Innovations in India for India on the upswing

We have heard fantastic growth stories of Indians in Americas founding technology companies and growing them to become significant players.

This is now starting to happen in India but with a difference. The companies being founded here are addressing the Indian market with their innovations.

Participating at The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE) event on entrepreneurship in India at the ongoing Bangalore IT.in 2005, Sanjay Nayak, co-founder, Tejas Networks said: "The Indian marketplace is among the toughest to succeed in. The global players are all converging here to tap the marketplace and when an Indian company succeeds, you are under the global microscope. The amazing success stories of companies such as Bharti are prime examples of how Indians are succeeding in entrepreneurship and acquiring global scale."

He went on to add that not only are Indian companies innovating technology products, they are also innovating business models.

"This is in the unique way the Indian market accepts services and products. Indians want the best of technology at the most cost-effective prices and if you succeed here, then you can succeed pretty much globally," Nayak said.

Giving an example, he said: "Bandwidth cost is hardly $3 per month, the mobile services comes at an average of around $10 per month, and with this kind of low revenue base, companies are profitable. This is the real essence of succeeding here," Nayak said.

The key for this is to tap the R&D talent here. "The cost-arbitrage is the one advantage we will have to leverage for deriving more out of R&D investments here. If we spend the same amount here, we can benefit more from research and development here, rather than in the US," he highlighted.

Even software giant Microsoft is adopting the strategy and has set its eyes on the burgeoning Indian middle-class.

Said Ravi Venkatesan, chairman, Microsoft India: "As PC penetration in India is low and there is 75 per cent piracy, we are looking for an opportunity in the consumer space, primarily in convergence and digital lifestyle. We are also addressing the issue of affordability. We are bundling hardware, software and broadband and want to make it available at Rs 499-599 EMI."

He added that a new PC operating system for India, Windows Starter Edition, in English and nine regional languages will be launched in December to coincide with Microsoft chairman Bill Gates's visit.

"Spending on IT is low in India. While every Chinese considers the PC as essential for the success of his child, this is not so yet widespread in India. There is a need to create much more compelling and desirous ways to make people buy PCs here," Venkatesan said.