New Delhi, Delhi, India, Tuesday, May 07, 2013 — (Business Wire India) — Microsoft’s BizSpark India Start-up Challenge, in its third year, has invited applications from technology enthusiasts across India, aiming to discover and support the next wave of promising start-ups in India. As of now with 1 week away from deadline, the competition has already received 690 registrations this year which shows a very healthy intent to innovate and create high quality product start-ups. For the first time, the competition is being organized across 10 cities, including Mumbai, Kolkata, Cochin, Delhi, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Pune, Coimbatore, Chennai, and Bangalore. The search is on for fresh ideas and vibrant leaders who can help shape the future of Cloud computing and Mobility. The competition aims to help start-ups succeed by giving them access to software development tools, connecting them with key industry players, and providing marketing visibility. Participants can submit their business ideas electronically on: http://www.microsoft.com/india/bizsparkstartupchallenge/about_challenge.aspx
10 finalists from each region will be short listed on the basis of their ingenuity, creativity and innovation and they will get a chance to present their business plan to a distinguished jury at the Regional Finals in 10 different cities. Each regional winner gets the privilege to pitch at national finals in Bangalore on 4th June, 2013 to compete for the National Top 3 positions.
“The BizSpark India Start-up Challenge aims to nourish and support the entrepreneurial ecosystem in India by providing software startups with access to world class technology during their inception, and giving them a better chance of success and in turn creating jobs, wealth and innovation”, said K Rajinish Menon, Director – ISV & Cloud Strategy, Microsoft Corporation India (Pvt) Ltd .
“It’s inspiring to see the thriving startup community in India especially those of tier ii and tier III cities of India, and Microsoft is committed to providing these startup entrepreneurs with a holistic approach to their initiatives”, he added.
The teams are contesting for a grant prize of $70K in cash and $2 Million worth of non-cash prizes such as Windows Phones, liaisons with venture capitalists, an exclusive connect with Microsoft account management teams to evangelize the solution, relevant training, as well as a BizSpark Plus membership .
“NowFloats is focussed on helping businesses create, update and market their location-tagged websites by simply just sending an SMS to 56767878. By participating and winning the BizSpark Start-up Challenge in June 2012, NowFloats got the validation and instant recognition of our technology nationally, within 6 months of wining the challenge we had over 1000 customers signed up!” Said Jasminder Singh Gulati, Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer, NowFloats
About Microsoft BizSpark
BizSpark is a global program designed to accelerate the success of IT entrepreneurs through software support and a vibrant ecosystem in the country by providing them with software, support and visibility during the first three years. In three years, the program has impacted over 2725 startups by providing professional software at no charge. Along with facilitating technical support for the startups, Microsoft has tied up with venture capitalists like IDG Ventures who are helping startups with financial aid as well.
BizSpark Plus is an extension of the foundational BizSpark program, providing higher value offerings like Windows Azure $60K through a network of leading regional incubators and accelerators around the world.
More information is available at http://www.microsoft.com/bizspark .
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.
