C Change hints at fortune at the bottom of the pyramid

CAIRO: Speaking at a keynote session on Technology Innovations to Watch Out for in 2006 at the CIOL C Change 2006 being held here, Shyam Malhotra, Editor-in-Chief, CyberMedia Publications, said technology innovations are omnipresent and very often technology emerges in unrelated areas.

“Some businesses innovate and use IT for attractive and efficient business models,” said Malhotra.

Technology has been attracting the best talent at best price, create operational efficiency and better product and services. “Technology has enabled virtual organization and access to larger markets, which were not accessible earlier,” Malhotra said.

Referring to management guru Prof CK Prahalad's The Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid, Malhotra said, “Four billion poor, with $1000 a year to spend on an average, is a $4 trillion marketplace in sharp contrast to the top one billion who create mere $1 trillion a year.”

Today, PC consumption is 16-24% in the top eight cities, while it is 55% in B and C-class cities, he added.

He also pointed out that technologies are not equal for all. “Security is most essential for financial sector; collaborative working is most essential for spread organization; data mining is more relevant for those with direct and large customers,” he said.