Summit Notebook
Exclusive outtakes from industry leaders
from Sakthi Prasad:
The brave new world of Ideas
The world was built on ideas and in the absence of innovation, mankind would have continued to live in stone age.
Of course, Rostow Ravanan, chief financial officer of Mindtree, would subscribe to the view that new ideas are absolutely necessary to promote business growth. Well, who wouldn’t? While talking to journalists at Reuters India Investment Summit, he vigorously defended his company’s foray into designing smart phones saying it is a new idea, which may as well pay off.
Ravanan, in a philosophical manner, said the world is “spermicidal” and is designed to kill new ideas -- but that will not deter a company like Mindtree in pursuing business opportunities. Just because the smart phone market is perceived as crowded, it is not a good enough reason for Mindtree not entering the market.
When he was pushed by Reuters journalists to provide some color and details regarding the company’s smart phone project, he evaded the volley of questions in an innovative manner: He said he is paid not to reveal the details before the official launch.
Lenovo’s next big thing?
Electronics is a tough business, with most manufacturers
working tirelessly on what they hope will be the next big thing,
even as they survive on razor thin profit margins.
Lenovo, the world’s No. 4 PC brand, hopes it’s on
the brink of such a blockbuster, although CFO Wong Wai Ming was coy
about disclosing any details.
Dell’s enterprise chief pooh-poohs netbooks
Netbooks: flavor of the month? Not according to Dell’s Steven Schuckenbrock.
The PC giant’s head of enterprise sales was quick to point out flaws in the stripped-down, no-frills mini-computers that have garnered rave reiews for their ultra-portability and anywhere-connectivity.
Verizon and iPhone: Deal or no deal?
Verizon Communications Chief Financial Officer John Killian had a lot to say about how well his company’s smartphone and data business is doing, but skirted the elephant in the room at the Reuters Global Technology Summit: Is his company going to strike an iPhone deal with Apple?
Killian refused to comment on whether Verizon is talking to Apple about selling the iPhone once rival AT&T’s exclusive contract with the iPhone maker ends next year.
SanDisk’s Eli sings the Blu-Ray blues
The flash memory business may be suffering its worst slump ever, but SanDisk CEO Eli Harari is carving tombstones for other businesses.
The No.1 endangered technology, Harari said at the Reuters Global Technology Summit on Tuesday, is the Blu-Ray DVD. Because the discs don’t work with smartphones, which consumers are increasingly using to watch video, Harari says their days are numbered.
