Smartwatch trademarks for Samsung "Galaxy Gear"?

Samsung Electronics has applied for US and South Korean trademarks for a watch that connects to the Internet in the latest sign that consumer technology companies see wearable devices as the future of their business.

Samsung described "Samsung Galaxy Gear" as a wearable digital electronic device in the form of a wristwatch, wrist band or bangle in its July 29 application with US Patent and Trademark Office. A month earlier, it applied for a "Samsung Gear" trademark in South Korea.

The trademark applications did not show the shape of the products. But drawings from a Samsung design patent approved in May show a watch-like design with a flexible screen that curves around the wrist.



The US trademark application said the device will be "capable of providing access to the Internet, for sending and receiving phone calls, electronic mails and messages" as well as "for keeping track of or managing personal information."

The trademark filings in the US and in South Korea show that Samsung is deep in preparations for what tech industry experts expect will be a new generation of mobile technology that dramatically expands the utility of single-function objects such as watches and glasses. The South Korean consumer electronics giant was caught flatfooted by Apple's invention of the smartphone but through what turned out to be a legally risky strategy of imitation was able to capture a dominant share of the global smartphone market within a few years.

Apple applied June 3 for a trademark in Japan for "iWatch." Industry watchers have long speculated that Apple is working on a smart watch that uses a version of the operating system that powers the iPhone and iPad. The company has not confirmed those rumors but CEO Tim Cook has hinted it may be developing a wearable computing device.

Google is testing an early version of Internet-connected spectacles called Glass. It uses a small screen above the right eye that displays information and imagery retrieved from the Internet.

The South Korean patent office said the Gear trademark will not be approved this year as it takes seven to eight months to start reviewing applications due to a waiting list. Samsung applied for the South Korean trademark on June 21.

It was not clear if Samsung would use the "Samsung Gear" trademark for a Smart Watch. The trademark application covers 38 possible products including mobile telephones, bracelets, glasses and software interfaces that monitor human vital signs.

South Korea's patent office said in June that Samsung had patented watch designs in which more than three quarters of the device is covered by a flexible display that curves around the wrist. Illustrations showed 'back' and 'home' buttons at the bottom of the screen. Another illustration shows a rectangular screen with an edge that tapers toward the top.

The product is made of metal, synthetic and glass materials, Samsung's patent document said.

Samsung executive vice president Lee Young Hee said in March interview with Bloomberg that the company's mobile division has been working on a smart watch. Samsung declined to confirm the report then.

Company spokeswoman Chenny Kim declined to comment on the patent applications. - AP

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How to grow a small business?

 

IT’S what everyone who’s ever wanted to start a business or already running one aspires to achieve - to grow big. But growing a small business is riddled with challenges.

The following, though not exhaustive, are some examples that will set you on the path to growing your still minuscule venture.

Technology

SMI Association of Malaysia president Teh Kee Sin acknowledges that technology adoption is often an issue for small companies.

“It’s always a challenge. They see technology adoption more as an expense rather than an investment. It’s something that they would rather avoid.

“But adopting technology into your business should not be seen as an immediate expense and rather, a long-term investment.”

Teh admits that one of the biggest nitpicks of small companies is the inability to secure financing to “move to the next level.”

“Many small firms complain that financial institutions demand a lot of unnecessary documents and information that is difficult to be fulfilled. So they get stuck and are not able to move forward.”

Teh says there needs to be more Government involvement so that support from financial institutions can be improved.

Branding

Branding Association of Malaysia (BAM) president Datuk Eric Chong says branding is extremely important for business organisations, regardless of the size of the organisation.

“Big and medium-sized businesses usually understand the importance of branding. They would not be where they are had they not understood and practised the art of branding along the way.

“Small businesses, however, usually struggle tremendously in this area. It is a chicken and egg situation for these small guys - should they make money and maximise profits first, or invest in their brands from day one?”

Chong adds that what a lot of small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) operators fail to understand is that branding isn’t just about spending money on advertising.

“While advertising is an essential part of branding, it takes much more than just splashing money around if one wishes to brand something properly. It is just like gardening - you need to sow the seeds and nurture the plants with consistency. A beautiful garden reflects the absolute commitment of the gardener; similarly, a good brand reflects the absolute commitment of the CEO and his team.

“It is about finding the right brand positioning, creating the right image, building a great brand culture, ensuring superb customer experience, communicate effectively with the market, etc. So is branding essential for SMEs? Yes, it lays the foundation and paves the way for a small entity to, someday, become a respectable player in the market.”

Talents

Leaderonomics chief executive officer Roshan Thiran notes that for many SMEs, leaders want growth but do not want to invest their time or energy to grow their people.

“This ultimately results in their company not growing either. Every company, even SMEs, are limited by the growth of their people. So, as long as your people are not learning and growing, don’t expect your organisation to grow exponentially either.

“As the business world changes, even small companies have become more attractive to young talents. Many start-ups can attract great talents in spite of their size or funds.”

Roshan says that many youths view working at start-ups more attractive than multinational companies.

“SMEs need to leverage this by their own personal inspirational leadership. People are attracted to work in an SME not because you pay well or have a big reputation.

“Instead, it is because of the leader. A great way to attract talent to your organisation is for the leaders and the leadership team to develop their own leadership skills. If you become an inspirational leader, the likelihood of you attracting talent rises significantly.”

Training

Peoplelogy group founder and chief executive officer Allen Lee says many small firms first complain that they have “no time” for training.

“Whenever they say they have no time, I always tell them to ‘make time lor.”

The next complaint, says Lee, is “what if I send them for training and they leave?”

“My response to them is always what if you don’t send them for training and they stay! If this is the case, how could these employees help small business to improve productivity and efficiency, cost savings and customer retention, for example? This also means that you will not have a chance to improve on your sales, cost efficiency, profitability and even your competitive edge.”

Lee believes most companies spend 60% to 70% of their money on people’s salary.

“And yet, they spend less than 1% of their total budget to develop the people. And most companies, in fact, spend more time and money on maintaining their buildings and equipment than they do on maintaining and developing people.

“If people get results, then it certainly makes good sense to invest in people. People are an asset to organisation anyway, regardless if it’s a big or small business.

Diversification

Established in 1974, PKT Logistics Group Sdn Bhd initially offered only customs brokerage services - but is now providing total logistics services.

PKT group chief executive and managing director Datuk Michael Tio believes that diversification was they key to how the company transformed itself into the total logistics provider it is today.

“As we started to diversify our services, our revenue grew. So the first step of growth was to continue to diversify services within the logistics industry by providing more services.

W started off as a custom agent, then subsequently expanded to freight forwarding, haulage, warehousing and so forth.”

Tio says the next step was to look for foreign partners to grow the business.“We found Japanese and Korean partners.

The Japanese provided us with a cushion during the currency crisis and the Korean partnership gave us entry into the automotive logistics sector.”

He adds that PKT started to observe how other multinational logistics companies expanded their revenue.

“We ended up competing with them in the fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) segment because 60% of the industry, or RM2bil, were controlled by them.

We had to overcome several challenges in order to compete with these companies, namely know-how, acquiring new technology, modern infrastructure and most importantly, moving up the value chain.”

  - Contributor: EUGENE MAHALINGAM  eugenicz@thestar.com.my

Fears of gangland wars

Shooting incidents spark fears of gangland war 



GEORGE TOWN: The three shooting incidents, including the assassination of a 37-year-old scrap dealer believed to be associated with Gang 36, which occurred over a span of 24 hours, has spawned speculation of a gangland war.

K. Veerappan was shot when he stopped the BMW 530i he was driving near a traffic light in Anson Road at 11.50am on Thursday.

It bore the registration number WVK 3636, which was believed to symbolise the gang’s number.

A motorcyclist rode up next to the car and the pillion rider whipped out a pistol and fired 14 shots, 10 of which hit his neck, cheek and abdomen.

His body was found slumped and his white shirt drenched with his blood.

The driver’s seat side window was shattered by the gunshots.

George Town OCPD Asst Comm Gan Kong Meng said Veerappan had had three previous drug records, adding that the car he was driving belonged to his 38-year-old friend who lives in Lebuh Macallum.

“Forensic policemen recovered 14 9mm-calibre bullet casings at the scene. Two machetes wrapped in newspaper were found in the car’s rear passenger seat,” ACP Gan said.

Before Veerappan’s shooting, a gunman fired at least six shots at a businessman’s bungalow in Jalan Utama. No one was injured in the 1.15am incident which is believed to be a triad’s warning to the businessman.

Only his 29-year old son, his daughter-in-law and a maid were at home at the time of the incident.

ACP Gan said the businessman, in his 60s, who is presently abroad, had lodged a police report last month after receiving an extortion letter containing six bullets.

“His daughter-in-law and maid found glass fragments from the window on the floor and bullet marks on the walls.

“Based on the CCTV footage, the gunman fired randomly from outside the house,” he said.

ACP Gan said the businessman had also received a text message in Chinese demanding that he deposit money into a local bank account.

“We are checking the mobile phone number from which the SMS was sent and also the bank account which has since been frozen.

“We are investigating the case under Section 39 of the Firearms Act and also Section 506 of the Penal Code for criminal intimidation,” he said, adding that police had not ruled out the possibility that the case could be gang-related.

The third shooting occurred in front of an entertainment outlet in Jalan Datuk Keramat where a 43-year-old bouncer was hit in the left thigh at 12.30am yesterday.

A gunman fired seven shots but only one hit the victim nicknamed Too Pek (Stupid in Hokkien).


Too Pek being taken for treatment at the Penang Hospital.

The bouncer is believed to be one of the top leaders of the Si Lian (Four Tyres) also known as the 04 Gang.

It was learnt that Too Pek had just gotten out from his BMW when the unidentified assailant on a motorcycle shot him.

“Despite being hit, he managed to make his way into the outlet to seek help from his friends. He was later sent to the Penang Hospital where he received outpatient treatment.

“Two foreign cleaners were questioned by the police after they were spotted sweeping up the seven bullet casings which were later recovered from a dustbin,” said a source.

Gangland rivalry linked to the drug trade is also believed to be behind three other shootings – in Parit Buntar, Perak; Batu Kawan, Penang; and Air Keroh, Malacca.

A factory van driver N. Jeevandran, 26 was gunned down while leaving his house for work at Taman Seri Semarak, Parit Buntar on July 31. He had five previous criminal records and was was detained under the Restricted Residence Enactment until the Emergency Ordinance was repealed in 2011.

On May 12, S. Kannan, 37, and G. Suresh, 28, were killed and two others were seriously injured in a shooting at the Bukit Tambun traffic-light junction. They had just left a relative’s wedding when two assailants on a motorcycle pulled up to the vehicle and fired multiple shots at about 10.30pm. Both deceased had criminal records.

Police believe the killings could be related to the shooting of S. Sara-vanan, 39, at Air Keroh in February.
Saravanan, who had travelled from Butterworth to stand trial for a robbery case, was gunned down moments after leaving the courthouse.

- The Star contributed to this story

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