Digital Crosspoint Switches and Mux / DeMux: Market Shares, Strategies, and Forecasts, Worldwide, 2012 to 2018

WinterGreen Research announces that it has published a new study Digital Crosspoint Switches and Buffers: Market Shares, Strategy, and Forecasts, Worldwide, 2012 to 2018. The 2012 study has 541 pages, 166 tables and figures. Market growth is related to the explosion of digital information and video that needs to be transported over public and private networks. 

Worldwide digital communication and data center communication markets include digital signals for video as well. Digital information may represent data or voice traffic. A large number of protocols particularly those specific to the data center are supported by digital crosspoint switches. Markets are poised to achieve significant growth as equipment manufacturers find ways to design crosspoint switches and buffers into products, giving significant new functionality.

Digital crosspoint switches are used in high rate data transfer situations to support integration of information in data centers and by carriers. Broadcast quality video transport of data on the Internet is evolving new applications including those at every level of the supply chain, creating demand at the high end for crosspoint switches.

High quality, high speed data and video transport is part of the evolution of broadband networks. Data within the data center is being moved to storage devices and through networks. Data is moving across regional and international locations at a more rapid pace.

According to Susan Eustis, lead author of the WinterGreen Research team that prepared the Digital Crosspoint Switches and Buffers market research study, “With breakthrough 10 Gbps port capacity, the next generation digital crosspoint switch devices enable a next generation level of performance and architectural options for higher density system designs. These 10 Gbps devices are used to implement the 40 Gbps and 100 Gbps port capacity. High speed data infrastructure for40 Gbps and 100 Gbps port capacity is being built almost exclusively from 10 Gbps crosspoint switches. The ability to achieve 40 Gbps data transport and routing devices by stringing together 4 10Gbps devices is less expensive than going to a 40 Gbps device.”

Any technology has an adoption curve. Components that start at market prices are subject to economies of scale. They are priced accordingly. Customers have shipments in 1 gig. These devices are getting mature. The price is dropping substantially. The same is happening for 10 Gbps devices.
Companies seem to feel that there is a little life left in the 10 Gbps crosspoint devices due to the recent technology breakthroughs giving some market life to these devices before 25 Gbps and 28 Gbps devices roll into full product release. Full product release is sure to drive prices down for the new units, making it attractive to use smaller crosspoint switches linked together to gain capacity.

Communications semiconductors demand is increasing. Evolving technology for broadband access is increasing data rates. The increase in network traffic is in part because of the Internet and voice over IP. High speed video transport has become more feasible and is being used more.
A quantum increase in the quantity of data that is being transmitted has occurred. Broadband communications networks are supported in part by advanced digital crosspoint switch devices that permit interconnect functioning to be efficient. They are part of an overall market for network infrastructure equipment and communications semiconductors that offer attractive long-term growth prospects.

Networks are moving to embrace a universal Ethernet protocol. As network bandwidth requirements continue to accelerate, more systems require solutions for high-speed signal integrity problems. Crosspoint switch connectivity product lines sell into carrier and enterprise networking applications.
Products address an increasing need to transport signals at ever increasing speed. Units go across fiber, cable, and copper backplane applications. Incumbent telecommunications carriers, integrated communication service providers, cable multiple service operators, and data center managers are among those worldwide who continue to upgrade and expand legacy portions of their networks. The aim is to accommodate new service offerings. A further aim is to reduce operating costs.
The upgrade and expansion cycle requires the development of a variety of new equipment created from advanced semiconductor solutions. The development of new, next-generation networks is an ongoing effort for both service providers and enterprise data centers.

This study illustrates the digital crosspoint switch market driving forces. It describes the principal competitive factors that impact the success of digital crosspoint switches as they are used to provide chips for high speed data integration management solutions. Market opportunities are addressed in the comprehensive market study that lays out strategy considerations in considerable detail: Markets at $260.7 million in 2011 are anticipated to reach $901.1 billion by 2018.

WinterGreen Research is an independent research organization funded by the sale of market research studies all over the world and by the implementation of ROI models that are used to calculate the total cost of ownership of equipment, services, and software. The company has 35 distributors worldwide, including Global Information Info Shop, Market Research.com, Research and Markets, Bloomberg, and Thompson Financial.

M2M Technology Drivers, Market Dynamics, and Industry Verticals

M2M Technology Drivers, Market Dynamics, and Industry Verticals

Description

The M2M ecosystem has gained significant momentum recently, driven largely by necessity as cellular service provider revenue opportunities diminish due to flattening mobile subscriber base growth.  Network operators have recognized the need to leverage their substantial investment in infrastructure to offer M2M as a value-added services that will add new sources of revenue.

 

However, growth in M2M is limited in part due to lack useful information and guidance for decision makers across a wide variety of industry verticals.  Expanded M2M growth is predicated upon providing support to C-level, vice president, directors, and senior managers within enterprise as well as the many manager/owners of small-to-medium businesses.

 

This report introduces M2M concepts to business leaders. It provides critical information for small businesses, large enterprise and the public sector to begin to exploit M2M.  It will also provide key knowledge for understanding the impact of M2M on operations, profitability and competitiveness.

 

Questions answered in Report:

 

• How is M2M relevant to my business?
• How can M2M help me reduce OPEX?
• How can M2M improve customer service?
• How can M2M solve my logistics challenges?
• How can M2M improve employee accountability?
• How can M2M help stimulate incremental sales?
• How can M2M increase profitability?

Target Audience: 

• C-level management in a cross-section of SMB, enterprise, government and segments
• Functional leaders with oversight responsibility over operational excellence, CRM, distribution, marketing and sales, R&D, field force management and logistics
• Providers of ancillary hardware and software technology

Construction Equipment Market in China 2011 - 2015: China Market Research Reports

Chinamarketresearchreports.org - New Industry Research Report Added in China Market Research Reports Database Construction Equipment Market in China 2011-2015

TechNavio's analysts forecast the Construction Equipment market in China to grow at a CAGR of 28.4 percent over the period 2011-2015. One of the key factors contributing to this market growth is the need for faster infrastructure construction. The Construction Equipment market in China has also been witnessing the emergence of lease-based construction equipment. However, the high cost of construction equipment could pose a challenge to the growth of this market.

TechNavio's report, the Construction Equipment Market in China 2011-2015, has been prepared based on an in-depth analysis of the market with inputs from industry experts. The report focuses on China. It also covers the Construction Equipment market landscape and its growth prospects in the coming years. The report also includes a discussion of the key vendors operating in this market.

To Browse Full Toc Visit: http://www.chinamarketresearchreports.org/report/construction-equipment-market-in-china-2011-2015.htm  

Key vendors dominating this market space include Changsha Zoomlion Heavy Industry Science and Technology Development Co. Ltd, Guangxi Liugong Machinery Co. Ltd, Komatsu Shantui Construction Machinery Co. Ltd, and Sany Group Co. Ltd.

Other vendors mentioned in the report: Doosan Infracore (China) Co. Ltd, Xiamen XGMA Machinery Co. Ltd, Chengdu Kobe Steel Construction Machinery Co Ltd, and Guangxi Yuchai Machinery Group Co Ltd.

Key questions answered in this report:

• What will the market size be in 2015 and at what rate will it grow?
• What key trends is this market subject to?
• What is driving this market?
• What are the challenges to market growth?
• Who are the key vendors in this market space?
• What are the opportunities and threats faced by each of these key vendors?
• What are the strengths and weaknesses of each of these key vendors?

Publisher:  Technavio

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Orthobiologics Market Outlook in BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) to 2018: China Market Research Reports

Chinamarketresearchreports.org - New Industry Research Report Added in China Market Research Reports Database Orthobiologics Market Outlook in BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) to 2018

Orthobiologics Market Outlook in BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) to 2018 provides key market data on the Orthobiologics market in the BRICS countries. The report provides value ($m), volume (units) and average price ($) data for each segment and sub-segment within four market categories Bone Graft Substitutes, Bone Allografts, Viscosupplementation and Bone Growth Stimulators. The report also provides company shares and distribution shares data for the overall Orthobiologics market in each of the aforementioned countries. The report is also supplemented with global corporate-level profiles of the key market participants with information on key developments, wherever available.

To Browse Full Toc Visit: http://www.chinamarketresearchreports.org/report/orthobiologics-market-outlook-in-brics-brazil-russia-india-china-south-africa-to-2018.htm

This report is built using data and information sourced from proprietary databases, primary and secondary research and in-house analysis by GlobalDatas team of industry experts.

The emerging economies, comprising China, India, Brazil, Russia and South Africa, with a significantly large pool of under-served patients, represent the next big opportunity for the leading medical equipment and devices manufacturers. China remains the world’s most populous country and is consequently home to a large patient base. The country is home to more than 120 million people who are aged 65 or older population in continuous need of medical care. India, the second most populous country globally, is home to 1.2 billion people, approximately 5% of which are aged 65 or older. It’s estimated that shortly after 2020, India’s population will surpass China, making it the most populous country in the world. As the population continues to grow and people continue to age, the underlying demand for healthcare is also expected to increase.

Scope

- Market size data for Orthobiologics market categories Bone Graft Substitutes, Bone Allografts, Viscosupplementation and Bone Growth Stimulators.
- Annualized market revenues ($m), volume (units) and average price ($) data for each of the segments and sub-segments within the four market categories. Data from 2004 to 2011, forecast forward for seven years to 2018.
- 2011 company shares and distribution shares data for the overall Orthobiologics market in each of the aforementioned countries.
- Global corporate-level profiles of key companies operating within the Orthobiologics market in BRICS.
- Key players covered include DePuy, Inc., Genzyme Corporation, Synthes, Inc., Medtronic, Inc., Baxter International Inc., Biomet, Inc., Orthofix International N.V., Smith & Nephew Plc, Globus Medical, Inc., Wright Medical Group, Inc., Stryker Corporation, DJO Finance LLC, Ferring International Center S.A., Seikagaku Corporation, Anika Therapeutics, Inc. and Alphatec Holdings, Inc..

Reasons to buy

- Develop business strategies by identifying the key market categories and segments poised for strong growth.
- Develop market-entry and market expansion strategies.
- Design competition strategies by identifying who-stands-where in the Orthobiologics competitive landscape in BRICS.
- Develop capital investment strategies by identifying the key market segments expected to register strong growth in the near future.
- What are the key distribution channels and whats the most preferred mode of product distribution Identify, understand and capitalize.

Publisher: GlobalData

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Rio+20 summit: Business chiefs pledge to value earth's natural assets

RIO DE JANEIRO: Some 39 chief executives of banks, investment funds and insurance firms pledged at a Rio+20 business forum to integrate the Earth's natural capital into loans and investments.

Twenty years after the first Earth Summit highlighted the importance of the natural environment, they unveiled a "Natural Capital Declaration" that commit their companies also to reporting or disclosing on the theme of natural capital and accounting for natural capital in accounting frameworks.

Natural capital comprises Earth's natural assets (soil, air, water, flora and fauna) and the ecosystem services flowing from them. Neither these services nor the stock of natural capital that provides them are adequately valued compared to social and financial capital, the signatories said.

The declaration calls on the private and public sectors to work together to create the conditions necessary to "maintain and enhance natural capital as a critical economic, ecological and social asset."

It also urges policy-makers at the UN-sponsored Rio+20 conference to move forward in crafting legislation and regulations that can spur the development of financial products and services that sustain the earth's natural capital.

Among those who signed were chief executives of China Merchants Bank, National Australia Bank, Japan's Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holding and China's Shenzhen Development Bank.

The World Wide Fund for Nature ( WWF), the Carbon Disclosure Project, Fauna and Flora International and Conservation International were the first four non-governmental, not-for-profit organisations to back the initiative.

"The private sector must build momentum post-Rio to ensure that valuing natural capital becomes embedded into both public and private sector investment decisions," said WWF's Director General Jim Leape. "To achieve this, new indicators may be needed and governance arrangements may need to change. The private sector has a key role to play," he added.

World leaders are to meet here June 20-22 to mull prospects for spurring sustainable development that would reconcile economic growth with poverty eradication and environmental protection.

Tense Iran Nuclear Talks Resume in Moscow

MOSCOW — Talks between Iran and six world powers went into a second day on Tuesday morning, as negotiators sought a compromise that would head off the danger of military confrontation over Tehran’s nuclear ambitions.

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Monday’s talks made it clear that the room for agreement is vanishingly small. Iran has signaled it may be willing to stop enriching uranium to 20 percent purity, which is considered a technical step short of bomb-grade but it seeks a weighty political message in return: an acknowledgment from the international community that it has the right to enrich uranium.

Iran is also hoping for a rollback of the tough sanctions by the European Union and the United States scheduled to take effect in the coming weeks, which will further isolate Tehran from world oil and banking markets.

Iran received no such assurances on Monday from the six world powers, which consist of the United States, Russia, China, France and Britain — the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council — as well as Germany.

But on Tuesday a senior Russian official was quoted as saying the negotiations with Iran would not collapse.

“I don’t think anything will break down. We will have a reasonable outcome,” Sergei Ryabkov, a deputy foreign minister who heads the Russian delegation at the discussions, told Reuters after meeting representatives of the world powers at a Moscow hotel.

On Monday, a spokesman for Catherine Ashton, who is the European Union’s top foreign policy official and the lead negotiator with Iran for the so-called P5-plus-1 countries, described the first day’s talks as “intense and tough.”

In an afternoon session, Iranian negotiators picked apart a package of enticements that the six world powers first offered last month in Baghdad, which includes parts for old American civilian aircraft and fuel for an Iranian nuclear reactor, with the promise of more sanctions relief in return for specific Iranian actions to come into compliance over time.

“They responded to our package of proposals from Baghdad, but in doing so, brought up lots of questions and well-known positions, including past grievances,” said Ms. Ashton’s spokesman, Michael Mann. Analysts said the six powers might be willing to relax one of the sanctions that is threatening Iran: a provision that bans insurers based in Europe from covering ships that carry Iranian oil anywhere in the world.

The measure would significantly reduce Iran’s shipments to Asia, which make up most of the 2.2 million barrels it still exports daily. It met with resistance last month from Britain, a center of the marine insurance industry.

Cliff Kupchan, an Iran analyst at Eurasia Group, a consulting firm, said the ban could be carried out on schedule and then eased month by month if Iran were seen to be complying with the P5-plus-1’s central demands: ceasing enrichment of uranium to 20 percent and exporting its stockpile of the material.

“I can’t think of anything else that they could give, or that has been discussed among people involved,” Mr. Kupchan said.

Mr. Mann, Ms. Ashton’s spokesman, said the six powers were not offering to delay or waive sanctions until Iran had proved its willingness to comply with international agreements.

“Sanctions policy by definition is always under review, but can only be eased in response to real changes on the ground, so there is no question that our sanctions will come into force on the first of July,” he said.

The Moscow talks appeared rocky starting early in the day, when an Iranian diplomat described the atmosphere as “not positive” and said the discussions might even conclude on Monday, a day earlier than expected. Diplomats on all sides were unusually tight-lipped as they went in and out of negotiating sessions, heightening the sense of tension.

But the Iranian assessment brightened somewhat by evening: Ali Baqeri, deputy chief of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said the discussion had been “very serious and constructive” when Iran had the opportunity to detail its complaints.

Much seemed to hang on a meeting on Monday night between the head of the Iranian delegation, Saeed Jalili, and Nikolai Patrushev, the secretary of Russia’s National Security Council and a former head of the Federal Security Service.

A breakdown in the talks would increase the risk of a new war in the Middle East, after months of tension over whether Israel, which considers Iran a threat to its existence, will carry out a military strike against Iran’s nuclear program. Iran is in violation of Security Council resolutions demanding that it suspend enrichment, and it has failed to ease concerns that its nuclear program is aimed at building a bomb, an accusation Iran denies.

“We all have to remember what we are doing here,” said a Western official shortly before the talks began, speaking on the condition of anonymity because of the delicacy of the talks. “The international community’s concern is to stop Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon. That is what it is fundamentally about.”

Iranian news media portrayed the talks in Moscow in an unflattering light, with the Fars News Agency reporting that the proceedings demonstrated that Western powers were not interested in reaching a comprehensive solution. Without directly referring to the negotiations, Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, released a speech castigating Iran’s enemies, saying their “misplaced arrogance and grandiosity will lead to nowhere.”

Iran is negotiating under duress because of the intensifying sanctions, which Ayatollah Khamenei has characterized as “economic jihad.” The value of Iran’s currency, the rial, has dropped by 50 percent over the past 10 months, and inflation of food products exceeds 40 percent, said Mr. Kupchan, the analyst. The West, convinced that sanctions have induced Tehran to negotiate, is threatening to squeeze Iran’s economy further.

Russian experts have played down chances for a breakthrough, saying domestic politics in Iran and the United States make it difficult for either to compromise.

“We must understand that for President Barack Obama, neither a final positive or negative solution is possible because he will face criticism for either one,” said Vladimir Sazhin, a top Iran expert with the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences. “With Iran, the situation coincides completely with the situation in the United States. Iran doesn’t need one decision or the other.”

Thomas Erdbrink contributed reporting from Tehran, and Alan Cowell from London.

Syria crisis: US and Russia divided on Assad's future - live updates

• Obama and Putin call for peace but split over Assad
• Robert Mood to brief UNSC on suspended observer mission
• Muslim Brotherhood vows to defy Egypt's generals

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Vladimir Putin with Barack Obama at the G20 summit in Los Cabos, Mexico. Photograph: Carolyn Kaster/AP

10.04am: Syria: The Syrian government claims to be trying to evacuate civilians from Homs, as activists broadcast more live footage of the bombardment of the city.

"Contacts have been made with the leadership of the international monitors, in cooperation with the local Syrian authorities in the city of Homs to bring out these Syrian citizens," Syria's foreign ministry said, according to the state news agency.
After a decision to suspend the UN monitoring mission, Robert Mood, head of the mission, appealed to all parties to allow trapped civilians to flee areas worst hit by the violence.
"The parties must reconsider their position and allow women, children, the elderly and the injured to leave conflict zones, without any preconditions and ensure their safety," Mood said.

10.02am: Syria: Amid continuing reports of defections from the Syrian military, al-Jazeera is reporting that Adnan Sello, a leader of the Syria's Chemical Warfare Division, has defected and is now in Turkey. We are unable to confirm this at present but it could be an important development if true.

There has been growing concern about Syria's stockpile of chemical weapons – not because the regime is thought likely to use them but because of fears over what might happen to them should the regime fall.
The BBC quotes Leonard Spector, a nonproliferation expert based in Washington:

Syria has one of the world's largest chemical weapon arsenals, including traditional chemical agents, such as mustard, and more modern nerve agents, such as Sarin, and possibly persistent nerve agents, such as VX.
Syria is thought to have a number of major chemical weapon complexes, some in areas of current conflict, such as the Homs and Hama regions. The bases are said to be guarded by elite forces, but whether they would stay at their posts if the Assad regime collapses cannot be predicted.

Meanwhile, one of the latest unconfirmed defection videos (above), purports to show a number of high-ranking officers switching to the opposition in Homs.

9.35am: Syria: Activists in Douma, a suburb to the north-east of Damascus, claim that 29 people were killed by government forces on Monday.

The Revolutionary Command Council in Damascus Suburb said several children and military defectors were among the victims.
It posted disturbing videos claiming to show the bodies of the children who had died.
Another clip showed the physical destruction of the area.
Video has also emerged purporting to show a tank destroyed by the rebel Free Syrian Army in Douma.

8.43am: (all times BST) Welcome to Middle East Live. Syria and Egypt remain the focal points.

The main item on today's agenda is a briefing to the UN security council and by Robert Mood, the head of the supervision mission to Syria.
The official presidential election results in Egypt are not expected until tomorrow, but the Muslim Brotherhood's candidate Mohammed Morsi is claiming victory.

Syria

• Barack Obama and Russia's president Vladimir Putin issued a joint call to end the violence in Syria, but the Russian president refused to support US efforts to persuade Bashar al-Assad to relinquish power. A joint statement issued after a bilateral meeting at the G20 summit in Los Cabos, Mexico, said simply that the Syrian people should independently and democratically be allowed to decide their own future, but there was no joint call for Assad to stand down, as the White House has been urging. It said:

In order to to stop the the bloodshed in Syria, we call for an immediate cessation of the violence and express full support for the efforts of the UN and Arab states joint special envoy Kofi Annan, including on moving forward on political transition to a democratic pluralist political system that would be implemented by the Syrians themselves in the framework of Syrian sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity.We are united in our belief that the Syrian people should have the opportunity to independently and democratically choose their own future.

• The "anodyne" statement is significant for what it does not mention, according to former US diplomat Daniel Serwer.

Neither the Russian arms shipments to the regime nor the Saudi and Qatari arms flowing to the opposition are mentioned. Ditto the suspended UN monitoring mission. There is no hint of intervention other than through the Annan plan and the UN Security Council. The Americans are essentially accepting the Russian emphasis on dialogue and peaceful means, while reiterating their hope for eventually democratic ends.
Hope is not a policy ... Anodyne is not a policy either, unless you want to convey how impotent the former superpowers have become.

• Robert Mood the head of the UN supervision mission in Syria is due to brief the security council after his mission was suspended over the weekend. The diplomatic blog Inner City Press says there is confusion over whether the mission activities are continuing.
• Russia has raised the stakes by confirming that it was preparing to send marines to its naval base in Syria, the Telegraph reports.

The planned deployment was designed to send a powerful signal thatRussia would not tolerate foreign military intervention in Syria, according to a Western defence source. It was apparently ordered after the Kremlin came to conclusion that Western powers were preparing to circumvent the United Nations Security Council – where Russia holds a veto – by unilaterally authorising Nato military action in Syria. The source said that Russia had "completely misunderstood" Western intentions.

• Up to 27 people were killed in the suburbs of Damascus on Monday as the security forces intensified a security campaign in the suburbs of the capital, according to activists. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 19 people died including two children. The activist group, the Syrian Revolution General Commission, said 27 people were killed in the area, including four children.

Egypt

• The Muslim Brotherhood has vowed to face down Egypt's ruling generals after declaring that its candidate had won the presidential election and would refuse to accept the junta's last-ditch attempts to engineer a constitutional coup, writes Jack Shenker and Abdel-Rahman Hussein in Cairo.

An 11th-hour constitutional declaration issued unilaterally by Scaf awarded the generals sweeping powers including the right to put forward legislation and an effective veto over clauses in the new constitution, and formalised the army's ability to detain civilians and sweep out of barracks at moments of "internal unrest".
Political analysts described the move as a constitutional obscenity and said it left the three major institutions of the post-Mubarak Egyptian state – the presidency (now curtailed), the parliament (now dissolved) and the constitutional assembly (now floundering in legal uncertainty) – all under the full or partial influence of the armed forces.

• If, as expected Mohamed Morsi, is declared winner of the presidential election, the Brotherhood's decision not to boycott the poll will have been vindicated, says a Guardian editorial. The Brotherhood's candidate benefited from a sympathy vote following last week's decision to dissolve parliament, it says.

The biggest miscalculation that Egypt's ruling military council, Scaf, made was to have its judges on the constitutional council declare the Islamist-dominated parliament invalid. Two days before the presidential poll, this may have tipped the balance in favour of the Muslim Brotherhood's candidate, Mohamed Morsi. If the Brotherhood squandered public sympathy by doing little with its time in parliament, and losing 5m votes as a result, the court restored the Brotherhood's image as a victim of military fiat.
Besides, it became clear for all to see what the plan of the generals had been all along: to usurp parliament by giving itself legislative power; to usurp the constitution by creating its own body of authors; and to seize the presidency.

• The United States expressed alarm that its protégés in the Egyptian army were abusing hopes for democracy by ordering more military rule, Reuters reports. "We are deeply concerned about the new amendments to the constitutional declaration, including the timing of their announcement as polls were closing," a Pentagon spokesman said.
State department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland added:

We call on Scaf to restore popular and international confidence in the democratic transition process by following through on their stated commitments to an inclusive, constitutional drafting process; the timely seating of a democratically elected parliament; and the swift, permanent transfer of power to a civilian government. There can be no going back on the democratic transition, and the United States stands with the Egyptian people in their aspiration to choose their own leaders.

• The Egyptian blogger Zeinobia expresses fears of violence if Ahmed Shafiq is declared winner of the election at an announcement tomorrow.
She writes:

I fear Algerian scenario for real this time. You can not charge people with hope and victory like that , then give them the shock of their lives.

She also posted these images of Muslim Brotherhood supporters celebrating what they think was the victory of their candidate Mohamed Morsi.

Saudi Arabia

• Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah, 89, has appointed his brother Prince Salman, the defence minister, as crown prince and heir apparent, ensuring a smooth succession for the world's biggest oil exporting country. The appointment, reported on state television, was announced in a royal decree one day after the burial of Crown Prince Nayef, the interior minister, who died on Saturday.