Qualcomm CEO may visit India
New Delhi: US based CDMA technology promoter firm Qualcomm's worldwide chief executive officer, Paul Jacob, may visit India next week. The company is under pressure from the industry and the Communication Ministry to lower its royalty rates.

Jacob is expected to meet the Communication and IT Minister, Dayanidhi Maran, and CDMA operators as well. The move comes after India's largest CDMA player Reliance Communication announced its plans to roll out GSM-based cellular services in the country.

Reliance had earlier requested Qualcomm to bring down its royalty from the current levels of 7 per cent, as it was adding to the cost of services. Sources said that in China Qualcomm was charging a royalty of only 2 per cent.

Qualcomm has maintained that the royalty was being charged from handset manufacturers and not operators and, therefore, the additional cost was only marginal.
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Sodexho staff in exodus mode
New Delhi: Meal and gift voucher company Sodexho Alliance of France, is facing an exodus of people. To begin with India head Ravi Saxena has quit and is slated to join Dubai-based Landmark group's retail venture.

Sources say another 100-odd employees have left Sodexho Pass India over the past one month or so.

Sources in the company indicate that a team from Paris, headquarters of Sodexho Alliance, is currently in-charge of running the India operations. The staff exodus started about two months back, with senior executives taking the lead. They also said that Saxena's quitting was the last straw and led to another round of exodus.

Sodexho Pass India, says sources, has gone through a rapid expansion of operations over the last two years, resulting in sizeable receivables from the market.

Sources say that the Indian operations are now being streamlined with the headquarter taking direct interest in the day to day operations of the company.
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India pushes Tharoor for UN Secy Gen's post
New Delhi: India has announced its nomination of Shashi Tharoor, UN Under Secretary General for Communications and Public Information, for the prestigious post of Secretary General of the world body.

If elected, London-born Tharoor will be the youngest UN Secretary General ever. Tharoor, who has served at the UN in various capacities and has been closely involved in the process of UN reforms, will be competing with at least three other candidates from Asia - Sri Lanka's Jayantha Dhanapala, Thailand's Deputy Prime Minister Surakiart Sathirthai and South Korean Foreign Minister Ban Ki-Moon.
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