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Tag: Sify

  • Hathway bags ET Best Tech Brand 2015 award

    Hathway bags ET Best Tech Brand 2015 award

    MUMBAI: Hathway won the Economic Times Best Tech Brand 2015 in telecommunication, technology and media space for its significant contribution in the growth of digital cable television in the country. 

     

    The ET Edge-Best Tech Brands 2015 summit was held in Delhi on 17 December.

     

    Technology brands like HP, Capgemini, IBM, Ricoh, Mphasis and Sify amongst others were part of this summit, which recognised key contributions of organisations in building and upgrading technology to create a robust ecosystem and providing a business edge in their respective industry.

     

    Hathway Cable & Datacom managing director and CEO Jagdish Kumar G Pillai said, “We are extremely proud of this achievement and thank all stakeholders and team Hathway who have contributed towards the growth of Hathway in the digital cable television and broadband space. This recognition from one of leading and most trusted names in media, The Economic Times, is testament to the giant strides that Hathway has taken in the technological transformation of digital cable TV and wired broadband businesses in India and our continuing efforts in empowering our customers to build a better and robust service & brand.”

     

    Hathway featured in the list of top 150 technology brands of India as per the Economic Times & MRSS industry agnostic study to understand what goes into the making of leading tech Brands in the B2B space.

  • Zapak gets Shard Sharma as the National Sales Head

    Zapak gets Shard Sharma as the National Sales Head

    Mumbai: Zapak Digital Entertainment, the India gaming business by Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group, has announced the appointment of Shard Sharma as the national sales head of all businesses under Zapak.

    In his new role, Sharma will be managing teams in Mumbai and Delhi. He will be reporting to Zapak Digital Entertainment business head – India Chaitanya Prabhu.

    Prabhu said “We are happy to welcome Shard Sharma as the Nation Sales Head for Zapak. Shard brings along with him vast experience of monetizing various internet properties and we are looking forward to working closely with Shard in tapping the monetisation opportunity in exponentially growing free to play gaming category in India across mobile and PC.”

    Sharma joins Zapak from Sify as regional manager- North, East and West.

    With over 14 years of work experience in sales and business development, he has been associated with names like Rediff.com, Moneycontrol.com, Zee Network and Webdunia.com in the past.

  • McCann makes senior level appointments at Bengaluru and Mumbai

    MUMBAI: IPG owned advertising agency McCann Erickson has made appointments at leadership positions in it Bengaluru and Mumbai offices.

    Vijay Jacob Parakkal has been roped in as McCann Bangalore general manager. Namrata Nandan who has spent three years heading the Bengaluru office which has key businesses like Britannia, ITC and TVS motors has been re-located to Mumbai and will now oversee the McCann Mumbai branch.

    Parakkal comes with an experience of close to two decades across India and Srilanka and in companies like Eveready, Bazee.com and Grey. He has worked on brands such as ITC, Bharti AXA, Sify, Ashok Leyland and UB Group.

    Anil Thomas is to continue as creative chief for McCann‘s entire South Operations.

    McCann Erickson executive chairman and CEO Prasoon Joshi said, “McCann has always embraced change and have welcomed new blood in the system. At the same time we take pride in providing exposure and opportunities for growth to our long time colleagues. Vijay and Namrata‘s new roles bear testimony to this philosophy and practice. I am positive that both our offices will further shine bright.”

  • Sify capitalises on TV’s talent hunt craze as auditions go online

    Sify capitalises on TV’s talent hunt craze as auditions go online

    MUMBAI: Aspiring contestants waiting for endless hours in maddeningly long queues, organisers struggling to cope with the logistics pressure and complications – all kinds of chaos break loose when television channels conduct their national auditions for talent hunt shows.

    Sify Limited has spotted a good revenue opportunity here and is offering to make the whole process much simpler with the use of its national Iway network.

    The company has already associated with national networks such as Star India and Zee to offer them online solutions for the audition process. For example, Zee TV has associated with Sifymax for the video auditions of its upcoming talent hunt show Cinestars. The auditions will be held in 154 cities across India using the technology edge of Sify’s 3400 plus iWay cyber cafes.

    Similarly, Star India’s Vijay TV conducted video auditions for its comic hunt Kalakka Povadu Yaaru 2 (KPY 2) through Sify Iways in June.

    “Sify is ideally positioned with the Sify Iway network (over 3000 Iways across 154 cities) and the broadband portal, SifyMax.com, to manage massive customer video interaction activity like the Zee CineStar activity. The customer can take the tutorial on SifyMax and the auditions can be recorded at the Iways or uploaded online on SifyMax.com. The customer is charged for these services,” explains Sify Ltd Portals president V Sivaramakrishnan.

    Zee TV marketing head Tarun Mehra agrees, “Zee Cinestars is an all India contest and understandably the auditions demand a lot of hard work. But, with the help of Sifymax, we have simplified the whole process. The technology lessens the load and this helps us to channelise our resources to the other areas of the project.”

    Sify will be soon exploring the facility for an in-house talent hunt, the Net Jockey Hunt. The contest will be conducted at popular Malls in Mumbai for its city specific broad band portal www.mumbailive.in.

    Speaking on the strategy, Sivaramakrishnan offers, “Without any registration /subscription fee, we reach out and offer value added services (entertainment and information content in video format) to this segment. Almost 34 per cent of the Sifymax users access the internet via cyber cafe, through the Sify Iway cyber café chain. Hence we are leveraging on this huge strength.”

    On the revenue front, Sify is expected to push this revenue model to deliver this fiscal. However, Sivaramakrishnan refuses to divulge the target. “It is early days to comment on this,” he says.

  • Sify promotes Sivaramakrishnan to president, portals

    Sify promotes Sivaramakrishnan to president, portals

    MUMBAI: Sify Limited has promoted V Sivaramakrishnan as the president of its portal business. Prior to this, he was vice president of iWay cyber café chain business.

    A management graduate from the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT), Sivaramakrishnan has worked in companies like Procter & Gamble and Ford, both in India and abroad. During his tenure with them, he led brand, sales and customer service teams, marketing and sales initiatives for brands such as Vicks, Pampers, Old Spice, Ford Fiesta, Ford Ikon and Ford Endeavour.

    Sify Limited CEO and managing director Raju Vegesna said, “I am very pleased to announce Siva’s promotion as President, Sify Portals. In his earlier role as vice president of the iWay cyber café chain business, Siva brought a deep insight and understanding of consumers, and executed initiatives to grow business revenues through innovative services, products and promotions in synergy with our portal strategies.

    “While we will see the result of these efforts going forwards, I believe that he will bring a fresh perspective to how we grow our portals and online advertising business both in India and overseas. With his rich experience in building brands, understanding of media, marketing and consumer behavior, I am confident he will play a key role in further strengthening and growing our portal business in tandem with our access strategies.”

    Sivaramakrishnan said, “I am really excited about this opportunity as it will enable me to bring to bear all of my previous experience with consumers, brands, marketing, media and the Internet in building our portals business. The Net is the most exciting medium of our times, and it will be our intention to maximize the opportunities presented by this versatile medium for compelling and relevant online content for Indians, to add to the quality of their lives. This includes extending the leadership we have in broadband content with www.sifymax.in, our popular portal www.sify.com, our city-centric broadband portal strategies, and www.samachar.com, the most popular site for non-resident Indians.”

    “I will also be involved in growing the online advertising business with marketers as they begin to understand the flexibility, focus and power that online advertising gives them for cost effective brand promotions, and overseeing Sify’s consumer brand marketing for both the portals and access businesses for greater synergies. I believe this will be the most exciting and challenging phase of my career, and I look forward to making a difference to Sify’s pioneering efforts for exciting India-centric online content in synergy with our access businesses,” he added.

  • WahIndia to unveil Bollywood social networking site by August

    WahIndia to unveil Bollywood social networking site by August

    MUMBAI: WahIndia, online media and social networking company, has announced that by the end of August 2006, it will launch the first social network focused on Bollywood and Indian entertainment for a global audience.

    The company claims to have received an undisclosed amount of investment from prominent angel investors. The US based company further plans to establish an office in Mumbai during next quarter to accelerate user growth in India, informs an offcial release.

    WahIndia founder & CEO Sunil Thakur said, “WahIndia is already one of the most popular destinations for Bollywood fans around the world and with the integration of a Bollywood-focused social network, we will further deepen relationship with our user community.”

    Bollywood films find wide audiences in many parts of the world, particularly in North America and Europe, with a growing demand in the Middle East and select Latin American countries. By empowering a user-built entertainment network, WahIndia will be able to provide a distribution channel to earn revenue from downloads of films, music, mobile ringtones, wallpaper and other premium digital content, adds the release.

    Founded in 2003, WahIndia is the producer and distributor of video content specifically developed for small screens such as PCs, laptops and mobile devices. The company distributes its in-house produced content through several partners and channels, including Sify, IndiaTimes, Akimbo and iPod Podcasts. WahIndia also offers legal download of films such as Bollywood blockbusters Andaz Apna Apna, Loafer, Parvarish and independent films like Oscar-nominated Little Terrorist.

  • Sify enters online travel space with Globe Travels’ acquisition

    Sify enters online travel space with Globe Travels’ acquisition

    MUMBAI: Sify Limited has acquired Globe Travels, an online issuer of e-tickets in the India-US travel space. This acquisition marks Sify’s entry into the fast growing online travel business, particularly e-ticketing, the category with highest revenues and fastest growth in online ecommerce today.

    In a country with low PC penetration, Sify is particularly well-placed with 3300 iWay cyber cafes across 153 cities from which more than a million people accessed the internet in the last quarter.

    Each of these iWay cyber cafes can operate as an e-store from where existing and new customers can make online travel arrangements or purchase e-tickets. The company’s acquisition of Globe Travels will be leveraged to provide value for Sify’s users, while adding additional revenue streams for the company.

    Sify Ltd CEO R Ramaraj said, “This strategic acquisition brings into our fold fast growing services that enhance our online offerings to customers, and opens up new sources of revenue. We will also have the benefit of having Globe Travels CEO Herman Noronha, on board along with his team, who will add value with their domain expertise.”

    Noronha said, “We are delighted to be a part of the Sify online services network. We decided to partner with Sify, after much deliberation, given the company’s vision, range of online services, extensive reach across India and its technological capabilities.”

    With over 20 years of travel industry experience in both India and the USA, Noronha founded Globe Travels in the US in 1993, and built a leading and profitable enterprise in the travel business focused on the US-India market.

    Portals senior vice president Surya Mantha said, “The addition of a travel portal is in line with our strategy of providing end-to-end services to Sify users. We believe we are well positioned to emerge as leading player in the online travel space with the unmatched reach afforded by the 3300 iWay cyber cafes across 153 cities, 200,000 home broadband customers, and Sify’s leading online properties including www.SifyMax.in, www.Sify.com and www.Samachar.com, the popular portal for global Indians.”

    The potential for the growth of travel and ticketing arrangements online in India cannot be underscored. India, today is considered to be one of the fastest growing airline markets in the world in terms of new airlines and the number of aircraft on order.

    According to the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI), the number of Indian internet users is slated to grow from the current 38.5 million to over 100 million by 2007-08. As internet users grow, the number of people making travel arrangements online is expected to increase substantially in future. IAMAI has projected a total of $ 262 million in online transactions for 2005-06, of which 57.85 per cent or $152 million is expected in the travel and travel related sectors. Airline ticket sales online are expected to account for $ 88 million, railway ticket sales will follow with $ 63 million. The growth of online sales of air tickets has been given a further impetus by the IATA deadline of 7 December for 100 per cent online ticketing in India, with the airlines promoting online tickets with special fares and benefits, as well as alliances.

    Online travel arrangements for global Indians returning to India can also be leveraged on www.samachar.com, particularly in the US-India sector. This segment is growing at 40 per cent year on year, with the opportunity to provide other value added services around a visit to India

  • Sify launches online magazine store

    Sify launches online magazine store

    MUMBAI: www.sifymall.com, the online store on portal Sify has launched magazine subscription service online.

    The store has magazines from both Indian and foreign publications across categories like advertising, audio/video, automotive, aviation, beauty and fashion, business, films, music, travel and leisure and women to suit users interests.

    Sify senior VP, interactive services, Surya Mantha says, “Our aim is to ensure that the best offers are always available on SifyMall for users to experience real value for money. Be it the popular Deal of the Day, occasion based online gifting, or shopping online, we work to ensure customer delight in a number of ways. Our online magazine store extends this philosophy with subscriptions that offer real value to users with a wide range of magazines to suit their interests. We’ve also redesigned SifyMall to enhance the shopping experience for our users”.

    All a user needs to do is to go online on www.sifymall.com to the Magazine Store, and choose the title of his/her choice from an array of 130 magazines, with more to be added in future. The magazines are arranged conveniently by topic, publishers as well as alphabetically for users to locate the magazines of their choice easily and quickly.

  • Sify is webcasting India-England ODIs

    Sify is webcasting India-England ODIs

    MUMBAI: Sify, which works in the area of consumer Internet and Enterprise Services in India with global delivery capabilities, is live webcasting the current One Day International (ODIs) series between India and England.

    Sify senior VP interactive services Surya Mantha said, “This is another first in our quest to provide the most exciting India-centric broadband content for Internet users. Cricket in India goes beyond a national passion- its practically a religion! Now broadband users will be able to watch the ODIs from the office, or from Sify iWays in over 149 cities across the country.

    “The live webcast of the first ODI on 28 March at the Feroze Shah Kotla ground in Delhi received an overwhelming response, and confirms our belief that there is a large and growing number of broadband users who are turning to the Net for all their needs. Our intention is to make www.sifymax.in their home on the web with initiatives such as this”.

    SifyMax holds the internet and broadband rights for India for the live webcast of the one day series. So SifyMax users will be able to view each match live, ball-by-ball, as they would on TV.

    For users who are unable to access the live feed due to overwhelming demand, a live video scorecard is also available on SifyMax. The video scorecard provides video clips of the highlights of the game as it unfolds- how 4’s and 6’s were hit, how the wickets fell, catches and run outs.

    The live webcasts can also be accessed from over 3100 iWay cyber cafes across the country as they all have broadband connectivity.