iWorld
Google teams up with US, UK govt. agencies to bring internet to the common man
NEW DELHI: Government agencies in the UK and US along with Google have announced a joint venture by the name of “Alliance for Affordable Internet” to bring internet to the population of billions on planet earth.
The initiative is a joint venture by Google, US agency for International Development and its British Counterpart and philanthropic company run by eBay Founder Omidyar, Omidyar Network.
Other helping firms include Yahoo, Microsoft, Intel, Cisco, Ericsson and African ISP MainOne. Alliance is going to work to pursue the governments to regulate and policy formation for better internet access.
“A4AI has a specific goal in mind: to reach the UN Broadband Commission target of entry-level broadband access priced at less than five per cent of monthly income worldwide,” said Jennifer Haroon, Principal Executive of Google’s access programme, in a blog post.
Group is working to contact 10 countries till 2015 to negotiate on easing of import of technology and resources to kick start the internet revolution in those countries. This envisaged goal can have far reaching impact not only in those countries but on whole global scenario. It can help reshape the social, corporate and political outlook which is visible by the part played by Social Media in Arab spring.
e-commerce
ONDC names Vibhor Jain MD and CEO; Rohit Lohia joins as CBO, Manoj Thakur as CTO
Leadership formalised as open commerce network sharpens focus on scale and user value
The Open Network for Digital Commerce has formalised Vibhor Jain as managing director and chief executive officer, cementing a leadership transition at India’s ambitious open commerce platform as it pushes for scale and relevance.
Jain, who had been serving as acting chief executive officer since April last year following the exit of Thampy Koshy, steps into the role with effect from 7th April , according to a report by The Economic Times. He previously served as chief operating officer at the government-backed network, which enables buyers and sellers to transact across applications through an open, interoperable system.
Setting out his strategy, Jain underscored the network’s differentiated architecture. “Going forward, we are concentrating on what open, interoperable infrastructure can uniquely enable, things that no single platform has the incentive or the architecture to do,” he said.
He added that the immediate priority is to widen ONDC’s impact across user cohorts often underserved by platform-led commerce. “My priority is to deepen the value ONDC creates for the people it exists to serve: kisaans, karigars, kiranas, gig workers, first-time investors, and daily commuters across India,” he said.
Jain also flagged leadership reinforcement within the organisation, noting that ONDC has “a strong and exciting leadership team in place”, with Rohit Lohia joining as chief business officer and Manoj Thakur as chief technology officer.
With over 18 years of experience spanning entrepreneurship and consulting, Jain brings a track record in technology-led, large-scale transformation programmes and internet businesses. At ONDC, he has been closely involved in shaping strategy and operations as the network seeks to move digital commerce away from platform-centric models towards an open network approach.
Before ONDC, Jain worked with JUMO, where he helped set up the fintech firm’s India operations, and led the India launch of Mobike, handling regulatory, policy and operational aspects of its market entry. Earlier, he co-founded Atlanta Healthcare, an air quality management company, and spent more than a decade in consulting roles at Andersen and EY, advising governments on public policy and technology-driven reforms, including work on the Aadhaar programme and tax systems.
The mandate is clear but the path is complex. As ONDC attempts to rewrite the rules of digital commerce, Jain now carries the burden of turning open architecture into mass adoption, in a market still dominated by platform power.
