Technology Archive

You have to be the First-Announcer in the Internet age

Published: March 1, 2010Posted in: Marketing, TechnologyTags: ,

Whether to purchase or otherwise, most of us reach amazon.com when we try searching for a book on the internet. Barnes & Noble too has an online bookstore but certainly not as popular as Amazon’s. And today as we know it, Amazon is the largest online retailer in the world doing sales (~19 billion!) about three times as much as the closest competition Staples.

Ok, that’s what many of us know. Did you know of a site called books.com? This site (now redirects to Barnes & Nobel site) was there on the internet selling books two years before Amazon was started by Jeff Bezos. Charles Stack, books.com founder, apparently was an ‘inside guy’ more interested in building an infrastructure than promoting a business. The price for being an insider guy? In 1996, Stack sold his business for $4.2 million while a month later Amazon was able to mop up a staggering $32 million in its first IPO!

Stack lost out because he did not let enough people know about his site. He had a two year headstart over Amazon and yet he was not able to own the online retail market at least for books (even with a killer of a domain named books.com!) In today’s internet age, one barely has a headstart. Somehow word gets to the competition and the so-called first-mover advantage is hard to realize. Imagine having spent a lot on R&D, successfully seeing the release and working of a great feature, not having this publicized and the very next year your competition does the same feature but makes more news of it and before you know it they’re touted the pioneer, cutting-edge, industry-leading blah blah.

If you are innovating, make sure you let your market know; else you could actually be signing off your hardwork to competition. Make sure to be the first-announcer and constantly follow up with your marketing and PR departments!

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Implementing IPv6

Published: November 30, 2009Posted in: TechnologyTags: ,

I was searching around for information on IPv6 implementations and found a statement in Twitter that sums up the global state of affairs related to IPv6 perfectly:

Woke up again thinking about IPv6. Gotta do something about.

The IT world’s realized that IPv6 is inevitable but nothing solid is really being done in a huge majority of organizations. I feel it’s not just the costs associated, but also the lack of information that is available on the subject. Apparently only 10% of IPv4 addresses are available globally and this would exhaust in a year or two.

So what happens then if you do not get along with IPv6?

  • You cannot have another ‘networked’ equipment (a sure bye bye to the ‘internet of things’ concept)
  • There will be islands of IPv6 networks private or public that you will find hard to reach to
  • IPv6 networks would also stumble a few times before reaching your network. Your business would definitely be hurt by the lack of IPv6 compatibility(the US government has even announced that they will only procure gear that supports IPv6 from next July)

IPv6 is not just against ‘IP address exhaustion’, but it also ensures a more secure (by including IPsec) and quicker network (fixed size headers that requiring less processing).

Businesses need to educate the IT team on the importance and short time available and also ensure only IPv6 supported hardware and software is procured. Every aspect of the network will need an overhaul – the ISP, connectivity with ISP, the routers, firewalls, switches, every single node on the network, including application installations. A good social network site that offers information and help on implementing IPv6 is gogo6. It also offers services and hardware to make that smooth transitioning :- tunneling services for IPv6 connectivity and an IP gateway providing v4-v6 interoperability.

Other interesting reading on IPv6 implementation:

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Gmail listens to their users

Published: June 15, 2008Posted in: TechnologyTags:
Gmail listens to their users

I was reading on “What’s new in Gmail” and couldn’t help ‘postulating’ on their success. I’ve blogged on ‘customer feedback’ before and these guys at Gmail are probably where they are today because of this one reason – listening to customers. I’m quoting write-up about their new features from their website.

Embarrassment-reducing new message notifications

Ever replied to a message only to find out that someone sent a better, smarter reply right before you? Now, if someone sends a reply while you’re in the middle of reading a conversation (or replying to it), you’ll get a notification that a new message has arrived. Click “update conversation” to see what you’ve missed.

Did not these guys “get in your shoes” with that new feature?!
Also, I’m so happy to see attachments increased to 20MB! What they say:

Increased attachment limit– 20 MB!
Now you can start sharing more of those home videos, large presentations and files you just can’t seem to get smaller. We have doubled the allowable attachment size to 20 MB to make your Gmail space even more useful.

Please note that you may not be able to send larger attachments to contacts who use other email services with smaller attachment limits. If your attachment bounces, you should invite them to Gmail.

To share my granny’s smiling video, yes I will invite all my cousins to Gmail, thank you. Marketing’s the easiest when you’re bang on with what the customer wants.

Aside: I’ve been so long away from my blogs! Last time I saw my blog it had a PageRank of one, today it’s three! I thought one has to be regular at blogging to start being seen as “important” to have your PageRank increased.. Whatever.

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Doing business & the Internet

Published: March 9, 2008Posted in: Marketing, TechnologyTags: ,

Brick & mortar companies, click & mortar companies, internet-only companies.. I remember feeling so interested just by the coinage of terms!

There are lots to be gained by companies who finally decide to have Internet presence. Apart from the immediate extension of distribution channels, brand equity, economies of scale and what not, the most to be gained from is the whole new feedback mechanism that your products and services are exposed to. You now get immediate, usable feedback from your patrons; in fact, you can probably do away with your Market Research and idea generation teams!

This brings me to more serious thinking: if your company’s not doing good in the Internet age, you are definitely not giving your customers what they want! If you are planning to go online with your business, make sure you have the stomach and the head to make use of customer feedback: listen up or you’ll soon shut shop!

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Tata Nano – part suppliers

Published: January 16, 2008Posted in: TechnologyTags: ,

Happy New Year Everybody!

Lots of interesting developments in the very beginning of 2008 – the cheapest car in the world, the first probable black US president/first lady US president, biggest ever Indian IPO – RPL, ‘racism’ incidents in sports.. Suddenly News channels* are the most viewed channels at home. Personally, I want this new year to make me some good money. Praying myself a Happy & very Prosperous New Year :)

This post is one for the stock market freaks. 2008 is certainly going to be a very happening year for the Indian automobile industry: Over 30 new models (highest ever in India) to be launched by various players, Tata Nano at 1 lac rupees($2,500), Tata buying jaguar & Land Rover (India ki Jai!), many foreign luxury brands getting in, Bajaj’s entry…

So who stands to gain apart from us consumers? Check these guys out. Already main suppliers to the Nano, they are sure to play a big role as more vehicles are rolled out the next few years.

Lumax Industries – lighting
Sona Group – Sona Koyo Steering Systems
Rico Auto Industries – Engine housing
SEKURIT Saint-Gobain India – glass (formerly Maharashtra Glass and Agro)
Motor Industries Company (MICO) – design
Exide Industries – battery

Since the Nano’s expected to be out in the latter half of 2008, keep these company stocks in mind over a 1-2 year investment horizon. They’re sure to be winners. I hear over 100 local suppliers for the Nano – need to get that good list somehow!

*very unrelated: Smriti Rao of NDTV has captured my mornings :) , one very sweet and pretty newsreader!

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Tussle.. Truce…. bigger Tussle!

Published: August 22, 2007Posted in: TechnologyTags: , ,

Cisco WAS a cable company. Microsoft WAS the MS Office and Windows maker. These two companies are now into so many new business areas and they now find each other competing in the VoIP space.

When two biggies find themselves stepping on each other’s toes, they either agree on walking separate paths or on walking the same path in parallel. I thought the parallel walk was struck on when Steve Ballmer (CEO – Microsoft) and John Chambers ( CEO – Cisco) announced that they would work together on having their VoIP offerings interoperable.

““They’re saying, ‘Give me the choice. Don’t give me the all-or-nothing choice,’” Ballmer said of the customers, adding that he was seeking “respectful competition” with Cisco. (Reuters)

But what do we have in the news the next day? Ballmer announces that his Office Communications Server 2007(OCS – the IM, voice and video + software applications integrated product) will have added voice and video quality monitoring abilities – something that the Unified Communications system of Cisco addresses.

We should have known when Steve said “I have great respect for John and Cisco as a company, but anything they do and we do, I have more respect for us.”

I loved the way Networksasia wrote on this:

One day after its collaborative lovefest with Cisco, Microsoft Tuesday wiped off the lipstick and came out swinging as it introduced a new server designed to let its users troubleshoot voice and video problems by monitoring network performance in real time.

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Me claims SimplyMe at Technorati

Published: July 5, 2007Posted in: TechnologyTags: ,

Technorati Profile

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iPhone dismantled

Published: July 2, 2007Posted in: TechnologyTags:

Over 6 lac iPhones(!?) have been sold (in just two days after launch) as I write this.. The iPhone, when converted to the Indian rupees, costs between twenty to twenty-five thousand rupees and is one of the most awaited products in 2007 ( iPhone Mania?). I liked this sober demo by Reuters and really wished that phone was here coz I’m looking for a phone myself!

Now of all these passionate gadget geeks who waited in long queues, Yahoo led me to this group who bought the product to have it dismantled so that they find out what is in it! – “a video on YouTube showing two guys banging away at an iPhone with a hammer and nail had garnered 56,000 views and was the 13th most-watched clip on the site“

Here’s a more ‘organized’ dismantling of the phone by Ifixit.com. By the way, I jus found out a smart way of ‘foretelling’ which company can do well in the stock markets – get the latest gadget that is sure to b a killer product, break it up, find out who supplies the components and bingo – these supplying companies should do well atleast in the short term :)

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Personal Mobile Assistant

Published: June 16, 2007Posted in: TechnologyTags:

How many of us have tried calling our phone provider’s Customer Care number and had such a loooooong wait, finally to get to a voice that is so disrespectful, off-mood and the call ends in not solving your problem/query anyway? The majority of us?

Eat this:

* you have a Personal Mobile Assistant at your disposal through phone 24×7.. And your PMA picks up in the first three rings. Helps you with, say, “are tickets available at Satyam Theaters for Oceans 13 if I drop in right now?” !.. Need I say, he/she WILL get the info you need.
* your phone provider gives u the phone, insured if stolen/lost, entitles you to a new or upgrade phone in 12 months at no cost, any transfer of numbers done for u…
* free phones loaned when traveling abroad(phone, accessories et al door-delivered)
* unlimited local calls, GPRS, messaging n roaming!
* monthly flat rate – forget all the judicious use of free talk-time minutes/sms, or calling after 11:00 pm!

How much would you be willin to dole out for all this?? think, the phone(nothin short of a PDA), unlimited data,sms,talktime, your dedicated Personal Mobile Assistant(!!),insurance, loaner sets for international roaming, accessories…..

When converted to rupees(sorry, the provider is not in India :) ), all this comes at Rs. 1.2 lacs per annum. Ur call! If I was one of those spendin on PDAs, N95s, I sure would dive in!

The provider : VOCE. For the great offering(provided its not just talk), I really don’t mind doing some marketing for em!

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Digg it!

Published: May 3, 2007Posted in: TechnologyTags:

Digg is another site that is based on the bookmarking concept. Here one can create a profile and submit content – articles, video, a podcast etc, which would then be given a thumbs up(’Digg it’) or thumbs down(’Bury’) by other Diggers. Depending on how popular your submission is, you can come out tops in the respective category and see your submission in the ‘Newly popular’, ‘Top in 24 hours’, ‘7 days’, ‘30 days’ or ‘365 days’ popularity charts. They also have a visualization tool with which you can track your submission’s ‘walk to fame n glory’ or …. .

The way Digg has it on their site: “Digg is a digital media democracy. As a user, you participate in determining all site content by discovering, selecting, sharing, and discussing the news, videos, and podcasts that appeal to you.” This site sure is one of the most used and popular ones. A very clever invention. I WILL have my own login!

Check this popular Digged article: Man dies of thirst during survival test – men loosing the humaneness in them :(

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