increase in malicious malware across all PC, Mac and mobile devices. Most importantly, McAfee detected a significant increase in malware targeting Android platform devices. Mac attacks are also on the rise, indicating that total malware could reach the 100 million mark within the year – a record number.

Report Findings:

• 8,000 total mobile malware samples were collected showing a sharp increase during Q1 2012.
• Nearly 7,000 Android threats have been collected and identified through the end of Q1.
• Q1 2012 had the largest number of PC malware detected per quarter in the last four years – 83 million pieces of malware samples were collected by the end of Q1, up from 75 million samples at the end of Q4 2011.
• Mac malware is still significantly less prevalent than PC malware, with approximately 250 new Mac malware samples, and approximately 150 new Mac fake anti-virus malware samples in Q1.
• Global spam levels dropped to slightly more than 1 trillion monthly spam messages by the end of March.

Expert quote:

• “In the first quarter of 2012 we saw a giant spike in mobile malware, a jump targeting mostly the Android platform.  What was once hundreds of threats in the middle of 2011, is already into the thousands,” said Robert Siciliano, online security threat expert at McAfee.  “The majority of mobile attacks, and their malware, originate and attack third-party markets.  Be sure to use and install software and applications only found on official marketplaces, this will help reduce the risk of compromising your Android device.  At the end of the day, if you’re not protecting and taking care of your devices, and the data on them, today’s cybercriminals will.”

For more information:

• Tips and best practices to help consumers stay protected from these types of threats: https://blogs.mcafee.com/consumer/consumer-threat-alerts/mcafee-finds-personal-computer-and-smartphone-threats-at-four-year-high

SYDNEY, Australia – May 24, 2012 – SEGA® of America, Inc. and SEGA® Europe, Ltd. today announced the availability of the first-ever official Total War™ modding tool. The Editor, or TEd for short, enables modders to create their own custom maps for use in multiplayer and custom VS AI battles across both Shogun 2™ and its recent standalone expansion Fall of The Samurai™.

“Total War has enjoyed a strong and dedicated modding community down the years, and we want to do more to support that”, said Rob Bartholomew, Total War Brand Director. “With TEd at their fingertips, we’re expecting to see new battle-maps for Shogun 2 that will equal our own in popularity”.

TEd is a powerful tool that enables users to alter terrain type and height, and comprises libraries boasting hundreds of unique battlefield props, such as trees, buildings, railway lines and coastal batteries. Users can construct vast and intricate castles from their component pieces, sculpt beautiful rolling landscapes, and model their own unique townscapes or vivid coastal scenes for naval battles.

When a map is built, it can then be used in any custom VS AI or multiplayer battle, at which point it will be automatically shared with the player’s opponent. Experienced tacticians are now capable of building their own challenging battlefields around features such as choke-points, forests, rivers and custom deployment zones.

TEd is completely free, and accessible now to Shogun 2™ and Fall of The Samurai™ owners via the Tools section of their Steam library.

Cloud-based Management Offers Unified Security for PCs, Macs, Smartphones and Tablets  

SYDNEY, Aust. – 24 May, 2012 – Norton by Symantec (Nasdaq: SYMC) today announced the availability of Norton 360 Everywhere, a comprehensive security solution that provides security across platforms and devices. For consumers who have multiple devices and want a simple, easy-to-use security solution, Norton 360 Everywhere provides protection for PCs, Macs, Android-based phones and tablets, right out of the box.

Unlike other offerings that bundle various products into one box and require multiple product keys, Norton 360 Everywhere offers a single key to activate protection on all devices. It uses a cloud-based Norton management console that lets users take charge of their devices’ security from anywhere, at any time, right over the Internet. In addition, Norton 360 Everywhere is a flexible solution that allows customers to move protection from one device to another to meet their changing needs as they add or change the number and type of devices they own.

“Consumers are increasingly using multiple devices in their daily lives, and staying protected across all of those devices can be a challenge,” said Janice Chaffin, group president, Consumer Business Unit, Symantec. “To meet this need, we have extended our Norton 360 flagship security product to help ensure people are protected across any device they choose to use.”

Norton Protection For Multiple Devices

Norton 360 Everywhere provides industry leading security and protection for multiple consumer devices and platforms by leveraging its award-winning security portfolio of products. Consumers can choose any combination of the options below depending on the quantity and type of devices owned.

• Norton 360 Premier for Windows PC
• Norton Internet Security for Mac
• Norton Mobile Security for Android

Pricing and Availability

Norton 360 Everywhere is available for purchase now at leading retailers and online at au.norton.com.  The suggested retail price is AU$149.95 for one year of protection for up to five devices.  All Norton 360 Everywhere customers with an active account are eligible to download the latest product versions and updates during their paid period.

About Norton

Norton protects the Stuff that matters to consumers, across all aspects of their digital lives. Norton provides a range of security solutions including technologies for PCs and mobile devices, live tech support services and online backup. Like Norton on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/norton.

About Symantec

Symantec is a global leader in providing security; storage and systems management solutions to help consumers and organizations secure and manage their information-driven world.  Our software and services protect against more risks at more points, more completely and efficiently, enabling confidence wherever information is used or stored. More information is available at www.symantec.com.

Seagate has offered to purchase LaCie CEO’s 64.5% ownership position; Seagate to subsequently commence tender offer for remaining outstanding shares

Expands Seagate’s product line and capabilities in the growing consumer storage market

CUPERTINO, CA and PARIS, FRANCE – May 23, 2012 – SeagateTechnology plc (NASDAQ: STX) the worldwide leader in hard disk drives and storage solutions, and LaCie S.A. (Euronext: LAC), a leading manufacturer of consumer storage products, today announced an exclusive agreement with the intent for Seagate to acquire a controlling interest in LaCie. Seagate has offered to purchase from Philippe Spruch, LaCie’s chairman and CEO, and his affiliate, all of their shares, representing 64.5% of the outstanding shares of LaCie. Following receipt of governmental approvals [1] and the close of this transaction, Seagate would commence an all-cash simplified tender offer (followed as the case may be by a squeeze-out procedure) to acquire the remaining outstanding shares in accordance with the General Regulation of the French Autorité des Marchés Financiers (AMF).

Seagate has offered Mr. Spruch and his affiliate €4.05 per share in cash, minus a potential adjustment depending on the cash and debt position of LaCie at closing. This price may be increased bya possible price supplement of 3% in the event that the threshold of 95% of the shares and voting rights of LaCie would be reached by Sparrow within 6 months following closing, resulting in a maximum potential price per LaCie share of €4.17. Without the price supplement, the offer currently values LaCie at an approximate €146 million, or $186 million total equity value, including acquired net cash of approximately €49 million, or $65 million, as of March 31, 2012. The €4.05 per share price represents a premium of 29% to LaCie’s average closing stock price over the 30 trading days ended May 22, 2012.

Ricol Lasteyrie & Associés was appointed today as independent expert by the board of directors of LaCie, to deliver a fairness opinion on the price that would be offered in the context of the tender offer, including in the perspective of a potential squeeze-out procedure.

The transaction would combine two highly complementary product and technology portfolios, adding LaCie’s line of premium branded consumer storage solutions, network-attached storage solutions and software offerings to Seagate’s array of mainstream consumer storage products. The combination would accelerate Seagate’s growth strategy in the expanding consumer storage market, particularly in Europe and Japan, and add strong engineering and software development capabilities, as well as relationships with several key retailers.

The transaction is expected to be neutral to Seagate’s fiscal 2013 earnings per share.

Following the close of the sale of his shares to Seagate, Mr. Spruch would join Seagate and lead the company’s consumer storage products organization. Reporting to him would be Patrick Connolly, who currently serves as vice president and general manager of Seagate’s retail group, as well as Pierre van der Elst, who currently serves as deputy general manager of LaCie. The financial terms of the new position of Mr Spruch are not determined as of today and would therefore be described subsequently, including in the tender offer documentation.

“Seagate has a strong commitment to the growing consumer storage market and bringing the most dynamic products to market. LaCie has built an exceptional consumer brand by delivering exciting and innovative high-end products for many years. This transaction would bring a highly complementary set of capabilities to Seagate, significantly expand our consumer product offerings, add a premium-branded direct-attached storage line, strengthen our network-attached storage business line and enhance our capabilities in software development,” said Steve Luczo, Seagate chairman, president and CEO. “We are also excited that Philippe, who is a true visionary and leader in the consumer storage business, would join Seagate to run our consumer storage products organization.”

“With the proliferation of devices and content being shared and stored today, consumer demand for high-quality branded storage solutions continues to grow,” said Philippe Spruch, LaCie’s chairman and CEO. “We are excited about the potential for this combination to benefit customers and employees by creating significant scale and opening up new markets. We look forward to making the resources of a much larger company available to our customers around the world.”

LaCie will initiate the information and consultation process required by its employee representative council in relation to the contemplated transaction, in accordance with French law. Upon completion of this process, Seagate and Mr. Spruch would execute a definitive share purchase agreement and finalize the purchase of the controlling interest held by Mr. Spruch and his affiliate. This share purchase transaction is expected to close in the third calendar quarter of 2012 pending completion of the relevant governmental reviews. Seagate would then commence a tender offer for the remaining outstanding shares of LaCie (followed as the case may be by a squeeze-out procedure), subject to a clearance decision from the AMF. The tender offer is expected to be completed in the third calendar quarter of 2012.

The transaction is subject to regulatory approval in the United States (antitrust filing), France (approval of foreign investments by the Ministry of Finance) and other jurisdictions (antitrust filing in Germany) and to other customary closing conditions.

Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC served as financial advisor and Allen & Overy LLP served as legal advisor to Seagate in connection with the transaction.De Pardieu Brocas Maffei A.A.R.P.I served as legal advisor to LaCie.

About Seagate
Seagate is the world leader in hard disk drives and storage solutions. Learn more at www.seagate.com.

Sydney, Australia – May 24, 2012: Lenovo (HKSE: 992) (ADR: LNVGY) today announced a new portfolio of products, software and storage solutions tailored to the small to medium business (SMB) market. The new ThinkPad Edge E430 and E530 laptops combine sophisticated design with world renowned ThinkPad quality, durability and reliability.

The ThinkPad Edge E430 and E530 are packed with features for SMBs, including Intel Small Business Advantage software. According to research firm IDC, 870,000 notebooks will be deployed to SMBs in 2012. Lenovo is the first to market with the new Intel solution, which will power a Lenovo Solutions for Small Business (LSSB) package, featured in the new ThinkPad Edge laptops.

The ThinkPad Edge 14-inch E430 and 15-inch E530 laptops give SMBs the freedom to choose their levels of performance with options of the latest Intel Core processors with choices of integrated or discrete graphics. The ThinkPad E530 is available with the new Ivy Bridge Quad Core processor, the Intel® Core™ i7-3612QM. The series also features the choice of Intel HD Graphics 4000, with a 100 percent performance boost over previous generations, or the discrete option of NVIDIA GeForce GT 630M Graphics with 2GB, featuring Optimus technology.

The laptops also feature Lenovo Enhanced Experience 3.0, with 40 percent faster boot up, up to 1 TB of storage that can be combined with solid state drive storage, USB 3.0 ports, Dolby Advanced Audio and a high-resolution web camera. The ThinkPad Edge E530 features a numeric keypad for added comfort and useability.

“Since launching Lenovo’s ThinkPad Edge portfolio of SMB laptops, the company has worked with SMBs to design products exceeding needs and expectations in terms of security and performance,” said David Heyworth, Director Product Solutions and Alliances, Lenovo ANZ. “The addition of the Intel Small Business Advantage, Lenovo Solutions for Small Business and Lenovo Cloud Storage by SugarSync to Lenovo’s portfolio provides significant value to SMBs looking to bolster storage, security and data management.”

Lenovo Solutions for Small Business is an advanced PC solution designed to maximise security and productivity. The software manager feature in the LSSB portfolio helps actively guard against cyber attacks by monitoring at the hardware level. A USB Blocker allows businesses to manage the storage devices that can access and save information. The Enhanced Backup and Restore function protects against losing data through PC errors, viral attacks or theft by automatically backing up critical data. LSSB also gives SMB customers the ability to perform after-hours maintenance such as OS patching.

Pricing and Availability¹

The new ThinkPad Edge series is available now through business partners and on www.lenovo.com.au, starting at $799.00 for the E430 and $759.00 for the E530. The ThinkPad Edge E530 with Intel® Core™ i7-3612QM Processor, 1 Terabyte HDD, 8GB RAM, NVIDIA GeForce GT 630M Graphics and Windows 7 Professional is available at $1199.00. All prices quoted include GST.

For the latest Lenovo news, subscribe to Lenovo RSS feeds or follow Lenovo on Twitter and Facebook.  

About Lenovo

Lenovo (HKSE: 992) (ADR:LNVGY) is a $US21 billion personal technology company – and the second largest PC company in the world, serving customers in more than 160 countries. Dedicated to building exceptionally engineered PCs and mobile internet devices, Lenovo’s business is built on product innovation, a highly-efficient global supply chain and strong strategic execution. Formed by Lenovo Group’s acquisition of the former IBM Personal Computing Division, the company develops, manufactures and markets reliable, high-quality, secure and easy-to-use technology products and services. Its product lines include legendary Think-branded commercial PCs and Idea-branded consumer PCs, as well as servers, workstations, and a family of mobile internet devices, including tablets and smart phones. Lenovo has major research centres in Yamato, Japan; Beijing, China; and Raleigh, North Carolina. For more information, see www.lenovo.com.au

¹Prices do not include tax or shipping and are subject to change without notice and is tied to specific terms and conditions. Reseller prices may vary. Price does not include all advertised features. All offers subject to availability. Lenovo reserves the right to alter product offerings and specifications at any time without notice.

Insane Edition Details

All you need to fully dive into the insanity of the island has been put in this Insane Edition: the Vaas Wahine, made by a deranged mind who decapitated a beautiful wahine to put his own head on it; a detailed guide to avoid all the traps of the island; and all the digital content that will make you face your insanity!

The Insane Edition will include all the following content in  an Exclusive Survival Kit Packaging:

– An Insane Vaas Wahine, a 12cm Wahine with Vaas bobble head.

– A survival guide: Discover unique artwork and inside information to help you survive the insanity of the island

– Access all digital content to discover all the secrets of the island:

–        Monkey Business: Discover Hurk, a new memorable character and quest giver, and his 4 unique missions. An extra hour of gameplay exclusive to this collector’s edition!

–        The Lost Expeditions: 2 Suspenseful Action Missions and an exclusive World War II Flare Gun. An extra 40min of gameplay!

–        The Hunter Pack: The M700 hunting rifle and its three collector’s skins.

–        The Warrior Pack: A handcrafted dagger and two exclusive tribal tattoos

–        The Predator Pack: 4 exclusive rare predators and a multiplayer bow.

Brave clip – King Fergus:

Set in the rugged and mysterious Highlands of Scotland, Disney•Pixar’s “Brave” follows the heroic journey of Merida (voice of Kelly Macdonald), a skilled archer and headstrong daughter of King Fergus (voice of Billy Connolly) and Queen Elinor (voice of Emma Thompson).

Determined to change her fate, Merida defies an age-old custom sacred to the unruly and uproarious lords of the land: massive Lord MacGuffin (voice of Kevin McKidd), surly Lord Macintosh (voice of Craig Ferguson) and cantankerous Lord Dingwall (voice of Robbie Coltrane), unleashing chaos in the kingdom.

When she turns to an eccentric Witch (voice of Julie Walters), she is granted an ill-fated wish and the ensuing peril forces Merida to harness all of her resources—including her mischievous triplet brothers—to undo a beastly curse and discover the meaning of true bravery. Directed by Mark Andrews and Brenda Chapman, and produced by Katherine Sarafian, “Brave” is a grand adventure full of heart, memorable characters and signature Pixar humour.

Brave – KILT by Ruff McLauren:

Brave- Bagpipe Hits:

Only at the Movies JUNE 21

24th May 2012

A massive Yoshi hunt will soon take place in Australia and New Zealand to coincide with today’s launch of Mario Tennis Open! The hunt, entitled The Yoshi Chase, will involve tracking down a number of different-coloured Yoshis, playable in Mario Tennis Open, through corresponding QR codes released over the coming weeks.

The Black Yoshi and White Yoshi will be the first to be released but there are many more in the pipeline so keep your eyes peeled.

The Black Yoshi will be distributed through EB Game stores and the White Yoshi through JB Hifi stores across Australia and New Zealand to coincide with the first weekend of Mario Tennis Open release. Get yourself into stores to hunt down these great exclusive characters!

Mario Tennis Open is packed full of Mario-themed arcade tennis action. Choose from singles or doubles matches, single player and multiplayer modes and a variety of special games such as Super Mario Tennis, Ring Shot and Galaxy Rally. With easy-to-pick-up-and-play gameplay and a range of modes to suit your mood, you will be serving up a storm before you know it.

For more information on Mario Tennis Open, exclusively for Nintendo 3DS, head to the official Mario Tennis Open website.
http://gamesites.nintendo.com.au/mario-tennis-open/

For your chance to try Mario Tennis Open, check the nearest retail store offering Mario Tennis Open demo here.
http://www.nintendo3ds.com.au/#/events

Better user experiences driven by 3rd generation Intel® Core™ processors, exclusive SonicMaster Lite audio, and up to three times the battery longevity

Sydney, Australia (May 24, 2012) – ASUS has launched the new K55 Series in Australia, the latest addition to its K Series range. The new ASUS K Series notebooks bring a range of premium features to a highly affordable market segment, helping a wider user audience benefit from an attractive design and the latest technologies.

These new notebooks are super-thin and light with an aluminum finish for an elegant and durable build. Bolstered by the inclusion of exclusive SonicMaster Lite audio, the K Series range is powered by Intel’s 3rd Generation Core™ processors and includes NVIDIA® GeForce® 600 series graphics for smooth and speedy computing. The devices also feature ASUS technologies such as Super Hybrid Engine II instant on, IceCool, and SuperBatt.

Stylish design
K Series notebooks now feature a brand new look, with luxurious materials used in manufacturing for more tactile and durable portable PCs. They offer buyers a wide choice of multi-tone colour schemes, such as with red, blue, pink, white, smoky black and dark indigo primary, for a unique product feel and personality. All K Series models utilise a strong but light aluminum finish to improve mobility and ruggedness, resulting in a thin design that boasts attractive streamlined edges, similar to other ASUS notebooks.

Incredible sound
For the first time, K Series notebooks will feature exclusive ASUS SonicMaster Lite audio technology. Using larger speaker chambers, stronger materials that reduce unwanted vibration and distortion, and improved audio processing, SonicMaster Lite brings professional-grade sound to these great value notebooks. It expands the audio range, boosts deep note performance, and accentuates vocals, rendering better-sounding music, movies, and even video conferencing.

Powerful performance with the latest Intel® and NVIDIA® mobile platforms
ASUS has integrated 3rd generation Intel® Core™ processors, on the K Series. Using new technology, the redesigned notebooks offer improved graphics performance and more extensive multitasking. They easily outpace previous K Series generations with faster and more powerful computing. They also deliver smoother multimedia and gaming with the power of NVIDIA® GeForce® 600 series graphics processors. To ensure a super-responsive and smartphone-like experience, ASUS Super Hybrid Engine II technology supports true 2-second instant on resume from sleep mode, eliminating lengthy restart waits and enabling up to two weeks of standby time.

Exclusive features
The new K Series includes several exclusive features such as IceCool and SuperBatt power management. IceCool technology keeps palm rests at lower temperatures for a more comfortable typing experience while SuperBatt power management extends battery charge cycle longevity by up to three times compared to normal notebooks. The touchpad has been enlarged for more precise control and provides smoother multi-gesture input, and the stylish chiclet keyboard has been reinforced with more flexible yet tougher keys.

Specifications

Product specifications and features may change without prior notice. Check www.asus.com for further details.