Category: Industry
Fragile Links
SINGAPORE, Dec 28, 2006 (AFP) – The chaos in Asia’s Internet service sparked by an undersea earthquake shows the region’s cable network is too fragile and overly reliant on connections to the United States, industry observers said Thursday. Millions of people across Asia were enduring a second day without full Internet services after a 7.1-magnitude […]
Cable Cut
HONG KONG, Dec 27, 2006 (AFP) – Internet and phone services were disrupted across much of Asia on Wednesday after an earthquake damaged undersea cables, leaving one of the world’s most tech-savvy regions in a virtual blackout.“If there is too much traffic on that route, it might get blocked up and further slow down Internet […]
Tsunami-hit Sri Lanka stadium to be rebuilt despite Warne failure
GALLE, Sri Lanka, Dec 26, 2006 (AFP) – Australian leg-spinner Shane Warne might have failed to deliver promised aid to rebuild the Galle stadium but officials Tuesday vowed to restore the picturesque venue. The Shane Warne Foundation (SWF) told the Galle International Cricket Club in June that a fund-raising event had been a flop and […]
Piracy Charge
COLOMBO, Dec 26 (AFP) – The crew of a Jordanian cargo ship accused Tamil Tiger rebels Tuesday of piracy, saying the guerrillas had attacked their vessel after it developed engine trouble near a militant-held area.The rebels — in six boats — surrounded the Farah III and fired into the air as they boarded the vessel […]
Cheap Run
December 22, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka plans to float a state-run no frills airline, the government said Friday, to fly to the Middle East and neighbouring Asian countries. The budget carrier, Mihin Air, is expected to cost around 1.5 billion rupees with the government initial setting aside 500 million rupees as working capital, director […]
Digital Certification
December 21, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka has started to digitize the issue of birth, marriage and death certificates, which has cut processing time to as little as ten minutes, officials said. Mooted by the Information Communication Technology Agency or ICTA last year, the project has already digitized around 2.2 million birth certificates belonging to […]
Tough Action
December 21 (LBO) – Trade unions of telco giant Sri Lanka Telecom have threatened to go on strike together with other public sector unions, if a wage dispute is not settled by December 28. Unions representing about 6000 non-executive workers at the state telecom giant have demanded a 17.5 percent wage hike for non-executive grades, […]
Earnings Squeeze
December 20, 2006 (LBO) – Caltex Lubricants Lanka said Wednesday that earnings in 2007 will take a hit, after the government upped taxes on base oil, used as a raw material in manufacturing lubricants. The government increased a three percent cess on base oil imposed in October to six percent from November 18, with the […]
Internet TV
Dec 20, 2006 (LBO) – Capital Maharaja, a unit of the privately held media house the Maharaja Group, has tied up with Tokyo based media group, to digitally deliver television content via broadband to Sri Lankan diaspora in Korea and Japan. Capital Maharaja group’s e-commerce and internet arm RaiderTech penned the deal on Wednesday to […]
‘s tourist arrivals drop sharply by 22% in November
December 20, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s visitor arrivals in November slumped to 22.4 percent, the Tourist Board said Wednesday, prompting fears that the dwindling numbers will spillover to 2007. Sri Lanka welcomed 549,308 visitors in 2005 and the board is hoping to equal the score this year. The island greeted 37,591 holidaymakers in November […]
Green Business
December 19, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lankan businesses are cashing in on a booming market for carbon finance, selling carbon credits at increasing prices to developed countries struggling to meet climate change commitments. Developed countries who are signatories to the Kyoto protocol have agreed to cut carbon dioxide emissions that contribute to global warming, to […]
Oil Buddies
December 18, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka is scouting for international experts to help the island hedge part of its hefty oil bill next year, Petroleum Minister A H M Fowzie said Monday. A net oil importer, Sri Lanka’s retail fuel market is dominated by state oil giant Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC), while Indian fuel […]