Google brings Wi-fi station, data-light YouTube for India

Tech giant Google on Tuesday announced a bouquet of new products for the Indian market that are suited to work with low Internet speeds.

These include a new Wi-Fi platform called Google Station, a video app called 'YouTube Go' and an offline feature for Chrome web browser and faster loading in Google Play on 2G network.

Outlining the three key areas of focus -- access, products and platforms -- Google Vice President (Next Billion Users) Caesar Sengupta said that the US-based company is working to provide a better and more inclusive online experience for users in India.

"Our goal has not just been to help more Indians get online, but also to help Indians create the online experience they want. So, we have been thinking about how to build products and services for this wave of new users products that work for any level of connectivity, in local Indian languages, and across the devices that are most frequently used in India," he added.

Following its partnership with RailTel and Indian Railways to provide Wi-Fi at Indian railway stations, Google has now launched a new platform called Google Station.

The new platform will work with partners like system integrators (SIs) and venue owners to roll out Wi-Fi hotspots, Sengupta said.

He added that this will provide more people in India and around the world fast, reliable, and secure Wi-Fi in places like malls, transit stations, and cafes.

Besides, users on a low-bandwidth connection will now be able to choose and install an app through their mobile network or install it when the phone next connects to Wi-Fi.

Google is also focusing on the next million of users who will come online in the coming years in regional languages other than English.

Its new messaging app 'Allo' will introduce support in Hindi for its Google Assistant later this year, Amit Fulay, Group Product Manager at Google, said.

Google has also announced a group of tailored features for Chrome, like automatic optimising of pages when 2G-like networks are detected. These simplified pages load up to 2X faster, saving more than 90 per cent of data usage. This data saver feature will now support videos as well, helping users save upto 67 per cent data.

Rajan Anandan, Vice-President, India and South East Asia said the company's vision is to make India a global hub of innovation and produce high quality mobile developers who will build not just for India but for the world.

India is one of the fastest growing markets for Internet usage. The user base, driven primarily by booming smartphone adoption, is pegged to grow from 350 million to 650 million by 2020.

The smartphone base in the same period is poised to grow to 500 million from 300 million in 2016.

Seven takeaways from Anil Ambani-owned Reliance Capital's AGM

Industrialist Anil Ambani on Tuesday addressed shareholders at Annual General Meeting of Reliance Capital, the financial services arm of the business conglomerate headed by him. From his son Anmol Ambani to listing of his home finance venture on the stock market, below are seven key takeaways from the RCap's AGM, held today in Mumbai:

1)On Anmol Ambani

Introducing son Anmol as a new director on Reliance Capital's board, Ambani said he has brought "tremendous luck" with a 40 per cent surge in share price since his induction and hoped that the 'Anmol Effect' will continue further.

Thanking the shareholders at the company's Annual General Meeting for their "vote of confidence" in 24-year-old Anmol's appointment as an Executive Director, Ambani said his son is "part of this younger demography and will relate to the future customers, shareholders, employees as well as the other stakeholders of Reliance Capital".

On listing of Reliance Home Finance

Betting big on the financial sector, Ambani said Reliance Capital expects to list its home finance arm separately by April 2017. He expects the listing to take place by April next year and added that the company will be well-capitalised.

"49 per cent stake in the listed company will be held by you," Ambani told the shareholders of Reliance Capital while adding that the allotment of the shares will be made "free of cost" and the listing would unlock significant value for them.

On commercial lending

Ambani said the commercial lending and insurance arms can also be listed separately at an "appropriate time". However, he added the approach should be of 'optional listing', rather than mandatory listings and any decision of separate listing of Reliance Capital's various arms will be taken after looking into the interest of the shareholders.

"The transfer of commercial finance business into a separate subsidiary will enhance management focus and provide flexibility to unlock value through stake sale," said Ambani.

On re-launch of commodity exchange

The company will develop a new vertical for consumer lending business for better growth and profitability and will re-launch its commodity exchange with focus on diamond and crude oil futures. Diamond futures will be the flagship product with potential daily turnover of over Rs 6,000 crore.

On monsoon and GST

Expecting good monsoon, a low interest rate framework and benign inflation to drive tremendous growth in Indian economy, while expecting GST to be a game-changer, Ambani listed out several initiatives to "reap the benefits of this opportunity in financial services".

On dividend payouts

Ambani said the company is committed to growing its dividend payouts every year.

On Nippon Life

On Reliance Capital's partnership with Nippon Life, Ambani said their Rs 9,000-crore investment in life insurance and asset management businesses represents the largest FDI from Japan in India.

Adani buys Australian port operator from Glencore

A unit of Adani Enterprises will buy the company that operates Australia's Abbot Point Coal Terminal from Glencore Plc for A$19.25 million dollars ($14.52 million), ending a legal wrangle over control of the port.

The statement from Adani and Glencore said Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone  would purchase the port operator, Abbot Point BulkCoal Pty Ltd, pending regulatory approvals.

Adani Enterprises, India's biggest private sector coal trader, acquired the Abbot Point Coal Terminal port from the Queensland government in 2011, considering it a key part of its plan to ship coal from Australia to India and for other exports.

However, Glencore retained control of the actual operations of the port through its ownership of Abbot Point BulkCoal, sparking a legal dispute between the global miner and Adani that effectively will now end as the Indian company will assume full control of the port.

Adani Australia CEO Jeyakumar Janakaraj called the deal "a key milestone in our well advanced plans for Abbot Point," according to the joint statement by the two companies.

Google's intelligent messaging app, Allo to launch on September 21

According to popular tipster, Evan Blass, Google will roll-out a new messaging app on September 21.

During the I/O conference this year, Google announced a new messaging app, Allo. This app was scheduled to launch by summer-end and it seems Google will stick to the calendar with its launch.

In the already crowded market of messaging applications, Google will try to introduce ease of log-in and new AI-generated  features to compete with applications like Messenger and WhatsApp.

Allo's standout feature will be the assitance of Google's AI in providing contextual replies to your texts.

For instance, if you receive a text saying, 'let's all go out tonight', you can simply tap on the prompt button to generate a response like, "I'm in". 

Other than that, the app will also be able to recognise content within images to provide contextual replies. For instance, if you receive a picture of a baby, the prompt feature will generate a response like "so cute!"

Google claims to be sophisticated enough to recognize things like dog breeds and types of pasta with up to 90 percent accuracy.

Allo will also come with Google Assistant, whom you can chat with, in the form of a contact. The search bot will not only answer your questions but also suggest additional data and media while texting another person via the app.

Other than this feature, Google will also claim an end-to-end encryption of messages, temporary private messages, stickers and other text formatting options.

To grant easy access to the app, the user will just need a mobile number to register an account.

Since Evan Blass(@evleaks) is a credible tipster, the date of launch is almost certain and we will soon have  our hands on the application.

Stay tuned for our first impressions regarding Google's Allo.

New smart cities will boost business in realty sector, says realtors' body

Realtors' body NAREDCO today hailed the government's announcement of 27 more cities for the development of smart cities, saying the move would provide business opportunities for the real estate developers.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Lok Sabha constituency Varanasi along with holy cities of Amritsar and Ajmer has made it to the list of 27 smart cities announced today.

Under the Smart City Mission, the government aims to have 100 smart cities by 2022. Sixty have been chosen so far, including 20 in January and 13 in May this year.

NAREDCO President Parveen Jain said the inclusion of cities like Agra, Amritsar, Ujjain, Varanasi, Tirupati and Vellore etc will boost the tourism sector as well as bringing up these cities on global tourism map.

He said the development of smart cities would lead to well planned urbanisation with aesthetic beauty comparable to international standards.

National Real Estate Development Council (NAREDCO) sees immense opportunities for the real estate industry in transforming these selected cities.

Commenting on the development, Arindam Guha, Senior Director, Deloitte in India, said: "The Smart City Challenge continues to generate significant enthusiasm throughout the country. With the addition of these 27 cities, a total of 60 cities are now eligible for funding under the programme."

The high interest and participation levels in the Smart City plan development phase now needs to be sustained through quick implementation on the ground, he added.

Shrinivas Kowligi, Partner - Smart Cities and Urban Transformation, EY India, said: "With now 60 cities across India eligible for funding support from government of India, the biggest challenge is going to be talent and expertise both within and outside the government."

The competencies needed for addressing the myriad challenges Indian cities face, and to handhold them in their journey to get smart, requires diverse technical skills, project development and management expertise.

"Ministry of Urban Development now needs to drive transformational initiatives to scale up human resource capacity in the country to address this challenge," Kowligi said.

Snapdeal to take on Flipkart, Amazon with 'Unbox Diwali Sale' from Oct 2

E-commerce firm Snapdeal said on Tuesday it will flag off the festive season with its 'Unbox Diwali Sale' from October 2, the same day when its larger rival Flipkart will begin its ownfestive offers .

The first Unbox Diwali Sale will run from October 2-6 and will see exciting deals and offers across all categories like home appliances, electronics, mobiles, home furnishings, furniture and FMCG, Snapdeal said in a statement.

Shoppers will be able to choose from a wide range of products at great value hourly deals, with discounts up to 70 per cent, it added.

Flipkart will host its 'Big Billion Days' sale during the same period. Amazon.in is yet to announce its sale days.

According to analysts, this year's festive sales may be impacted by recent guidelines by DIPP that bar e-commerce players from doling out steep discounts.

The players have been investing significantly to ramp up delivery and logistics capabilities to meet the surge in demand during the festive season.

"We are entering this season with the widest assortment, key brand partnerships and exclusive line of products... Our superfast deliveries and free shipping options through Snapdeal Gold will add further sparkle to festive offerings," Snapdeal V-P and Head of Categories Saurabh Bansal said.

In a separate announcement, Snapdeal said it has appointed Mayank Jain to head supply chain at the company.

As President SCM (supply chain management), Jain will spearhead the complete operations and supply chain function at Snapdeal. He takes over from Ashish Chitravanshi, Senior Vice-President Operations, who is moving out to pursue other interests.

Jain had joined Snapdeal in March 2013 as Assistant Vice-President and Head of Seller services. He has previously worked with firms like ITC, Urban Touch and Fashion and You.

CBI arrests ex-bourse king Jignesh Shah

CBI on Tuesday arrested promoter of FTIL and commodity bourse MCX Jignesh Shah in a case of alleged cheating and suppression of facts in getting SEBI extension to MCX-SX to continue as a private stock exchange in violation of norms.

"The Central Bureau of Investigation has today arrested a promoter of two private companies and conducted searches at nine places in Mumbai, including the residence and office premises of the said promoter of Mumbai-based two private companies," CBI spokesperson R K Gaur said on Tuesday.

The move came after CBI searches at nine locations, including the premises of Shah, FTIL, MCX, senior SEBI officials --Executive Director Muralidhar Rao, DGM Rajesh Dangeti and AGM Vishakha More-- and a former Executive Director of SEBI, J N Gupta, in connection with the case registered two years ago, the sources said.

MCX-SX had started functioning as a stock exchange in 2013 after a long legal battle with SEBI.

Meanwhile, 63 moons (formerly known as FTIL), said in a statement, "Pursuant to the applicable regulations of SEBI (LODR), Regulations 2015, please be informed that Central Bureau of Investigation, Economic Offence Wing, Mumbai, is conducting search in connection with FIR ... relating to recognition granted by SEBI to MCX-SX (now Metropolitan Stock Exchange of India Limited)."

MCX also gave a statement to BSE, saying the CBI search is going on in respect of recognition granted by SEBI to Metropolitan Stock Exchange of India Limited (formerly known as MCX Stock Exchange Limited) for starting its stock exchange in trading in currency and other segments in respect of case no. RC 9/E/2014".

CBI had filed the FIR in the case under IPC sections related to criminal conspiracy and cheating besides provisions of Prevention of Corruption Act for alleged abuse of official position.

The agency had alleged that the promoters of MCX-SX had entered into a buy back arrangement with a nationalised bank in violation of Securities Contract Regulation Act, 1956 and Securities Contract (Regulation) (Manner of Increasing and Maintaining Public Shareholdings in Recognised Stock Exchanges) Regulation, 2006.

CBI had alleged that Shah, in connivance with SEBI officials, deliberately suppressed this material fact while applying for extension of recognition of the stock exchange, to conduct trade in currency derivatives, and fraudulently obtained the extension of recognition of the exchange in the year 2009 by cheating SEBI.

The agency further alleged that the SEBI officials deliberately did not issue notice to the stock exchange for cancellation of its recognition in the currency derivatives, when SEBI had already rejected request of the same stock exchange for trading in other segments.