Intel cuts Pentium III prices
Mumbai: Intel India is reducing the prices of its Pentium III range of microprocessors, according to a report in The Economic Times. The price cut will be effective September 1999.

The Pentium III 450 MHz processor will cost $185 per chip instead of the earlier $225. The price of the entry-level Celeron processor will also be reduced from $100 to $75.

The company said it has also accepted Pentium III as the new processor and has decided to take the Pentium II off the shelf. Intel also plans to introduce the high-end PIII Xeon family with base speeds of 600 MHz.

For Indian PC buyers, the price cut will mean getting a fully-loaded computer for less than Rs 50,000.
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Jet plans night flights
Pune: Jet Airways is planning to start night flights as an answer to the fare battles. Acting chief executive officer of the airline Saroj K Datta said the airline is planning to start late night/early morning flights from Mumbai to Bangalore and Ahmedabad in order to tap the international traffic coming into Mumbai.

The airline plans to use its leased ATR-72 500 turboprop aircraft for the night feeder routes.
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RBI approval for Zee merger plan
New Delhi: The Reserve Bank of India has given an in-principle clearance for the merger of Zee Telefilms with Zee Multimedia Worldwide. The approval is based on the premise that Zee will obtain clearance from the Foreign Investments Promotion Board and the overseas investment division of the central bank.

Zee has already secured the approval of the FIPB.
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Hughes Network to sell 2% stake in Hughes Escorts
New Delhi: Hughes Network Systems of the US is selling off 2 per cent of the equity in Hughes Escorts Communication that it owns to Mumbai-based IndOcean Chase Capital Advisers.

The US telecom major will hold 49 per cent in the joint venture, which will be in line with the government’s policy on foreign equity participation in the telecom sector. Hughes Network’s decision on the sale of equity follows a directive from the department of telecommunications demanding a reduction of its holding in the joint venture.

IndOcean Chase Capital is a 50:50 partnership promoted by Anil Ahuja and Bharat Kewalramani. It will acquire 3 lakh shares in Hughes Escort Communications from Hughes Network.
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Crompton to sell Skycell stake
New Delhi: Crompton Greaves said it will sell its 40 per cent stake in Chennai-based Skycell, a cellular phone service project. The company is expecting Rs 200 crore from the sale deal.

ABN Amro’s investment banking division is handling the deal, Crompton Greaves’ managing director K.K. Nohria said. Mr Nohria said cellular operators BPL, Escotel and Srinivas Cellcom have approached ABN Amro evincing interest in the 40.5 per cent stake.
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RPG Lifesciences, Griffin in alliance
Mumbai: The Rs 241-crore RPG Lifesciences has entered into an alliance with Griffin Corporation of the US to market Griffin's agrochemical products in India.

RPG Lifesciences has already launched Kocide, a broad-spectrum fungicide from Griffin. The company is planning to introduce its own product Blokade, a neem-based pesticide for crops.
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Max Corporation merges with Max India
New Delhi: The Analjit Singh-promoted Max India has decided to merge group company Max Corporation with Max India. With this, the Rs 333 crore currently lodged in the books of Max Corporation will be transferred to Max India. This will be the first time that the proceeds from last year's Hutchison Max divestment will be directly reflected in the balance sheet of the listed company.

The boards of both companies have approved the merger, which will come into effect from 1 July 1999, subject to approval of the scheme by the Punjab and Haryana high court.
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Bhuwalka Steel plans Lankan unit
Mumbai: Bangalore-based Bhuwalka Steel Industries is setting up a 25,000 tonnes per annum long steel project in Sri Lanka at an estimated cost of Sri Lankan rupees 425 million. This will be the first long steel project to be set up abroad by an Indian company and the first Indian steel project in Sri Lanka.

The project will have a debt equity ratio of 1.24:1. The equity of Sri Lankan rupees 190 million will be financed by the Exim Bank of India. The unit will be a 100 per cent subsidiary of Bhuwalka Steel.
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LG Electronics prepays loan
New Delhi: LG Electronics India has pre-paid a term loan of Rs 27 crore to ICICI and negotiated a lower interest rate on the balance outstanding loan. The payment has been made through internal accruals.

LG has now negotiated the balance outstanding of Rs 30 crore at an interest rate of 14 per cent. The company had taken a loan of Rs 57 crore during January 1998 at an interest rate of 16.63 per cent. The balance is to be paid in the next four years.
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Car navigation system found faulty
Tokyo: Japanese motorists have complained to car navigation makers after their automotive directional devices failed due to a computer flaw.

Electronic company Pioneer Electronic Corporation, one of the several navigation system makers battling the bug, said it received several complaints since the problem started at 9 a.m. Some 95,000 car navigation units sold in Japan may be unable to cope with an internal date change in the system, the country's ministry of international trade said.

Four manufacturers have together completed updating only 1,70,000 of the estimated 2,60,000 units sold in Japans since 1996.
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India in Philips’ thrust areas
Hong Kong: Consumer electronics major Philips says India is one of its thrust areas along with the US and China.

Philips Consumer Electronics managing director (Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa) Frans van Houten says the company is targeting a combined marketshare of 10 per cent in India in all the product categories it is in at present. It seeks to be among the top three consumer electronics firms in the country.

Mr Houten said India and China comprise the largest growth market in the world. He said these countries are characterised by high consumer aspirational levels and competition.
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Veba, Viag in talks
Frankfurt: Veba and Viag, two German conglomerates, are in talks for either a merger or an alliance to consolidate their utility and energy interests.

The two have held the talks under the auspices of Germany’s Federal Cartel Office and talks are understood to have focussed on the operations of Preussen Elektra and Bayernwerk, the electricity units of Veba and Viag. The two companies have other interests ranging from telecommunications and chemicals to aluminium and packaging.
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Netscape Online to take on Freeserve
London: Netscape Online, the UK-based subscription-free internet service that will be launched by AOL Europe, will quickly overtake rival Freeserve in advertising and e-commerce revenue, AOL has claimed.

From its launch in September 1998 to the end of April 1999, Freeserve has generated a revenue of 2.73 million in advertising and e-commerce. Netscape Online has contracts with advertising and e-commerce partners that exceed this level by a wide margin, claimed ALO Europe’s chief executive Andreas Schmidt.
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