August 2010

Bharti – All Set to Lead in Kenya

by Paul Joseph August 25, 2010 Featured

The one thing in business which is of paramount importance is – Market Leadership. And, it is of strategic sense when a company tries to do that in Africa. WATBlog was one of the first in Digital Media space to report that Bharti Airtel inked the Zain deal . With this deal through, Bharti under its group company Zain Kenya is planning to invest US $ 308 Million in the next 18 months to reach to the top of the Mobile Services provider in Kenya. To add on, another surprise is that this expected investment into Zain Kenya is approximately double of what was initially planned by Bharti. Rene Meza, Managing Director – Zain Kenya, was excited on this investment plan and shared his feelings when he told Requters, “ For the first time in eight years, we have the right majority shareholders with the understanding and the mindset of what it takes for us to do in Kenya, to become market leaders “. This news has already shook their rivals Safaricom , which is the biggest telecom solutions provider company in Kenya & also accounts for more than half of the shares traded on Nairobi Stock Exchange. To further create shockwaves in its competitor group, Zain has already implemented decisions such as Post-Paid connections for the rich segment & Pre-Paid Scratch Cards for the lower end users, at as less as 20 Shillings . The other plans which Zain will implement soon are – 1. Increase its Distributor Base over 2.5 times from the existing 80 to 200 in number. 2. Launch Third Generation (3G) internet connections by Q3 End, FY 2010-11. 3. Focus on increments in revenue generated and subscriber base. 4. Injection of Massive Economies of Scale which would enhance productivity & net profits. So, The Analysis of Zain’s Strategy is somewhat based on the Model which Bharti implemented in India. It majorly seems to hover around Low Cost structures, Aggresive expansions by increasing distributor centres & being the lowest to afford across the cost segments. The understanding of Bharti of the Kenyan Markets and its related demographics also seem to be pretty good enough. The Challenge for Bharti & Zain lie in further penetrating the market when the Lower Inter-Connection fees has already been announced a week back. The decision was made by keeping those investors in mind who are not able to enter into a market which is dominated by a Numero Uno. However, I don’t think Bharti would be remotely bothered with this step. It’s approach in India is already a Case-Study which should be followed by other companies in the world. To add on, the potential impact of this decision is more likely to be hard-hitting on Zain’s competitors in Kenyan Markets, as they don’t have a backing as big as Bharti. Looking for a Social Media Agency? Try WATConsult – India’s Leading Social Media Agency Related Posts Etisalat’s Indian Mobile Venture Lands Into Trouble Olive Telecom Foresees Hike in Revenues Intel And Nokia Joint Innovation Center – To Increase Mobile Capabilities Are Smartphones The Future of Mobile? Ojas-backed Tyfone Raises Funds And Grows

Tagged as: africa, digital-media, investment, media, mobile, mobile-technology, news, nokia, social

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Intel And Nokia Joint Innovation Center – To Increase Mobile Capabilities

by Paul Joseph August 25, 2010 Featured

Mobile devices have made an impact not just in India, but all around the world. Phones have been a device that are used for pretty much everything these days. Not only can you check your emails or surf the internet, the numerous applications allow you to do anything from whiling away your time on social networks, to checking nearby restaurants or finding your way to your destination. Seems like pretty much everything under the sun is covered doesn’t it? To prove that there is much more that can be achieved via mobile devices, Intel and Nokia have come together to start a Joint Innovation Center which will be located at the University of Oulu , one of the largest universities in Finland. This is the newest addition to the long list of research centers established by Intel across Europe called Intel’s European Research Network . The newest addition to this network will have about 24 R&D professionals, and the lab will be equipped with new launched open source platform by Intel and Nokia, MeeGo . The focus of the research center will be on building open-source software that complements Intel’s chips. One of the earliest practical applications for the software will be to develop a virtual control panel for a mobile device to regulate heating and lighting in a real world home. Another potential area of research for the lab would be displaying 3D holograms of people you are talking to on your phone. This seems like a scene right out of some of my favorite Sci-Fi movies like Star Trek, Back To The Future Part II, and total Recall to name a few. But how great would that be? Many initiatives have been taking off with respect to mobiles phones. IBM and IIT have joined hands to develop new mobile device interfaces that will be easy-to-use and easily understandable to semi-literate or illiterate people. This new lab by Nokia and Intel also plans to take mobile devices to the next level. With such innovations, will any device ever come close to the almighty mobile? What are your thoughts? Looking for a Social Media Agency? Try WATConsult – India’s Leading Social Media Agency Related Posts Mobile Web For All – IBM and IIT Combine For Research WWW: WAT Weekly WrapUp 1st August– 8th August 2010 Are Smartphones The Future of Mobile? Ojas-backed Tyfone Raises Funds And Grows After Tata DoCoMo, RComm Provides Nokia Ovi Life Tools In Rural India

Tagged as: media, technology, time

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Challenge Your Friends To A Dual On GTalk – Tankaar.com : A Review

by Paul Joseph August 25, 2010 Featured

As a viewer of the epic TV series Mahabharat, you would have heard the word ‘ Tankaar ‘ emanating from Arjun’s mouth quite a number of times. This word refers to the sound a bow makes when it is plucked and released, which forms the basis of the artillery game on messenger by the same name which you can play online with your friends. About the game : Tankaar can be regarded as a virtual duel which you can play with your online friends on your gtalk list apart from chatting. This homegrown game with a strong mythological backing has been inspired from a number of other artillery games like Pocket Tanks, Worms, Scorched Earth to name a few and the game play is somewhat similar.  The game is a 4 mb file that you download on to your computer and sign in using any xmpp account, the most popular being gtalk. If any of your friends are also online via tankaar, you can challenge them to a duel. But if they aren’t, don’t fret. You can always play with the Tankaar bot, who incidentally has mastered the game so much that he can never miss a target. In the latest version of Tankaar, you can choose from as many as 50 different astras which find their roots in literature. The player has to make a choice of his astra, choose the angle and power and launch his astra with a ‘tankaar’. About the founders : The seed of this idea materialized in the minds of two IITians while they were studying in IIT Roorkee. Being fascinated by the potential of real time communication through the internet, they decided to create a game that could be played while chatting with your friends. The technology that powers tankaar is XMPP (Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol), which also is responsible for Chesspark , a chess game that you can play with your gtalk friends. Working tireless from April, 2009, they brought out the first version of Tankaar in January 2010. Game Play : Personally, I have played Pocket tanks a lot and initially this game also seemed like one of those spin offs. But when I started playing it, I discovered that the astras are quite different from each other and it is not just aim and shoot. You can induce damage to the opponent in a variety of ways by interacting with the environment. It is fun to play with your friends but it is quite frustrating to play with the Tankaar bot as he is a perfectionist! The developers addressed this issue in the latest release (August, 2010) by introducing 5 different levels for the bot. Funding Status : The founders have pumped in their own money in this venture and have written the code themselves. The game has place for advertisers to advertise. An email correspondence with the founder revealed that they are looking at external funding for the marketing and promotion of the game. Right now though, they are concentrating on increasing the value of the game by garnering in loyal supporters. The game has been downloaded by over 1000 users and approximately 100 people play the game every day. 221 People like the Facebook page while it has 13 followers on Twitter. Final Thoughts : Though this may not be an out of the box idea for a game, making a game based on the Indian mythology is a good idea. Artillery games have never gone out of fashion and so, Tankaar can bank on this for support. On the downside, people still prefer to play the conventional pocket tanks and it would be difficult for Tankaar to convince others to play the game. Given the Indian appeal of the game, it may not be able to create an international niche, though we have examples like Japanese anime finding itself a part of daily life of millions of people. Also, the game requires internet connection and cannot be played offline, even with the tankaar bot. There are plans to expand and introduce new and advanced features in the game. It is still at quite a nascent stage and with good marketing and promotion may be able to gain a lot more people. Looking for a Social Media Agency? Try WATConsult – India’s Leading Social Media Agency Related Posts 5 Amazing Twitter Bots For Gtalk Fans! Militant Groups Joining Facebook, Twitter Increase – Cause For Concern England Cricket Team Banned – From Facebook and Twitter Price To Pay For Social Networking – Identity Theft Facebook’s GeoLocation Application – Launch Expected Today

Tagged as: facebook, friends, Indian, internet, japanese, social, startups

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Militant Groups Joining Facebook, Twitter Increase – Cause For Concern

by Paul Joseph August 25, 2010 Featured

Internet is ubiquitous. It is an uncontrollable space, beyond the purview of any Government or corporation and Social Networking is one of the repercussions of it. No doubt, Social-Networking has affected (and continues to do so) million of lives across the globe. It has boomed in recent years as it has allowed network of like-minded individuals to collaborate and connect regardless of their respective geographies or physical location. These groups are bonded by common interests and passion and Social-networking via internet has provided a perfect channel to advertise their thoughts. Considering the unprecedented global reach and scope, which the Internet and thus Social-network provides to millions of users, it does not come as a surprise that Militants and other Extremists groups are increasingly using sites such as Facebook , Twitter , MySpace and YouTube as a medium to recruit or influence new members. The recent bashing against India by some Pakistani militant outfits like Jamat-ud-Dawa and Sipah-e-Sahaba in their Facebook page substantiates the point. These extremists groups have targeted younger, more educated followers by using every aspect of social networking to denounce our democratic establishment and kindle the old hatred. So far, Pakistan Government has failed to restrict these organizations from accessing the web space. Indian security agencies consider these rambling as a major threat to National security and are keeping a close eye on these developments.  But the fact that the setup exists in the cyberspace makes it impervious to threats and resistive actions. The history of this kind of digital terrorism dates back to 1995 when first extremist website went online and as the Internet became more advanced, these websites grew in number and technological sophistication. But the greatest increase of this digital hate has emerged from the proliferation of social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter. With more than 500 million users accessing these sites, it has become extremely challenging to locate these hate groups and remove them. Even though Facebook and Twitter have tried hard to eradicate the objectionable content but it is clear that sometimes, even the best efforts cannot remove the problem. Internet is all about information and freedom to share it. It has influenced our belief and perception. But like all other innovations, this too is a double edged sword. There is no such thing as an invention whose potential for good cannot be perverted for evil.  There is a growing concern amongst the security agencies about the ways Internet power can be used for exercising terror, which is not unfounded. We are faced with some serious security issues but we will have to be sensible in dealing with them. For example,  Banning access to these websites can only be a short term solution and an ineffective one. But a more prudent approach would be to find a solution without rolling back the technological gains. So what do you think – Can technology provide an answer to our growing security concerns ? Looking for a Social Media Agency? Try WATConsult – India’s Leading Social Media Agency Related Posts After Facebook, Twitter, And Orkut Accounts, Priyanka Chopra Launches Website 6 Hours A Day Spent On Social Networking Globally! What About India? In USA Users Spend Double the Time on Social Networks Now WATBlog Picks: International Websites to Watch Out For in 2008 Twitter Usage Dominated By Indonesia, Brazil and Venezuela – India Comes In At 18th

Tagged as: government, india, indonesia, internet, media, orkut, priyanka-chopra, time, twitter, web, youtube

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STAMP – $50 Tablet Prototype From Indian Company

by Paul Joseph August 25, 2010 Featured

Whoever recognized the concept of Reverse Innovation and emphatically stated that development would initiate from the Third World countries and propagate was not kidding. Though this isn’t a clear case of reverse innovation, the concept still stands. Over the last one year, we’ve seen developments in the Indian tech field that have surprised and shocked the world. First were the Kindle competitors – Notion Ink’s Adam and Infibeam’s Pi . Surprising – yes. Understandable – definitely. Then came the controversial $35 tablet initiative from the HRD ministry. This received as much negative press from the Tech Blogosphere as it did positive. For one, people refused to believe that the Indian Government (which is well known for its gaucheries – Commonwealth Games 2010 being but the latest) could actually build and distribute a touch-tablet for $35 – which works out to be roughly around INR 1,500. Recently EC Media launched Wink – an Ebook priced at around 12k (11,490). Wink would come enabled with its own “Winkstore”, an answer to Amazon’s ebook store and the more recent iBooks. It’s rumoured to hit Indian stores by September (a tie up with Croma – the electronics store by the Tatas) Now, a Bangalore based company – AllGo Embedded Systems has come out with a prototype of a $50 tablet . Based on Android 1.6 (Donut), it is but the latest in a series of Ebook readers and Tablets set out to revolutionize the market. Specs : (that we know of) Runs on a reference platform called Stamp Based on Android 1.6 7 inch – 800 x 480 pixels screen Resistive Touchscrenn (so no smooth transitions like the iPad) Wi-Fi, USB and Ethernet Port (how sensible!) Of course, it comes bundled with all the standard Android features. It also has sound recording, an option to boot from NAND or SD Cards and FM Radio. Here’s a video released by the company. It doesn’t really say much though. Click here to view the embedded video. Few things that need to be determined: Hardware Specs? Will it support newer versions of Android? It needs an order of 10,000 units or more. Will the price stay around $50? The Android is turning to be the default platform for tablet manufacturers. India’s famed $35 tablet runs Android 2.1 (Eclair). Modern Smartphones are already using 2.2 (Froyo) and Gingerbread (v 3.0) is well on its way. Obviously, for $50, you can’t expect very high-end hardware. So can it manage a $50 pricetag and still keep up with the high rate of development that mobile platforms are witnessing? Remember that a major reason most people pooh-paahed India’s HRD Ministry was the hardware cost ( which one Wired post puts at $47 ). Some even went on to say that it was impossible to build anything under $75 (which American company Marvell is aiming at). The main reasons cited was that the One Laptop per Child program (which was non-solar and non-touch) is unable to bring its cost to $100, so how can India get it down to $35. Add the standard argument that if India could do it, China already would have and you have a good generous deal of skepticism abuzz on the Internet. Well, the deal is that the $35 tablet is real at least. Here’s NDTV reviewing it. Click here to view the embedded video. Will it actually be priced at $35. I certainly hope so. For one, it would show India in a really good light for research and development. Secondly, the entire Simputer fiasco, which is still seen all over as India’s benchmark for not living up to tech-promises  and quoted pretty often, will be forgotten if India manages to deliver. What do you think? If the $35 or $50 tablet became a reality, would you go for it? In spite of the obvious deficit in quality. Considering most tablets currently available are priced eight times over, it would be stupid to assume the quality of these low-cost ones would be at par. Me? If you gave me a tablet with a 1GHz processor, 2GB of RAM and a good OS for INR 2,000 or under, I’d chuck my smartphone, purchase a sturdy Nokia (again for

Tagged as: amazon, china, features, Indian, internet, laptop, news, price, project, sales, technology

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Are Smartphones The Future of Mobile?

by Paul Joseph August 25, 2010 Featured

Check out any new mobile that’s just out in the market. What are the chances that it lacks the ability to access Facebook? Close to zero. What are the chances that it doesn’t come equipped with a QWERTY keypad or a fancy Touchscreen? Again, very slim. Recently, WATBlog featured a post on the ePhone and the BlackCherry , two in the range of new “Smartphone” look-alikes (of course, they do also have almost the same features). And now we have Micromax and Lava sporting what was once associated with the Blackberry – a full fledged QWERTY keypad. Lava seems to have over enthusiastically superseded all expectations by introducing an ALPHA keypad (which I consider supremely moronic). Why the sudden madness? For one, the smartphone is no longer inaccessible to the common man. No longer is the smartphone a symbol of the MBA graduate or the CEO (in fact a news report in the Guardian talked aobut how teenagers were in love with their BlackBerrys . A study by consultancy Frost and Sullivan has reported that smartphones will account for 54% of the Asia-pacific mobile market by 2015. This is a ginormous rise from the measly 5% in 2009. 477 million units are expected to be sold. The Smartphone App Market in the World (please note that this does not include India since we’re not yet part of the iOS / Android craze) has reaced over $2.2 Billion in the first half of 2010. The report is by a Berlin based organization called Research2guidance. They’ve forecasted the world smartphone application market to reach $15 billion by 2013. GetJar (an online site where you can download apps) conducted another survey back in March this year. They predict that the market will touch $17.5 billion. Let’s try and understand this from your perspective – Why would you prefer a smartphone to a simpler model? How does a smartphone help you? For one, you can do so much more with it. I regret having a Symbian OS when I look at the number of applications that are available on other platforms. Yes, smartphones help you with email (even Push Mail sometimes), they have Internet access, Wi-Fi. But that’s not just it. There’s also GPS, high-end graphics, a better, smarter user-interface (it’s so much easier just typing out a person’s name and hoping your phone will search as you type as opposed to going to Contacts –> Type out name using Alphanumeric keypad). And again, I return to the Apps. Recently, we ran an article on how people can monitor their health with mobile applications. Today, look at any new site that’s hoping to reach out to people, chances are they have a mobile application ready for the popular Operating Systems (poor Symbian). Smartphone – Then (pre iPhone) Post iPhone Look at it from the Mobile Operator’s perspective. A smartphone means access to the Internet, and active use of a lot of features and apps (most of which inadvertently use the Internet). This translates to moolah. Consultancy Frost and Sullivan said that the data usage from smartphones would generate over $38 billion for the Asia-Pacific region by 2015. Compare this to $1.3 billion earned last year. Add the long-standing Indian hope of achieving widespread 3G and there you have a nice package which make smartphones very appealing. A few downsides: Where’s the 3G, Where’s the Wi-Fi? Without proper internet connectivity, the smartphone remains exactly that – a phone which is reasonably smart leaving aside any probability of it being an awesome handheld computing experience. (Here’s an interesting news piece on how Android smartphones could replace Supercomputers ) Prepaid Cards : (Frost and Sullivan estimates this to be 97% of the mobile market). These apparently make smartphone subsidies difficult to access. Which is understandable, the service provider expects dedicated usage from the person using subsidisied charges for data transfer. Catching up to the West. Most Indian mobiles that claim to run Android are yet to upgrade to Froyo. Most smartphones still run Symbian – a once awesome operating system which now lies as a ruin in the ecosystem of mobile operating systems. Nokia made it open source, and now is busy with Meego and Maemo. Where’s the development? Would YOU use a smartphone? Do you already use one? Any opinions? Looking for a Social Media Agency? Try WATConsult – India’s Leading Social Media Agency Related Posts Smartphone Malwares Increase – iPhone, BlackBerry, Android Targeted Olive Telecom Foresees Hike in Revenues Nokia Profit Goes Down: Look For A Revival Google Looking At India, China For Android Growth Android Surpasses iPhone Sales In US, Emerges As The Leader In Mobile Web

Tagged as: black, blackberry, china, data, Featured, india, mobile-technology, person, phone, sales

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Ojas-backed Tyfone Raises Funds And Grows

by Paul Joseph August 25, 2010 Featured

There exists a sector in the business world that is bent upon making human life (life related to business transactions) easier with the aid of technological innovations. Innovations such as mobile banking, mobile contactless payments, mobile identity management, etc that transform the way one transacts. From this sector emerges an up and coming technology firm named Tyfone that masters the facilitation of mobile financial services through innovative mobile technology products , with its Asia – Pacific headquarters located at Bangalore. The company currently raised around $500,000 from Indian based software firm, Polaris . Tyfone brings together specialists from two areas namely – financial services and technology industries with the mission of enabling Device and Carrier Independence for mobile financial services to the world’s leading organizations. And the availability of these services worldwide is made possible through Tyfone’s manufacturing relationships in Taiwan and component partners in Israel, Germany, and Singapore. India’s very own technology focused venture capital firm Ojas Venture Partners , is responsible for Tyfone’s growth and the expansion of its three major areas of business – mobile banking, mobile payments including contactless payments and retail merchant relationship services in the US and international markets. The Portland, Oregon based Tyfone backed by Ojas earlier, through its advancement in mobile financial services has now received accolades in the form of fundraising from Polaris Software. Speculations also state that Tyfone has nabbed $5 million worth of equity; however the investors were kept anonymous and no names were disclosed. Ojas on the other hand has not denied taking part in this round of funding, making it obvious that there still exists an alliance between Ojas and Tyfone. Tyfone U4ia Mobile Services Platform allows banks and financial services institutions to leverage consumer banking services, online transaction services, and payments services to consumers via the mobile handset. The basic idea is to facilitate banking transactions through the provision of Tyfone’s mobile contactless payment services. With the intention of giving a boost to this technology, Tyfone earlier this year joined forces with US – based payment processing major First Data Corporation . In association with First Data, Tyfone could produce MicroSD memory cards equipped with Tyfone’s patented technologies and with this, people who own mobile phones that come with a memory slot can enjoy the benefits of a mobile contactless payment device . Looking for a Social Media Agency? Try WATConsult – India’s Leading Social Media Agency Related Posts Smartphone Malwares Increase – iPhone, BlackBerry, Android Targeted iPhone, BlackBerry Clones Hit The Market – Good For Mobile Penetration In India? BSNL 3G Services In Gujarat Help One97 Test Video Portal Rupee Symbol On Your Phone – Lava Mobile First to Launch Rupee Key Free SMS Service in India – Wyncomm and 160by2.com Tie-up

Tagged as: black, mobile-technology, technology

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Jivox India Grows 400% in Q2 ‘10 – Interactive Online Video Ads Take Off

by Paul Joseph August 24, 2010 Featured

Jivox , an online video advertising platform, has reported a revenue growth of 400% in Q2 of 2010 as compared to the same quarter in 2009. Jivox had earlier in the year raised $4 million from Helion and Opus, and in the following month tied-up with HT Media which allowed the online video advertising company to post ads on HT Media’s online properties which include HindustanTimes.com, LiveMint.com, and DesiMartini.com. Naren Nachiappan , Managing Director India at Jivox , believes that advertisers prefer interactive online video ads as compared to online banner ads or TV ads. Mr. Nachiappan’s claims can be verified by a study by Nielsen which are shown in the chart below: As the above graph suggests, online interactive video ads have a better value for money as compared to TV ads. Competitors in the online video ad space As of now, the online video ad space in the Indian market is controlled by Vdopia and Jivox. In October last year, Vdopia raised $4 million as well from Nexus Venture Partners. With both these companies getting funding, the interactive video ad space online was bound to grow and the growth by Jivox in Q2 is a testimonial to that point. Future of online video ads The potential for such advertisements are immense. With the arrival of 3G services, more and more people can download videos at faster speeds and thus will only increase the popularity and effectiveness of such ads. The interactive nature of the ads also ensures consumer participation and subsequently brand recall. With Jivox’s growth, one thing is certain that online video ads are the next big thing that advertisers and publishers alike will try to capitalize on. What is you take on such interactive online video ads? Looking for a Social Media Agency? Try WATConsult – India’s Leading Social Media Agency Related Posts Exclusive Interview With Saurabh Bhatia, Co-Founder, Vdopia – On The Utilisation Of Their Series-A Funding Vdopia Raises $4 Million From Nexus Venture Partners, Appoints New CEO Jivox Gives Traditional Advertisers Another Option To Increase AD SPEND Online – Closes $10.7 Million Series A Financing Indian Entrepreneurs Count Gold On The Social Networking Business Model! WWW: WAT Weekly WrapUp 15th August – 22nd August 2010

Tagged as: technology, video, web

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After Tata DoCoMo, RComm Provides Nokia Ovi Life Tools In Rural India

by Paul Joseph August 24, 2010 Featured

After tying up with Tata DoCoMo , Nokia has now joined hands with Reliance Communications to provide Nokia Ovi Life Tools to RCom subscribers in the rural areas of India. Nokia Ovi Life Tools provides information on agriculture, weather, education, entertainment and much more, which can be important in the progress of the rural parts of the country on the socio-economic front. Nokia Benefits? It has been well established that Nokia are losing a lot of market share in India. Though they still dominate the mobile market by a considerable amount, local competitors like Micromax, Lava, Spice, etc. have eaten into a considerable share of the market. In order to counter this, Nokia has focused its attention on rural India through some campaigns like giving away free phones in five villages. Through Ovi Life Tools and the distribution of free phones, Nokia’s plan could be to make Nokia a household name in rural India. Whats in it for RCom? RCom has seen their Net Income decrease by 84% in the last quarter, and the company has had to come up with new strategies to entice mobile subscribers. After tying up with GetJar, RCom teamed up with Universal Music to provide access to over 300,000 songs to RCom subscribers. Now by tying up with Nokia, RCom is trying to establish themselves in the network provider market in rural India. How does India benefit? No matter what the ulterior motives of the companies involved, such campaigns are ideal for rural idea to grow. With the information available to them through Ovi Life Tools, farmers can be more informed about the weather, children can be educated, and entertainment for all. Apart from this, such campaigns also emphasize that network providers have understood the importance of the rural market as opposed to before where most plans were customized as per urban or metropolitan neighbourhoods. Such initiatives will only help India move forward more than anything else. What are your thoughts on this? Looking for a Social Media Agency? Try WATConsult – India’s Leading Social Media Agency Related Posts After RCom, Virgin Mobile India Ties Up With GetJar – Appvolution Universal Music Comes To Your Mobile Through RCom PC Vs Mobile Penetration – Analyzing Study By Intel And IMRB Nokia To Give Away Phones For Free In 5 Villages Tata DoCoMo Users Will Now Have Nokia Ovi Life Tools

Tagged as: india, mobile, reliance-communications, social

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England Cricket Team Banned – From Facebook and Twitter

by Paul Joseph August 24, 2010 Featured

Indian cricketers better beware as the English Cricket Team have been banned from Twitter and Facebook by the English Cricket Board. Sachin Tendulkar, who joined Twitter recently, has a fan following of over 590 thousand. As compared to this, Kevin Pietersen , Graeme Swann , James Anderson , and Steve Finn have only 150 thousand odd followers combined. However, the ECB has banned the English team from Twitter and Facebook. If the BCCI decide to take a cue from their English counterparts, Sachin, along with Yuvraj and Zaheer , better watch out. ECB’s view The ECB is taking a stand against the social networking sites in order to prevent dressing room secrets and other information discussed behind closed doors from reaching the public through such sites. The team management also want players to focus on practice and on matches while playing for the country. English captain Andrew Strauss has also supported the ECB’s decision. Players’ view The English players believe that tweeting or facebooking are really harmless activities which help cricketers connect to their fans, and at the same time increasing commercial opportunities by mentioning sponsors on these websites. Kevin Pietersen and Graeme Swann are prolific tweeters and like to tweet on their way to practice or matches. Our view Both sides have valid arguments. If we look at the situation from ECB’s point of view, they ought to have such concerns after an under-19 English player badmouthed the coach through Twitter. Closer to home, the Kolkata Knight Riders were baffled by a blogger who claimed to be a player on their roster and continued to blog about the team. Tweeting is much easier than blogging and thus poses a bigger threat. From the players point of view, we do agree that it is a harmless activity. You interact with fans, let them know what you are up to, and in the process increase your market value. The players’ views have been bolstered by advisers from the Players Cricket Association who believe that existing regulations regarding social networking are more than sufficient to punish a player breaking these rules. What is your view? Looking for a Social Media Agency? Try WATConsult – India’s Leading Social Media Agency Related Posts IPL The Buzzword In Social Media, KKR Leads The Pack Once Again Price To Pay For Social Networking – Identity Theft Facebook’s GeoLocation Application – Launch Expected Today Meter Jam : The Commuter Strikes Back? Twitter Usage Dominated By Indonesia, Brazil and Venezuela – India Comes In At 18th

Tagged as: india, indonesia, social-media, venezuela

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