Lenovo turns the Good Samaritan with Do Network

The online platform will allow people to share and discuss ideas and form teams to develop these into full-fledged technology-based projects which address social and civic issues.

Jumping on to the digital bandwagon, PC brand Lenovo has launched Do Network, an online platform designed to drive people into taking action to turn their ideas into technology-based projects that can be used to address social and civic issues. The platform is an extension of Lenovo's 'For Those Who Do' global brand campaign, and aims to extend the brand promise to empower the communities they operate in, with the best tools, technology and resources.

Do Network is an online space where like-minded people can share and discuss ideas that they are passionate about, and form project teams to develop these ideas into workable and concrete plans to tackle various social and civic issues with the aid of technology.

The network will serve as a platform to connect the project teams to people in the community, who can provide advice and lend their skills and expertise. Lenovo will provide the top 10 teams with resources in the form of mentors and technology. The winners will receive a prize money of $25,000 meant as seed fund to turn their projects into reality.

Speaking about the launch, Shailendra Katyal, director, marketing, Lenovo India, says, "Through the Do Network, we want to create not just a platform, but a movement that brings 'doers' together, and inspire them to unleash their ideas and turn them into something meaningful and tangible for their communities."

Lenovo will set up a Do Lab in India, where the top 10 finalist teams will work with the mentors to discuss and refine their projects. Mentors roped in for the project are Rajiv Makhni (managing editor, technology, NDTV), Rajan Anandan (managing director, Google India), Mahesh Murthy (managing partner, Seedfund), and Kishore A K (chief executive officer and co-founder, Althea System).

Do Network will comprise a series of four 90-day contest cycles, with different themes and thematic challenges introduced for each cycle. The first cycle will be based on the theme of Innovation through Technology, and will run until March 7, 2012.