Posts Tagged ‘trends’

IFA GPC 2017 – Global Press Conference for IFA 2017

Saturday, April 22nd, 2017

The actual press conference for IFA 2017 in Berlin (1-6 September) will be held at 11am today in Lisbon, Portugal. Stay tuned for the excerpt and press release.

A post shared by John Tan (@tech4tea) on

Stay tuned for the outcome of the global press conference for IFA 2017 in this slot. I will update this posting once it’s out.

So IFA 2017 will see the emphasis put on Brands and focus placed on Innovation.

Dr. Christian Goke, CEO Messe Berlin leading the discussion panel during the Global Press Conference.

The press release will be appended below once I receive it.

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Day 1 of IFA GPC 2017 – Power briefs & discussion panels

Friday, April 21st, 2017

The first day of the IFA GPC 2017 comprises a series of power briefs by industry leaders and analysts on the latest trends and products in consumer electronics and home appliances. Here is a rundown on what transpired in those proceedings.

Finally getting down to business. Looking forward to hearing what industry experts have to share about the trends and predictions in consumer electronics and home appliances.

There are altogether eight power briefings and one discussion panel.

As I attend these sessions, I will post a brief synopsis of each session on Instagram and consolidate all the synopses here. So stay tuned!

Power briefing 1

Power briefing 2

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Norton Cybersecurity Insights Report 2015 released

Tuesday, November 24th, 2015

Eight out of ten Singapore consumers surveyed believe they will experience online crime.

Norton Cybersecurity Insights Report finds consumers believe it is more likely their credit card information will be stolen while shopping online than from their wallets. Click to view the comparison between findings in Singapore versus the Global trends.

Norton Cybersecurity Insights Report finds consumers believe it is more likely their credit card information will be stolen while shopping online than from their wallets. Click to view the comparison between findings in Singapore versus the Global trends.

Norton by Symantec has released its findings from the Norton Cybersecurity Insights Report, which sheds light on the truths of online crime and the personal effect it has on consumers.

“Consumer confidence was rocked in 2014 by an unprecedented number of mega breaches that exposed the identities of millions of people who were simply making routine purchases from well-known retailers,” said Gavin Lowth, Vice President, Norton Consumer and Small Business, Asia Pacific and Japan.

The report found that globally, 62 percent of consumers believed it’s more likely their credit card information will be stolen online compared to only 38 percent who think it’s more likely they will lose credit card information from their wallets.

47 percent reported they have been affected by cybercrime.

In Singapore:

  • Approximately seven in 10 (69 percent) Singaporeans believe using public Wi-Fi is riskier than using a public restroom.
  • Seven in 10 (70 percent) consumers think that storing their credit card and banking information in the cloud is riskier than not wearing a seatbelt.
  • More than seven in 10 (71 percent) consumers believe getting their credit information stolen after shopping online is more likely than having their credit card stolen out of their wallet.

Who tops the list of those most aware of online security practices in Singapore?

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Tech focus: Key trends in POS systems for 2015 – Bikash Kumar

Friday, January 2nd, 2015

Shopping is a favourite past time in Singapore and at the heart of the vendor’s efficiency and the consumer’s experience is the Point Of Sale (POS) being used.

As we step into 2015, Bikash Kumar shares his thoughts on some of the key trends shaping the evolution of POS technology in 2015.

Mobile POS enables greater consumer interaction with the sales staff.

Mobile POS enables greater consumer interaction with the sales staff.

* This article is a guest post written by Bikash Kumar – MD, Integrated Retail Management Consulting Pte. Ltd. The opinions expressed are his own and do not represent that of tech4tea.com.

Bikash Kumar has a Bachelor of Business Studies (1988-91) from the College of Business Studies in the University of Delhi; and an MBA (1991-93) from the Faculty of Management Study from the same university.

Bikash Kumar has a Bachelor of Business Studies (1988-91) from the College of Business Studies in the University of Delhi; and an MBA (1991-93) from the Faculty of Management Study from the same university.

The Point of Sale (POS) system is where consumers pay for their purchases in a retail store.

Traditionally, the POS systems have been used to generate information on transactions within a retail outlet.

However, the POS technology has been improving significantly, allowing retail staff to deliver multiple operations, besides just scanning merchandise and generating bills.

According to Integrated Retail, a firm that specialises in designing, deploying and maintaining POS systems across the region, the POS systems are likely to see further enhancements in 2015.

Here are five key changes that we are likely to see.

  1. Morphing from Point of Sale to a Point of Service
  2. POS is increasingly mobile and it is lighter
  3. POS systems are becoming inter-connected
  4. POS system activities are traceable in real time
  5. POS is driving up productivity

Below are my thoughts on each of these key changes.

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Infographic: Mobile usage during Chinese New Year 2013

Monday, March 4th, 2013

Here’s an infographic by Millennial Media on mobile usage trends in Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong during Chinese New Year.

Games, social, entertainment, and music and audio were the most frequently accessed types of content during this period.

Games, social, entertainment, and music and audio were the most frequently accessed types of content during this period.

The infographic shares insights into mobile traffic during this period, looks at the type of devices used and also examines the types of content accessed most often.

There was a 15 per cent rise in traffic on Chinese New Year eve between 9pm and 12am, as mobile users stayed up late to celebrate the arrival of the New Year. A 10 per cent rise is traffic was also seen between 12am and 2am on Chinese New Year's Day.

There was a 15 per cent rise in traffic on Chinese New Year eve between 9pm and 12am, as mobile users stayed up late to celebrate the arrival of the New Year. A 10 per cent rise is traffic was also seen between 12am and 2am on Chinese New Year’s Day.

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IT Trends: Security in a time of convergence

Thursday, January 10th, 2013

Going into 2013, it’s a good time to look ahead at what enterprises should look out for in terms of working securely this year.

Let’s hear from Sugiarto Koh – Regional Director, ASEAN & North Asia, Sourcefire.

Sugiarto Koh, Regional Director, ASEAN & North Asia, Sourcefire

Sugiarto Koh, Regional Director, ASEAN & North Asia, Sourcefire

Sugiarto Koh opines that advanced malware and targeted attacks pose the greatest challenge for today’s security infrastructure and methods of protection.

Customers are struggling to find solutions that provide effective protection against the latest threats without over-burdening their budgets or sacrificing operational efficiency.

Below are Koh’s take on three major Enterprise IT trends and their implications.

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IT Trends: Dell shares its technology outlook for 2013

Monday, January 7th, 2013

What are Dell’s foci for 2013. Transforming, Connecting, Informing and Protecting – says Ng Tian Beng, Managing Director, Dell South Asia & Korea.

Ng Tian Beng, Managing Director, Dell South Asia & Korea

Ng Tian Beng, Managing Director, Dell South Asia & Korea

Based on feedback from his customers, Tian Beng highlights two common issues that keep  them awake at night.

  1. Firstly, businesses are spending too much of their IT budget on powering their datacenter and not powering their business.
  2. Secondly, customers want solutions that are help them innovate rather than merely keep the lights on.

Ng anticipates that, in 2013, the technology priorities of Dell’s customers along 4 key themes – Transform, Connect, Inform and Protect.

Below are the details of the four themes.

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IT Trends: Four 2012 trends and four 2013 predictions

Monday, December 31st, 2012

Today is the last day of 2012. As we look forward to 2013 tomorrow, Charles Clarke – Technical Director of APAC for Veeam – looks back on four IT trends in 2012, and shares his predictions for 2013.

Charles Clarke is the Technical Director, APAC, Veeam

Charles Clarke is the Technical Director, APAC, Veeam

First let’s take a look back at the year gone by.

  1. Downtime tolerance has diminished
  2. IT spend is held in the hands of a powerful few
  3. Cloud has been a big hit with SMEs
  4. Businesses have become even more data dependent

Next it’s time to gaze at the crystal ball for the next year starting tomorrow.

  1. Cloud will continue to grow
  2. IT spend will go “pay-as-you-go”
  3. IT skills will move to a “cloud model”
  4. Virtualisation will become more entwined with the business

The juicy details are elaborated below.

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Survey: Cloud gaining traction in Singapore with adoption on the rise

Friday, November 9th, 2012

The 3rd annual VMware Cloud Index shows 84% of respondents have adopted or are planning to adopt cloud solutions.

Infographic showing the findings for Singapore from the VMware Cloud Index 2012.

Infographic showing the findings for Singapore from the VMware Cloud Index 2012. Click to enlarge.

The 84% cloud adoption rate shows an increasing trend from 63% in 2011 and 53% in 2010. The findings were released in conjunction with the annual vForum in Singapore.

“Organisations in Singapore are increasingly recognizing the strategic role that cloud computing can play in enabling them to be more productive, stay competitive, and enter new markets,” said Nicholas Tan, country manager, VMware Singapore.

Of the respondents who have not implemented a cloud initiative but were planning to, 55% plan to implement within the next 18 months.

73% of respondents in Singapore said their business outlook for 2012 and 2013 would include growth and expansion, or consolidation with some growth, signaling more potential opportunities to increase cloud adoption.

77% described cloud computing as a top priority or highly relevant to their organization, and 88% agree that cloud will empower their business by simplifying access to IT resources.

69% agree that their organization needs to pursue cloud initiatives or risk falling behind competitors.

“By leveraging VMware solutions on a subscription basis from our telco and service provider partners such as Fujitsu Asia and SingTel, customers can have their data reside in Singapore, and only pay for the services that they consume,” said Kevin Pratesa, director, Service Providers and Public Cloud, VMware ASEAN.

When rating the top reasons for implementing cloud computing in Singapore, respondents strongly rated the need to empower the business by simplifying access to IT resources (80%); supporting a more mobile and flexible workforce (77%); and ensuring that they only pay for the IT they actually use (77%) as factors driving cloud adoption.

The VMware Cloud Index 2012 revealed that the barriers to cloud adoption in Singapore continue to persist and include data privacy, residency, or “loss of control” (72%); cost (69%); and availability or performance concerns (67%).

Despite growing cloud adoption, only one in two respondents (50%) in Singapore agree that their organization is investing in training for cloud-related skills, and 32% say their company is actively seeking to hire new IT staff with cloud computing expertise.

VMware Cloud Index 2012 underscores cloud importance in Asia Pacific

Wednesday, November 7th, 2012

The 3rd annual study by VMware shows cloud computing entering a new stage of evolution in the region as it highlights the growth and importance of cloud as a business enabler.

Infographic showing the findings for APJ from the VMware Cloud Index 2012.

Infographic showing the findings for APJ from the VMware Cloud Index 2012. Click to enlarge.

The results of the study was presented at the annual vForums in Asia. Here are several key trends revealed by the VMware Cloud Index.

Key trends for APJ

  • Despite global economic concerns, nearly 80% of respondents in Asia Pacific indicates that their companies’ business outlooks for 2012 and 2013 include some growth and/or expansion.

    VMware Cloud Index 2012 findings for Singapore.

    VMware Cloud Index 2012 findings for Singapore. Click to enlarge.

  • Cloud computing is seen by respondents as enabling the business to optimise IT (85%), reduce costs (80%), and supporting a more mobile and flexible workforce (81%).
  • The CIO is increasingly empowered, with 44% of them cited as a final cloud decision maker. CEOs remain the top decision maker at 52%, but this is down 6% compared to 2011.
  • 71% of respondents state that cloud computing has made their jobs less complex.
  • Top barriers to cloud adoption are data privacy, residency, or “loss of control” (69%); security (64%); and cost (62%).

Businesses in APJ (Japan and Asia Pacific region) are forecasting business growth and see cloud computing as an integral part of their strategy.

“There is a transformation taking place in the industry and the datacenter has become a more automated place,” observed Andrew Dutton, senior vice president and general manager, VMware Asia Pacific and Japan.

There is an increased readiness for cloud and indication that it can provide competitive advantage, with 67% of APJ organisations believing that they currently have the skills and infrastructure necessary to manage a private cloud.

68% stated that without pursuing cloud initiatives, they could fall behind the competition.

With 83% of organisations stating that cloud can empower their businesses by simplifying access to IT resources, companies are looking to leverage cloud computing as a business enabler.

“VMware’s software defined approach to the datacenter not only helps organisations address concerns about integration, hybrid management and security, but also allows business leaders to leverage cloud computing in a way that aligns to their business needs,” Dutton added.

On the other hand, IT today is struggling to impose governance, control, access and self-service over heterogeneous cloud services.

VMware is working to solve this challenge – with the introduction of the software defined datacenter as the tenet to cloud computing.

IT has also evolved from its traditional role as a builder of services to become a broker of services and infrastructure capacity.

In the era of the enterprise hybrid cloud, there are new and increased responsibilities for IT, and CIOs will need to be at the helm to bridge the gap between business and IT and manage this transformation.

About the VMware Cloud Index

The 3rd VMware Cloud Index in 2012 is the largest regional cloud-related study in Asia Pacific.

Forrester Consulting and ITR (for Japan only) were commissioned to conduct the annual research in September and October 2012.

Approximately 6,500 senior IT practitioners across the APJ (in eleven countries/regions: Australia, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand) were surveyed this year.

Check out the infographics for your region here.