Why Microsoft loves Richmond B.C.

– By Cynthia Yoo –
If you want to understand why Microsoft is about to open a 700-employee software development centre in Richmond, B.C., it helps to talk with Steve Ha.
Ha runs TecAce, based in Bellevue, Washington. His firm develops software for Samsung mobile devices and requires Korean-speaking employees, experienced in Samsung technology.
But under the [...]

Don’t wait for wireless

– By Leslie Young –

A group in downtown Vancouver has decided to bring wireless Internet to the masses, saying they can do it faster and better than the city.
“We don’t have to wait for the city to get their act together, or for a commercial service provider to finally bless us with some overpriced service,” [...]

Microsoft taps local talent pool

– By Shanshan Lu –

Software giant Microsoft has become the latest of the U.S. high-tech multinationals to open up in Vancouver, taking advantage of the city’s diverse talent pool.
Microsoft’s Canadian Software Development Centre, which opened in Richmond this September, will be driving to accommodate a couple of hundred employees, according to Cynthia Keeshan of Microsoft [...]

Strict limits on U.S. work visas

– By Shanshan Lu –
In recent years, more and more high-tech multinational companies have chosen to come to Canada, deterred by strict U.S. immigration policies.
The U.S. sets a quota on work permits every year — the H1B visa, a visa that allows foreigners to work legally in the U.S.
This quota applies to every alien except [...]

How free wireless works

By Leslie Young

Read the main story about Free the Net Vancouver
Fred Blog buys Internet access at home from Telus, for $35.95 a month. Fred hears about Free the Net from a friend and, thinking it’s a great idea, decides he wants to get on board. So, Fred pays Free the Net $60 for a Meraki [...]

Outsourcing North America?

– By Cynthia Yoo –
Fast fading is the assumption that North American high-tech workers are protected from outsourcing if they work in complex projects. The common belief was that it was too difficult to coordinate high-quality work over differing time-zones and cultural and language barriers.
“Absolutely not. It doesn’t matter anymore if you manufacture fruit-of-the-loom underwear [...]

Copyright 2010 UBC Graduate School of Journalism