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 The US President Obama's proposal to tax expenditure by the US companies on availing services from outside the country from 2011 has received mixed reactions from all over the world.

Most of the industry leaders in India believe that the plan is aimed at curbing the country's outsourcing industry. At the same time, the proposed tax system is also winning few fans in India.

The Scenario

• India's information technology and outsourcing companies employ about 2.2 million people, and the US companies account for about 60 % of their business.
• The US companies either have their own subsidiaries in India or employ Indians by contracting work to local technology and outsourcing companies.
• Many of these Indian operations handle customer service and back-office functions, particularly for the US banks and credit card companies.
• Recently, many US corporations have also expanded their sales, marketing and distribution in India.

The Proposal

• Elimination of a deduction for the US companies when they invest in subsidiaries outside the United States.
• To tax expenditure by the US companies on availing services from outside the country from 2011.

The Reaction

Let us try to see what various people are saying before forming our own opinion:

NASSCOM (India's leading outsourcing lobby):

• The tax plan may actually end up reducing competitiveness of US companies with global operations when compared to their European and Japanese counterparts.
• The proposals appeared to be aimed at addressing the tax rate differentials that exist across the world. It will impact American headquartered companies with overseas operations

CII (The Confederation of Indian Industry)

• It's an internal issue. It will only reduce their competitiveness. He added, "It is a populist posture. Perhaps his (Obama's) intention was not the same. However, it sends a wrong message.

Infosys (India's second largest software and outsourcing company)

• It is not for us. It is for US companies that have operations in other destinations. It will not have an impact on Indian companies.
• We do not believe that it has anything to do with IT outsourcing done by US corporations.

Mphasis

• It is irrelevant as far as Indian IT providers are concerned. It may encourage more US companies to invest and create jobs within that country

FCCI (Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry)

• While Obama's move would have some impact on the US investment abroad and into India, in the long run this would only run counter to the interest of US corporations seeking global presence.

The Opinion

It was the availability of young talent pool, the time zone factor and the cost advantage that made outsourcing in India flourish in the last decade. It was not due to any tax benefit that the US firms enjoyed.

US companies save 60-75% by outsourcing their back office operations to countries like India. The overall impact would be clearer once the exact structure of the taxation is announced. Nobody really knows what will happen in the longer run but the move has definitely diluted the spirit of the global economy and the flat world.

(Sources: New York Times, indiatimes)

The “Job Description” for Google Goats?
Should be capable of:

Mowing the fields…
Clearing the weeds…
And keeping the fire hazards at bay!

I know this sounds absurd… believe me, this is no joke.

The decision has been made to support Google’s so called “low carbon approach” of using goats instead of the lawn mowers (that run on gasoline and pollute the air).

Around 200 goats have been engaged from California Grazing, who eat grass and fertilize the land at the same time (lol… okkkk!)

Is Google saving costs by doing this?
Google says No…

“It costs us about the same as mowing… the goats are a lot cuter to watch than lawn mowers.”

PETA - People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals seems okay with the idea of eating grass and looking cute, but they have some concerns as well…

Amy Cook, Assistant Manager of Marketing for PETA pointed out:

PETA has no problem with letting goats do what goats want to do but we do have concerns:

How will the goats be transported?
Will they have access to shelter and shade during storms or hot weather?
Will there be a provision and availability of food and drinking water?
Where will they be housed when they aren’t “working”?
What kind of veterinary care will they receive?
PETA has found over and over that whenever animals are used by a business to make money, corners are cut and animals often suffer as a result. And that really gets our goat, if you’ll pardon the pun. [Source: TechCrunch]

And the response from Niki Fenwick, a Google representative:

“Google takes the wellness of our employees very seriously and we pride ourselves on having a responsive and adaptable culture. The lawn-mowing goats are not, of course, full-time Google employees - but we would certainly respond directly to any concerns about their treatment. I can confirm that during their time in Mountain View, like other Google employees, each goat is entitled to a free organic lunch.”

Free organic lunch eh? Well, good luck… Goats!

Check out more at Official Google Blog: Mowing with goats

Thanks to Devils Workshop.