Social networking site Facebook today announced that it will set up its office in Hyderabad to support the growing number of users, advertisers and developers in India and globally.
Facebook has seen exponential growth in recent months and has more than eight million active users in India, it said in a statement.
The rising popularity of Facebook has also come as a threat to various other social networking sites like Orkut, MySpace and Flickr.
It has more than 400 million active users worldwide.
The centre will house online advertising and developer support teams and provide round-the-clock, multi-lingual support to its users and advertisers globally, it further said.
The new centre in Hyderabad will supplement operations out of California, Dublin, Ireland and a recently announced location in Austin, Texas.
It has already started its hiring procedure for the Hyderabad centre.
"We expect our new office in Hyderabad to tap into the region's strong pool of talented people who understand operations and technology, and help us more effectively serve the needs of our users, advertisers, and developers around the world," Facebook Director (Global Online Operations) Don Faul said.
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
IT market
What China loses with Google
Source: IndiaTimes
China without Google a prospect that looks increasingly likely could mean no more maps on mobile phones. A free music service that has helped to fight piracy might be in jeopardy.
China's fledgling Web outfits would face less pressure to improve, eroding their ability to one day compete abroad. The extent of a possible Google Inc pullout from China in its dispute with the communist government over censorship and hacking is unclear.
But on top of a local search site that Google says it may close, services that might be affected range from advertising support for Chinese companies to online entertainment.
"If Google leaves, it's a lose-lose scenario, instead of Google loses and others gain," said Edward Yu, president of Analysys International, a Beijing research firm. Chinese news reports say Google is on the verge of shutting its China site, Google.cn, and has stopped censoring results.
A Google spokesman, Scott Rubin, denied censorship had stopped and would not confirm whether Google.cn might close. "We have not changed our operations in China," Rubin said by phone from Google's headquarters in Mountain View, California.
CEO Eric Schmidt said last week something would happen soon, and Rubin said he had no further details. Google says it is in talks with Beijing following its January 12 announcement that it no longer wants to comply with Beijing's extensive Web controls.
But China's industry minister insisted that the company must obey Chinese law, which appears to leave few options other than closing Google.cn, which has about 35 per cent of China's search market. Such a step could have repercussions for major Chinese companies as well as local Web surfers.
It would deliver a windfall to local rival Baidu Inc, China's major search engine, with 60 per cent of the market. But other companies rely on Google for search, maps and other services and might be forced to find alternatives.
China Mobile Ltd, the world's biggest phone company by subscribers, with 527 million accounts, uses Google for mobile search and maps. Baidu offers mobile search but China Mobile passed up a partnership with it earlier after they failed to agree on terms, according to industry analysts.
Millions of mobile customers might lose access to Google's Chinese-language map service. A key issue is whether Beijing, angry and embarrassed by Google's public defiance, would allow the company to continue running other operations, including advertising and a fledgling mobile phone businesses in China if Google.cn closes. China promotes Internet use for business and education but bars access to sites run by human rights and political activists and some news outlets.
Officials who defend China's controls by pointing to countries that bar content such as child pornography are stung that Google has drawn attention to how much more pervasive Chinese limits are. Chinese Web surfers are blocked from seeing Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and major blog-hosting services abroad and a Google pullout would leave them increasingly isolated.
Google hopes to keep operating its Beijing research and development center, advertising sales offices and mobile phone business, according to a person familiar with the company's thinking. But the person said the company won't do that if it believes its decision to stop censoring search results will jeopardize employees in China.
Industry analysts estimate Google has a workforce of 700 in China. The government says Chinese mobile phone carriers will be allowed to use Google's Android operating system but there has been no word on whether efforts to sell its own phones in China might be affected.
Google postponed the launch of two phones with a major Chinese carrier due to the dispute. Uncertainty also surrounds Google's China music portal, a free, advertising-supported service launched last year in partnership with four global music companies and 14 independent labels.
Industry analysts say it has helped to undercut China's rampant music piracy by offering an alternative to unlicensed copying. The music service is run by Top100.cn, a company part-owned by Google, but can be accessed only through Google.cn.
Employees at Top100.cn referred questions to executives who did not immediately answer phone calls. "Without that, are we back to, 'Piracy wins'?" said Duncan Clark, managing director of BDA China Ltd, a technology market research firm.
"Piracy thrives because of censorship." The biggest impact of a Google departure could lie behind the scenes, where Chinese companies, many of them small entrepreneurs, rely on its AdWords advertising service, Gmail email and documents services.
Those might be disrupted if Beijing turns up Internet filters to block access to Google's sites abroad. Its US site has a Chinese-language search engine but is already inaccessible due to government filters.
In an uncomfortable irony for Beijing, Google might suffer little commercial loss from a pullout while China's own companies are hurt. The bulk of Google's estimated $300 million in 2009 revenues in China came from export-oriented companies that would need to keep advertising on its sites abroad even if Google.cn closes, according to Yu. "We believe the majority of revenue would still be kept on, with keyword purchases listed on Google.com instead of Google.cn," he said.
The loss of competitive pressure from Google also might slow Chinese development in search and other Internet services, Yu said. "This is definitely a bad thing for Chinese companies that want to go abroad in the future," he said.
The industry minister, Li Yizhong, said on Friday that China's Internet industry would develop without Google. But even some Chinese industry leaders who normally toe the government line in public are warning that controls on Internet companies and media are handicapping their growth.
Beijing has steadily tightened controls over Internet content and foreign investment in the industry. Video sharing sites must have state-owned media outlets as partners.
People in the industry say it is getting harder to register privately financed sites. "Without full and fair market competition, there will be no quality, no excellence, no employment opportunities, no stability and no real rise of China," said the chairman of major Chinese portal Sohu Inc., Charles Zhang, in a speech in February, according to a report on Sohu's Web site. "How do we do this practically?" Zhang said.
"The problem is complicated, but the fundamental point is to limit the power of the government."
Source: IndiaTimes
China without Google a prospect that looks increasingly likely could mean no more maps on mobile phones. A free music service that has helped to fight piracy might be in jeopardy.
China's fledgling Web outfits would face less pressure to improve, eroding their ability to one day compete abroad. The extent of a possible Google Inc pullout from China in its dispute with the communist government over censorship and hacking is unclear.
But on top of a local search site that Google says it may close, services that might be affected range from advertising support for Chinese companies to online entertainment.
"If Google leaves, it's a lose-lose scenario, instead of Google loses and others gain," said Edward Yu, president of Analysys International, a Beijing research firm. Chinese news reports say Google is on the verge of shutting its China site, Google.cn, and has stopped censoring results.
A Google spokesman, Scott Rubin, denied censorship had stopped and would not confirm whether Google.cn might close. "We have not changed our operations in China," Rubin said by phone from Google's headquarters in Mountain View, California.
CEO Eric Schmidt said last week something would happen soon, and Rubin said he had no further details. Google says it is in talks with Beijing following its January 12 announcement that it no longer wants to comply with Beijing's extensive Web controls.
But China's industry minister insisted that the company must obey Chinese law, which appears to leave few options other than closing Google.cn, which has about 35 per cent of China's search market. Such a step could have repercussions for major Chinese companies as well as local Web surfers.
It would deliver a windfall to local rival Baidu Inc, China's major search engine, with 60 per cent of the market. But other companies rely on Google for search, maps and other services and might be forced to find alternatives.
China Mobile Ltd, the world's biggest phone company by subscribers, with 527 million accounts, uses Google for mobile search and maps. Baidu offers mobile search but China Mobile passed up a partnership with it earlier after they failed to agree on terms, according to industry analysts.
Millions of mobile customers might lose access to Google's Chinese-language map service. A key issue is whether Beijing, angry and embarrassed by Google's public defiance, would allow the company to continue running other operations, including advertising and a fledgling mobile phone businesses in China if Google.cn closes. China promotes Internet use for business and education but bars access to sites run by human rights and political activists and some news outlets.
Officials who defend China's controls by pointing to countries that bar content such as child pornography are stung that Google has drawn attention to how much more pervasive Chinese limits are. Chinese Web surfers are blocked from seeing Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and major blog-hosting services abroad and a Google pullout would leave them increasingly isolated.
Google hopes to keep operating its Beijing research and development center, advertising sales offices and mobile phone business, according to a person familiar with the company's thinking. But the person said the company won't do that if it believes its decision to stop censoring search results will jeopardize employees in China.
Industry analysts estimate Google has a workforce of 700 in China. The government says Chinese mobile phone carriers will be allowed to use Google's Android operating system but there has been no word on whether efforts to sell its own phones in China might be affected.
Google postponed the launch of two phones with a major Chinese carrier due to the dispute. Uncertainty also surrounds Google's China music portal, a free, advertising-supported service launched last year in partnership with four global music companies and 14 independent labels.
Industry analysts say it has helped to undercut China's rampant music piracy by offering an alternative to unlicensed copying. The music service is run by Top100.cn, a company part-owned by Google, but can be accessed only through Google.cn.
Employees at Top100.cn referred questions to executives who did not immediately answer phone calls. "Without that, are we back to, 'Piracy wins'?" said Duncan Clark, managing director of BDA China Ltd, a technology market research firm.
"Piracy thrives because of censorship." The biggest impact of a Google departure could lie behind the scenes, where Chinese companies, many of them small entrepreneurs, rely on its AdWords advertising service, Gmail email and documents services.
Those might be disrupted if Beijing turns up Internet filters to block access to Google's sites abroad. Its US site has a Chinese-language search engine but is already inaccessible due to government filters.
In an uncomfortable irony for Beijing, Google might suffer little commercial loss from a pullout while China's own companies are hurt. The bulk of Google's estimated $300 million in 2009 revenues in China came from export-oriented companies that would need to keep advertising on its sites abroad even if Google.cn closes, according to Yu. "We believe the majority of revenue would still be kept on, with keyword purchases listed on Google.com instead of Google.cn," he said.
The loss of competitive pressure from Google also might slow Chinese development in search and other Internet services, Yu said. "This is definitely a bad thing for Chinese companies that want to go abroad in the future," he said.
The industry minister, Li Yizhong, said on Friday that China's Internet industry would develop without Google. But even some Chinese industry leaders who normally toe the government line in public are warning that controls on Internet companies and media are handicapping their growth.
Beijing has steadily tightened controls over Internet content and foreign investment in the industry. Video sharing sites must have state-owned media outlets as partners.
People in the industry say it is getting harder to register privately financed sites. "Without full and fair market competition, there will be no quality, no excellence, no employment opportunities, no stability and no real rise of China," said the chairman of major Chinese portal Sohu Inc., Charles Zhang, in a speech in February, according to a report on Sohu's Web site. "How do we do this practically?" Zhang said.
"The problem is complicated, but the fundamental point is to limit the power of the government."
Source: IndiaTimes
BPO
Genpact bags 5-year deal from Bengal Aerotropolis Projects
BPO major Genpact Tuesday inked a five-year deal with Bengal Aerotropolis Projects (BAP) for managing its IT operations for an undisclosed amount.
BAP is engaged in development of aerotropolis projects in the country.
As part of the deal, Genpact will provide BAP with a hosted-IT application and infrastructure services model, which will help the company in saving large capital investments in IT, Genpact said in a statement.
However, the size of the deal was not disclosed. The partnership would enable BAP to move to a cloud-based IT model and help shift from a capital-heavy owned model to an operational expense model, it said.
BAP is engaged in development of aerotropolis projects in the country.
As part of the deal, Genpact will provide BAP with a hosted-IT application and infrastructure services model, which will help the company in saving large capital investments in IT, Genpact said in a statement.
However, the size of the deal was not disclosed. The partnership would enable BAP to move to a cloud-based IT model and help shift from a capital-heavy owned model to an operational expense model, it said.
BPO
Patni sets up hub for BPO ops in Texas
Global IT and BPO services provider Patni Computer Systems said it has set up a new North American hub for BPO operations in El Paso, Texas. The establishment of the El Paso site follows Patni’s recent move to open a nearshore centre in Queretaro, Mexico, to serve North American and Latin American markets and augment the company’s global delivery capabilities, a company release said here.
Establishing the service hub expands Patni’s business process outsourcing (BPO) and knowledge process outsourcing (KPO) delivery capability to service North American customers from domestic locations in a cost-effective manner and employ highly-skilled local talent, the release said.
Establishing the service hub expands Patni’s business process outsourcing (BPO) and knowledge process outsourcing (KPO) delivery capability to service North American customers from domestic locations in a cost-effective manner and employ highly-skilled local talent, the release said.
New Deals, TCS
TCS signs 5-year deal with Malaysia Airlines
The country's largest software exporter Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) today inked a five-year deal with Malaysia Airlines (MA) for an undisclosed amount.
The five-year contract for end-to-end IT infrastructure services will transform the airline's IT operations to deliver seamless internal customer experience, TCS said in a statement.
However, the size of the deal was not disclosed. "One of the key initiatives include fine tuning our IT outsourcing strategy to deliver the required business results at lower cost. At the same time, we will continue to work with our key vendors to maximise service delivery and to proactively address other business requirements," MA Chief Information Officer Faridah Abdul Rahman said.
The five-year contract for end-to-end IT infrastructure services will transform the airline's IT operations to deliver seamless internal customer experience, TCS said in a statement.
However, the size of the deal was not disclosed. "One of the key initiatives include fine tuning our IT outsourcing strategy to deliver the required business results at lower cost. At the same time, we will continue to work with our key vendors to maximise service delivery and to proactively address other business requirements," MA Chief Information Officer Faridah Abdul Rahman said.
Infosys
Infosys may have seen 4,000 staff exits in February: CLSA
Brokerage firm CLSA said over 4,000 employees may have resigned from Infosys in February alone, largely driven by an uptick in business environment that has created a huge demand for talent, after a lull. The normal attrition numbers in India’s second-largest software exporter is around 1,200 employees a month.
“There is quite a bit of industry chatter that 4,000-4,200 employees have resigned at Infosys in February. This is not officially confirmed by the management, but multiple sources are claiming the same number, including industry blogs,” CLSA said in a note to its clients. However, Infosys group HR head Nandita Gurjar said it was not true.
“There is quite a bit of industry chatter that 4,000-4,200 employees have resigned at Infosys in February. This is not officially confirmed by the management, but multiple sources are claiming the same number, including industry blogs,” CLSA said in a note to its clients. However, Infosys group HR head Nandita Gurjar said it was not true.
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