ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 Stadium Preview Video

Have a look at the Video Preview of the Stadiums hosting Cricket World Cup 2011

Sony: India, a bright spot

India has emerged as a bright spot for the global consumer electronics giant, Sony, which in recent years has struggled to meet or beat challenges from rivals, notably Samsung, in developed markets of US and Europe.

Sony, the Japanese consumer electronics major, finally meets its savior in the form of India as the country’s growing middle class offers a burgeoning market for aspirational products from digital cameras & camcorders to LCD & LED TVs and laptops to gaming consoles. The company, which recently declared its results for 9-month ending December 2010, has said that its sales grew the highest in Asia-Pacific which includes markets of China, Taiwan, India, South Korea and Oceania. 

Sony makes popular brands such as Bravia LCD & LED TVs and Vaio range of laptops. The company, which a few years ago did the unthinkable by opting for a non-Japanese CEO for the first time ever in its history, has, however, so far struggled to beat competition from rivals such as Apple (iPads and iPods) and Samsung (LCD TVs and mobiles) in developed markets such as the US and Europe. 

But the company is reaping rich rewards in emerging markets like India where growing aspirations among Indians, particularly, its middle class, owing to rising income levels and changing lifestyles, have been fuelling demand for latest gadgets from LED TVs to gaming consoles to camcorders, thanks to its strong believe in the country’s growth story and also its strong brand identity which it has been busy building over all these years. According to Masaru Tamagawa, Sony’s Managing Director, Sony enjoys No. 1 market share in flat-panel TVs in India at 34 percent, and digital cameras at 40 percent.

Sony's Financials

Source: Sony


Amy, Chief Editor

LG sways Barcelona through its 3D Optimus Smartphone

Just when we thought that tablets are the buzzing word at the Ongoing Mobile World Congress at Barcelona, South Korean electronics giant LG has ripped apart the competition by unveiling its new glassless 3D Smartphone equipped with 3-D Camera.

The smartphone powered by Google’s Android 2.2 Froyo boasts of a 4.3 inch screen and houses 1-GHz Dual-Core processor with 8GB storage space. In terms of picture quality, the camera is capable of recording 1080 high-definition video in normal 2D and 720p in 3D and can be plugged to your HDTV through HDMI cable.

The company announced that the phone will be on sale in the Q2 2011 in Europe, however the release date for US is still not announced.

See below the new LG's 3D Optimus smartphone

Watch out this space for more from the tech world.

Until, then its Venky, Signing Off!

You can contact the author at businessbanter@gmail.com

Can ODI retain its glory?

As the game’s biggest extravaganza begins tomorrow, the administrators and fans alike are debating the future of the one-day international or ODI?

As we brace up to watch the opening match of the World Cup 2011 tomorrow, not many would be aware that this year the ODI format successfully completes 40 years; the first ODI was played on 5th January, 1971 between Australia and England. However, after entertaining the fans for the long four decades, the format’s popularity is now being questioned as it faces stiff competition from the T20 format, whose popularity has only soared in recent times and now threatens the very existence of the ODI. The reasons are all too well known: the T20’s biggest strength is the fact it is the shortest format of this most popular sport in this part of Asia. It gets over in roughly around half-a-day, it is fast and hence is exciting. Further, in today’s Internet age when people have so many entertainment options to spend their time at it would be tough to assume they would be patient enough to watch an 8-9 hours thriller called ODI. 

The administrators at the game’s biggest body too have expressed their concern over possible waning of interest among cricket lovers in ODIs, however, there have not been any concrete steps taken so far to address the same. “There are no plans to dramatically change the format of the 50-over game at international level,” Haroon Lorgat, the ICC chief executive, told in an interview to ESPNSTAR.com. However, he added, “The ODI today has a very different look and feel to what it was 40 years ago when the first match took place in 1971. We have always embraced change and will continue to do so.” 

Indeed, the ODI format has undergone significant changes with the introduction of several interesting features such as reduction of overs from 60 to 50 over per innings, power play, the concept of replacement player or Supersub etc. However, there is still a need to experiment with some more refreshing ideas to keep the fans’ interest alive in this format. Introducing the concept of split-innings, which Australia is experimenting with, could be a good idea. Reducing the number of overs to 40 from the existing 50 could also be toyed with; in fact, countries like England, South Africa and Zimbabwe have already begun experimenting with this in their domestic competitions.

But then one has to understand that the changes would also mean that we won’t be able to see those classic, text-book shots which have been the hallmarks of the formats like ODIs and test matches and instead have to be ready to see more of helicopter shots, switch shots and several other new brands of shots. 

Maybe finding a solution that balances the aspirations of the new genre of fans while at the same time helps retaining the game’s features that made it great would indeed be great.

Meanwhile, we wish all the great success to the World Cup 2011 and great times for the viewers, spectators, fans and all those associated with this great game.

Amy, Chief Editor

Cricket World Cup 2011 Photos

 

Watch out the Photos at the World Cup 2011 Ceremony

Google unveils One Pass, to stump Apple!

Google never fails to surprise. The search engine giant in a master stroke that could well stump rival Apple has unveiled a new payment system, ‘One Pass,’ which gives publishers flexibility over payment models and control over the digital content for which they charge and the content that is free for consumers. The announcement from Google came a day after Apple on February 15, 2011, launched a new subscription service wherein Apple will earn (read: charge) 30% commission on content (such as magazines, newspapers, video, music, etc) sold through the App Store℠. In comparison, Google said it will charge publishers commission of only 10% for contents sold across online platforms such as World Wide Web, mobiles, tablets etc, using its payment gateway, thus eliminating any need for building a third-party payment system into publishers’ sites. According to Google, One Pass also enables metered models, where a publisher can provide some content or a certain number of visits for free, but can charge frequent visitors or those interested in premium content based on the business model that the publisher prefers. 

But some experts suggest that Google’s new move may not pose much of a problem for Apple given the huge popularity of its iPad and iPod and whose subscribers are most likely to pay for digital contents on its app store. “iPhone and iPad users have been more likely to pay for apps and other content than Android users, and the Android app store was slower to thrive,” comments the influential daily, NY Times. According to Apple, App Store offers more than 350,000 apps to consumers in 90 countries, with more than 60,000 native iPad™ apps.

But never underestimate Google whose reach on Internet is unparalleled. The ease of use and the affordability factor might play a crucial role in tilting the scale in favor of Google. Who knows?

Digital content market has been evolving fast and experts feel that it is only going to explode further from hereon as new sets of portable gadgets like smart phones, tablets and other electronics devices gain popularity among aspiring youngsters and also with rising disposable incomes, globally, which would redefine the way news, music, videos and other forms of contents are consumed. This would also benefit publishers as it would help them reduce their timing to market their creations and also give greater flexibility in pricing their products based on buyers’ responses. On the other hand, it would also see the competition further intensifying among competing technology firms.

For now, we would say, Web surfers are in for watching another round of battle royale between two of technology’s best, and shall we say, ferocious, innovators.

Features of

• New revenue stream
• Purchase-once, view-anywhere functionality
• Ability to give access to existing subscribers
• Lightweight technology implementation
• Business model flexibility (e.g., subscriptions, day passes, metered access, pay-per-article, multi-issue packages)

Source: Google.com

Amy, Chief Editor

You can contact the author at: businessbanter@gmail.com

Dell 2.0 delivers: Q4FY11 profits more than double

The ‘make-to-order’ PC king makes a grand comeback with its emphatic performance for FY’11.

When four year ago, on January 31, 2007, when Dell Inc (NASDAQ: DELL), once the undisputed king of the desktop computer market which shot to fame with its unique make-to-order or direct-to-customer model, announced the unceremonious ouster of its then CEO Kevin Rollins and return of Michael Dell, the Founder-Chairman, as the new CEO, expectations rose high. Dell was making a comeback as CEO at a time when Dell was down, though not out, dethroned by arch rival HP as the world’s number one PC maker, and as rivals such as Acer and Lenovo were busy chipping away at its market share.

However, four years down the line, once mighty Dell seems well on track to regain its crowning glory, going by its outstanding performance during the fourth quarter of the fiscal year 2011, led by its expanding strength as an enterprise solutions provider and continued strong execution. In fact, according to the company, it was also one of its most successful financial quarters ever.

The company’s net income during the fourth quarter of FY’11 grew by 177% to $927 million from $334 million in the same quarter a year ago while its full-year net income was up 84% to $2,635 million ($2.6bn) in FY11 from $1,433 million ($1.4bn) in the previous financial year. The company’s full-year EPS too grew almost at a similar rate (85% to be precise) to $1.35 from $0.73, during the said period.

Commenting on the company’s spectacular performance, Michael Dell, Chairman and CEO said, “I’m very pleased with our fiscal year results and the strong performance we’re seeing in our commercial businesses.” He added, “We remain focused on developing and acquiring new technologies and capabilities, and our IT solutions portfolio has never been stronger. Customers are now seeing Dell in a fresh light, and we’re heading into the new year with strength and optimism.”

Market analysts attributed the company’s robust performance to the falling price of components and the replacement of corporate IT products and also to Dell’s strategy of focusing on emerging areas such as data storage services and cloud computing away from the slowing market for PCs and towards, the influential BBC commented. “Dell's positive outlook is a plus for its suppliers' businesses, but their share price will still be weighed on by rising costs and thinning margins," it cited Andrew Deng of Taiwan International Securities as saying.

Giving its outlook for the fiscal-year 2012, the company said that it expects revenue growth of 5-9%, non-GAAP operating income growth of 6-12%, and continued strong execution on cash flow with cash flow from operations exceeding net income.

Although, it cautioned that it expects normal seasonal declines in its consumer and public businesses and, as such, a slight sequential decline in revenue in its first quarter of fiscal-year 2012.

Fiscal-Year 2011 Fourth Quarter and Full Year Highlights

                                                                                       Fourth Quarter                                              Fiscal Year   

(in millions)	FY11	FY10	Change	FY11	FY10	Change
Revenue	$15,692	$14,900	5%	$61,494	$52,902	16%
Operating Income (GAAP)	$1,145	$510	124%	$3,433	$2,172	58%
Net Income (GAAP)	$927	$334	177%	$2,635	$1,433	84%
EPS (GAAP)	$0.48	$0.17	182%	$1.35	$0.73	85%
Operating Income (non-GAAP)	$1,286	$798	61%	$4,149	$2,974	40%
Net Income (non-GAAP)	$1,018	$544	87%	$3,106	$2,054	51%
EPS (non-GAAP)	$0.53	$0.28	89%	$1.59	$1.05	51%

Source: Dell.com

Amy, Chief Editor.

HTC mesmerizes Barcelona with its Flyer tablet

It was a congregation of mobile players at the ongoing Mobile World Congress in Barcelona (14-17 Feb 2011) and while many companies showcased their new products, it was Taiwanese smart phone maker HTC which is the latest one to join the Android Bandwagon with its iPad clone — HTC Flyer tablet computer with dedicated Facebook buttons, specifically targeting growing Facebook users worldwide.

Speaking at the event, HTC Chief Executive Peter Chou stated that “2010 was an amazing year for HTC and smartphone users” and added, “HTC brings social networking to phones in a new way”. He also stated that with the new phones, ChaCha and Salsa, users could directly take photos from their phones and upload broadcast in their Facebook account with just touch of a button. The company has had a stupendous year in 2010 with sales of over 25 million handsets and is poised to increase by banking on the Google Android OS. Mr. Chou was optimistic that the sales of low-end mobile phones will outsmart its rivals, “The popularity of smartphones is exploding,” at the event.

Scroll down to see the new phones from the Taiwanese Phone maker:

Watch out this space as we bring you the latest from the ongoing Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.

Venky, Signing Off!