Ambient Corp. and Itron Inc. (Nasdaq: ITRI) today jointly announced the development of a module designed to eliminate the need for drive-by utility meter reading. The Ambient® EDC module is a more advanced option to smart metering over legacy automatic meter reading using encoder receiver transmitter (ERT) modules.

“The possibility of leaving assets stranded without a clear road map or without a viable option for incorporating such assets into a smart grid platform has prevented many utilities from deploying smart grid technology. The new EDC module, developed with cooperation from Itron, gives utilities a critical migration path linking their legacy meters to newer advanced communications systems without stranding recently deployed assets,” John J. Joyce, president and CEO of Ambient stated in the press release. “With greater than 60 million ERT meters in the U.S. alone, the market potential is very significant.”

The EDC module can be integrated into Ambient’s smart grid

Phase Forward (PFWD) recently announced that it completed its previously announced acquisition of the Interactive Voice and Web Response Services business of Covance Inc. (CVD) for $10 million in cash.  Headquartered in Princeton, New Jersey, Phase Forward is a leading provider of data management solutions for clinical trials and drug safety.

As part of the agreement, Phase Forward and Covance also entered into a multiyear marketing agreement. Management expects that this acquisition will strengthen its Interactive Response Technology solutions. 

Earlier, the company reported second quarter results, which beat analysts’ expectations and trimmed its outlook for 2009. Management stated that it expects revenues between $214.5 and $217.5 million. On a non-GAAP basis, the company projects EPS between 47 cents and 50 cents, down from the average forecast of 54 cents and its prior guidance of 51 cents to 54 cents, primarily due to acquisition related costs of 4 cents to

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Markets took pause from their four week run this week, as some less than encouraging economic reports coupled with profit taking led to slight declines in all of the major indices. All told, the Dow ended the week down 0.5%, surrendering 48 points to close at 9321, bringing its YTD gains to 6.2%. The Nasdaq was off 0.7%, closing at 1985, up a healthy 25.9% on the year, while the S&P 500 and Russell 2000 were down 0.6% and 1.5% respectively, paring their yearly gains to 11.2% and 12.9%.

Disappointing economic data relating to inventories and consumer sentiment soured the mood for much of the week, as worse than expected declines in retail sales, consumer sentiment, and business and wholesale inventories gave investors cause for concern. Retail sales

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Markets continued their torrid pace this week on the strength of encouraging reports from two of the most beleaguered economic sectors, which led to gains in all of the major indices following the week’s activities. All told, the Dow ended the week up 2.2%, gaining 198 to close at 9370, bringing its YTD gains to 6.8%. The Nasdaq gained 1.1% on the week, bringing its yearly gains to 26.8% while the S&P 500 and Russell 2000 posted gains of 2.3% and 2.28 % respectively, bringing their yearly gains to 11.9% and 14.6%.

Economic news stole the spotlight this week as earnings season wound down, leaving investors with a more definitive picture of the overall state of recovery than in many weeks prior. The good news started early in the week, as the ISM