Event Coverage
PCCW, LG triumph at Frost & Sullivan Asia Pacific Technology Awards
MUMBAI: A few days ago global growth consulting firm Frost And Sullivan hosted the annual Frost & Sullivan Asia Pacific Technology Awards.
Held for the second time this year, the awards seek to recognise performances by companies and individuals in the Information And Communications Technology (ICT) industry across the region for 2004
The award for best Broadband service provider went to PCCW. LG bagged the award for most promising vendor of the year. The award for service provider of the year went to the Singapore base telecom company Singtel.
Frost And Sullivan partner Manoj Menon said, 2004 was a challenging year with competition stiffer than ever, coupled with emerging disruptive technologies. ICT companies across Asia Pacific have had to innovate and reinvent to rise to the challenge and increase their value proposition to stay on top of the game.
The award recipients were selected by an independent panel of judges comprising Asia Pacific’s decision makers from the telecommunications vendor and service provider segments, as well as the media. The line-up of judges included representatives from MBT, Huawei Technologies, Asia Netcom, Alcatel, NasionCom, Equant, SingTel, Cisco, StarHub, Juniper Networks and CSG Systems.
65 ICT companies in the Asia Pacific region were shortlisted and benchmarked in determining the deserving recipient for each of the prestigious awards. The benchmarking study was conducted by Frost And Sullivans team of research analysts and consultants.
The key measurement criteria employed in the benchmarking study and judging process were based on actual market performance indicators for financial year 2004. These include revenue growth, market share and growth in market share, leadership in product innovation, breadth of products and solutions, major customer acquisitions, and business and market strategy.
Menon added, The recipients of the Frost & Sullivan Asia Pacific Technology Awards 2005 indeed represent the best in their class. Each of these outstanding recipients has demonstrated significant growth and leadership in their respective market segments. A common factor across all the award recipients is that they have significantly contributed to growing the industry either by bringing in strong new value propositions to the market or by developing new market segments.
Event Coverage
Anime India announces Amazon MX Player as co-presenting partner for Anime India Kolkata 2026
MUMBAI: Riding high on the success of its blockbuster Mumbai debut, Anime India is accelerating its nationwide expansion with the announcement of Amazon MX Player as the co-presenting partner for Anime India Kolkata. The partnership marks a significant step forward in the festival’s mission to deliver large-scale, accessible, and fan-first anime experiences across the country.
Scheduled for 14 and 15 February 2026 at the iconic Biswa Bangla Mela Prangan, Anime India Kolkata will launch the first regional chapter of what is set to be a year-long, multi-city tour. As the curtain-raiser for the 2026 circuit, the Kolkata edition aims to fuse the energy of global Japanese pop culture with India’s fast-growing community of anime, manga, and pop-culture fans.
A household name in digital entertainment, Amazon MX Player brings unmatched reach and cultural relevance to the Anime India platform. With its expanding focus on anime and youth-driven content, Amazon MX Player’s involvement as co-presenting partner reinforces Anime India’s vision of making anime culture more inclusive breaking barriers of language, geography, and accessibility to connect with fans nationwide.
Anime India Kolkata 2026 will showcase cosplay competitions, interactive zones led by the Indian Gunpla Community, India-39 Vocaloid Community, The Japan Curry, and Adda-o-Otaku by The Otaku Guild. Fans can join tournaments across fighting games, Pokémon VGC, and more. Acclaimed Japanese director Susumu Mitsunaka (Haikyu!!) will attend as guest of honour, appearing in panels and live sessions. Positioned as an immersive celebration of fan culture and industry collaboration, the Kolkata edition marks the beginning of Anime India’s nationwide expansion.
Sharing their perspective on the partnership, Amazon MX Player director Aruna Daryanani expressed, “Anime in India has evolved from a niche interest into a mainstream cultural movement, driven by an increasingly engaged and passionate fanbase. At Amazon MX Player, our focus is on expanding access by bringing anime to audiences across the country for free and in multiple local languages. Our association with Anime India reflects our commitment to supporting the growth of anime in India and deepening connections with fans, while continuing to build Amazon MX Player as a trusted destination for free, high-quality entertainment.”
“Anime India Kolkata is a celebration of how anime has grown beyond entertainment into a powerful cultural and creative force. By bringing fans, creators, and industry leaders onto one shared platform, the festival is helping define the future of pop culture in India,” said Anime India co-founder and director Neha Mehta.
The debut edition of Anime India 2025 in Mumbai attracted over 29,000 fans, quickly cementing its status as a landmark celebration of anime and Japanese pop culture. Riding on this overwhelming response, the Kolkata chapter is projected to draw more than 40,000 visitors across two days, positioning it as one of the biggest anime conventions ever held in eastern India.
Anime India is focused on bringing together fans from across the country to create a truly pan-India celebration of anime, manga, cosplay, gaming, and Japanese culture. With plans to expand into four key metropolitan hubs in 2026—east (Kolkata), north (Delhi), west (Mumbai), and south (Hyderabad)—the festival seeks to deliver globally benchmarked experiences while supporting and uplifting creators, artists, and fan communities throughout India.
