(22 March 2007 3:00 pm)

NEW DELHI: Two new software items were launched by an Indian entrepreneur, ‘One 97’, Mobicast (Mobile Broad Cast) and Video SMS, for the first time in India while Motorola announced that it was about to launch a new handset called, 'Rocker' which will act as web cam on the second day of the 15th Convergence India 2007.

One 97 said Mobicast would help people to tune from their mobile phones into any radio channel that was streamed over the internet. The application will allow the users to access numerous feeds from across the world, including audio feeds of various Indian languages such as Bhojpuri, Tamil, Punjabi, Malayalam etc. The other software, Video SMS, will allow users to personalize self-expressions with built over voice to create a talking video message.

Addressing a special seminar on 'Mobile Handset and New Innovations', Motorola Director (Marketing) Lloyd Mathias said, "Handsets are an integral part of people's daily life, and are extensions of their personality. People now use phones for purposes beyond talking and messaging - they look for cameras, Radio etc. There are at present a total of 32 million camera users/150 million mobile users, but there will be more camera-enabled phones than cameras, and more people will listen to songs on their phones than through CDs by the end of this calendar year.

He added that Motorola was about to launch a new handset - 'Rocker' - which will act as a web cam. It can be used as a web cam while chatting through the phone. Soon, there will be many new technologies being launched including as music ID, Vastushastra etc.

Indian Cellular Association (ICA) National President Pankaj Mohindroo and Mr Suneel Dutt of Nokia also addressed the meet.

One of the leading Telecom equipment makers, UTStarcom, said it had signed a contract with Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd to deploy 1.3 million broadband lines across 900 cities in the country.

A Philippine-based software company is also showcasing an amazing new software, Nemo, which can turn a mobile into a GPRS based navigation system.

Prem Behl, Managing Director of Exhibitions India which has organized the three-day Convergence India, said, "The year 2007 is touted to be the year of ICT - rural connectivity, Broadband, 3G, enterprise and entertainment bulge, mobile content, e-governance, increase in PC penetration, Information Security and telemedicine, On-line education, telemedicine, IT applications in financial services, and e-commerce and the meet reflects a surge in industry confidence. Techno-enthusiasts will get to see the latest products and services that are expected to change the way consumers and businesses will use and interact with new age gadgets, he added.