Ad spend on Net to grow by 17.5 percent; Study
New Delhi--A PriceWaterhouse Coopers global entertainment and media outlook study, prepared for CII, says on the whole the global publishing industry will ultimately see its share of the advertising pie decline, though business magazines will see the highest advertising growth.
The study shows that advertisers will increasingly be turning to the Net as a means to reach people and the Net will also have a transformational impact on the entertainment and media industry.
The study says that in India Internet advertising and access spending will grow at 17.5 per cent and will in the time to come drive the growth of the advertising industry.
Dotcom guru John Phillip Jones, professor of public communications, Syracuse University, in an address to a CII seminar here also said the Net was an underdeveloped advertising medium and while conventional media can sometimes sell dotcom, but dotcom is unproven as an advertising medium itself,
The Internet, he said, had influenced direct selling in travel trade, insurance sector, stock broking and auctions, and has served as a good source of information for cars, real estate and white goods sector.
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After basmati rice amla-related patents take centre-stage
New DelhiAmla, the unassuming Indian gooseberry, is now due to get its share of attention.
In recent times a dozen applications have been filed in patent offices around the world and just one application by Lupin Labs at the Indian patent office for the amla.
While most applications are for uses of amla known for many years India, the compositions and processes claimed may not be identical to those already known, says the Intellectual Property Rights Bulletin of the Technology Information Forecasting and Assessment Council (TIFAC).
However, five amla-related patents have already been granted by the US patent office (USPTO).
In addition, 4 amla-related applications have been filed at the Japanese patent office, 2 at the European patent office (EPO) and 5 patent cooperation treaty (PCT) applications are in the pipeline.
However, not too many patents have been granted yet.
Among the USPTO patents, is one for a composition of herbal tea in which amla is one of the constituents, another is for a method for obtaining natural antioxidants and cosmetic, pharmaceutical and nutritional formulations. Another patent, granted to an Indian national, relates to an ayurvedic composition comprising of amla and other herbs for treatment of diseases like AIDS, tuberculosis, flu and other immuno-deficiencies.
There is also a patent for a composition useful in treating psoriasis and eczema.
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DoT waives entry fee in Bihar, WB
New DelhiThe Department of telecommunications may fix a zero entry fee for the cellular licences for West Bengal, Bihar, Orissa and Andaman & Nicobar.
The zero entry fee is thought about as there were not takers for these circles in the recent bidding for the fourth cellular operators.
Currently, Reliance is an operator in West Bengal, Orissa and Bihar, while Koshika operates in Orissa and Bihar.
Koshikas licences were later terminated for non-payment of dues. There is no operator in Andaman & Nicobar.
DoT has suggested to the telecom commission that the licences should be awarded on the basis of a beauty parade, where the two important parameters for selection would be the seriousness of the bidder to roll out the network and its financial strength.
Further, the government should guarantee that there would be only two private cellular players in these circles for a period of five or ten years, DoT said. Bharat Sanchar Nigam would be the third player.
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Govt to review Factories Act, to extend it to ICDs
New DelhiThe government plans to review the Factories Act, dealing with the occupational and safety aspects of workers in factories, and extending it to over 50 inland container depots. It will also decide on the setting up of a national board on occupational safety and health (NOBOSH).
NBOSH will be set up for policy planning and strengthening implementation of statutory requirements, said Union minister for labour, Satyanaraya Jatiya at a Parliamentary Consultative Committee meeting.
He said, the extension of the Act to ICDs would facilitate safety and health protection in those depots and that the director-general of factory advice and labour institute was working on strengthening the occupational safety and health information system, the dock safety inspection system and the safety aspects in factories and docks handling hazardous chemical processes.
Jatiya said DGFASLI had envisaged two schemes during the 10th Plan for workers in the unorganised sector under which enforcement officials would be trained to address workers' safety and health.
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India is not alone on WTO stand
New Delhi--India has received support on its stance for the forthcoming ministerial meeting of the World Trade Organisation from members of the South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation (Saarc) who agreed with India saying that the implementation issues of the Uruguay Round should be addressed first.
At a meeting of the commerce secretaries of the Saarc countries here today, attended by all members except Maldives, the participants shared concerns and misgivings regarding attempts made by some developed countries to expand the trade agenda, an official release said.
They said that it was essential that obligations already entered into be fulfilled in the first instance before taking on fresh commitments and obligations, the release added.
The commerce secretaries also recommended that the ongoing consultations in Geneva by Saarc ambassadors to WTO be intensified to include other like-minded countries and also ensure that the agenda for the fourth ministerial slated to be held in Doha in November this year be agreed to without further delay. A joint statement by the commerce ministers of the Saarc countries will be adopted on Thursday after they meet here.
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Core sector; dismal performance in July
New DelhiIndias infrastructure growth fell to 1.2 per cent in July against a healthy 6.1 per cent recorded in the same month last year on the back of a dismal performance in crude petroleum, coal and cement sector.
The cumulative growth of six infrastructure industries -- crude petroleum, petroleum refinery products, coal, electricity, cement and finished steel-- fell to a dismal 1 per cent in the first four months of year 2001 from a 7.6 per cent growth the previous year.
According to infrastructure data released by the government on Wednesday, crude petroleum production fell 5.7 per cent to 2.624 million tonnes in July against 2.782 million tonnes last year. The sector posted 1 per cent growth in the same month last year.
Petroleum refinery products growth rate fell to just 2.5 per cent in July compared to a handsome 34.9 per cent growth in July 2000, while coal posted a negative 0.9 per cent growth in July 2001 against a negative 1.8 per cent the previous fiscal year.
Growth rate in cement sector plummeted to a negative 6.1 per cent in July 2001 as opposed to a healthy 6.2 per cent growth in the same month the previous fiscal.
Electricity generation, however, grew by 4.2 per cent compared to 2.6 per cent last year. Growth in finished steel fell to 3 per cent in July 2001 from 8.3 per cent a year ago.
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Govt wants corporatisation of 12 major ports
New Delhi--The government wants to corporatise all the 12 major ports to bring in functional autonomy and operational efficiency.
This essentially means that the 12 major ports, governed by the Major Port Trusts Act, would come under the purview of the Companies Act, which would make their functioning operationally more flexible.
At present, due to delay in decision making, these ports are unable to respond more readily to market situations, some of these old ports are witnessing a traffic shift to younger ports or to those in the private sector.
The government is seeking to amend the Major Port Trusts Act so that these ports could be denotified and transformed into corporations. At present, the Major Port Trusts Act provisions are silent on denotification of these ports from the purview of the Act, sources said.
The 12 major ports include Calcutta, Paradip, Vishakapatnam, Chennai, Tuticorin, Ennore, Cochin, New Mangalore, Mormugao, JNPT, Mumbai and Kandla. Of these, only Ennore has been corporatised as it was never notified under the Major Port Trusts Act.
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