Just wanted to share the article below…though of not direct relevance to this blog, what I would like to point out is that Indian government’s strengthening of patent laws is helping get FDI. Could it be the same case for other sectors including IT?

I understand that Indian patenting laws recognize only software patents tied with hardware unlike US which even recognize design and business method patents. I think we need to catch up soon with thinks like IP and patenting before wondering why few companies register their companies or products in India. Just something to chew on.

Here’s the article mentioned above.
http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/japanese-pharma-firm-setsindian-subsidiary/05/18/340755/

I always wanted to write a Hindi blog practicing and spreading my dubious song writing skills. It is one of the most beautiful languages on the planet.

Thanks for the post.

The fact that most things generating noise are Westernized in this part of the world (most cities in the world have started to look the same anyways). On the other hand-we see Sony, Samsung, TATA, Lenovo, and stuff like basmati, curd and zillions of consumer products that are Asian- and category leaders worldwide and are case studies in themselves.

Interesting timeline of a ‘decade’ there- but I think Asian thought leaders have an inherent advantage of being there (but not reaching out) and I think we can and should achieve this before a decade.

@jonathan @vimoh: the prinicpals of decimals, zero, compass navigation and numerous other things are Asian origin innovations- and Asians mastered international sports better than their home countries. Despite the language barriers. Now they have the power of english and easy transaltion and transliteration. And more foreigners are now learning mandarin, cantonese and hokkein than ever before.

A prophecy: All of the commentators to this post till now are thought leaders themselves and in the next decade will make a mark in the global internet scene. Because of one simple fact- they get intrigued by this topic so much that they took out a moment from their lives to participate. You guys will change the world.

You make a good point we generally overlook in our busy daily lives. But, as part of our daily lives we eat Mc burgers, drink coke/pepsi, and get the daily dose of news at CNN, Financial Times or Google News. Hey wait a minute, what gum do you chew? What chocolate do your children eat? What shirt or footwear do your wear? (No. Not your wife’s handbag – that’s probably an Italian brand!). Not once do we bat an eyelid about all these as being American. So why think twice about the thought leadership on the internet being led by Americans?

Come now, name all items Asian.
News?
Cholocate?
Gum?
Apparel Brands?
Shirt?
Footwear?

Done? Go back to your list and write against it which are Asian. Most likely some might be from your home country, like Indian (if you are Indian)? Anything Asian about it? Probably very little.

Ok. Now name the software tools you use. Word, Excel,Adobe, Picasa, Oracle, Sybase… all American. Name the browsers you use IE, Firefox, Safari, Opera, Google Chrome. Again all American! What OS do you use? Windows, Mac, Linux… American again? What eMail do you use? Gmail, Yahoo, AOL…? Need I say more?

I am not saying that we should subscribe to all things American, nor am I suggesting that we accept defeat. I just think we are at least a decade away from being “there”.

Lot of things we see and do should change. Where our ideas originate from should change. What our motivations are should change. Who butters our bread should change. And then, may be, our leaders, motivators, gurus, might change. And one fine day may be we will find some home-grown leaders whom we are proud to quote, look up to, and aspire to become like one.

Even though most of the contents look Americanised, a closer scrutiny reveals- what is reflective of the imminent global rejig as well- Asian voices conjuring up to an idientity that cannot be over-looked!!

Most online “participants” (for a lack of a better word) in the western world (not limited to just America) are at least comfortable if not proficient in using the English language as their interaction language of choice.

Thus, ideas flow much more freely between America and the rest of the western Internet, and which makes American influence appear bigger than it is.

In Asia, with some countries having better Internet/broadband penetration than even some parts of the US, I would imagine there is a lot more online participants. But because of the language barrier, most of us in Singapore (as well as the western Internet) do not really feel their existence.