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After <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=alibaba">Alibaba Group</a>, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Tencent">Tencent</a>, yet another Chinese giant wants to invest in <keyword id="2023759" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="startups-in-India">startups in India</keyword>. 
 
This time it is China’s biggest Internet search company, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=baidu">Baidu</a>, which is seeking to acquire a majority stake in <keyword id="276936" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Mydala-com">Mydala.com</keyword>, India’s discount marketing firm, for at least $100 million, or Rs 664 crore. 
 
Whereas, the owner and operator of Mydala.com, Kinobeo Software, is looking at a valuation of $150-200 million. 
 
Reportedly, Malaysia’s Khazanah Nasional Berhad also wants a majority stake in Mydala and this will be second in India's consumer internet sector. Khazanah participated in Rs 250-crore funding round in Zivame. 
 
Chief Financial Officer Jennifer Lee told a TV news channel that India and Indonesia had a lot of characteristics that mimic China's development. 
 
A Baidu spokesperson told ET, "Of course, strategic investments or M&amp;As that will help us round out our local user base and form a solid foundation for our products are a definite possibility in the future. We absolutely plan to be in India for the long term." 
 
Baidu, which has a market capitalisation of $69.2 billion, has launched four mobile products in the country and claimed in September that it had 45 million aggregate monthly active users in India. 
 
Presently, Info Edge owns about 44% of Mydala and majority of the remaining is with the founders and employees. 
 
"Baidu has been looking at (the discount couponing) space in India for some time now. They are attracted to the high number of users, especially in the classifieds space that cater to the small and medium enterprises," Kunal Walia, managing partner of boutique investment bank Khetal Advisors, told ET. 
 
Mydala offers deals in 209 cities and has about 28 million customers. 
 
(Image: Thinkstock)

China’s biggest Internet company, Baidu, wants to bank on the Indian startup scenario, seeks majority stake in Mydala

The coveted <keyword id="624" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Women">Women</keyword>’s Day is just two days away and chances are you are rolling out a new list of resolutions that will make life more meaningful throughout the year. On our part, we are back with another unique entrepreneurial <keyword id="6374782" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="journey">journey</keyword>, but this time she is a Delhi girl who bhangra-stepped her way through a checkered academic career in Delhi and <keyword id="32755" type="COMPANY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Washington-DC">Washington DC</keyword>, studying Art, Political Communication, Management and Information Systems Marketing before moving on to e-learning, and eventually setting up her <keyword id="2105187" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="First-company">first company</keyword>. In the second part of our Power Women series, <keyword id="824043" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Business-Insider">Business Insider</keyword> India chats with <keyword id="103110" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Anisha-Singh">Anisha Singh</keyword>, founder and <keyword id="5645" type="POSITION" weightage="100" keywordseo="CEO">CEO</keyword> of <keyword id="276936" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Mydala-com">MyDala.com</keyword>, India’s first and largest platform that offers the best discount deals on lifestyle products, <keyword id="4578" type="COMPANY" weightage="40" keywordseo="entertainment">entertainment</keyword>, travel, gadgets, fine dining and more. The company has a merchant base of 100,000-plus and offers its services in more than 145 cities in India. 
 But unlike many full-time businesswomen, Anisha has a ‘sporty’ side and loves to nurture it. She likes adventure <keyword id="6356028" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Sports">sports</keyword> and sometimes acts as a yoga instructor. What has life in the US and India unfolded before Anisha, and what are her takeaways from the business she is running? Find out from this freewheeling interaction. 
 
I had no plans to start a business; I got inspired… by watching others Although I come from a business family, I had sworn to myself long ago that I would never become an <keyword id="6359301" type="POSITION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Entrepreneur">entrepreneur</keyword>. But while I was at the <keyword id="159048" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="80" keywordseo="American-university">American University</keyword> in Washington DC, I got the opportunity to work with the <keyword id="196118" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="Clinton-administration">Clinton administration</keyword> on an initiative called Springboard. There, we would help <keyword id="74945" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Women-Entrepreneurs">women entrepreneurs</keyword> raise <keyword id="6357455" type="EVENT" weightage="80" keywordseo="Funding">funding</keyword> after shortlisting the best candidates. That’s where I read about these phenomenal women and something just changed within me. 
 Along with the <keyword id="175721" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="business-plans">business plans</keyword> (most of which were amazing), those women entrepreneurs had to submit their background stories as well. And those real-life stories of women who were successfully running grocery chains or operating software companies or were involved in similar businesses while being a single mom or managing 4 kids were just so inspirational. I think the entrepreneurial bug bit me sometime around then. So I packed up my bags, came to India and put my thoughts into action to start <keyword id="736994" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="mydala">MyDala</keyword>. Even now, I strongly believe that the world, and especially India, needs more <keyword id="2105199" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Women-role-models">women role models</keyword> whether they are women entrepreneurs or <keyword id="6464433" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Women-professionals">women professionals</keyword> across different fields. 
 
Think out of the box to survive Just like all other things, starting your own company will see loads of ups and downs, positives and negatives. But the bigger the business grows, the challenges and the positives will morph into different things. I think it also depends on how you look at a situation. For instance, we didn’t get any funding for MyDala upfront because of a couple of missteps and we could have let that get us down. But in hindsight, it got us to think creatively to survive and make MyDala grow into what it is today – via innovative marketing and alliances. We’re now one of the few companies that work with all major <keyword id="6383126" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Telcos">telcos</keyword> and <keyword id="163194" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="OEMs">OEMs</keyword> – giving us the means to reach out to hundreds of millions of prospective users. I don’t think this would ever have happened if we hadn’t learnt to figure out alliances due to the lack of initial funding. We were also fortunate to have some good people guiding us throughout. 
 
Have trust in yourself but seek help when you need it This one is for the wannapreneurs, especially if you are women. People will only believe in you when you believe in yourself – so don’t doubt yourself. If you have set your <keyword id="24479" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="40" keywordseo="heart">heart</keyword> on doing something, go do it. The worst that can happen is failure, but it’s not all that bad. 
 
Finally, don’t overthink. It’s good to think things through but women always think of every possible reason that can deter them from starting a business. When you start a business, no one can predict how it will go. Of course, initially, it won’t be a bed of roses. But trust me, it all works out fine. Just remember how you juggle your household, kids and family… your work, too, will fall into place in the same way. Have faith in yourself and ask for help when required. We women tend to hesitate more than men about asking for just about anything. The day we get past that, India will see a surge of women entrepreneurs and role models that we desperately need for our younger generations to look up to. 
 
Watch this space tomorrow – <keyword id="122850" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="power-women">Power Women</keyword> will be back with their intriguing success stories.

Power Women:
Roadblocks Lead To Creative Solutions That Will Help You Survive

Tired of the pesky calls and promotional SMS you seem to be getting all day long? Compelled to view display ads on your smartphone whether you like it or not? In a digital era which is rapidly going mobile, you can’t escape them altogether. But here is one <keyword id="940588" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="mobile-ad-network">mobile ad network</keyword> that lets you decide what you see and pays you for it. 
 Meet <keyword id="1956517" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Paisa-Swipe">Paisa Swipe</keyword>, a seven-month-old <keyword id="6404679" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="start-up">start-up</keyword> that has recently come up with an innovative <keyword id="956764" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Android-app">Android app</keyword> for connecting <keyword id="31174" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="brands">brands</keyword>, <keyword id="45859" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="content">content</keyword> and <keyword id="60468" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Consumers">consumers</keyword>. That may not seem too great a concept as too many companies are already around. But unlike others, Paisa Swipe has some unique selling points that make it attractive. For one, it features <keyword id="1956525" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Lock-screen-ads">lock screen ads</keyword> and each time a user swipes an ad, a certain amount of money gets deposited into his/her <keyword id="1956526" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Paisa-Swipe-account">Paisa Swipe account</keyword>. You can earn even more if you get your friends to sign up. As the app description says, “It is the easiest money you will ever make.” 
 But there’s more to it. Instead of <keyword id="1956530" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Random-ads">random ads</keyword>, here you get to see curated content in which you are actually interested. And finally, you have full <keyword id="1956532" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Control-over-ad-viewing">control over ad viewing</keyword> and can easily move away without opening any of them. 
 The app is presently limited to <keyword id="6355645" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="android">Android</keyword> phones (users can download it from <keyword id="963171" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Google-Play">Google Play</keyword>) but the start-up plans to release <keyword id="75489" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="IOS">iOS</keyword> and <keyword id="6354717" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Windows">Windows</keyword> versions at the earliest. Paisa Swipe says that a similar app in South Korea called Cash Slide has been extremely successful. Like its Korean counterpart, it is only available domestically, but the company is looking to expand to other countries in the near future. Here is a snapshot that captures Paisa Swipe’s vision and viability. 
 
Who runs Paisa Swipe: A global team of three with expertise in mobile business. <keyword id="1956515" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Jian-Tam">Jian Tam</keyword> is the CEO and has some good experience in digital marketing. Prior to Paisa Swipe, he had played a key role in setting up two other companies. Director <keyword id="1956516" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Chris-Marshall">Chris Marshall</keyword> studied in London School of Economics and works in the wireless space. Earlier, he had led three companies and one of them (AePONA) was sold to Intel. <keyword id="1956519" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Revanth-Mittapalli">Revanth Mittapalli</keyword> is the <keyword id="3658" type="COUNTRY" weightage="100" keywordseo="India">India</keyword> head with focus on digital marketing and four years of industry experience. The start-up has headquarters in <keyword id="6354552" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="hyderabad">Hyderabad</keyword> and <keyword id="6355838" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="New-York">New York</keyword>. 
 
What inspired the venture: The three co-founders came up with the concept to help mobile-first Internet users discover interesting and relevant content. “While talking to our partners in India for another project, we suddenly realised how an entire generation of people across the world, hundreds of millions of them, are accessing the Internet via mobile devices and many of them are doing it for the first time,” recalls Revanth. The trio felt that a mobile-ready way to connect content, brands and consumers would be the key requirement of every business. That’s how Paisa Swipe was born – it is the <keyword id="1956538" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Mobile-content-discovery-network">mobile content discovery network</keyword> for the mobile-first generation. The company was set up in May 2013 and its Android app became functional on October 15. 
 
What’s the pitch: India’s No.1 mobile lock screen ad/content discovery network. It’s time to ditch that boring old lock screen for a smarter one. One that pays you! Paisa Swipe connects brands and <keyword id="63341" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Advertisers">advertisers</keyword> directly to consumers across the world. The start-up enables consumers to find products, applications and daily deals they are interested in – controlled totally by them. 
 
How it works: For upfront users, it is quite simple. Once the app (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.paisaswipe.android) is installed on your mobile device (it has to be a <keyword id="1956545" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Touchscreen-android-device">touchscreen android device</keyword>, with V 2.1 or higher), you need to log in and customise your profile by providing more information regarding your interest areas. Paisa Swipe then takes over the lock screen and every time you wake up your phone, you will see a customised and curated piece of ad content. The topic will vary depending on your interests – it can be a Bollywood/Hollywood trailer, news updates, fashion trends, entertainment bytes, real-time local deals and more. 
 
If you like the content, simply ‘swipe’ to learn more and Paisa Swipe advertisers will reward you. As of now, each member gets up to 60 paise per day per ad display, and the upper limit for monthly earning is Rs 300. When you reach the ‘encashment’ point, you can use the amount to cash out at Freecharge.in, which offers recharge services for mobile, DTH and data cards. If you refer your friends to download the app, you may also win referral prizes. Moreover, you can get free prizes, buy products and get cashback on those, and give donation to charity with the money you earn from Paisa Swipe. 
 
Claim to fame: The app is just a month old and the traction had been slow at first. But it seems to be picking up now. Last we checked, total <keyword id="6795187" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="downloads">downloads</keyword> at <keyword id="6355629" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Google">Google</keyword> Play stood at 11,000 and the rating was 4.3 out of 5. But according to Revanth, the app is currently seeing 1,000 downloads a day, has crossed 4 million ad impressions and is witnessing at least 100,000 ad impressions per day. The other ‘plus’ is users get <keyword id="1956527" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Curated-ad-content">curated ad content</keyword>, depending on their interests. The ‘relevance’, the ‘control’ (one can choose not to ‘swipe’ the ads) and the ‘reward’ parts are the unique triggers that will further drive mobile marketing, says Revanth. 
 
Show me the money: The start-up is currently bootstrapped and its monetisation happens through <keyword id="1049940" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="ad-revenues">ad revenues</keyword>. Paisa Swipe has already signed deals with a few companies such as Yepme.com, Snapdeal.com, YellowFashion.in and Mydala.com. “We are now working hard to get more <keyword id="1956550" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Local-advertisers">local advertisers</keyword> and <keyword id="1956552" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Big-Indian-brands">big Indian brands</keyword> on board,” says Revanth. “Once that is done and we gain significant traction in terms of downloads, we will approach investors. But that will take at least a year or so,” he adds. Growth will be faster when the app is available on other platforms (iOS and Windows), according to the co-founders. The company will also expand to five more countries in the next quarter in order to grow its user base. 
 
Biggest challenge: Finding the right kind of <keyword id="1956555" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Consumer-engagement">consumer engagement</keyword> to keep them viewing the advertisements. <keyword id="564900" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Mobile-advertising">Mobile advertising</keyword> is growing at fabulous pace – so keeping things interesting and relevant for a fast-growing user base is the biggest challenge for all mobile ad networks.

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China’s biggest Internet company, Baidu, wants to bank on the Indian startup scenario, seeks majority stake in Mydala

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Power Women: Roadblocks Lead To Creative Solutions That Will Help You Survive

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This Mobile Ad Network Lets You Control What You See, Pays For Ad Viewing

Sanghamitra Mandal

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