Shivani Shinde &Amp; Priyanka Joshi

Stories by Shivani Shinde &Amp; Priyanka Joshi

VC funds vote for clean tech

VC funds vote for clean tech

Rediff.com   17 Oct 2008

Indian clean technology businesses are finally catching the attention of investor community. New Ventures India - founded by World Resources Institute and CII-Godrej Green Business Centre - aims to fund 50 entrepreneurs in this segment by 2010 with a target investment of $250 million

Free group SMSes from Google soon

Free group SMSes from Google soon

Rediff.com   7 Oct 2008

Google is testing its SMS channel in India and intends to launch it to global audiences later. It supports English, Hindi, Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam and Kannada languages. It was fully conceptualised by Google India Labs. Prasad Ram, head (R&D), Google India, says, "The SMS channel is in line with our endeavour to connect the 250 million mobile subscribers who have no access to information."

SAP takes centre stage with HCL, Infosys' bid for

SAP takes centre stage with HCL, Infosys' bid for

Rediff.com   29 Sep 2008

With India's two leading IT outsourcing companies, Infosys and HCL Technologies, vying to acquire the UK-based consulting firm Axon, SAP implementation is back in focus.

Google phone to hit Indian stores in December

Google phone to hit Indian stores in December

Rediff.com   26 Sep 2008

The price, however, will be higher than the US debut tag of around Rs 8,200 ($179). Ajay Sharma, country manager, HTC (India), told Business Standard: "We would prefer a mobile operator tie-up to introduce the Google phone in India in December."

Google entices phone users with voice search

Google entices phone users with voice search

Rediff.com   22 Sep 2008

Internet search giant Google hopes to hook the millions of cellular phone subscribers in India who do not use data or SMS-based services with its voice-based search. It is conducting pilot projects in Hyderabad and Delhi, and is expected to roll out more in Mumbai, Bangalore and Kolkata shortly. The company is expected to add audio playback for search queries on local news and entertainment.

HCL follows Future Group, plans $1 bn venture fund

HCL follows Future Group, plans $1 bn venture fund

Rediff.com   11 Sep 2008

The venture, on the lines of Kishore Biyani's Future Ventures India, will focus its investments in the information technology sector, said a source familiar with the development.

HCL Tech may raise $1 billion for acquisitions

HCL Tech may raise $1 billion for acquisitions

Rediff.com   10 Sep 2008

The company is in talks with a few private banks and has signed on Citibank as one of the bankers to raise these funds, said sources. HCL Technologies and Citibank declined to comment saying that 'they do not comment on market speculation'.

Norwest eyes 6 deals by year-end

Norwest eyes 6 deals by year-end

Rediff.com   9 Sep 2008

Plans another $1-billion fund, wants to expand core team in India.

BPOs flock to rural areas to set up shop

BPOs flock to rural areas to set up shop

Rediff.com   9 Sep 2008

With the telecom industry aiming to increase its rural subscribers base and the central bank asking banks and financial firms to cater to the rural sector, businesses will have to find ways of servicing customers, say analysts. Most of the rural BPOs have a seating capacity of below 100 per centre, as they are situated in remote areas.

IT firms adopt new ways to offset hiring costs

IT firms adopt new ways to offset hiring costs

Rediff.com   6 Sep 2008

A slowdown in the global economy and sub-prime crisis in the banking, financial and insurance services sector, its major revenue earners, force the domestic IT industry to take a relook at its hiring strategy.

Need a small, cheap, effective laptop?

Need a small, cheap, effective laptop?

Rediff.com   4 Sep 2008

You have two new options -- Asus's Eee PC 1000H and Acer's Aspire One. Both, says Priyanka Joshi, are worth your attention.

iPhone price may fall 15%

iPhone price may fall 15%

Rediff.com   1 Sep 2008

A week after Apple began selling iPhone in India, experts believe that the iconic phone is ready to become cheaper by more than 15 per cent to boost sales in the world's fastest-growing mobile phone market.

Tech firms train sights on domestic retail space

Tech firms train sights on domestic retail space

Rediff.com   22 Aug 2008

The figure is expected to rise to over Rs 4,600 crore (Rs 46 billion) by 2010 - a compounded annual growth rate of 44 per cent. Retail has been one of the largest growth sectors for all the top IT firms. For instance, Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys Technologies, Wipro Technologies and Satyam Computer Services saw their retail business grow by 33.6, 45.3, 38.5 and 117 per cent respectively on a year-on-year basis.

Brands latch on to mobile advertisements

Brands latch on to mobile advertisements

Rediff.com   20 Aug 2008

When mKhoj, a mobile advertising platform, launched a mobile campaign for Reebok, little could it dream of 40 million targeted impressions, in just over six weeks, of the ad. But it did precisely that.

Aegis BPO's PeopleSupport buy hits hurdle

Aegis BPO's PeopleSupport buy hits hurdle

Rediff.com   7 Aug 2008

"Levi & Korsinsky usually investigates a deal when any of the clients complain about chances of fraud in the transaction. In Aegis's acquisition of PeopleSupport, we received a complaint from a client who is a shareholder of PeopleSupport. After our investigation, if we find any fraud, we will take up the issue before the court. At this point of time, we can not disclose the name of the client," said Juan E Monteverde, associate, Levi & Korsinsky.

IT firms shift focus to smaller clients

IT firms shift focus to smaller clients

Rediff.com   4 Aug 2008

Indian IT firms have started mining smaller clients with more fervour given that the revenue accruring from their top clients has been declining due to the US slowdown and the sub-prime crisis. Consider this. Revenue accruing from the top clients of the five leading IT firms by revenue - Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys Technologies, Wipro Technologies, Satyam Computer Services and HCL Technologies - dropped by anywhere between 0.2 per cent and 4 per cent

Sending email: Can you be arrested?

Sending email: Can you be arrested?

Rediff.com   29 Jul 2008

Can security agencies arrest you if an e-mail sent from your computer implicates you in a case of cyber-terrorism? Currently, the answer appears to be "yes" despite the fact that e-mail IDs can be spoofed (faked) and IP addresses (your computer's identity when surfing) manipulated with ease.

Virtual data centres save power, realty costs

Virtual data centres save power, realty costs

Rediff.com   17 Jul 2008

Research firm IDC India estimates the share of virtualised servers in the industry to double from the current 22 per cent to 45 per cent by the year-end.

Paid mobile entertainment losing steam

Paid mobile entertainment losing steam

Rediff.com   10 Jul 2008

Consider this. Leading broadcaster Star India's mobile interactive division, Star Mobile Entertainment -- which made some serious headway in the space by launching a service whereby mobile users could opt to view soaps from across Star India's network -- recently reviewed its operational strategy.

Rupee fall may not help IT companies in Q1

Rupee fall may not help IT companies in Q1

Rediff.com   8 Jul 2008

Mark-to-market losses due to the unexpected fall of the rupee against the US dollar, euro and pound; the impact of wage increases in the first quarter; a stagnant global economy; and margin pressure owing to inflation are expected to impact the rupee-term fortunes of Indian IT firms that will declare their quarterly results for the April-June 30 quarter beginning this week.