In 2016, Mukesh D. Ambani, RIL Chairman & Managing Director, addressed the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of Reliance Industries Limited (RIL). This AGM was a historic one, where he launched Jio, in a move transiting the company from oil to data. This announcement was preceded by years of focus on building the requisite infrastructure, and …
Jio and Google will make a fresh attempt at India’s smartphone market
Of Rs 75,000 crore of the India Digitisation Fund that Google plans to invest in India in the next five to seven years, Rs 33,737 crore will be invested in Jio Platforms. The transaction, subject to regulatory and other applicable customary approvals, will be aimed at tapping the affordable smartphone market yet again. The two …
Google acquires North, takes aim at Smart Glasses
Google recently acquired North, a Canadian company founded in 2012, that makes smart glasses. The IP and talent pool at North will help in building-up Google’s AR hardware. While the value of the deal has not been disclosed, there have been speculations that Google paid around $180Mn. As an early mover in the field of …
How did COVID-19 Impact FAAMG: Insights from Q1 Results
COVID-19 has disrupted global supply chains causing supply bottlenecks and sending shockwaves everywhere. Alongside, falling consumer demand due to lockdowns pose a threat, and increasing the risk of a unending downward spiral and unending uncertainties. So, how did FAAMG face upto the COVID-19 threat? The “FAAMG” Five—Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, and Alphabet (Google) have a …
CES 2020: Five Key Technology Trends
At the 53rd annual Consumer Electronics Show, or CES 2020 held at Las Vegas, there were more than 4,500 exhibitors and 170,000 attendees from more than 160 countries. As a bellwether of new technology trends sweeping the consumer technology landscape, the CES this year was high on concepts. AI was everywhere ‘connecting everything’, and in …
Google Play Pass: Google’s Answer to Apple Arcade
Google has launched Google Play Pass, a new curated gaming subscription service, that is ad free, does not entail in-app purchases, and upfront payments. The Google Play Pass complements Google’s mainstreaming of gaming, and especially its upcoming cloud gaming service, Google Stadia. More importantly, the Play Pass ringfences Android users from potentially embracing Apple Arcade. …
National Payments Corp. Of India To Verify WhatsApp Compliance
The National Payments Corp. of India is reviewing an audit report to ensure WhatsApp complies with local rules. “We have received the data localization compliance system audit report from WhatsApp, which shall be reviewed in the next few weeks,” a Mumbai-based representative for NCPI said, according to Bloomberg. The review will determine if and when WhatsApp can enter the country’s …
Google bets big with several ‘India first’ features
From alerting Google Maps users when their vehicle goes off-route to partnering with the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs for the “Loo Review” campaign, the bullish search engine giant has had a history of building India-first features for the world’s second-largest population. India also has the second-biggest digital market and the Internet population of …
Cisco Joins Google to Launch Free Public Wi-Fi in India
In a bid to benefit millions of Internet users and connect the next billion users, global networking giant Cisco has teamed up with Google to roll out free, high-speed public Wi-Fi access globally, starting with India. The first pilot under the partnership has been rolled out at 35 locations in Bengaluru, Cisco said here on …
An incredible situation for Huawei: Do or die
With effect from August 19, American companies including Google are prohibited from selling products and services (like Android) to Huawei, and the Chinese giant is leaving no stone unturned to ensure the perception that business is as usual. There is an eerie silence about the company’s operations in India. Several industry experts who previously spoke …