Now Buy PC Games on Steam in India Using Cash on Delivery, Netbanking and Digital Wallets!

Following the recent demonetisation of Rs. 500 and Rs. 1,000 currency notes in India. Steam, one of the largest online marketplaces for the sale of games and even hardware has in addition to debit cards, credit cards, and bitcoin, now supports net banking, digital wallets and even cash on delivery in India.

These local payment options are handled by Novaplay, a gaming company started by e-sports firm Nodwin.

With the ESL (Electronic Sports League) purchasing a stake in Nodwin, it should come as no surprise that the company is trying to establish itself in the nascent Indian digital downloads market through NovaPlay in addition to e-sports. 

This was discovered by Redditors earlier today.

Digital wallets you can use for Steam in India:

• FreeCharge
• ICash Card
• Idea Money
• Jana Cash
• JioMoney
• Mobikwik
• Oxigen
• Paytm
• SBI Buddy
• The Mobile Wallet
• Ziggit by IDFC Bank

Net banking support is extensive, with the banks such as HDFC and ICICI along with SBI, Bank of India, and Standard Chartered now listed as direct payment options on Steam. Some such as Punjab National Bank and DCB even allow the use of corporate accounts. Oddly, though, Bank of Baroda appears to be usable only if you have a corporate account. Perhaps this is a sign that this feature launched prematurely. Furthermore, there's no change in prices to reflect the 15 percent service tax on digital downloads sold by companies outside India that is applicable from December 1 either.

How to buy games on Steam in India using cash on delivery

• After adding an item to your cart on Steam, pick Cash on Delivery as a payment option.
• You will be redirected to a page run by Novaplay — Valve’s partner in India. Here you can put your billing and shipping information.
• When you enter your details, a Nova executive will get in touch to collect the cash amount.
• Your order will be emailed to you within 72 hours of receiving the payment

If you were thinking of using this to offload old Rs. 500 and Rs. 1,000 notes, think again. The site clearly states that in accordance with the demonetization drive it will not accept old notes.

Keep in mind that much like the presence of other local payment options such as net banking and digital wallets, it’s very much work in progress at the moment.

Hopefully, everything falls in place in time for the Steam Winter sale!

Source: Reddit

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Indian Government launches free online skill development courses

The Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) has announced the launch of an online platform – www.indiaskillsonline.com – for inculcating skills of choice and bridge the digital divide in India.

Courses on soft skill, languages, culture, digital literacy and entrepreneurship are some of the options that will be made available to the users.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had launched the Skill India mission last year which aimed to train over 40 crore youths in India by 2022.

"With the introduction of online skill learning, the whole nation potentially becomes a classroom. The audio-video graphical illustrations format will help internalise the concepts for the skill-seekers, faster and longer," the official statement said.

"Skill India resolves to bridge the digital divide by providing basic digital literacy opportunities to all skill-seekers. It will make them more aware, and better suited for the work environment of the day," it added.

On Friday, President Pranab Mukherjee had inaugurated the first edition of ‘India Skills’ competition on the occasion of World Youth Skills Day.

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Freedom 251 Maker Says 2 Lakh Rs. 251 Phones Ready, Will Launch 'Cheapest' HD LED TV

The world's cheapest smartphone at Rs. 251 (less than $4) is here, finally. Its makers, the Noida-based startup Ringing Bells Pvt Ltd, say they have made it possible despite allegations from various quarters that such a phone would not see the light of the day. Even an FIR was lodged against the company.

According to Ringing Bells' Founder and CEO Mohit Goel, sitting comfortably in his Sector 62 office in Noida, the company has been able to keep its promise to consumers.

"We are ready with nearly two lakh 'Freedom 251' handsets. We will start delivery from June 30," Goel told IANS, adding that once he is done with this first phase of delivery (of two lakh phones), he will open registration again for those who wish to buy the handset.

The company had in mid-February this year planned to deliver 25 lakh handsets before June 30. However, it received over seven crore registrations before its payment gateway crashed within three days.

(Also Read: Yes a mobile for Rs 251: the Freedom 251 smartphone looks awesome!)

"We learned from our mistakes and decided to go silent till we come out with the product. Now we have a 4-inch, dual-SIM phone ready for delivery. I feel vindicated," he said in one breath.

According to Goel, he is facing a loss of Rs. 140 - Rs. 150 per unit, but hopes to make profit on volumes. "We will have a loss, but I am happy that the dream of connecting rural and poor Indians as part of the 'Digital India' and 'Make in India' initiatives has been fulfilled with 'Freedom 251'," Goel said.

The 3G device has a 1.3GHz quad-core processor, 1GB of RAM, and 8GB of internal storage and supports external memory cards of up to 32GB. No device was, however, given to IANS. Only a photograph was allowed to be taken.

The company has offered an 8-megapixel primary camera with flash, a 3.2-megapixel front camera for selfie and an 1800mAh battery. It runs on Android 5.1 (Lollipop).

The phone is available in two colours - black and white - with centrally aligned rear camera and branding on the back panel. It has a speaker just alongside the branding.

The device displays the Indian Tricolour when you switch it on. The company has incorporated all the basic Google apps in the handset.

"Our devices are completely 'Make in India' and were manufactured at our Haridwar-based manufacturing unit. We plan to sell two lakh devices every month," he said.

The company is also planning to launch a 32-inch high-definition LED television - also called "Freedom" - in the first week of July.

"These will be the cheapest television sets in India and will be available for less than Rs 10,000. Within two days, the delivery would be made and we will sell them online," Goel said, adding that the company currently has one lakh such pieces in stock.

In comparison, the cost of 32-inch HD LED TV sets normally begins from Rs. 13,000.

Ringing Bells launched "Freedom 251" in February in the presence of veteran BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi.

It distributed some "prototypes" of the product to the media which turned out to be handsets from another domestic handset maker Adcom.

However, the company maintained that the device had been developed "with immense support" from the government.

"Our humble beginning to provide a high-tech gadget that will benefit all in the hinterland and bridge the huge gap that clearly exists between the metros and semi-urban/rural areas is in keeping with the government's initiatives," Ringing Bells President Ashok Chadha had earlier told IANS.

Doubts were raised over Ringing Bells' handset after some experts said no phone could be manufactured for less than Rs. 2,000.

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