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TikTok’s parent ByteDance plans $1 bn investment in India in next 3 years

21Apr By Press Trust of IndiaNo Comments

BUSINESS

TikTok’s parent ByteDance plans $1 bn investment in India in next 3 years

New Delhi: Unfazed by the ban on TikTok in India, the popular Chinese short video app's parent ByteDance remains "very optimistic" and plans to invest $1 billion in the country over the next three years. ByteDance — touted to be among the world's most valuable startups with investors like SoftBank, General Atlantic, KKR and Sequoia on board also offer platforms like Helo and Vigo Video in India. Speaking to PTI, ByteDance Director (International Public Policy) Helena Lersch said the company has been strengthening its content moderation policies over the last many months. "We are obviously disappointed by the current developments, but we are also very optimistic that we will resolve this issue. We remain committed to our Indian users. As a company, we are looking to invest $1 bill...

Infosys to roll out incentive scheme for staff with digital skills

16Apr By Press Trust of IndiaNo Comments

News

Infosys to roll out incentive scheme for staff with digital skills

NEW DELHI: Infosys will roll out an incentive scheme this year for employees equipped with digital skills and will aggressively re-deploy staff on projects offering opportunities to work on new technologies as it looks to stem rising attrition in the face of stricter visa rules, a top executive has said. Infosys COO Pravin Rao, during a recent investor call, said Infosys' localization efforts have helped its business become "much more resilient and less susceptible to the visa regime than in the past". "This is an effort we need to continue till we get to the 50 per cent mark," he added. In January, Infosys had said it has already hired over 7,600 staff in the US - more than three-fourths of its target of recruiting 10,000 American workers. It had also spoken about making re...

1Apr By Press Trust of IndiaNo Comments

BUSINESS

Titan increases stake in CaratLane

Tata group firm Titan has increased stake in its jewellery subsidiary CaratLane to 69.47 percent with an investment of Rs 99.99 crore. "In response to offer of shares made by Carat Lane Trading Private Limited, a subsidiary of the company, the company has subscribed to 30,48,780 additional equity shares of CaratLane thereby increasing its stake in CaratLane on March 30, 2019," Titan said in regulatory filing on Sunday. CaratLane is in the business of manufacturing and sale of precious and semi-precious jewellery through its e-commerce business and also through retail showrooms. "...the shareholding of the company in CaratLane has increased from 66.39 per cent to 69.47 percent," the company said. CaratLane registered a revenue of Rs 292.5 crore for the year ended March 2018. ...

29Mar By Press Trust of IndiaNo Comments

FUNDING

Inito becomes the First Medical Device Startup from India to Secure Funding from Y Combinator

New Delhi: Inito, a Bangalore based medical technology startup, has been selected by Y Combinator in their Winter ’19 Cohort. By doing so, it becomes the first Indian medical device startup to be supported by Silicon Valley based Y Combinator. The Silicon Valley based startup incubator boasts of a portfolio of well-known startups like AirBnB, Reddit, Quora and Dropbox etc. Inito’s flagship innovation is a small device that enables smartphones to perform lab-grade fertility diagnostic tests at home. The device is based on the company’s patent-pending ‘Flat-lens’ technology and comes with the Inito Reader, App and test strips. Right now, Inito’s Monitor measures two fertility hormones, Estrogen & Luteinizing Hormone (LH), in urine and enables women to track their fertile days at hom...

Trump says Google CEO Sundar Pichai committed to US, not Chinese military

28Mar By Press Trust of IndiaNo Comments

USA

Trump says Google CEO Sundar Pichai committed to US, not Chinese military

US President Donald Trump said that Google CEO Sundar Pichai, whom he'd previously accused of indirectly boosting China's military, has reassured him that he is "totally committed" to US security. "Just met with @sundarpichai, President of @Google, who is obviously doing quite well," Trump tweeted after a White House meeting. "He stated strongly that he is totally committed to the US Military, not the Chinese Military." Earlier this month Trump complained that Google's business activities in China were "helping China and their military. "There was also criticism from General Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who told Congress "the work that Google is doing in China is indirectly benefiting" China's armed forces. America's top military officer has also urged U...

Kishore Biyani reappointed as Future Retail MD for 3 years

26Mar By Press Trust of IndiaNo Comments

News

Kishore Biyani reappointed as Future Retail MD for 3 years

NEW DELHI: Future Retail has reappointed Kishore Biyani as its managing director and Rakesh Biyani as its joint managing director for three years. The company's board in a meeting on Monday "considered and approved the re-appointment" for three years effective 2 May , Future Retail said in a BSE filing. However, this would be subject to the approval of the company's shareholders at the ensuing general meeting, it added. Future Retail is part of Future Group founded by Kishore Biyani, who is also the Group's chief executive officer. Rakesh Biyani, who has been associated with Future Group for over 23 years, leads the management in expansion of the Group's flagship formats such as Big Bazaar, Central and fbb.

Pierer Industrie in talks with Bajaj Auto for 48% stake in KTM

22Mar By Press Trust of IndiaNo Comments

Automobile

Pierer Industrie in talks with Bajaj Auto for 48% stake in KTM

New Delhi: Bajaj Auto and Pierer Industrie AG have started discussions to assess the possibility of transferring Bajaj's 48% stake in KTM AG to KTM Industries AG. As per the offer, Pierer Industrie still retains the controlling majority over KTM Industries AG. "Pierer Industrie AG and Bajaj will now evaluate the proposals in detail. The transaction decision is targeted to be made in the second quarter of 2019," Bajaj Auto said in a regulatory filing Thursday. At present, Pierer Industrie AG holds approximately 62% of the shares of KTM Industries AG. The listed company KTM Industries AG holds approximately 51.7% of the shares of KTM AG. "If Pierer Industrie AG and Bajaj decide to execute the transaction, KTM Industries AG will examine the legal and economic requirements and con...

Tech Mahindra to acquire K-Vision for USD 1.5 mn to expand 5G business

18Mar By Press Trust of IndiaNo Comments

ACQUISITION

Tech Mahindra to acquire K-Vision for USD 1.5 mn to expand 5G business

New Delhi: IT company Tech Mahindra will acquire Japan-based mobile network solution firm K-Vision for USD 1.5 million in an all-cash deal to support 4G and 5G telecom network roll out in Japan. "The investment committee of the board of directors of the company has approved the proposal to acquire 100 per cent shareholding in M/s K-Vision Co., Ltd through its wholly owned subsidiary ie Mahindra Engineering Services (Europe) Limited," Tech Mahindra said in a note. K-Vision provides network services for mobile communications to telecom operators in Japan. The company earned revenue of USD 4.8 million during 12-month period ended January 31, 2019. "Tech Mahindra through its wholly owned subsidiary...intends to leverage the local presence and expertise of K-Vision to build its n...

EU to slap Google with fresh fine: Report

16Mar By Press Trust of IndiaNo Comments

News

EU to slap Google with fresh fine: Report

The EU's anti-trust regulator is to slap tech giant Google with a new fine over unfair competition practices, sources told AFP on March 15. Brussels has targeted the Silicon Valley firm's AdSense advertising service, saying it restricts some client websites from displaying ads from third parties. The decision in the long-running case, first reported by the Financial Times, is the latest anti-trust salvo against Google, which has already received nearly seven billion euros in EU fines. Two sources close to the matter said the verdict would land next week, most likely on Wednesday. "We are in the process of finalising the AdSense case," EU competition commissioner Margrethe Vestager said earlier this week. In July 2018, the US giant was ordered to pay a record 4.34 billio...

Ola, Hyundai in talks for $300 million fund infusion

9Mar By Press Trust of IndiaNo Comments

News

Ola, Hyundai in talks for $300 million fund infusion

NEW DELHI: Ola is in talks with Hyundai Motor Company for investing about USD 300 million in the cab-hailing platform, according to sources. The discussions are at an advanced stage and a deal could be closed in the next few weeks, sources said. If the deal goes through, it would be Hyundai's second investment in the Indian startup ecosystem. Previously, it had led a ₹100-crore funding round in car rental startup Revv. Ola did not respond to an e-mailed query on the development. A Hyundai Motors India spokesperson said the company is "open to cooperation with various potential partners but it is our policy not to comment on market speculation and rumours". The fresh funding will give the Bengaluru-based company more ammunition to compete with rival Uber in ...

Mahindra Group firm Pininfarina launches luxury electric car Battista

6Mar By Press Trust of IndiaNo Comments

Automobile

Mahindra Group firm Pininfarina launches luxury electric car Battista

Luxury electric vehicles brand Automobili Pininfarina, a part of the Mahindra Group, on Tuesday launched its luxury electric car Battista which is touted to be faster than a current Formula 1 race car in its 0-100 km/h sub-two second sprint. "When it arrives in 2020, the Battista will be the most powerful car ever designed and built in Italy and it will deliver a level of performance that is unachievable today in any road-legal sports car featuring internal combustion engine technology," Automobili Pininfarina said in a press release. Faster than a current Formula 1 race car in its 0 -100 km/h sub-two second sprint, and with 1,900 hp and 2,300 Nm torque on tap, the Battista will combine extreme engineering and technology in a zero emissions package, the company said. Commenting o...

Zomato to sell UAE food delivery business for USD 172 mn

4Mar By Press Trust of IndiaNo Comments

ACQUISITION

Zomato to sell UAE food delivery business for USD 172 mn

Online restaurant guide and food ordering firm Zomato will sell its UAE food delivery business to Germany-headquartered Delivery Hero Group for about USD 172 million (nearly Rs 1,220 crore), one of the company's largest shareholders Info Edge said Monday. The Gurugram-based firm has also raised around USD 105 million in the ongoing round of funding, Info Edge said in a filing on the BSE. "As a result, upon closing, our shareholding in Zomato will be 26.38 per cent on a fully converted and diluted basis," it added. As part of the transaction, Zomato Media Pvt Ltd has entered into an agreement to sell its UAE food delivery business to Delivery Hero Group through its fully owned subsidiary Talabat Middle East Services Company LLC. The consideration for the transaction is about US...