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Category: eNews

  • Snapdeal brings in Housing.com exec as strategy officer

    Snapdeal brings in Housing.com exec as strategy officer

    MUMBAI: Snapdeal has announced the appointment of Housing.com’s CEO Jason Kothari as its chief strategy and investment officer.

    He will work alongside co-founders, Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal, in this key leadership role and will be joining Snapdeal on 16 January. As chief strategy and investment officer for Snapdeal, Kothari’s responsibilities will include leading strategy; corporate development, including all investments and strategic partnerships; raising new capital for the Company; and portfolio management, overseeing companies Snapdeal wholly owns or has invested in.

    Most recently, Kothari was the CEO of Softbank-backed online real estate company Housing.com, where he led the successful turnaround of the Company from a position of distress to a market leader in one and a half years using organic and inorganic growth.

    Under his stewardship, Housing.com changed its business strategy and plan, hired a new experienced management team, restructured and reduced operating costs by 70 per cent going from 2,500 to 900 employees, raised an additional $20 million from lead investor Softbank, and achieved key operating results, such as increasing revenue by 400 per cent, customer visits by 200 per cent to 4.1 million per month and homes listed by 450% to 630,000 homes, becoming the most popular platform for buying and selling homes in the country.

    Prior to joining Housing.com, Kothari was the CEO and vice chairman of character-based entertainment company Valiant Entertainment, where he led the successful acquisition out of bankruptcy, and turnaround of the Company resulting in a record return in the industry and media recognition calling the Company “Marvel 2.0”.

    Snapdeal co-founder and CEO said, “Jason is a strong business leader & entrepreneur who has already been the CEO of two successful companies. Rohit and I warmly welcome Jason to the Snapdeal family and believe we will achieve even greater heights with his addition.”

    Kothari said, “I’m excited to join Snapdeal which is on its way to building one of India’s best companies, and I look forward to helping in making that potential a reality.”

  • Snapdeal brings in Housing.com exec as strategy officer

    Snapdeal brings in Housing.com exec as strategy officer

    MUMBAI: Snapdeal has announced the appointment of Housing.com’s CEO Jason Kothari as its chief strategy and investment officer.

    He will work alongside co-founders, Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal, in this key leadership role and will be joining Snapdeal on 16 January. As chief strategy and investment officer for Snapdeal, Kothari’s responsibilities will include leading strategy; corporate development, including all investments and strategic partnerships; raising new capital for the Company; and portfolio management, overseeing companies Snapdeal wholly owns or has invested in.

    Most recently, Kothari was the CEO of Softbank-backed online real estate company Housing.com, where he led the successful turnaround of the Company from a position of distress to a market leader in one and a half years using organic and inorganic growth.

    Under his stewardship, Housing.com changed its business strategy and plan, hired a new experienced management team, restructured and reduced operating costs by 70 per cent going from 2,500 to 900 employees, raised an additional $20 million from lead investor Softbank, and achieved key operating results, such as increasing revenue by 400 per cent, customer visits by 200 per cent to 4.1 million per month and homes listed by 450% to 630,000 homes, becoming the most popular platform for buying and selling homes in the country.

    Prior to joining Housing.com, Kothari was the CEO and vice chairman of character-based entertainment company Valiant Entertainment, where he led the successful acquisition out of bankruptcy, and turnaround of the Company resulting in a record return in the industry and media recognition calling the Company “Marvel 2.0”.

    Snapdeal co-founder and CEO said, “Jason is a strong business leader & entrepreneur who has already been the CEO of two successful companies. Rohit and I warmly welcome Jason to the Snapdeal family and believe we will achieve even greater heights with his addition.”

    Kothari said, “I’m excited to join Snapdeal which is on its way to building one of India’s best companies, and I look forward to helping in making that potential a reality.”

  • Youth for Digital India: Theme of National Youth Festival starting on 12 Jan

    Youth for Digital India: Theme of National Youth Festival starting on 12 Jan

    NEW DELHI: ‘Youth for Digital India’ will be the theme of the National Youth Festival commencing this week. The department of youth affairs of the youth affairs and sports ministry organises the festival every year on the birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda.

    Youth affairs and sports minister Vijay Goel said the Festival from 12 to 16 January at Rohtak in Haryana will also be addressed by the prime minister Narendra Modi via video conferencing during the opening ceremony. Home Minister Rajnath Singh will be the chief guest in the presence of Haryana chief minister Mahohar Lal.

    The theme had been chosen keeping in view the most critical and crucial importance of the thrust accorded to the area of Digitalisation and Skill Development by Government of India and realise the proclaimed national goal for ‘Make in India Campaign’ and the PM’s vision of ‘Youth Led Development’.

    To achieve the proclaimed national goal, it has been decided to project the various widely acclaimed initiatives of Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, NSDA, NSDC, DGET & MoMSME etc. through Skill Development Exhibition, Lectures and Workshops for the benefit of thousands of participants of the Festival and local youth.

    The Mascot of the festival was decided in view of the long standing skewed sex ratio, especially in a state like Haryana. The selection of ‘Lado’ reflects the sensitivity of the state government towards the gender inequality in the state and to bring women at par with men which both the government is committed to combat.

    The Festival will also witness a Defence exhibition where various aspects and initiatives of the defence forces, display of equipment, and avenues for recruitment into Armed Forces will be projected for the benefits of thousands of young participant.

    A performance by a renowned artist on the life and ideology of Swami Vivekanand on the opening ceremony will be the highlight of the festival. During 13 to 16 January 2017, the Festival will have a variety of cultural programmes (both competitive and non-competitive), Youth Convention, Suvichar (a lecture series), Exhibitions and adventure programmes, Hasya Kavi Sammelan, Haryanavi Nights etc. followed by Cultural Evening by Hansraj Hans and Raftaar.

    India being one of the youngest nations in the world with about 65% of its population under the age of 35, Goel expects that this “demographic dividend’ offers a great opportunity for the country to revolutionize itself and achieve the vision of a clean India, a skilled India and most importantly an incredible India . He urges the Youth of the Nation to strive and work endlessly in the process of nation building following the paths shown by Swami Vivekanada.

    The delegates from the different states have already started arriving for the event. It is expected that about 5000 youth delegates from different States/UTs will attend.

    Also Read:

    TRAI ideas on public WiFi in three weeks; Mumbai gets 500 hotspots

    MAM 2016: When marketing, advertising hopped on to Digital India

  • Youth for Digital India: Theme of National Youth Festival starting on 12 Jan

    Youth for Digital India: Theme of National Youth Festival starting on 12 Jan

    NEW DELHI: ‘Youth for Digital India’ will be the theme of the National Youth Festival commencing this week. The department of youth affairs of the youth affairs and sports ministry organises the festival every year on the birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda.

    Youth affairs and sports minister Vijay Goel said the Festival from 12 to 16 January at Rohtak in Haryana will also be addressed by the prime minister Narendra Modi via video conferencing during the opening ceremony. Home Minister Rajnath Singh will be the chief guest in the presence of Haryana chief minister Mahohar Lal.

    The theme had been chosen keeping in view the most critical and crucial importance of the thrust accorded to the area of Digitalisation and Skill Development by Government of India and realise the proclaimed national goal for ‘Make in India Campaign’ and the PM’s vision of ‘Youth Led Development’.

    To achieve the proclaimed national goal, it has been decided to project the various widely acclaimed initiatives of Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, NSDA, NSDC, DGET & MoMSME etc. through Skill Development Exhibition, Lectures and Workshops for the benefit of thousands of participants of the Festival and local youth.

    The Mascot of the festival was decided in view of the long standing skewed sex ratio, especially in a state like Haryana. The selection of ‘Lado’ reflects the sensitivity of the state government towards the gender inequality in the state and to bring women at par with men which both the government is committed to combat.

    The Festival will also witness a Defence exhibition where various aspects and initiatives of the defence forces, display of equipment, and avenues for recruitment into Armed Forces will be projected for the benefits of thousands of young participant.

    A performance by a renowned artist on the life and ideology of Swami Vivekanand on the opening ceremony will be the highlight of the festival. During 13 to 16 January 2017, the Festival will have a variety of cultural programmes (both competitive and non-competitive), Youth Convention, Suvichar (a lecture series), Exhibitions and adventure programmes, Hasya Kavi Sammelan, Haryanavi Nights etc. followed by Cultural Evening by Hansraj Hans and Raftaar.

    India being one of the youngest nations in the world with about 65% of its population under the age of 35, Goel expects that this “demographic dividend’ offers a great opportunity for the country to revolutionize itself and achieve the vision of a clean India, a skilled India and most importantly an incredible India . He urges the Youth of the Nation to strive and work endlessly in the process of nation building following the paths shown by Swami Vivekanada.

    The delegates from the different states have already started arriving for the event. It is expected that about 5000 youth delegates from different States/UTs will attend.

    Also Read:

    TRAI ideas on public WiFi in three weeks; Mumbai gets 500 hotspots

    MAM 2016: When marketing, advertising hopped on to Digital India

  • Digital innovation: MyGov CEO’s webcast at 11am on Wed

    Digital innovation: MyGov CEO’s webcast at 11am on Wed

    MUMBAI: ‘Let’s Talk Innovation’, a webcast series, has been floated where experts from different fields have been invited to share their experiences and ideas about the use of technology and innovation for building Digital India as a part of Innovate for Digital India Challenge’ (IFDIC) 2.0.

    As part of the webcast series MyGov CEO Gaurav Dwivedi will be joining the webcast live at 11:00 am on 11 January. Dwivedi will share his thoughts on the following:

    The initiatives that MyGov is planning to launch

    The role played by the local innovation ecosystem in realising the Digital India vision

    Factors that are indispensable for the government to achieve a sustainable innovation ecosystem in India

    Opportunities, challenges and the role of IT and citizen’s participation in building smart cities

    Unique examples of how citizen’s participation is helping the government solve crucial challenges

    The IFDI 2.0 challenge is being backed by MyGov – a platform created by the Government of India to promote the active participation of countrymen in governance and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY). IFDI- 2.0 is anchored by T-Hub Foundation, which is one of India’s largest Technology Business Incubators (TBI).

    Since the launch of the Digital India initiative by the Central Government, companies, as well as individuals, are undertaking various exercises to empower Indian citizens through technology and bring about innovation. Intel and the Department of Science and Technology (DST) have introduced IFDIC to help foster this culture of innovation in India.

    Dwivedi has held important positions in the government. He was the Director of the Department of Information Technology, having served as a Senior Deputy Director in the Indian Administrative Services. Dwivedi has been continuously supporting the Innovate for Digital India Challenge from its inception.

  • Digital innovation: MyGov CEO’s webcast at 11am on Wed

    Digital innovation: MyGov CEO’s webcast at 11am on Wed

    MUMBAI: ‘Let’s Talk Innovation’, a webcast series, has been floated where experts from different fields have been invited to share their experiences and ideas about the use of technology and innovation for building Digital India as a part of Innovate for Digital India Challenge’ (IFDIC) 2.0.

    As part of the webcast series MyGov CEO Gaurav Dwivedi will be joining the webcast live at 11:00 am on 11 January. Dwivedi will share his thoughts on the following:

    The initiatives that MyGov is planning to launch

    The role played by the local innovation ecosystem in realising the Digital India vision

    Factors that are indispensable for the government to achieve a sustainable innovation ecosystem in India

    Opportunities, challenges and the role of IT and citizen’s participation in building smart cities

    Unique examples of how citizen’s participation is helping the government solve crucial challenges

    The IFDI 2.0 challenge is being backed by MyGov – a platform created by the Government of India to promote the active participation of countrymen in governance and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY). IFDI- 2.0 is anchored by T-Hub Foundation, which is one of India’s largest Technology Business Incubators (TBI).

    Since the launch of the Digital India initiative by the Central Government, companies, as well as individuals, are undertaking various exercises to empower Indian citizens through technology and bring about innovation. Intel and the Department of Science and Technology (DST) have introduced IFDIC to help foster this culture of innovation in India.

    Dwivedi has held important positions in the government. He was the Director of the Department of Information Technology, having served as a Senior Deputy Director in the Indian Administrative Services. Dwivedi has been continuously supporting the Innovate for Digital India Challenge from its inception.

  • Hungama Digital co Artist Aloud steps into eighth year of success

    Hungama Digital co Artist Aloud steps into eighth year of success

    MUMBAI: Artist Aloud, an initiative pioneered by Hungama Digital Media Entertainment Private Ltd., is a digital media, distribution, and talent management platform for talent and independent content across the globe.

    The independent artiste promotion company completed seven successful years on 7 January 2017. ArtistAloud is a platform which showcases talent with independent content on a global scale.

    The company has provided a distinguished platform to some of the biggest names in the music Industry like Salim-Sulaiman, Kavita Seth, Parikrama, Neeti Mohan and Raghav Sachar to name a few artists.In a time when the Indian music scene was dominated by film and pop music, Artist Aloud helped pave a path for artists with independent content by creating a channel for content acquisition and its distribution across consumer destinations. Artist Aloud has championed multiple means to promote artists and their content over its seven-year course, including various Intellectual Properties like Artist Aloud Music Awards (AAMA), World Music Day celebrations etc.

    Applauding the spirit of music, Artist Aloud has initiated a World Music Day festival where every year they celebrate music in an iconic manner. In 2016, Artist Aloud hosted seven concerts across six cities where some of the most popular names of the independent music scene enthralled packed audiences with some of their biggest hits. Another exciting initiative taken up by Artist Aloud is the independent music awards property created to felicitate the independent music scene of the industry.

    In its journey, the company has hosted the awards for five years and given a platform to young, emerging artists across the nation. The awards are based on both jury and public voting. While creating this platform Artist Aloud has also helped to simplify the talent discovery process for Independent artists, music labels and producers with the recently launched official app, thereby creating a seamless one stop platform for both the producers and the artists to discover one another.

    Artist Aloud VP Soumini Sridhara Paul said, “The rationale behind establishing Artist Aloud was to give independent artists in India a platform to showcase their talent to the world. Our journey has been nothing short of a roller-coaster ride, with its share of ups and downs but with every challenge we bring in innovation. At the end of the day, we are grateful for the all the positive experiences we’ve had thus far. Over the course of our existence, we have mentored and created a platform for many independent artists across genres and languages, and it gives us immense happiness to see them go on to achieve great feats in their respective careers and be appreciated for their music.”

  • Hungama Digital co Artist Aloud steps into eighth year of success

    Hungama Digital co Artist Aloud steps into eighth year of success

    MUMBAI: Artist Aloud, an initiative pioneered by Hungama Digital Media Entertainment Private Ltd., is a digital media, distribution, and talent management platform for talent and independent content across the globe.

    The independent artiste promotion company completed seven successful years on 7 January 2017. ArtistAloud is a platform which showcases talent with independent content on a global scale.

    The company has provided a distinguished platform to some of the biggest names in the music Industry like Salim-Sulaiman, Kavita Seth, Parikrama, Neeti Mohan and Raghav Sachar to name a few artists.In a time when the Indian music scene was dominated by film and pop music, Artist Aloud helped pave a path for artists with independent content by creating a channel for content acquisition and its distribution across consumer destinations. Artist Aloud has championed multiple means to promote artists and their content over its seven-year course, including various Intellectual Properties like Artist Aloud Music Awards (AAMA), World Music Day celebrations etc.

    Applauding the spirit of music, Artist Aloud has initiated a World Music Day festival where every year they celebrate music in an iconic manner. In 2016, Artist Aloud hosted seven concerts across six cities where some of the most popular names of the independent music scene enthralled packed audiences with some of their biggest hits. Another exciting initiative taken up by Artist Aloud is the independent music awards property created to felicitate the independent music scene of the industry.

    In its journey, the company has hosted the awards for five years and given a platform to young, emerging artists across the nation. The awards are based on both jury and public voting. While creating this platform Artist Aloud has also helped to simplify the talent discovery process for Independent artists, music labels and producers with the recently launched official app, thereby creating a seamless one stop platform for both the producers and the artists to discover one another.

    Artist Aloud VP Soumini Sridhara Paul said, “The rationale behind establishing Artist Aloud was to give independent artists in India a platform to showcase their talent to the world. Our journey has been nothing short of a roller-coaster ride, with its share of ups and downs but with every challenge we bring in innovation. At the end of the day, we are grateful for the all the positive experiences we’ve had thus far. Over the course of our existence, we have mentored and created a platform for many independent artists across genres and languages, and it gives us immense happiness to see them go on to achieve great feats in their respective careers and be appreciated for their music.”

  • Govt launches IPR toolkit for enforcement agencies

    Govt launches IPR toolkit for enforcement agencies

    NEW DELHI: In a bid to sensitise law enforcement agencies and the public in general about intellectual property and copyrights, Indian government has launched an IPR Enforcement Toolkit for police.

    The toolkit has been jointly prepared by Cell for IPR Promotion and Management (CIPAM) and Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI). The latter is also helming a broadcast and cable industry initiative to fight online piracy of content via formation of Copyright Force that will have its first meeting later this month.

    Aimed at being a reference point for police officials across the country in dealing with IP crimes, specifically trademarks counterfeiting and copyrights piracy, the toolkit will have details of offences under various laws. It provides for checklists for registering a complaint and conducting investigations, apart from laying down general guidelines in case of IP-related crimes. This toolkit will be provided to all state police departments across the nation.

    CIPAM, an organisation under Ministry of Commerce & Industry, has launched several initiatives to ensure effective implementation of the National IPR Policy 2016, which recognizes that awareness and respecting IPRs is crucial for a healthy ecosystem.

    Catch them young also seems to be the government’s aim. To inculcate in children respect for IPRs, CIPAM is collaborating with the International Trademark Association (INTA) to launch an IPR awareness campaign for school kids in a creative and engaging manner through use of presentations and creatively illustrated posters and pamphlets that will cover basics on IPRs and its need to be protected.

    CIPAM, which has also organized seven batches of training programmes for police officials in States of Andhra Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, is actively facilitating international engagements in the field of Intellectual Property Rights. Two agreements on IPRs were recently signed with the UK and Singapore.

    ALSO READ:  Copyright Force finally here to fight online piracy

  • Govt launches IPR toolkit for enforcement agencies

    Govt launches IPR toolkit for enforcement agencies

    NEW DELHI: In a bid to sensitise law enforcement agencies and the public in general about intellectual property and copyrights, Indian government has launched an IPR Enforcement Toolkit for police.

    The toolkit has been jointly prepared by Cell for IPR Promotion and Management (CIPAM) and Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI). The latter is also helming a broadcast and cable industry initiative to fight online piracy of content via formation of Copyright Force that will have its first meeting later this month.

    Aimed at being a reference point for police officials across the country in dealing with IP crimes, specifically trademarks counterfeiting and copyrights piracy, the toolkit will have details of offences under various laws. It provides for checklists for registering a complaint and conducting investigations, apart from laying down general guidelines in case of IP-related crimes. This toolkit will be provided to all state police departments across the nation.

    CIPAM, an organisation under Ministry of Commerce & Industry, has launched several initiatives to ensure effective implementation of the National IPR Policy 2016, which recognizes that awareness and respecting IPRs is crucial for a healthy ecosystem.

    Catch them young also seems to be the government’s aim. To inculcate in children respect for IPRs, CIPAM is collaborating with the International Trademark Association (INTA) to launch an IPR awareness campaign for school kids in a creative and engaging manner through use of presentations and creatively illustrated posters and pamphlets that will cover basics on IPRs and its need to be protected.

    CIPAM, which has also organized seven batches of training programmes for police officials in States of Andhra Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, is actively facilitating international engagements in the field of Intellectual Property Rights. Two agreements on IPRs were recently signed with the UK and Singapore.

    ALSO READ:  Copyright Force finally here to fight online piracy