It’s that time of year again. Plans are rapidly coming together for BbWorld Commerce ’09, and now is the time to make your plans to attend. We’ll return to the Pointe Hilton Tapatio Cliffs Resort in Phoenix, Arizona, from February 9 to 11, for what will be a highly interactive and useful conference. You won’t want to miss it.

This year we’ve added new pre-conference training opportunities on topics such as PCI Compliance, as well as discounted package pricing options that include a full registration with either a full- or half-day training session.

Click here to register for BbWorld Commerce ’09, the premier users conference for campus commerce and security management administrators. It’s the one event each year that truly focuses on you and your success.

So reserve your hotel room today. Speaker discounts are also available.

Do you have a story to tell? If you do, submit your proposal to share your story with your peers.

And if you have any questions, you can always email us at bbworldcommerce@blackboard.com.

If they aren’t already, classes will be back in session soon at most universities.  As administrators get back to their daily lives delivering improved student service and better operational efficiency, now is a great time to check out the latest commerce and security management solutions available from Blackboard and its partners.

We have a number of upcoming Webinars and product demonstrations of solutions designed to improve campus safety, as well as student satisfaction:

• Blackboard Video Surveillance improves campus safety and security with the ability to view live or recorded campus video from virtually anywhere.
• Pharos Systems offers a suite of software solutions developed specifically for print and copy cost recovery. Save significantly on student print costs, reduce waste and improve student satisfaction and service.
• Sequoia Campus Kiosk, an innovative cardholder self-service kiosk, allows users to place and pay for food orders, as well as manage their campus card accounts around the clock, via an easy-to-use interface.

Click on any of the links above to register, or to check out a complete listing simply click here.  Archived Webinars that can be viewed at your convenience are also available.  I look forward to seeing you online.

BbWorld Commerce ’08 drew a large contingent of Blackboard clients to Phoenix in March, to share best practices and hear the latest product news from Blackboard, including the release of Blackboard Video Surveillance and the integration of Connect-ED mass messaging.

A highlight of the conference this year was the line-up, in the morning sessions, of arguably the two best keynote presentations we’ve ever had:

• Dr. Mark Milliron of Catalyze Learning, who discussed the newest generation of students and how they prefer to learn
• Dr. Adrian Sannier from Arizona State University, who discussed the evolution of strategic campus technology alliances

Many conference attendees told me how insightful they found both of these speakers and how useful the information provided in their addresses was to them.  Several people specifically wanted to share the speeches with their colleagues back on campus.

Well, now you can watch and share videos of the keynote addresses.

Last week I attended the three-day, annual CardTech SecureTech conference in San Francisco, where the latest in identification and payment card technology was on display.  When it comes to campus card technology, the name of the game is clearly "contactless.”

You are no doubt familiar with the brown magnetic stripe on the back of your credit card.  (If you’re like me, you avoid carrying cash at all costs in lieu of using a bank debit card for convenience.)  And you’re probably equally familiar with paying for purchases by swiping your card through a point of sale register; for instance, when you check out at your local grocery store.

Those registers are designed to “read” the data—essentially your credit card number—anytime you swipe your card.  But in order for that to happen, that magnetic stripe on the card must actually come in contact with a tiny read head that sits inside the register.

Now consider the idea of contactless transactions.