Business NEWS
Hulu, a website that offers commercial-supported streaming video of TV shows and
movies, is a joint venture of NBC Universal and News Corp. The name Hulu comes from
a Mandarin Chinese proverb in which it means holder of precious things. Literally, it
refers (in Chinese) to the calabash gourd, which can also be used as a container.
Charles Diebold founded ATM manufacturer Diebold as
a maker of safes and vaults in 1859.
Eliot Ness, former crime fighter of "The Untouchables"
fame, served as chairman of the board.
Diebold introduced its first iris recognition ATM in the
United States in 1999- an ATM that identifies customers
by recognizing unique patterns within the iris (colored
part) of their eyes.
Google introduced an open source platform called Android (human machine) around
which phones can be built — HTC will be among the first to hit the market
Dr A. Paulraj, Professor at the Information Systems Lab of Stanford University, US, was
dubbed the 'Father of WiMAX ' by BusinessWeek magazine earlier this year.
Microsoft and Apple already have their own interpretations of desktop-cloud
synchronisation, in the form of Windows Live SkyDrive (5GB of free online storage)
and MobileMe.
A Yamaha piano and organ were awarded the Honorary Grand Prize at the St. Louis
World's Fair in 1904.
Emami owned Zandu's products include Zandu balm, Pancharisht, Keshri Jivan and
Nityamchurn.
Electrotherm (India) brands include YOelectron, YoSmart, YoSpeed and Yobykes.
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HSIL made a humble beginning in 1936, when the Somany's were stockbrokers in
Calcutta. But a few years later in 1944, their entrepreneurial spirit led to the setting up of
"Somany Glass Works". Then, on the back of this successful venture they set up
"Hindustan Glass Works" in 1952 –India's first fully automated, state-of-the-art glass
manufacturing unit.
The Somany Group's flagship company, Hindustan
Sanitaryware and Industries Ltd (HSIL) was set up in 1962
in collaboration with Twyfords of UK. The "Hindware"
brand commands more than a third of the Indian sanitaryware
market.
The origin of Triumph motorcycles dates back to the late 19th
century when founding entrepreneur, Siegfried Bettmann,
settled in Coventry, England and capitalized on the English
bicycle market. Bicycles soon became motorcycles and the
evolution of one of the most famous names in motorcycling began–Trident, Trophy,
Daytona, Bonneville & Rocket
Kenwood Corporation was established as Kasuga Radio
Co., Ltd. in 1946 in Japan.
Spencer's is a company belonging to the RP Goenka Group.
Pioneer was founded in 1938 in Tokyo, Japan by Nozomu
Matsumoto who began with a small operation to repair and
manufacture speakers in his garage.
Unlike most other companies in the industry, Pioneer chose
not to develop videocassette recorders – instead developing the LaserDisc..
Board games designed by the Industrial Design Centre (IDC) of IIT Bombay
marketed by Funskool–Chakra View, Triplets, Gotcha, Sixteen Fifteen and Mahawar.
Dwight Eisenhower coined the term the domino theory.
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Leela Lace Ltd.
It was in 1957 when Capt. C.P. Krishnan Nair, after
completing his stint in the army, set up a small industrial unit in suburban Mumbai called
Leela Scottish Lace Ltd., India's first and only lace manufacturing plant.
Leela Lace Ltd. grew from a small beginning to become the first company to introduce
the "Bleeding Madras" fabric and other handlooms such as Cheese Cloth and gauze
fabric to the fasion capitals of the west, specifically the USA.
Their punchline "Guaranteed to bleed" became the key to the popularity.
It is Leela Lace, the parent company, which is the promoter of Hotel Leelaventure.
Nortel, which filed for creditor protection under Chapter 11 in the US, is the sponsor
of London Olympic Games and Winter Olympic Games in Canada in 2010.
Levi's has introduced its internationally-renowned Urbane Range of footwear in India
CellBazaaar is an electronic marketplace launched in 2006 by Grameenphone, the
Telenor mobile operator in Bangladesh. A farmer can easily sell his or her products by
sending simple text messages, just as a teacher can offer his or her services.
The Telenor Group is behind the first international telephone line connects Kristiania
(Oslo), Norway with Stockholm, Sweden. 1893.
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Norway is home to the world's longest surviving radio programme, Saturday
Children's Hour (1924-).
Mumbai Mantra is the entertainment arm of Mahindra & Mahindra.
Funskool, IIT Mumbai strategy based games–Chakra View, Triplets, Gotcha and
Sixteen Fifteen
Corporate Services Corps is an IBM initiative under which company employees are
selected to visit emerging economies to work alongside local non-governmental ag encies
on various projects.
Indian School of Business (ISB) and Goldman Sachs Group run a 12-week
certification programme for aspiring women entrepreneurs.
Wealthsurance is a term introduced by IDBI Fortis.
Breakthrough, a human rights organisation, launched Bell Bajao (ring the bell)
campaign, urging local residents to take a stand against physical abuse. The campaign
urges people across the country to ring the bell whenever they encounter domestic
violence. One of the ads has actor Boman Irani as the one who rings the bell. The
campaign is in collaboration with the Ministry of Women and Child Development,
UNIFEM and the UN Trust Fund.
GPS
It took a 007 for the world to fully come to terms with Global Positioning System, or
GPS. As Korean Airlines Flight 007 strayed into former USSR prohibited airspace in
1983, it was duly shot down.
The world was shaken, and the then US President Ronald Reagan stirred into action by
issuing a directive making GPS freely available for civilian use.
The GPS uses a constellation of Medium Earth Orbit satellites that transmit microwave
signals, which enable GPS receivers to determine their current location, time and
velocity. It is managed by the US Air Force's 50th Wing.
The game between the Cincinnati Reds and Philadelphia Phillies at Crosley Field on
May 24, 1935 was the first game played under floodlights.
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India's scams
Ramakrishna Dalmia scam (1956)
The Dalmia case was unravelled in 1956 when Ramakrishna Dalmia, then chairman of
Dalmia-Jain Airways and owner of Bharat Insurance Company, admitted in a written
confession, that he had embezzled funds to the tune of Rs.2.2 crore from his insurance
company. He faced trial and was sentenced to two years in jail.
More importantly, the scandal led to the nationalisation of the insurance sector.
Haridas Mundhra scam (1958)
In 1958, Feroze Gandhi, Congress politician and Indira
Gandhi's husband, exposed yet another scam in the
insurance sector, this time involving Haridas Mundhra.
The case involved investments to the tune of Rs.1.25 crore
of Life Insurance Corporation of India funds in six
companies owned by Mundhra.
Finance Minister T.T. Krishnamachari, Finance
Secretary H.M. Patel and LIC Chairman L.S.
Vaidyanathan were accused as perpetrators of the illegal
investment.
The Finance Secretary was indicted and T.T. Krishnamachari resigned as Finance
Minister.
Cement scandal (1980s)
Maharashtra cement scandal involving Chief Minister Abdul Rehman Antulay (1980s).
Antulay was forced to resign when the Bombay High Court ruled that he had illegally
required builders in the Bombay (Mumbai) area to make donations to the Indira Gandhi
Pratibha Prathisthan, one of several trust funds he had established and controlled, in
exchange for receiving more cement than the government quota allowed them to buy.
Snamprogetti scam (1980s)
Thal Vaishet project involving Snamprogetti and its representative Ottavio
Quattrocchi
The accused in Thal Vaishet case included Petroleum Secretary H.N. Bahuguna and
Petroleum Minister P.C. Sethi.
An engineering consultancy contract for setting up fertilizer projects at Thal Vaishet and
Hazira was awarded to Haldor Topsoe and Pullman Kellog in violation of norms.
Snamprogetti had 50% stake in Haldor Topsoe.
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Rarely has any business house suffered such a steep fall as the house of Dalmia-Sahu
Jain.
Started by Ramakrishna Dalmia, it emerged as a big player in the 1930s and within four
years (1948 to 1952) took control of Punjab National Bank, Bennett Coleman & Co
(the publishers of the Times of India), Bharat Insurance, Lahore Electric and the
Govan Group of Companies. Rohtas Industries, which he started with a sugar mill in
Bihar, diversified into paper, vanaspati, chemicals and spun pipes, besides other
segments.
The last three American presidents (George Bush, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush)
have all been "Timex presidents"
Mahesh Bhupathi owns marketing agency Globosport.
Surfing the internet is the famous metaphor that was coined by Jean Armour Polly, a
librarian by profession, in 1992 when he was using a mouse pad from the Apple Library
in Cupertino and writing an article for the Wilson Library Bulletin.
The Kimberley Process Diamond Certification is a UN-mandated convention that has
made it mandatory for all countries trading in rough diamonds to certify that they have
not originated from African countries experiencing armed warfare.
English movie channel HBO becoming the first to use satellite mode of transmitting
content in 1976.
Adolf Eugen Fick developed the first usable glass contact lenses in 1888. In 1959,
Czech chemists Otto Wichterle and Drahoslav Lim, came up with the first soft
(hydrogel) lenses.
The first online book store was set up by Charles Stack in 1992, who called it Book
Stacks Unlimited (later Books.com).
Real Global Broadcasting is a joint venture of Turner International and Miditech of
the Alva brothers
Sarkar Ki Duniya is a 100-day realty show in which players would live on an island
under the autocratic rule of the sarkar. Poker Face, on the other hand, is a game show on
which one can earn Rs 1 crore every week. In Vicky Ki Taxi, all kinds of people tell their
life's story.
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Webcam was invented in 1991 when the first such camera called the CoffeeCam was
pointed at the Trojan room coffee pot in the computer science department of
Cambridge University.
The Armoured Cadillac limousine built by General Motors for the President of USA
(Barack Obama uses one now) is codenamed the Stagecoach and also nicknamed the
Beast.
The Z score formula invented by Edward Altman is the name given to a formula that
can predict bankruptcy of a company.
Samuel Longhorn Clemens (Mark Twain) is credited for the first book to be
completely written on a typewriter. Mark Twain is also the first writer to trademark
his name and incorporate himself as a business enterprise.
Taipie 101, Burj Dubai and Petronas Towers are all partly built by Samsung
Engineering.
Beyond Natural™ is a trademark owned by Revlon.
Touch Screen
In 1971, the first "touch sensor" was developed by Doctor Sam Hurst (founder of
Elographics) while he was an instructor at the University of Kentucky.
The "Elograph" was not transparent like modern touch screens, however, it was a
significant milestone in touch screen technology.
In 1974, the first true touch screen incorporating a transparent surface came on the scene
developed by Sam Hurst and Elographics.
In 1977, Elographics developed and patented five-wire resistive technology, the most
popular touch screen technology in use today.
In 1994, the company officially changed its name from Elographics to Elo
TouchSystems.
Club Mahindra
Club Mahindra acquired the Taj Garden Retreat at Thekkady in Kerala renaming it
Tusker Trails.
Club Mahindra brand Zest, is targeted at young consumers. Food and beverage at the
resorts is called Fun Dining.
Clay (Club Mahindra & You) is a travel and holiday blog started by Club Mahindra.
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The first Apple computer was hand-built by Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak in Steve
Jobs' garage and first introduced at the Homebrew Computer Club in Palo Alto, Calif.
in 1976.
More than 200 units were sold by the Byte Shop, the first computer-retail chain.
When venerable business technology company IBM entered
the personal computer market in 1981, the story goes, Apple
greeted its new competitor with a full-page ad in the Wall
Street Journal, reading: "Welcome IBM. Seriously."
Apple, IBM and Motorola later joined hands for the creation
of the PowerPC chip.
The PowerPC chip ran all Mac computers until 2006, when
Apple switched to chips made by Intel.
A Boeing 747 was successfully test-flown by Air New Zealand using a 50-50 blend of
jatropha and aviation fuel in Dec 2007.
Ruth Handler introduced Barbie doll at the 1959 Toy Fair in New York City.
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