Blueocean counts on India, to hire over a 1000 employees

MUMBAI: While most data analytics companies are figuring out ways to grow at a faster clip in traditional markets in the West, Blueocean Market Intelligence is betting on rising demand from India and other emerging countries. To that end, the Mumbai-based firm is ramping up its headcount to over a thousand from the current 700 and is also scouting for acquisitions. 

The company, which bought UK-based analytics technology platform Cognicient earlier this year, is looking for businesses that would help it scale. "We don't want to acquire for size," Ashwin Mittal, president of the company said. "We would look for technology platforms, or companies that would help us scale up in the financial services and automotive space." Blueocean has strong offerings in the technology, consumer goods and life sciences space, Mittal said. 

Technology platforms will also help the firm drive revenue without having to add an equivalent number of employees, what is called non-linear growth in IT industry parlance and is much sought after in the sector. For analytics firms, with industry attrition rates north of 20% and a limited number of possible recruits, breaking the link between revenue and employees is key to future success. 

The acquisition of Cognicient gave the firm a foothold in the UK market that it will look to grow further. It currently has offices in Dubai, the United States and India. When Blueocean was set up in 2000, it had expected to focus on the Indian market for data analytics. Then, the market in India was not large enough and the firm focused on the much bigger US market, which now accounts for about 80% of its revenues. 

"The US does account for the bulk of our revenues but as we grow in other markets, the share of the US to our revenues could come down to about 60% in the next three to six years," Mittal said. He, however, declined to give the company's revenue but said the company was growing rapidly. 

The market for data analytics is huge. Research firm IDC says the big data analytics market will be worth $24 billion (Rs 1.4 lakh crore) in 2016. And everyone from specialist analytics services firms such as MuSigma to IT players like Tata Consultancy Services and Infosys are gearing up to get a piece of the pie. Blueocean said it is seeing an increase in interest in analytics in India. 

"The market here is small but it is increasing in size. So far, our focus has been on the US but now we will look to grow in the Indian market as well," Mittal added. The Indian market is currently being sized by the company and the National association for software and services companies for the annual analytics report which will be released in June at hyderabad

Read more at:
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/34236046.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst

Where to find keyless finger-scan locks

1 of 1

Finger tip access

Swipe your finger across the keyless, code-free entry system to activate the lock

Photo courtesy of Kwikset

Several companies offer biometric keyless locks for entry doors, mostly in the $200 range (as of 2008). One company is Kwikset. Its SmartScan locks are available at home centers and hardware stores (find retailers and more info at Kwikset.com). When you swipe your finger across a sensor, it reads your fingerprint and activates the battery-powered dead bolt. You don't need a key or a key code. Installation doesn't require hardwiring, and the batteries last about one year.

Other companies also sell keyless fingerprint locks. Search online for “fingerprint door locks.”

Sleek iPhone 6 Concept

If you’ve got your pulse on the internet you may know that this iPhone concept is not new (the video was uploaded a year ago), but it doesn’t change the fact that IT IS SO COOL. The concept was made by YouTube user Schoolpost who creates short films, visual effects, motion graphics, and animation. Let us know what you think in the comments. Does this concept beat out the current model?

DoCoMo to exit India at $1.3bn loss

MUMBAI: Japan's biggest mobile operator NTT DoCoMo is disconnecting from Tata Teleservices, its partner of five years, by offloading its entire stake at as low as half the original acquisition price of $2.6 billion. It becomes the second Japanese major to exit India in recent weeks after Daiichi Sankyo sold its interests in Ranbaxy Laboratories.

The over two-decade-old DoCoMo had acquired a 26.5% stake in Tata Teleservices between 2009 and 2011 in a deal that was supposed to catapult it into the telecom industry big league but cut-throat tariff competition, regulatory uncertainty and billions of losses have forced the Japanese biggie to hang up on Asia's third largest economy. Besides, this move has left a question mark on Tata Teleservices' future.

Under the 2009 joint venture agreement, DoCoMo had two options: one, to increase its stake to 51% in two phases by March and the second to sell its stake for half the acquisition price or at a fair market price, whichever was higher. Both the options were linked to performance targets and with the Indian joint venture missing the targets, the Japanese major has decided to dial out of Tata Teleservices.The Tata Group holds 65% in India's seventh-largest mobile services company, which lags far behind telecom giants Bharti Airtel and Vodafone. Singapore government's investment arm Temasek and serial entrepreneur C Sivasankaran too own small stakes in the company. DoCoMo said it will exercise its sale option by June.

"We invested in India because at the time we saw excellent growth prospects in emerging countries and we wanted to be involved there," DoCoMo CEO Kaoru Kato said. "We decided to sell because the growth we've seen in five years is not what we expected. Though, withdrawing was a very bitter decision." In FY13, Tata Teleservices reported a loss of Rs 4,858 crore, while its debt was Rs 23,491 crore.

A host of problems like delay in introducing 3G services, telecom licence cancellations and corruption scandals led to the JV's dismal performance, claimed DoCoMo.

In a statement, Tata Group's holding company, Tata Sons, said, "As stated by DoCoMo, it is not possible to predict how events will unfold; however, Tata Sons is cognizant of its responsibilities, and will act keeping in mind the interests of all stakeholders and in accordance with law."

With DoCoMo exiting the alliance, the Tata Group will come under pressure to fund the buyout as well as improve the telco's performance. "With an over 60% promoter stake and recent promise of equity infusion to sustain operations, it places pressure on the Tata Group as a whole. While continuing with operating performance improvement at Tata Teleservices is a pre-requisite, one cannot however rule out group considerations, including consolidation or finding replacement partners," said Thomas Kuruvilla, managing partner at Arthur D Little, a global consulting firm.

Media reports suggest that Vodafone and Russian conglomerate AFK Sistema, which owns MTS India, have held separate talks with Tata Teleservices to combine the business with the Tata Group either bowing out of the telecom business or holding a minority stake in the merged entity. However, Tata Sons said that the company "continues to be an integral part of the Tata Group". India's largest private sector conglomerate recently inked a deal to sell its South African fixed line telecom operator Neotel to Vodafone.

Shahid Kapoor in Vishal Bhardwaj's Maha Kaminey

Shahid has said that Vishal's Haider is his toughest project till date

Actor Shahid Kapoor is all set to star in Vishal Bhardwaj's Maha Kaminey, which is the sequel to his 2009 hit film Kaminey.

Kaminey had Shahid, Priyanka Chopra and Amol Gupte in lead roles. The film was produced by UTV Motion Pictures.

The film was set against the backdrop of the Mumbai underworld and told the story of a pair of twins, one with a lisp and the other with a stutter.

"The sequel to Kaminey, Maha Kaminey will be made. It will have Shahid in it. It will be more interesting. But the work on this project will start after Haider," sources close to the development said. (Also read: Shahid talks about Haider)

The makers have been planning to make the sequel for quite some time.

Vishal Bhardwaj is presently working on his Haider which stars Shahid and Shraddha Kapoor besides Tabu, Irrfan Khan and Kay Kay Menon. (Also read: Shahid excited about Haider final schedule)

Maha Kaminey will be third collaboration between Shahid and Vishal after Kaminey and Haider.