BlackBerry-maker Research In Motion (RIM) has announced a strategic tie-up with Hewlett Packard (HP) to provide "a portfolio of solution"' to businesses on its smartphones.
Under the tie-up, Hewlett Packard will unveil HP CloudPrint to enable BlackBerry users to print emails, photos, web pages and other documents from their smartphones to the nearest printer - at home, in the office or on the road.
The California-based PC maker will also unveil HP Operations Manager for BlackBerry Enterprise Server during the Wireless Enterprise Symposium at Orlando in Florida this year.
This manager (software) will "centrally monitor and manage the extended BlackBerry solution ecosystem.'' The ecosystem comprises the BlackBerry Enterprise Server software, mail servers, databases, Microsoft Active Directory and server operating systems such as Windows Server.
In a statement Monday, the Waterloo-based Canadian wireless giant said the solutions, including support for BlackBerry Enterprise Server, will raise service levels, cut operations costs and improve productivity for customers.
The statement said RIM and HP will "design and launch offerings to increase the productivity levels of the growing number of mobile employees, enabling businesses to extend the return on their investments in mobility.''
RIM co-CEO Jim Balsillie said, "RIM and HP are working together to deliver solutions to customers that weave mobility into their daily operations - from innovative new services in the cloud to managed mobile services for the enterprise.
"Through our collaboration with HP, businesses will have access to an expanded set of applications and services for their BlackBerry smartphone deployments.''
HP executive vice president said, "As businesses look for new ways to increase service levels, reduce operational costs and improve productivity, they can meet these challenges by transforming how they manage the infrastructure that powers their mobile workforces.
"Emerging models of communications and collaboration have created an opportunity for RIM and HP to provide service-based mobile solutions that deliver value to customers."
BlackBerry shares jumped up $1.68 to $87.48 on the Toronto Stock Exchange after the announcement of the tie-up.
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
Obama plans tax crackdown on firms setting shop in India
Contending that the current US tax system gives US-based multinationals shipping jobs to places like India an unfair advantage over domestic rivals, President Barack Obama has announced plans to reduce tax breaks for them.
"It's a tax code that says you should pay lower taxes if you create a job in Bangalore, India, than if you create one in Buffalo, NewYork," Obama said Monday spelling out his proposals to close corporate tax loopholes and crack down on overseas tax havens.
"I want to see our companies remain the most competitive in the world. But the way to make sure that happens is not to reward our companies for moving jobs off our shores or transferring profits to overseas tax havens," he said in a White House announcement.
The goal of the Obama plan is to help create new jobs in the US and make the tax code fairer, officials said. All told the changes would raise $210 billion in tax revenue over 10 years, they said.
But tax policy experts and corporate lobbyists cited by CNN said such measures, unless accompanied by a reduction in the corporate tax rate, will push more companies to move their operations-and jobs-overseas to more tax friendly countries.
The White House and Treasury Department laid out three proposals, some of which would require congressional approval to take effect, that they say will eliminate the current tax advantages US-based multinationals get for investing and creating jobs abroad.
Tax deferral rules: A reform of the "deferral" rule, which lets US-based multinationals deduct expenses for overseas operations, but defer paying income tax on the profits from those operations. That gets paid only if and when companies bring that money back to the US.
R&D credit: A tax cut for companies that do their research and development in the US by making permanent a "research and experimentation" credit that already exists and would cost $74.5 billion in tax revenue over 10 years.
Foreign tax credit: Make it harder for companies to "abuse the foreign tax credit. Currently companies may claim a credit against their US income taxes for taxes they paid to another country. Amending that rule would raise an estimated $43 billion over 10 years, according to the administration.
Several lawmakers, including US House of Representatives Ways and Means Chairman Charles Rangel, signalled support for Obama's proposals.
But one crucial player, Senator Max Baucus, Democratic chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, called for more study of how US businesses would be affected.
The proposed changes to the deferral and foreign tax credit rules will make for a tough sell to the business community too.
"These aren't loopholes. These were put into the code with full knowledge and full discussion," said US Chamber of Commerce chief economist Martin Regalia.
"This is only about raising more money - it's not about making the tax code simpler or more efficient or easier or anything else."
"It's a tax code that says you should pay lower taxes if you create a job in Bangalore, India, than if you create one in Buffalo, NewYork," Obama said Monday spelling out his proposals to close corporate tax loopholes and crack down on overseas tax havens.
"I want to see our companies remain the most competitive in the world. But the way to make sure that happens is not to reward our companies for moving jobs off our shores or transferring profits to overseas tax havens," he said in a White House announcement.
The goal of the Obama plan is to help create new jobs in the US and make the tax code fairer, officials said. All told the changes would raise $210 billion in tax revenue over 10 years, they said.
But tax policy experts and corporate lobbyists cited by CNN said such measures, unless accompanied by a reduction in the corporate tax rate, will push more companies to move their operations-and jobs-overseas to more tax friendly countries.
The White House and Treasury Department laid out three proposals, some of which would require congressional approval to take effect, that they say will eliminate the current tax advantages US-based multinationals get for investing and creating jobs abroad.
Tax deferral rules: A reform of the "deferral" rule, which lets US-based multinationals deduct expenses for overseas operations, but defer paying income tax on the profits from those operations. That gets paid only if and when companies bring that money back to the US.
R&D credit: A tax cut for companies that do their research and development in the US by making permanent a "research and experimentation" credit that already exists and would cost $74.5 billion in tax revenue over 10 years.
Foreign tax credit: Make it harder for companies to "abuse the foreign tax credit. Currently companies may claim a credit against their US income taxes for taxes they paid to another country. Amending that rule would raise an estimated $43 billion over 10 years, according to the administration.
Several lawmakers, including US House of Representatives Ways and Means Chairman Charles Rangel, signalled support for Obama's proposals.
But one crucial player, Senator Max Baucus, Democratic chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, called for more study of how US businesses would be affected.
The proposed changes to the deferral and foreign tax credit rules will make for a tough sell to the business community too.
"These aren't loopholes. These were put into the code with full knowledge and full discussion," said US Chamber of Commerce chief economist Martin Regalia.
"This is only about raising more money - it's not about making the tax code simpler or more efficient or easier or anything else."
Google's Internet bus rolls into Karnataka
How to browse the net, search, e-mail, social networking, browse maps or track stock market trends - this is what global web-based search engine Google is going to teach people as its custom-built Internet bus drives through 15 towns of Karnataka to expose the people to the digital world.
The bus, which began its journey Monday, will course through the state for the next 50 days.
After a successful two-month tour of 17 towns across Tamil Nadu from December to February, the Google bus began its Karnataka leg Monday from Kolar, a backward district, about 100 km from India's tech hub.
"The Internet bus project is an attempt to educate the people, especially the younger generation about the worldwide web and how Internet serves as a platform to step into the digital world for information, communication, entertainment and education," Google India research and development (R&D) head Prasad Ram told IANS.
The Interent-enabled bus has a video-driven content to showcase how people can make their everyday life simpler by accessing information in multiple formats - data, audio and video through English or local language (Kannada).
The content is tailored to familiarise the common folk with the basics of Internet. The online tool facilitates access to multiple services such as search, e-mail, social networking and browsing maps.
Among the Karnataka towns the Google bus will travel through over the weeks are Mandya, Mysore, Hassan, Shimoga, Chikmagalur, Chitradurga, Davanagere, Hubli-Dharwad, Belgaum, Hospet and Tumkur.
"Tamil Nadu was a big learning for us. It was inspiring to see the people wanted to know about the Internet and share their needs with us. The experience has reinforced our belief that awareness is the key challenge in the growth of the Internet in India," Ram recalled.
In this phase, Google will focus on how mobile phones can be used to access even local information without data plans. Access to the Internet in local language will be its thrust area.
The benefit of the bus project is evident from a couple of instances during its sojourn in Tamil Nadu. A short tour of the Google bus made elderly parents at Krishnagiri to buy a computer for chatting and emailing with their son working overseas.
Similarly, a young businessman at Cuddalore, once a school dropout, learnt to track the stock market movements by browsing the relevant information or data links through the Internet.
"In Coimbatore, a boy who sold flowers for a living and had no exposure to the Internet learnt about Google Maps, Google Earth and Google Search in his native language (Tamil) by stepping into the bus," Ram noted.
The project is in line with Google's global strategy to make access to information, education and entertainment universal and relevant to end-user in English or multiple languages.
"Search has become more local with useful information on business listings, railways and flight status, cricket scores, movie review and et al. Our applications like SMS search, SMS channels and map maker have made Google the most sought after vehicle (engine) for millions in India and the world over," Ram claimed.
Access to information over mobile devices has become easier with mobile maps, mobile search, and mobile Orkut.
Google has also created platforms like the 'Be NetSmart' campaign to educate students, parents and teachers on Internet safety.
After travelling through Karnataka towns, the Internet bus will drive into other states across the country for similar exposure over the ensuing months.
The bus, which began its journey Monday, will course through the state for the next 50 days.
After a successful two-month tour of 17 towns across Tamil Nadu from December to February, the Google bus began its Karnataka leg Monday from Kolar, a backward district, about 100 km from India's tech hub.
"The Internet bus project is an attempt to educate the people, especially the younger generation about the worldwide web and how Internet serves as a platform to step into the digital world for information, communication, entertainment and education," Google India research and development (R&D) head Prasad Ram told IANS.
The Interent-enabled bus has a video-driven content to showcase how people can make their everyday life simpler by accessing information in multiple formats - data, audio and video through English or local language (Kannada).
The content is tailored to familiarise the common folk with the basics of Internet. The online tool facilitates access to multiple services such as search, e-mail, social networking and browsing maps.
Among the Karnataka towns the Google bus will travel through over the weeks are Mandya, Mysore, Hassan, Shimoga, Chikmagalur, Chitradurga, Davanagere, Hubli-Dharwad, Belgaum, Hospet and Tumkur.
"Tamil Nadu was a big learning for us. It was inspiring to see the people wanted to know about the Internet and share their needs with us. The experience has reinforced our belief that awareness is the key challenge in the growth of the Internet in India," Ram recalled.
In this phase, Google will focus on how mobile phones can be used to access even local information without data plans. Access to the Internet in local language will be its thrust area.
The benefit of the bus project is evident from a couple of instances during its sojourn in Tamil Nadu. A short tour of the Google bus made elderly parents at Krishnagiri to buy a computer for chatting and emailing with their son working overseas.
Similarly, a young businessman at Cuddalore, once a school dropout, learnt to track the stock market movements by browsing the relevant information or data links through the Internet.
"In Coimbatore, a boy who sold flowers for a living and had no exposure to the Internet learnt about Google Maps, Google Earth and Google Search in his native language (Tamil) by stepping into the bus," Ram noted.
The project is in line with Google's global strategy to make access to information, education and entertainment universal and relevant to end-user in English or multiple languages.
"Search has become more local with useful information on business listings, railways and flight status, cricket scores, movie review and et al. Our applications like SMS search, SMS channels and map maker have made Google the most sought after vehicle (engine) for millions in India and the world over," Ram claimed.
Access to information over mobile devices has become easier with mobile maps, mobile search, and mobile Orkut.
Google has also created platforms like the 'Be NetSmart' campaign to educate students, parents and teachers on Internet safety.
After travelling through Karnataka towns, the Internet bus will drive into other states across the country for similar exposure over the ensuing months.
USIBC names Mythili Sankaran to advance ties in western US
The US-India Business Council (USIBC) has named Mythili Sankaran, former CEO of Telecom/Web startup, Koollage, as director of its coast operations to advance US-India commercial ties in western US.
The California office is dedicated to advancing US-India commercial ties in the western region of the US, including developing a more robust "two-way street" that enables US companies to succeed in India, and Indian companies to succeed in the US, the trade lobby announced Monday.
Coming from the business world of the Silicon Valley, Sankaran brings to USIBC a wealth of experience in IT and venture capital, it said. Earlier, Sankaran was CEO of a Telecom/Web startup, Koollage. Prior to this, Sankaran was an executive at the American India Foundation.
"The western United States has tremendous links to India and is presently under-represented by a business advocacy association of the calibre of USIBC. We are delighted to have Mythili head-up our operations in California," said Ron Somers, president, USIBC.
"USIBC could not have made a finer choice for the position of Director, West Coast than Mythili Sankaran," said Arun Kumar, partner - KPMG, who also serves as a member of the USIBC board of directors.
The USIBC, which seeks to deepen trade and strengthen commercial ties between the two countries, is hosted under the aegis of the US Chamber of Commerce, the world's largest business federation representing more than three million businesses and organisations of every size, sector and region.
The California office is dedicated to advancing US-India commercial ties in the western region of the US, including developing a more robust "two-way street" that enables US companies to succeed in India, and Indian companies to succeed in the US, the trade lobby announced Monday.
Coming from the business world of the Silicon Valley, Sankaran brings to USIBC a wealth of experience in IT and venture capital, it said. Earlier, Sankaran was CEO of a Telecom/Web startup, Koollage. Prior to this, Sankaran was an executive at the American India Foundation.
"The western United States has tremendous links to India and is presently under-represented by a business advocacy association of the calibre of USIBC. We are delighted to have Mythili head-up our operations in California," said Ron Somers, president, USIBC.
"USIBC could not have made a finer choice for the position of Director, West Coast than Mythili Sankaran," said Arun Kumar, partner - KPMG, who also serves as a member of the USIBC board of directors.
The USIBC, which seeks to deepen trade and strengthen commercial ties between the two countries, is hosted under the aegis of the US Chamber of Commerce, the world's largest business federation representing more than three million businesses and organisations of every size, sector and region.
Monday, May 4, 2009
Yahoo! Cricket, India's #1 Cricket site, gets cricket fans closer to the real game
Yahoo! Cricket, India’s #1* Cricket site, brought digital cricket enthusiasts closer to the real game through the ‘Clued2Cricket’ online contest held to test the cricketing IQ of the sport enthusiasts. Ten lucky winners won an all-expense paid trip for two to watch the live action of the ICC World Twenty20 England 2009 finals on June 21. Also, 21 daily winners and 3 weekly winners took home high-end watches. See Winners list here http://cricket.yahoo.com/cricket/contest-winners
Over 250,000 users took the contest over a period of 3 weeks, between March 26 and April 15, on Yahoo! Cricket, www.cricket.yahoo.com. The contestants had to crack 10 clue-based, multiple choice questions. They were allowed multiple attempts and the last submitted score was recorded as the final score. Winners were chosen among the contestants with the highest scores.
“We are delighted with the response to the contest. Clued2Cricket provided a platform for passionate cricket fans to demonstrate their enthusiasm for the sport and gave them an opportunity to watch the ICC World Twenty20 2009 finals at the Mecca of cricket “Lord’s” said Nitin Mathur, Director – Marketing, Yahoo! India.
Yahoo! Cricket enjoys patronage by over 2 Million unique visitors, which gives it the enviable status of being the number 1 Cricket site in India*
Recently, Yahoo! India entered into a 3-year partnership with the International Cricket Council (ICC) becoming the exclusive online partner for all ICC events. The partnership gave Yahoo! India users access to exclusive images, videos, interviews and player chats around all major ICC events — ICC World Twenty20, ICC Champions Trophy and ICC Cricket World Cup.
Over 250,000 users took the contest over a period of 3 weeks, between March 26 and April 15, on Yahoo! Cricket, www.cricket.yahoo.com. The contestants had to crack 10 clue-based, multiple choice questions. They were allowed multiple attempts and the last submitted score was recorded as the final score. Winners were chosen among the contestants with the highest scores.
“We are delighted with the response to the contest. Clued2Cricket provided a platform for passionate cricket fans to demonstrate their enthusiasm for the sport and gave them an opportunity to watch the ICC World Twenty20 2009 finals at the Mecca of cricket “Lord’s” said Nitin Mathur, Director – Marketing, Yahoo! India.
Yahoo! Cricket enjoys patronage by over 2 Million unique visitors, which gives it the enviable status of being the number 1 Cricket site in India*
Recently, Yahoo! India entered into a 3-year partnership with the International Cricket Council (ICC) becoming the exclusive online partner for all ICC events. The partnership gave Yahoo! India users access to exclusive images, videos, interviews and player chats around all major ICC events — ICC World Twenty20, ICC Champions Trophy and ICC Cricket World Cup.
Brand pril gets bigger and better
Henkel India Limited today announced the re-launch of its flagship dishwash brand Pril, a key player in the utensil cleaner category. Pril Liquid is re-launched as Pril Perfect with new Triple action formulation which removes tough grease, kills 99.99% germs & removes residual food odour. Sonali Bendre to be the new face of the brand.
Pril has already taken the property of redefining cleanliness as “not only looking clean but also smelling clean.” Pril Perfect is an extension of Pril Liquid’s superior product delivery & high quality that takes cleaning to the next level. The all new Pril Perfect will provide additional benefit of anti-bacterial protection with the promise of killing 99.9% germs. Pril Perfect is the result of an intensive research which highlighted the growing concern among the consumers about health and hygiene.
Pril’s transformation to Pril Perfect will be reflected in its new logo design, packaging and brand ambassador. The new logo of Pril Perfect has taken the shape of the drop- communicating ‘The Power of Pril Drop’. The “Perfect” sub brand communicates Pril’s commitment towards perfect cleaning and covers all the cleaning problems making it the only product the category to provide triple benefits to the consumers.
Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Jayant Singh, Managing Director, Henkel India Limited said, “Launched in 1999, Pril for 10 years has been delighting our consumers with an unbeatable performance on tough grease cleaning for kitchen utensils. Pril is the first international liquid hand dishwash brand in the mass market which made sure that our consumers got the best cleaning performance with best care of their hands. The new ‘Pril Perfect’ range, an outcome of consumer research, is an even better product with triple benefits of degreasing; deodorizing and germ kill which is sure to further delight our consumers”
Pril has also roped in eminent Bollywood actress Ms. Sonali Bendre as the new Brand Ambassador. As part of the deal, Sonali will feature in the new Pril commercials, the first of which will hit the leading TV channels.
Says Mr. Singh, “We are happy to sign up Ms. Sonali Bendre as the new face for Brand Pril. Over the years Pril has stood for best quality that our consumers can depend upon. We believe Ms. Sonali epitomizes the values of Pril and we are confident of the success of this relationship.”
Speaking about the tremendous potential of the brand, Ms. Sonali Bendre said, “Today, a product like the new Pril Perfect is invaluable to every household. I'm proud to be associated with Pril, a brand that provides top notch quality and constant innovation in every drop. Pril is a must have in my kitchen.”
Pril Perfect is available in exciting variants like Lime (green), Lemon (yellow), Orange and Natural Anti bacterial with Neem (Blue). Pril Perfect is priced at Rs.19 for 120 ml, Rs. 35 for 225 ml, Rs.59 for 425 ml and Rs.95 for 750ml.
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Tech Mahindra says Satyam poses challenges
Tech Mahindra, which Monday agreed to acquire a controlling stake in Satyam Computer Services, admitted the crisis-ridden IT firm's liabilities would add to the challenges usually associated with an acquisition.
"We have taken on a challenge and we will make it work," Mahindra and Mahindra group vice-chairman and managing director Anand Mahindra told reporters after being selected as the highest bidder for the Hyderabad-based IT firm.
Mahindra said merger and acquisition decisions were taken in the best interest of shareholders. "We will try to make it as less painful as possible," he added.
Tech Mahindra vice chairman, managing director and chief executive Vineet Nayyar also admitted that the ride was not going to be smooth.
"Satyam's revenues have dipped from $1.8 billion to $1.5 billion and may come down to $1.3 billion in the next quarter," Nayyar said.
"Liabilities are there in terms of Upaid and the class action suits," he said, referring to the UK-based mobile payment operator that filed a case accusing Satyam of forgery.
"We had, however, made a fair assessment of what these liabilities would translate into. Let's hope we were right," Nayyar added.
Satyam faces the threat of paying up to $1 billion as damages to Upaid. Apart from this, a dozen-odd class action suits have been filed against it in the US.
But Kiran Karnik, chairman of Satyam's reconstituted board, is optimistic.
"Satyam is a fundamentally sound company with an impressive client roster and committed employees," Karnik said at a separate media briefing.
Satyam's reconstituted board has gone all out to get some clarity on its books of accounts, which were cooked by co-founder B. Ramalinga Raju over several years.
According to a company statement, Satyam's revenue stands at Rs.650 crore per month, while its operating profit is between Rs.15-20 crore per month.
The Hyderabad-based major also has immovable assets in terms of 450 acres of land, of which 125 acres are in Hyderabad alone that house its campuses.
The total valuation of the 125 acres is around Rs.1,700 crore.
"We are trying to get the accounts restated for the past five years starting from last quarter of 2008-09. It will take a few more months," added Deepak Parekh, HDFC chairman and a Satyam board member.
"We have taken on a challenge and we will make it work," Mahindra and Mahindra group vice-chairman and managing director Anand Mahindra told reporters after being selected as the highest bidder for the Hyderabad-based IT firm.
Mahindra said merger and acquisition decisions were taken in the best interest of shareholders. "We will try to make it as less painful as possible," he added.
Tech Mahindra vice chairman, managing director and chief executive Vineet Nayyar also admitted that the ride was not going to be smooth.
"Satyam's revenues have dipped from $1.8 billion to $1.5 billion and may come down to $1.3 billion in the next quarter," Nayyar said.
"Liabilities are there in terms of Upaid and the class action suits," he said, referring to the UK-based mobile payment operator that filed a case accusing Satyam of forgery.
"We had, however, made a fair assessment of what these liabilities would translate into. Let's hope we were right," Nayyar added.
Satyam faces the threat of paying up to $1 billion as damages to Upaid. Apart from this, a dozen-odd class action suits have been filed against it in the US.
But Kiran Karnik, chairman of Satyam's reconstituted board, is optimistic.
"Satyam is a fundamentally sound company with an impressive client roster and committed employees," Karnik said at a separate media briefing.
Satyam's reconstituted board has gone all out to get some clarity on its books of accounts, which were cooked by co-founder B. Ramalinga Raju over several years.
According to a company statement, Satyam's revenue stands at Rs.650 crore per month, while its operating profit is between Rs.15-20 crore per month.
The Hyderabad-based major also has immovable assets in terms of 450 acres of land, of which 125 acres are in Hyderabad alone that house its campuses.
The total valuation of the 125 acres is around Rs.1,700 crore.
"We are trying to get the accounts restated for the past five years starting from last quarter of 2008-09. It will take a few more months," added Deepak Parekh, HDFC chairman and a Satyam board member.
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