Huawei: Hiring will be done as per business need

SHANGHAI: Telecom gear maker Huawei will set up a new research and development (R&D) centre in Bangalore with an investment of $ 150 million (about Rs 813 crore) in the second half of this year.

"Since 2004, we have invested around $ 200 million in activities around research and development. We are setting up new R&D centre in Bangalore with an additional investment of about $ 150 million to consolidate our operations under one facility," Huawei Technologies Head (International Media Affairs) Scott Sykes told PTI here.

He said it will be set up in the second half of this year. In India, Huawei employs around 6,000 people out of which it has close to 2,500 people are working at its R&D.

This new facility will have capacity to house 5,000 people but the company is yet to firm up its hiring plan for India.

"Huawei is building capacity in India. Hiring will be done as per business need. We expect to see better business there in second half of this year" Sykes said.

The company peaked revenues of $ 1.2 billion in 2011, registering a growth of around 30 per cent compared to the previous year. The company's business had been almost flat in 2012, he said.

Huawei is also evaluating to shift its Indian global network operation centre (GNOC) to this new facility.

"We are looking to centralise our GNOC in India. Under the plan we may shift our GNOC under this new facility," Sykes said.

The company has about 500 employee at GNOC and manages services for Idea Cellular, Aircel, Reliance Communications and Tata Teleservices.

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Facebook Home app gets 'worst' rating from users

SYDNEY: A majority of users have given Facebook's Home mobile a one star rating on the Google Play store.

Out of 14,100 reviews of the free Android app, 52% rated it just one out of five stars.

Nearly 16% of reviewers, however, gave it top marks, leaving the app with an overall 'below average' rating of 2.2 stars, reports news.com.au.

Facebook Home's main feature is a constantly changed display of photos and updates from Facebook friends that consumes phone's battery life and mobile data allowance.

Critics have complained the app's main feature -- a constantly changing display of photos and updates posted by your Facebook friends -- consumes a lot of battery and mobile data allowance.

Many have also complained that the app 'hijacks' a phone's home screen, making it harder to access other phone functions like number dialing, texting and email.

The two-and-a-half weeks old app has however been appreciated it for its 'stylish' and 'simple' design.

A spokesperson for Facebook Australia said that the app was 'a first step' and they were working to 'improve the experience'.

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Huawei founder: My family not in running for CEO's post

HONG KONG: The next CEO of China's Huawei Technologies will not be a family member of the incumbent chief, Ren Zhengfei, an ex-military officer who founded the company 26 years ago and built an empire that now rivals big global names in telecom gear and handsets.

Huawei, which ranks behind just Sweden's Ericsson in telecom equipment sales and is also the world's No. 5 smartphone maker, has no plans to list in the next 5-10 years, Ren said an internal letter to employees dated Sunday and whose contents were confirmed by two sources within the company on Monday.

"Huawei's successor should not only have vision, character and ambition, like what we've said before, but also a good global perspective and the acumen to drive the business," Ren wrote. "My family members do not possess these qualities. Thus, we will never be in the running of the successor race," said the 68-year-old.

The two sources within the company, who declined to be identified as they were not authorised to speak to the media, said the letter was authentic. Huawei declined comment.

The market has been speculating about who will take the helm of the company that which has annual sales of $35 billion with global operations stretching from Asia to Africa.

Even though Ren's son and daughter work at Huawei, they are not involved in the rotating CEO system that the board has put in place to pave the way for the era after Ren.

Under the rotating CEO system, three top executives, deputy chairmen Ken Hu and Guo Ping, as well as vice president Eric Xu take turns as acting-CEO for six-month stints. None of them are related to Ren.

Ren, one of China's most influential businessmen and an elusive one who has never granted any media interviews, started the company in 1987 in the Chinese boomtown of Shenzhen.

Huawei has since grown into an enormous company competing against global players such as Ericsson and Alcatel-Lucent SA selling telecom gear to global carriers and taking on Apple and Samsung Electronics in smartphones.

In 2012, its revenues rose 8% to 220.2 billion yuan ($36 billion), while net profit rose by a third to 15.38 billion yuan, outpacing rivals such as Ericsson and ZTE.

As to whether Huawei will list, Ren said in the letter that would not happen in the next 5-10 years, adding that the company will not enter the game of the capital markets.

"We have not studied the issue of an IPO because we feel that listing is not conducive for our development," he said.

In his latest letter to employees, Ren also said he was transparent to the outside world as his articles were usually posted on the company's website and available to everyone.

"I don't have to be interviewed by the media to be considered as being transparent. I can make friends through the written word," he said.

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WhatsApp more popular than traditional SMS: Study

LONDON: For the first time, instant messaging on chat apps, such as WhatsApp, has overtaken the traditional SMS text message, according to new research.

Almost 19 billion messages were sent per day on chat apps in 2012, compared with 17.6 billion SMSs, telecom and media consultancy firm Informa said.

The shift is likely to have a big impact on mobile operators, for whom texts have been a key revenue source, BBC News reported.

Pamela Clark-Dickson of Informa said some operators were already "seeing a decline in their messaging revenues".

According to separate estimates by research firm Ovum, more than 15 billion pounds of SMS revenue was lost in 2012 due to popularity of chat apps.

Informa said that it expected the messaging on chat apps to grow even further in the coming years.

It has projected that nearly 50 billion messages will be sent per day using these apps by 2014, compared with just over 21 billion traditional SMSs.

However, it said that despite the growing gap between the two, SMS will continue to remain a key player in the sector.

"There is a lot of life still in SMS," said Clark-Dickson of Informa.

She explained that most of the chat apps were used by consumers who own smartphones. However, she said, there are a large number of consumers, especially in emerging and lesser developed economies, who use normal mobile phones and rely on SMS as the preferred messaging tool.

"They don't have mobile data plans, so there is an awfully big base of mobile phone users who are going to still find that SMS is the best messaging experience for them for a while," she added.

At the same time, she said that businesses were starting to look at SMS more seriously, as it can be used on all mobile phones and they do not need smartphones to use it.

"There are a few things that, I think, will keep the SMS alive for a few years yet," she said.

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Kodak to sell remaining imaging businesses for $650m

Bankrupt photography pioneer Eastman Kodak said it will sell two of its remaining imaging businesses to its UK pension fund for $650 million.

The agreement, subject to approval by the US Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan, also settles the fund's claims of about $2.8 billion against Kodak.

The settlement assures Kodak's continued operations outside the United States, chief executive Antonio Perez said in a statement.

Kodak has been trying to sell most of its consumer and document imaging businesses and shift its focus to commercial imaging.

The two businesses being sold are personalised imaging, which includes most consumer products and retail printing kiosks, and its document imaging unit that makes scanners for enterprise customers.

Kodak's commercial imaging business includes its graphic communication, film and specialty chemical products.

Kodak last month amended its financing deal that required it to raise at least $600 million from the sale of noncommercial imaging assets.

The company, which launched its first camera in 1888, was unable to successfully shift to digital imaging and filed for bankruptcy protection last year.

Its bankruptcy case is in Re: Eastman Kodak Co. et al, US Bankruptcy Court, Southern District of New York, No. 12-10202.

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Ericsson's Brazil plant to run on full capacity in 2013

RIO DE JANEIRO: Strong demand for mobile broadband equipment in Latin America will keep Ericsson's plant in Brazil at full capacity this year, says a senior executive at the telecom equipment manufacturer.

Mobile phone operators in Brazil are scrambling to improve their networks after heavy scrutiny from regulators because of poor service and a lack of investment in mobile infrastructure in recent years. The problems came despite a ballooning client base in Latin America's biggest economy.

But strong demand for faster, smartphone-friendly networks in neighbouring countries is also fueling a growing need for mobile equipment elsewhere in the region.

"We see a growing demand in Latin America, both in 3G and 4G," said Andre Gildin, Ericsson's market intelligence director for the region, referring to the higher-speed networks that Brazil, Mexico, Colombia and other countries are rolling out.

The Sweden-based company expects 3G equipment to make up most of the demand this year in Brazil. Demand for 4G equipment is growing too as the industry begins building the country's fourth-generation mobile network.

The 4G effort is beginning in cities that in June will host soccer games during the Confederations Cup. The contest is a prelude to next year's World Cup, a much bigger event that is expected to strain Brazil's mobile telephone networks.

In 2012, about 40,000 pieces of mobile signal transmission equipment were produced at Ericsson's factory in the state of Sao Paulo. That took the factory to its production limit, a level that should be reached again by the end of the year.

"Our expectations are to finish this year with a similar number", Gildin said in an interview this week.

Half of this year's production will supply the Brazilian market, he added, while the rest would be exported to other Latin American countries. Big customers include operators in Mexico, which is implementing its 4G network, and Colombia, which is expanding both 4G and 3G services.

Argentina, Chile and Peru are also improving their mobile phone networks.

Ericsson says it has about 40% of the market in Brazil for 3G equipment. While the 3G network still has a long way to go in the country, the initial steps toward 4G services are helping the company get an early lead in that segment too, Gildin said.

Ericsson provides telecom gear, both 3G and 4G, to all four major Brazilian mobile operators - Telefonica's Vivo, Oi, Telecom Italia's TIM and America Movil's Claro.

Claro and Oi recently started to offer 4G services. Vivo and TIM are expect to announce their 4G plans next week.

Anatel, the Brazilian telecoms regulator, gave operators a deadline of next Tuesday to launch their 4G networks in the cities that will host the Confederations Cup.

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Alcatel-Lucent posts Q1 loss, misses estimates

PARIS: Telecom equipment maker Alcatel-Lucent posted a first-quarter net loss even as its key business of network gear sales to big carriers grew 4.2% from a year ago on strength in North America.

Revenue rose 0.6% to 3.23 billion euros ($4.2 billion), ahead of average analyst estimates, while the quarterly net loss of 353 million was worse than expected.

The loss included 122 million euros of restructuring charges linked to a plan to cut 5,500 jobs worldwide. Such charges are expected to reach 500 million this year as the group tries to shrink to a size where it can be profitable.

Analysts had on average expected first-quarter sales of 3.18 billion euros and a net loss of 239.8 million, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

The group's new chief executive, Michael Combes, who took over in early April, said market trends were encouraging in the first quarter, but noted free cash flow remained a challenge.

The Franco-American group burned 533 million euros in cash through its activities in the first quarter, widening from 162 million a year ago.

Chief financial officer Paul Tufano said a few hundred million euros of the cash burn stemmed from the timing of payments from customers, citing as an example the submarine cable unit, where contracts had been won but pre-payment for work had not yet arrived.

"This doesn't represent a step down in terms of cash burn," he said. "It's just a question of timing."

Since it was formed in a merger in 2006, Alcatel-Lucent has proven unable to generate steady profits or cash, in part because its cost base remains high.

US rebound
CEO Combes is expected to present his plan for the group in June.

"We are actively reviewing the group's businesses and operating model to design the conditions for value creation in the future," he said in a statement.

Alcatel-Lucent is highly dependent on the US - where it generated nearly half of sales in the quarter - and has benefited from AT&T and Verizon's large investments in mobile upgrades in recent years. Sales in North America rose 15% in the first quarter to 1.55 billion euros.

The US is expected to drive a rebound in overall spending on network gear this year, according to analysts, after a contraction of roughly 7% in 2012. Market research firm Gartner forecasts a 2.3% uptick for telecom gear, while Infonetics sees a 13% rise in sales of mobile gear.

Ericsson on Thursday reported 7% growth in its network unit for the first quarter, but rival Nokia Siemens Networks saw sales drop 5%.

Alcatel-Lucent shares are up 8.5% this year to 1.09 euros, giving it a market capitalisation of 2.5 billion euros. They fell nearly 17% last year.

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LivingSocial cyberattack may affect over 50m customers

SAN FRANCISCO: LivingSocial, the second-largest daily deal company behind Groupon, said it was hit by a cyberattack that may have affected more than 50 million customers.

The company said the attack on its computer systems resulted in unauthorized access to customer data, including names, email addresses, date of birth for some users and "encrypted" passwords.

LivingSocial stressed customer credit card and merchants' financial and banking information were not affected or accessed. It also does not store passwords in plain text.

"We are actively working with law enforcement to investigate this issue," the company, part-owned by Amazon.com Inc, wrote in an email to employees.

LivingSocial does not disclose how many customers it has. However, spokesman Andrew Weinstein said "a substantial portion" of the company's customer base was affected. LivingSocial is also contacting customers who closed accounts, because it still has their information stored in databases, he added.

The attack hit customers in the United States, Canada, the U.K., Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Southern Europe and Latin America. Customers in South Korea, Indonesia, Philippines and Thailand were not affected, Weinstein said.

"In light of recent successful widespread attacks against major social networking sites, it's obvious that these providers are simply not doing enough to protect their customers' information," said George Tubin, senior security strategist at Trusteer, a computer security company.

The attack comes as LivingSocial struggles to handle a decline in consumer and merchant demand for daily deals. The company raised $110 million from investors, including Amazon earlier this year, but was forced to make large concessions to get the new money.

Amazon invested $56 million in LivingSocial in the first quarter, according to a regulatory filing on Friday, which also revealed the company had a first-quarter operating loss of $44 million on revenue of $135 million.

LivingSocial said it was beginning to contact more than 50 million customers whose data may have been affected by the cyberattack.

LivingSocial told customers in an email that they should log on to LivingSocial.com to create a new password for their accounts.

"We also encourage you, for your own personal data security, to consider changing password(s) on any other sites on which you use the same or similar password(s)," LivingSocial Chief Executive Tim O'Shaughnessy wrote in the email.

"We are sorry this incident occurred."

All Things D reported the cyber attack earlier on Friday.

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Zynga shares sink over Q2 loss

Shares of Zynga fell 10% in early trading after the online game maker forecast a bigger-than-expected second-quarter loss on concerns about its slow transformation into a gaming company focused on mobiles.

Zynga management on Wednesday pleaded for more time for the turnaround effort, saying that the company's business, although stabilised, may not pick up until the latter half of the year.

Analysts said until the company showed more progress on its mobile strategy, it would have to fall back on its popular Farmville game and new games such as Draw Something 2 to draw in and retain gamers and investors.

"Zynga keeps hinting at meaningful changes to come... profitably, on mobile, but we will need to see it before we can give them credit for it," Macquarie Equities Research analyst Ben Schachter said.

The company now gets 22% of its revenue from mobile platform, up from 12% a year earlier, but that share remains modest compared with similarly sized technology companies such as Twitter, which gets more than half of its revenue from mobile users.

"Zynga is unlikely to ever dominate the mobile gaming market in the same way that it has the web-based gaming market for many years," Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter said.

The company aims to tap gamers on smartphones as it loses users on PCs but doubts remain over whether this can sustain its revenues and profits.

"Zynga's path toward renewed growth is uncertain and fraught with competitive and internal risks," Piper Jaffray analyst Michael Olson said in a research note to clients.

The company has also said it would tap into potentially lucrative new revenue streams, after it revised its once-lucrative business partnership with Facebook.

Zynga has in recent months sought to establish a more independent network even at the risk of less visitor traffic from the social media giant and is looking to launch real-money casino games around the world, starting with Britain.

Analysts said though real-money gambling games is a good long-term opportunity, it is unrealistic to think it would boost Zynga's prospects anytime soon.

"Zynga must overcome significant competitive and legislative issues, among others. The near-term impact of real money gaming should be limited," Wedbush's Pachter said.

Shares of the company fell to $3.01 in early trading on Thursday. The company's stock, which listed on the Nasdaq in February 2011 at $10, has lost nearly a third of its value over the past year.

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Galaxy S4: Samsung denies component shortages

SEOUL: Samsung Electronics said it is not having any component shortage issues related to flagship smartphone Galaxy S4, which goes on sale this weekend, as supply issues have snarled the US rollout with some major carriers.

"We have secured key components well in advance but temporarily experiencing supply problems due to stronger than expected initial supply request. We expect the bottleneck to be resolved soon," Kim Hyun-joon, vice president of Samsung's mobile business, told analysts.

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Laser printers driving HCP market growth in India: IDC

MUMBAI: The Indian Hard Copy Peripherals (HCP) market comprising printers and copiers grew two per cent to about 3.2 million units in 2012 over the previous year, driven by growth in laser multi-function printers (MFPs) shipments, research firm IDC today said.

The HCP market in India was primarily driven by laser MFPs, which posted a remarkable year-on-year growth of 35.3 per cent in 2012, IDC said in a statement here.

Inkjet (primarily A3 and A4 formats) segment, which is a consumer-driven market, recorded a year-on-year dip of 4.5 per cent last year.

"Despite end-user promotions and heavy marketing campaigns by all the leading vendors, inkjet market was not able to sustain the interest levels with the end users, who are preferring to spend their budgets on other consumer products such as smartphones and tablets," IDC Senior Market Analyst Mohit Raizada said.

Peripheral products such as printers remain a secondary product for Indian consumers, he added.

The overall laser market, a commercial segment driven space, recorded 13.7 per cent growth in 2012.

"With both Government and enterprises preferring MFPs, a clear shift towards laser MFP was witnessed as the share of laser MFPs increased to 24.6 per cent of the overall HCP market in India," Raizada said.

HP had 47.7 per cent share of the HCP market, followed by Canon (18.9 per cent), Epson (11.2 per cent) and Samsung (6.7 per cent). In the laser space, HP remained the market leader with 47.9 per cent share followed by Canon (21.8%).

"Apart from the top three vendors (HP, Canon and Samsung), the share of rest of the vendors increased to 17.8 per cent in 2012, specially with the growth of upcoming vendors like Panasonic and Ricoh," said Nitin Kumar Singh, another IDC analyst.

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See, Amazon's success formula

SAN FRANCISCO/NEW YORK: Amazon.com appears to have figured out the secret to being more profitable: sell less physical stuff.

The company reported slowing revenue growth and offered a disappointing outlook for this quarter, exacerbating uncertainty about the health of its business beyond the United States.

But that may be masking a fundamental shift in its business on home turf. The internet retail giant that once specialized in moving books and other physical items quickly is increasingly trying to do the same in the digital world, where profit margins are higher, partly because e-books, music and video files and are transmitted electronically at high speed.

Throw in a fast-expanding third-party merchant business, where Amazon simply books a cut of sales from seller listings on its website, and the retail giant's margin outlook is looking a lot better.

"Over the long term it does help margins," said Ben Schachter, an analyst at Macquarie. "You don't have to put these things on a truck and ship them."

In the first quarter, net shipping costs stood at 4.7 per cent of sales, down from 5.1 per cent a year earlier.

Amazon has been doing all the things a retail business will usually do to goose margins, like putting its distribution closer to customers and charging partners more to ship goods.

But it has also diversified aggressively into other revenue streams like digital content, advertising and the Amazon Web Services cloud computing business.

In its news release, Amazon listed 14 highlights for the first quarter - all but one related to its digital businesses.

Chief Executive Jeff Bezos talked about Amazon's effort to make its own TV shows, which will be delivered over the Internet, rather than in DVD form.

Notably, Amazon's top-10 selling items in the first quarter were digital goods or Kindle gadgets, which are tablets or e-readers used to buy and consume digital content, Chief Financial Officer Tom Szkutak told analysts during a conference call.

"That is the first time that we have seen that," he said.

Digital expansion
In the short term, the internet retail giant that started out as a book-retailing business faces several challenges. Its business faces a sluggish European economy and inconsistent efforts to break into emerging markets such as China, where competition from the likes of Alibaba is intense.

Amazon's shares slid 3 per cent to about $267 in Thursday after-hours trade, after executives pointed out the macroeconomic challenges.

But longer term, analysts say Amazon's focus on aggressively pushing digital content - such as by selling Kindles at close to cost, undercutting much of the competition - is a winning strategy.

Amazon has largely focused on using price as a lever to get its content in front of more customers.

Whether selling Kindle e-book readers and Kindle Fire tablets cheaply, or bundling on-demand streaming video with subscriptions to other services, Amazon has bet that it can keep people once it has their attention.

Lately, it has branched into creating original video content. Last week the company posted 14 pilot TV shows online, intending to let reviews decide which ones it turns into full series.

Amazon has also been gaining on Apple Inc in the digital music business, tripling its market share over the last five years - albeit to a level still just a third of Apple's.

At the same time, the company has also made much of its cloud computing unit, Amazon Web Services, which provides data services to a broad range of companies. AWS, as it is commonly known, generated $1.8 billion in revenue last year and is expected to grow rapidly.

In the most recent quarter, net sales in Amazon's "other" line, which includes AWS in North America as well as advertising services, rose 59 per cent .

"What we're seeing is that Amazon is really getting leverage from shipping costs. AWS is becoming a big part of their mix. They are also benefiting from a greater mix of advertising revenues. We'll continue to see that improve," Topeka Capital's Victor Anthony said.

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TCS Finland employees stage protest over job cuts

NEW DELHI: Employees at the Finland offices of India's largest software services exporter TCS staged a walkout protesting against job cuts even as the company said it has started consultations on the issue with their representatives.

About 160 Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) employees based at its offices in Espoo and Salo in Finland reportedly staged a walkout at the company's premises protesting over the decision to cut around 290 jobs.

The firm has about 800 employees in Finland. When reached for comments, a TCS spokesperson said: "TCS has begun collective consultations in Finland with employee representatives. The consultation process is aimed at streamlining TCS' operations in selected areas and harmonising them with its global operations."

TCS has been servicing the Finnish market for more than 11 years and has a registered office in Helsinki.

The spokesperson further added: "The negotiations are expected to be concluded after six weeks. TCS is committed to supporting all potentially impacted employees throughout this process. Until the consultations with employee representatives are complete, TCS will be unable to provide any further details."

The total headcount at TCS stood at 2,76,196 as of March 31, 2013. The company said it will also hire 45,000 people this year and has already made 25,000 campus offers.

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TCS Finland faces protests over job cuts

NEW DELHI: Employees at the Finland offices of India's largest software services exporter TCS staged a walkout protesting against job cuts even as the company said it has started consultations on the issue with their representatives.

About 160 Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) employees based at its offices in Espoo and Salo in Finland reportedly staged a walkout at the company's premises protesting over the decision to cut around 290 jobs.

The firm has about 800 employees in Finland. When reached for comments, a TCS spokesperson said: "TCS has begun collective consultations in Finland with employee representatives. The consultation process is aimed at streamlining TCS' operations in selected areas and harmonising them with its global operations."

TCS has been servicing the Finnish market for more than 11 years and has a registered office in Helsinki.

The spokesperson further added: "The negotiations are expected to be concluded after six weeks. TCS is committed to supporting all potentially impacted employees throughout this process. Until the consultations with employee representatives are complete, TCS will be unable to provide any further details."

The total headcount at TCS stood at 2,76,196 as of March 31, 2013. The company said it will also hire 45,000 people this year and has already made 25,000 campus offers.

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Microsoft, Toyota team up for internet service

TOKYO: Toyota is teaming up with Microsoft for an internet service that links cars, home computers and smartphones so users can find nearby tourist spots, connect on social networks and learn about new models.

The beefed up version of Toyota's internet site Gazoo.com starts May 30 in Japan, and will be based on cloud computing from Microsoft called Windows Azure. Overseas plans are still undecided.

According to the US software giant, it is the first time the technology, which also uses Sharepoint software, is being used for a company site.

Gazoo.com users tripled over the last five years to 1.65 million. Toyota Motor said it wants to raise that to 2 million over the next year.

All the world's major automakers are working on similar technology to bring autos up-to-date with the internet age, from finding restaurants to helping ensure safe driving.

But a major motive for Toyota is appealing to younger Japanese, who are rapidly losing interest in buying cars and are spending their money on smartphones and video games. The trend is so widespread there is a coined phrase, "kuruma banare," or "departure from cars."

Among the Net content in the works are video games, shopping-site links, virtual events and a special social network to chat about cars, according to Toyota. A smartphone application will guide drivers with an electronic voice to 30,000 destinations from 250 routes.

The site will also offer information on more than 3,000 new and used models, including interviews with engineers.

Switching to Microsoft's cloud computing will cut costs for operating the services, although Toyota plans to invest more money in new content for Gazoo.com.

Toyota reached an agreement with Microsoft in April 2011, to work together on telematics, or network technology for cars.

Toyota looked at other cloud computing services before picking Microsoft for the latest project, said Hiroyuki Yamada, an executive at e-Toyota, which looks over such technology.

It is unclear whether the site will really lead to car sales, but Toyota will be able to tap into data on consumer behavior, as well as try to revive Japanese people's fading interest in cars, he said.

Gazoo.com is the brainchild of Akio Toyoda, the president and grandson of Toyota's founder. Well versed in Internet technology, Toyoda was ahead of his time in foreseeing the importance of social networks and stressing how Toyota needs a presence in the blogosphere.

Toyota has a partnership with another US cloud computing company, Salesforce.com, which runs a social network for Toyota plug-in hybrid owners so they can see how efficiently they have been driving and be alerted when their vehicle has recharged. Toyoda also pioneered that partnership.

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Online companies targeting enterprise clients

BANGALORE: Even as the growth of online retail start-ups has been hampered by regulations and fund crunch, a group of e-commerce entrepreneurs are sidestepping these issues by targeting a completely different section—the enterprise market.

Enterprise clients are fast becoming a lucrative market for online ventures in India like OfficeYes, Printland, Printvenue, eSupply and 1click1call, among others. Industry experts say the improvement in connectivity and infrastructure across the country has had a big role in the development of this business model.

"While they (business-to-business players) may not have the visibility in the larger consumer mindset, they have the visibility in the right target audience," said Ashvin Vellody, partner in management consulting at KPMG. A Technopak report estimates that the Indian ecommerce market will reach $200 billion (about Rs 10.8 lakh crore) by 2020. There is no reliable data on the Indian market for office services and supplies— either online or offline— but industry estimates pegged it at $15- 20 billion now.

"Unlike online retail sites that cater to a customer's need, we focus on a client's need. We are solving a pain point for them," said Sandeep Behl, cofounder of Printland, a year-old online printing solutions venture. There are many operational advantages too, say the entrepreneurs. "Not too many B2C e-commerce companies have positive margins after deducting marketing spends, while we have average margins of 15-20%," said OfficeYes cofounder Siddharth Nambiar, 29, a graduate from the University of Oxford's Said Business School. His company is targeting $3 million in revenue for this fiscal.

OfficeYes, launched last year, supplies office needs like stationery, cleaning supplies and furniture. Backed by Germany-based incubator Rocket Internet, OfficeYes has around 500 large corporate clients, such as Microsoft, GE and HCL, and around 6,000 SME clients. Printland's Behl, 49, who worked previously as the global head of customer service and enterprise services at Bharti Airtel, said repeat orders and large transaction values make this category attractive.

Printland, which has around 20,000 registered SME and corporate clients, has around 40% gross margins. The company, which is targeting over Rs 4 crore in revenue this fiscal and expects to reach Rs 100 crore in the next three years, lets clients order online for visiting cards, letter heads and printed corporate merchandise. About 40% of Printland's customers regularly order on the platform, while OfficeYes sees 50% repeat orders. The average transaction size ranges between Rs 30,000 and Rs 50,000 on most portals. These entrepreneurs have also refuted the popular belief that large firms do not order online.

"We find the online platform useful, as we can order whenever we want and there is minimum human error," said Praveen Choudhary, human resources head of Kyocera, an over- $14 billion Japanese electronics and ceramics company, which uses Printland for buying visiting cards, envelopes, letter heads and cash receipts. While OfficeYes and Printland are size-agnostic, Power2sme is an online group buying platform just for SMEs. The company, which is targeting to reach Rs 120 crore in revenue in fiscal 2013, raised $6 million from Accel Partners earlier this month. It had previously raised $2 million from Inventus Capital and Kalaari Capital.

Entrepreneurs in the B2B segment are also looking beyond office supplies. NPASource, which was launched in August 2011, aggregates non-performing assets of banks, puts up the details on its site, and helps customers buy them. "We realised there is a great gap in information available to investors who want to buy such properties," said Devendra Jain, 44, a chartered accountant, who is targeting revenue of Rs 6 crore in fiscal year 2014. "Banks are also not able to publicise details of such properties easily." The company has around 20,000 users and has tied up with around 10 banks so far, including SBI, IDBI Bank and NABARD.

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Online companies targeting enterprise

BANGALORE: Even as the growth of online retail start-ups has been hampered by regulations and fund crunch, a group of e-commerce entrepreneurs are sidestepping these issues by targeting a completely different section—the enterprise market.

Enterprise clients are fast becoming a lucrative market for online ventures in India like OfficeYes, Printland, Printvenue, eSupply and 1click1call, among others. Industry experts say the improvement in connectivity and infrastructure across the country has had a big role in the development of this business model.

"While they (business-to-business players) may not have the visibility in the larger consumer mindset, they have the visibility in the right target audience," said Ashvin Vellody, partner in management consulting at KPMG. A Technopak report estimates that the Indian ecommerce market will reach $200 billion (about Rs 10.8 lakh crore) by 2020. There is no reliable data on the Indian market for office services and supplies— either online or offline— but industry estimates pegged it at $15- 20 billion now.

"Unlike online retail sites that cater to a customer's need, we focus on a client's need. We are solving a pain point for them," said Sandeep Behl, cofounder of Printland, a year-old online printing solutions venture. There are many operational advantages too, say the entrepreneurs. "Not too many B2C e-commerce companies have positive margins after deducting marketing spends, while we have average margins of 15-20%," said OfficeYes cofounder Siddharth Nambiar, 29, a graduate from the University of Oxford's Said Business School. His company is targeting $3 million in revenue for this fiscal.

OfficeYes, launched last year, supplies office needs like stationery, cleaning supplies and furniture. Backed by Germany-based incubator Rocket Internet, OfficeYes has around 500 large corporate clients, such as Microsoft, GE and HCL, and around 6,000 SME clients. Printland's Behl, 49, who worked previously as the global head of customer service and enterprise services at Bharti Airtel, said repeat orders and large transaction values make this category attractive.

Printland, which has around 20,000 registered SME and corporate clients, has around 40% gross margins. The company, which is targeting over Rs 4 crore in revenue this fiscal and expects to reach Rs 100 crore in the next three years, lets clients order online for visiting cards, letter heads and printed corporate merchandise. About 40% of Printland's customers regularly order on the platform, while OfficeYes sees 50% repeat orders. The average transaction size ranges between Rs 30,000 and Rs 50,000 on most portals. These entrepreneurs have also refuted the popular belief that large firms do not order online.

"We find the online platform useful, as we can order whenever we want and there is minimum human error," said Praveen Choudhary, human resources head of Kyocera, an over- $14 billion Japanese electronics and ceramics company, which uses Printland for buying visiting cards, envelopes, letter heads and cash receipts. While OfficeYes and Printland are size-agnostic, Power2sme is an online group buying platform just for SMEs. The company, which is targeting to reach Rs 120 crore in revenue in fiscal 2013, raised $6 million from Accel Partners earlier this month. It had previously raised $2 million from Inventus Capital and Kalaari Capital.

Entrepreneurs in the B2B segment are also looking beyond office supplies. NPASource, which was launched in August 2011, aggregates non-performing assets of banks, puts up the details on its site, and helps customers buy them. "We realised there is a great gap in information available to investors who want to buy such properties," said Devendra Jain, 44, a chartered accountant, who is targeting revenue of Rs 6 crore in fiscal year 2014. "Banks are also not able to publicise details of such properties easily." The company has around 20,000 users and has tied up with around 10 banks so far, including SBI, IDBI Bank and NABARD.

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Huawei sets billion-dollar budget to push brand's image

SHENZEN: Despite having the third-highest mobile phone shipments after Samsung and Apple, and being one of the highest selling telecom equipment vendors, Huawei's brand and image are nearly non-existent.

A notion the company plans to fix in this year, armed with a billion dollars for brand promotion. Huawei will spend 2% of its revenue on promoting the company's image in 2013 and plough back variable portions of profits it makes on specific products into advertising them, said Shao Yang, chief marketing officer, device segment.

"We have been like an ostrich with its head in the sand. We are now taking our head out." In 2012, the company recorded revenue of $35.4 billion and targets overall growth of around 10% this year.

Apart from that, Scott Sykes, the company's head of international media affairs, said that Huawei this year stands at the brink of another important transformation as it did when it chose mobile business over fixed line nearly two decades ago.

Huawei is entering into competition with enterprise device makers like Cisco and Ericsson to tap the over trillion dollar industry of information technology equipment for corporate use, such as routers and switches. However, overcoming the brand perception of the company that resonates as unsecured and unreliable will be key for the company.

"The retailing if IT is a whole different thing. In telecom, every country has a few operators and so the people you deal with are few. With IT there are millions of companies ," said Sykes. As a result, Huawei is currently working on establishing channel partners and vendors for greater reach.

Ironically, in India and the US, Huawei does not expect to grow its business too much from the current $1 billion levels.

(The reporter was in Shenzen at the invitation of Huawei)

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Airtel, Microsoft announce combo offer

NEW DELHI: Bharti Airtel and Microsoft announced a partnership, wherein consumers in the country can get discounts on purchase of Xbox games and Airtel high speed broadband connection.

As part of this combo offer, consumers buying an 'Xbox 360 4GB Kinect' console or taking a new Airtel high speed broadband connection can save up to Rs 15,500, a joint statement by the two comapnies said.

This combo includes 10 Xbox 360 games, 12-month free Xbox LIVE gold membership and up to Rs 4,888 offer on the existing or new Airtel broadband connection, it said.

The Xbox is a video game console manufactured by Microsoft.

The promotional offer is valid till June 30, 2013 and is available across Delhi NCR, Bangalore, Chennai and Mumbai, it added.

"Consumers can now enjoy a smooth Xbox LIVE entertainment experience which includes the best multi-player action that Xbox is so well known for on an Airtel broadband," Microsoft Corporation India Business Group Lead (Interactive Entertainment Business) Anshu Mor said.

"We are confident that our-tie up with Microsoft... deliver a much-awaited and enhanced experience for gaming lovers," Bharti Airtel CEO (Homes and Office) Najib Khan said.

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Google India announces top travel trends for this summer

BANGALORE: Google India, today, announced the top travel trends for this summer - a unique perspective on the hottest travel trends, based on searches conducted in India. These trends highlight the adventurous spirit of young Indians who are increasing searching for activities like scuba diving and snorkelling and want to explore beyond the conventional destinations. With more and more young Indian's coming online, they are increasing searching for new things to do while travelling and explore newer destinations which are rich in cultural heritage as well as give them a chance to discover their adventurous streak.

From tropical destinations like Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Goa to the wildlife sanctuaries of Uttarakhand, the search trends capture the top summer travel destinations this year. Showcasing young India's love for exploring their own country, these trends also highlight that Indians love to travel closer to home, as the top searched-for travel destinations remain domestic ones. Not only do these trends showcase the top destinations, but they also highlight the most searched-for activities and sights at these destinations like scuba diving in Andaman, Jim Corbett Park in Uttarakhand and not to forget the beaches in Goa.

For all those who love exploring heritage sites and wildlife sanctuaries or are simply looking for quick weekend getaways, the trends also unveil top attractions in India and topping the chart is of course, the stunning Taj Mahal followed by Jim Corbett Park.

Commenting on these trends Lalitesh Katragadda, Country Head - Products, Google, said "Indians love to travel and Google search trends highlight that an increasing number of Indians are looking to travel closer home, with the top searched-for travel destinations being some of the domestic locations. This can also be linked to the growing trend of budget travel where people are continuously looking for an great experience in a limited budget. Adventure tourism is on the rise with Indians searching for activities like snorkelling and scuba diving while travelling to places like Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Goa."

When it comes to travelling international, Indians love to chase the sun in tropical Maldives, and to go shopping in effervescent Singapore. Paris, New York, Seychelles, and Bahamas are the other popular destinations.

Top attractions in India:

Taj Mahal

Jim Corbett National Park

Qutub Minar

India Gate

Top destinations in India people are searching for:

Andaman & Nicobar Islands

Jim Corbett National Park, Uttarakhand

Coorg, Karnataka

Goa

Top destinations outside India people are searching for:

Maldives

Singapore

Paris

New York

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Apple results: Analysts cut price targets

Apple's first quarterly profit decline in more than a decade and a soft outlook for the current quarter prompted at least five brokerages to slash their price targets on the iPhone maker's shares by up to $180 per share.

Apple forecast revenue of $33.5 billion to $35.5 billion this quarter, lagging Wall Street's average expectations of $38.2 billion.

Apple shares traded up slightly in after-hours trade at $407.20 after Apple's results, in which it also announced the return of $100 billion in capital to shareholders.

Apple could be resetting investor expectations with its soft June quarter outlook, JP Morgan's Mark Moskowitz said. He slashed his target price on the shares to $545 from $725, reflecting the much lower revenue outlook.

Apple also disappointed Wall Street by indicating that consumers would have to wait till the fall and 2014 for any new products.

"We had anticipated a late July to August launch of the iPhone 5S and midrange iPhone," Nomura analysts said in a note. The brokerage cut its target price to $420 from $490.

Apple relies heavily on new product launches to drive revenue growth. It refreshed its offerings in October, unveiling the 7.9-inch iPad mini and an updated full-size iPad.

Investors looking for sales and profit to start accelerating again will need to be patient, analysts at Credit Suisse said as they cut their target price on Apple shares by $75 to $600.

Facing stiff competition from Samsung Electronics Co Ltd and Google's Android phone system, Apple shares have almost halved since hitting a record high of $705.07 last September.

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Dmitry Shukov to take over as MTS India CEO

MUMBAI: Sistema Shyam TeleServices which operates telecom services under the MTS brand in India, announced a transition in its leadership with Dmitry Shukov expected to take over from Vsevolod Rozanov, the current president and CEO of the telecom operator in India. The transition in leadership is expected to be effective from June 1, 2013, a press statement from the telco said.

At the helm of SSTL since October 2008, Rozanov is being elevated to a senior position within Sistema JSFC. Rozanov is credited for setting up SSTL's green field operations in India, implementing data centric voice enabled strategy, developing MTS India brand, and navigating a series of challenging legal and regulatory issues, the company statement said.

Vladimir Evtushenkov, chairman of the board of Sistema JSFC said, "Rozanov's leadership and strategic direction provided to SSTL was immensely valuable and positioned the company among the top three data operators in India."

Shukov, has worked as head of sales in Tele2, Russia's leading mobile operator. He has 20 years of work experience and started his career as an engineer. He is an MTS veteran and was previously the CEO of MTS Turkmenistan and MTS Uzbekistan. Mikhail Shamolin, president of Sistema JSFC, adds, "Dmitry has a wealth of operational experience, business acumen, and inspirational leadership needed to spearhead SSTL's next phase of growth. We welcome his appointment and look forward to his contribution in taking the company to OIBDA-positive stage."

With many of the uncertainties relating to SSTL's operations having been resolved, the key focus area for the new CEO will be to take the company to the next level, the company statement said. SSTL is expected to roll out a range of strategic initiatives in line with its data-centric voice-enabled strategy. The game plan includes further strengthening the brand's connection with its stakeholders, including customers, retailers, and employees.The company recently made its long term intention known in the market to play a key role in the LTE landscape in India, the statement said.

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Palika Bazar: Hotbed for porn, Sunny Leone 'shopping'

NEW DELHI: Bollywood's newest star Sunny Leone is a big draw here and so are MMS clips of various sex scandals and porn scenes and the newly available sex toys smuggled from China.

Even as Parliament hotly debated rising rapes and "depravity" in society and demands to check spread of pornographic material, it seems porn was for the asking literally down the road.

Notoriously famous for being the capital's "porn hub", Palika Bazar, the underground shopping complex in Connaught Place, is witnessing a new clientele as teenaged school and college students are giving way to labourers, rickshaw pullers and daily-wage workers who are thronging the market for cheap and easily accessible porn.

This IANS correspondent visited the market in the business heart of Delhi and the shopkeepers admitted that advancements in technology and the decline in the number of affluent customers have given way to this new breed of shoppers who are looking for cheap entertainment.

"People who have laptops and internet don't come here anymore. It is the labour class which is driving the sales," said a shopkeeper on the first floor of the market, refusing to reveal his name.

According to shopkeepers, with easy access to internet at homes and on mobile phones, affluent customers, from the middle and upper middle class have declined gradually.

"They (labourers) are not teach-savvy nor do they have the money, so they get all the masala (porn clips) downloaded in their phones," said his associate seated at the counter with a laptop in front of him that had the image of Indo-Canadian adult actress Sunny Leone in a skimpy dress as the background.

"Her clips are the most in demand," said the man pointing to Leone, who gained fame after her appearance in the fifth season of the Bigg Boss reality show.

Armed with budget brand cellphones which cost anywhere between Rs. 800 to Rs.2,000 with big screens for better video playback and expandable memory, the new category of customers can have access to porn 24X7 without the fuss of owning a CD player and a TV.

Moreover, the thumbnail sized memory card, loaded with hundreds of porn clips or movies, is easy to conceal in a wallet and used when required as against stacks of CDs and DVDs.

The shopkeepers can download hundreds of clips on the memory card ranging from 2GB to 10GB for anywhere between Rs 100 to 400 depending on the clips as well as bargaining skills.

Though the categories of the clips vary, the shopkeepers say it is the MMS clips, some real and some staged, which are the most favourite. Such clips are often shot in hotel rooms, hostels or cars with or without the consent of the couples in it.

"Kand (scandals) are the most in demand," said another shop owner to IANS with a leering smile and almost snatched my mobile phone from my hand, eager to fill it up with 'kands' at a "decent" price.

The market, however has not been completely forgotten by its loyal affluent customers, who according to shopkeepers, have moved beyond CDs and are into buying sex toys, most of which are smuggled from China.

Inflatable dolls, dildos, vibrators and even sex gums which claim to work like Viagra are easily available at several shops. All you have to do is ask.

Some shops have even put the toys up on display on glass shelves to cater to timid customers.

According to police reports, the two men behind the heinous gangrape of a five-year-old in Delhi last week had watched porn in an inebriated state just before kidnapping the child and raping her.

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HP India unveils world's fastest desktop printer

NEW DELHI: PC maker Hewlett-Packard India unveiled its latest range of Officejet Pro X 500 series printers, which the company claims is the world's fastest desktop printer.

"HP's Officejet Pro X 500 series is recognised as the world's fastest desktop printer by Guinness World Records," HP Printing Systems PPS Director Nitin Hiranandani told reporters here.

Powered by HP PageWide Technology, the company said HP's Officejet Pro X Series can deliver professional documents at up to 70 pages per minute in General Office mode. They deliver high-quality documents at up to twice the speed and half the cost of colour lasers, he added.

The HP Officejet Pro X series and the HP Officejet Pro 3610/3620 Black and White series broaden the firm's Inkjet portfolio for businesses in India, he said.

"In 2012, India witnessed shipments of about 3 million printers as per IDC data, which included 1.2 million inkjet printers and 1.8 million laser printers. HP controls more than half of the market for both types of printers in India, he said."

HP Officejet Pro 3610/3620 Black and White series offers laser-like quality and performance at very low running costs, comparable to laser toner refills, he said.

"Enterprise workgroups and SMBs have told us they require technologies to improve efficiency and reduce costs and that's exactly what these devices do," Hiranandani added.

HP Officejet Pro X will address the needs of work-teams with up to 15 users printing up to about 4,200 pages a month and the users can also print from virtually anywhere with the latest mobile printing technologies such as HP ePrint.

HP Officejet Pro 3610 Black and White uses up to 50 per cent less energy than mono lasers and saves up to 40 per cent energy with the schedule-on and schedule-off feature. They come with a 2-inch mono graphic display and can print at ISO speed up to 19 pages per minute.

The HP Officejet Pro X Series is priced in the range of Rs 31,499-50,499, while the Officejet Pro Black & White series is priced in the range of Rs 7,999-11,999.

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Nintendo aims to sell 9 million Wii U consoles in FY14

TOKYO: Nintendo on Wednesday said that it expects to sell 9 million of its new Wii U game consoles in the year to next March 31, after a disappointing start since their launch in November.

In the latest business year that ended on March 31, the creator of Super Mario sold 3.45 million of its successor to the hit Wii. It initially forecast sales of 5.5 million but later lowered that to 4 million.

Nintendo, which began by making playing cards in the late 19th century, is counting on the Wii U, its first console in 16 years to come with a dedicated Super Mario game title, to revive its fortunes as sales of the six year-old Wii slacken.

The Japanese gaming company forecast sales of its handheld 3DS console to rise nearly 30% to 18 million.

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TCS, HCL Tech emerge stronger among big IT cos

BANGALORE: Over the past few years, select companies, including Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and HCL Technologies, among the country's top-tier IT exporters have been reporting a superior financial performance than the rest.

But how big is this gap and will these companies be able to retain their lead in the coming quarters? An analysis of the performance of the country's top four IT exporters over the last five fiscal years reveals that TCS and HCL Tech gained over 300-400 basis points in their respective shares of aggregate revenue, while Infosys and Wipro suffered an erosion in their shares.

A keen focus on inorganic growth, an increasing proportion of infrastructure management services in revenue, and effective employee resource management have emerged as key differentiators. The trend is likely to continue in the medium term as Infosys and Wipro scramble to get back on the growth track.

Between FY09 and FY13, the aggregate revenue of the top four companies, including TCS, Infosys, Wipro (IT division), and HCL Technologies, rose by 73% to $29,724 million (approximately Rs 1,61,700 crore). The sharp growth was on account of increased demand that followed restructuring of the banking and finance sector after the financial crisis in 2008.

However, this did not benefit the top IT companies in India equally. Companies such as TCS and HCL Tech, which invested in expanding their reach through acquisitions and by enhancing their deliverables stayed ahead of the competition. At the end of FY13, TCS has increased the share of its revenue in the aggregate revenue of the top four players to 39% from 35% in FY09. The company's top line expanded from $6,015 million to $11,569 million during the period. HCL Technologies improved the share of its revenue by 310 basis points to 15.3%. Its revenue more than doubled to $4,539 million.

Infosys and Wipro, which had been traditionally aggressive in winning new deals until the sub-prime crisis shattered growth in the Western economies in 2008, were not able to retain their momentum after the crisis. In the four years to March 2013, the revenue growth of each of the two lagged the jump in aggregate revenue for the sample. Infosys grew its revenue by 59% to $7,398 million between FY09 and FY13. Its revenue share dropped by 240 basis points to 25% during the period.

Wipro's revenue share fell by 450 basis points, the sharpest among the peers, to 21%. Its revenue grew at the slowest pace of 43% during this period. The performance of these companies in the March 2013 quarter reflects the fact that the divergence is expected to be visible for a few more quarters.

Infosys has given a bleak guidance of 6-10 % growth for FY14 compared with the 12-14% average estimate issued by industry lobby arm Nasscom. Wipro, too, expects revenue to either drop sequentially by 0.5% or grow by 1.6% in the June 2013 quarter.

In sharp contrast, TCS expects to fare better in FY14 as compared to its performance in the previous year. HCL is betting big on large transformational deals. Considering this, both the companies are expected to grow at a faster clip compared to Infosys and Wipro.

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Vodafone launches new pre-paid national roaming plan

MANGALORE: Vodafone India Ltd launched a new national roaming plan for its pre-paid customers. With this plan, Vodafone pre-paid customers will be able to receive incoming calls while roaming on Vodafone network at 30p/minute, across India. Outgoing call rates are highly competitive at 1.5p/sec for all local and STD calls, while roaming or at home.

The price point for the new national roaming plan varies from state to state and ranges between Rs 26 to Rs 47. In Delhi, there are two price points - Rs 21 and Rs 42. With holiday season approaching, most people will be planning their vacations and this new roaming plan will let the vacationers enjoy affordable roaming rates.

Standard rates will be applicable for SMS, data roaming and ISD roaming. The plans come with roaming incoming benefit of 30 days and tariff validity of 180 days. These new roaming plans for pre paid customers are presently available in all Vodafone circles, except Himachal Pradesh, Odisha and Jammu and Kashmir.

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Microsoft India comes under I-T department lens

NEW DELHI: After Nokia and Royal Dutch Shell, the Income Tax department has sent a demand notice to software giant Microsoft's Indian arm, which said it has challenged the same.

IT department reportedly sent notice to Microsoft seeking details of its income from Indian operations for four years beginning with the 2005-06 fiscal.

Details have been sought about income from work done at Microsoft's Indian research and development sites on several softwares, which were marketed globally.

When reached for comments, Microsoft India said it has approached appellate forums for the resolution of the issue.

"Microsoft complies with the tax laws in each jurisdiction in which we operate. We are seeking relief against the transfer pricing (TP) adjustments through the appropriate appellate forums," it said in an e-mail statement.

The IT department notice reportedly does not quantify the amount of profits earned by its US-based parent Microsoft Corporation that are attributable to the work performed at its R&D centres in India.

The company said: "Since the matter is sub judice, we are unable to provide further details or comments regarding the same. We are hopeful that the Rangachary Committee recommendations on R&D Centers and Safe Harbours will help facilitate resolutions to TP litigations in the IT industry."

Last year, the government had set up a panel, headed by former Central Board of Direct Taxes ( CBDT) Chairman N Rangachary, to address issues like approach to taxation of development centres, tax treatment of 'onsite services' of domestic software firms and those related to finalising Safe Harbour provisions.

Safe Harbour principles are international disclosure practices to check litigations in transfer pricing -- an accounting mechanism undertaken by MNCs to reduce their tax liabilities.

In March this year, the Indian subsidiary of the Finnish mobile phone maker Nokia was served the IT notice asking it to pay over Rs 2,000 crore for alleged evasion of taxes in its business transactions in the country.

Similarly, tax authorities in February 2012 charged Shell India, part of Anglo-Dutch oil major Royal Dutch Shell, of under--pricing a share transfer within the group by Rs 15,220 crore and consequently evading taxes.

The order relates to the issue of 8.7 crore shares by Shell India to an overseas company Shell Gas BV in March 2009.

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Microsoft India comes under I-T department scanner

NEW DELHI: After Nokia and Royal Dutch Shell, the Income Tax department has sent a demand notice to software giant Microsoft's Indian arm, which said it has challenged the same.

IT department reportedly sent notice to Microsoft seeking details of its income from Indian operations for four years beginning with the 2005-06 fiscal.

Details have been sought about income from work done at Microsoft's Indian research and development sites on several softwares, which were marketed globally.

When reached for comments, Microsoft India said it has approached appellate forums for the resolution of the issue.

"Microsoft complies with the tax laws in each jurisdiction in which we operate. We are seeking relief against the transfer pricing (TP) adjustments through the appropriate appellate forums," it said in an e-mail statement.

The IT department notice reportedly does not quantify the amount of profits earned by its US-based parent Microsoft Corporation that are attributable to the work performed at its R&D centres in India.

The company said: "Since the matter is sub judice, we are unable to provide further details or comments regarding the same. We are hopeful that the Rangachary Committee recommendations on R&D Centers and Safe Harbours will help facilitate resolutions to TP litigations in the IT industry."

Last year, the government had set up a panel, headed by former Central Board of Direct Taxes ( CBDT) Chairman N Rangachary, to address issues like approach to taxation of development centres, tax treatment of 'onsite services' of domestic software firms and those related to finalising Safe Harbour provisions.

Safe Harbour principles are international disclosure practices to check litigations in transfer pricing -- an accounting mechanism undertaken by MNCs to reduce their tax liabilities.

In March this year, the Indian subsidiary of the Finnish mobile phone maker Nokia was served the IT notice asking it to pay over Rs 2,000 crore for alleged evasion of taxes in its business transactions in the country.

Similarly, tax authorities in February 2012 charged Shell India, part of Anglo-Dutch oil major Royal Dutch Shell, of under--pricing a share transfer within the group by Rs 15,220 crore and consequently evading taxes.

The order relates to the issue of 8.7 crore shares by Shell India to an overseas company Shell Gas BV in March 2009.

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Internet sales tax bill gets Obama backing as vote nears

WASHINGTON: A measure that would empower US states to require out-of-state retailers to collect online sales tax won backing from president Barack Obama on Monday and is expected to pass a legislative test vote in the Senate later this evening.

The bill will be the subject of a procedural motion that, if approved, will clear the way for a final vote in the Democratic-controlled Senate, likely on Wednesday.

Supporters of the measure include brick-and-mortar retailers such as Wal-Mart Stores and Best Buy and cash-strapped state governments, along with Amazon.com, which hopes to simplify its US state retail tax situation. Opponents include many online merchants, including eBay and Overstock.com.

Congressional backers say they have the 60 votes needed to end debate in the Senate. Momentum has been building since 75 of 100 senators last month voted for a non-binding version of the bill.

Prospects for the bipartisan measure are murkier in the Republican-controlled House of Representatives, where some Republicans view it as a tax hike.

Lobbyists on both sides are working to make their case in Congress, with several new wrinkles emerging on Monday, a key one being that the Obama administration for the first time officially backed the measure.

White House spokesman Jay Carney said the bill "will level the playing field for local small business retailers who are undercut every day by out-of-state on-line companies."

Amazon, with its extensive network of distribution centres, already collects tax in nine states, and has agreements with seven more states to start charging in the next year. Amazon has been actively supporting the bill on Capitol Hill.

The bipartisan National Governors Association supports the tax, and in a letter to lawmakers on Monday said the disparate treatment of online and Main Street businesses is "shuttering stores and undermining state budgets."

Wall street weighs in
In another twist to the lobbying on the issue that has gone on for years, the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association came out in opposition to the bill.

Representing big investment banks like Goldman Sachs, but also online companies like E*Trade Financial, Sifma said the bill could lead to a state-level financial transaction tax and "unexpected" consumer costs.

Eleven EU countries are embracing a federal-level financial transaction tax on trading in stocks, bonds and derivatives. The Obama administration opposes such a tax for the United States.

The idea of imposing a financial transaction tax at the state level in the United States seemed unlikely to Verenda Smith, deputy director of the Federation of Tax Administrators.

She said she was not aware of any states that impose such a tax. "It's hard for a state to even broaden their sales tax to include hairdressers," Smith said. "I don't want to think how hard it would be to broaden to financial transactions."

Under current law, states can only mandate that online merchants with physical stores or affiliates within state borders collect sales tax. Consumers are supposed to pay the tax on their own, but few even know about this.

As a result, online-only retailers often have a pricing edge over bricks-and-mortar retailers in many markets.

The legislation would extend the authority of US states to online sales outside their physical borders, though it would not require them to do so. It would exempt merchants with online annual out-of-state sales of $1 million or less.

"The reason the (banks) are nervous about it is they have managed to successfully argue against their services being taxed because it is so mobile," said Kim Ruben, an economist and director of state issues at the Tax Policy Center, a centrist think tank in Washington.

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How eBay is trying to change Federal sales tax legislation

SAN FRANCISCO: eBay Chief Executive John Donahoe began emailing millions of users of the company's online marketplace in an unprecedented lobbying effort to change looming Federal sales tax legislation.

The e-commerce giant plans to send emails from Donahoe to at least 40 million eBay users, including most sellers on the marketplace. The first messages were sent out Sunday morning.

In the emails, Donahoe said the legislation, known as the Marketplace Fairness Act, unfairly burdens small online merchants and asked eBay users to send an email message to members of Congress asking for changes.

The legislation, due to be voted on by the Senate in coming days, gives states the power to compel retailers outside their borders to collect online sales tax. Currently, states can only require merchants with a physical presence within their borders to collect.

The legislation includes an exemption for merchants that generate less than $1 million in annual out-of-state revenue.

Donahoe argued in the emails that merchants with less than $10 million in annual out-of-state sales, or fewer than 50 employees, should be exempt. Reuters viewed copies of the emails.

In emails to eBay sellers, Donahoe singled out Amazon.com, eBay's main rival, which supports the current legislation.

"This legislation treats you and big multi-billion dollar online retailers - such as Amazon - exactly the same," Donahoe wrote. "Those fighting for this change refuse to acknowledge that the burden on businesses like yours is far greater than for a big national retailer."

Amazon generates more than $10 million in sales every 90 minutes, giving the world's largest internet retailer more resources than a typical small merchant to collect sales tax in all states, Donahoe argued.

EBay has tapped its users in a major way once before. In 2006, when Meg Whitman was CEO, she emailed users about the issue of net neutrality and the need to keep the Internet open. In that effort, Whitman emailed fewer than 10 million users.

"It's the biggest grass-roots effort by eBay ever," said Brian Bieron, senior director of global public policy at eBay. "It's coming to a head in Congress and now's the time to give our users the opportunity to share their thoughts."

The scope of eBay's lobbying effort suggests the company may have more to lose than Amazon if the legislation becomes law in its current form.

Amazon supported a $500,000 annual sales exemption in an earlier version of the legislation, arguing that anything higher would give too many small online sellers an unfair tax advantage over larger retailers.

Amazon also runs a popular marketplace for online sellers, however eBay is still particularly popular with small sellers.

Wayne Johnson, who runs fly fishing retailer Anglers Habitat in Caldwell, Idaho, generates about $2.5 million in annual sales on eBay.

If the legislation passes in its current form, Johnson said he would re-organize his business to get annual out-of state online sales below the $1 million threshold.

That would involve laying off most of his staff, which currently consists of eight full-time employees and an accountant, he said.

More worryingly for eBay, Johnson said he would start selling through Amazon's marketplace because Amazon handles warehouse storage, order fulfillment and shipping.

Amazon charges extra fees for these services, meaning Johnson's business may be less profitable, but he said he would be able to keep running the online operation with very few staff.

"That's where I would go if this bill passes," Johnson added. "I could do that business with just my son and me."

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Samsung Galaxy S4 to launch in India on April 26

NEW DELHI: Samsung will launch its flagship smartphone - Galaxy S4 - In India on April 26. The launch is part of the global rollout of the device. It will go on sale in other markets like the US and some European countries on the same day.

For now, Samsung hasn't revealed any India price but the phone is expected to cost a little more than Rs 40,000.

Samsung has two versions of Galaxy S4 - one powered by a Qualcomm S600 processor and another powered by Samsung's 8-core Exynos processor. In India, the Korean company is expected to launch the Exynos model.

Galaxy S4, which is powered by Android operating system, is the successor to Galaxy S III. Samsung hopes to sell around 10 million units of its top smartphone within one month of launch.

In India, the company is the top smartphone vendor. According to CyberMedia Research, Samsung had a share of 43% in Indian smartphone market at the end of 2012.

Currently, Samsung and Apple are fighting a bitter war in Indian market. Last year Apple bolstered its operations in India. This year it has launched several aggressive schemes, including price cuts on older models of iPhones, to increase sale of its smartphones. Samsung has responded by introducing its own schemes, including cash back and zero interest EMIs for several models of Galaxy phones.

The Korean company hopes Galaxy S4 will help it stay ahead of Apple as a new iPhone is not expected to launch anytime soon.

When it hits the market, Galaxy S4 will also compete against HTC One, a phone that has garnered much praise among technology reviewers for its design, camera performance and a few unique features like Zoe. HTC One has been priced at Rs 42,990. It will be available in Indian market by the end of this month.

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Apple investors worry over stock volatility after earnings

NEW YORK/CHICAGO: For years, Apple was a stock investor's dream regardless of the market environment. But now, concern about the iPhone maker's growth has made many investors wary about a big share swing after its earnings are released on Tuesday.

Options pricing on Friday suggested a post-earnings move of about 7.5 percent by April 26. That is far more than in the past and reflects the fact that Apple stock has become more volatile.

The company, once the world's largest by market value, saw its shares close below $400 on Thursday for the first time since December 2011. It has shed nearly $300 billion in market value since peaking at $705.07 a share in September.

"Being a bear on Apple used to be a lonely position. The tables have turned," said Enis Taner, global macro editor at options research firm RiskReversal.com in New York.

A 7.5% swing for Apple would be the fourth largest one-day post-earnings move in the last five years, according to research firm Birinyi Associates. That could take shares as high as $419.20 or as low as $360.80, based on the weekly $390 "straddle" expiring on April 26, which cost $29.20 on Friday.

Traders use prices on the straddle to estimate the market's view of the potential range of a stock going into an event such as earnings. A straddle combines the purchase of a call option and put option with the same strike price and expiration date.

A move of 7.5 percent would exceed the average move in Apple after its earnings, which in the last eight quarters has been 5.4%. Apple's biggest post-earnings swing was a 12.4% drop on January 23 of this year.

Apple is expected to report an 8% increase in quarterly revenue, among the weakest displays of quarterly growth in years, according to estimates. Earnings per share are expected to fall 18 percent as Samsung Electronics and other rivals erode market share for phones and tablets and put downward pressure on margins.

Because the stock was such a stalwart, investors for years knew it was difficult to go against the crowd. Between July 2009 and November 2012, short interest - the percentage of shares borrowed by investors who "short," or bet against, the stock - on Apple never exceeded two percent of the company's shares outstanding. At the current 2.1%, Apple's short interest is still lower than 55% of US companies, according to Thomson Reuters Starmine.

Expectations of how much the stock is likely to move in coming weeks have also increased. Apple options show implied volatility for the next 30 days was 43.5% on Friday, according to data from options analytics firm Livevol.

That implies about a 4 percent move in the stock in either direction in the next month, said Livevol managing director Ophir Gottlieb.

Historic volatility for Apple for the 30-day period over the past year was about 34%. It has been rising over the past several months.

Many analysts still expect the stock to rebound because of still-strong demand for Apple's products. But there are many institutions that own shares bought at higher prices and they might remain a source of selling pressure if buyers surface, said Phil Erlanger, president of institutional research firm Phil Erlanger Research in Acton, Massachusetts.

"The problem for Apple is that those that have hung onto their shares after September will represent significant supply, which tends to squash any short-term advance," Erlanger said.

Apple is currently trading at nine times trailing earnings and 45 of 58 analysts polled by Reuters give the stock a "strong buy" or "buy" rating. According to Thomson Reuters Starmine, Apple's intrinsic value - a price target based on expected growth rates over the next decade - was about $565 a share.

The stock closed 0.4 percent lower on Friday at $390.53.

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Delhi Police wants CBI to probe Google Maps row: BJP

NEW DELHI: The Google Mapathon event case, in which the US internet giant allegedly violated Indian mapping laws, has been sent to the home ministry with the recommendation of a probe by the CBI cybercrime cell, BJP MP Tarun Vijay said Saturday.

"Delhi Police commissioner Neeraj Kumar has informed that the case against Google India for violating Indian mapping laws has been recommended to be investigated by the cybercrime cell of the CBI and sent to home ministry for taking further action as the case is a national issue," said a release issued on behalf of Vijay.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader said he had already given a call attention notice in parliament in this regard and hoped the government would come out with a statement.

He alleged Google publicly showed air force stations, ammunition depots and identified the positions of fighter planes.

Vijay said Google had sent a reply to Surveyor General of India and released its content to the media so as to show the surveyor in poor light.

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Dell suitors steer away amid PC sales slump

Buyout specialist Blackstone Group is dropping its effort to acquire Dell, and billionaire investor Carl Icahn is reportedly unlikely to follow through on his preliminary acquisition offer, as suitors digest studies showing a staggering decline in PC sales.

The Wall Street Journal said Icahn will now likely wait to see if shareholders approve a February deal for the company to be taken private by a group that includes founder and CEO Michael Dell for $24.4 billion. The newspaper, citing an unnamed person familiar with Icahn's thinking, said that if the deal is rejected, Icahn may pursue a hostile takeover.

The news came after the company said in a securities filing Friday that Blackstone was withdrawing from the bidding process.

Blackstone and its partners said that because of the latest PC market figures, which surfaced after their bid was submitted last month, they have dropped a plan to buy most of Dell's outstanding stock for $14.25 per share. A letter from the group to a special committee of Dell board members was dated Thursday and disclosed on Friday.

Blackstone's withdrawal and Icahn's new wait-and-see approach leaves Dell with the February offer from Michael Dell's group, which has offered $13.65 per share in a deal that would take the company private.

Icahn's preliminary proposal had been to acquire 58 percent of Dell stock for $15 per share while keeping it publicly traded.

PC sales have been declining as people delay replacing desktop and laptop computers and spend money instead on smartphones and tablet computers. Worldwide PC shipments plunged by 14% in the first three months of the year, according to IDC. That's the steepest quarterly decline during the 19 years that the research firm has been tracking the market. Dell, the world's third largest maker of desktop and laptop computers, saw PC sales fall 11 percent during the first quarter. Another research firm, Gartner, also reported large declines in PC sales.

Michael Dell believes he can turn around the company by diversifying into more profitable niches such as business software, data storage and consulting. It could be a wrenching process, something that Michael Dell believes he will be able to do if he doesn't have to worry about Wall Street's fixation on short-term results. But major shareholders have been unhappy with his group's offer, and competing bids emerged.

The Blackstone letter said that while the bidders still believe Dell is "a leading global company with strong market positions," it also cited Dell's "rapidly eroding financial profile." It noted that Dell has lowered its operating income forecast for this year to $3 billion, from $3.7 billion. That $3.7 billion, in turn, had been lowered this year from a $5.6 billion figure that Dell had circulated internally in July, according to regulatory filings.

Shares of Dell fell 55 cents, or 3.9%, to close at $13.40 on Friday and slipped to $13.37 in after-hours trading. It's the first time since February 11 that the price has dropped below the Michael Dell group's offer price, indicating that investors no longer believe a higher bid will emerge.

When asked about Blackstone's characterisation of Dell's financial profile, spokesman David Frink said in an email that the company remains focused on its customers and "providing innovative products."

A spokeswoman for New York-based Blackstone declined any additional comment on the decision. A message left for Icahn seeking comment was not immediately returned.

Initially valued at $85 million in its 1988 initial public offering, Dell went on a growth tear that turned the company into a stock market star. At the height of the dot-com boom in 2000, Dell was the world's largest PC maker, with a market value of more than $150 billion.

But Dell began to falter as other PC makers were able to lower their costs. At the same time, Hewlett-Packard and other rivals forged relationships with stores that gave them the advantage of being able to showcase their machines. By 2006, HP had supplanted Dell as the world's largest PC maker. With its revenue slipping, Dell's market value had fallen to $19 billion just before the Michael Dell bid emerged.

In a show of confidence in his plan, Michael Dell is contributing $4.5 billion of his cash and stock to the proposed buyout, which is led by investment firm Silver Lake Partners. Loans would provide most of the rest of the financing. Microsoft, which counts Dell among its biggest customers, is backing the deal by lending $2 billion to the buyers.

The board special committee had said it believed Blackstone's proposal could have been more lucrative than that deal. But the committee wanted to review the formal terms of Blackstone's bid before making a final assessment.

Dell has agreed to cover up to $25 million in expenses that Blackstone incurred while exploring its bid. Dell isn't reimbursing Icahn for his expenses because he refused to agree to a company demand that would have prevented him from pursuing a hostile takeover attempt.

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Review: Twitter music service

By Ryan Nakashima

LOS ANGELES: Until now, my problem with social music services has been this: Following friends doesn't really turn up much music I actually want to hear. We didn't become friends because we share musical tastes, and too few of them are using the services I'm trying out.

Twitter's new music service solves this problem. It helps that it's free. With it, I'm able to sneak a peek into the musical interests of the artists I like. For example, I discovered that Gotye likes the Divine Fits, a Los Angeles-based band I'd never heard of until now, because he follows them on Twitter.

With a tap on the colorful photo representing the band, I can listen to a 30-second preview of the new song of theirs that is being tweeted about the most. For the Divine Fits, that's "Like Ice Cream." It was catchy enough for me to want to hear more.

After listening to a preview, I can tap a button to buy the track on iTunes or listen to the full song through a $10-a-month subscription from Spotify or Rdio. I can also find other songs from the artists through those outside services.

As a discovery tool, Twitter's music service provides a convenient, visually pleasing way to filter through the deluge of music that's out there.

Sure, I could have replicated this feature by digging through Gotye's Twitter profile and individually going into the profiles of people he's following to determine if they're artists. Then I could search elsewhere for their songs or music videos. But that's more work than I'm ready to put into this.

The (hash)music service highlights the artists for you and features the song preview right there.

The service also has a tab for emerging artists that it somehow digs out from tweets. I'm not sure how they're selected, but random poking around this page is how I found the broody music of Skylar Grey.

Finding new music can be tough. It's easy to get hit over the head by the chart-toppers, who are everywhere. There's also a "popular" tab in (hash)music for a rundown of which artists are trending on Twitter.

It's way more difficult to find music you like if you never knew a band existed. This provides a way.

For now, (hash)music is available as an iPhone app and on the Web at https://music.twitter.com. Twitter says an Android version is coming, but it didn't say when.

Beyond its usefulness for music discovery, the Twitter (hash)music app is fun to play with. It is far more engaging than Twitter's regular app, and swiping around makes the squares representing artists bounce around. Tapping to play a song clip generates a spinning icon with album cover art that harkens back to the heyday of vinyl records.

True, this is a marketing tool and I was skeptical to start. And (hash)music is not perfect for listening. Artists have only one song apiece on their profiles, so if you want to hear more you've got to go elsewhere.

And even if you buy a song from iTunes after discovering it here, tapping the play button on the artist's square again will still play the 30-second preview. I discovered this after buying Skylar Grey's "Final Warning" for 69 cents. To hear the full version, I had to go back to the iPhone's music player.

It also didn't track the (hash)NowPlaying tag very well, despite putting it in all my tweets from the service. There was a considerable lag in showing these tweets from people I follow compared with my normal Twitter feed.

For full song plays within the service, you have to sign up for a premium subscription to Spotify or Rdio, each of which costs $10 a month.

This made using (hash)music much better, although I discovered more artists by listening to just 30 seconds, making a quick decision and moving on - kind of like speed dating for music. The clips will play back-to-back, which can make for a jarring listening experience. But you also can focus your time on quick music discovery and go elsewhere to learn more.

Connecting the service to my Rdio account helped because the songs I played through (hash)music showed up on the Rdio app's history list. That way, I could switch to Rdio to listen to the whole album.

Thanks to (hash)music, I discovered that I like the Divine Fits and Skylar Grey within, say, a half hour of fiddling with the service. That makes it worth downloading, in my view. I'll go back to it when I'm on the hunt again for music I didn't know was there.

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Hacker targeting online gaming companies: Kaspersky

Neha Madaan, TNN Apr 20, 2013, 04.25PM IST

(According to Kaspersky…)

PUNE: Kaspersky Lab's team of experts recently published a detailed research report that analyzes a sustained cyberespionage campaign conducted by the cybercriminal organization known as 'Winnti'.

According to Kaspersky Lab's report, the Winnti group has been attacking companies in the online gaming industry since 2009 and is currently still active. The group's objectives are stealing digital certificates signed by legitimate software vendors in addition to intellectual property theft, including the source code of online game projects.

A statement issued by the lab said that the first incident that drew attention to the Winnti group's malicious activities occurred in the autumn of 2011, when a malicious Trojan was detected on a large number of end-user computers across the globe. "The clear link between all of the infected computers is that they were used to play a popular online game. Shortly after the incident, details emerged that the malicious programme which had infected the users' computers was part of a regular update from the gaming company's official server. Infected users and members of the gaming community suspected the computer game publisher was installing the malware to spy on its customers. However, it later became clear that the malicious programme was installed on the players' computers by accident, and that the cybercriminals were actually targeting the computer game company itself," the release said.

Kaspersky Lab's experts began analyzing the Winnti group's campaign and found that more than 30 companies in the online gaming industry had been infected by the Winnti group, with the majority being software development companies producing online video games in South East Asia.

Currently the Winnti group is still active and Kaspersky Lab's investigation is ongoing. The company's team of experts has been working with the IT security community, online gaming industry and certificate authorities to identify additional infected servers while assisting with the revocation of stolen digital certificates.

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FM raises concern over H-1B visa issue

PTI Apr 20, 2013, 04.31PM IST

(Chidambaram said that temporary…)

WASHINGTON: Flagging concerns of Indian companies on the H-1B visa issue in the latest US immigration bill, Finance Minister P Chidambaram told his American counterpart Jack Lew that temporary relocation of knowledge workers should not be confused with immigration.

"There are some provisions related to the H-1B and L-1 visas, which require a higher visa application fee, if certain threshold is crossed in employing Indians on site. I did flag it in my meeting with Secretary Lew. Just made the point that temporary relocation of knowledge workers should not be confused with immigration," Chidambaram told a select group of journalists here.

Noting that the bill is of immigration, Chidambaram said that temporary relocation of knowledge workers on site to service a client should not be confused with immigration.

"I hope the point is taken," he said in response to a question on his meeting with Lew.

During his meeting with Lew, Chidambaram said the two discussed a range of bilateral issues of mutual interests. They also discussed the possible dates for the next India-US Economic Dialogue.

Chidambaram proposed that the next India-US Economic Dialogue be held in July along with the CEO Forum meeting in Washington on July 11 and 12. The US has not confirmed the dates yet.

"We generally exchanged views on matters of mutual interest," he told reporters during a news conference.

Responding to questions, the Finance Minister said the growth of Japan is good for India.

Chidambaram is currently in Washington to attend the annual spring meeting of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. During his trip, he also held road shows in Toronto, Boston and New York to attract foreign investors to India.

"Message is that we are committed to key issues like fiscal consolidation, containing inflation, improving the supply side, project implementation, independent regulators for critical sectors. It is always useful to talk to foreign investors," he said.

From the CEOs, he said, he heard, slowness of decision making, obstacles to implementing projects, some ambiguity in tax laws and some ambiguities in policies.

"I think, everybody recognises that India is an attractive market. Everybody recognises that India is a market in which you can do business and make reasonable profit," he said.

"There are some drawbacks in our system, which we need to fix," he added.

The Finance Minister said the potential growth rate of the country is eight per cent. He exuded confidence that India would soon achieve its potential growth rate.

Meanwhile, speaking at the at the Peterson Institute, the Finance Minister, said that in the long run it is in the interest of India to negotiate a FTA with the US.

"In the long run, I believe, it is in the interest of India to negotiate a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the US," Chidambaram said.

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Amazon posts 14 pilots TV shows on internet

Reuters Apr 20, 2013, 06.25PM IST

(Amazon.com's experiment…)

SAN FRANCISCO: Amazon.com's experiment with original video production took a big step forward as the company posted 14 pilot TV shows on the internet for free viewing.

Amazon, the world's largest internet retailer, has been filming pilots in recent months for comedy and kids TV shows such as Alpha House, Betas and Teeny Tiny Dogs.

The company posted them all on the Amazon Instant Video section of its website to get feedback on which shows viewers like best. The pilots can also be watched on Amazon Instant Video apps through other web-connected devices like Roku, Microsoft's Xbox and Nintendo's Wii.

Based on viewers' reactions and reviews, the Amazon Studios production company will decide which projects to make into full TV series to be shown on Prime Instant Video, Amazon's subscription-based online video service.

Amazon and other technology companies are trying to transform Hollywood by delivering TV shows and movies over the Internet, rather than through traditional channels such as cable and satellite services.

Like Netflix, Amazon has decided that it must move beyond being a distributor of others' shows to producing quality programming of its own.

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Zync Cloud Z5 Dual Core phablet: Surprisingly good

This is a time when budget phone makers have moved on to the mid-range and are focusing their energies on phablets with quad-core CPUs and HD displays. However, those who seek sub-Rs 10,000 smartphones with 5-inch screens have more than enough options. Indigenous manufacturer Zync has updated its phablet line-up with the Cloud Z5 Dual Core, a phone that runs on a - you guessed it right - a dual-core processor and costs Rs 8,990. We reviewed the device to find out if it gives Micromax Canvas 2, inarguably the most popular phone in this price range, any competition. Here is what we saw ...

Hardware & design
Zync Coud Z5 Dual Core comes with a 5-inch TFT screen that has resolution of 800x480p and pixel density of 187ppi. As the name suggests, it runs on a 1GHz dual-core processor, paired with 512MB RAM, and has 4GB internal storage with support for up to 32GB microSD card, as is the standard at sub-Rs 10,000 phablets. Connectivity suite of the phone also does not hold any surprises and features 2G, 3G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.0 and microUSB 2.0 port. This dual-sim smartphone comes with a 2,500mAh battery.

This smartphone resembles the first Samsung Galaxy Note to quite an extent, though it is not as refined in appearance. Above the big display is the secondary camera and the usual sensors, while a hardware Home key and two capacitive Back and Options keys are below it. The Power/Lock key is on the right side, volume rocker on the left, microUSB port at the bottom and earphone jack is placed on top. Overall, the design of the phone is such that the phone is quite easy to handle, but its appearance is quite unremarkable and lacks the wow factor.

Software
On the software side, Zync Cloud Z5 Dual Core gives you Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) out-of-the-box, a bit behind the stream as rivals are available with Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean). We were surprised that the usual suite of Google apps like Gmail and Gtalk were missing from the phone, though you can always download them from the Play Store. A few pre-loaded apps on the device are Facebook, Twitter, Office Suite, Bollywood Hungama, Bigflix etc. Overall, there was no customisation by the manufacture. While this means that you do not get any cool features, more importantly it means that there is no tweaking that slows the phone down.

Performance
The TFT screen of Zync Cloud Z5 Dual Core is decent, but misses the mark when it comes to viewing angles and reflectivity. However, it offers acceptable sunlight legibility and is quite responsive and there was never any instance when it did not respond to touch.

The device is quite easy to hold in one hand and never seems too big, with easy to access keys on both sides. However, what surprised us most is how fluidly it operates even when we downloaded approximately 30-40 apps. This is a far cry from the experience Zync Z1000 tablet gave us. All the apps run perfectly well and there is never any lag to be noticed. Our fears of RAM falling short during moderate usage, something we have come to expect from budget phablets, came to be unfounded. However, its score of 6512 on Antutu benchmark test seemed a little low considering the surprisingly good user experience.

An 8MP camera with LED flash is strapped on the back of the phone, which does a decent job, but does not have anything remarkable to offer. The Camera app offers the basic controls that Android brings, nothing new. While the photo quality is good, you should be prepared for images with noise under low light. The battery gave us a pleasant surprise as Zync Cloud Z5 Dual Core lasted nearly a day with moderate use on single charge.

Rivals
While Zync Cloud Z5 Dual Core is a good smartphone for its price, it is in a segment that has intense competition. Micromax Canvas 2 is not the only good smartphone in category, but you can also opt for Lava Iris 501 and Karbonn Smart Titanium S1, along with offerings from others.

Canvas 2 has similar specifications, decent build quality and has recently been upgraded to Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean). However, its availability is thin right now, giving rivals like Zync Cloud Z5 Dual Core some room. Lava Iris 501 is also a good option and delivers better performance in Antutu benchmark test.

Karbonn Smart Titanium S1 will be preferred over this Zync phone by those who are okay with a slightly smaller screen (4.5-inch) but a more powerful quad-core processor. However, we are yet to review this device and thus cannot comment on how good the overall user experience is.

Verdict
Zync Cloud Z5 Dual Core is a good phablet, especially if its price tag of Rs 8,990 is factored in the equation. In the budget segment, this device is placed a good Rs 2,000 below the competition, which may help it lure buyers who are not bothered by the branding of relatively better known companies. The device offers a decent user experience and seems to be worth the money, though not having Android 4.1 natively means that you do not get Project Butter optimisations, Google Now voice assistant etc.

What we like
*Easy to handle
*Smooth user experience
*Battery life

What we don't like
*No Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean)
*Basic Google apps missing
*Price: Rs 8,990

Key specs
*Display: 5-inch TFT display with 800x480p resolution, 187ppi pixel density
*Operating system: Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich)
*Processor & RAM: 1GHz dual-core processor, 512MB RAM
*Storage: 4GB internal memory + 32GB expandable via microSD card
*Connectivity: 2G, 3G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.0, microUSB
*Camera: 8MP rear camera with flash, VGA front shooter
*Battery: 2,500mAh

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