TechnoFusion

August 10, 2006

Curry King puts word of his recipes out by text

RECIPES by the Edinburgh-based chef known as the Curry King can now be ordered by text message in his native Bangladesh.
Leading city restaurateur Tommy Miah, owner of The Raj in Leith, is a celebrity chef with his own television show in Bangladesh.

Mr Miah's recipes for Bangladeshi, Thai, Indian and Chinese meals can now be requested via text message from any Banglalink mobile phone.

The 47-year-old curry tycoon, who arrived in Britain at the age of ten unable to speak a word of English, is launching his own brand of spices in Britain.

The range is set to go on sale to restaurants and caterers across the UK later this year.

Mr Miah also owns the Indian-themed Original Raj Hotel in Murrayfield and The Heritage Restaurant in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Amongst his achievements are the delivery of a curry lunch-box to 10 Downing Street for Prime Minister John Major's 50th birthday, and producing the world's largest curry - big enough to feed 10,000.

Mr Miah has written several charity cookbooks and started a worldwide curry contest - International Indian Chef of the Year.

Posted by admin at 09:29 AM | Comments (0)

August 09, 2006

Bridging the digital divide – the World Bank donates computers to non profit organizations

The World Bank Dhaka Office handed over a hundred refurbished and well-functioning personal computers and laptops to three non-profit organizations. During the ceremony, World Bank Country Director stressed the linkages between development and technology and remarked, “Technology has an important role to play in poverty reduction. Technology keeps you informed and links you to the rest of the world.”

Although this is a small step in bridging the digital divide, the World Bank hopes that the underprivileged children will get a better opportunity in enhancing their computer skills with the help of these computers.
The World Bank donated the computers to three non-profit educational organizations:

Underprivileged Children’s Education Program (UCEP): a national program working to enhance skills of underprivileged children and youth;

Ganderia Kisholoy Kochi Kachar Mela: a local chapter of Kochi Kachar Mela which promotes cultural activities along with education to underprivileged children.

Corpus Christi High School, Madhupur, Tangail: an organization which targets and provides education to children of the Garo ethnic community.

The computers will be used for enhancing IT skills among the youth in order to make them competitive in the labour market of Bangladesh. Senior officials and students from the organizations were present at the ceremony. On being asked how the computer would change their lives, Md. Belal of UCEP commented, “I feel more confident now that I will not fall behind my other colleagues when I start working for an organization.” Ms. Chiram, Head Teacher from Corpus Christi High School said that the donated computers will improve access of Garo children to modern technology and information and enhance their networking skills.

The power of the internet was seen first hand when the children opened individual e-mail accounts with assistance from World Bank staff. The children wasted no time in exchanging e-mail among themselves and World Bank staff and created a ‘network’ of their own.

The program was unique as it brought together technical computer specialists and deprived children who have had limited access to technology.

Posted by admin at 08:19 AM | Comments (0)

July 30, 2006

Stepping up communications for disaster mitigation and relief ITU and Thuraya forge partnership for portable satellite terminals

The International Telecommunication Union and Thuraya Satellite Telecommunications Company have concluded an agreement to provide portable satellite terminals to assist countries in disaster mitigation and relief.
Thuraya, the United Arab Emirates satellite-based company, is contributing handheld satellite terminals along with solar chargers; ITU will pay for airtime at discounted rates offered by Thuraya and cover the transportation costs of telecommunications equipment to and from disaster-hit areas. ITU will also provide its expertise in technical and operational training for government officials involved in rescue missions.

In the light of a spate of natural disasters and calamities in recent times, the World Telecommunication Development Conference (WTDC-06) meeting in Doha in March 2006 called upon ITU to develop ICT-based solutions in emergency telecommunications directed at improving early-warning communication, disaster preparedness and mitigation. This is a critical area of concern especially for countries with fragile economies and special needs, such as least developed countries and small island developing states.

"The tsunami that wreaked havoc in south East Asia, the Kashmir earthquake, the Suriname floods, and the Indonesia earthquake have demonstrated the power of emergency telecommunications in saving lives and coordinating efforts during rescue operations such as the setting up of telemedicine links," said ITU Secretary-General Yoshio Utsumi.

Access to information is of paramount importance in the immediate aftermath of a disaster for relief agencies to coordinate search-and-rescue, medical intervention and rehabilitation efforts. There is an urgent need to establish effective and comprehensive communication links between the affected area, national disaster response facilities, and with the larger international community. Ironically, terrestrial communication links are almost always disabled and disrupted during the first hours of a major disaster. The Thuraya terminals, which support voice and data applications and remote location determination services via GPS, will help provide that vital link via satellite. When regular cellular networks are available, the GSM-enabled Thuraya handsets can switch to the terrestrial network for greater affordability.

"One of the pillars leading to the success of our work in this area rests on multi-stakeholder partnerships," said Cosmas Zavazava, ITU Focal Point for Emergency Telecommunications. "It is in this respect that we welcome the contribution by Thuraya Satellite Telecommunications Company, a Member of ITU's Development Sector."

Thuraya CEO Yousuf Al Sayed agreed that the responsiveness of relief efforts can be made more effective through such partnerships. "As a leading multi-regional mobile satellite operator, Thuraya is committed to contributing towards world needs during rescue and emergency operations, and we are pleased to partner and work closely with ITU and concerned UN agencies to provide urgent communications support in disaster-hit areas," Mr Al Sayed said. "The responsiveness of relief efforts can be made much more efficient through such partnerships." ITU will provide the Thuraya satellite handheld terminals to rescue teams, government authorities and humanitarian agencies to establish vital communication links for relief and rehabilitation efforts. The communication link will also help victims locate their families and seek personal assistance.

Posted by admin at 01:21 PM | Comments (0)

International steps taken to build global Information Society

Implementation of the outcomes of the recently concluded World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) gathered momentum with the launch of the United Nations Group on the Information Society (UNGIS). High level representatives of twenty-two UN agencies met on Friday, 14 July 2006 at ITU Headquarters in Geneva under the chairmanship of ITU Secretary-General Yoshio Utsumi to facilitate the process.
UNGIS will serve as an interagency coordinating mechanism within the UN system to implement the outcomes of WSIS. The Group will enable synergies aimed at resolving substantive and policy issues, avoiding redundancies and enhancing effectiveness of the system while raising public awareness about the goals and objectives of the global Information Society. UNGIS will also work to highlight the importance of ICTs in meeting the Millennium Development Goals.

To maximize its efficiency, the Group agreed on a work plan in which it would concentrate its collective efforts each year on one or two cross-cutting themes and on a few selected countries.

In the coming period, UNGIS will focus on bringing the efforts of the UN system to bear on expanding access to communications, for instance through multimedia community centres, teleshops, etc. Drawing on the respective competencies of the different members of the Group, UNGIS will also focus on applications related to e-health and e-tourism. At the same time, the Group will examine the e-readiness strategies and policies of one or two countries, to be proposed by UNDP, to develop a comprehensive toolkit for bringing the benefits of the Information society to developing countries.During the first year, UNGIS will be chaired by ITU, with UNESCO, UNDP and WHO acting as vice-chairs.

UNGIS has been established by the United Nations Secretary-General, Mr Kofi Annan, at the request of the Summit and in consultation with members of the UN system Chief Executives Board for Coordination (CEB).

WSIS has contributed towards a better understanding of the key issues and challenges of the Information Society. Throughout the process, critical issues such as infrastructure, capacity building, the regulatory environment and financing have been discussed and refined. Pioneering work on financing ICTs for development and on internet governance has resulted in the most comprehensive international documents ever endorsed on the topics at the international level.

The Summit set critical targets for global connectivity and ICT for development to be reached by 2015 and established 11 action lines to achieve the objectives of the Information Society. The outcome outlines a detailed blueprint involving governments, the private sector, civil society, the United Nations and other international organizations for implementation and follow-up at the national, regional and international levels.

Posted by admin at 01:16 PM | Comments (0)

First Liberian returnees graduate from ITU/ UNHCR ICT Training Centre

The first batch of twenty-nine students graduated after two months of intensive training in computer skills at an information and communication technology (ICT) training centre in Monrovia, Liberia. The training centre was established by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the lead United Nations agency for information and communication technology issues, which pooled pooled resources with the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR).

Other partners in this project include two Liberian-based non-governmental organizations — the Liberia Opportunity Industrialization Centre (LOIC) and the Foundation for African Development Aid (ADA) who renovated the premises and installed a wireless internet connection and payphone along with Cellcom Telecommunications Inc., a mobile operator in Liberia.

Training in ICT helps build computer skills of young people and will especially assist young refugees returning home. "Every day was a big challenge for us. It was not easy. But now I feel very satisfied and I plan to continue my studies," Jerome Williams, a returnee from Nigeria, said. "We wish to extend our thanks to UNHCR, LOIC and ITU for giving us the opportunity to improve our skills. We hope that this programme can be extended to all Liberian returnees across the country, expanding it to other Liberian cities as well," Williams added on behalf of the class.

The Training Centre serves as a model to be replicated in other parts of the country. The centre is considered by Liberian authorities as "timely and in line with the Government’s policy to return Liberia’s young population to constructive learning". Vocational and technical training are essential to jump-start capacity building and find new means of livelihood in a population whose education was delayed due to many years of instability.

The centre, equipped by ITU to train 60 students every two months, imparts training in core computer and entrepreneurial skills as well as offers training in computer maintenance.

The ICT Training Centre offers training free of charge to returnees, but charges a nominal fee for other community members wishing to be trained. Small fees are also charged for using the Internet Café facilities provided by the Centre, which provides ICT-related services such as E-mail and internet, word processing, photocopying, desk-top publishing and document binding services. This fee is necessary to provide revenue to meet some of the running costs for the centre to guarantee its long-term sustainability.

ITU Regional Representative for Africa Brahima Sanou expressed confidence that the Training Centre would contribute towards building capacity and help in the rehabilitation and re-integration of returnees from post-conflict situations. He pointed out that the World Summit on the Information Society called for special attention to be given to countries recovering from conflict and to vulnerable groups of people. "Fostering the development of information and knowledge will facilitate the country to be integrated into the global economy and bring back hope to young people whose future has been clouded by the scourge of war," said Sanou.

UNHCR Country Representative Mengesha Kebede commended the collaboration with ITU and reiterated that the ICT Training Centre would contribute towards enhancing employment opportunities for urban returnees. He called on other agencies to assist in this endeavour and noted that over 20 per cent of Liberian refugees will be returning to urban centres, especially to the capital city of Monrovia, and called for collaborative response and effective, targeted programmes aimed at enhancing their livelihood.

This collaboration between ITU and UNHCR is the first effort towards extending access to ICT services and training to returnees in Liberia. Funding permitting, similar centres will be established in other parts of the country as well as in other African states emerging from post-conflict situations, including Burundi, Sierra Leone and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

Posted by admin at 01:10 PM | Comments (0)

Talpa radio in Europe selects PROFLINE B.V. ― international datacasting’s European division - for network expansions

International Datacasting Corporation [TSX: IDC] today announced that PROFline B.V., their wholly owned subsidiary and base of operations in Europe, was selected by Talpa Radio, a leading Dutch broadcaster, to supply equipment to expand and upgrade the network infrastructure for two of their European radio stations — Radio 538 in the Netherlands and Radio 4FM in Belgium. Under this contract, PROFline will provide professional grade DVB satellite receivers which feature the latest in High Efficiency Advanced Audio Coding (MPEG 4 HE AAC) technology.
“We are very pleased that Talpa Radio has selected us to provide their next-generation network infrastructure,” said Ron Clifton, President and CEO of IDC. ”They are known in the industry for their quality broadcast coverage. This is an important reference for us as we roll-out our new MPEG 4 HE AAC product line and it helps us with our objective of becoming the leading provider of professional radio broadcasting systems throughout Europe”
Alexander Josiassen, Technical Director of Talpa Radio said, “We selected PROFline as our partner for the implementation of our first MPEG 4 HE AAC radio networks in the Netherlands and Belgium due to their reputation for quality and performance. We have 3 years of experience with the PROFline MPEG2 predecessor product in our Danish radio station, Radio100FM, and have been very pleased with their workmanship and support.”
“MPEG 4 HE AAC is quickly becoming the industry standard for professional radio content distribution due to its high quality of audio delivery at reduced bandwidth” said Berry Eskes, PROFLine’s Director of Marketing and Sales. “We are pleased to have our new products available at the right time and be at the forefront of the conversion to AAC that is now starting to happen in the radio broadcast market”

Posted by admin at 01:07 PM | Comments (0)

Globecomm Systems Awarded Multi-Year Agreement with a Major Media Production

Globecomm Systems Inc.(NASDAQ: GCOM-News), a global provider of end-to-end satellite-based communications solutions, today announced that the Company has been awarded a five-year agreement with a major media production and distribution company in the United States (the media company) valued at $22 million. The agreement includes options, which if exercised brings the total contract value to $32 million.

Pursuant to the agreement, Globecomm will provide origination, monitoring and uplinking services for the media company's channel portfolio. Globecomm will also design and construct a state-of-the-art network operations center and dedicated uplink facility (the facility) at its world headquarters in Hauppauge, NY, which will be utilized to broadcast the media company's content to authorized sites throughout the United States. The Company anticipates completion of the facility in its fiscal third quarter ending
March 31, 2007 and anticipates recognizing revenues under the agreement soon thereafter.

Throughout the past five years, Globecomm has invested a significant amount of capital expanding its service line offerings beyond Internet Protocol based voice and data services, to include broadcast video and positioning the Company for the IPTV revolution. Globecomm's video capabilities have expanded to include the turnaround and monitoring of 24 video channels on a
global basis and the design and installation of one of the industry's first satellite-based IPTV facilities.

David Hershberg, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of Globecomm Systems Inc., said: "Globecomm's vision, investment and commitment to the multi-faceted video broadcast and IPTV space has resulted in this very prestigious multi-year contract award and we are thrilled to have been selected. Globecomm's world headquarters has rapidly evolved into a major point-of-presence for next generation voice, data, video and multi-media network services. The Company possesses some of the world's most experienced IPTV broadcast engineers who have designed and installed major uplink facilities around the globe, with the most recent major accomplishment being the design and integration of the new SES Americom IP Prime Broadcast
Center. These factors played a significant role in the decision to award the Company this contract."
Mr. Hershberg continued, "Over the past twelve months, Globecomm has
announced a broad range of prestigious long-term satellite-based contracts ranging from the Company's involvement in the Federal Aviation Administration's Telecommunications Infrastructure program through our subcontract from Harris Corporation, to our selection by Raytheon supporting the National Weather Service's Advanced Weather Interactive Processing System, the recently announced NATO Force Tracking System and now this majoraward. The progress the Company has made on these fronts, including this new broad-based agreement, has positioned Globecomm as a premium provider of voice, data and video services globally. These awards demonstrate the diversity of skill sets of our engineering staff and should provide a backdrop of stabilized growth for the foreseeable future."

Posted by admin at 01:01 PM | Comments (0)

February 16, 2006

More Asians flocking to social networking sites

Young (and old) Asians are flocking to social networking sites such as myspace.com and friendster to network with people with common interests and in many cases meet the ideal mate.

While in terms of web hits MySpace has taken the lead with 2.5 time traffic of Google according to a report by Associated Press on Feb 13th, Friendster is emerging as the dating site of choice for many Asians who are first or second generation abroad.

When it comes to using such sites for finding dates or life partners, many Asians believe these sites offer an alternative to an announcement of desperation when listing themselves on matrimonial sites such as sadi.com.

It's not always smooth sailing with these networking sites. Friendter which has approximately 21 million members, scared away many when it introduced a featuer called "Who's Viewed Me." This feature allowed people to see who checked them out recently. Friendster allows users to opt out of "Who's Viewed Me" after much dismay by its members.

Posted by admin at 05:55 PM | Comments (0)

February 14, 2006

New mobile users to grow 6-8 million per month in India

Reuters
New Delhi, February 14: India, the world's fastest growing mobile market, could add between 6-8 million new mobile users each month once networks reach all rural customers, Telecommunications Minister Dayanidhi Maran said on Tuesday.

Asia's third-largest economy added a record 4.7 million new GSM and CDMA mobile users in January, taking its wireless user base close to 83 million customers.

But more than a decade after launch, wireless networks cover only about one-third of the country and vast swathes of rural areas -- where two-thirds of the billion-plus population live -- remain unconnected.

"I believe that if we are able to reach mobile services to rural consumers, we have the potential to grow at 6, 7 or even 8 million subscribers a month," Maran told the 3GSM wireless trade show in Barcelona, Spain.

Posted by admin at 02:02 PM | Comments (0)

February 07, 2006

China's computer product exports crosses $100 billion

BEIJING, Feb. 7 -- Exports of China's computer products was $104.84 billion in 2005, over $100 billion for the first time, accounting for 13.7% of total exports while 7.9% in 2001. Exports of notebook computer, LCD, integrated circuits and hard disk were $29.9 billion, $14.54 billion, $14.01 billion and $4.11 billion, up by 43.9%, 22.6%, 30.9% and 51.6% separately.

Exports of telecommunication and electronic products amounted to $72.28 billion and $24.48 billion, up by 37.8% and 32.7% separately, listed in the second and third of the exports of high-tech products.

Size of China's high technology amounted to 3.3 trillion Yuan in 2005, value added reached 780 billion Yuan, accounting for 5.2% of the GDP. There were 300 enterprises with exports of high-tech products over $100 million and 50 ones with exports over $1 billion.

Posted by admin at 03:33 AM | Comments (0)

February 02, 2006

BBC World Service TV on mobile phones Australia and Norway

BBC World Service, the commercial arm of British Broadcasting Corporation has signed agreements with Telenor Nordic Mobile and Hutchinson/3 Australia to delivery live video news service over mobile phones.

Mobile subscribers with 3G handsets will be able to watch live running 24-house news, streamed to their handsets.

In the 3/Hutchinson Australia deal, the subscribers are being asked to pay Au$4/month for unlimited access, Au$2/day or Au$0.50/two minutes.

The management and delivery of the service for Telenor is being handled by Rubberduck Media Lab, a subsidiary of the Mobile Media Company.

Posted by admin at 06:24 PM | Comments (0)

January 31, 2006

Databases for free

IBM joins other big database developers to offer free version of its entrise database server DB2. Big Blue follows the lead of competitor Oracle, which introduced a free version of its 10g database during October, and of Microsoft, which announced the free version of its SQL Server database during November.

Amid mounting pressure from open source community, which offers such popular database products as MySQL, Postgres, and the Ingres.

Unlike its licensed version the free DB2 offers no customer support from IBM directly. Instead users have to rely on web-based support communities to get help.

Customers in developing countries who cannot afford skyrocketting license fees can now opt of free DB products from all major vendors.

Posted by admin at 02:21 AM | Comments (0)

January 29, 2006

Dell expands customer support in Asia

Ultra cheap personal computer manufacturer Dell is expanding its customer support work force in Asia by launching a new enterprise command center in Malaysia.

The center offers support to its Asia-Pacific enterprise customers which have bought Dell's server and storage products. Dell estimates that these customers, located in Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand, own about 250,000 systems in all.

The Malaysian support center's services include monitoring of news and weather events, and providing crisis management support.

The newly-launched center is Dell's fifth such facility globally, and the third in the Asia-Pacific region, after China and Japan. Dell currently employs 19,000 people in the region.

With personal computer business becoming a commodity, manufacturers such as Dell which does almost no research and development have been loosing margins rapidly in recent years. Accelerating move of manufacturing and support in developing countries is the only way such PC manufacturers can survive.

Posted by admin at 11:19 AM | Comments (0)

January 27, 2006

Hi speed WiFi on the way

WiFi networks that provide wireless network connectivity to within homes, offices, stores and cafes (typically in the 100s of feet) is about to get a massive boost in speed to deliver ultra broadband connectivity.

On Jan. 19, an Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) working group approved a proposal for the upcoming 802.11n wireless standard. The draft specifications will come out in March, after which engineers will work toward releasing a final standard in 2007.

The new "n" protocol was developed by IEEE's Enhanced Wireless Consortium, a group that includes Intel, Apple Computer, Microsoft, Sony and several other major players. The new protocol aims to increase maximum Wi-Fi speeds roughly tenfold to throughputs of up to 600 Mbps.

The tentative standard is also expected to enable more data-rate consistency across the Wi-Fi cloud. Unlike current Wi-Fi connections with performance that fluctuates depending on how far the user is from the router and other factors, the "n" standard would help equalize speeds and make reliable multimedia streams possible opening doors to delivery HD television on data networks.

Posted by admin at 01:53 PM | Comments (0)

January 26, 2006

UN Body to Support $100 Computer

DAVOS, Switzerland (Reuters) - The United Nations has thrown its weight behind a project to place a $100, hand-cranked laptop computer in the hands of millions of schoolchildren around the globe.

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) will sign a partnership agreement with the head of the project, Massachusetts Institute of Technology's (MIT) Nicholas Negroponte, in the Alpine ski resort of Davos on Saturday, officials said.

Davos is hosting the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum, a gathering of top politicians, economists and business executives.

The aim is to provide the lime-green machines free of charge to children in poor countries who cannot afford computers of their own.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060126/tc_nm/davos_laptop_dc

Posted by admin at 01:29 PM | Comments (0)

January 20, 2006

Malaysia's DiGi.com, Nokia team up to offer PC-mobile online game

KUALA LUMPUR (AFX) - DiGi.Com Bhd, in a tieup with Nokia Corp, plans to introduce the world's first mobile phone-to-personal computer (PC) online game in Malaysia, the New Straits Times reported, quoting DiGi chief marketing officer Chee Pok Jin.

The paper said that DiGi and Nokia have teamed up to deliver a cross-platform, cross-boundary game that allows DiGi customers to use their mobile phones to play with others who are on their PCs or mobile phones.

http://www.forbes.com/home/feeds/afx/2006/01/19/afx2462955.html

Posted by admin at 01:44 PM | Comments (0)

January 19, 2006

Latin America sees surge in open source revenues

Latin America is a big growth market for open-source software particularly as a number of governments are putting policies in place to encourage the adoption of such models.

Last year, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said the country's public administration will switch to open-source software over the next two years. The Brazilian federal government is also hoping to mandate the use of open-source software through a decree that would force government agencies to migrate.

This week a group of 15 Chilean systems integrators that joined forces last year expects to report joint overseas revenues of US$200mn for 2005, according to Heriberto Covarrubias the group's director, and general manager at local firm Switch.

Today HP joined the bandwagon of selling open-source in Latin America. Mandriva, the company formed when the French Linux vendor Mandrakesoft merged with its Brazilian counterpart Conectiva last year, said it will work with HP on sales, support and marketing in "all Latin American territories" including Brazil, Argentina and Mexico.

Posted by admin at 06:29 PM | Comments (0)

January 18, 2006

China Internet users hit 111 million in 2005

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - The number of Web users in China, the world's second largest Internet market, grew by 18 percent in 2005 to 111 million, the Economic Daily reported on Wednesday.

Some 8.5 percent of the country's 1.3 billion people now had access to the Internet, the newspaper reported, citing a survey released by the China Internet Network Information Center.

State media previously predicted 120 Chinese million would be surfing the Web by the end of 2005 as computers find their way into more homes and domestic telecoms networks grow.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060118/wr_nm/china_internet_dc

Posted by admin at 06:30 AM | Comments (0)

January 17, 2006

India to introduce electronic stamps

Amid shortage of stamp paper, Indian government is planning a nation-wide intorduction of e-stamp facilities in the country. The Indian postal service will allow certain financial institutions including banks to produce electronic stamps.

A concept paper on e-stamping has been prepared by the Stock Holding Corporation of India. Payments —in the case of e-stamping — can be done through banks or credit cards. The proof of payment can be attached to the document. Details are still being worked out, even as many states have indicated their willingness to adopt e-stamping.

Posted by admin at 05:43 AM | Comments (0)

January 12, 2006

Chinese company takes lead in introducing TV/Computer using Intel's Viiv

TCL Corp., the world's largest manufacturer of television sets, is producing a personal computer & tv combo developed with Intel Corp.'s latest Viiv technology.

TCL's PC resembles a 17-inch flat-panel TV with a carrying handle on top. A metal base folds down from behind the screen, allowing it to stand upright. Inside the base, a wireless keyboard can be slid out to run the device as a computer. It also comes with a remote control and a built-in camera and weighs about nine pounds.

Using the product name Versone, TCL plans to release the PC in China by the middle of January and in Europe at the end of February. In the U.S., TCL says it will manufacture the product for other PC companies as well. Initially the product will be priced at about $2,000.

Posted by admin at 02:17 AM | Comments (0)

January 10, 2006

Oracle plans to expand operations in India

(Edited News, Soure AP): U.S. business software maker Oracle Corp. plans to expand its sales, consulting and support operations in India, focusing on small and midsized companies in the country's towns and rural areas, a company executive said Tuesday.

Oracle already operates in six Indian cities, and it plans to set up shop in nine more in the next eight months and add 1,400 employees to its existing Indian work force of 8,600.

Over the past five years, Oracle has invested more than $2 billion in India, including setting up research and development centers in Hyderabad and Bangalore.

Oracle, based Redwood Shores, California, currently has more than 6,400 customers in India, where some 80% of Indian banks and 90% of Indian telecommunications companies use Oracle software, some of which supports 13 Indian languages.

Posted by admin at 02:11 PM | Comments (0)

January 07, 2006

Reverse Migration

According to a recent story in BusinessWeek magazine, westerners are moving to India seeking jobs at various call centers. India even with its vast population is finding it hard to keep up with call center reps with western language skills.

The demand for workers is also being fueled by the change in mix of customers of the call centers. In 2004, 64% of all outsourcing contracts came from the U.S. and Britain while 29% came from the rest of Europe, but that number could jump to 40% within five years, according to Nasscom.

Posted by admin at 12:01 AM | Comments (0)

January 06, 2006

India claims 38.5 million Internet users

The number of Internet users in India has increases 54 percent over the past year to 38.5 million, and will jump to 100 million in two years according to an industry carried out by Internet and Mobile Association of India.

Indians known for their extreme frugal living has been using the web to get bargain prices from high value items such as airline tickets to locally produced books.

While details of the study were sketchy the industry group also claimed the business segment now contributes 42 per cent of the total active internet entities and households account for the remaining 58 per cent.

Posted by admin at 03:08 AM | Comments (0)

December 29, 2005

Turkcell, Nokia, HP To Offer 'Visual Radio' In Turkey

EFY News Network: Turkey-based GSM operator Turkcell has signed an agreement with Nokia and HP to bring 'Visual Radio' to Turkey. Developed by Nokia and offered by HP, Visual Radio adds a new dimension to FM radio with interactive content and services for mobile listeners. Visual Radio allows listeners to tune in to local FM radio via their mobile phones while simultaneously receiving interactive information and graphics that are synchronised with the broadcast.



Turkcell will be the first mobile phone operator in Turkey to give its customers the chance to download content related to the FM radio broadcast, get detailed information regarding the songs and even participate in radio quizzes. Visual Radio will also allow Turkcell users to create a personalised archive on their mobile phones.

Turkcell demonstrated the Visual Radio service in CeBIT Bilisim Eurasia in Istanbul last fall. The service will be available in 2006

Posted by admin at 12:03 PM | Comments (0)

December 25, 2005

Japan to adopt high-tech passports

In a bid to counter passport forgery, Japan will start issuing on March 20 a new type of passport, which uses an integrated circuit chip containing the holder's facial data.

The introduction will be in line with a revision of the passport law that goes into effect on the day.

For those who apply for passports after that date, IC passports will be issued. Those who already have passports can still use them until the passports' expiration dates, although they may switch to IC passports if they wish, the ministry said.

An IC chip containing the holder's personal data, such as name, birth date, nationality and passport number, will be implanted in a plastic page of the passport that reading devices can touch to confirm the installed data.

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=78902

Posted by admin at 08:07 AM | Comments (0)

December 20, 2005

Microsoft expanding reach of its mobile e-mail and IM services in India

Reuters & ZDNET: Microsoft's MSN division and India's messaging company Mobile 365 announced Tuesday that they've reached deals with five Indian mobile service providers.

Under the deals, subscribers will be able to use text messaging on their cell phones to receive and reply to e-mail sent to their Hotmail accounts. They will also be able to use the MSN Messenger service from their phones.

The partnership covers five mobile and fixed wireless operators--Reliance Infocomm, Tata Teleservices, Reliance GSM, Spice Punjab and Spice Karnataka--with a combined subscriber base of 23.5 million users. Microsoft and Mobile 365 are already working with three other mobile networks in India: Airtel, BPL and Hutch.

The MSN Messenger/Hotmail service via SMS is available to 70 percent of Indian mobile subscribers, and Microsoft and Mobile 365 expect to expand the service to cover 100 percent of the Indian mobile market very soon, according to MSN South Asia.

India is among the fastest-growing wireless markets, with about 53 million GSM-standard and 14 million CDMA-standard phone users. Citing figures from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, MSN and Mobile 365 said the market is expected to grow to 200 million subscribers by 2008.

Like many U.S. and European tech companies, Microsoft has been expanding its presence in India. Earlier this month, the Redmond, Wash.-based company said it would invest US$1.7 billion there over the next four years and hire 3,000 more workers to boost its software operations as well as research and development activities.

Posted by admin at 11:43 AM | Comments (0)

December 15, 2005

Taiwan's PC giant joins $100 pc for the poor movement

Taiwan's PC giant with sales exceeding $10 (US) billion this year will be joining with the One Laptop per Child (OLPC) initiative which aims to produce cheap Linux-based laptops for children of developing nations.

The OLPC is backed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)in the US. Major IT vendors are part of the OLPC inititative and these include AMD, Google, News Corporation, Nortel Networks and Red Hat.

Chip giant Intel remains skeptical of the OLPC movement stating even the poor want full blown PCs.

Posted by admin at 06:49 AM | Comments (0)

December 14, 2005

India takes on PC gaming with branded product

Indiagames, a Mumbai-based company, is scheduled to enter the global market with its first self-branded product, the PC and mobile device game Emeror Ashoka.

The game which recreates battles from the life of a legendary Indian king who lived in the third century B.C. is India's first attempt to sell its own branded game in the global markets.

Indiagames has signed an exclusive licensing agreement with Electronic Arts, a leading interactive entertainment company, that will bring EA's roster of mobile games to consumers across multiple mobile carriers in India.

Founded in 1999 Indiagames is owned by China's wireless internet company Tom Online which owns 62 per cent of the company. Its key investors also include Macromedia Inc. and Cisco Systems Inc.

According to India's National Association of Software & Service Companies (NASSCOM), a PC game costing between $6 to $7 million to develop in the U.S. could be produced for only $500,000 to $3 million in India, thanks to cheap Indian labor.

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December 13, 2005

China tech exports overtake US: Report

Associated Press Report: China has overtaken the United States as the world's largest exporter of a broad category of electronic goods including computers, mobile phones and digital cameras, the OECD said last Monday.

The report by the Paris-based Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development marks a milestone in China's diversification.

Chinese exports of information and communications technology goods rose by 46 percent year-on-year to $180 billion in 2004, outstripping U.S. exports of $149 billion, 12 percent higher than the previous year.

China's positive trade balance in tech products almost tripled to $31 billion last year from $12 billion in 2003. The country first became a net exporter of such goods just a year before that, recording a 2002 surplus of $3 billion.

China's booming trade surplus in PCs and laptops stood at $45.4 billion last year, the new data showed, and its overall trade in ICT goods has grown an average 38 percent per year since 1996. China also overtook Japan as the main exporter of such goods to the United States last year.

European and U.S. mobile phone and PC producers have been investing heavily in China, and Chinese computer maker Lenovo Group Ltd. acquired the PC operations of International Business Machines Corp. for $1.75 billion in May.

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December 11, 2005

Electronic Arts Expanding to Asia

Electronic Arts Inc., a major player in the PC, Sony PlayStation and Microsoft XBox gaming software market, plans to open a development studio in Singapore that will customize existing company videogames for the Asian market.

Electronic Arts, Redwood City, Calif., said customization will include the redesign of games into at least five different languages for distribution throughout Asia. The software company also may use the studio as an online-game development facility. Irene Chua will manage the studio, which will have 20 workers from Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Singapore and the Netherlands. Ms. Chua is the company's vice president of operations for Asia.

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December 09, 2005

Low Cost IT Service Provider Infosys and Microsoft Unveil Catalytic IT Centre in Bangalore

Low cost IT service and skilled human resource exporter, India's Infosys Technologies Limited and US Microsoft Corp. unveiled the Catalytic IT concept centre at the Infosys campus in Bangalore.

Catalytic IT combines Infosys' software development, low cost work force and cost saving project management methods with the latest Microsoft application platform, which includes Window Server System, the Microsoft Office system and Visual Studio development tools. With the Catalytic initiative Infosys promises to lower IT costs of companies utilizing cheap labor based in India.

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December 07, 2005

Bill Gates keen to expand investment in Bangladesh

New Nation, Bangladesh: President of Microsoft Corporation Bill Gates on Monday expressed eagerness to expand his company’s activities in Bangladesh availing the advantage of existing congenial environment in Bangladesh.

“You have done a tremendous work. A suitable investment climate has been created here,” he told Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia when he called on her at the Prime Minister’s Office during his day-long visit to Bangladesh.

Bill Gates, the world’s richest man, who arrived here this morning on a day-long visit, said Bangladesh has many positive aspects which do not get publicity.

Accompanied by his wife Melinda Gates, the Microsoft President appreciated the hospitality he received here and hoped to visit the country again to exploit its potentials.

He appreciated the policy framework and action plans of Bangladesh for the promotion of information and communication technology (ICT) and education.

Bill Gates deeply appreciated the ICT policy and cyber laws and showed interest to expand his company’s programmes here, Prime Minister’s Principal Secretary Dr Kamal Siddiqui told reporters after the meeting.

The Prime Minister said her government wants to develop highly skilled ICT manpower in the country. She mentioned various steps taken by her government in this regard.

Bill Gates said he is going to sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for ICT training for school teachers in Bangladesh.

Begum Zia highlighted the successes of her government in health sector, including the fall in child and maternal mortality rate and expansion of the facilities of safe drinking water.

As the Prime Minister raised the issue of child nutrition, Bill Gates, also the Chairperson of Bill and Belinda Gates Foundation, expressed eagerness to cooperate with the government in reducing neonatal threats.

He appreciated the leadership of Begum Zia and her personal commitment to development of female education, health and ICT.

Bill Gates said with Begum Zia’s support it was possible to establish his foundation-sponsored Asian Women University in Chittagong. The university will collaborate with other universities in ICT education, he added.

Science and ICT Minister A Moyeen Khan, BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Tarique Rahman and Prime Minister’s Principal Secretary Dr Kamal Siddiqui were present.

Tarique Rahman visited the office of Microsoft in Seattle in April this year at the invitation of Bill and Belinda Foundation. He was received there by Bill Gates. During his visit Tarique Rahman invited the Microsoft high-ups to visit Bangladesh to see the steps taken for the development of ICT.

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December 04, 2005

Intel to announce $US 500 million investment in India

Chip maker Intel Corporation, is likely to announce an investment of $500 million in its Indian operations. The announement is speculated to be made by Craig Barrett, chairman at California-based Intel, during his visit to Asia's third largest economy next week, the Business Standard said.

"About half of this investment is expected to flow into Intel's research lab and marketing division, the other half will be used for (jointly) developing a personal computer," the report said.

Intel has a development centre in Bangalore, India's silicon hub, which designs and develops software to power chips that drive computers and high-end networks for Internet-based applications.

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Virgin to create integrated multimedia content delivery company

SIR Richard Branson the UK tycoon and founder of the Virgin brand is to combine Virgin’s mobile phone business with NTL, the cable television company, in a bid to create a media powerhouse in Britain.

The move will create an entertainment and communications giant worth £4.5 billion and with more than 9 million customers. The combined media and telecoms business that would offer customers four services — television, fixed-line telephony, mobile phone and broadband internet connections.

NTL will be rebranded Virgin following the deal. The emerging Virgin media and entertainment group will have 2.5 million broadband internet customers, 4.3 million fixed-line telephony accounts, more than 5 million mobile phone customers and revenue in excess of £4 billion.

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November 29, 2005

Bangladesh Hopes Technology Exports Will Result in More Economic Growth

DHAKA, Bangladesh -- Bangladesh opened an information-technology exposition this week in an attempt to encourage the government and local businesses to switch into IT-enabled systems for faster economic growth.

Technology companies such as Microsoft Corp. and Intel Corp. are co-sponsoring the event, while the country's leading mobile-telephone company, Grameen Phone Ltd., is the main sponsor, organizers said. They hoped local companies would get orders from international buyers and find joint-venture partners at the exposition, helping increase the country's export earnings from information technology.

Bangladeshi exports of software and other services -- mainly to the U.S., Canada, Japan and some European countries -- are expected to double by the end of fiscal 2005 from last year's $7 million.

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November 27, 2005

Internet TV Market Expands Rapidly

Hong Kong's Internet-delivered TV service, Now Broadband TV reached 500,000 subscribers this week according to a report by Wall Street Journal. Now Broadband is currently one of the world's largest TV system delivered over the Internet.

Now Broadband which competes iCable which broadcasts CNN live online and has about 620,000 subscribers, is also adding two HBO movie channels from Time Warner and video-on-demand Chinese movies from News Corp.'s Star TV.

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November 25, 2005

Intel ‘unwires’ more than 300 universities in Asia Pacific

As part of its Mobile Initiative for Learning in Education Intel has unwired more than 300 universities across Asia Pacific region, benefiting more than 400,000 students.

The program was launched in 2004 and aims to accelerate the rollout of wireless networks and mobility based learning solutions to effectively integrate information and communication technology in Asia’s education systems.

A recent survey supported by Intel with 360 Asia Pacific universities also identified the motivators and barriers to implement wireless LAN and e-learning solutions.

Back in April of this year Intel Corporation China launched a wiress network enabled notebook codenamed Tanggula specifically designed for Chinese university students. The new notebook platform is a stylish and light-weight, and will come in a range of affordable performance and entry-level designs for students and parents.

The convenience and continuous Internet access any time and at any location was one of the most significant motivators to implement wireless LAN solutions at Asian universities. Respondents felt empowered. They also felt more hassle-free not having to deal with messy cables and plugs.

Every year, Intel invests more than $US100 million across 50 countries worldwide to implement programs that foster innovative teaching practices, extend learning beyond the classroom, reward student achievement and inspire future technologists.

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November 24, 2005

Developing countries to launch news website to contain "western media propaganda"

Governments of developing countries across Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Latin America plan to launch an Internet-based news service to counter biased reporting by Western media.

Plans to create the Nonaligned Movement News Network were endorsed by information ministers of more than 80 mainly developing nations, including Cuba, Iran, Syria, Myanmar, North Korea and Zimbabwe, many of which claim their reputations have suffered because of foreign media coverage.

Countries will start using the network in early 2006 to supply news on domestic events to each other and to rebut "smear campaigns which developing nations have suffered from biased and distorted Western media reports," the ministers said in a statement after a two-day conference in Malaysia.

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November 05, 2005

Asia PC Sales Remain Robust

Personal computer (PC) market in Asia Pacific totalled 10.9 million units in the third quarter of 2005, representing a sequential growth of 11% and a year-on-year growth of 19% powered strong notebook sales according to a report by IDC.

Notebook shipments grew by 54% annually. Markets such as China, Taiwan, India and Korea contributed much towards the region's growth in notebooks.

During the period, market leader Lenovo widened its lead on runner-up HP, as its total PC shipments surged 22 per cent quarter compared to the latter's 14 per cent. In China 64 bit PCs showed strong demand powered by AMD chips.

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November 03, 2005

Australia & Germany introduces ePassports, rest not far behind

The first biometrically-enabled Australian passport - or ePassport - has been issued by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT).

The passports will feature a microchip embedded in the centre that contains information about the bearer, as well as the image of the bearer, so they can be verified when passed before a technical reading machine known as an optical identifier.

The chip will contain the same information that is shown on existing Australian passports, according to Foreign Affairs Minister Alexander Downer.

Germany also introduced electronic passports on Tuesday as one of the first countries in the European Union. By the summer of 2006, all new EU passports will contain a special chip which stores a digital photo of the passport holder's face.

The US The Department of State plans to issue the first full validity electronic passports in December 2005. By October 2006, all domestic passport agencies will issue electronic passports.

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Microsoft buys VoIP company

After launching its Windows and Office Live initiative this week that would allow Microsoft to offer web-based services over the Internet integrating its various popular productivity applications, the company announced acquisition of Swiss VoIP company Media-streams.

The acquisition will give Microsoft expertise to develop technology allowing integration of Internet telephony that work in conjunction with E-mail, Web conferencing, and SMS software, according to Microsoft. Media-stream's applications integrate Internet calls with Microsoft's Outlook and Exchange E-mail software, a spokesman for Microsoft said. Media-stream.com, which is privately held, had 23 employees, according to the spokesman. Terms of the deal weren't disclosed.

Media-streams.com is the second VoIP-related company Microsoft has bought in a little more than two months. On Aug. 30, it bought Teleo Inc., a San Francisco provider of Internet phone software and service.

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November 02, 2005

Microsoft launches advertiser supported live.com; developing countries may gain the most!

In a bid to catchup with Google and Yahoo, Microsoft has formally joined advertiser-backed web service offering with its new portal live.com.

The services in its intial iteration include instant messaging, VoIP that potentially may allow PC to regular phone service for free (at least during Beta testing the site is offering such functionality), RSS news aggregator and colloboration tools for businesses. In the long-term whether the company will offer its Office suite for free is the big question.

With emerging countries showing the largest growth segment for the PC business how a productivity software such as MS Office that costs almost nothing to duplicate is being sold at a price that is more than the annual income of many thirdworld citizens is beyond anyone's imagination.

Recently Sun and Google announced that they will develop a web-based version of Open Office productivity suite that competes with Micrsoft Office. As everything else at Google, the service will probably be free with the support of advertisers.

The web-based software model that Google pioneered allows a company to deploy and test new technologies instanteneously. Just like Japanese automakers in the 1970s this frequent cycle of small and continuous upgrades clearly is outpacing the competition that still utilizes the annual software upgrade cycle in the industry.

Microsoft's latest foray is probably a response to that of Google's into the desktop arena. A web-based Office product that is at least free for basic functionality and is cross platform not only will ensure Microsoft's relevance but allow many in developing countries use the product without turning into software pirates.

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November 01, 2005

Apple's ITunes Sells One Million Videos in Less Than One Month

The world may soon view television in an entirely different way. In less than 20 days of introducing downloadable videos Apple Computer Inc. said its iTunes music store sold more than one million.

The Cupertino, Calif., company added video capabilities to iTunes music/video jukebox with integrated downloading service on Oct. 12, allowing customers to purchase music videos, short films and episodes of certain television shows for viewing on their iPod or computer, for $1.99 each.

The company said popular downloads include music videos from Michael Jackson, Fatboy Slim and Kanye West, as well as episodes of ABC's hit TV shows "Lost" and "Desperate Housewives."

Apple's iTunes, which runs on both Macs and PCs, is already the largest online music distribution service on the Internet with sales of over 10 million songs per month.

If Apple becomes succesful selling videos in the same way, Internet will be the primary medium of on demand television. PCs will become the center piece of entertainment in homes across the world.

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October 29, 2005

African countries introducing fingerprint identification in cash machines

Tired of dealing with Cash Machine thieves, African banks are introducing fingerprint-based identification and dumping age old card/pin in ATM machines.

In South Africa banks are already conducting tests into biometric identification technology, where fingerprint verification sensors are used on ATMs and plan to provide the service within the next six to seven months. Customers place their fingers on the ATM machine sensor and the screen tells users whether they have been recognised, and whether they may withdraw cash.

Pierre Steyn, CEO of the South African Banking Risk Information Centre, the unit set up by the banks to deal with crime, said: "We have been looking at strategies to deal with crime at ATMs for a long time. We believe that it (fingerprint identification) would give ATM criminals difficulty" according to a report by The Independent.

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October 28, 2005

Makers of Star Wars open animation studio in Singapore

Lucasfilm Ltd., the company behind hit animation movies such as Star Wars and Indiana Jones, today officially opened the doors of Lucasfilm Animation Singapore, a digital animation studio designed to produce movies and television for global audiences.

The Singapore studio, which is approximately 40,000 square feet (3,715 square meters) is in the Changi area of Singapore. More than 35 employees from 19 countries around the world have already been hired and hiring will continue into 2006.

"When we announced the formation of Lucasfilm Animation Singapore last August, we said we'd open our doors this fall, and we're right on schedule," said George Lucas. "Our first series -- a TV adventure titled 'Clone Wars', based on the time between 'Attack of the Clones' and 'Revenge of the Sith' -- is already in active development and we hope to see it on the air in 2007."

Lucasfilm Animation Singapore will work hand-in-hand with the team at Lucasfilm Animation, based at Skywalker Ranch in Marin County, California. Gail Currey, Vice President and General Manager of Lucasfilm Animation also announced the hiring of key creative executives in the U.S.

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October 27, 2005

Small businesses in China to purchase 5 million PCs

Recent report by AMI-Partners, a research firm, small businesses in China will purchase around 5 million PCs in the next 12 months. But PC makers should not be too excited as Chinese businesses are price sensitive when purchasing PCs often preferring local brands such as Lenovo to big name companies such as Dell or HP.

There are more than 8 million small businesses in China the research report states, about 60% will be buying OCs creating a huge potential market. Back in February Nokia chief stated that China could be the largest mobile phone market in three years. Whether PC market in China will grow in such rapid pace is not clear but current sales trends surely show promise.

Chinese businesses are showing strong demand for laptop PCs. Thomas Wang, an analyst with Analysys, back in August said the Chinese laptop market "will maintain an overall growth rate of more than 20 percent in 2005."

Analysis is forecasting more than 3.372 million laptops will be sold in China this year, up from 2.375 million units in 2004. The firm is projecting 9.6 million laptops will be sold in China during 2009.

After purchase of IBM's PC business last year Chinese Lenovo became world's third largest PC maker. Growth in PC sales in its home market clearly is providing a competitive advantage for the company.

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October 25, 2005

Developing nations lead challenge to US dominance on Internet

The Internet today is managed by a nonprofit private organization called the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, or ICANN, set up by the U.S. Department of Commerce in 1998. Even though ICANN has an international advisory body, the U.S. retains veto power over all its decisions.

Several countries, led by developing nations including China, Brazil, India and Cuba, are challenging US's dominance on the Internet. Their argument evolves around the premise that Internet is a global tool, no one country should have absolute control over it. These countries are arguing that decisions should fall under the jurisdiction of an international body, such as the United Nations.

So far US has shown no interest in giving up control over the Internet.

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Internet access in hotel rooms becoming standard globally

Readers of top US travel magazine Travel + Leisure have voted The Peninsula Bangkok the “World’s Best Business Hotel”.

The Peninsula Bangkok provides a full range of business amenities and meeting facilities to enable guests to get down to the business at hand. Complimentary high speed internet access is one such amenity.

North American hotels were quicker to offer broadband services, and represent approximately two-thirds of total properties connected worldwide. Now the rest of the world's hospitality properties are moving to offer broadband. Some of the best hotels such as the Peninsula of Bangkok located in Asia now are offering such Internet access for no additional charge.

According to the "2004 Lodging Survey" from the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA), Internet connectivity has rapidly become a carte blanche amenity in guest rooms across the US. The percentage of hotels offering high-speed Internet connectivity in guest rooms jumped from 23% in 2001 to 50% in 2004. In higher-priced rooms the percentage is even higher.

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Indian BPO firms not sweat shops claims Nasscom

V.V. Giri National Institute of Labour that works under the Indian labour ministry - had carried out a study of BPO facilities in the country and compared the work environment with 19th century prisons or Roman slave ships.

The institute's study says that workers at Indian business process outsourcing centres are monitored round-the-clock with specially designed software, computer networks and closed circuit cameras.

"The Indian outsourcing firms have among the highest employee satisfaction rates across any industry in India," the National Association of Software and Service Companies (Nasscom) said on Tuesday, reacting to the study.

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October 24, 2005

Microsoft Research to help close digital divide in developing countries

Microsoft Research, the reasearch arm of Microsoft Corp., announced Friday two initiatives designed to encourage computer research and technological capability expansion in developing countries.

According to a recent report by ZDNet, Microsoft Research unveiled its $1.2 million Digital Inclusion RFP (request for proposal), a worldwide research opportunity that aims to address technological challenges hindering global progress in health, education and social conditions, according to a news release.

Microsoft Research also announced its Inspire Program, which is designed to establish collaboration between academics in the European community and in developing countries, by supporting researchers and lecturers.

The Digital Inclusion opportunity is directed at research to aid health, education and socioeconomic conditions worldwide using technology. Microsoft is specifically pushing for research that utilizes mobile devices and phones, as well as networking to help developing countries.

Proposals for Digital Inclusion will be accepted starting November 7 until January 13, 2006. Funding recipients will be notified by February 10, 2006.

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October 19, 2005

US networking giant Cisco to invest $1.1 billion in India

Data networking giant Cisco Systems Inc. of US will spend $1.1 billion in India over the next three years in the company's largest investment outside the United States, its chief executive said Wednesday according to a report by Associated Press.

Cisco, based in San Jose, California, started its India operations in 1995 and plans to triple its work force from the current 1,400 by 2008. The company has its global research and development center in the southern city of Bangalore and offices in seven other Indian cities.

$750 million of the $1.1 billion will be spent on research and development activities, including training, development and staffing. The rest would be spent on providing leasing and other financial solutions to the company's customers, investing in Indian startup companies and customer support operations.

The company will help the Indian government establish "Common Services Centers" in 100 villages. The centers' aim is to provide residents of rural areas with online access to government services.

Cisco will also invest $10 million in a telecom network project in the southern city of Madras run by Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd., a state-owned corporation, said Communications and Information Technology Minister Dayanidhi Maran.

Cisco's revenue has grown by 50 percent in India in the past two years. The company sees 30% annual growth in the next three years. According to a statement by Cisco's CEO John Chambers, India may become it's largest market in Asia in the near future.

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Six Indian companies land in BusinessWeek top 50

Six Indian companies landed in the BusinessWeek list of Asia's Top 50 best firms. These are ONGC, Tata Steel, Reliance Industries, Tata Motors, Larsen & Toubro and Infosys Technologies.

Posted by admin at 03:21 AM | Comments (0)

October 14, 2005

Despite record IPod sales Asian consumers unwilling to pay for music

While global IPod portable digital player sales have crossed 2 million a month, Asian consumers show little eagerness to pay for downloaded music.

Through its iTunes application, which combines a PC jukebox with paid music downloading service, Apple sells songs for about a dollar. These songs are eventually downloaded to iPod portable music players. Last July Apple crossed the half billion downloaded song mark with each song costing 99 cents (US).

According to a recent report from the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), digital music sales worldwide rose enough in the first half of 2005 to offset the decline in physical music sales. Research by Synovate however shows that 70% of consumers in Asia download music without paying.

Portable digital music player sales are booming in Asia, especially products that are not tied to paid music downloading services such as the iPod doing very well. Portable MP3 players are used by over one-third of consumers in Hong Kong, and 28% of consumers in China and South Korea.

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October 13, 2005

Cheap Indian IT outsources sees dramatic sales growth

As more western companies look to cut costs India's two largest information technology outsourcing companies -- Tata Consultancy Services Ltd. (TCS) and Infosys Technologies Ltd. -- continued showed to show strong sales growth.

Tata Consultancy, India's largest outsourcing company in terms of sales, said net profit almost doubled to $155 million in the quarter ended Sept. 30, compared to the same quarter during the past year.

Infosys the other super low cost outsources, showed profit increases of 36% to 6.06 billion rupees during the quarter ended Sept. 30 against the year-earlier period.

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October 11, 2005

India enters product design market

Indian engineering firms are gradually taking on product design work starting from machine tools to complex power generators for various western firms.

According to a recent article in Businessweek, engineers at Tata Consulting Services (TCS) labs in India are working on various aspect of car design for an array of foreign clients. In Bangalore, for example, engineers are modifying the designs of a drive train for a passenger car to be built by a Western auto maker.

Indian engineers are utilizing complex 3D design software to tackle complex outsourced design jobs. Currently 60% of the design automation work is for the western automobile industry. However jobs from other sectors are flowing in as well.

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September 30, 2005

Demand for used personal computers outstripping supply in developing regions

Demand for second-hand computers in some developing regions of the world is outstripping supplies, a new Gartner study has shown.

One in every dozen computers used worldwide is a "second-hand PC," and about 152.5 million used systems were shipped in 2004, according to a study released Wednesday by market research firm Gartner. Second-hand PCs are systems used for more than three months by the primary consumer and then made available to another person.

The research company estimated that for every two new PCs shipped to mature markets in 2005, one secondary PC will be resold. More than 200 million PCs will be shipped in 2005, according to an earlier Gartner estimate.

Secondary machines tend to come from the U.S., Japan and Western Europe in order to meet demand in Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Latin America and the Asia Pacific.

Gartner analysts said developing countries are under pressure to accept used PCs as a viable technology option because they are so much cheaper than new machines.

However, such movement of used machines from the West to locations like India and China is causing concerns among environmental groups. They allege that PCs shipped for secondary use often land in unorganized recycling yards, posing health hazards to workers and the environment.

One potential low-price alternative to refurbished PCs might be the long-awaited $100 laptop, a notion that has been backed by tech executives including Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer and Advanced Micro Devices CEO Hector Ruiz. On Wednesday, Nicholas Negroponte of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Media Lab presented his own plans for such a device, one goal of which is to help better educate children in developing countries.

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September 26, 2005

Fire locally hire globally: The New IBM Way

Even while IBM is cutting 14,500 employees in mostly developed countries, the company gradually is stepping up hiring in areas where labor cost is cheap.

Once a provider of high-end products and IT services, IBM is gradually becoming a low cost competitor in the IT services market.

IBM announced plans to hire 14000 IT workers in India, where it already employes 40,000 professionals. In Brazil IBM plans to hire 8000.

Such low cost workforce will allow IBM to compete with its major competitors Infosys and Tata Consulting Services of India.

In India often people joke that IBM now stands for Indian Business Machines.

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September 23, 2005

Intel helping boost WiFi deployment in Southeast Asia

SAN FRANCISCO (EE Times) — Aiming to accelerate WiMAX wireless broadband deployment in Southeast Asian countries, Intel Corp. Thursday (Sept. 22) announced the Asian Broadband Campaign, an initiative to provide broadband wireless consulting and technical services.

Intel (Santa Clara, Calif.) said it plans to work with governments, telecommunications regulators, education, health and agriculture public sector agencies and carriers — including True Corp. in Thailand and Telekom Malaysia — to help them prepare for and conduct WiMAX trials to test connectivity.

Once broadly deployed, Intel said, the countries hope WiMAX will help them to meet the United Nations Millennium Development goals to eradicate poverty and hunger, expand primary education, promote gender equality, reduce child mortality, combat diseases, ensure environmental sustainability and develop a global partnership for development by 2015.

"The developing countries of Southeast Asia have committed to the United Nations that they will work to meet these objectives," said Sean Maloney, executive vice president of Intel's Mobility Group, in a statement. "Intel believes that technology, and specifically WiMAX, can be one of the foundations to help these countries reach these goals."

As part of the company's Digital ASEAN vision of an integrated region of connected villages, provinces, cities and countries, Intel said it would begin WiMAX trials in Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines by the end of 2005. Trials in Indonesia and Vietnam are expected to take place in 2006.

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September 22, 2005

Isreal fights BPO - India's propaganda engine heats up

In a bid to fight job losses to India, Isreali government is providing subsidy to high tech companies that would keep work onshore according to a Hindustan Times article.

Under the program Isreali government would pay around $200 monthly for five years per employee to keep jobs in Isreal. Many Isreali firms are taking advantage of this subsidy to develop local software development centers employing thousands of women IT workers.

Such government strategies by governments obviously is a major threat to India's BPO market where global companies gain from not only cheap Indian workers but tax advantages as well. And Indian media has already started its engine to brand Isreali workers under the subsidy program as low cost and low quality work force.

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September 21, 2005

Indian IT companies looking for Chinese talent

India's National Association of Software & Service Companies (Nasscom) is leading a delegation of Indian IT companies to China this week to scout for talent, expand operations in China and improve relationships with local vendors.

Led by Tata Consulting Services chief executive officer S Ramadorai the delegation will consist of members from companies like Infosys, Wipro, Satyam, NIIT, Mastek, Sun, HP, vMoksha, Hexaware, Flextronics and Sasken.

The aim of the delegation will be to develop an understanding of the Chinese IT industry from various perspectives — government, academia, local industry and outsourcing.

India's IT giants such as Infosys, Wipro, TCS and Satyam already have opened up operations in China to tap into local talent. Now smaller players are joining the bandwagon as well.

Posted by admin at 03:20 PM | Comments (0)

September 16, 2005

Ethopia first to deploy aid management platform

The Government of Ethiopia is the first to deploy the Development Gateway Foundation's Aid Management Platform (AMP), a web-based information-sharing tool that helps improve the coordination and harmonization of international development aid to ensure greater results for people in developing countries.

AMP is an e-government solution that addresses administrative challenges faced by developing country governments and their donors in tracking and reporting on international aid flows and programs. By enabling access to standardized information about aid activities within a country, it facilitates the improved planning, allocation, disbursement and general management of aid resources.

Led by Ethiopia's Ministry of Finance and Economic Development (MOFED), the piloting of AMP in Ethiopia was a joint initiative of the Development Gateway, OECD, UNDP and World Bank, and was supported by the country's official Donor Assistance Group representing major multilateral and bilateral donors. The Center for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) in Bangalore played a critical role by rapidly developing the AMP application, as part of its work for the Development Gateway India Research Center, funded by the Government of India.

AMP can be easily customized for other countries with similar aid management and donor coordination needs. Additional modules for scenario-building, knowledge management and financial calendar coordination are planned.

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September 15, 2005

Chinese travellers able to withdraw money from Citibank ATM machines worldwide soon

Chinese citizens who travel abroad soon will be able to use Citibank's vast network of automated teller machines in 50 countries worldwide to withdraw money.

As part of the deal, Citibank signed a reciprocal agreement yesterday with China's national China UnionPay Co., a Beijing network owned by more than 80 card-issuing banks. Customers of Citibank visiting China increasingly will be able to access ATMs connected to the nationwide UnionPay system of 8,000 machines.

Citigroup and UnionPay officials conceded enforcing China's legal maximum of 5,000 yuan, or about $618, in withdrawals a day per person could be open for abuse. It will be upto Chinese banks to ensure the such limits are enforced.

The deal may be a pre-curser to more expansion of such services to other developing countries allowing travellers to access cash from ATMs instead of carrying cash or travellers checks.

Posted by admin at 05:52 AM | Comments (0)

September 13, 2005

India and Russia Partner to Market and Develop Tech

India and Russia hope to operationalise a joint technology centre in Moscow in January next year for the commercialisation and marketing of proven Russian technologies.

India and Russia have also agreed to set up a separate centre for joint research and development (R&D) in cutting-edge bio-technology, nano-technology and laser technology.

According to officials, India is willing to give US$75-100 million and Russia, which also has now available funds, is ready to make an equal contribution.

Posted by admin at 09:06 AM | Comments (0)

September 09, 2005

India's Infosys Tech Sees Growth in Europe

One of India's largest technology outsourcing companies, Infosys is seeing significant market expansion in Europe in the next several years according to its CEO.

The tech outfit which prides itself as a low cost leader in IT services recently won a $140 million deal with Dutch ABN Ambro bank. Currently Infosys is the fastest growing IT services firm in Europe.

As most European IT services firms lack offshore capabilities US and Indian firms are gaining significant marketshare in the EU region.

Relatively cheap and highly skilled labor force in India is also attracting many large US IT outsourcing firms to open up service centers in the country. As of last year outsourcing giant IBM had 23,000 employees in India.

Posted by admin at 08:00 AM | Comments (0)

September 07, 2005

Eastern Europe to Lead Call Center Market Growth

A recent study by analyst firm Frost & Sullivan claims call centre market is expected to experience maximum growth in eastern Europe, followed by parts of the Middle East, Africa and southern Europe.

According to the report, the total market size of contact centres in the EMEA region was 34,674 in 2004. The market is likely to grow at a compound annual growth rate of five per cent to 44,574 by 2009.

With email and web chat applications fast gaining popularity, Frost & Sullivan expects multi-channel contact centre applications to account for 20 per cent of total shipments by 2009.

The growth of these and other advanced applications is expected to drive adoption of IP contact centre offerings, which the analyst firm estimates will grow to 17 per cent of the total market shipments by 2009.

Posted by admin at 08:00 AM | Comments (0)

September 04, 2005

SMS Major Headache for Governments in Developing Countries

Asian goverments are cracking down on SMS services that has become a powerful communication tool for consumers. SMS is used to organise protests, generate rumours, aid in crime and, possibly trigger bombs requiring least resources.

In developing countries such as Bangladesh, most cell phone users are faceless because they use pre-paid phone cards. Due to low risks from careers' perspectives and desire to control telephone related expenses by poor, users pre-paid services are gaining marketshare in third world countries.

In fact pre-paid cards are turning Asia into the fastest-growing telecom market, making up about 60 per cent of users in China and over 90 per cent in Indonesia and the Philippines at end-2004, according to Gartner.

Combined with pre-paid services SMS text messaging via cell phones provides an even more economical means of communicating. SMS messaging market is seeing exponential growth in Asia. Over 200 million SMS messages are sent across in the Philippines today.

Thailand moved to register users of pre-paid phones in May, claiming it as part of initiatives to stop terrorists using mobile phones to set off bombs. Malaysia asked phone companies to register all holders of pre-paid services after text-messaging gossip-mongers spread a rumor claiming the premier's ailing wife had died. Similar registration requirements are imposed on pre-paid services in China and other parts of Asia to curb terrorism and in certain cases imposing control of public media by governments.

Posted by admin at 08:00 AM | Comments (0)

September 03, 2005

Outsourcing Piracy the Chinese Way

When it comes to watching premium content on cable television you can go the legal way or the Chinese way. In the US a household pays on average around $40 (US) for cable television. In New York gold package costs around $80, movie channels such as HBO costs $11 extra.

You can get same premium channels today on the Internet for free from Chinese P2P sites. Cable television companies are battling the same kind of piracy issues that Napster started with the music industry.

P2P streaming TV is the latest generation of peer-to-peer technology. This new method turns an ordinary computer capturing the TV channel into a rebroadcaster of video streams . The signal, which is taken live off TV systems mostly in China, is delayed by about a minute before it shows up on computer screens in Microsoft Corp.'s Windows Media or RealNetworks Inc.'s Real Player program.

US regulators and media associations are just begining to look into such piracy practices trying to figure out what actions to take.

Posted by admin at 08:00 AM | Comments (0)

September 01, 2005

BBC to allow program downloads

The British Broadcasting Corporation, hugely popular in developing countries, is planning to allow Internet users download its television and radio programs according to report by AP.

BBC is hoping the service will be fully operational by end of 2006.

Unlike other traditional media companies BBC is branching out in embracing the Internet. Already, BBC offers live webcasts of its radio and on a limited basis television programs.

Recently BBC joined Apple's podcasting bandwagon where media companies make audio programs (most commonly in MP3 or AAC for Ipods) available online in a way that allows software to automatically download the files for listening at the user's convenience.

Under Apple's podcasting scheme Ipod users can automatically synch their devices with their favorite programs as soon as they connect to a computer running ITunes for listening on the go.

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August 28, 2005

End ot Telegram & Telex in Malaysia

Malaysian government is considering the nearly 130 year old telegram service in the country amid falling demand and revenue.

The country's telecommunications regulatory body, in a "discussion paper" released this week, seeks the views of Malaysians on whether the telegram service - as well as telex service - is still needed alongside alternatives like e-mail and fax.

Malaysia is not legally obliged to provide the telegram service and such services had been discontinued in other places such as Singapore and Hong Kong.

Malaysia, which has a population of 26 million people, currently handles about 758,000 telegrams a year.

It said demand for the telex service was declining at an even more alarming rate. There are now only 456 customers in the country, subscribing to a total of 156 telex circuits.

Posted by admin at 08:03 AM | Comments (0)

August 27, 2005

Microsoft launches quality certification program in India

Microsoft Corporation India Pvt. Ltd, along with the National Association of Software and Services Companies (Nasscom) of India, announced the launch of a certification to assess the quality of the software development process undertaken by independent software vendors (ISVs) in India.

The Indian software exports sector is on track to reach the $50 billion mark by 2008, projected by Nasscom-Mckinsey, said Kiran Karnik, president, Nasscom.

He said that the sector is looking at achieving a 30-32 per cent growth for the current fiscal on top of $17.2 billion registered during FY05.

Speaking at the Nasscom Quality Summit in Bangalore on Thursday, Karnik said: "We are pretty much on track for that target. To achieve that, the sector has to grow by around 35 per cent year-on-year for the next three years, which should not be much of a problem. The first quarter results of FY06 have been encouraging and this trend of robust growth should continue."

"The increasing investment of global product development companies in research and development centers across India is an indication of the tremendous potential of the Indian software development community, particularly in creating globally accepted products," Sheila Gulati, director of developer and platform evangelism at Microsoft India, said in a statement. "Our endeavor is to build a rich, local software ecosystem and to help the Indian ISV (independent software vendor) community develop great products and deliver world class IP (intellectual property)."

This week Nasscom also announced a national entry-level test in India for workers joining call centers and other outsourcing jobs, in a move designed to boost quality of output.<