Nokia: We are in a hurry to catch up

Finnish handset major Nokia is banking on a slew of product launches across a wide price band in a bid to regain its lost market share in the smartphone category. Nokia executives say the company is in a "hurry to catch up" with giants such as Apple and Samsung who currently consume a majority of the market.

In an interview with TOI at the launch of the new Nokia Lumia 920, director & head of smart devices at Nokia, Vipul Mehrotra, talks about the company's strategy to win back its market share through the new launches. Excerpts:

Q: Nokia posted losses in six consecutive quarters until October 2012. How do intend to change that?

A: We are in the race and are accelerating our own clock cycles. Launching three handsets at a time is a proof point that we need to catch up in hurry. We will be working towards offering phones across price points. We did not have a flagship model in Lumia earlier. With the new Lumia 920, we have one. Of course it is not a mass market phone but then the new launches are intended to regain the smartphone share in the market.

Q: The Lumia phones have not managed to gain the desired consumer base. Where do you think you went wrong?

A: As I said, one, we had no flagship product to show to the consumers that we had a leader in the category. Also we needed to build up on the OS. The transition took us time but it has started now.

Q: Nokia has been more focused on the entry to mid level price range. Nokia Asha phones have performed exceptionally well. With the launch of Lumia 920, are you announcing an entry into high-end smartphones?

A: We are targeting a range of prices in our products. We are also aiming at having more products on the shelf, as there are a lot of options in the market today. Last year we introduced the Lumia category, which was a big step for us. With these launches, we are taking a huge stride again. High-end smartphones work on innovation. Asha phones have surpassed our expectations and they are in the highest growth segment. Now, we will focus on far more innovation in Lumia. Besides traditional forms of marketing, we will concentrate on experiential marketing for Lumia. Smartphones are not a game of width but of depth. We will intensify focus on those outlets that are doing well for us on experiential marketing.

Facebook testing $100 charge to message strangers

Facebook is at it again, folks. The social network giant is testing out yet another new feature, and this time it’s almost too ridiculous to believe. Facebook is testing a new service that charges you $100 to send a message to a stranger. So, instead of having the message land in their “Other” inbox, it will go straight to their main inbox.
Some Facebook users have been reporting an interesting popup when they attempt to send messages to people outside of their friend network. The popup notes that the message will be filtered to the “Other” inbox of the recipient, but offers to deliver it to the top of the recipient’s inbox for a staggering $100.
Facebook first began experimenting with this kind of option last month when it first introduced filters, including the “Other” folder. In initial tests, the fee was just $1. However, according to Mashable, Facebook confirms the $100 option is part of that test, and they say they’re testing “some extreme price points to see what works to filter spam.”
Mashable reported seeing $100 as the fee to send a message to Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg, but sending messages to other strangers result in the same price, which means that the fee isn’t based on the popularity of the user. However, unless you’re part of the test group, you still can’t send a message to strangers, and there’s no word on when or if the feature will be rolling out. It’s also entirely possible that if the service eventually launched, the fee might change.
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Facebook says 'Come and see what we're building' on January 15 event
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[via Mashable]

Facebook testing $100 charge to message strangers is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.

Wireless charging: Pick Google Samsung or Nokia

Smartphone battery running low?

You are not alone. With millions of mobile devices handling more tasks, batteries are draining faster, forcing the industry to look for solutions including wireless charging, which can give consumers a power boost on the go.

Many solutions to this problem were on display at the Consumer Electronics Show this week, but consumers may be confused by the number of competing platforms and standards.

The Wireless Power Consortium, which includes some 100 companies and has 130 products certified under its standard known as Qi (pronounced chee), has been using the CES to promote the concept this week.

The consortium works with makers of smartphones and producers of charging pads, furniture and automotive consoles that enable a consumer to simply place a device on top for a charge -- without worrying about plugging in.

"This is the only consortium that has real products on the market," said CJ Moore of Fulton Innovation, one of the technology firms behind the group that also includes Nokia, LG, Panasonic and Texas Instruments.

The members are deploying charging pads and stations which can be used in homes and also at airports, coffee shops and other locations.

Moore, who was showing CES visitors the variety of charging pads and sleeves in use, noted that members have some 130 certified products and 10 million devices in use.

The consortium said Qi chargers will be available this year in the Toyota Avalon, as well as in audio and video products and furniture.

IHS analysts expect the industry to grow to nearly 100 million shipments by 2015.

The French firm Gidophone, whose 100 Qi charging stations in Europe allow customers to pay for a wireless charge, said at the CES show it is planning to deploy in the United States.

"The reaction to our kiosk, thus far, has been phenomenal," said Christian Pineau, Gidophone's vice president of sales.

But at CES, two other competing alliances offered their own platforms for wireless charging, using different technical norms.

The Alliance for Wireless Power, whose 30 members include Samsung, Qualcomm and Deutsche Telekom, said it would launch its own products using what it called a superior platform.

"Consumers prefer to charge multiple devices at the same time," said alliance president Kamil Grajski, as he showed a news conference various planned devices, such as coffee tables and auto consoles.

Grajski said the previous efforts have failed to generate enough participation over the past few years, and said his group is offering "a next-generation" wireless charging option.

He acknowledged that consumers may end up confused by the different, incompatible standards but added that "this is a competitive marketplace. No company or group can declare itself the winner."

Some companies, including chip and component makers, are members of both alliances. So is Samsung, though representatives of the South Korean firm said it is committed to AWP.

A third group called the Power Matters Alliance, backed by Google, AT&T and Procter & Gamble, announced in Las Vegas the addition of 30 new member firms.

PMA said its membership has tripled in the past month, and its board now includes AT&T, Starbucks and the US government's Federal Communications Commission as an observer.

The PMA standard is being tested at Boston-area Starbucks with Duracell, a P&G unit. Delta Air Lines has installed PMA-compatible charging spots in airport lounges, and General Motors is planning to put in compatible charging consoles, according to the alliance.

Ariel Sobelman, president of the PMA, said the group includes "undisputed global leaders in their respective category" and is working on "a real-world wireless power ecosystem here and now."

Jack Black, a scientist with Qi alliance member DLS Electronics, said the Qi system remains an open platform, which allows more companies to easily participate.

"It's like the battle between VHS and Betamax," said Black, whose firm does compliance testing for products. "At the end of the day the market dictates the standard -- and this (Qi) technology has a lot of play."

NXP, a Dutch semiconductor firm, is producing components that can allow chargers to bridge different standards.

"We are thinking about a solution which recognises your device and charges it," said NXP's Kai Neumann, who showed a multi-standard charger at the NXP booth.

But the future may have other options, including more durable batteries, improved antennas and devices that manage power better.

Stu Lipoff of the Institute for Electrical and Electronics Engineers said firms are also eyeing technologies "where you can put a transmitter in the room and it will charge the device" from several feet away.

Developing a private cloud

Cloud computing continues to transform the enterprises it touches. Moving business processes, data storage, and embracing more virtualisation are all key components of today's cloud environments.
The outsourced foundation of the cloud is driving this sector, but businesses are increasingly looking at how they can take more control of the platforms they already own. Enter the private cloud.
A whitepaper from Cisco defines the private cloud as follows: "With a private cloud, enterprises can run processes internally and externally, having established the private cloud as the control point for workloads.
"With control through a unified management tool and a user-centric view, the private cloud thus enables IT to make the best decisions about whether to use internal or external resources, or both. And it allows that decision to be made on a real time basis to meet user service needs."

Taking control

It can also give an IT department more control in obtaining the benefits of cloud computing, including: availability on demand; the faster provisioning of business services; a economies of scale; the flexibility to run workload and applications in the most efficient and effective places; a pay-as-you-go model; standardised, auditable service levels; the capability to work with every application without the need to rewrite them; and the control of security.
Despite a growing appreciation of the benefits, there is a level of confusion when companies look at developing a private cloud. The first step is clearly to embrace more virtualisation, but this is only one layer. A control layer and a self-service portal also have to be created to form what is now being defined as a private cloud.
The need for this is reflected in a further section of the Cisco whitepaper, which says: "The private cloud is a new style of computing in which corporate IT infrastructure is available as a ubiquitous, easily accessible, and reliable utility service. Business owners and application owners requesting a new business service can use the infrastructure as a standard service, without the need to understand the complexities of servers, storage, and networks."
There is also a debate as to whether businesses should be building private clouds at all. The public cloud has freed businesses from the management of the hardware infrastructure, but these responsibilities move back to the company with private cloud deployments.

Business case

Businesses tend to begin the development of their private cloud once they realise the benefits of cloud computing in general.
For instance, they will move their CRM systems to Salesforce.com to reap the commercial benefits it can bring. They will then begin to look at their own internal IT infrastructures and ask how cloud principles can be applied there.
The first step towards is the virtualisation of existing servers. In a typical installation, only about 10% of a server is being used at any one time. With virtualisation, this jumps to 80%, with a corresponding improvement in a business' overall efficiency.
Taking onboard how virtualisation can benefit your enterprise is a major step towards developing a private cloud, but only the first step. After virtualisation is complete it becomes vital to control these virtual environments, and this forms a major component of a private cloud.
For companies evaluating whether a private cloud could benefit them, it's critical to understand how it is constructed, and whether the firm has the assets in place to make it a reality. It is necessary to clearly define the rules that govern how the private cloud is accessed, by whom and how development takes place within the private cloud environment.
It is a mistake to think of a private cloud as a completely separate entity that is behind your business's firewall and does not have any connections with the public cloud services your organisation may be using. In reality the opposite is true, as most businesses will take a hybrid approach in their use of cloud (private and public).
A good example here is how sales and marketing have evolved to take advantage of hybrid cloud services. Many companies have seen the benefits of using a public cloud with services such as SugarCRM and Salesforce.com, but businesses may not want to place all of their sales information on a public cloud.
In this scenario a private cloud offers the necessary levels of security, but does not impose any undue security protocols onto the sales teams. From a system administrator's point of view, a hybrid cloud approach makes the most sense.

Planning for a private cloud

Developing a private cloud should be approached with all the due diligence expected of any major structural change to a business. The key questions to ask include:
1.Does your company already have the infrastructure needed to deliver the services you want to develop over a private cloud? If not, what is the level of capital cost needed?
2.Have you clearly defined your goals? What do you want a private cloud to do for your enterprise?
3.How much virtualisation has your business already carried out? Remember that this is only the first step to developing a private cloud within your business.
4.Will a hybrid approach be needed to ensure that any existing public cloud services in use can be used in association with the private cloud you envisage?
5.Is there a clear business case for developing a private cloud service? Would expanding your existing use of IaaS and SaaS deliver the efficiencies you are looking for?
6.Have the levels of security that would be needed to manage either a standalone private cloud or a hybrid approach been fully assessed?
As an asset, a private cloud can deliver a number of operational and commercial benefits. But it's vital to clearly understand your company's motivation for building one, and to ensure that it integrates seamlessly with every other part of your business's IT infrastructure.

Apple co-founder Steve Jobs tops list of world‘s best CEOs

Late visionary Apple co-founder Steve Jobs has topped a list of the world's best chief executives, according to a report.

The global list, compiled by French business school Insead for Harvard Business Review, ranked the former Apple head first.

Jobs was followed by Amazon's Jeff Bezos in second and Samsung's retired boss Yun Jong-Yong in third, the Sydney Morning Herald reports.

Jobs topped the list for this year despite passing away in October 2011 as the analysis looked back at the performances of chief executives of big companies between 1995 and August 2012.

The survey of 3143 CEOs, which bases its ranking on returns and market value change, credited Jobs with significantly increasing Apple's long-term value.

The survey said Jobs' posthumous results were even more impressive than when he topped the list three years ago.

According to the paper, the journal said it chose to focus on the chief executives' ability to created long-term value for their companies, rather than what is usually expected of them - short-term financial results.

Skype founder browsing the world for next hot tech idea

Niklas Zennstrom, co-founder of internet phone service Skype, believes the next hot tech business will just as likely spring from Istanbul or Sao Paolo as from Silicon Valley or the coolest districts of London.
And he is prepared to fly around the world to find it.

"Talent can pop up anywhere in the world, it's not just one city block," the Swedish entrepreneur and venture capitalist said at the headquarters of his Atomico fund, based on upmarket New Bond Street in central London.

Zennstrom, who retains faint traces of a Swedish accent despite his years of globetrotting, is looking for start-ups ready to shift up a gear into new markets and has the experience, gained from growing Skype into a service used by millions around the world, to help them.

Skype was sold to eBay in 2005 for roughly $3 billion, before being bought back by a consortium including Zennstrom in 2009 and then two years later sold on to Microsoft for $8.5 billion, leaving him a multi-millionaire.

"If you have a product that works it's important to scale (up) the business as quickly as possible," said Zennstrom, named by Time Magazine in 2006 as one of its 100 most influential people. "As entrepreneurs, usually you may not have that experience; how does Asia work? Europe? Latin America?"

Atomico, founded by Zennstrom in 2006, has invested in companies in northern Europe including Finland-based Rovio, developer of Angry Birds, and Hailo, a London-based startup that has developed an app that connects passengers with taxi drivers and has raised $20 million so far.

It also led a $105 million funding round for US online retailer Fab in July.

Future portfolio

The investment fund, whose London office reception is decked out with simple designer furniture and modern art pieces, has opened offices in Turkey and Brazil, emerging markets with growing middle classes eager to shop online and buy internet services.

Zennstrom wants to make these markets a large part of Atomico's portfolio in future.

The firm in 2011 backed Brazilian online retailers such as car parts supplier Connect Parts and announced a $16 million investment in a Russian online travel agency in October.

Atomico is not necessarily looking for the latest gizmo or internet trend, but savvy businesses with talented leaders who can take advantage of growth in nascent sectors such as e-commerce.

And Zennstrom, softly spoken and wearing an open-necked shirt and dark jacket, believes emerging market growth is fuelling a new breed of optimism and ambition.

"It's a much more of an entrepreneurial spirit (in Turkey and Brazil) compared to southern European where it's a depressed mindset," he said.

Zennstrom earned his stripes in the tech world after helping launch file-sharing service Kazaa more than a decade ago, which failed as a business but paved the way for Skype.

He said getting investment today was far easier than when he was starting Skype. It took him a year to secure funding, whereas today the most talented entrepreneurs with the best ideas could take their pick of investors.

There is also increasing recognition that entrepreneurs might want to realise some of the value of their creations, something he said was lacking when Skype became successful.

"There was really no IPO market and it was not really accepted for founders to sell some of their shares to get some money off the table," he said, adding that before Skype was sold to eBay, he could not even secure a mortgage on an apartment.

"I think we made the right decision for the time in terms of selling (Skype)," he said. "Today as an entrepreneur you have more options."

Infosys to induct junior employees into consulting

India's second-ranked software exporter Infosys said it will begin inducting junior level employees into its consulting division by re-training them. Until now, only senior- and middle-level employees were hired for the vertical.

A junior employee at Infosys has about two-five years experience. Infosys has also decided to rope in those hired from business schools into this division, a high margin business - the recent acquisition of Europe-based consultancy Lodestone pushed revenues up 6.3% sequentially.

"Till now we used to have only middle and senior level employees in the consulting division but expect more projects coming in under consulting segment and have started training juniors in this vertical," said Nandita Gurjar, head of human relations at the Bangalore-based company.

Gurjar said the re-skilling had started two-three months ago and those on the company's bench will be trained for the same.

The firm will be muted in its new hiring till employee utilisation rates go up by another 7-8%, said CEO SD Shibulal. Utilisation rates for the firm in the December quarter hovered around 70.1%.

The human relations head also hinted at muted increments for the information technology industry in the new fiscal. "We have just rolled out a 6-8% raise for our employees and 2-3% for onsite ones in October. As far as industry is concerned, our studies show that their next increment may be half of what we have given," said Gurjar.

Infosys unlike its peers deferred its increments in March-April and announced them in October. Gurjar did not reveal if Infosys will announce another round of hikes in March-April. "We are yet to take a call on that."