Zee files writ against government on FM radio
New Delhi: New Media Broadcasting, a Zee Telefilms group company, which has sought to pull out of the FM radio services it had bid for, has filed a writ against the government in this regard.

The company, which secured the maximum number of licenses for FM radio broadcast, had, alongwith other applicants, announced withdrawing from the FM radio sector due to unreasonable terms set out by the ministry.

Their contention was that the memorandum of understanding the applicants were made to sign was not in consonance with the terms of the tender. Along with New Media, others who are exploring the exit route from FM radio business include Observor Network, Nimbus Communications, Shiv Jatia’s Hind Broadcasting Company and Raman Sood on behalf of Dream Radio Private Limited, Kismet Radio, Magic Radio and Dhun Radio.

In response to this, the government had announced that it was forfeiting the earnest money and advance license fee deposited by the applicants.

The company’s petition which is coming up for hearing in the Delhi high court today is seeking refund of the earnest money deposit and the advance license fee amounting to around Rs 10 crore.
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Pentasoft floats JV with Computer Associates
New Delhi: Leading software company, Pentasoft Technologies, has floated a joint venture company with the US-based, Computer Associates, to localise, market and distribute the latter’s internationally-recognised accounting software, Acc Pac. Computer Associates will hold 51 per cent stake in the company, while Pentasoft will hold the remaining 49 per cent.

The joint venture company, christened Simply Soft, will be based in Bangalore.

According to Mr. D Kannan, chief executive of Pentasoft, Acc Pac is a well-recognised international accounting software, on par with the likes of Tally and EX. What Simply Soft will do is to customise the software to Indian needs, for example work in the Indian tax laws, besides marketing and distributing the software in the country.
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Bhel bags Rs 66 crore transformer order
New Delhi: In what is likely to be the single largest order for the company, Bharat Heavy Electricals has bagged a Rs. 66-crore order for power transformers against stiff global competition for the 2,000-mw Talcher Super Thermal Power Project (Stage-II) in Orissa.

Bhel's scope of work envisages design, manufacture, testing, erection and commissioning of 24 numbers power transformers of 3260 mva capacity rating, including stringent short circuit test. These transformers will be manufactured at Bhel's Bhopal and Jhansi plants.

Earlier, NTPC had placed an order on Bhel for the manufacture and supply of 17 members dry type indoor transformers of 1750 kva capacity rating, for the same project.
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Lucas-TVS plans to hive off diesel business
Chennai: The TVS group company, Lucas-TVS, is to hive off its diesel fuel injection equipment business into a separate company. It is expected that, once the separate company is formed, international auto components giant, Delphi, will take an equity stake in it.

The company has convened a meeting of its shareholders to consider the demerger, after having received approval from the Madras High Court. The new entity is likely to be named Lucas TVS Diesel Systems Ltd.

The demerger will also allow parent company, Lucas-TVS, to focus on its core business of auto electricals in which it is an established market leader supplying to almost all the vehicle manufacturers.
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Tisco scouting for foreign partner for titanium project
Calcutta: Steel major, Tata Steel, is planning to get into a technological alliance with a foreign partner for its proposed titanium project.

The company, which is planning to leverage its mining expertise to exploit and develop the ample quantities of titanium ores, is believed to have started talks with more than one party with regard to the adoption of the appropriate technology.

The steel major also plans to venture into white pigment manufacturing, which is primarily used for bringing colour, inducing brightness and improving opacity in paints, plastics and paper industries. White pigment, presently is ruling at $1,900-2,000, whereas ilmenite is at $132 and synthetic rutile at around $534.

Tata Steel is seriously looking at Tamil Nadu for this project, since this is the state with the best available reserves of titanium ore in India. However, international studies have stated that the titanium ore found in Tamil Nadu is infested with high quantity of radioactive elements and this might ultimately lead prospective investors to look for opportunities elsewhere.
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LG Electronics set to launch global satellite phones
New Delhi: The Indian subsidiary of Korean giant, LG Electronics, has firmed up its plans to launch global satellite mobile (GSM) phones in the country by April next year.

The company is believes that it can garner 10 per cent of the organised market share within the first six months of the launch, and is targeting a turnover of Rs 50 crore in 2001 from the GSM business in India. During this period it expects to sell about 50,000 GSM units.

The company is to shortly launch its field tests and will, by April next year, be ready to launch a comprehensive range of GSM phones comprising of four models to plug all the price points.

LG also plans to increase the number of exclusive ‘brand shoppes’ from the existing 20 to 100 within the next one year. Kapila said that the company will concentrate on the top 50 cities, which will include newly emerging mini-metro cities like Ludhiana and Pune.
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DaimlerChrysler contemplating big shake-up in Mitsubishi
Tokyo: The German-US automotive group, DaimlerChrysler, is believed to be considering a major and radical restructuring of Japanese auto company, Mitsubishi Motors after its acquisition of a 34 per cent stake in the latter.

According to industry sources, Mr. Rolf Eckrodt, the DaimlerChrysler executive who will become Mitusbishi’s chief operating officer next year, is understood to be in discussions with Mr. Takashi Sonobe, the carmaker's newly-promoted president over the scope of the restructuring.

If it does, DaimlerChrysler would follow the footsteps of French carmaker, Renault, which initiated sweeping changes in Nissan, in which it acquired a 36.8 per cent stake, and brought it to profitable levels. Nissan recently announce better-than-expected results.

The German-US group is said to be analysing the strengths and weakness in procurement, design, engineering and production areas of Mitsubishi.
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Industrial espionage likely motive for Microsoft attack
San Francisco: According to company sources and security experts, it may be industrial espionage behind the recent hacker attack on Microsoft's computer network. It may be recalled that a hacker entered Microsoft's computer network and examined blueprints for future products, early last week.

Other motives besides industrial espionage range from malice to the challenge of cracking the security systems at the world's dominant author of computer codes. The US Federal Bureau of Investigation confirmed that it had launched an inquiry out of its Seattle bureau into the electronic break-in at the world's largest software group, details of which emerged last week.

However, given the sophistication of the operation, security experts point to an act of industrial espionage. Microsoft moved fast to play down the damage and announced that the intruder was first spotted October 14 and kept track of, as he or she moved through the system until October 25. Microsoft engineers worked over the weekend to isolate the source of the break-in and shore up the network against future attacks.

The FBI is thought to be investigating the possibility that information was sent to an e-mail address in St Petersburg. But security experts warned that the exotic address did not rule out a culprit closer to home.
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