Here’s a look at this week’s top 10 tech news.
Contents
Nokia launches Windows 8 phones in India, Lumia 520 and Lumia 720
Nokia launched the Lumia 520 and Lumia 720 in India, priced at Rs. 10,500 and Rs. 20,000 respectively. The Lumia 520 will reportedly be the cheapest Windows 8 smartphone in the India market. Lumia 520 has a 4 inch display, 1 GHz dual-core processor, 512 MB RAM and 5 MP rear camera. Lumia 720 has a 4.3 inch display, 1 GHz dual-core processor and a 6.7 MP rear camera.
“The response to Lumia 920 gave us the confidence to better the impact with the Lumia 520 and 720. In the last 15 months alone, we have launched 10 devices” said Vipul Mehrotra, Director, Nokia smart devices.
YouTube crosses 1 billion monthly users
“If YouTube were a country, we’d be the third largest in the world after China and India” said an official blog post as the video sharing website announced that it attracted more than 1 billion users ever month. The company claimed that nearly one out of two people on the internet visit their website. YouTube was launched in February 2005 and was later bought by Google in 2006 reportedly for a sum of $1.65 billion.
Blaupunkt launches headphones in India
German electronics manufacturer Blaupunkt launched a new range of headphones in the Indian market. The products will be priced between Rs. 1,990 and Rs. 14,990 and the company is reportedly looking to negotiate with online portals as well as traditional retail shops for its introduction.
“India offers a huge potential in the mobile multi-media segment and there is a good demand for such solutions” said Lars Placke, Group Chief Executive, Blaupunkt.
Wipro’s Rishad Premji joins Nasscom executive council
Wipro’s Chief Strategy Officer and son of Azim Premji, Rishad Premji was elected to the Nasscom executive council. Commentators are reportedly expecting this role to help Rishad Premji interact with other top business leaders and provide him with a platform that delivers industry wide experience. Capgemini’s Aruna Jayanthi, HP’s Neelam Dhawan and HCL Technologies’ Anant Gupta are some of the other members of Nasscom’s executive council.
Yahoo buys Jybe
Yahoo bought Jybe, a start-up that was behind a smartphone app that allowed people to recommend local entertainment and dining venues. Jybe was founded in 2011 by ex-Yahoo employees including Arnab Bhattacharjee who is former VP of Yahoo’s Search Technology. The team members will reportedly focus on personalizing search results on Yahoo websites.
“While the Jybe app has closed, we’re confident that their data and science-driven experience will supercharge our efforts to build great products and experiences” said Yahoo’s Jay Rossiter.
Mumbai Police to set up Social Media Lab
Mumbai Police will reportedly set up a social media lab to monitor Facebook, Twitter and other social networking websites. The team will consist of 20 specially trained officers who will track public issues discussed on social media.
“They will work under Special Branch. They will monitor and find out which topics are trending among the youth so we can plan law and order in a good way” said Satyanarayan Choudhary, police spokesman.
Bookmyshow.com to manage 60% of ticketing inventory for IPL 2013
Bookmyshow.com will reportedly manage 60% of the ticketing inventory of IPL 2013. The online ticketing portal has become the official ticketing partner for 6 out of 9 teams this season, including Mumbai Indians, Rajasthan Royals, Delhi Daredevils and Kings XI Punjab. “With this development, BookMyShow.com will be managing 60 per cent of the ticketing inventory for IPL 2013, making it the largest ticketing provider this IPL season” said the company.
Jaxtr launches global sim card
Sabeer Bhatia led Jaxtr launched Jaxtr SIM, a global sim card for international travellers. The pre-paid sim card will reportedly work with most unlocked phones and will allow users to make inexpensive local and international phone calls while travelling overseas.
“There are around 12 million international passengers annually who come and go out of the country with 86 per cent of them having a mobile phone. They, being price-sensitive, look for cost-effective solution during roaming. Our global SIM card is designed for such needs” said Sabeer Bhatia, Chief Executive, Jaxtr Inc.
CtrlS Datacentres sets up data centre in US
Data centre services provider CtrlS Data Centres launched its operations in US, which will offer IT infrastructure and other services including disaster recovery, remote infrastructure management and cloud services.
“The data centre in the US region is critical to the growth of the company since 20 per cent of our customers are MNCs and we are happy to provide similar reliable services in the American region” said Sridhar Reddy, CEO, CtrlS Datacentres.
Planning Commission and National Innovation Council (NIC) to organize Hackathon
The Planning Commission and National Innovation Council (NIC) will organize hackathon for the 12th Five Year Plan on 6th and 7th April 2013 at various locations including IIT Delhi, IIT Kanpur, TISS Mumbai and IIT Madras. Anyone from the public can join and create visualizations, short films or apps based on the 12th Five Year Plan.
