China Sourcing Fairs launched in AsiaWorld-Expo, HK

B2B media company Global Sources opened the China Sourcing Fair: Gifts & Home Products on Saturday in Hong Kong.

The opening ceremonies saw participation from Hong Kong and mainland Chinese high-ranking government officials like Frederick Ma, JP, Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury of Hong Kong, Raymond Young, JP, Director-general of Trade and Industry of Hong Kong and Shen Danyang, Vice President of Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, Ministry of Commerce, China.

The fair, the largest tradeshow ever to be held at AsiaWorld-Expo with over 3,600 booths, is co-located with Koelnmesse's International Hardware Fair/Practical World Hong Kong, offering a range of hardware and do-it-yourself products.

Both events will run from Apr. 22 to Apr. 25.

Global Sources is a leading business-to-business (B2B) media company and a primary facilitator of two-way trade with mainland China. It provides sourcing information to volume buyers and integrated marketing services to suppliers.

Best B2B Website of 2006 to be Named by Web Marketing Association

The Web Marketing Association will again be honoring the Best B2B Web site of 2006. The deadline to enter the 10th annual international WebAward Competition is May 31, 2006.

(PRWEB) April 24, 2006 -- The Web Marketing Association announces the call for entries for its 10th annual international WebAward Competition at http://www.webawards2006.org. The WebAwards is the standards-defining competition that sets industry benchmarks based on the seven criteria of a successful Web site.

The business to business industry represents an important category in the WebAward competition, and the Web Marketing Association will again be honoring the Best B2B Web site of 2006. The deadline for entry is May 31, 2006.

“The B2B industry is very competitive when it comes to Web development and companies can benefit from the independent evaluation of their online efforts that the award judges provide,” said William Rice, President of the Web Marketing Association. “B2B, or business to business, Web sites only joined the WebAwards in 2003. While individual sites might excel, the industry as a whole has lagged the overall ISAR Index with each of the criteria averages falling below their overall benchmarks. B2B Web sites generally do better in content and copywriting while their lowest scores are for innovation and use of technology.”

Each year the Web Marketing Association names the Best B2B Website based on the scores submitted by the competition judges. Recent winners of the “Best B2B Web site” WebAwards include:

2005 Signity - Inspiration, Innovation, Information - http://www.signity.com/
2004 Universal Studios Consumer Products Group - http://cpgcreative.universalstudios.com/
2003 Veer web site - http://veer.com/

A complete list of past winners and the entry form for companies who wish to compete for 2006 honors can be found at http://www.webaward2006.org.

Web sites are judged on seven criteria including design, innovation, content, technology, interactivity, copy writing and ease of use and receive a numeric score. Each WebAward entry is judged against other entries in its industry category and then against an overall standard of excellence. Entrants also benefit from receiving valuable feedback from the WebAwards professional judging panel on their Web site development efforts.

Using the quantifiable data collected from 9,748 Web site evaluations over the past decade, the WebAwards has defined and recognized industry-specific benchmarks for successful Web sites in each of the seven judging criteria and released an Internet Standards Assessment Report to detail the findings of the study.

“Participants in the 2006 WebAwards B2B category will receive their scores in each of the seven criteria compared to the average of the entire industry. That type of feedback and benchmarking alone in worth the price of admission,” said Rice.

A copy of the Internet Standards Assessment Report, including details regarding the B2B industry through 2005, is available at www.webawards2006.org.

Judging for the 2006 WebAwards will take place in June through August, with winners announced in September. Judges will consist of a select group of Internet marketing professionals who have direct experience designing and managing Web sites with an in-depth understanding of the current state-of-the-art in Web site development and technology. Mark Kingdon, CEO of Organic, Inc. (www.organic.com) has been selected to lead the judging panel this year. Past judges have included top executives from leading organizations such as Ogilvy Interactive, Saatchi & Saatchi, Blattner Brunner, Comedy Central, Sun Microsystems, Refinery, Euro RSCG, EPB Interactive, New York Post Interactive, The Cincinnati Enquirer, J. Walter Thompson, Xerox, Art Institute of Pittsburgh, Modem Media, and Answerthink just to name a few.

The 2006 WebAward Competition current sponsors include Burst Media (www.burstmedia.com), SimpleFeed (www.simplefeed.com), Register.com (www.register.com), NewsUSA www.newsusa.com), AdTools Inc(www.adtoolsinc.com), Small Army (www.smallarmy.net), Perseus Development Corp (www.perseus.com) and PRWeb (www.prweb.com). Media Sponsors include Website Services Magazine (www.websiteservices.com), AdRants (www.adrants), MarketingVox (www.marketingvox.com), MediaPost (www.wediapost.com), eComXpo (www.ecomxpo.com), Ad:Tech (www.ad-tech.com) and Macworld (www.macworldexpo.com). The Web Marketing Association thanks all of its sponsors for helping to make this annual competition possible.

About the WebAwards

The 10th annual international WebAwards competition sets the standard of excellence in 96 industry categories by evaluating Web sites and defining benchmarks based on the seven essential criteria of successful Web site development. The goal of the Web Marketing Association, sponsor of the WebAwards, is to provide a forum to recognize the people and organizations responsible for developing some of the most effective Web sites on the Internet today. Entrants benefit from a Web site assessment by a professional judging panel and the marketing opportunities presented to an award-winning Web site. For more information, visit www.webawards2006.org.

45% growth in online banking in Pakistan :B2B Pakistan News

By Arshad Hussain

KARACHI: The commercial banks have registered a growth of 45 percent in opening new online branches in the second quarter of the current fiscal year, State Bank of Pakistan data said on Monday.

During this quarter retail payment transaction (paper based and electronic) registered a growth of 5.05 percent in numbers, whereas the value of transactions increased by 4.91 percent over the first quarter of 2005-06.

Quarterly growth on the basis of previous quarter showed growth at the rate of 5.45 percent and growth in value of transactions by 2.98 percent, whereas the growth rate was 23.46 percent and 12.20 percent in case of number of transactions and amount, respectively, in the previous quarter.

Electronic banking: The central bank data said electronic transactions have posted a growth of 3.05 percent in the number of transactions and the amount showed a growth of 66.20 percent during the current quarter. The main contributor to growth in the value is real time online funds transfer by online bank branches that posted a 73 percent increase.

During the last six quarters the transactions from paper-based banking to e-banking has increased in terms of number of transactions. However, the value has achieved a remarkable growth, which has been driven by B2B through online branch network.

Online Branch Network and Automated Teller Machines (ATMs): Online branch network is expanding to meet the funds movement needs of customers. This quarter witnessed the addition of 235 new branches in the online network. The coverage of online branches as a percentage of total branches has also increased from 41 percent in

the previous quarter to 45 percent in the current quarter. As such, the total number of online branches reached 3,265 out of total branch network of 7,245 reported by banks.

Similarly, during the second quarter of fiscal year 2005-06 banks have added 75 new ATMs in their network, bringing the total to 1,217, registering a growth of 6.6 percent as compared with 11 percent in the last quarter.

As such, 189 new machines were added in the first half of the current financial year as compared with 110 new machines added during the same period last year.

Number of (credit/ debit/smart)cardholders: At the end of second quarter of the current fiscal the number of credit, debit, smart and ATM cardholders increased from 3.664 million to 4.072 million, showing a growth rate of 11 percent as compared with eight percent during the previous quarter. The total number of credit cards reached to 1.257 million from 1.181 million and registered a growth of six percent as compared with 13 percent in the preceding quarter.

The total number of debit cards increased from the previous quarter figure of 2.197 million to 2.556 million in the current quarter, showing a growth rate of 16 percent as compared with a 14 percent growth rate in the preceding quarter. The total number of ATM cards is 0.137 million in the current quarter as compared with 0.175 million in the previous quarter, showing a decline of 21 percent and it is because of convergence of ATM cards into debit or smart cards. The total number of smart cards, which offer a high level of security, has reached 0.122 million at the end of 2nd quarter as compared with 0.111 million at the end of the last quarter, showing a growth of 10 percent over the last quarter.

Volume on e-banking channels: During the second quarter the number of transactions increased from 2.848 million to 3.475 million, showing growth in transactions of 22 percent and the amount by 73 percent over the last quarter, as against the 1st quarter’s growth of 24 percent and 11 percent, respectively.

Internet Banking: Internet banking is getting momentum and during the second quarter the number of transactions was 0.094 million and the amount involved was Rs 4.321 billion as compared with 0.059 million transactions involving an amount of Rs 3.635 billion in the first quarter of the same fiscal, showing a growth of 59.32 percent in number and 18.87 percent in amount over the last quarter. The transfer pertains to intra- bank account to account transfer only.

Cox&Kings ready with its online travel venture :Ezeego1.com

Cox&Kings is gearing up to launch new travel marketplace in India, Ezeego1.com, in the second half of May. (4/24/2006)

Neelu Singh, the newly appointed chief operating officer of ezeego1.com said the ezeego1 is unique in a way as it is a travel meta-search site with booking capabilities. “It is a platform where suppliers and end customers meet to get real time information and transaction capability online. All travel providers, both online and offline, will be represented on ezeego1,” said Singh.

“The portal offers a real time web based booking engine, which is seamlessly integrated to the mid and back office. It is the only reservation system that offers dynamic packaging of all services with real inventory. Simply put, you get instant pricing and confirmation, which means that the information and booking status is all real time.”

Ezeego1 is headquartered in Mumbai and has branches in New Delhi, Chennai and Kolkata. The total investment in the travel portal is expected to be US$22.7 million. In the initial phase US$4.54 million has already been invested. Cox&Kings and its promoters have made the initial investment in this venture and in course of one to two years, this stake would be reduced to a minority.

According to the company, Ezeego1’s business model is based on three parameters. The first is the B2B, where the travel agent is provided with an email ID and password. All products on the site are commissionable to the agent and they would enjoy preferential pricing.

The second is the franchisee route where close to 100 franchisees would be appointed across India in the first year of operation. These locations would be called Ezeego1 shops. All shops will have a distinct look and feel to make it easily recognisable. Finally, the B2C model where the customer comes onto the site and books his holidays. The customer can book his air travel, hotel accommodation, car rental and also obtain his travel insurance. In order to provide customer flexibility we have introduced both online and offline payment options.

For Ezeego1, the company has already tied up with hundreds of hotels and large number of airlines across the world to provide not only real time availability but also booking capability. Ezeego1 has introduced a Supplier Module, which enables all service providers to control their inventory and price.

“Inventory management is instant as services can be updated at the click of a button. We also provide XML interface to many of our suppliers through our site,” said Singh.

Ezeego1 provides the reach to all suppliers to tap into the agent base in India, which is about 10,000 out of which close to 6,000 of them are in the Tier II cities in India.

“The sheer size of the country makes it rather difficult to reach out to all agents in India. Ezeego1 is the solution. It would market this portal across India through various media outlets such as television, radio and print amongst others. This would directly benefit all suppliers on the site,” added Singh.

Online shop opens cyber-market for disabled handicraft makers

Just a click away, web browsers can now place orders for handicrafts at an online market recently launched by two young people in Hanoi.
Ta Bich Huong and Trinh Cong Thanh Tuesday inaugurated a website at ww.nguoikhuyettat.org

after trialing a website at www.vndisability.net.

Huong recalled that as a student, she initiated the establishment of an online shop to sell products made by the disabled. She received support from Thanh, founder of the website for Vietnam’s Agent Orange victims, to translate her dream into reality.

Huong’s online shop has pictures made from stone or dry leaves, dried flowers, embroidered silk handkerchiefs, greeting cards, table lamps and bed clothes.

Thanh, also the administrator for the Vietnam Disability Network forum, said the prices of these products were 30 percent lower than similar items at other souvenir shops.

He said clients could place orders via the Internet and the shop employees would deliver goods free of charge for buyers in Hanoi.

Thanh revealed among the best-selling items were chains with pendants made from coconut shells by disabled craft makers in Can Tho Mekong Delta province and dried flowers by members of the “Green Dream” disabled group in Hanoi.

The products had gradually become popular and a Japanese firm recently placed a large order, he said.

Thanh said the web founders offer their online market services free to encourage more disabled people to introduce their products at the website.

The online shop also medical equipment for the disabled, like wheel-chairs, three-wheeled motorcycles, wooden crutches and artificial legs, said Thanh.

In the past, Thanh had won the Information Technology Knight Title awarded by weekly IT newspaper e-CHIP and VASC Software and Media Company.

The award aims to encourage wider informatics usage by recognizing individuals or groups working on shareware development, products that serve the public, or those who work toward wider public use of information technology.

Google hits again at Microsoft with online calendar

Richard Waters, San Francisco
April 15, 2006

GOOGLE is opening a new front in its competition with Microsoft's traditional desktop software with the launch of a test version of an online calendar.
The service extends Google's reach further into the sort of personal-productivity software that has made Outlook one of the most popular elements in Microsoft's Office suite desktop software, one of its biggest profit-earners.

It also continues the internet company's steady transformation from a stand-alone search engine into a full-service internet portal, rivalling Yahoo.

Carl Sjogreen, product manager for Google Calendar, said the new service fitted the company's mission to "organise the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful", since it would make it easier for users to organise and access their personal diary information from any computer.

Google's venture into online applications such as email and personal calendars has already sent a shock through existing online applications companies, prompting a wave of innovation after a period of stagnation in the early part of the decade.

Andy Spillane, head of Yahoo Mail, said the launch of Gmail, along with the emergence of a range of new lightweight Web 2.0 technologies, had led other companies to accelerate their own new developments.

Yahoo itself is testing a new web mail service that is based on technology that it had acquired when it bought Oddpost in 2004.

Google said it had tied its calendar service closely to Gmail to make it easier to create calendar entries while communicating by email, and to communicate with other people about events in one's diary.

Reflecting the company's roots in search, Google Calendar includes a function so users can find other calendars published online -- such as one produced by their local sports team, for instance -- and integrate these with their personal data.

The company is developing software to make it possible for users to "synch" a Google Calendar with data in Outlook software, Mr Sjogreen said.

Google plans to extend the calendar service, available as a test initially only in the US, to countries where it offers Gmail.

CDC reverses deficit to P28 M retained earnings

By BERNIE CAHILES–MAGKILAT

For the first time since its establishment 13 years ago, Clark Development Corp. achieved a positive retained earnings of P28.2 million from a deficit of P67.66 million.


CDC documents showed that the state-owned firm’s financial position is going towards a positive track.

CDC president Antonio R. Ng said the company’s revenues increasedby P64.2 million last year or 11 percent compared to 2004, primarily due to improved results of Holiday Inn and Mimosa operations.

Its net income also tripled compared to 2004 from P29.6 million to P87.4 million.

"This was achieved by primarily keeping its overall cost flat such that any incremental revenue goes to the bottomline," he said.

This has also allowed CDC to declare dividends for the first time to the national government through its parent firm, the Bases Conversion Development Authority (BCDA).

CDC has also provided financial support to its subsidiary, Clark International Airport Corp. in form of loans and operating expenses amounting to P456 million.

Last year, the Bureau of Internal Revenue and the Bureau of Customs were able to collect taxes and duties to Clark industries amounting to P1.145 billion from P913.897 million in 2004 and P366.764 million in 2003.

To further improve its services, Ng reported that its Green Lane has achieved a 95 percent on time delivery to its 10-minute goal.

The CDC has set a target to complete all processing for export, import, bring in/bring out and permit processing to only 10 minutes.

It is also moving towards paperless transactions for good governance.

Ng said the RosettaNet eCustoms trade system was adopted in Mau 2005 and is currently being piloted by Tokumi, Phil-Shin Ei, and Nanox.

The system, based on the leading international standard for business-tobusiness (B2B) transactions, will streamline import imports, export documents, and other trade document processing via online, with "faceless" transactions available 24x7.(BCM)

Web Acceleration Now Available with MegaBoost Web Accelerator

Up to 1400% Web Acceleration Now Available with MegaBoost Web Accelerator from i.Core.

Delta, BC, April 7, 2006: i.Core, a wholesale service provider to ISP businesses and enterprise organizations throughout USA and Canada, today announced the launch of MegaBoost, a web accelerator that delivers the next generation of web content acceleration. MegaBoost doubles the acceleration power of the current web accelerators, being up to 14 times faster than a standard 56K dialup connection. Standard accelerators are only up to 7 times faster.
"MegaBoost provides ISPs new opportunities to diversify and differentiate their product portfolio." said i.Core's CEO Amrit Dhillon. "We are continually seeking ways to improve our quality of service and deliver the latest innovations to Internet Service Providers. To our knowledge, i.Core is the first wholesale provider to make the new technology available to non facilities based ISPs."

MegaBoost combines patented image compression techniques with newly developed concurrent image delivery that enables subscribers to view higher resolution images and increasingly image rich web pages up to 14X faster! Web pages are fully viewable and usable almost immediately and maximum quality images are loaded progressively as users view the page.

MegaBoost, based on SlipStream's proprietary technology, is designed to accelerate web and email traffic for any low/mid bandwidth network connection. This means that MegaBoost can accelerate a large set of underlying network environments, including WiFi, Cellular, Dialup, ISDN and Broadband Lite. MegaBoost web accelerator is suited for connections using network bandwidth up to and including 384Kbps.

About i.Core Technologies

Since 2000, i.Core has developed enhanced and differentiated solutions to empower Internet Service Providers and telecom operators. These solutions help the ISP community offer economical and value-added services to customers.

By leveraging i.Core's B2B services, Internet providers can generate new revenue streams and enjoy a rapid return on investment without investing in expensive hardware facilities. i.Core offers products that focus on helping service providers retain and increase market share while expanding their profitability.

For more information about MegaBoost visit http://www.vispcenter.com.
For more information about i.Core visit http://www.icore.net.

MegaBoost is a trademark of i.Core Technologies Inc.

For More Information:
Beverly Cramp
Media Relations
i.Core Technologies Inc.
bcramp@icore.net

WAR creates interactive expert for Araldite

The creative boundaries of innovation have been pushed to the max with the latest pioneering online campaign created for Huntsman's Araldite® Adhesives by Ware Anthony Rust (WAR).

WAR's original brief was to develop a simple email campaign to increase customer dialogue and encourage interaction with their local Araldite® sales manager. WAR took the idea one step further and developed the concept of using a real live person to engage with the audience online.

Customers click on a website banner 'Ask the Expert' and are taken to a simulated movie, where a virtual expert encourages them to ask a question. The pre-recorded footage consists of an actor delivering a series of scripted lines to the camera, edited to work as an interactive tool. The illusion of a real live expert is all the more convincing when he remembers the visitor if they choose to return and pose another question.

Confident in their expertise, Huntsman sent structural engineers across Europe an email challenging them to come up with an adhesive-related question the expert couldn't answer and they responded in droves.

WAR account director Gareth Brookman commented: 'The campaign is a great example of the way we're embracing the new digital opportunities and executing them with good old fashioned strategic insight and creativity. The way the movie is scripted and edited essentially predicts how most conversations will go - so users feel they are almost interacting with a live person online. It's been very successful in dramatising the expert credentials of the brand, opening up dialogues and relationships with our target audience, and providing hard sales leads for Huntsman.'

WAR provides a seamless communications service for a host of clients in B2C, B2B and healthcare sectors, bringing together talented and creative individuals with specific expertise in their own fields.

The agency disciplines of advertising, design, public relations, interactive and direct marketing are blended to give clients holistic, strategic and creative campaigns, or offered independently to suit client needs.

WAR works with international and national companies based across the UK and overseas including: Multiyork, Van Dal, Acushnet (Titleist, FootJoy and Cobra), Johnson & Johnson, Huntsman (Araldite), Corgi Toys, Corinthian, Sekonda, Mundipharma, Plasti-kote, Linx Printing Technologies, Visa Europe, Zapf Creation, Stream Foods and Cambridgeshire Horizons.

reference: http://war.uk.com