United News of Bangladesh

Walton has been honoured with the Sheikh Kamal National Sports Council Award 2021 for its contribution to all forms of games and sports across the country. The company has been sponsoring international, rural and traditional sports including cricket, football and hockey over a decade. Walton was recognised as the country's best sponsor organisation Thursday at a function held on the 72nd birth anniversary of Shaheed Captain Sheikh Kamal at the Sheikh Kamal auditorium of the National Sports Council (NSC) in the capital.  Read: 10 sports personalities, 2 organisations receive Sheikh Kamal Sports Award Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina virtually joined the award-giving ceremony as chief guest. State Minister for Youth and Sports M Zahid Ahsan Russell presided over the function. Senior Executive Director (Games and Sports) of Walton Group FM Iqbal Bin Anwar Dawn received the award on behalf of Walton. Read: Akbar and Ruman among 12 to receive Sheikh Kamal sports award The NSC launched the Sheikh Kamal National Sports Council Award, featuring seven categories. Twelve persons and organisations including sports figures, journalists and organisers received the award. Alongside Walton, the recipients of the award include cricketer Akbar Ali, female footballer Unnoti Khatun, archer Ruman Shana, weightlifter Mabia Akhter Simanta, swimmer Mahfuza Khatun Shila, and the Bangladesh Cricket Board. Read Walton brings 64-megapixel penta-camera Primo ZX4

Huawei recently announced its plan to invest $100 million in startup support at its inaugural Spark Founders Summit, which took place simultaneously in Singapore and Hong Kong. The investment would go towards Huawei's Spark programme, which aims to build a sustainable startup ecosystem in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) over the next three years, according to the Chinese tech giant. Huawei has been helping Singapore build the first startup hub in APAC since 2020 and has expanded the programme to many countries in the region in the past year. Read: Huawei partners to build 5G automobile ecosphere At the summit, Huawei also announced that this programme would focus its efforts on developing four additional startup hubs – in Indonesia, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, and Vietnam – with the overarching aim of recruiting 1,000 startups, out of which 100 are scale-ups, into the Spark accelerator programme. Huawei Senior Vice-President and Board Member Catherine Chen said, "We all know how brilliant startups and SMEs are. They are the innovators, disruptors, and pioneers of our times. These companies account for two-thirds of jobs worldwide, create two-thirds of new jobs, and generate almost 50% of global GDP. And 34 years ago, Huawei was a startup with just $5,000 of registered capital." Read: Huawei to invest $150 million in talent development "In Asia Pacific, for the Asia Pacific has been our unchanged commitment for the past two decades," said Jeffery Liu, president of Huawei Asia Pacific. "Leveraging Huawei's global customer base and full-stack technologies, the Spark Program will invest over $100 million in the next three years, and provide comprehensive support to build a sustainable startup ecosystem and create new value for the dynamic region."

Short-video app Likee recently celebrated the fourth anniversary of its global launch. The application was officially launched in Bangladesh in July 2019. Likee – a global platform for creating, viewing, and sharing short-form mobile videos – now has more than 100 million members across the world. Also read: Likee bans 42,751 accounts in 5 months for violating rules While the app has encouraged users to express their latent talent, it has also been promoting entertaining and educational campaigns to create value through opportunities and education for users. For example, Likee launched the Victory Day campaign in Bangladesh in December 2020, which generated over 37 million engagements, and the Independence Day campaign in March 2021, which generated over 55 million engagements. Also, to identify talented creative users, the brand launched the "Likee Talents" campaign, which generated approximately 949 million engagements. Also read: Likee steps forward to ensure user safety, content quality Likee's educational campaign in Bangladesh – the #Steps2Learn campaign – has also generated over 4.5 million engagements. "In a time when the internet is always at the tip of our fingers, choosing the right community with quality content is very important for the users to make the most out of their virtual engagements," Joy, Likee's head of operations in Bangladesh, said. "Likee is learning every day about the local culture and trends in Bangladesh and is striving to design itself according to that to add more value to users' lives." Read Short video platforms are new way of building communities: Head of Likee Operations in Bangladesh

realme launched the wireless charging solution for Android, MagDart, in the global market through a Magnetic Innovation Event held on Tuesday. The solution includes the fastest 50W magnetic wireless charger, realme Flash, the first Android smartphone that supports magnetic wireless charging, and several other magnetic charging accessories. Read: realme C21 now 'Made in Bangladesh' Realme's first concept phone, realme Flash, is equipped with a 4500mAh battery. With the help of its 50W of MagDart wireless charging, the battery can be charged from 0 to 20% in just 5 minutes and to 100% in just 54 minutes, said a media release. The 50W MagDart charger features an active air-cooling system to keep the temperature at an optimum level and maintain the charging power at a high level for a longer time. Meanwhile, the 15W MagDart Charger is 3.9mm, 26.4% thinner than the MagSafe Charger, but it is capable of reducing heat generation and providing longer high-power charging hours. Read: realme 8 5G Review: Affordable 5G Phone with Flagship Features The solution comes with MagDart Power Bank and a special charging base as well. The two can be paired together to become a vertical charging station. If one needs to charge on the go, the power bank can be pulled up and attached to the smartphone. Apart from these, there are other MagDart accessories like- MagDart Beauty Light which is designed for portrait photography and MagDart wallet that can be turned into a kickstand to hold the phone up when watching movies or making video calls. Besides realme GT MagDart Charging Case can enable realme GT compatible with MagDart. Read Best Upcoming Phones in August 2021 in Bangladesh – Official & Unofficial

The global internet technology company SHAREit Group is set to strengthen business in Bangladesh. SHAREit Group, mainly dedicated to mobile internet application development and digital services, now has offices in various countries and regions of the world, including Singapore, Indonesia, the Philippines, and the UAE. Read The Emerging Logistics Tech Startups, Courier, Delivery Services in Bangladesh Now, the company is eyeing Bangladesh, an emerging market with a large user base, as its next destination. The number of internet users in Bangladesh increased by 7.7 million – more than 19% – between 2020 and 2021. In January 2021, there were 47.61 million internet users and the internet penetration in the country stood at 28.8%. READ: 'Accelerating digital economy key for inclusive integration in APAC' A recent report showed that the number of internet users in Bangladesh expanded by 3.3 crore between 2010 and 2019, bringing another 20% of the population online. However, the development of internet channels and resources are fairly slow in Bangladesh compared to the increasing number of users. "From starting as a simple file transfer app, SHAREit has now branched out into other ventures such as brand marketing, digital advertising, and entertnment solutions. Over the years, our growth as a platform for marketing and entertainment as well as the meteoric rise of total users has been phenomenal," Karam Malhotra, partner and global vice-president of SHAREit, said. READ: US roadshow 3rd phase: Walton urges expats, foreigners to invest in Bangladesh "Now that we have a large number of users in Bangladesh, we want to strengthen our business in this country to partner with local and global apps and serve our users in more enhanced ways."  This renewed journey of SHAREit Group in Bangladesh is expected to benefit the users in multi-faceted ways as it comes as an alternative channel for brand marketing as well. Apart from high-quality digital services, SHAREit Group will offer in-depth, customised, and locally-tailored advertising and branding solutions riding on its capabilities and billions of global users to the local brands and marketers. Read Digital Healthcare Startups in Bangladesh: An Overview

Participants at the recently held webinar "Accelerate Digital Economy for Inclusive Integration in the Asia Pacific – Connecting Digital Industries in Pandemic" called for leveraging digital opportunities to build an inclusive ecosystem and promoting regional integration, which is particularly important while still combating the pandemic. A digital economy is increasingly perceived as the way to overcome disruptions caused by Covid-19. Representatives and thought leaders from government, industry and academic sectors across the Asia-Pacific (APAC) joined the virtual conversation organised by Huawei to explore the multiple facets of the digital economy. Read: Huawei wants to empower ASEAN's green development Ambassador of Indonesia to China Djauhari Oratmangun said, "The digital transformation has been significantly accelerated during the pandemic, speeding up business changes." Based on digital knowledge and infrastructure, the digital economy has powered a growing proportion of regional GDP and boosted resilience amid the pandemic. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) predicts the digital economy will contribute $1 trillion to regional GDP by year. Read: Huawei to invest $150 million in talent development Countries from the region have released future-oriented roadmaps on removing trade barriers, improving digital coverage and ensuring ubiquitous access to digital services to facilitate the implementation of the digital economy. "The development of the digital economy ecosystem is a process that involves active participation of multiple stakeholders including those from the private sectors," said Dr Le Quang Lan, assistant director for ICT and Tourism Division at ASEAN Secretariat, when referring to enabling a digital economy ecosystem to accelerate social recovery and regional integration. Dr Tan Khee Giap, chairman of the Singapore National Committee for Pacific Economic Cooperation, said: "Digitalisation is not just about technological progress, but quality empowerment of digitalisation to the public at large is paramount if inclusive integration is to be achieved. The role of the government is providing digital capability as a public good, it can be complemented by private sector ICT companies." Read Huawei Bangladesh gets Pioneer 5G Partner Award Professor Jose Decolongon, COO and managing director of Corporate Foresight, Embiggen Consulting Philippines said: "Micro, small, medium enterprises need to have an understanding of digitalisation to perceive the opportunities when it comes to exploring the digital side of the business."

Global smartphone brand vivo is now offering a variety of budget smartphones that come with all the important features. Recently, vivo built an impressive lineup for ultra-budget-friendly smartphones. According to the brand, the Y series smartphones have become particularly popular among consumers. Three vivo Y series smartphones under Tk15,000 have managed to attract buyers' attention. Also read: VIVO introduces V21 with ‘Perfect Night Selfie System’ Vivo Y1s Y1s retails for Tk8,990 with a combination of 2GB RAM and 32GB ROM. This smartphone comes with a 4030mAh battery. Based on Android 10, Y1s runs on Funtouch OS10.5 that allows the phone to perform smoothly. Also, the phone offers a rich and immersive viewing experience with a 6.22-inch Halo FullView Display. Also read: For youth-connect, Vivo ropes in Bidya Sinha Mim Vivo Y12s Y12s is available for a retail price of Tk11,990. The device comes with a storage capacity of 3GB RAM and 32GB ROM. Running on the Funtouch OS 11, this smartphone features a 5000mAh battery. The phone also has features such as the Face Wake and the Side Fingerprint design equipped with a fingerprint scanner on the power button to unlock the smartphone. Read Top features of vivo Y series Vivo Y20 Y20 (2021) retails for Tk13,990 and comes with 4GB RAM and 64GB ROM that makes gaming a smooth and unhindered experience. The device is supported by a 5000mAh battery. Y20 also features a Side-Mounted Fingerprint Scanner that enables instant unlocking of the device. Read Vivo iQOO Z6 Review: The Budget Vivo for Camera Enthusiasts

At the third phase of the "USA roadshow," Walton Hi-Tech Industries Managing Director Golam Murshed Friday urged the expatriates and foreigners to invest in Bangladesh and participate in the country's development. Earlier, the three-hour roadshow began at InterContinental Los Angeles Downtown.  Read: Walton brings new smart fridge with IoT, AI functionalities The first and second phases of the USA roadshow, an initiative of the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission to showcase the strength and opportunities of business and investment in Bangladesh for investors from abroad, were held in New York and Washington DC on July 26 and 28.  The fourth phase of the roadshow – "The Rise of Bengal Tiger: Potentials of Trade and Investment in Bangladesh" – will be held on August 2 at Hyatt Regency Santa Clara in Silicon Valley. Read: Demands of Walton freezer go up for optimized insulation thickness  Developing international trade and investment through both portfolio investment and foreign direct investment (FDI) by the expatriates and foreign investors is the key target of the roadshows.

Global smart device brand Oppo recently launched a Trustworthy Campaign in more than 20 countries and has already set up over 25,00 service centres across 60 nations. Since 2020, the brand has begun to set up experience stores in the pilot areas that integrate the entire service process. Up to now, Oppo call centres have provided hotline services in more than 34 languages. Users can give a call to Oppo service specialists through the local service hotline when they face any issues. Read: Oppo Reno 6 Pro 5G Review: Is it worth it? Also, Oppo has launched services such as international warranty service, face-to-face repair, and one-hour flash fix to optimise the consumer's service experience. Amid the pandemic, the brand has accelerated the construction of contactless services so that users can enjoy send-in repair service, check spare parts' price and get other services through the official website of the brand or My Oppo app. To make sure all service staff can give professional and accurate answers to users' questions, Oppo has established a knowledge base for them, according to a press release. Read: Oppo launches Renovators 2021 Emerging Artists Project

Global smart device brand Oppo recently unveiled the development of its Flash Charge technology solution.  "Oppo's VOOC Flash Charge technology is based on innovation across an entire fast-charging system that encompasses the charging adapter, charging cable, PMIC, battery and more," Jeff Zhang, chief scientist of OPPO VOOC Flash Charge, said. Read: Oppo Reno 6 Pro 5G Review: Is it worth it? "Whether people choose wireless or wired charging, VOOC Flash Charge technology is now capable of meeting a wide range of needs when it comes to charging electronic devices, even in the most extreme circumstances," he added. Oppo also unveiled its new smart charging technology. Designed to keep the charging speed within the safest possible range, the technology adjusts the charging current based on intelligent detection of different charging scenarios. This can also help reduce the occurrence of unusual battery ageing, allowing users to enjoy optimal battery life for a longer period.  Read: Oppo launches Renovators 2021 Emerging Artists Project The smart charging technology can deliver noticeable improvements to multiple aspects of the battery’s performance, including longer battery life (able to maintain battery capacity to 80% of its original capacity after as many as 1,500 charge cycles) and a balance between charging speed and phone temperature. Also, the charging speed can be increased according to specific situations, read a press release. Read Xiaomi POCO F3 GT Review: Can It Satisfy the Crazy Gamers?