BWI: Microsoft Awards Entrepreneurial “Sparks” for a Second Year

Press release from Business Wire India
Source: Microsoft
Thursday, June 07, 2012 11:40 AM IST (06:10 AM GMT)
Editors: General: Consumer interest; Business: Business services, Information technology, Media & entertainment, Telecommunications; Technology
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Microsoft Awards Entrepreneurial "Sparks" for a Second Year


Bangalore, Karnataka, India, Thursday, June 07, 2012 -- (Business Wire India) -- -- A grant of $100, 000 given to facilitate Microsoft BizSpark India Startup Challenge winners
-- Grant to equip the startups to grow their business

The Microsoft BizSpark India StartUp Challenge, in its second year, announced the competition's winner and 100,000 USD recipient. The Microsoft BizSpark India Startup Challenge 2012 is the largest entrepreneurial competition in India that recognizes inspiring ideas in the field of technology.

Cloud Application Category Winners:

Winner: Aurus Network
1st Runner up: Cipher Graph Networks

Mobile Application Category Winner:

Winner: Now Floats Technologies
1st Runner up: Vdime Innovative Works

The event was marked by an eclectic mix of presentations on entrepreneurial ideas by students and inspiring speeches made by Sharad Sharma, Executive Council Member, NASSCOM, Sanket Akerkar, Managing Director, Microsoft Corporation India (Pvt) Ltd, Joseph Landes, General Manager, Microsoft Corporation India (Pvt) Ltd and K. Rajnish Menon, Director - ISV & Cloud Strategy, Microsoft Corporation India (Pvt) Ltd.. The speaker sessions covered issues such as igniting the spark of innovation, nurturing the startup ecosystem, and importance of technological innovations. Following the presentations from participants, the announcement was made to grant the final prize and an audience event, Play to Win!

The challenge offered an opportunity for startups to win huge grants to realize their business plan. 16 finalists were shortlisted on the basis of ingenuity, creativity and innovation of the submitted plans. First and second winners for each category won a grant of $30,000 USD and $15,000 USD respectively. The four runners-up in the Cloud category received a grant of $1,000USD each while three runners-up in the Mobile category received grants of - $1,000 USD. But most importantly, the challenge presents an opportunity for the BizSpark Community to build and deepen connections, share ideas, network partners and celebrate the individual successes of member startups.

K Rajinish Menon, Director - ISV & Cloud Strategy, Microsoft Corporation India (Pvt) Ltd, said "Microsoft is committed to fostering an entrepreneurial environment by driving technological innovations. It's inspiring to see the thriving startup community, and we are dedicated to providing these entrepreneurs with a holistic approach to their initiatives."

About BizSpark

BizSpark Program has helped more than 1700 Indian startup entrepreneurs by providing strong grounds to stand, grow and improve their functioning. The idea behind Bizspark is to fast-track the success of young startups with software, support & visibility. Selected startup businesses receive business development and technical training at highly subsidized costs or in many cases, no costs. More information about the 'Challenge' is available at http://www.bizsparkstartupchallenge.com/

About Microsoft India

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (NASDAQ "MSFT") is the worldwide leader in software for personal and business computing. The company offers a wide range of products and services designed to empower people through great software - any time, any place and on any device. Microsoft Corporation (India) Private Ltd is a subsidiary of Microsoft Corporation, USA. It has had a presence in India since 1990 and currently has offices in nine cities - Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kochi, Kolkata, Mumbai, New Delhi and Pune.

To view the photographs, please click on the links given below:

Aurus Network

Now Floats Technologies
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CONTACT DETAILS
Ankush Khera, Management Associate, IPAN Hill & Knowlton, +91 9873130686, akhera@ipanhillandknowlton.com

KEYWORDS
CONSUMER, BUSINESS SERVICES, IT, MEDIA, TELECOMMUNICATIONS, TECHNOLOGY

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