Category: Technology

MUMBAI: US internet services firm AOL has announced that Maneesh Dhir will lead the company‘s international operations as executive VP, reporting directly to AOL president and COO Ron Grant.

In this role, Dhir will oversee the growth of AOL‘s international portals and review new overseas business opportunities in Europe, Asia and the Americas, working from the company‘s offices in Bangalore.

Dhir has a wealth of experience at AOL, most recently as senior VP and country manager in India. There, Dhir led all of the company‘s operations, including technology development, back-office operations, and call center operations.

In addition, AOL has also announced that Dana Dunne will serve as head of AOL Europe, reporting to Dhir.

Grant says, “AOL is in a terrific position to grow internationally, and with Maneesh and Dana, we have a leadership team that can expand our global presence as an advertising-supported Web company”.

‘MTV Live‘ powered by Verizon Wireless will premiere the first episode on 6 February at 11:30 pm with a commercial free performance by Fall Out Boy.

Artists Nas, Akon, and Gym Class Heroes have been booked for future shows.

‘MTV Live‘ will be specifically customized for each screen. In-show features will include a live text-to-screen element that will allow Verizon Wireless subscribers to submit comments and shout-outs from their cell phones that will appear as a crawl across the bottom of the screen in real-time during the show.

Additionally, video footage shot on cell phones during the performance will be edited into several of the platform offerings. MTV Mobile on V CAST will feature exclusive performance content from each show and will also offer artist interview segments. “MTV Live” will be available online at http://www.mtvlive.mtv.com/.

“MTV and Verizon Wireless are two powerful brands, with significant relationships in this rapidly changing music landscape,” says MTV senior vice president integrated marketing Tim Rosta. “This program will result in a strategic alliance that will amplify these relationships and bring new music to a larger audience.”

MUMBAI: MSN India will stream Kylie Minogue‘s Showgirl Homecoming Tour on 24 January at 11 am. The tour will streamlive from Melbourne where Minogue is performing and can be viewed on its website.

Showgirl- The Homecoming Tour is the comeback tour of the Australian-pop singer who cancelled the orginal Showgirl- The Greatest Hits Tour on 17 May after her diagnosis of breast cancer. The concert features “Got to be certain”, Minogue‘s second top five hit at the single charts.

MSN India had announced its association with Control Room in October last year. The partnership will see MSN as the exclusive online worldwide destination for Control Room‘s live music programming via live and on-demand video streaming.

MUMBAI: Microsoft Corporation India Pvt. Ltd., has announced aggressive geographical plans to strengthen its presence in India. It is slated to open offices in six additional cities in India, including Ahmedabad, Indore, Nagpur, Chandigarh Cochin, and Coimbatore. This would take its presence to thirteen cities, up from the existing seven cities.

According to an official statement issued by the firm, the expansion strategy will include establishing a direct sales infrastructure, broadening partner eco-system and market education initiatives and programs.

With an enhanced presence Microsoft will enable the small and mid market organizations to easily access a comprehensive portfolio of its products and services, faster deployment of customised solutions and increased support from both Microsoft and its partners.

The expansion plan is in keeping with Microsoft‘s vision to empower a broad section of small and mid market organizations understand better, the role which technology can play in driving growth and competitiveness, of the local industry ,in the local and global arena. The direct team in each city will be supported by respective regional branches for functional expertise as per Microsoft‘s hub and spoke model. Microsoft will also forge relationships with Industry Associations in each city to understand and address local business challenges.

Under the geo expansion plan Microsoft will work with broad channel partners to impart information on Microsoft products and licensing to serve IT needs of the business customers in the territory. Microsoft also aims at catalyzing its ISV partners to provide localized solutions for the market.

Small and Mid Market Solutions and Partner Group Director Rajeev Mittal said, “Our partners have been providing solutions and services to the customers in a lot of these cities already. We believe that being present there physically will help our partners provide better solutions, services and support and faster turnaround time. Our direct presence will also instill confidence in our existing and potential customers.”

The channel engagement will be under the Microsoft Partner Programme (MSPP) framework. Microsoft hopes to strengthen as well as invigorate its partner ecosystem in the respective areas so as to help them accelerate the pace of their delivery and thereby their success in meeting the needs of business customers in the area, adds the release.

Wipro Technologies vice president corporate business unit Anil K. Jain said, “Microsoft‘s geo expansion initiative to reach out to local businesses is a step in the right direction to deliver value both to customers as well as the partners in these markets. Microsoft‘s direct presence in non metro markets will further strengthen the partner ecosystem as well as inspire greater understanding and trust in its offerings within local business community. We are committed to work together to drive IT as a tool for business advantage among SMEs, along with Microsoft.”

The plan is to launch DTH this calendar year, but this will depend on whether the telecom major manages to get transponder space from the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro).

Indiantelevision.com was the first to report that Bharti would be entering into the DTH business, joining Anil Ambani‘s Reliance, Kalanithi Maran‘s Sun Direct and the existing players Dish TV, Tata Sky and DD Direct Plus.

Bharti also hopes to launch its IPTV services in the first quarter of the next fiscal, a source in the company says. UTStarcom is the digital service vendor for Bharti‘s IPTV including the headend and the digital set-top boxes (STBs).

“There are issues we still have to sort out on technology, cost and reach. IPTV could have limitations in India at this stage. DTH can give us a wider market,” says the source.

Bharti had started test runs for IPTV with UTStarcom but later invited other vendors as well. Subsequently, it has been using UTStarcom for its IPTV build up.

The telecom major has also announced the acquisition of a submarine network cable system from Network i2i, which is jointly owned by Singtel and a Bharti group company, for an overall consideration of $110 million. This will be subject to obtaining the requisite approvals.

Bharti Airtel is structured into three strategic business units – mobile, broadband & telephone (B&T) and Enterprise services. The mobile business provides mobile and fixed wireless services using GSM technology across 23 telecom circles. The B&T unit provides broadband and telephone services in 94 cities while the Enterprise services provide end-to-end telecom solutions to corporate customers and national and international long distance services to carriers.

Bharti has an aggregate of 33.71 million subscribers (as of December-end 2006), consisting of 31.97 million mobile customers.

MUMBAI: Reliance Communications has teamed up with Yahoo! India to offer instant messaging service to its customers.

Mobile IM will allow Reliance Mobile customers to chat live with other Reliance customers, as well as any Yahoo! IM user in the world using their PC. Customers can send instant messages and chat online using all of the Yahoo! IM features such as simultaneous multi-chat windows, presence status icon, emoticons, Yahoo! personal contact list and profile, multiple chat windows and view off-line messages. Reliance‘s Yahoo! IM is “always connected” to deliver instant messages, informs an official release.

“Reliance is bridging the Digital Divide by extending the Internet-rich IM experience of the PCs to its mobile subscribers for the first time in India”, said Reliance Communications president – applications content and solutions Group Mahesh Prasad. “This brings us one step closer towards the convergence of the mobiles and the PCs”, he added.

yahoo! India MD George Zacharias said, “We are glad to partner with Reliance for Mobile IM services, in India. This unique service will add a new dimension in enhancing our user experience and provide yet another compelling way to stay connected, instantly and at all times.”

Yahoo! Instant Messenger service client interface for Reliance was developed by ACL Wireless. Yahoo! Messenger for mobile is available on all BREW, WAP and Nokia colour handsets using Java technologies. Reliance Mobile customers can access Mobile Instant Messenger by clicking on Reliance Mobile World > hot n new > Yahoo! Msgr. Customers will be charged Rs. 5 for each session logged and can send and receive unlimited instant messages.

his is not the first time that Reliance Mobile has collaborated with Yahoo! Infact, Yahoo! Mail has been part of Reliance Mobile World‘s suite of WebMail services for over two years.

MUMBAI: Who wants free music? Well as a matter of fact everybody. The spiraling downward trend of global music sales for a seventh straight year was the topic of discussion at MIDEM, the IFPI annual industry meeting in Cannes, France.
Although the popularity of music is as strong as ever, global sales are expected to be down again for 2006 despite digital sales almost doubling to $2 billion.

The IFPI has met with criticism from some of the major players who insisted that they had been distracted by the fight against piracy which may have also hindered the growth of the legal business.

In a counter to this allegation IFPI head John Kennedy reportedly told Reuters in an interview that, “Many people around the world tell me that we‘ve handled our problems in an incorrect manner but no one tells me what we should have done.

“DRM is like polonium to some people,” Kennedy said. “Digital rights management is exactly that, it‘s the management of digital rights and if we weren‘t managing it the headlines would be ‘irresponsible music industry … creates anarchy.‘”

eMusic chief executive David Pakman is a major critic of DRM. His service is the delivers tracks in the MP3 format, meaning they can be played on any portable music player, including the iPod.However, none of the four major labels are ready to supply to this service.

“It‘s the same model that was used for the CD and DVD, universal compatibility, and we think it‘s the principal thing holding back the growth of digital today,” he told Reuters.
EMI Music head of digital Barney Wragg talking to Reuters said that digital was revolutionizing the way they work.
“I was just talking to (British singer) Joss Stone who is very excited about the opportunities this offers,” Wragg said. “We‘re not constrained to the plastic CD box any more. It offers the possibility to do things that could never be done before.”

“CASBAA looks forward to working with our new members in particular throughout 2007,” said CASBAA chairman Marcel Fenez. “With this type of sectoral and geographic support our effectiveness as a voice for the industry and as a networking organisation continues to grow.”

MUMBAI: US broadcaster MTV‘s college network mtvU has acquired RateMyProfessors.com, a rapidly growing online destination with more than 6.6 million user-generated ratings of over 900,000 college professors.

The Internet’s largest listing of collegiate professor ratings, the site reaches approximately 10 million total college students in the US each year, who use the free service to plan their class schedule, and rate professors on attributes such as helpfulness and clarity.

With the combination of RateMyProfessors.com, mtvU.com, and the recently acquired College Publisher network of over 500 online college newspapers, mtvU now claims the second most trafficked set of general interest college-focused websites – further solidifying its position as the largest multi-platform college network. RateMyProfessors.com the broadcaster says is a strong addition to its family of online brands, as the company continues to super-serve audiences with relevant and innovative content via engaging new platforms. Following MTVN‘s recent purchases of Y2M, Atom Entertainment, GameTrailers, Harmonix, IFilm, Neopets and Xfire, this acquisition demonstrates the company’s continued commitment to being a premier multi-platform media company across every screen consumers use.

MTV chairman and CEO Judy McGrath says, “This deal marks another step forward in our overall digital strategy and brings a large, active and engaged community of college students to our growing online portfolio. With sound acquisitions and organic growth, we’re constantly offering our audiences new ways to interact and express themselves, strengthening and deepening our connection with them in the process.” MTV president Christina Norman says, “This acquisition reflects MTV’s strategy of being everywhere our audience is and harnessing its creative firepower – in this case the millions of ratings generated by students on RateMyProfessors.com. This site is a perfect addition to mtvU’s multi-platform offering, further establishing the network as the definitive way to connect with college students on-air, online and on campus.mtvU GM Stephen Friedman says, “Choosing the best courses and professors is a rite of passage for every college student, and connecting with peers on RateMyProfessors.com has become a key way millions of students now navigate this process. We look forward to partnering with the site’s great staff and users, and expanding into new areas that will help students get much more from their college experience.”

MUMBAI: At a time when television revenue in the US is either flat or down, a panel discussion a few days ago at the television trade event Natpe proved that TV station Web sites can make money online.

The session, produced and moderated by WorldNow CEO Gary Gannaway, was called Who Wants to Be an Online Millionaire?. It featured convergence advertising models from three television executives whose web sites have raked in $1 million or more in annual revenue.Panellists included Christine DiStadio of The New York Times Broadcast Media Group, Paul King of Raycom Media, and Bob Singer of KOIN-TV in Portland, Oregon. Gannaway says, “The main message of this session is that online revenue is real and that it can work for advertisers. Our panellists illustrated this through recent advertising and sponsorship campaigns for such desired categories as auto, real estate, health and home improvement.DiStadio cited the example of WREG-TV in Memphis, which saw its national TV revenue drop from $10 million in 2000 to $8 million today. While the station‘s web revenue was zero in 2000, convergence revenue has taken the station revenue to more than $1 million today.She says, “There is a real market emerging under our feet right now. Use the power of the product you know best — broadcast television, your core business — to drive top line revenue through new business development with emerging media. It‘s the only way we are going to grow. The strongest weapon — TV — in your toolbox is the bridge to your future.”

She described the vital importance of incorporating video, multi-screen presence, and consumer engagement into a station‘s online strategy. “Broadband video is changing the way people discover and interact. According to a survey by comScore, the average consumer watches about 100 minutes of video on the web every month.

“Freshness and speed will trump high production values. Web video is different.” Paul King, who oversees 40 station
websites for Raycom Media, described the secret ingredients that helped generate $1.25 million in online revenue in 2006 — 9.6 per cent of the total ad sales for the station for WIS-TV in Columbia, South Carolina. Those ingredients include such daypart strategies as surround sessions and video streaming.

“Local TV broadcasters should now be selling dayparts in a new way: through online advertising. Those prime demos that advertisers want are all reachable during the day — they‘re just accessing the stations through their computers at work, rather than through their televisions at home.”

Meanwhile, Singer discussed the revenue growth enjoyed in a short amount of time by Koin-TV, which is virtually brand-new to the online game. In one year, Koin expects to reach its goal of more than $1 million in online revenue — proving that it does not take years to develop a successful Internet strategy and monetise locally if you put the right resources behind your advertising sales team.

“I‘m just an average general manager in an average TV market. I figured I could accept our fate based on our somewhat average ratings position in the marketplace or I could look for creative new ways to boost our revenue. I‘m glad I decided to do the latter.”

All three panellists addressed the issue of internal versus external online resources: Should stations try to control the
development of their Web sites by utilising internal staff resources or hiring new staff for the job — or should they rely on the expertise of an outside company that specialises in the online arena?

King says, “I‘ve done it both ways. And I‘m here to tell you that the internal staff needs to stay focussed on the core business, which is still broadcast television of course. Find a seasoned partner with strong technology and proven ad-sales experience to handle this burgeoning business for you.”