Issue 2010-14 -- April 6, 2010

This newsletter is for members of the Canadian Insurance Industry, and those who serve it. The newsletter is published weekly, and notes information mostly about the use of the Internet and related technologies in the industry. Some is international, where we feel it is relevant to Canada.




eBusiness and Technology

"IT Security Data Loss Prevention: a practical approach" - Two Seminars with Eugene Ng, VP Technical Services, NCI.
"DLP, Data Loss Prevention, or Data Leakage Protection, can be quite overwhelming for many businesses. Do we want our latest financial numbers leaked out to the competition? Probably not. What about those confidential salary numbers for bonus calculations? No. What about the customer list that we've built up over the years? No again. What about that proposal that contains our competitive advantage? I'm guessing another no.

Gartner Outlines 10 Mobile Technologies to Watch in 2010 and 2011.
STAMFORD, Conn., March 24, 2010 - Gartner, Inc. has identified 10 mobile technologies that will evolve significantly through 2011 in ways that will impact short-term mobile strategies and policies. Investments in mobile applications and technologies will increase through 2011 as organizations emerge from the recession and ramp up both business-to-employee (B2E) and business-to-consumer (B2C) mobile spending.

Cloud Computing, SaaS, and Technology Outsourcing for Corporations: Report Published by Celent.
New York, NY, USA - March 22, 2010 - There is a lot of talk right now about cloud computing. This talk is coming more from vendors and journalists than it is from corporations, and this means there is a lot of talk but not as much actual use. This has resulted in confusion, leaving many companies with more questions than answers.

Combination of Actuarial Expertise and Software is the Key to Successful Predictive Modeling, According to Towers Watson.
NEW YORK and LONDON, March 15, 2010 - As the use of predictive modeling among insurance companies becomes increasingly prevalent, the combination of sophisticated actuarial expertise and advanced predictive modeling software to determine optimum pricing and risk selection strategies, will help insurers realize a competitive advantage, according to global professional services company Towers Watson (NYSE, NASDAQ: TW).

ACORD Responds To Industry Needs with Increased Focus on Standards Education, Compliance.
PEARL RIVER, NY - March 1, 2010 - ACORD, the insurance industry's non-profit standards organization, is responding to industry and its members' needs by increasing its activities in two key areas: Training & Education, and Compliance.

Claims

High-Rise Structures Are Among New Commercial Buildings Added to 360Value: Xactware.
OREM, Utah - Mar. 23, 2010 - 360Value® now supports the ability to estimate replacement costs for all of the most common commercial buildings. This includes apartment and office buildings of more than 30 stories, which were added during the latest 360Value update. Developed by Xactware, an ISO subsidiary, 360Value is a web-based tool that provides replacement-cost estimates for residential, commercial, and agricultural properties. ISO is a subsidiary of Verisk Analytics, Inc.

Distribution

Andrew Agencies Ltd. Acquires Miles Agencies of Weyburn, SK. Effective April 1, 2010.
March 26, 2010, Virden, MB and Weyburn, SK - Andrew Agencies Ltd. are pleased to announce the acquisition of Miles Agencies (1988) Inc. of Weyburn, SK. effective April 1, 2010. Andrew Agencies is a busy multi-line brokerage selling insurance, financial services, travel and real estate. With the acquisition of Miles Agencies, Andrew Agencies now has 11 offices in Southeastern Saskatchewan and Manitoba.

Business of Insurance

Canadians want workplace retirement plans - CLHIA releases recommendations to improve access and use.
TORONTO, March 31 2010 - The Canadian Life and Health Insurance Association (CLHIA) is recommending changes to dramatically improve use of workplace retirement savings plans including expanding access to multi-employer pensions plans (MEPPs) and protecting savings in group RRSPs through locking-in employer contributions.

OSFI: Plans and Priorities.
The Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) is tasked with overseeing the solvency of federal financial institutions in the interest of depositors and policyholders, and protecting members in private federal pension plans.

Manulife-Sinochem earns top government honor for excellence in China.
SHANGHAI, March 30 2010 - Manulife-Sinochem Life Insurance Company (MSL or Manulife-Sinochem) was honored with an award for excellence for 2009 by China's top government body. At the recommendation of the China Insurance Regulatory Commission (CIRC), MSL received an "Excellent Organization" award from the State Council National Economic Census Commission - the only foreign life insurance company to earn this prestigious recognition.

Consumer Information

Manitoba's teen drivers highly endorse the Driver Education Program: Manitoba Public Insurance.
March 25, 2010 - Nine of 10 Driver Education students say the course helped them to be a more careful driver, according to a survey conducted by Manitoba Public Insurance. The telephone survey polled Driver Education students and their parents about the program they had recently completed.

Insurance Bureau of Canada applauds changes to BC Fire Code smoke alarm rules.
Victoria, BC - March 29, 2010 - Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) applauds changes to the BC Fire Code that were announced last week by the provincial government. The new law requires that smoke alarms be installed by May 1, 2010, in every private home, hotel or motel room built before 1979.

Canadian Fire Chiefs Call on Federal Government to Back Its Commitment To "The Health and Safety of Canadians".
OTTAWA, March 23, 2010 - The Government's Throne Speech commitment to "protecting the health and safety of Canadians" requires more than crime prevention initiatives, say Canada's Fire Chiefs. It calls for a national level of safety preparedness - for anticipating and addressing problems that may endanger families, property and businesses.

CAMH's breaks ground and makes history: welcome to a new kind of hospital.
March 30, 2010 (Toronto) - The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health is making history. On April 6, CAMH is breaking ground on the next phase of its landmark redevelopment project, transforming the site of what was originally the 1850 Provincial Lunatic Asylum into a modern, welcoming 'urban village' in the heart of Queen Street West. Nothing quite like this has ever been done before.

Marketing and the Market Place

Consumer Products Brands Tap Mobile Apps: eMarketer.
MARCH 30, 2010 - Consumer products marketers - including food, beverage, liquor, quick-service restaurant brands, household products, personal care, pet and apparel brands - have thrown their hats into the mobile app ring. For many marketers, apps are becoming a constituent part of an existing mobile marketing and media strategy.

from Doug:

Here in southern Ontario the Easter weekend was a wonderful Spring weekend, with temperatures more like one would expect in late May. Many of the Spring flowers are out. Our community has an annual forsythia festival usually the first weekend in May, but the forsythia are out in full colour a whole month earlier. Took a break from house cleaning to visit both sets of parents - a good visit - and to think about the meaning of Easter.


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