Samsung heir arrested in corruption probe

February 17, 2017

Seoul, Feb 17: The heir of South Korean giant Samsung was today arrested as part of a probe into corruption and influence-peddling that caused President Park Geun-Hye to be impeached. "It is acknowledged that it is necessary to arrest (Lee Jae-Yong) in light of a newly added criminal charge and new evidence," a court spokesman said in a statement. Lee Jae-Yong, Samsung Electronics vice chairman, is accused of paying nearly USD 40 million in bribes to Park's secret confidante to secure policy favours.

Samsung

He was already being held at a detention centre after appearing in court yesterday as judges deliberated whether to issue an arrest warrant. Lee, the son of the Samsung group boss Lee Kun-Hee, has been quizzed several times over his alleged role in the scandal that has rocked the nation. The 48-year-old, described as a key suspect in the scandal, narrowly avoided being formally arrested last month, after the court ruled there was insufficient evidence. But prosecutors on Tuesday made a second bid for his arrest, saying they had collected more evidence in recent weeks.

His arrest, the first for a Samsung chief, is likely to send shock waves through the group, which is a major part of the South Korean economy and includes the world's largest smartphone maker, Samsung Electronics. It is already reeling from the debacle over the recall of its flagship Galaxy Note 7 device and reports have suggested it could face sanctions from overseas authorities if Lee is punished. The scandal centres on Choi Soon-Sil, who is accused of using her close ties with Park to force local firms to "donate" nearly USD 70 million to non-profit foundations which Choi allegedly used for personal gain.

Samsung was the single biggest donor to the foundations. It is also accused of separately giving millions of euros to Choi to bankroll her daughter's equestrian training in Germany. The court is also deliberating an arrest warrant for another Samsung executive, who is also the head of Korea Equestrian Federation, over bribery charges. Samsung said in a statement on Wednesday that it had "not paid bribes nor made improper requests to the president seeking favours". Lee has effectively taken the helm of Samsung -- South Korea's biggest business group -- since his father suffered a heart attack in 2014.

Prosecutors are probing whether Samsung had paid Choi to secure state approval for the controversial merger of two Samsung units seen as a key step towards ensuring a smooth power transfer to Lee. The merger in 2015 of Samsung C&T and Cheil Industries was opposed by many investors who said it wilfully undervalued the former unit's shares. But the deal went through after Seoul's state pension fund -- a major Samsung shareholder -- approved it. Samsung is South Korea's largest business group and its revenue is equivalent to about a fifth of the country's GDP.

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Agencies
March 3,2020

Facebook on Monday launched a new consumer marketing campaign in India titled 'More Together'. India is the first country in the Asia Pacific region where such a campaign is being rolled out.

It is also the first time that Facebook is rolling out a 'high decibel campaign of this stature in India', the company said in a statement.

It is also the first time that Facebook is rolling out a 'high decibel campaign of this stature in India', the company said in a statement.

"India is at the heart of Facebook and one of our focus areas this year is to tell the exciting story of a service that is deeply embedded in the fabric of India," said Ajit Mohan, Vice President and Managing Director, Facebook India.

The campaign would have multiple campaigns over the next few weeks in eight languages and the one will be set in the context of Holi.

Facebook in 2019 introduced a new company logo to further distinguish the company from the Facebook app.

The company recently announced the appointment of Avinash Pant as the Marketing Director for India operations, to drive the consumer marketing efforts across the family of apps.

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Agencies
June 9,2020

Soon, you may be able to withdraw cash from an ATM without touching any part of the machine. AGS Transact Technologies, a provider of cash and digital payment solutions and automation technology, on Monday said it has successfully developed and tested a touchless ATM solution in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The ‘contactless' solution, currently under demo at interested banks, enables a customer to perform all the steps required to withdraw cash from an ATM using the mobile app itself. 

The customer simply has to scan the QR code displayed on the ATM screen and follow the directions on their respective bank's mobile application. 

This includes entering the amount and mPIN required to dispense the cash from the ATM machine. 

According to the company, the QR code feature makes cash withdrawals quicker and more secure, and negates the chances of compromising the ATM Pin or card skimming.

"The new Touchless ATM solution is an extension of the flagship QR Cash solution which ensures safety of the users and will provide a seamless cash withdrawal experience with enhanced security," said Ravi B. Goyal, Chairman and MD, AGS Transact Technologies Ltd.

With minimum investment, the banks can enable this solution for their ATM networks by upgrading the existing software.

AGSTTL has so far installed, maintained and managed a network of over 72,000 ATMs across the country and also provides customised solutions to leading banks. 

The company earlier introduced UPI-QR based Cash withdrawal solution in partnership with Bank of India. 

This is how the solution works.

Open the Bank mobile application on your smartphone and select QR Cash Withdrawal. Enter the amount you wish to withdraw on the mobile app and scan the QR code on the ATM screen.

Next, confirm the amount by clicking on ‘proceed' in the app and enter the mPin to authenticate the transaction. Now collect the cash and receipt and you are done.

"The seamless, cardless and touchless withdrawal method is designed to provide easy transaction flow, without the need to touch the ATM screen or enter the pin," said Mahesh Patel, President and Group Chief Technology Officer, AGS Transact Technologies.

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Agencies
March 12,2020

Thiruvananthapuram, Mar 12: In the wake of COVID-19 outbreak, Internet service providers in Kerala have agreed to step up the network capacity by 30 to 40 per cent of the present capacity to meet the demand, especially in view of the spurt in work-at-home mode.

"The decision was made at a meeting of representatives of various telecom service providers in Kerala circle and officials of the Telecommunication Department convened by the Secretary, Electronics and IT, following a direction by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan to look into the issue," said a press release by the IT Department.

The decision will be beneficial for those working in IT institutions. The government has come out with a set of suggestions to avoid social gatherings at public places in view of coronavirus spread. Telecom service providers have assured the government that they are well equipped to face the current situation.

The major part of Internet consumption in Kerala is made available through local servers. Moreover, global Internet traffic is very low as compared to the overall consumption. So, increasing the capacity won't be difficult, service providers informed.

"Complaints regarding the low availability of the Internet due to the spurt in consumption of the Internet can be made to the service providers to their complaint redressal number or inform state government call centre (155300). But complaints regarding the insufficiency in the current network infrastructure should be strictly avoided," said the release.

The IT Department will also demand daily reports from various telecom service providers. By analysing these reports, steps for remedies will be taken after bringing the sudden increase in consumption to the service providers.

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