Ericsson strengthens Global Service Delivery capabilities with new center in Pakistan
September 18, 2008
Ericsson (NASDAQ:ERIC) today opened a new Global Service Delivery Center (GSDC) in Pakistan, taking yet another step in realizing Ericsson’s global service delivery strategy. The centre in Lahore will support Ericsson’s global leadership position in managed services and form a regional base for offerings in consulting and education for emerging markets - contributing to the expansion of the company’s services business.
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Open Forum on Privacy to be held on 11th July 2008 at 10:30 a.m. at the FAST Lahore
July 3, 2008
This open forum is being organized under the auspices of London School of Economics(LSE), UK and Privacy International (PI), UK. Three globally renowned, leading subject specialists will be the resource persons for this event. These distinguished researchers includes Simon Davies, Director of Privacy International and Visiting Senior Fellow at the LSE, Dr Gus Hosein, a Senior Fellow with PI and a Visiting Senior Fellow with the LSE and David Banisar, Deputy Director of Privacy International and Visiting Research Fellow at the University of Leeds School of Law.
This is a pioneering activity in the country with the objective to understand the nature, issues and policy dynamics around Privacy in Pakistan. It will also serve as an opportunity to raise awareness about privacy issues for Government Departments, the IT Industry, the Banking and Telecom Sector, Academia, Civil Society Organizations and the general public.
Since the issue to be discussed relates to everyone in the society, please consider attending this two hour session on 11th July 2008 in Lahore. The deadline for registration to attend the event is 9th July 2008. Please visit the BytesForAll page dedicated to the event, for more details.
Manning Technology: Umair Naeem
May 12, 2008
When we talk about technology augmenting day to day life and making things easier and more convenient for people from various walks of life, the ball often falls onto technology itself for being unreliable, particularly in a country like Pakistan where state of the art facilities are rare. This can often be a very unfair statement, as it is the very facilitators of the technology who are responsible for ensuring its effectiveness in doing what it was supposed to be doing.
What often happens is that technology and facilities are in place, but the people who are supposed to be manning them and people who are supposed to maintain them end up being the unreliable ones. On a recent trip to Lahore, I had the misfortune of trying to connect to a Wireless internet network at the Karachi Airport. A few minutes of trying, and I looked for someone to help me out, but none of the airport personnel knew what was going on. I gave up, as my flight was about to board. On the way back, I found myself waiting at the Islamabad Airport, and spotted the free Wateen Internet Kiosks. There were two on one side, and two on the centre of the hall. From the two on the side, one was being used, while the other was free, so I tried to access my email from it, but lo and behold, there was no connection. Of the other two kiosks, one was off and the other was not working as well. Out of 4 possible kiosks, only one was working.
Whether Wateen is to blame, or the Airport authorities, it hardly matters. What matters is that technology should be a smooth and easy to use facility, not something that you would end up tearing your hair out over. And this is the responsibility of those who have put up the technology in question and those who are supposed to maintain it.
Let’s move to another example. Colgate Palmolive has a number for Consumer Affairs, on the back of its products (most specifically detergents), and when recently I needed some information regarding its products, I figured I’d give their consumer affairs a try. Unfortunately when I called, no one answered, and that’s been the case for the past few days. It’s truly insane when you have put out a number and you have no one manning it. Unilever’s Raabta Service is much better in this regard, even though their operators need to ensure that they have more detailed information regarding their products.
I have mentioned time and time again before about how important I feel it is to have Consumer Awareness in order for big businesses to feel continually responsible for the services that they offer. The encouraging thing is that Pakistan is moving towards that direction, but until and unless we, as consumers do not stand up for what we is our right, we shall remain static.
This week’s Rant goes out to the wonderfully original people behind the Mobilink Jazz Ad Campaigns. Did I mention how creative I think they are? Of course they must be! How else can they come up with a another Jazzy Tableau Theme with a song and dance routine with guys and girls jumping around and singing about how wonderful Jazz is? And of course, the height of creativity, having Wasim Akram join in and sing as well. It’s truly brilliant! How can it fail?! It has people singing and dancing about Jazz?!
It’s time like these that its true when people say there’s no creativity in Pakistan. I still don’t think that’s the case, but the ‘creative’ are certainly proving their point. What’s more ironic is that I thought the Mobilink ‘Join Us’ campaign was actually nice. Anyway, till next time, stay safe and Believe.
Umar Saif Earns the Mark Weiser Award for Best Paper!
March 24, 2008
The Associate Professor at the Lahore University of Management Sciences has won the Mark Weiser Award for a paper he co-authored with students and colleagues at MIT awarded the Mark Weiser at the IEEE Percom’08!
This is obviously a monumental achievement for Umar Saif, and a source for phenomenal pride for all of us. Wonderful news, Umar! We wish you continued success and hope you continue to lead your students by the perfect example you already are!
IDL, FSC launch new laptop with advance features
January 31, 2008
RECORDER REPORT ISLAMABAD (January 25 2008): Ideal Distribution Line (IDL) and Fujitsu Siemens Computers (FSC) on Thursday launched a new laptop with advance features. Fujitsu Siemens Computers is the leading European IT provider with a strategic focus on next-generation Mobility and Dynamic Data Centre products, services and solutions. With a platform and services portfolio of exceptional depth, our offering extends from handhelds through desktops to enterprise-class IT infrastructure solutions and service. In this connection, a ceremony was held, which was attended by the representatives of leading local and foreign computer companies. The speakers informed that the IDL and FSC have joint hands to promote FSC branded computers, laptops, Servers and storage solutions in Pakistan. The manufacturing and shipments would be from Germany, which assures quality and stability at reasonable prices. The IDL is a professional IT distribution Company in Pakistan. Incorporated in 1997 Head office in Karachi and branch offices are in Hyderabad, Lahore and Islamabad. The FSC products are now available across the country. These new computer products are highly affordable for low income groups as well besides being as much useful as the equipment’s of other brands, speakers added.
Young Entrepreneurs Soaring High With Wateen Telecom!
January 30, 2008
The Young Leaders and Entrepreneurs Summit (YLES) 2008 will be inaugurated tomorrow, on 31st January, 2008. The six day event has been organized by the Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) Entrepreneurial Society (LES), and sponsored by Wateen Telecom.
The six day summit has been developed with the sole purpose of highlighting the potential of the Pakistani youth. It is aimed at improving their understanding of their skills and has been organized by the youth, for the youth.
The summit consists of several formal and social events such as workshops, business idea competitions, bonfires and concerts. The aim of these activities and events is to motivate the youth to bring out their best abilities and skills, and help them tap their true potential.
It will be attended by over 800 delegates and more than 3500 students from all major schools and colleges of Pakistan. The activities lined up for the summit have been designed to motivate the attendees to bring out their potential and showcase their skills. [Read more]
Advanced CAD/CAM centre set up in Peshawar
January 16, 2008
LAHORE (January 16 2008): Training in designing and manufacturing products is now available to the people of Peshawar, as an advanced computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacturing (CAD/CAM) centre equipped with latest computers and software has been set up in this city.
This brings the total of such facilities set up by Technology Upgradation and Skill Development Company (Tusdec) in the country to five. According to Tusdec spokesman here on Tuesday, the company has already set up National Institute of Design and Analysis (Nida) in Lahore and Advanced CAD/CAM Centres in Karachi, Quetta and Sialkot. [Read more]
Wateen launches WiMAX and HFC services
December 18, 2007
LAHORE (December 18 2007): Wateen Telecom, an Abu Dhabi Group venture in Pakistan, launches its WiMAX and HFC services for the consumer markets on Monday. The launch will allow Wateen customers to have voice, telephony and broadband internet.
Wateen Telecom has been working on establishing a wireless network infrastructure since early 2006, and installed the network in 2007. Their WiMAX service is a major breakthrough in the Pakistani broadband market as it will be a fast and cost-effective alternative to existing broadband services. [Read more]
PTA blocks 159,666 cell phones on complaints since September 2006
December 13, 2007
KARACHI (December 13 2007): Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has blocked 159,666 cellular phones on the public complaints of their theft or snatching by the street criminals mostly from Karachi since September 2006, officials told Business Recorder on Wednesday.
About 51 percent of the total requests have been registered with the authority only by the Karachiites who plead the authority for getting their cellular phone blocked because either they have been stolen or snatched by the street criminals, they pointed out.
Lahore being the second largest city, surprisingly, the authority has blocked only six percent of the total blocked mobile phones across the country, according to official statistics.
On the requests of mobile phone users from Ralawalpindi, the authority ceased four percent of the total blocked handset, three percent from Islamabad and Faisalabad respectively, two percent each from Hyderabad, Bahawalpur and Gujranwala.
One percent cellular handsets each from Peshawar, Rahim Yar Khan, Sargodha, Vehari, Larkana, Qasur and Okara while 19 percent on such pleas have been made to the authority by the people from the other parts of the country for getting the lost phones workability ceased during the said period, statistics added.
Moreover, the authority has also unblocked 9,541 mobile phones on the requests of their former operators. The unblocking of these mobile phones have been initiated by the PTA since October 2006 which still continues, statistics said.
Officials informed Business Recorder that on the directives of the Governor Sindh, Dr Ishratul Ibad Khan, the law enforcement agencies had striven hard to scale down the increasing number of cellular phones snatching by the overwhelming street criminals. They hoped that in next months the authority may receive lower number of requests by the mobile phone operators for making their handsets unworkable.
In September 2006, the authority blocked 352 mobile phones in September 2006, 9,608 in October 2006, 9,574 in November 2006, 8,992 in December 2006, 10,420 in January 2007, 9,906 in February 2007, 12,193 in March 2007, 11,577 in April 2007, 11,633 in May 2007, 12,003 in January 2007, 13,138 in July 2007, 13,284 in August 2007, 11,536 in September 2007, 12,699 in October 2007 and 12,751 in November 2007.
Similarly, since September 2006, it has unblocked 87 cellular phones in October 2006, 370 in November 2006, 443 in December 2006, 518 in January 2007, 561 in February 2007, 712 in March 2007, 839 in April 2007, 812 in June 2007, 866 in July 2007, 923 in August 2007, 874 in September 2007, 754 in October 2007, and 949 in November 2007.
These increasing numbers of public complaints and requests for their lost phones ceased showing their unbreakable confidence in the authority, as it has also introduced toll free numbers for complaints registration, officials said and added that the authority had also acted promptly on their complaints and requests.
LeaseSoft awarded
December 1, 2007
NetSol Technologies Ltd Pakistan Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Salim Ghauri on Friday said the best financial industry application award for NetSol proved that LeaseSoft was the product of choice for the leasing and finance industry.
He was commenting on the achievement of the Best Financial Industry Application Award for the year 2007 at the Asia Pacific ICT Alliance (APICTA) Awards in Singapore by NetSol’s leading software product “LeaseSoft”.
He said this was a great recognition for NetSol around the globe, LeaseSoft, and Pakistan. He congratulated the team LeaseSoft in particular and the NetSolians in general and urged them to carry on their dedicated and hard work to maintain top position in future.