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Associated Press
4 days ago
- Business
- Associated Press
Ictect Sponsors i.c.stars Program to Support the Next Generation of Diverse Tech Talent
MILWAUKEE, WI, UNITED STATES, June 4, 2025 / / -- Ictect, a leading provider of Intelligent Content software, proudly announces its sponsorship of a recent program in collaboration with a non-profit organization dedicated to developing future leaders through technology-based workforce development. This sponsorship reflects Ictect's continued commitment to community impact, innovation, and diversity in the tech industry. focuses on high-potential adults who are underrepresented in technology and provides them with training in IT, leadership, and business skills through an immersive, real-world practicum model. 'Our collaboration with has been deeply rewarding for me and my entire team,' said Pradeep Jain, Founder and CEO of Ictect. 'The impact is real, and the relationships built are lasting. We look forward to working with and the local communities in shaping the next generation of diverse tech talent with tangible business value.' As part of this initiative, Ictect hosted learning sessions and mentorship opportunities, offering interns valuable exposure to SharePoint and Microsoft technologies, AI, and XML technologies—areas where Ictect has pioneered innovation for over a decade. By aligning with organizations like Ictect continues to demonstrate the value of social responsibility paired with technological advancement. This partnership underscores the power of combining business expertise with community development to create sustainable impact. and Ictect invite you to the in-person event Capitalize on Wisconsin 2025 on June 4 @ 8.00 am – 12.00 CDT. About Ictect, Inc. Ictect is a Wisconsin-based technology-innovator – a rapidly growing software company serving the defense and commercial markets. Ictect brings Intelligent Content and Artificial Intelligence to your documents with tools you use every day, such as Microsoft Word. Ictect seeks to improve workflows and streamline performance by providing a better way to professionally edit, transform, and publish to multiple formats. Ictect serves customers within the Department of Defense, corporations, publishers and associations. Ictect is a Microsoft partner and an SBA-certified 8(a) company. About is a transformative initiative that empowers underserved adults through a comprehensive two-year tech and leadership program. Combining four months of intensive training with a 24-month residency, the program supports participants with stipends and essential services to ensure their success. Through strategic collaborations with leading corporations and a robust social enterprise arm, not only breaks the cycle of poverty but also drives significant economic growth within communities. The program successfully secures training-related employment for 85% of its graduates within six months while also fostering vibrant tech ecosystems and providing a vital talent pipeline to the industry. Media Contact: Ictect, Inc. [email protected] Visit us on social media: LinkedIn Legal Disclaimer: EIN Presswire provides this news content 'as is' without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above.
Mint
23-05-2025
- Business
- Mint
Diageo India expects price drop for some spirits after free trade pact with UK
New Delhi: Diageo India, a subsidiary of British liquor giant Diageo Plc, anticipates that the recently-announced India-UK free trade agreement (FTA) will help lower prices for imported spirits, with some categories seeing a high single-digit reduction, potentially lifting demand for its alcoholic beverages. "The India-UK free trade agreement, which has halved the duty on scotch from 150% to 75%, is landmark. It shall enhance accessibility of scotch in the world's largest whiskey market. As a category captain, for USL, it presents a valuable opportunity to drive deeper penetration and introduce new premium offerings that cater to India's evolving repertoire of consumers," Praveen Someshwar, chief executive officer and managing director, said during the company's earnings call on Friday. USL, or United Spirits Ltd, is an Indian beverages company and a subsidiary of Diageo. Earlier this month, India and the UK finalized the FTA, agreeing to reduce the 150% import duty on scotch whisky and gin to 75% initially, with a further decrease to 40% over the subsequent decade. Diageo India manufactures, sells, and distributes brands such as Johnnie Walker, Ketel One, Tanqueray, Captain Morgan and McDowell's No1, with a portion of its portfolio made locally and another part imported. The company's chief financial officer, Pradeep Jain, said that the duty reduction from 150% to 75% may result in approximately a high-single digit decrease in consumer prices. This will also help lift volumes for the company, he added. "Not just we, my sense is that the government will also insist that we pass on the pricing benefit to the consumer. We are absolutely of the same view that we would want to pass on this benefit completely to the consumer. And therefore, keeping the consumer spend constant, it is reasonable to assume that in this part of the portfolio, a high single digit additional volume growth should occur—that's on the bottled in origin (BIO) portfolio," he said. For spirits bottled in India, or BII, the price reduction could be in the range of 4-5%. To be sure, BII refers to spirits that are shipped to India in bulk and bottled within the country, including both international brands and locally blended spirits. These products dominate the ₹ 1,000–2,000 price segment. This includes brands such as 100 Pipers and Teacher's scotch. BIO refers to spirits that are entirely produced and bottled outside of India before being imported for sale—for instance products made and packaged in the UK like scotch whisky. 'There will be a benefit that accrues into the raw material prices also, but again, we will take a call on that as and when that happens. There is still some amount of work to happen before this actually becomes legislation. So, probably the benefit will start coming only in the financial year 2026-2027,' Jain said. Commenting on potential increase in competition due to duty reduction, Someshwar said, "Any play by a competitor will expand the pie—to me, that is an exciting space to be in." Diageo is a large player in the Indian liquor market, competing with companies like Pernod Ricard and Allied Blenders and Distillers Ltd. For the full year ended March 2025, the company reported gross revenues of ₹ 26,780 crore, a 5.4% year-on-year increase. In the March quarter, the company saw a 10.5% rise in reported net sales to ₹ 2,946 crore, attributed to portfolio resilience and the resumption of business in Andhra Pradesh. Profit after tax for the quarter was ₹ 451 crore, up 17.4%, and gross profit increased by 13.4%, leading to a gross margin of 44.5%.
Time of India
23-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
UK-India FTA will lead to a high single-digit reduction in prices, volume growth: Diageo
United Spirits Ltd, part of British multinational alcoholic beverage company Diageo, expects a reduction in "high single digit" in consumer prices of imported liquor in India along with additional volume growth after implementation of the India-UK free trade agreement, said its top management in an investors' call on Friday. Diageo India will pass on the benefit of the duty reduction from the free trade agreement between the India and UK governments to the consumers, said its Managing Director Praveen Someshwar and CFO Pradeep Jain. "Reduction of duties from 150 per cent to 75 per cent will typically lead to about a high single-digit reduction in consumer prices," said Someshwar while responding to a question. He further said: "My sense is that the government will also insist that we pass on the pricing benefit to the consumer, and we are absolutely of the same view that we would want to pass on this benefit completely to the consumer, and therefore keeping the consumer spend constant." Play Video Pause Skip Backward Skip Forward Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration 0:00 Loaded : 0% 0:00 Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 1x Playback Rate Chapters Chapters Descriptions descriptions off , selected Captions captions settings , opens captions settings dialog captions off , selected Audio Track Picture-in-Picture Fullscreen This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Text Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Caption Area Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Drop shadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Girls Show Their Perfect Figure In These Sport Photos Take At Perfect Time True Edition Undo Diageo, which owns brands as Johnnie Walker, Black & White, Smirnoff, Tanqueray etc., said it is "reasonable to assume" that in this part of the portfolio, a "high single digit additional volume growth" should happen. Under the trade pact, announced earlier this month, India will reduce duties on UK whisky and gin from 150 per cent to 75 per cent, and further to 40 per cent by the tenth year. Live Events This FTA "also opens up the opportunity of exploring our global portfolio as we see a reduction in duties, there will be some opportunities, and that will be very exciting from a consumer front also," they added. Diageo India expects these reductions mainly to happen on the Bottle-in-Origin (BIO) portfolio, which is distilled and packed in the UK and imported to India. However, over the Bottled-in-India (BII) category, they said the reduction in the prices would be less, because it will have a lesser component of benefit. "So the price reduction might be slightly less than high single digit, my sense is it will be a little bit in the range of 4 to 5 per cent," he said. Most of the IMFL (Indian Made Foreign Liquor) products, which are produced and bottled in India, come under the BII category. However, despite the benefits from the import of raw materials, Diageo India said it will take a call on that as and when that happens. "So, probably the benefit will start coming only in financial year FY26 and FY'27. At that point in time... I don't want to comment right now," they said. Earlier this week, global spirits major Diageo Plc, during its global earnings call, had said it is set to reduce the prices of its Scotch whisky brands in India following the India-UK FTA implementation.
India Today
21-04-2025
- India Today
28-year-old man loses Rs 2 lakh after downloading images on WhatsApp
A 28-year-old man from Maharashtra lost over Rs 2 lakh after downloading an image sent to him on WhatsApp by an unknown number. The image, which appeared to be a photo of an elderly man, turned out to be a trap created using a highly advanced hacking technique known as steganography. Here is what victim, Pradeep Jain, received an early morning call from an unknown number, followed by a WhatsApp message from the same number that included the image and a question: 'Do you know this person?' He initially ignored the message but gave in after receiving repeated calls. At around 1:35 PM, he downloaded the image, unaware that this single action would compromise his device. In just a few minutes, Rs 2.01 lakh was withdrawn from his Canara Bank account. The transaction took place through an ATM located in Hyderabad. Adding to the shock, when the bank attempted to verify the transaction, the scammers managed to mimic Jain's voice during the later confirmed that the scam was executed using a method called Least Significant Bit (LSB) steganography. It involves hiding malicious code inside everyday media files such as images, audio clips, or even PDF documents. Unlike typical viruses that trigger warnings or are flagged by antivirus tools, steganography makes the file look normal. The malware remains hidden and becomes active only after the file is opened. Neehar Pathare, Managing Director at 63SATS, told The Indian Express that steganography manipulates the smallest bits of data inside the file to carry out malicious instructions. These hidden payloads bypass standard detection systems and can only be traced using advanced forensic tools. According to him, this makes it difficult for both users and regular security software to recognise the Sharma, cyber expert and co-founder of TOFEE, has explained how this happens. Sharma said that images usually store colour information using three channels—red, green, and blue. Malware can be hidden within any of these, or even in the alpha channel that manages transparency. When such an infected image is opened, the code quietly installs itself and gains access to sensitive information such as banking credentials and personal messages. Pathare pointed out that once the file is opened, specific tools extract the hidden instructions and execute them without raising any red flags. This allows hackers to carry out their activities without being formats commonly used for such attacks include .jpg, .png, .mp3, .mp4, and PDF. Since these are widely shared on platforms like WhatsApp and seem harmless, they often pass through without triggering suspicion. What makes these scams more dangerous is that they don't rely on obvious tricks like phishing links or fake login pages. Instead, the malicious code stays quietly hidden inside files that most people consider experts strongly advise users to take a few basic precautions to avoid falling victim to such attacks. These include avoiding downloads from unknown numbers, turning off auto-download features in WhatsApp, keeping phones updated with the latest security patches, and never sharing OTPs. Users are also advised to restrict who can add them to WhatsApp groups and activate features like 'Silence Unknown Callers' to limit exposure to potential scam attempts.A spokesperson from WhatsApp said that the platform is aware of such evolving scams and has built tools to help users stay safe. They urged people to stay cautious, especially when interacting with unknown contacts, and to use features like context cards to assess the identity of new senders. They also recommended blocking and reporting suspicious accounts immediately and never downloading media or clicking links from unverified sources.
