Samsung to sell more printers
Digital technology player Samsung is in a rat race to forge its place to reach the top in the Indian printer market. It has embarked on some fresh initiatives including the launch of seven new printer models.

Newly launched Samsung Printers include ML 1640-priced at Rs. 6999, ML1640- priced at 5299, CLP 315 - priced at Rs. 11,999, CLP 310 - priced at Rs. 15,499, SCX 4300 - priced at Rs. 8,999, SCX-4828FN - priced at Rs. 24,999 and CLX-3175FN - priced at Rs. 42,499.

Being the number two player in the printer market, Samsung is doubling its printer sales and marketing manpower this year. As part of its marketing strategy, it plans to set up 10 IT brand shops in India to give customers a complete idea about its IT product portfolio, including printers and LCD monitors. The company will also set up a printer demo zone in Bangalore.

“To give our enterprise business a strong fillip we have set up a separate corporate sales team for our printer business as distinct from our channel sales team”, said Uday Bhat, General Manager, IT division, Samsung India Electronics.

IEEE opens Bangalore chapter
Bangalore now has one more platform for its engineers to let their hair down, network, and learn. The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) has opened the Bangalore chapter of IEEE Computer Society, its fourth such chapter in India after Chennai, Hyderabad, and Mumbai.The chapter currently has more than 300 members.

Prof. Rangachar Kasturi, President, IEEE Computer Society says, “Most of the research labs such as that of IBM, GM, Volvo, HP, and others operate in Bangalore. This chapter will aim to bring them all together professionally and create an ecosystem of innovation.” The chapter’s immediate focus will be leveraging the ecosystems by bringing together professionals and students from different backgrounds. Currently it has 900 standards and hopes to have more of it from India.

The IEEE Computer Society has 86,000 members in 140 countries, with India being the second largest chapter after the U.S.

Cisco enhances ‘virtual’ portfolio
Indian market may not have matured for a virtualization game. But Cisco, the U.S. based IT player, is expanding its Datacenter 3.0 initiative in India. The company announced new products and professional services that will help customers virtualize datacenters for greater performance.

“Though the space is at its nascent stage in India, real-time collaborative applications, energy concerns, and the need to achieve greater efficiency from assets will drive IT managers to virtualize their datacenters,” says John McCool, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Cisco Datacenter.

In line with the new initiative, Cisco has made four announcements including Wide Area Application Services (WAAS) software release 4.1, Cisco Application Control Engine (ACE) software release 3.1, Cisco VFrame Datacenter software release 1.2, and Datacenter 3.0 professional programs and services.

Blog on your cell phone
Imagine a time when you can blog via your mobile phone. To make this real Webaroo, a mobile software and services provider, has launched SMSGupshup, an SMS based community site. It enables users to form communities and blog using their cell phones. Since it is built on an SMS platform, it can be used even on the most basic and low-end phones.

Webaroo has raised $10 million in new capital from Helion Ventures, an India-focused venture fund, and Charles River Ventures who have special interest in projects in communications, software, and information services.
The company is aiming at the increasing market of online community services on mobile since very few online platforms are able to successfully marry mobile and PC based community experience.

DeRisk IT introduces GRC to India
The IT solutions provider DeRisk IT Solutions has started its new operations in Chennai to introduce Governance Risk and Compliance (GRC) technology to the Indian market. The company has tied up with Achiever Business Solutions, a European player in GRC management software, to cater to the Indian, Middle East, and Asia Pacific markets with the AchieverPlus GRC solution.

AchieverPlus software provides a single point of access for GRC management for all areas of risk management, compliance management, and regulatory affairs, including health and safety, finance, IT security, and environmental management across the enterprise.

DeRisk IT will also provide full sales and support services for Achiever Business Solutions. “Teaming up with Achiever Business Solutions to extend GRC services to Indian companies and other MNCs will enable us to provide a complete solution at the highest level to a bluechip client base,” said Praveen, Director, DeRisk IT.

QlikTech steps into India
India’s Business Intelligence (BI) software vendors’ list is getting updated with the addition of a new name QlikTech. The Swedish company plans to set up an office in Bangalore.
Setting its footprint here first with a liaison office in the city, the company has put Mumbai also on its radar as part of its India expansion strategy. Raghunathan Rangarajan, who was earlier in IBM and SAP, has joined the company as Regional Manager for India and South Asia. “The company is pursuing deals in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka,” he says.

QlikTech’s business analysis solution QlikView has already won around 100 customers in India. Based in the U.S., this BI software company has around 9,050 customers in 87 countries. The company covers different verticals ranging from newspaper, retail, and insurance. QlikTech’s Indian customers include Reliance Life, Reliance Capital, Dainik Jagran, Parle, and LG Electronics.