MUMBAI: The Governing Council of the Internet & Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) has announced a change of guard at the association with effect from 1 April, 2006.
People Group chairman and managing director Anupam Mittal has been appointed as the chairman and CII ex-director IT and telecom Dr. Subho Ray as the president of IAMAI.
While Mittal takes over from Neville Taraporewalla, Dr. Ray takes over the mandate from Preeti Desai.
The association also announced the appointments of ebay India CEO Avnish Bajaj as vice chairman and Times Internet CFO Ravi Ramu as its treasurer.
Commenting on the new role as the chairman of IAMAI, Mittal said, "Under the able guidance of Neville and Preeti, IAMAI has played a significant role in organising and bringing together the internet and the mobile industry towards a common vision and agenda. IAMAI now enters its third year as an association and it is important to recognise how much has been achieved in the last two years. The association has gone from an idea to the most credible authority on the Internet and Mobile VAS industries in this country. The foundations have been laid to collectively build one of the leading digital and networked economies of the world."
Mittal outlined the three areas that IAMAI will work towards in the coming months:
Play the role of a thought leader (research, events, networking) to further spur Internet usage and ecommerce growth in India
Generate awareness amongst consumers and government of the economic as well as social benefits of broad based Internet usage
Proactively address challenges and hurdles that can hamper the growth of what is perhaps one of the most transformational opportunities of our time
"I am honored to be nominated for this position and am looking forward to working with and learning from pioneers such as Dr. Subho Ray, Ravi Ramu and Avnish Bajaj," he added.
Dr. Ray added, "Ecommerce and MCommerce and mobile content are some of the most exciting sectors today in India. Proliferation of Internet and Internet access through mobile communications has the potential to bring a wide range of financial transactions to an entirely new customer base. IAMAI will play a crucial role in channelising the digital economy’s effort and communicate its true potential for social and economic development. We will continue our concerted efforts of bringing 100 million Indians online by 2007 and empower society and businesses to benefit from the time and cost savings offered by the Internet."
