VARINDIA IT MAGAZINE

MapR Technologies has announced availability of free Hadoop-Demand Training for developers, analysts and administrators who represent a $50-million in-kind contribution to the broad Hadoop community. The Hadoop training program is a multi-course curriculum designed to expand worldwide adoption of Hadoop technology. The curriculum provides engaging and interactive video lessons, hands-on exercises, labs and quizzes, enabling professionals to acquire valuable Hadoop skills and knowledge on their own schedule. “We focussed on making it easy for anyone to receive high-quality, comprehensive Hadoop training anywhere in the world. This is a major contribution to the industry, addressing the primary concern around Hadoop skills development and raising the value for professionals who take these courses,” said Dave Jespersen, Vice-President, Worldwide Services, MapR Technologies. As part of this comprehensive training initiative, MapR has also arranged for the administration of cert

As per Ovum, the wearables market will be worth US$27bn in 2020, with almost 400 million wearable devices sold in the year. Ovum expects sales of wearable devices to reach 394 million units in 2020, up from 24 million units in 2014, corresponding to a CAGR of 60%. Revenues generated from the direct sale of wearable devices to consumers will reach US$26.6bn in 2020, up from US$3bn in 2014. Multipurpose wearables such as the Apple Watch will account for 31% of the installed base, with simple activity trackers and smart clothes making up the rest of the market. Wearables also offer additional software revenue opportunities via a dedicated app ecosystem that will serve up to 176 million installed devices by the end of 2020. Ronan de Renesse, Ovum lead analyst for consumer technology said, “Affordability and better quality of service for smarter wearable devices will be key drivers in the shift from activity trackers to multipurpose wearables such as the Apple Watch. Currently, the ma

Under the flagship scheme of PM Modi’s initiative to make 100 Indian cities as a smart city, the Centre has planned to take up 20–30 cities to develop them into smart cities this year. The cities to be revamped should meet certain requirements.  To begin with, the government is planning to create a colony or commercial area of around 50 acres in the vicinity of the city with smart features so that the success model will make people aware and more areas can be developed with people’s participation. As per the concept note, there will be three approaches – retrofitting, redevelopment and greenfield development. Under the retrofitting scheme, a city can undertake an area of minimum 500 acres and can implement the scheme in three years. Under a redevelopment scheme, a 50- acre area can be taken as a model. Similarly, in the case of greenfield development, the project area can be a vacant land spread over at least 250 acres and can be completed in 10 years. While selecting the citi

Microsoft has announced that its Word, Excel and Powerpoint will be available for free in Android based tablets. It also released an app for its popular Outlook email program to run on Apple’s iPhone and iPad, hoping to attract the millions of users familiar with Outlook from their work desktops. For almost three months Microsoft has been offering the test versions of the Office apps on Android but the announcement marks the availability of finished products from the online Google Play app store. It is a part of company’s strategy and Chief Executive Officer Satya Nadella attempts towrest back the initiative in the battle for mobile users, where Microsoft has fallen behind Apple and Google Inc. Nadella broke with decades of tradition last March by releasing a free, touch-friendly version of Office for Apple’s iPad, before such software was even available for Microsoft’s Windows devices.   See more at: http://www.varindia.com/free-microsoft-office-available-on-iphone-ipad-and

Noida based mobile payment wallet Paytm is aggressively planning to ramp up its mobile marketplace by adding over one lakh merchants in one year. It is also planning to rope in 4,500 people across various verticals. Paytm started as a mobile recharge and bill payment service, is now into wallets and other electronic payment services with RBI-licensed wallet. The company plans to hire 4,500 across verticals and also focusing on SMEs. Presently, Paytm, is owned by Noida based One97 Communications and headed by Chairman and MD Vijay Shekhar Sharma. It has around 2,000 employees on its payroll and 15,000 sellers on its market place. It started its journey in the year 2010 as a mobile recharge and bill payment service and later started diversifying into wallets and other electronic payment services.   See more at: http://www.varindia.com/paytm-plans-to-add-one-lakh-merchants-and-hire-4500-employees/

The Cabinet has fixed the starting price at Rs 3,705 crore per MHz for the auction of 3G spectrum which is slated to start on  March 4 . By this the government is aiming to earn a net profit of Rs 17,555 crore. However, operators are afraid that the high starting level could drive up voice and data tariffs. The winners of the auction will have to make an upfront payment of 33% of the final bid amount to the government within 10 days of the close of the bandwidth sale. Rest amount can be paid after a moratorium of two years in 10 equal installments. A 5 MHz block of 2100 MHz airwaves typically used for 3G services will be offered in all service areas except Jammu & Kashmir, Bihar, Himachal Pradesh, West Bengal and Punjab. Thus, a total of 85 MHz in 17 service areas is being put to auction. The Centre expects to generate Rs.5,793 crore from the 3G sale alone this year.  However, the overall proceeds from auctions will rise substantially, as including the 2G (800 MHz, 900 MH

MMPL (a subsidiary of Tata Teleservices Ltd.) has announced the launch of a new Open Loop prepaid, VISA powered card in partnership with RBL Bank. By accessing a PaySmart card, user will be able to withdraw money from VISA licensed ATMs and also pay for goods and services at all merchants that accept VISA Debit/Credit cards nationally. Pradeep Sampath, Chief Operating Officer, MMP MOBI WALLET PAYMENT SYSTEMS LIMITED, said, “The PaySmart card is a milestone towards realizing Tata Teleservices vision of simple and secured transaction services. Keeping financial inclusion in mind, we have worked towards creating this product for all customers who can now have a choice of cashless dealings. Amongst the host of offerings around mobile money, this product addresses a clear gap of Cash Out which is currently not available with the Semi Closed Wallets, There is a clear need in the marketplace for such an offering at the right price and feature set.” This new service is a step towards o

While discovering anything amazing – whether it’s a new local coffee shop or a tool that improves the way we work – we like to share it with people we know so they can also drive its benefit. Many of the millions of Google Apps customers around the world learned about tools like Hangouts, Drive and Gmail for business from their customers, friends and networks. Google has launched Apps Referral Program in India. The program makes it easy to share Google Apps with a network and show them how they too can use these tools at work. A user can earn $7.50 for each new Google Apps user he refers. The Google Apps Referral Program is currently available for anyone based in India. For more details you can click here “ http://goo.gl/FZezQr ” - See more at: http://www.varindia.com/google-introduces-apps-referral-program-in-india/#sthash.ogVpFEoj.dpuf

Bharti Airtel has announced the launch of its managed Room Telepresence service for Enterprise segment. With zero CAPEX and at no additional cost, enterprises in the country especially the small and mid-sized organizations will now be able to upgrade to High-Definition Telepresence video exchange sessions from the existing standard definition video experience at an affordable cost of just Rs. 799/- per day per room.  Airtel has launched this service with CISCO. The VAAS (video-as-a-service) offering from Airtel will bundle all the essential components of Telepresence video calling including end point, network and VNOC . Manish Prakash, President – Airtel Business said, “At Airtel we are committed towards developing innovative & cost effective platforms for our customers and the Room Telepresence service is a step in this direction. This new solution has the potential to transform the segment as it empowers customers with a highly scalable integrated video solution at a simp

The United States Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) and Indian urban development ministry plan to develop three major cities, Ajmer, Allahabad and Visakhapatnam as “Smart Cities”. USTDA and the three state governments of UP, Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh have signed MoUs to develop these cities as smart cities. The Urban development ministry said that the US delegation led by the secretary of commerce Penny Pritzker agreed to the suggestion of minister M Venkaiah Naidu for setting up the task forces. Each team will consist of three representatives each from central and respective state governments and the USTDA. Each city task force will discuss city specific features, project requirements and appropriate revenue models for enabling flow of investments etc., before suggesting action plans for developing them as smart cities. USTDA will contribute funds for necessary feasibility studies and pilots, study tours, workshops or trainings and other projects to be mutually determine

India Electronics & Semiconductor Association (IESA) has announced a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Government of Uttar Pradesh for promoting ESDM industry ecosystem in the state. IESA has already provided immense support to various state governments like the Governments of Maharashtra and Odisha by proposing strategic roadmaps and attaining faster approval of EMC Applications, thereby catalyzing the economic growth of the states. “The Government of Uttar Pradesh has identified ESDM as a focus to ensure economic growth, enhance employment opportunities, promote indigenous product development and safeguard investors’ business intention in the state. Along with IESA, we are confident to create a favourable ecosystem for electronics manufacturing in the state and build Uttar Pradesh for a brighter tomorrow,” said Shri Jiwesh Nandan, IAS, Principal Secretary, Department of IT and Electronics, Government of Uttar Pradesh. “IESA has been making proactive contributi

GIGABYTE has announced GTX 960 G1 Gaming graphics card – GV-N960G1 GAMING-2GD, the latest addition to the G1 Gaming family. For enhanced gameplay experiences, the new G1 Gaming graphics card powered by GeForce GTX 960 is engineered to deliver powerful overclock capabilities and amazing acoustic performance when running all the latest game titles. The performance-driven GIGABYTE GTX 960 G1 Gaming graphics card is forged with only the top-notch GPU core through the very own GPU Gauntlet Sorting technology that guarantees greater overclocking capabilities in terms of excellent power switching and thermal efficiency. The card further boasts 160W of total board power, which is backed by a 6-phase GPU power design that effectively extends the overall stability and longevity with lower component temperature. It ultimately allows greater overclocking headroom, reinforcing higher, stable boost clocks at heavy load during 3D games, bringing gamers with extra gaming performance. T

UTStarcom’s key executives in an event has underlined the company’s plans to support government initiatives like Smart Cities, NOFN, and Wi-Fi deployments with UTStarcom advanced telecom products and technologies, and announced the aggressive strategy on Carrier Wi-Fi solutions. “To enable a Superior Digital Indian Highway, there is a need of advanced yet affordable telecom infrastructure and we are ready with our products to efficiently address the need. We are closely following various initiatives of the Government of India, including the Smart City, the optical NOFN Program deployment plans, Public Wi-Fi deployments. We work with Indian telecom operators, system integrators, and the government, and we plan to extend our efforts significantly in the year 2015 in order to make sure that our products and solutions are the best answer to the needs of the government initiatives. As a leading telecom infrastructure provider, UTStarcom is ready with our transport, aggregation and acces

LAVA International has announced the launch of LAVA Iris X1 Grand and Iris X1 mini, enhanced offerings of its long-running LAVA Iris X1 launched earlier in May 2014.  With the two new devices, LAVA is all set to take its legacy of Iris X1 to the next level by introducing variants in 4” and 5” quad-core processor smartphones with stylish design and features like intelligent flip covers for consumers.   LAVA has designed the two new variants considering the preference of consumers in the mid-level smartphone segment for smartphones offering high-end design and best-in-class functionality.   LAVA Iris Grand X1 features a 5’’ IPS screen with FWVGA 854X480 resolution which offers a vivid display. It operates on Android 4.4 KitKat which is upgradable to Android 5.0, Lollipop and runs on a 1.3GHz quad-core MTK6582M processor that gives allows users to multitask efficiently. It sports an 8MP AF Rear camera with Dual LED Flash, high-quality BSI II Sensor and a 2.0MP front-facing

Analog Devices is celebrating its 50th anniversary by expanding support of FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology), a not-for-profit organization founded by inventor Dean Kamen to inspire young people’s interest and participation in science and technology. A global leader in high-performance semiconductors for signal processing applications, ADI has contributed to the FIRST mission since 2004 through employees volunteering as mentors and judges, donations of converters, sensors and other products, as well as monetary donations and support of FIRST competition teams. “FIRST shares our commitment to STEM programs in the communities where we work and live by inspiring the next generation of young people to pursue careers in engineering and math. As we begin our next 50 years as a leading technology provider, ADI is pleased to continue our support—financially and through the talents of our dedicated employee-volunteers,” said Vincent Roche, President and CEO

In line with the Centre’s ambitious Digital India programme, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has announced that Kolkata will become the country’s first fully Wi-Fi enabled metro city in the next two to three months. As a first step, the iconic Park Street will become wi-fi enabled from February, Banerjee said at the inauguration programme of the 39th International Kolkata Book Fair. The service will then roll out in a phased manner across 144 municipal wards. The whole city is expected to come under Wi-Fi coverage by Bengali New Year in mid-April. The WiFi would initially be offered free during the trial period by private service provider Reliance Jio. Later, the free time may be reduced to 30 minutes in a day or even less as price packages are introduced. The service is believed to be offered free-of-cost to ministers, bureaucrats and police. However, cellular operators are skeptical about the feasibility and business viability in a city like Kolkata where less th

Bharti Airtel has commissioned Nokia Networks to expand its 4G presence to six new circles using Nokia Networks’ radio network. The deal marks India’s first FDD-LTE deployment on 1,800 MHz that will witness the launch of super-fast mobile broadband in 6 circles. Nokia Networks, already a supplier of Bharti Airtel’s TD-LTE network, will also deploy TD-LTE on the 2,300 MHz in two other circles. Abhay Savargaonkar, CTO, Bharti Airtel, said, “With our commitment to build an efficient internet ecosystem in India, we continue to introduce new technologies and strengthen our existing capabilities. Having already launched the high-speed 4G services across four circles of India, we are now looking at extending this enriching high-speed broadband experience to new circles on 1,800 MHz band. Our association with Nokia Networks will help us support our vision and provide a superior 4G network.” Sandeep Girotra, Vice-President & Head of India Region, Nokia Networks, said, “We are happy

Dell has successfully deployed Dell OEM solutions for Agmatel. This implementation has helped Agmatel reduce their total cost of ownership by 30 per cent along with offering speedy delivery. Owing to Dell’s unremitting supply of technology to public sector clients for many years, Agmatel decided to switch to Dell OEM Solutions and Intel processors to help solve its challenges. The organization selected Dell OEM OptiPlex 7010 and 9020 PCs with Intel Core i3 dual-core processors to support its kiosk terminals. Also, where kiosks were permanently connected to a network, Agmatel chose Dell Wyse thin clients. Dell also provided them immense support across India so that if they need to resolve a technical issue, Dell will send an engineer with a replacement part immediately without having Agmatel to incur any cost in spares or sending out their own engineers. “Agmatel through their deep insight into rapidly-changing technology have been a step ahead to understand the needs of custo

ASUS has launched All-in-One PC ET2040INK. It is equipped with Intel processor and high-performance graphics. It comes with 19.5” HD LED-backlit widescreen display, 500GB hard drive plus 100GB cloud storage on ASUS WebStorage for free and smart backup power to prevent data loss. Its Intel HD graphics architecture delivers faster graphics performance, saves more time as it previews and creates HD videos faster and offers smoother animation and better responsiveness while playing video games. Its innovative gesture control makes hands-free entertainment possible. ASUS All-in-One PC ET2040INK Peter Chang, Regional Head, South Asia & Country Manager, System Business Group, ASUS India, commented, “The ET2040 promises the proven reliability of ASUS desktop PCs for a truly remarkable computing experience that guarantees peace of mind. Its space saving design is complemented by its clever built in backup power. With versatile functionalities which can be used for office work, w

India being a prospect market for iPhones and iPads, Apple has planned to increase its sales in India from 1 million to as many as 7 million by 2018. To achieve the target and sell its devices, Apple has roped in distributor giant Brightstar. Brightstar is headquartered in the US and is controlled by Softbank. It distributes mobile phones and other devices to more than 200 carriers in over 50 countries and has revenues of around $11 billion. Recently, it has bought a 51% stake in (Bharti Enterprises chairman) Sunil Mittal’s Beetle Teletech. Currently Redington and Ingram are the two main distributors of Apple in India, who are supplying the products to regional distributors, multi-product trade channels and Apple Premium Re-seller stores and Apple Authorized Reseller outlets. Redington is one of the biggest partners for Apple in India and is believed to account for nearly 70% of its sales. According to sources, Brightstar has decided to adopt an aggressive stance for its India

Driven by creating high-quality, an easy-to-use collaboration experience, Polycom has announced new breakthroughs to its market-leading portfolio of video, voice and content collaboration solutions. The industry-first audio and video innovations have been developed to help organizations defy distance, create a culture of effective collaboration, enable “always-on” connectivity, and usher in the workplace of the future – today. “Polycom is focussed on leading our customers’ success by creating solutions to help them build a collaborative experience that is both natural and easy to use. The innovations we have unveiled are a direct reflection of that commitment and our vision to unleash the power of human collaboration. With the right combination of technology, people and processes, organisations can improve productivity, boost innovation and hone their competitive edge,” said Peter Leav, Polycom President & CEO. Polycom casual-huddle-meeting RealPresence Group 300 Polyco

To address the huge market potential created by streaming analytics in conjunction with IoT and other emerging technologies, Wipro and Software AG have come up with a solution that provides enterprises with a competitive edge by responding to events in real time with unlimited scalability. Wipro has developed a streaming analytics-based IoT solution platform, with a unique architectural framework called “Wipro Looking Glass”. In the first release, Wipro is leveraging Software AG’s Big Data Streaming Analytics product suite. The platform provides enterprises with a fast and easy entry into the vast business possibilities offered by the IoT. Wipro Looking Glass current version embeds Software AG’s Streaming Analytics product suite which is designed to integrate, capture, analyze and respond to IoT data. The solution components include a real-time analytics engine, in memory database technology, a real-time user interface and mashup technologies. These components are proven to sc

Panasonic has joined hands with Reliance Communications (RCOM) to launch Cloud Video Intelli-Surveillance – an end-to-end video surveillance solution with advanced analytics for the Enterprise segment. RCOM’s Enterprise Business arm will take this solution to the market, leveraging its deep relationship with over 39,000 businesses across the country. Cloud Video Intelli-Surveillance is packed with a host of offerings, such as easy scheduling, managing IP cameras fully in the cloud and advanced cloud video analytics like Human Detection, Tripwire and many more. This solution also offers various advantages such as Alerts, API usage, User Management and HD-like image quality. With apps available for iOS and Android devices, one can easily access their cameras on-the-go. This allows for seamless checking of live streams and footage or receiving push notifications during the course of an event. Panasonic partners with RCOM over Cloud based Video Surveillance Manish Sharma, Manag

Following the wide acceptance of the Z1-Tizen operating system based smartphones in India, Samsung has planned to manufacture its Z1 phones at the Noida manufacturing unit in UP, India. The Noida facility manufactures over four million phones, both affordable and high-end devices, a month.  Targeted at first-time smartphone buyers, after the launch of Z1 at Rs 5,700 last month, Samsung has till now sold 50-55 thousand units. Only a few devices run on the Tizen platform which includes Samsung’s smart watch products. Samsung developed Tizen with Huawei Technologies and Intel Corp to challenge the Android software that powers most of the world’s mobile devices. Z1 is one of the affordable smartphones from Samsung’s offering with localized entertainment apps and a simple user interface with the Tizen OS. It is a dual SIM device powered by a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, 768MB RAM and 4GB internal memory expandable up to 64GB. It features four-inch display, 3.1MP rear and a VGA front

VARINDIA, the leading National IT Publication house, has tried to bring different major IT companies together with a small effort of arranging a Cricket Tournament for last three years in Bhubaneswar with support from STPI, OCAC and other IT corporate. It has drawn an outstanding response from different major IT industries in Odisha. The Ultimate mission to start this match is bringing the Corporate in touch, where they can know each other and experience the real spirit of game.

Canopy, the Atos Cloud powered by EMC and VMware, has appointed Philippe Llorens as CEO. Philippe will lead the Canopy team to further strengthen its offering and market positioning in order to firmly establish it as the European leader in cloud serving clients globally. Ursula Morgenstern, Global CEO of Canopy, the Atos cloud, and Enterprise Software, said, “We are delighted to welcome Philippe to Canopy and are sure that with his experience, he will lead the team to further improve our service to our clients.” Philippe Llorens, CEO, Canopy, said, “I am excited to be joining Canopy which offers clients the complete cloud portfolio to support them on their journey to becoming a digital business tomorrow. We have an excellent basis on which to further strengthen our business and I am looking forward to working with the Canopy team and our clients.” With over 30 years’ experience and a proven track record of success in the software business, IT infrastructure and services,  Ph

Cyberoam has announced a new firmware – CyberoamOS 10.6.2 for its UTM and NGFW security appliances. Among many updates included in the new firmware are the increase in Firewall throughputs by up to 430%, IPS throughputs by up to 210% and UTM throughputs by up to 190%, inclusion of User Threat Quotient (UTQ) offering security intelligence to spot risky users in network, availability of Cyberoam in Discover mode (popularly known as TAP mode) to help partners and customers evaluate Cyberoam security and Application Visibility & Controls for HTTPS-based Micro-Apps. Abhilash Sonwane, SVP – Products & Technology, Cyberoam, says, “We moved many notches up in offering high-performance security at the time of launching our NG Series security appliances. With CyberoamOS 10.6.2, we have touched even higher scales by further leveraging the fast path technology over Cyberoam’s multi-core platform. Our new performance breakthroughs will help Cyberoam customers boost network security p

ZipDial has become the first Indian technology product startup to be brought by Twitter.  This is the third such deal led by a global corporation following the acquisitions by Facebook and Yahoo last year. announced in an official tweet  on Tuesday  morning is expected to cost Twitter $34-35 million. The Bengaluru based startup, co-founded by Valerie Wagoner has built a thriving business round the “missed call”. This feature is expected to help Twitter reach people who will come online for the first time in countries such as Brazil, India and Indonesia, mostly using a mobile device. Twitter’s purchase has spurred anticipation in India’s exit-starved technology product sector. According to a study by iSpirt and investment bank Signal Hill, India recorded just 141 deals, compared with 4,728 in the US during 2010 and 2013.   See more

Monster has launched the ‘Monster Salary Index’ aimed at successfully empowering jobseekers with a benchmarking to compare their salaries with other anonymous profiles across a broad spectrum of industry domains, experience, functional groups both in India and other global markets. For employers, MSI is an online salary survey that aims to provide employers with practical information and helps them make informed decisions by analyzing the salary market and optimizing employee remuneration.  Analysing the trends of the Indian market, the report shows that with a median gross salary of Rs 291.0, finance is the second most lucrative sector. Employees in this field are highly educated, and for these it reflects in their salaries with an average of Rs 300 per hour. Overall the Monster Salary Index shows the following median salary trend across sectors in India. Focussing on other sectors, the report reflects that the median salary gap between the highest paying industry and the lo

ASUS has made a special announcement for its revolutionary ASUS Zenfone 5 will now be available for Rs.7,999. Emerged as the most loved smartphone out of the series, ASUS Zenfone 5 has received a tremendous response from the Indian masses. The ASUS ZenFone 5 combines a spacious 5-inch IPS panel that delivers superb high-definition (HD) 1280 x 720-pixel resolution — a brilliant 8-megapixel PixelMaster main camera with image stabilization. It features Intel Atom Multi-Core 1.2 GHz Z2520 Processor with Intel Hyper-Threading Technology and 8GB EMMC + 2GB RAM. Keeping the path-breaking response, ASUS has introduced the smartphone at a special price on the special occasion of Republic Day. The device will be made available on 21st January on Flipkart.   See more  

Nokia Networks has won a contract worth $200 million from Bharti Airtel to build the country’s first 4G network in the 1800 MHz band in six telecom circles. Currently 4G provides the fastest wireless internet connectivity in the country, with download speeds of up to 40 Mbps and upload speeds of up to 20 Mbps. At present all 4G networks in the country run on the 2300 MHz band, which was auctioned by the government as broadband wireless spectrum (BWA) in the 2010 spectrum auctions, and use TDD-LTE technology. Airtel’s 4G network in the 1800 MHz band will use the FDD-LTE technology that is older and more widely accepted globally than TDD-LTE. It holds 20 MHz of 4G spectrum in the 2300 MHz band in each of the eight circles of Delhi, Mumbai, Haryana, Karnataka, Kerala, Punjab and Maharashtra. It won a total of 97 MHz of airwaves in the 1800 MHz band across 15 circles in the last spectrum auctions.   See more