Netherlands/New Delhi: Philips Lighting on Friday said it intends to change its name to "Signify" while continuing to use the Philips brand for its products under the existing licensing agreement with Royal Philips.

The company said the new company name originates from the fact that light becomes an intelligent language, which connects and conveys meaning.

"Our new company name is a clear expression of our strategic vision and a fabulous opportunity to introduce a new corporate look and feel that is uniquely our own and will serve to further unite our 32,000 employees," Eric Rondolat, CEO of Philips Lighting, said in a statement.

"At the same time, we remain proud to continue to use the Philips brand on our products," he added.

The statement said the new name satisfies the company's contractual requirements under the Company Name License Agreement with Royal Philips, which requires that it changes less than 18 months after Royal Philips no longer has a controlling interest.

Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.



Kolkata (PTI): Seven people were arrested from the Parnashree area in the southern part of the city for allegedly running a fake call centre, a police officer said on Saturday.

Acting on a tip-off, police raided a house on Netaji Subhas Road on Friday night and found the fake call centre operating from the ground floor, he said.

Preliminary investigation revealed that the accused had set up a bogus company using forged documents and posed as employees of an antivirus firm to call citizens in the US, the officer said.

"The callers would gain the trust of victims and then use remote access to take control of their phones or other digital devices. The accused allegedly siphoned off large sums of money, running into millions of dollars, from victims' accounts," he said.

Five laptops, two WiFi routers, six mobile phones and four headsets were seized from the accused, he said, adding that the seven are being questioned to ascertain the full extent of the racket and to identify others involved.