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View online Hi, here is your weekly round-up of Out-Law News highlights from international law firm Pinsent Masons.  As always, there are plenty  of other stories from this week.  You can also access our archiveof weekly emails.   This week's highlights from Out-Law News TMT & Sourcing and Intellectual Property Plans for 'superfast' patent processing service dropped by IPO amidst stakeholder concerns Concerns about how a new "superfast patent processing service" proposed by the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) would affect the quality of patents granted in the UK has led the IPO to shelve plans to introduce the service. 22/08/2013 Regulators could soon be passed material about corporates' links to convicted 'blaggers', says SOCA The Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) is looking into sharing the names of more than 100 organisations and individuals connected to private investigators convicted of data 'blagging' offences with a number of regulators, including the UK's data protection watchdog, in a move that could lead to criminal prosecutions. 22/08/2013 System failures cause most IT outages, say regulators The majority of outages that occurred last year on fixed and mobile telephone and internet networks were caused by "system failures", according to a new report based on data compiled by regulators. 21/08/2013 Probation officer prosecution should remind businesses of potential criminal penalties for data breaches, says expert The prosecution of a probation officer for handing over personal information relating to the victim of domestic abuse to the alleged perpetrator should act as a reminder to business of the criminal penalties they could face for breaching UK data protection laws, an expert has said. 21/08/2013 Data protection 'quandary' for retailers in proposed PCI DSS update timetable, says expert Retailers should start planning early to adhere to an updated standard on the secure storage of payment card information, an expert has said. 20/08/2013 Google to encrypt data before storing in the cloud Data that businesses store via Google's cloud computing service will now be automatically encrypted, the internet giant has announced. 20/08/2013 Pensions ABI begins publishing sample annuity rates to improve pensions transparency A new service which will allow consumers to compare annuity rates offered by different retirement savings plans is a "useful starting point" in improving transparency in the pensions market, an expert has said. 22/08/2013 Corporate Late company account filing penalties have soared since financial crisis, experts say Annual penalties issued to UK companies for late filing of accounts have increased by 55% since the financial crisis according to research by Pinsent Masons, the law firm behind Out-Law.com. 21/08/2013 Universities Deloitte survey: more universities plan to spend despite continuing uncertainty An increasing number of higher education finance directors are ready to invest to maintain their competitive position despite the vast majority believing that their institution still faces above normal levels of uncertainty, according to a new survey. 21/08/2013 Financial Services Investment funds urged to become AIFMD compliant by the start of next year Managers of alternative investment funds (AIFs) are being urged to become fully compliant with the new European regulatory regime six months earlier than provided for in the legislation. 21/08/2013 Infrastructure Skilled workers shortage and rising costs could threaten infrastructure recovery The rising cost of materials and difficulties in recruiting suitable staff are among the main issues worrying civil engineers as prospects in the infrastructure sector improve, according to a new survey. 21/08/2013 Changes to HS2 plans to appease project opponents could almost double costs, says think tank The cost of design changes and additional infrastructure to appease opponents of the Government's proposed national high speed rail link could push the cost of the project up by an additional £30 billion, an economic think tank has claimed. 20/08/2013   About this email This is a weekly email for subscribers of Out-Law.com, a website with more than 10,000 pages of legal news and guidance. If and when you need further advice, we hope you'll choose Pinsent Masons, the law firm behind Out-Law.com . Please forward this email to your friends. If someone forwarded this email to you and you'd like your own subscription, register here. Copyright © 2013 Pinsent Masons LLP, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you are a contact of Out-Law.com or Pinsent Masons LLP and your details are held in their clients and contacts database Our mailing address is: Pinsent Masons LLP 30 Crown Place London, UK EC2A 4ES United Kingdom