India withdraws UN proposals on fighting cybercrime; Zomato shuts 10-min food delivery

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Last June, we reported that the Indian government had asked a UN ad hoc committee to adopt measures similar to those in Section 66A of the Information Technology Act – which the Supreme Court declared illegal in 2015 – to counter the use of information and communication technologies for criminal purposes.

Now, the government has withdrawn these suggestions after failing to find support for them among other member nations.

Also in this letter:
■ Zomato is winding up its 10-minute food delivery business
■ Amazon Air launched in India, promises faster deliveries
■ Zilingo sells Ncinga, tech assets to Buyogo AG

Govt withdraws UN proposals reminiscent of scrapped Section 66A

India has withdrawn certain provisions it had suggested to a United Nations committee in May 2022, which were similar to those prescribed in Section 66A of the Information Technology (IT) Act, which the Supreme Court struck down in 2015, people aware of the matter told us.

Lack of support: The policy document was withdrawn after it failed to find adequate support from other member nations of the UN Ad-Hoc committee, sources said. The grouping has been tasked with creating a comprehensive international convention to counter the use of information and communications technologies for criminal purposes.

Several countries from the European Union, the United Kingdom, El Salvador, Nigeria, and Luxembourg opposed India’s proposal and said that it would have a direct impact on freedom of speech in their jurisdictions, according to the people cited above.

Updated version: A new policy document, submitted by India in August 2022, has omitted references to Section 66A of the IT Act that was present in its earlier submission of May 2022, an analysis of both submissions by ET showed.

Catch up quick: In its presentation to the UN Committee in May 2022, India had suggested that all member nations adopt legislative and other measures which are necessary to establish offence if a person “sends, using a computer or any other communication device, information that is grossly offensive or has a menacing character, or which he knows to be false, for the purpose of causing annoyance, inconvenience and danger”.

The language of the three provisions is similar to that contained in Section 66 A of the IT Act, which was struck down as illegal by the Supreme Court in 2015.

Zomato is winding up its 10-minute food delivery business

Zomato is shutting down its 10-minute food delivery service Zomato Instant less than a year after it was launched as it chases profitability amid tough market conditions.

Driving the news: The company recently told its restaurant partners it would look to close down the service, said two sources privy to the development.

“It didn’t look like it would turn profitable. The company was not getting the daily volume required to even pay the fixed costs. It wasn’t scaling up to that level,” a person aware of the development told us.

Statement: Zomato said it was not shutting down Instant but rebranding the service. “Instant is not shutting down. We are working on a new menu with our partners and rebranding the business. All finishing stations remain intact, and no people are impacted by this decision,” the company said.

What’s next? “The plan is to now pivot to a new product,” he said, adding that Zomato is experimenting with low-value packed meals – thalis or combo meals. It has not been decided if Zomato will retain the 10-minutes preposition for this but the new offering will be launched in 7-10 days, one of the sources said.

Looking to hire: Meanwhile, Zomato chief executive Deepinder Goyal said the company was looking to hire 800 people across roles such as growth managers, software development engineers and even chiefs of staff to CEOs of Zomato, Hyperpure and Blinkit. He also advertised vacancies for ‘generalist’ and ‘product owner’ roles.

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Amazon Air launched in India, promises faster deliveries

Amazon is starting its cargo service, Amazon Air, in India. This will allow the US ecommerce major to deliver goods more quickly to consumers, especially those in the top metro cities, said Akhil Saxena, vice president, customer fulfilment (APAC, MENA & LATAM) and worldwide customer service, Amazon.

Dedicated fleet: While Amazon will continue to move goods by air using its third-party aircraft firms such as Indigo, Spicejet and Vistara, Amazon Air will be dedicated to markets like Bengaluru, Hyderabad, New Delhi and Mumbai.

For now, Amazon has leased two aircraft in India in partnership with Quikjet. It has 90 aircraft for Amazon Air in the US and around 150 in other countries, including India. “Essentially, this gives us more control on delivery and gives us full visibility end–to-end,” Saxena said.

Recent investments: Last week, we reported that Amazon infused an additional Rs 400 crore in its local shipping arm Amazon Transportation Services. Prior to that, in June 2022, Amazon Transportation received around Rs 375 crore from the parent entities of Amazon as well, we reported.

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ETtech Done Deals

Fintech major Pine Labs said on Monday it has acquired rewards and engagement platform Saluto Wellness as it continues to bolster its customer offerings. According to sources, the deal is a full cash buyout and senior management of Saluto will get equity shares of Pine Labs. The deal is pegged at Rs 40-50 crore, people aware of the discussions told ET.
Electric vehicle battery startup Log9 said it has raised $40 million in a funding round led by Amara Raja Batteries and Petronas Ventures. The round, a mix of debt and equity, also saw participation from Incred Financial Services Private Ltd., Unity Small Finance Bank, Oxyzo Financial Services Private Ltd. and Western Capital Advisors Private Ltd.
Bengaluru-based deeptech startup Myelin Foundry has raised $3 million in an early stage funding round led by Detroit-based automotive supplier Visteon Corporation. Returning investors Endiya Partners, Beyond Next Ventures, and Pratithi Investment Trust also invested in the round.
On-demand fuel delivery service FuelBuddy said on Monday that it had raised $20 million from a consortium of conglomerates led by Naveen Jindal Group and Ravi Jaipuria Group. Nilesh Ved, chairman of Dubai-based fashion company Apparel Group, also participated in the round.

Zilingo sells Ncinga, tech assets to Buyogo AG

Apparel supply-chain technology startup Zilingo Pte has sold its technology assets and acquired entity Ncinga Innovations to Buyogo AG, a Zurich-based ecommerce management software provider. The transaction was completed in the first week of January, sources told us.

Controversy: The liquidation process caps a high-octane drama which unfolded at the Sequoia and Temasek-backed startup last year, after its investors and board members received information of discrepancies in the company’s accounts, which was later investigated by risk and financial advisory solutions provider Kroll.

Zilingo’s alleged accounting irregularities came to light when it was in the final stages of talks to raise $150-$200 million in a fresh round at a potential valuation of $1.2 billion, paving the way for the startup to become a unicorn, we reported last April.

The fashion-tech startup initially suspended former chief executive Ankiti Bose, and eventually terminated her services in May, following which Bose told ET in an interview that she was not given the chance to answer any of the allegations levelled against her. In June 2022, Bose resigned from directorships at holding company Zilingo Pte Ltd and its subsidiaries.

India withdraws UN proposals on fighting cybercrime; Zomato shuts 10-min food delivery

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