News In Brief: Google, Nokia, Gartner, BT, Frost & Sullivan, Verizon, KT, Nucleus Connect

Google is rolling out a beta version of an updated e-mail filtering system to cope with ‘bologna’, the search firm’s phrase for low-priority messages that aren’t spam. The Gmail Priority Inbox automatically sorts e-mail based on the messages users typically open and reply to.
 
Nokia has completed its acquisition of mobile analytics firm Motally, less than two weeks after announcing the deal.
 
Global semiconductor sales will hit a record $300 billion (€234 billion) in 2010, up 31.5% on 2009, and will grow a further 4.6% in 2011, Gartner predicts. However, 2H10 sales growth is likely to be below seasonal norms, the firm warns.
 
BT has connected 14.8 million homes to broadband infrastructure in the past eight years – a rate of 5,000 new connections per day. The firm says total connections in the country stand at 19 million, including Virgin Media customers.
 
Carrier-generated premium mobile content earned US operators $2.82 billion (€2.2 billion) in revenues in 2009, according to Frost & Sullivan. Carriers have been encouraged to offer their own apps stores by increasing smartphone penetration, the research firm said.
 
Verizon and VMware have joined forces to develop a computing-as-a-service offering to help customers migrate portions of their IT resources to Verizon's cloud. The service is expected to launch in early 2011.
 
KT has launched a touch-screen tablet PC, Identity Tab, for the South Korean market, at a price point at about half of the upcoming competitor the Samsung Galaxy Tab.
 
Singapore's state-funded next-gen broadband network began commercial operations yesterday, with two new ISPs joining the market. Wholesaler Nucleus Connect launched the network with five retail customers - M1, SingTel, StarHub and newcomers SuperInternet and LGA.