A recent article in the Economic Times quotes Unilever’s chief executive Paul Polman, saying, “Indian Innovations relevant in Europe now”.

On the same page in a separate article, I read about PepsiCo losing market share to local players such as Haldiram, Balaji Namkeen and ITC who are not only upping volumes like Pepsico but also expanding their Indian brands to western markets.

India, which once looked to the west for new inventions in any sector is now causing sleepless nights for those very same companies. Globalisation coupled with recession in the developed world have turned the tables for emerging economies in the area of innovation. The Indian models of ‘smaller size packs’ or sachets to try products is gaining traction in the West where recession is forcing people to spend less. This model allows them to stay with their preferred brand at a more affordable price point.

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A lot of the coverage of business growth and opportunity in ‘New India’ concentrates on the emerging middle class, but some of the most interesting and fast-growing businesses are those targeting  lower income groups.

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On Friday, Orange launched their contactless payment system, Quick Tap, in conjunction with Barclaycard, on the Samsung Tocco Lite handset.

There are at least ten other distinct brands involved in Orange’s leap into new territory. Nine are working together:

• Orange, and Quick Tap’s leading partner, Barclaycard
• the providers of the handset technology, Samsung, and
• at least six retail brands supporting the initiative by taking payments via the new contactless system

In Orange here’s a brand, driven by developments in technology, assuming a new role as banking provider – virtually, as far as consumers care.

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A favourite quote from testing-and-data deity Avinash Kaushik.

His blog – Occam’s Razor – is a must-read if you want to understand web analytics and testing.