Italy's Ducati to launch superbikes in India

Italy’s Ducati is gearing up to set the racing circuit on fire. The world’s largest producer of racing bikes is planning to bring motorsports to India and has started preparations to get the MotoGP motorcycling championship here.

Ducati Motor Holding CEO Gabriele Del Torchio told ET, “I have asked MotoGP CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta to bring the Grand Prix event to India. If this event can happen in Qatar, China, Malaysia and Australia, I think India also has a great chance with vast improvements in infrastructure and the F1 circuit plans firming up. If all goes well, we shall have a full-fledged motorcycle racing season in India soon.”

Ducati, a relatively-small company compared to Honda, Yamaha and KTM, has won 14 of the last 17 World Superbikes Championship titles and has picked up the maximum number of trophies in all global competitions. It won both the top Constructors’ and Riders’ world titles in MotoGP 2007. The Italian bike company is also one of the largest sponsors of motor racing championships and is eyeing a long-term potential in India. “With the technology to produce the world’s fastest bikes, we see a great potential for superbikes in India,” Mr Torchio said.

Ducati, whose bikes are priced between Rs 15 lakh and Rs 50 lakh, is looking at developing a market for its products. A Delhi-based infrastructure company, JP Associates has announced plans to develop a permanent Rs 1,500-crore F1 race track in Greater Noida, which can used for bike racing as well. These events generate huge funds though sponsorships, ticket sales, endorsements and media rights, similar to the cricket extravaganza IPL.

To move the proposal with the Indian government, Ducati’s Indian partner, Precision Motor India is working with the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers. Its CEO Ashish Chordia said, “We want to promote motorsports in India and cultivate the sporting culture. To organise the MotoGP championship in India, we just need an F1 track. We have sought the help of all auto makers and SIAM to move the matter faster and get the infrastructure in place.”

Ducati, which sold 40,000 bikes worldwide in 71 countries through a network of 800 dealers, will initially sell through two exclusive showrooms in Mumbai and Delhi. Early next year, three more exclusive showrooms will be added in Hyderabad, Bangalore and Chennai. Ducati superbikes with engine capacity between 700 cc and 1,100 cc generate an output of 90-180 horsepower and meet the Euro III emission norms. The company will import 50 bikes this year and likely to scale up if the response is good.

Renault-Nissan and Bajaj join hands for low-cost car

Bajaj Auto and the Renault-Nissan alliance on Monday announced that they will form a joint-venture company to develop, produce and market the car, code-named ULC (ultra-low cost)with wholesale price ranging from $2500. The new JV company will be 50% owned by Bajaj Auto, 25% by Renault and 25% by Nissan. Targeting the growing Indian new vehicle market, the ULC will be made at an all-new plant to be constructed in Chakan (Maharashtra) in India. Initial planned capacity will be 400,000 units per year. Sales will start in early 2011 in India, as a primary market, with growth potential in other emerging markets around the world. The feasibility has already extended into joint product evelopment and the project is on line to meet targeted performance & cost, company officials said. The company would initially invest Rs 1,000 cr in the venture. Renault and Bajaj will manufacture engines for the small car and LCV.

In-car entertainment - a booming market

In a world of traffic jams and pot-holed roads, half of our lives is spent on the road, driving or being driven. It’s but natural for Indians to load their cars with the latest in the in-car entertainment systems.

If one is to believe the car entertainment makers almost every car in the country has an entertainment system. So much so that car entertainment system makers are now ready for the Nano challenge. So expect Indians to load their cars with the best at dirt cheap prices.

Consumer spending research points out that, after tyres the biggest accessory spend in the car market is on audio systems. While high-end cars pack quite a bit of technology into the humble car stereo, even volume-end cars are beginning to get a taste of designer decibels.

At a time where roof-mounted screens are finding a place from themselves in the world of small car. It is not strange to note that more than half of the in-car entertainment industry is ruled by the unorganised market.

In-car entertainment industry is estimated to be worth around Rs 700-800 crore, of which 60% of the market is contributed by the unorganised sector. Most of the organised market is OEM or manufacturer driven and players believe it has been enjoying a steady growth of 7.5% as per last year’s figures.

The real revolution in the audio mart has been in technology as the Indian market leaped across a tech-divide to jump into the MP3 bandwagon. Almost all car audio players are fascinated by the fact that local demand skipped several notches on the value chain to stay in step with global trends.

So most Indian consumers now prefer to shell money to buy an MP3 player even if it means buying it from the unorganised market. And the trend of playing music on MP3 is not restricted to just major towns alone. The MP3 technology has gradually trickled down to smaller cities and towns. Clearly when it comes to splurging on car entertainment, the Indian consumer knows what he wants and doesn’t like to lag behind on the technology front.

The Indian consumer has actually risen above the bare minimum cassette player to MP3, and is now ready for the high-tech and globally prevalent music systems. Car entertainment system manufacturers believe there are several factors that have influenced the technological revolution in the in-car entertainment systems.

Just as the car makers car audio systems too will be dictated by the Indian road and weather conditions. Indian road conditions are harsh and the dust factor makes things worse. Industry sources agree that music systems with front-loading or what is more popularly known as the slip down variety, are selling more.

Slip down refers to a system in which the music system remains inside the dash board unexposed to the dust. On pressing a button, it is ejected out unlike the conventional system where the stereo remains ex-posed all the time. No wonder most factory-fitted entertainment systems are either the slip down variant or the built in the dashboard.

Even the after sales market players boast of the latest technologies as far as the slip down music system is concerned. Of course how well a particular technology is accepted also depends on the kind of music Indians like to listen to.

Indians generally listen to low frequency bass unlike the higher frequency like treble in western countries. That’s one reason why they go for oval shape speakers which have a dial of 6x9, believe industry players. What also drives the in-car entertainment system is the technologies that the consumer is using in the comfort of her/his home. So roof-mounted screens with DVD players is becoming a standard with most high-end cars and SUVs. In fact the after-sales markets is flooded with options for visual entertainment.

Most of these DVD players and screens are also sporting additional features like gameport. So your kids can play their games when one is travelling long haul. The fact that even B-segment cars have now got a mounted screens or mounted screens on the dash board is found common place these days.

In a bid to bridge the gap between home entertainment and car entertainment further, music system companies are also offering spanky LCD screens to go with the DVD players. Convergence being the watchword. Consumers now expect car systems to offer them bluetooth connectivity with a USB port.

And why not, in-car-entertainment system makers have to quickly adapt to the changing entertainment trends. So blue-tooth connectivity to transfer songs from your mobile to the music systems is what the new age car drivers. Not to forget the option to connect the i-pod with the car music systems.

A lot of focus is also being put on infotainment. So navigational devices come as cool add-ons with several music systems for the car. How about getting all of this in one? Companies offer music systems that have a navigational device fitted on to the dashboard, with a microphone to attend calls, a parking camera to be able to park safe, roof mounted screens with DVD player, blue-tooth connectivity and game-port attached to the DVD.

Swift completes 2-lakh sales to become fastest selling car in India

Country's largest car maker Maruti Suzuki's runaway success with 'Swift' has crossed a new milestone in sales - two lakh units - with the car becoming one of the fastest selling models in India since its launch three years ago to achieve this feat.

"Maruti Swift has attained new benchmarks very swiftly. It has emerged as the fastest selling car in India by completing the two-lakh units sales mark in less than 36 months," a company official said.

The company launched this premium hatchback in petrol variant on May 25, 2005. In its first year of launch, it clocked sales of 61,200 units.

"The popularity of petrol version inspired the company to launch a diesel variant in January 2007, powered by much acclaimed and the most compact diesel engine in its category," he said.

At present, 60% of 'Swift' produced, are in diesel variant.

Besides, Maruti also registered a sale of 9,490 units of 'Swift' during April, the highest sale in a single month.

"It is the only model to undergo a face-lift in less than three years of its launch. The company launched a refreshed version of Swift earlier this year," the company official said.

According to the monthly data of Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers, Maruti sold 51,766 vehicles in the domestic market under all categories during April, a jump of 22.30 per cent over the previous year's corresponding sale of 42,326 units.

Maruti's this successful model, which is priced in the range of Rs 4 lakh to Rs 5.17 lakh, is awarded with numerous national and international awards over the last three years.

Ratan Tata among the biggest brains in business

After being chosen as one of the most influential people in the world by Time magazine, Mr.Ratan Tata has been named among the biggest brains in business by another US publication. The list of '73 Biggest Brains in Business', compiled by business publication Conde Nast Portfolio , features Tata for his 2,500 dollar car - Nano, along with the likes of media mogul Rupert Murdoch and chief executive of investment bank Goldman Sachs Lloyd Blankfein.

"Brilliance comes in many forms, whether it is founding a startup that kicks sand in Microsoft's face or creating an affordable car for the developing world. A small number of innovators influence the rest of the influencers in business," the magazine said in the accompanying report.

The list published in the latest issue of the magazine is further classified into five groups - game changers, connectors, tastemakers, rebels and upstarts. About Tata, the magazine said that he believes the future of the auto industry rests in the hands of people who do not yet drive. Tata Group, which recently snapped up British luxury brands Jaguar and Land Rover, has unveiled Tata Nano - the world's cheapest car.

"The model won't be sold in the US but has the potential to radically alter the market for manufacturers here. Tata-inspired followers are already revving up their engines: Nissan-Renault partnering with India's Bajaj Auto to develop a car by 2010 that will sell for less than 3,000 dollars.
"But except for Ford India, US companies can't produce a model this cheaply. Which means they risk being run over," the magazine noted.

Last week, Time magazine had named Ratan Tata as one of the 100 most influential people in the world. Apart from these three names, others who have featured in the game changers category are JPMorgan Chase head Jamie Dimon, World Bank managing director Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, General Electric CEO Jeff Immelt, software designer and co-founder of FriendFeed Paul Buchheit and anatomy professor at the University of Wisconsin James Thomson. The magazine talked to CEOs, economists and power players to prepare the list. The connectors group, which includes Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Bin, is described as those people "who know everyone who matters and can get them on the phone".

Another name in this group is Nobel Prize winner and Grameen Bank founder Muhammad Yunus, whose microfinance initiative has assisted about 7.5 million small business owners in Bangladesh. Designers and style setters are classified as tastemakers, which include the likes of BMW's chief of design Chris Bangle and well known media anchor Oprah Winfrey. Those who find a place in the upstarts category include Wal-Mart CEO Lee Scott and artist Yue Minjun.

"The kind of brilliance were looking at is not measured in IQ. It manifests itself in work that is changing entire industries and influencing others," the report added.