Jose Allan Tan

A persistent challenge for enterprises buying technology in Asia is ensuring that whatever IT project they buy into gets used for its intended purpose. In some cases, part of the disappointment in the solution lies with the failure to properly deploy the solution based on the original understanding and expectation of the user organization. Neil McMurphy of Gartner Group talks about the challenges of all parties involved.

Renaissance Riverside Saigon Hotel is a return to contemporary luxury - not the hi tech luxury you find in cosmopolitan cities like Singapore, Hong Kong or New York. This is like luxury from the days when the French ruled Vietnam.

Cloud computing signals a shift in how information is accessed and stored. It also sees a change in the custodian of that information. One expert predicts the death of the CIO and the rise of the CSO.

The HTC Wildfire is the first true smartphone for the price conscious consumer. It is by far the most advanced consumer mobile phone for those with budget constraints. It is deserves to be called a smartphone.

There was a time when online portals were restricted to auction sites like eBay. Amazon's success in the US has spurred it to venture outside American soil opening portals to serve customers in Canada, the United Kingdom, German, France, Japan and China. Amazon turned a tidy profit of US$5 million on US$1 billion sales. Hong Kong is staking its claim in the online world with CSL throwing the first volley following the launch of its online channel in early 2010.

Companies all over the world have realized that contact centers are more than just for answering customer queries. The role of the contact center has become increasingly crucial in customer retention and, thus, future revenue. This shift is now forcing companies in Asia to re-evaluate the significance of the contact center.

TechTarget defines an early adopter as a person who embraces new technology before most other people do. Early adopters tend to buy or try out new hardware items and programs, and new versions of existing programs, sooner than most of their peers.

“Within the next few years it may not be possible to conduct business in most of the world unless you can prove your ‘green’ credentials,” says Bob Hayward, Director of IT Advisory at KPMG.

In the future, the forces of standardization, commoditization and virtualization will drive down the cost of the data center and reduce the time to get a configuration online, providing greater capability through the dynamic assembly of lower cost processors into massive networks of computing capability.

When mobile operator 3 Australia wanted to migrate its customers from 2G to 3G, it realized that beyond the preparation of a glitzy marketing campaign, it also needed to make sure that its 43 retail outlets and 45 dealers would be able to cope with the new business. The solution was nothing short of inspiring.