WebCams: From a near-Billion Dollar industry to a multi-Billion Dollar one?
Sunday, December 26th, 2010
WebCams are devices that help Internet users to hold a video communication across the Web. The quality of the communication tended to suffer from the low bandwidth typical until recently.
However, with the increasing availability and popularity of broadband, the situation is changing. And the availability of free video communication applications provided by Google and Skype, the appeal of video communications is even more.
The WebCam industry is expected to grow fast in such a context. Logitech is the major player in the market now while others include Creative Technologies, Microsoft, Philips, Cisco and D-Link. Then there are a large number of Chinese manufacturers of OEM equipment included with notebook computers.
WebCams are also important in security applications as they provide the ability to monitor establishments remotely. You can, for example, monitor unauthorized intruders into your establishment while sitting across the globe, for example.
With the increasing importance of security everywhere, from homes to scientific establishments, the potential market for the WebCam industry is great.
The report titles Worldwide WebCam Market Shares Strategies, and Forecasts, 2009-2015 looks at the markets, forecasts and strategies for the WebCam industry that is estimated to amount to $3.2 billion by 2015.
Tags: business, information technology, video communications, web communications
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China’s March on IT Services Front
Saturday, October 2nd, 2010
During the eight months to August 2010, China’s software industry revenues were:
* Software design and development business 44.9 billion yuan
* Information technology consulting services 78 billion yuan
* Software products 287.5 billion yuan
* Software exports 14.4 billion US Dollars
* Outsourcing services 1.75 billion US Dollars
China’s software industry as a whole earned revenues of 828.6 billion yuan (123.67 billion U.S. dollars) during the above period, a rise of 29.8 percent over the previous year. The growth rate in revenues had gone up by 8.8 percent compared to the year before that.
A notable fact is that the revenues for the month of August 2010 were 105.5 billion yuan, a rise of 34.9 percent year on year.
Chinese government’s tax exemption policy helped the impressive growth of the industry. Early in August, the government had announced that it would exempt offshore services provided under outsourcing business from operating taxes. This exemption was granted to businesses in 21 cities in order to promote the development of this industry. The five percent operating tax exemption will be in force until the end of 2013.
China’s Ministry of Information Industry is a regulatory body in charge of the manufacture of electronic and information products, the communications and software industry. It is planning to bring out an English version of its website according to the Gov.cn website.
Tags: china, information technology, outsourcing, software services
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LG Electronics Focuses on Rural Areas
Saturday, May 8th, 2010
LG of South Korea is the market leader in consumer durables in both the urban and rural markets of India. The Wall Street Journal’s Jyoti Malhotra interviewed LG’s Managing Director Moon B Shin. The following observations on rural markets were made during the interview reported in the Business Section of WSJ .
LG focuses on rural markets not only in India but elsewhere also. Rural is the future. In India, 73% of the population are rural residents, with 35% of them owning a television, 5% refrigerators and 1% washing machines. Diposable incomes in rural India have grown considerably owing to a healthy domestic market.
Though the average rural household income is still about half the average urban income, there are pockets of prosperity as in Punjab and Kerala. In Punjab, farmers get income from three crops every year, while Kerala, the rural is practically indistinguishable from the urban. Other pockets of prosperity include the irriated agricultural belts.
Rural spending is expected to grow further in the years to come with the Indian government spending heavily on education and literacy. An educated populace will have more disposable incomes.
Rural people like bright and beautiful colors and the products for rural areas are designed to cater to this preference. Urban consumers prefer colors like gray or white with a metallic finish. Rural designs also incorporate the capability to handle erratic power supply and the corrosive water of coastal areas.
Read the interview at WSJ.
Tags: business, consumer durables, india, marketing, rural marketing
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The Growth of Markets in Rural India
Wednesday, May 5th, 2010
Over 65 percent of Indians live in rural areas. Businesses in India have been conscious of the markets that this group offered. This consciousness is increasing now with studies showing that the prosperity and tastes of this group are changing fast.
An early study by the National Council for Applied Economic Research (NCAER) of India had estimated that the number of middle and high income households in India will be nearly double the number of such households in urban India by 2007. This means not only greater purchasing power but also a change in the kinds of things the people in rural areas prefer to buy.
Programs such as the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) and the Bharat Nirman Programme for enhancing rural road and rail network have resulted in increasing the flow of money to rural areas on an unprecedented scale. In addition, the traditional income generation activity in rural areas, agriculture, is also expanding.
The rural market for consumer goods is expected to grow to USD 425 billion by 2010-2011 as per a report by the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) and Technopark.
The fast growing rural market offers scope for retailers, FMCG products, healthcare providers, automobiles, different types of services and telecom service providers. In many of these areas, rural markets have already exceeded urban markets in consumption volume. A conscious attempt is also being made by government agencies and others to tap the potential of information technology to improve delivery of educational and other services to rural India.
Tags: markets, rural india
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