MAM
E&M CEOs optimistic about global economy: PwC study
MUMBAI: Continuing its trend of surveying top CEOs across the globe, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) surveyed 1344 business leaders across 68 countries out of which 72 were media and entertainment CEOs in 33 countries to find out what exactly is their business sentiment for the coming years. In depth interviews were conducted with Interpublic Group’s Michael Roth, II Sole 24 Ore SpA’s Donatella Treu and SKYCITY’s Nigel Morrison. Some of the salient points of the study on entertainment and media (E&M) CEOs are:
• CEOs are confident of the company as well as global economy. 93 per cent (compared to 80 per cent in 2013) are somewhat or very confident in their company prospects for revenue growth in the next three years. They are also more optimistic about the global economy despite some concerns. 39 per cent of E&M CEOs believe that the global economy will improve in the next 12 months, compared to 20 per cent last year.
• CEOs have to be hybrid- run today’s business and create tomorrow’s business.
• Product and service innovation will provide the greatest opportunity for revenue growth and is likely to play a pivotal role in addressing their greatest concerns. Over half of E&M CEOs surveyed (56 per cent) see product/service innovation as the main opportunity to grow their business in the next 12 months, more than any other industry surveyed
• 71 per cent of E&M CEOs are somewhat or extremely concerned about shifts in consumer spending and behaviours, more than any other industry surveyed (and compared to a global total response of 52 per cent)
• 65 per cent of E&M CEOs are somewhat or extremely concerned about the speed of technological change (compared to a total global response of 47 per cent)
• 26 per cent E&M CEOs, more than any other industry surveyed, are extremely concerned about new market entrants.
• 11 per cent of E&M CEOs believe that strategic alliances and joint ventures will be the main opportunity to grow their business in the next 12 months
• 94 per cent of E&M CEOs rank technological advances as one of the top three global trends that will have the most transformative effect on their businesses over the next five years. This is more than any other industry.
• 68 per cent of E&M CEOs rank demographic shifts as one of the top three global trends that will have the most transformative effect on their business over the next five years
• 43 per cent percent of CEOs believe that as a result of regulation they haven’t been able to innovate effectively
• Pwc says in 2014 it forecasts that consumer spend on mobile Internet will overtake that from fixed broadband.
Brands
Apple bites back: the $599 MacBook Neo is the cheapest Mac ever made
The tech giant unveils a budget laptop that packs a punch — and a lot of cheek
CALIFORNIA: Apple has never been shy about charging a premium. So when Cupertino rolls out a MacBook at $599 (approx. Rs 55,000) , it’s worth sitting up straight.
The MacBook Neo, unveiled Tuesday, is Apple’s most affordable laptop to date — undercutting its own MacBook Air and taking a sharp swipe at the budget PC market in one fell swoop. It starts at $499 for students, which, for a machine with Apple silicon inside, is frankly a steal.
At the heart of the Neo is the A18 Pro chip — the same muscle that powers the latest iPhones. Apple claims it is up to 50 per cent faster for everyday tasks than a rival PC running Intel’s Core Ultra 5, and three times quicker on on-device AI workloads. Fanless and featherweight at 2.7 pounds, it runs silently and promises up to 16 hours of battery life. Try doing that on a Chromebook.
The 13-inch liquid retina display clocks in at 2408-by-1506 resolution with 500 nits of brightness and support for billion colours — sharper and brighter, Apple says, than most rivals in this price band. It comes dressed in four colours: blush, indigo, silver, and a zesty new citrus, with matching keyboard shades to boot.
Connectivity is modest — two USB-C ports, a headphone jack, Wi-Fi 6E, and Bluetooth 6 — but this is a budget machine, not a pro workstation. The 1080p FaceTime camera, dual mics with directional beamforming, and Spatial Audio speakers round out a package that punches well above its weight class.
Apple senior vice-president of hardware engineering John Ternus alled it “a laptop only Apple could create.” That’s the kind of line that makes rivals wince — because, annoyingly, he might be right.
The Neo runs macOS Tahoe, with Apple Intelligence baked in for AI writing tools, live translation, and the sort of on-device smarts that keep user data away from the cloud. It also boasts 60 per cent recycled content — the highest of any Apple product — for those who like their bargains with a side of conscience.
For $599, Apple isn’t just selling a laptop. It’s selling an argument — that good design and real performance needn’t cost the earth. The PC industry had better have a decent comeback ready.
