Current Affairs for IAS Exams - 09 February 2015

:: National ::

Nearly 20 nations, including India, will deploy a global calculator, similar to those launched in London and Beijing , to calculate climate impact scenarios in their territories. Some have already developed the calculator and others are in the process of creating their own versions of it.
Showcasing the calculator at the Delhi Sustainable Development Summit, Laura Aylett of the U.K. Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) said it was a free, open-source interactive tool to help assess climate change scenarios over a period and make changes in lifestyle.
She said the idea was to introduce three main principles in calculating the impacts of climate change: transparency, collaboration and simplicity.
The calculator could illustrate climate impacts based on different choices and was linked to the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reports.

Burgeoning smartphone and mobile Internet usage, a growing developer community, and the potential for regional/localised apps are likely to favour an app revolution in India in 2015, according to consulting firm Deloitte. Around nine billion apps will be downloaded in India in 2015, more than five times the number of apps downloaded in 2012 (1.56 billion) at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 75 per cent, Deloitte India’s TMT (Technology, Media & Entertainment and Telecom) Predictions 2015 report said.
The revenues from paid apps are estimated to exceed Rs.1,500 crore in 2015, up from Rs.900 crore in 2014, driven by increased app usage on smartphones. “Also, expansion of 3G network coverage and the roll-out of 4G networks in 2015 are expected to further boost smartphone sales in the country,” the report said.
The online advertising market in India would grow by 30 per cent in 2015, while the print media is expected to continue to maintain a market share of 40-45 per cent in the near future, despite the global downtrend in the sector. TV content is expected to become more target audience oriented catering to different viewer tastes in 2015.
Deloitte said in telecom, by 2016, the average data usage per subscriber in India is expected to double, and the number of smartphones is expected to cross 200 million, driving 4G services. Mobiles may continue to gain importance as a channel to drive financial services and commerce.