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GN ReSound provided details and an impressive demonstration of ReSound LiNX™, a new premium “Made for iPhone” (MFi) hearing aid, at last week’s International Congress of Hearing Aid Acousticians (EUHA) held in Nuremberg, Germany. LiNX is designed to take Surround Sound by ReSound™ to an unprecedented level, while representing ReSound’s third generation of 2.4 GHz wireless technology based on the all new smartRange™ chipset.
ReSound says that, for the first time ever, hearing-impaired people will be able to stream music and phone calls directly from an Apple iPhone to their hearing aids when using ReSound LiNX™. The streaming is possible without any intermediary body-worn device that can call attention to hearing loss.
“ReSound LiNX again underlines our core strength of bringing breakthrough innovations to the hearing impaired, making them consumers with choices rather than patients with challenges,” said GN ReSound CEO Lars Viksmoen in a press statement.
The new device also provides an unprecedented sound experience taking Surround Sound by ReSound™ to the next level, according to ReSound. LiNX has been developed to meet the high quality and usability requirements of “Made for iPhone” hearing aids, and is also said to provide users with a power-efficient, high-quality digital audio experience.
The new receiver-in-the-ear (RIE) product, which reportedly fits more than 90% of all hearing losses, will be rolled out in a limited market release during December, with a full global launch in the first quarter of 2014.
Source: GN Store Nord A/S


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Design aspirants are abstract thinkers requiring experiential education, says Dr. Sanjay, Vice Chancellor, World University of Design
In a conversation with Careers360, Prof (Dr.) Sanjay Gupta, Vice Chancellor, World University of Design, shares how the University is engaged in giving wings to the young and creative minds who want to pursue design.
We work towards 360-degree development of students, says Dr. Veena Dutta, Director, Pearl Academy Delhi NCR
Pearl Academy Director Interview- In a conversation with Careers360, Dr. Veena Jhamtani Dutta, Campus Director, Pearl Academy Delhi NCR shares her insights about new design programmes that have been introduced in tune with the latest market trends.
Keep design journal, work as an intern and value individuality, says Dr. Vijaya Deshmukh, Director, NIFT Jodhpur
Read here the interview wherein Dr. Vijaya Deshmukh speaks about key challenges that fashion and design industry is facing today.
Fashion aspirants should have zeal for sustaining to odds, says Col Subroto Biswas, Director, NIFT Kolkata and Shillong
Read here interview where Colonel Subroto Biswas talks about key challenges that fashion and design education is facing today.
Read here the complete interview of Prof. Shrivastava who talks about the opportunities and challenges in the filed of fashion and designing industry.

domain: news


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Consumers in countries like Indonesia, Singapore and Brazil spend more than five hours daily on their phones.
According to a new report, time spent on mobile app usage is as high as five hours a day in 13 international markets. Moreover, while users in Singapore spent 4.1 hours in apps in Q2 2020, they spent 5.7 hours in Q2 2022. Similarly, Australian users recorded a 40% increase in usage, from 3.6 hours in Q2 2020 to 4.9 hours in Q2 2022.
The report also names Instagram the most popular app globally by the number of downloads.TikTok leads in consumer spending for non-gaming apps, while Facebook is number one for monthly active users.
Apps like Indian ecommerce app Meesho and dating app Bumble have also made considerable gains in downloads and consumer spending, respectively.
Discover the top organisations in your market and industry that have customers buzzing using YouGov BrandRankings
[3 minute read]


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Apple’s tracking crackdown wasn’t only about protecting users—it was about beefing up its own business, German authorities say.
The EU Court of Justice ruled that consumer groups can autonomously bring legal proceedings for alleged breaches of data protection rules.
German court decided that a CEO was personally liable for a data privacy breach after they hired a detective to investigate possible criminal acts by the plaintiff.
Digital advertisers are seeking a wider German antitrust probe of Google’s news service, potentially deepening scrutiny of how the search engine gathers data.
The German Data Protection Conference (DSK) issued guidance on the Federal Act on the Regulation of Data Protection and Privacy in Telecommunications and Telemedia (‘TTDSG’).
The next German government intends to speak more strongly in favour of end-to-end encryption and against the introduction of backdoors.
If you use a U.S.-based sub processor (even for data processed in the EU), you lose, the German administrative court of Wiesbaden said in an interim decision.


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The marketplace is part of a push to turn the retailer around
- The launch comes amidst an industry-wide NFT sales slump
Retailer GameStop Corp. launched its long-awaited marketplace for nonfungible tokens Monday just as sales of such digital artworks dry up amid the crypto industry crash.
The marketplace is part of a push by GameStop Cha
But the company is following several others that entered the market before the boom in NFT speculation fizzled as the broader crypto markets came under deep pressure. Earlier this year, U.S.’s biggest crypto exchange, Coinbase Global Inc., launched its own NFT marketplace. In June, e-commerce heavyweight eBay Inc. bought NFT marketplace KnownOrigin.
GameStop is hoping to have an edge by tapping into its existing customer base since gamers are among the NFT industry’s biggest enthusiasts.
The market for NFTs has taken a turn for the worse. In June, the market for the tokens — such as artworks of bored apes and pudgy penguins — had the first month of under $1 billion in sales since June 2021, according to tracker DappRadar. On the world’s biggest NFT marketplace, OpenSea, sales volume in June fell by more than 70% month over month, according to Dune Analytics.
irman Ryan Cohen to expand its array of digital services and online products in a bid to turn around the struggling video-game retailer.
Last week, GameStop said it fired its chief financial officer and announced job cuts in a bid to turn around the business.


text: News Business & Policy Apple Now Runs on 100% Renewable Energy By Matt Hickman Matt Hickman Writer Emerson College The New School Matt Hickman is an associate editor at The Architect’s Newspaper. His writing has been featured in Curbed, Apartment Therapy, URBAN-X, and more. Learn about our editorial process Updated April 10, 2018 Apple's new, flying saucer-esque corporate HQ in Cuptertino, California, is powered entirely by solar panels and other renewable energy sources. (Photo: Apple) Share Twitter Pinterest Email News Environment Business & Policy Science Animals Home & Design Current Events Treehugger Voices News Archive Apple has announced that all of its global facilities spanning 43 countries — from its retail outposts, offices, data centers and dazzling but problematic multibillion-dollar mothership in Cupertino, California — are now powered completely from renewable energy sources. This includes wind and solar, as well as emerging technologies such as biogas fuel cells and micro-hydro generation systems. Additionally, the tech giant claims that nine of its manufacturing partners have pledged to run their Apple production operations with renewables, bumping the total number of clean energy-dependent suppliers up to 23. "We’re committed to leaving the world better than we found it. After years of hard work we’re proud to have reached this significant milestone," says Apple CEO Tim Cook. "We’re going to keep pushing the boundaries of what is possible with the materials in our products, the way we recycle them, our facilities and our work with suppliers to establish new creative and forward-looking sources of renewable energy because we know the future depends on it." Beating out Google, Amazon, Facebook, Coca-Cola, Microsoft and Disney as the world’s most valuable brand, Apple’s shift to 100 percent renewable energy is most certainly welcome news. But it's also not entirely surprising considering that just two years ago the company claimed that 93 percent of its operations were powered by fossil-fuel sources. In dense cities like Singapore where space is at a premium, Apple has embarked on extensive rooftop solar projects. (Photo: Apple) Apple, famously born out of a garage in suburban Silicon Valley in the late 1970s, has aggressively embraced renewable energy for some time now. In fact, all of the company’s power-hungry data centers have been reliant on clean power since 2014. What’s more, the company’s 25 operational renewable energy projects spread across the globe didn’t spring to life overnight. With 15 more major projects in the works, Apple anticipates that when all is said and done, it can claim the production of 1.4 gigawatts of clean energy across 11 countries including the United States, China, India and United Kingdom. But to be clear, not every Apple outpost — like individual stores in shopping malls, for example — are directly powered by renewable sources. To compensate, Apple purchases renewable energy certificates, or RECs, which allow the company to claim full renewable coverage. Per Endgadet, 34 percent of Apple's renewable energy usage comes from RECs, and the rest comes directly from clean energy projects. In a news release, Apple touts several of its existing and upcoming renewable energy projects: the purchase of a 200-megawatt wind farm in Prineville, Oregon, that’s due to come online by the end of 2019; a partnership with a Reno, Nevada-based utility that will yield four new solar products capable of yielding 320 megawatts of clean, sun-gleaned energy; rooftop solar photovoltaic projects in Singapore and Japan; sizable wind and solar projects across six Chinese provinces; and newly constructed data centers in locales ranging from Denmark to Dallas County, Iowa, that will run on renewable energy from day one. Grazing yaks keep things neat and tidy at an Apple-owned solar farm in China. (Photo: Apple) And then, of course, there’s Apple Park, the company’s nature-infused neo-futurist digs in Cupertino that opened to about 12,000 employees last spring. (Shrouded by a lush forest that actually prompted a tree shortage in California, the so-called Apple "spaceship" landed about a mile east of the old corporate campus, also in Cupertino.) As the largest LEED Platinum-certified office building in the world, Apple Park was built to run entirely off renewable energy sources including, most notably, a 17-megawatt rooftop solar installation perched atop the sprawling, donut-shaped structure. And when Apple Park isn’t fully consuming all of its on-site generating clean energy, that juice is fed back into the municipal power grid. Apple deserves all the kudos thrown its way with this milestone. It’s done good. But there’s ample room for criticism as well, as the iPhone-producing behemoth basks in the glow of corporate sustainability do-goodery. Some might bemoan the company's tendency toward excessive packaging or its culture of pushing new products over simple repairs or replacements. But I think Curbed’s Alissa Walker hits the nail on the head with one single tweet, referencing the fact that the new campus has more square footage — roughly 3.5 million square feet or 80 acres — devoted to parking spaces than it does office space: Apple is certainly paving the way for a better, brighter tomorrow by completely cutting ties with fossil fuel-sourced energy sources. But for a company so concerned about minimizing emissions, it could also try shedding a few hundred — or thousand — parking spaces while they're at it.


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7-Eleven convenience store to reopen
Slurpee lovers will be happy to hear that the 7-Eleven convenience store at the southeast corner of Jadwin and Van Giesen plans to reopen next week.
The boarded-up convenience store has been a concern for several residents who have commented on Facebook, so Molly Petersen stopped by and talked to workers inside. Petersen reports that the business will reopen next week under cooperate management with reduced hours, but the week after that the company hopes to have it opened 24-7.
Riverfront Hotel Improvements
Walkers on the river path south of Howard Amon Park may have noticed new landscaping at the Riverfront Hotel.
The hotel is preparing for outdoor events with a new gazebo and landscaping, according to Char Garza at the hotel in a telephone interview with the Observer.
In addition, the Riverfront plans to open a new restaurant in December that will have indoor and outdoor dining, Garza said.
Not so visible from outside, renovation work on the hotel’s suites, interrupted by COVID, has been restarted, Garza reported.


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It’s difficult to know, most of the time, how much big companies really spend on logo designs and redesigns. Few firms are willing to share figures, and even if they do, it’s difficult to distinguish the cost of designing the logo from the cost of the rebrand as a whole, which can include marketing, advertising and other associated costs.
But while we can’t list “the most expensive logos in history” (because we don’t definitively know the top five, and in truth, neither does anyone else), it’s interesting to look at examples where companies have spent vast sums on their logos, and whether they were worth it.
In this post, we look at five famous examples of expensive logo designs, and pull out some lessons we can learn from them.
In 2000, BP paid an awful lot of money for a new logo. According to The Daily Telegraph, it cost a whopping £4.6 million just to design the logo, while the overall cost of the rebranding came in at £136 million (including the cost of rebranding stationery, van liveries and manufacturing plants).
The project, led by Landor Associates in 2000, saw the replacement of the old ‘shield’ logo with a new one designed specifically to promote “BP’s position as an environmental leader and its goal of moving beyond the petroleum sector”, as the company began to invest in alternative energy. According to Landor: “A stylised sunflower symbolizes the sun’s energy, while the colour green reflects the brand’s environmental sensitivity.”
The new logo attracted much ridicule from environmental campaigners, most of whom saw BP’s new interest in green energy as a smokescreen for continuing to promote fossil fuels. Later, Greenpeace even crowd-sourced a parody version featuring a bird stuck in an oil slick.
The cost of the rebranding exercise was also lambasted by the UK press at the time, in light of a continuing series of price hikes at petrol stations.
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However, the case study on Landor’s website offers a different take on the project. Rather than focusing on what the public thought of BP’s revamped logo, it talks more about the internal institutional reaction to the new branding. Landor trained more than 1,400 brand champions in 19 countries on the promise of ‘Beyond Petroleum’. As a result, “nine months after launch, 97 per cent of BP employees were aware of the brand idea, and 9 out of 10 agreed that BP was heading in the right direction”.
In short, the tone of the case study suggests BP was less interested in convincing the public that it was becoming greener, and more interested in convincing its own staff. And that puts a completely different spin on how you view the success of the new logo design.
Lesson learned: Before you judge a logo, think about who its real audience is. It might, for example, be more targeted towards influencing employees, stakeholders or investors than consumers.
The CitiBank logo was designed in 1998 by well-known designer Paula Scher of Pentagram, when industry giants Citicorp and Travellers Group merged to create the world’s largest financial services firm. That the bank paid the princely sum of $1.5 million for this design (part of a near-$10 million for the branding as a whole) is not so surprising. With assets under management of $700bn, its pockets were deep enough.
But what was controversial is that the logo they received was based on a sketch Scher did on the back of napkin. During their first meeting. In around 10 minutes.
“My best work is kind of big, bold strokes that come very quickly,” Scher explains in this video interview. “And it’s problematic because a lot of clients like to ‘buy process’ and they don’t think they’re getting their money’s worth, like I sold it too fast. ‘How can it be that you talk to someone and it’s done in a second?’ But it is done in a second – and 34 years.”
In other words, drawing on those 34 years of experience meant that Scher could sidestep months of ‘process’ and produce the perfect basis for a logo design in an instant.
Certainly, in all meaningful ways, Citibank got their money’s worth. The now-globally recognisable logo has been in place for the whole of the century so far, and shows no signs of needing to be replaced.
Lesson learned: The economic value of a logo design lies not in how long it took to produce, but how well it works. Scher’s example highlights how experienced and talented designers can help shortcut the process and still obtain great results, and there’s no shame in being paid accordingly.
03. The City of Belfast
In 2008, the City of Belfast commissioned a new logo, but the process was longer and more involved than originally expected. It took a reported 15 months and £180,000 to create the new logo, designed by brand consultancy Lloyd Northover, along with £250,000 on advertising, launch events and showcase promotions, according to the Belfast Telegraph.
That figure attracted widespread press criticism, especially when Sunday Life revealed that the new logo was very similar to others already in use in England, such as a logo for Food and Drink Devon, which had been created for just £7,000.
It’s worth pointing out, however, that Lloyd Northover certainly worked for its money. Having won the contract following a competitive pitch process, it went on to consult around 3,000 key Belfast City stakeholders from within the business, tourism, hospitality, culture, arts and youth communities. Its in-house market research team also worked with focus groups, held workshops and conducted a web survey to test ideas and concepts across England, Scotland, the Republic of Ireland, Europe and the USA.
Given the troubled history of Belfast, it’s fair to argue that such consultation was necessary to avoid a costly mistake. Consequently, the resulting logo was welcomed across all communities.
Lesson learned: In a charged and conflicted environment, it’s good to get everyone on board. And if that costs a little extra when it comes to researching your branding, it’s a price worth paying: the alternative would have been far costlier in the long term.
In 1976, NBC wanted to update its image for its 50th anniversary, and introduced a completely new logo design based around an abstract letter N made of two trapezoids: one red, one blue. It went on to be used in the first electronically animated ident for an American TV network, and came into official use on 1 January 1976. Designed by the firm Lippincott and Margulies, it was reported to have cost between $750,000 and $1million; an enormous sum for the 1970s.
Unfortunately, nobody had noticed that it was virtually identical to the logo for Nebraska Educational TV, part of the PBS network.
In February, the latter filled a trademark infringement lawsuit, and in the eventual out-of-court settlement, NBC gave Nebraska ETV over $800,000 worth of new equipment, as well as paying them $55,000 to cover the cost of designing and implementing a new logo. (Which seems especially high, given that NETV had spent less than $100 on designing their original logo.)
Lesson learned: Check you’re not plagiarising other people’s logos, even innocently, or it will cost you dear. Especially if they’re in the same industry as you.
As the NBC example shows, the “cost” of a logo isn’t always just what you pay the branding company to develop it. In the case of Pepsico fruit brand Tropicana, it was the estimated $30 million in sales it lost because of it, over just two months.
To be fair, the failure of its 2009 rebrand wasn’t entirely down to the logo. The new packaging had swapped the well-known fruit-with-a-straw emblem for a generic-looking glass of orange juice, making it difficult to find on the shelves. The $35 million advertising campaign, with its overwrought overtures to family life and a nonsensical slogan (“Squeeze, it’s a natural”), was another factor.
But the new, straightened, vertical logo really didn’t help. While the old logo (below) had a sense of fun and personality, this new creation by now-defunct agency Arnell jettisoned all that. This logo looked more grown-up and professional, to be sure, but since when were those values associated with sugary drinks?
The leaf that forms the dot of the letter 'i' was still there, but so small as to be indistinct. And overall, beyond the word itself, the recognisability factor had dropped to near zero.
As a result, people were less likely to spot their favourite drink in the supermarket, and less inclined to buy it when they did. After two months, Tropicana sensibly reverted to the old logo and packaging.
Lesson learned: A clean, minimalist look might suit tech products and web startups, but for food and drink brands with a high degree of customer loyalty, it may not work. Also, if you rebrand and everyone hates it and you're losing millions, go back to your old brand.


text: A new tobacco shop opened last Friday in downtown New Canaan. Sam Mustafa, owner of L&A Cigars and Tobacco, said he got the idea for the New Canaan location when he went out to dinner in town with friends and having a hard time finding a place to buy a cigar afterwards. “Maybe this town needs a cigar shop,” Mustafa recalled thinking. The owner of two existing tobacco shops, including one in New Fairfield, he applied to the town in the fall and received approval from the Planning & Zoning Commission in December after some deliberations. The bright, clean space at 13 South Ave.


text: Kirkland Signature Vodka has trounced the expensive name brand in multiple blind taste tests despite being a fraction of the price. Even coffee snobs may be intrigued by a few of Costco’s relatively inexpensive house blends, which boast of their ties to the world’s largest coffeehouse chain. NIO, Xpeng, and Li Report Earnings Soon. Perrigo’s StoreBrandFormula.com, which catalogues the company’s retail relationships, includes Costco on its list of partners and links directly to the Kirkland Signature Pro-Care Infant Formula on Costco’s website. If you’re looking to save on hair care products, consider grabbing these large bottles of Kirkland Signature Moisture Shampoo & Conditioner at Costco. Parents will notice that the only name-brand diapers sold at Costco are Kimberly-Clark’s Huggies. "Despite its social justice rhetoric, CZI is not a welcoming environment for Black employees," Holgado's complaint states. Perrigo’s StoreBrandFormula.com, which catalogues the company’s retail relationships, includes Costco on its list of partners and links directly to the Kirkland Signature Pro-Care Infant Formula on Costco’s website. The Kirkland foils come in larger sizes than the regular Reynolds foils on Costco’s website, and their higher prices reflect the difference. President-elect Joe Biden made a campaign proposal to erase $10,000 for roughly 37 million Americans who owe federally-backed student loan debt, and experts are divided on if the incoming president will be able to make good on that promise. The site Mashed adds that the address of Hopfen Und Malz matches that of Gordon Biersch in San Jose, California. Want more? It’s unclear whether this company is related to Matt Brewing, which makes Saranac and Utica Club. Ray Holgado, a former employee of the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, recently filed a racial discrimination complaint with the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing. Will Tesla Or Nio Stock Grow More By 2025? Required fields are marked *, © 2011 - 2020 All rights reserved. However, there doesn’t seem to be much evidence. The publication says West Coast Kirkland beer bears the name “Hopfen Und Malz Brewing Co.” on the label. The bureau regulates and collects taxes on alcohol, tobacco and firearm trading within the U.S. E&J Gallo Winery produces its own vino but also distributes products from other California wineries to countries around the world. A salesperson at my local Costco told me that many of the Kirkland Signature liquors are made in the same warehouse/region as their name-brand counterpart. However, veteran parents have noticed the yellow box of Kirkland’s Signature Infant Formula has since been replaced by a blue box bearing the name Kirkland Pro-Care Infant Formula. Shares of the fuel cell company are up more than 5x from their price at the start of the year, and now trade at nearly 22 times trailing sales, and 34 times book value, despite a total lack of profitability.This doesn't concern H.C Wainwright's Amit Dayal, however. And, if you love these bath towels, you’ll likely love their bed sheets and blankets, too! Costco had asked both Kimberly-Clark and rival corporation Procter & Gamble to produce diapers under the Kirkland brand, however only the former agreed. Rumor has it that the TUFF brand and Kirkland Signature leggings are identical quality as Lululemon. Of Thor Industries, Johnson writes, “Stocks of leisure companies usually move higher or lower on retail sales results more so than revenues or EPS. While plenty of the names behind Kirkland Signature products are public knowledge — some printed right on the box — others remain a closely guarded secret. Here are just a few other Costco brand items we love that you won’t find anywhere else. Next time you’re hankering for some white albacore, don’t worry about sacrificing quality for cost. The Takeout claims that Kirkland beers on the East Coast come from Matt Brewing in New York and that beers in the West link to Gordon Biersch. … You can grab a whopping 4lb container of these gourmet jelly beans for just $13.99 (or occasionally $9.99 after Instant Savings! Need toilet paper, too? And TVs, computers & appliances are a NO BRAINER as long as you are OK with the model. The Hearing Review reported in 2019 that Sonova confirmed it was contracted to supply its products to Costco under its flagship brand. Don’t be too disappointed, though. The Kirkland brand diapers tend to run about $10-$12 cheaper per box compared to Huggies or Pampers. Depending on where you live, your Costco’s Kirkland craft beers could originate from one of two places. Like the name “Parmigiano Reggiano” for cheese, “Balsamic Vinegar of Modena” is a protected title that can only be applied to products that fit certain geographical and processing standards. Your email address will not be published. (See NYT stock analysis on TipRanks)Thor Industries (THO)Last but not least is Thor Industries, a major manufacturer of recreational vehicles. "What's fascinating is the same bet we put on eight months ago is available on the same terms as if there had never been a fire and on the probability that the world is going to be fine," he reportedly said.Related Link: Bloomberg Denies Report Of Minority Stake Sale Talks With Bill Ackman's SPACWhy It's Important: Ackman turned a $27-million bet on the same idea into $2.6 billion earlier this spring.Ackman predicted that cases of coronavirus would spike and the market would sell off.The profit made from Ackman's first pandemic trade was put back into portfolio companies like Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK-A)(NYSE: BRK-B), Hilton Worldwide (NYSE: HLT), Restaurant Brands International (NYSE: QSR), Lowe's Corporation (NYSE: LOW) and Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ: SBUX).As of Oct. 31, Ackman's hedge fund is up 44% year-to-date. (See THO stock analysis at TipRanks)To find good ideas for stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks’ Best Stocks to Buy, a newly launched tool that unites all of TipRanks’ equity insights.Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the featured analysts. To translate the term into something more familiar to investors, therefore, Dayal calculates that Plug's revenues in 2024 will be about $1.1 billion -- more than four times the company's trailing revenues currently. According to JPMorgan strategist Marko Kolanovic, this may be the best possible outcome.“A GOP senate majority should ensure that Trump’s pro-business policies stay intact, and if Biden is confirmed we should be able to expect an easing of the trade war, which should boost global trade and corporate earnings growth,” Kolanovic noted.With investor fears allayed – that the Democrats would roll back Trump-era tax policy or focus on aggressive bureaucratic regulation – Kolanovic believes the markets are primed for gains.However, finding the right stock to buy is always a challenge, even in a bullish environment, but TipRanks offers investors the range of metrics necessary to sort through the raw data of the markets and bring those nuggets to light. So far we have used sizes 2 to 4. The chancellor commissioned the report in July as part of efforts to cover Covid-19 costs. The upside potential comes from the stock’s collected price targets; it’s a mathematical average that suggests the stock’s possible growth on a one-year time horizon. Costco CEO Craig Jelinek revealed that Duracell is the manufacturer of Kirkland Signature Batteries in an interview with Atlanta station WSB-TV in 2016. I want to take some profit from a mutual fund investment. Costco CEO Craig Jelinek revealed that Duracell is the manufacturer of Kirkland Signature Batteries in an interview with Atlanta station WSB-TV in 2016. (Updates with Alibaba share price in first and second graph)For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P. Stocks fell back across Asia on Thursday after gains for big technology shares pushed most Wall Street benchmarks higher. The Kirkland foils come in larger sizes than the regular Reynolds foils on Costco’s website, and their higher prices reflect the difference. Many buyers avoid store-brand batteries for fear they’ll drain faster than the ones produced by the big-name brands. That comes out to just under 4¢ per cup! However, Humboldt Creamery’s vanilla ice cream has also appeared under its own name at Costco, and both products have disappeared from store shelves at times — so the supplier situation may not have settled yet. Like many small-cap manufacturers, Pacific Ethanol was running earnings deficits prior to this year – but COVID-19 changed that. Wisconsin’s Regal Brau also makes an appearance. Costco and the Kirkland brand were both named in a class-action lawsuit. Everyone knows you can’t have a party without those famous big red plastic cups! ), which equals just $3.50 per pound. However, we believe demand for sanitizer products should remain elevated with increase in any economic activity in the near term. Here’s What to Expect. Moderna broke out as Dr. Fauci predicted strong results from its coronavirus vaccine. Excitement over news of potentially effective vaccines for COVID-19 has been tempered by concerns over the logistical challenges of ensuring access to billions of people. A 2013 issue of The Costco Connection magazine reported that Costco gets its Kirkland Signature chocolate through Blommer Chocolate Company, the largest cocoa processor and chocolate ingredient supplier in North America. In a 2003 interview with Money magazine, Costco executive vice-president Tim Rose argued that the canned tuna available on the market had declined in quality for years. And the now-defunct alcohol research site Under the Label reported that both vodkas are made using water from the Gensac Springs in the Cognac region. With this in mind, we used the TipRanks database to pinpoint three stocks that check all three of these boxes. Store brand products like Kirkland's are typically manufactured by third parties, not the store itself. Taking new production and sales potential into account, the company has revised 2020 earnings estimates upward to the $66 million to $86 million range.So far, the company is on track. The site Mashed adds that the address of Hopfen Und Malz matches that of Gordon Biersch in San Jose, California. Don't Miss Out! I picked up a block of Kirkland Signature Parmigiano Reggiano cheese and noticed on the back of the package that it is specially selected by Formaggi Zanetti, a company in Italy. Costco Item# 1185912. Pacific Ethanol (PEIX)We’ll start with a diversified company, with production lines in food products and animal feeds as well as industrial alcohols and renewable fuels. When Costco customers see the red and black Kirkland Signature label, they know they’re going to get a good product at a great price. Electric cars again outpaced traditional vehicles as China auto sales continued their pandemic rebound in October. More than a few rumors have popped up from people claiming to be in the know. In a 2016 interview with Market Watch Magazine, Alexander Murray president and CEO Stephen Lipp confirmed that the company supplies its scotch to Costco. (To watch Johnson’s track record, click here)Once again, we are looking at a stock with a unanimous Strong Buy analyst consensus rating; Thor has 4 recent Buy reviews.


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All Rights reserved
Elska Magazine, an independent publication dedicated to revealing the bodies and voices of LGBTQ communities around the world, has put the spotlight on Amsterdam for its latest issue. Inside, readers are invited to get to know the city and gay life there via meeting over a dozen regular local men who share their bodies and voices through intimate photo-spreads and personal stories.
In the past few years, Elska has garnered a reputation for focusing on LGBTQ communities in all corners of the world, including global gay capitals like Berlin or London as well as less expected parts of the world like Dhaka (Bangladesh), Lviv (Ukraine), or Haifa (Israel). This latest issue was made due to high demand from fans who wondered why no Dutch city had yet been added to the Elska collection.
"As one of the world’s gayest cities in one of the world’s most LGBTQ friendly countries, I knew we’d head there eventually, but I didn’t think it would take until our twenty-eighth issue to finally make it happen” says Elska editor and chief photographer Liam Campbell. “But when last autumn, I suddenly received invitations from several Amsterdammers to their city, I decided to finally do it. As I expected, I encountered a lot of men who were keen to take part as well as a fair few canals and bicycles! In addition, the participants were especially carefree and open-minded, every single one of them choosing to do the indoor (nude) part of the photoshoot as well as the outdoor city shoot.”
Elska is sold in select retailers around the world or from the magazine's website in a classic print format or in an electronic version for tablet/iPad. A companion e-zine Elska Ekstra Amsterdam is also available exclusively from the website, featuring behind the scenes tales, outtakes, plus three extra men, and other bonus content. A list of stockists and details of the subscription service can also be found on the Elska website.
This story originally appeared on Advocate.com.


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As we work our way into August we're now probably around six weeks away from the arrival of the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro. But before that can happen Apple's supply chain partners need to get the phones built — and now we seem to be even closer to that happening.
A new report claims Apple partner Samsung Display has been given the go-ahead to begin mass production of displays not just for one model, but multiple. In fact, it's thought that Samsung Display is now ready to produce displays for the iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 15 Pro, and Apple's best iPhone, the iPhone 15 Pro Max.
All four iPhones are expected to sport something new in terms of their displays, making this a big year for Samsung Display although it won't be the only display partner Apple uses for this year's new models.
This latest supply chain news comes via The Elec, with the outlet saying that LG Display has been given the thumbs-up for iPhone 15 Pro display production.
Both the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max are expected to come with thinner bezels than ever before, although the resolution and refresh rates aren't expected to change. As for the non-Pro models, the rumors point to the addition of the iPhone 14 Pro's Dynamic Island for the first time. That, coupled with a new 48-megapixel camera could make the standard iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus worthy upgrades.
All four new iPhones are expected to be unveiled in the first couple of weeks of September alongside the Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2. Those hoping for the Apple Watch SE 3 are going to be left waiting though — it's thought Apple won't launch that until 2024, sticking to its two-year release cadence.
Master your iPhone in minutes
iMore offers spot-on advice and guidance from our team of experts, with decades of Apple device experience to lean on. Learn more with iMore!
Oliver Haslam has written about Apple and the wider technology business for more than a decade with bylines on How-To Geek, PC Mag, iDownloadBlog, and many more. He has also been published in print for Macworld, including cover stories. At iMore, Oliver is involved in daily news coverage and, not being short of opinions, has been known to 'explain' those thoughts in more detail, too.
Having grown up using PCs and spending far too much money on graphics card and flashy RAM, Oliver switched to the Mac with a G5 iMac and hasn't looked back. Since then he's seen the growth of the smartphone world, backed by iPhone, and new product categories come and go. Current expertise includes iOS, macOS, streaming services, and pretty much anything that has a battery or plugs into a wall. Oliver also covers mobile gaming for iMore, with Apple Arcade a particular focus. He's been gaming since the Atari 2600 days and still struggles to comprehend the fact he can play console quality titles on his pocket computer.


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There's a new type of chicken that is reportedly on its way to the Quincy and Hannibal KFC's except it's not really chicken. It's plant-based and it's about to be available at all Kentucky Fried Chickens nationwide.
There are very few food trucks that have this story to tell. It looks like a Space Shuttle. However, it's really a converted World War II-era plane that's been converted into a mobile café and it makes its home in Illinois.


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It News and reviews
Huawei unveils P8 series flagships
Beelink Pocket P1 review, a micro-PC with a twist
Asus VivoWatch promises 10-day battery life
ZTE Blade S6 reviewed, a budget Lollipop iPhone?
AMD x86 16-core Zen APU detailed
Intel-based Asus Zenfone 2 up for pre-order
03 September 2012
Nokia's Purity Pro headset color scheme hints at next-gen Lumias
€299? So where’s Dre hiding?
13 December 2010
Ad industry comes up with voluntary opt-out scheme
Now that Microsoft has given users an anti-tracking button


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Inside Wall Street: A Takeover Bid for Navistar?
Its latest defensive moves, including adopting a shareholder rights plan, or “poison pill,” aimed at thwarting hostile bids, signal that Navistar has been getting unsolicited feelers from some interested groups.
Shares of Navistar have spurted higher in recent days, to $27 on June 22 from $24 on June 7. While that doesn’t seem such a big gain, it is enough to attract notice. The rise in the last few days has been attributed to market rumors suggesting that foreign auto makers, including Germany’s Volkswagen (VLKAY -0.42%) and Italy’s Fiat (FIATY +0.65%), may be interested in making a run for the company.
A report from the Financial Times speculates that Volkswagen may be interested in taking a stake in Navistar, which also makes a wide range of diesel engines and parts for the North and South American and Asian trucking markets. The report notes that entering the North American market would enable Volkswagen to better compete with its rival Daimler.
Some analysts believe neither Volkswagen nor Fiat is interested right now since they are both busy pursuing strategic moves in their respective markets in Europe. However, they also concede that acquiring Navistar would be a big plus for either company.
“While we find a near-term takeover by Volkswagen or Fiat Industrial to be unlikely given strategic initiatives taking place at both companies, both manufacturers lack any substantial presence in the North American commercial truck market, where Navistar stands as the sole pure play,” says Brian Sponheimer, analyst at investment firm Gabelli & Co.
He notes that Navistar’s woes, including market share losses due to its inability to meet 2010 emission standards, have made the company an “eventual takeover candidate.” Rating the stock a “buy,” he says investors will ultimately be rewarded for their patience because there is value in the company that a takeover should unlock.
Sponheimer puts the “intrinsic private market value” of Navistar at $45 a share, excluding “a number of likely synergies that would likely surface in a takeover scenario.”
But Navistar has yet to cope with fundamental operating problems. Its results in the first half of fiscal 2012 disappointed Wall Street analysts. In the second quarter (ended April 30), Navistar posted an adjusted loss of $1.99 a share. Results this year are expected to be dismally disappointing, as well.
Sponheimer expects 2012 earnings of just 5 cents a share on sales of $13.9 billion, and EBITDA of $300 million for the fiscal year ending Oct. 31. That is way down from fiscal 2011 earnings of $5.28 a share.
Given Navistar’s operating problems and depressed stock price, some analysts think Volkswagen and Fiat may now be more encouraged to make an acquisition offer for the struggling company.


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A couple of days ago, a data miner on Reddit found several references inside the code of Diablo 3 on Switch that seemed to suggest new custom amiibo would be released for the game. Now, thanks to an official announcement from Blizzard, we know that, yes, those amiibo really are real. Hooray!
— Diablo (@Diablo) November 1, 2018
Revealed by the official Diablo Twitter account, a Loot Goblin amiibo is coming to stores this December. Referred to in the game files as 'Treasure Goblin', this seems to confirm the veracity of the leaked information. While only the Loot Goblin was announced at this time, we can likely expect a Demon amiibo as well as support for non-Diablo-themed amiibo based on the data miner's information.
The Loot Goblin will apparently "open a portal to untold riches" – which likely means it'll provide access to the Treasure Vault, but we'll have to wait and see.


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When the all-new Cadillac XTS sedan made its debut at the Los Angeles Auto Show last year, more observant press members noted something immediately: the XTS was too small.
Read This Article
The 2013 Cadillac XTS may be the American automaker's finest expression of luxury and technology to date, and naturally, Caddy would look to apply its newest application to an aging livery fleet.
Sometimes you're never really ready for the reality.
A high six-figure Caddy is dead, Volvo has new safety technology, and we celebrate America's birthday in this edition of our Week in Review.


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Apple's online store now lists both iPad Wi-Fi and iPad Wi-Fi + 3G as shipping in 24hrs, and not just in the US but in international stores from Canada to the UK as well.
Supplies of Apple's "magical and revolutionary" new device have been highly constrained since launch, leading delays in international rollouts and concerns that the IPS panels just couldn't be made fast enough to meet demand.
Did demand slow or did production rise? We'll have to wait for next quarter's results to find out.
[Thanks everyone who sent this in!]


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2021 SURVEY REPORT
Last year many small businesses had to think harder about their digital marketing than ever before.
So JJM conducted a survey of small businesses to see how they had coped with a year of unprecedented change to our lives and how we conduct business.
This eBook looks into what challenges SMEs have been facing and what they can do to access opportunities in the coming year.
Download the eBook by filling out your email address below and subscribe to our newsletter for more news and insights.


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Arkansas has been losing medical cannabis sales across the border because of lower prices in Oklahoma.
Prices are about half as much in Oklahoma for similar-quality products as in Arkansas, according to the Southwest Times Record in Fort Smith, Arkansas, which is on the border.
Another factor, according to the newspaper, is that Arkansas medical marijuana patients’ access is limited by the state’s qualifying conditions while Oklahoma requires only that MMJ consumers have a doctor’s recommendation.
However, Oklahoma required medical marijuana patients from other states to buy a temporary patient card, which costs $100 and is good for only 30 days.
The newspaper didn’t say what impact the coronavirus outbreak has had on Arkansas MMJ patients shopping at Oklahoma dispensaries.
Arkansas is one of the few states in the country without a stay-at-home order while Oklahoma officials categorized MMJ dispensaries as essential businesses. Oklahoma law allows curbside pickup of medical marijuana.
Read the full article here.


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World’s first 77-inch flexible and transparent OLED display from LG Display can be rolled up to a radius of 80mm
LG Display has developed the world’s first 77-inch flexible and transparent OLED display, the company announced today. The 77-inch flexible and transparent OLED display boasts an Ultra HD (UHD) resolution of 3840×2160 with 40% transparency and 80 radius of curvature. The display can be used for various areas, including digital signage, smart desk, infotainment system for automobiles, augmented reality and aquarium. The panel can be rolled up to a radius of 80mm without affecting the function of the display.
LG unveiled some applications, including a smart desk and an augmented reality aquarium, utilizing the large flexible display at the event. LG Display had developed the world’s first 18-inch flexible OLED and 18-inch transparent OLED in 2014, 18-inch rollable display in 2015 and 55-inch transparent display with a penetration ratio of 40 percent in 2016. LG did not unveil when to commercialize it.


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Why half of us will buy more at Aldi and Lidl
ALMOST half of all shoppers say they will buy more groceries at discount retailers like Aldi and Lidl in 2012.
Shoppers are casting around for bargains more and more with 81pc admitting to shopping in more than one store a week to avail of promotions.
Nearly one in four (23pc) believes their weekly grocery spend will decrease this year, a new survey shows.
The survey for Checkout grocery magazine also shows that three quarters of respondents (75pc) felt that their shopping habits changed last year, while 50pc believed their shopping habits would change even more in 2012 and 48pc said they would shop more at stores like Aldi and Lidl.
The items shoppers are most likely to shop around for include toiletries (62pc), meat (50pc), alcohol (49pc), fruit and veg (38pc) and baby products (9pc).
"Shoppers are cannier than ever about where they shop and what brands they will remain loyal to," Stephen Wynne-Jones, editor of Checkout said.
Given the continued economic situation, the results of the survey were not surprising, he said.
In the wake of "one of the worst Budgets in living memory," and the pledge by some retailers not to pass on the 2pc VAT increase on certain non-food items, it looked as if the focus was going to remain very much around value at the start of this year.
But he said "this could prove difficult to maintain as food prices continue to increase around the world".
The survey also found that 42pc believe they will shop for more private label/own brand items this year, while 52pc will buy fewer products on average.
Some 42.5pc of shoppers said they spent more than €100 a week on groceries, with most (18.6pc) spending between €81 and €100 per week.
The survey, of around 300 Irish shoppers, was carried out ahead of the Checkout conference in Dublin on Tuesday, January 17 under the banner "Where do we go from here?"
"In a chastened market, growth is only achievable by differentiating yourself from your competitors, either through customer engagement, innovative marketing, product repositioning or new product development," Mr Wynne-Jones said.
"As attendees at the conference will learn, there's nothing to be gained by standing still."


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Verizon vs. AT&T
Verizon Criticizes AT&T In New iPhone 4S Commercial
Verizon recently launched an iPhone 4S commercial, its first perhaps. However, rather that advertising the new handset’s many features, America’s No. 1 carrier uses the airtime to do what it does best: bash AT&T.
Bryan M. Wolfe
| November 17
Future iPhone Buyers Likely To Select Verizon Over AT&T - Report
A new ChangeWave survey indicates Verizon iPhone owners are happier with their handheld service and received fewer dropped calls than AT&T users. Plus, new iPhone customers will mostly likely select Verizon over AT&T. The poll collected data from 4,068 consumers from the Verizon iPhone debut in early February through March 28.
Bryan M. Wolfe
| April 5
Verizon iPhone Commercial: "Yes, I Can Hear You Now"
Verizon has launched another iPhone ad, showing off the combined power of an iPhone 4, with America's "most reliable" network. And, Verizon's "Can you hear me now?" guy makes an appearance, too!
| February 4
Verizon iPhone To Hit Best Buy February 10?
According to the latest rumor, the Verizon iPhone will be available at Best Buy as early as February 10, according to an anonymous 9to5Mac tipster. As you can see in the above screenshot, the Verizon handset is given the "in stock date," of February 10, 2011.
| February 2
Verizon iPhone Pre-Orders: February 3, Plus AT&T iPhone Trade Ins!
Verizon will reportedly start taking pre-orders for the iPhone on February 3, at 3AM EST. Existing Verizon customers will be able to buy the iPhone that day, a week ahead of the general public.
| January 27
As Special Media Event Looms, Verizon Bites Back At AT&T
Verizon has responded to AT&T's claims that Verizon iPhone users will be trapped in the "slow lane." Verizon spokesman Jeffrey Nelson is quoted by The New York Times as saying: "it must be backwards day at AT&T."
| January 11


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Nigerian Export Promotion Council
The Federal Government is targeting women as part of plans to raise the contribution of non-oil revenue to meet yearly budgetary provision.
The Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) has emphasised the need for Nigerian exporters to deploy effective logistic supply chains to export their products to the international markets.
With crude oil still dominating the bulk of Nigeria’s export to the United States, stakeholders have expressed worry about the country’s inability to exploit opportunities available to it under the extended Africa Growth Opportunity Act (AGOA) scheme.
21 Oct 2020
A Nigerian firm, Free on Board (FOB) Global Logistics, has secured a purchase order to supply 30 tonnes of yam, sweet potatoes, fresh fruits and vegetables (including water leaves, garlic, ginger, and okra) to Europe weekly. To maximize the opportunity, the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) in conjunction with FOB started sensitising non-oil exporters on…
15 Oct 2020
The Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) has presented working tools to facilitate formalisation of trade along Okerete/Seme trade border corridors.
9 Oct 2020
While building the capacity of non-oil exporters is key for market penetration, the country needs a national carrier to further improve its chances of entering new markets and deepening non-oil export growth
3 Sep 2020
The Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), has said its One- State-One-Product Programme, under the “Zero Oil” initiative, is designed to create employment in states across the country. This would be done through the value-addition of identified products, enhanced income generation, and wealth creation opportunities for the people as well as empower state and other communities towards achieving…
25 Jun 2019
The Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) has disclosed that Nigeria can generate over $10 billion from local and international trade in honey and other beehive products. Director-General/Chief Executive Officer of NEPC, Mr. Olusegun Awolowo, who said this in Ikom during a one-day export workshop and mini exhibition on “honey production and packaging for export,” said…
15 May 2019
Nigeria’s non-oil export has continued to suffer a huge setback due to various challenges. Top on the list include, logistics challenges in moving products to the ports and the lingering issue of unsettled Export Expansion Grant (EEG) claims. With the unsettled incentives converted to promissory notes, there are concerns among operators about the payment arrangement…
8 May 2019
To aid improved market access for exporters of processed foods, the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) has commenced an awareness programme on Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) alongside other voluntary certifications. Indeed, the NEPC noted that it had become imperative for non-oil exporters to acquire additional non-mandatory certifications to enable them to compete…
10 Apr 2019
The Organised Private Sector Exporters Association (OPEXA) has decried the non-implementation of budgetary allocations amounting to N29.28 billion meant for Export Expansion Grant (EEG) in 2017 and 2018. Its Executive Secretary, Jaiyeola Paul Olarewaju, in a statement yesterday in Abuja, said that making provision for EEG in the country’s yearly budget would create transparency and…
8 Apr 2019
Head of Agro-Economy Desk, FEMI IBIROGBA, writes on how seasonal and highly perishable mangoes could be processed, preserved and used to create wealth for the processors and other value chain players. THEY are here now in abundance. They come every year. But more of them get wasted than consumed or utilised. They are mangoes. The…


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The new Disney+ streaming service is less than two days old, but it already has a user base of over 10 million people.
It signed up over 10 million subscribers in its first day of operations, the company said Wednesday. That’s notably higher than the 8 million analysts were expecting.
The question now becomes how many of those users will convert to paid subscribers when their one-week free trial ends (or when the free year for Verizon customers expires). Disney won’t answer that until its quarterly earnings call, which is expected next February.
Disney shares spiked on the news. The stock was up nearly 3% in midday trading.
Read: Here are the devices you can use to download and watch Disney+
Day one was a rocky one for Disney+, which saw several tech errors that prevented some subscribers from being able to access content. Some Star Wars fans were also upset about changes to a scene in the original film, reviving the debate on whether Han shot first. (If you don’t know what that’s about, you’re probably better off staying that way.)
Disney+ offers more than 500 movies and more than 7,500 episodes of library television content, By year five, says Iger, Disney+ will offer more than 620 movies and more than 10,000 television episodes. Neither of those figures includes original shorts and features.
More must-read stories from Fortune:
—Hideo Kojima on Death Stranding and more
—Review: Apple Watch Series 5 is insanely great
—Workers are worried robots will steal their jobs
—Apple tackles California’s housing crisis amid Apple TV Plus questions
—New bank offers 3% interest rate for “good behavior”
Catch up with Data Sheet, Fortune’s daily digest on the business of tech.


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Avery Dennison Corp. has opened an Electronics Solutions and Technology Center in Santa Clara, the company announced Tuesday.
The Glendale company, which makes labels and packing materials, said the facility is designed to provide solutions and services to the company’s clients in the electronics industry. The 6,000-square-foot center includes training and lab areas where Avery Dennison engineers and scientists can work side-by-side with customers’ engineering teams.
Staff at the facility will work to create rapid prototypes of new adhesives, carriers, liners and lamination equipment. Testing of potential new products will also occur at the site.
“Avery Dennison’s investment in facilities, equipment and human resources reflects the business potential we see in the electronics sector for high-performance adhesive tapes,” Dr. Robert Medsker, senior director of global research and development at Avery Dennison, said in a statement. “Look for Avery Dennison to emerge as a key supplier to electronics manufacturers worldwide, and a preferred source for problem solving and technical support.”
Shares of Avery Dennison (AVY) closed Tuesday down 42 cents, or a fraction of a percent, to $83.71 on the New York Stock Exchange.


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NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- General Motors is recalling almost 100,000 of its popular new 2011 model year crossover SUVs because the front seatbelts could come loose in a crash.
The models involved in the recall are the Chevrolet Equinox, GMC Terrain and Cadillac SRX compact crossover SUVs. A total of 97,843 vehicles are involved in the recall.
The problem was discovered during seatbelt development tests in September. The two incidents that occurred during the tests were on the driver's seatbelt, but the same seatbelt buckle anchor that failed in those tests is also used on the passenger side seatbelt.
While the seatbelts won't fail on a first impact, GM spokesman Alan Adler said, they could fail during a secondary impact. Car crashes frequently involve more than one impact.
Building the replacements for tens of millions defective airbags and finding owners of the recalled cars will be a difficult and time-consuming process. More
Google apologized for and fixed Google Maps issue where users were taken to the White House if they type in variations of the n-word. More
Rents increased 4% in April from last year while home values only rose 3% during the same time period. More


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League of Legends esports, the largest esport in the world. This first-of-its-kind global agreement signifies Mastercard’s support of the esports community and further diversifies the technology company’s world-class sports and entertainment portfolio.
“Esports is a phenomenon that continues to grow in popularity, with fans that can rival those at any major sporting event in their enthusiasm and energy,” said Raja Rajamannar, chief marketing and communications officer, Mastercard. “Our Priceless platform is built around connecting with people through their passions. We are excited about the experiences and benefits we can bring to the world’s largest esport – both in-game and to the millions of League of Legends fans that watch and attend the tournaments each year.”
“We’re thrilled to team up with Mastercard on this groundbreaking partnership that will provide meaningful and long-term value to our fans,” said Naz Aletaha, head of esports partnerships at Riot Games. “Mastercard is among the first of world-class brands to take such a big step into esports at the global level, and we’re proud to have them support League of Legends esports events alongside their other premier sports and entertainment sponsorships.”
As the exclusive global payment services partner for League of Legends global esports events, Mastercard will focus on three annual global tournaments – the Mid-Season Invitational, the All-Star Event, and the pinnacle of all esports events, the World Championship. Mastercard will curate unforgettable Priceless experiences and offers across onsite event activations, priceless.com and through other various promotions to bring fans closer to their passion and everything they love about League of Legends events.
The first live-event activation will take place at the League of Legends World Championship this fall in South Korea, and the first experiences available on Priceless.com will include:
Fandomfare Gaming Entertainment no.1 source in, Gaming news, Live Game Streaming , PC Gaming & related Events E3, Gamecon and more, eSports event news and releases gaming technologies.
Fandomfare Gaming Entertainment Video Games | Game Reviews | Game Streaming |Linux Distribution | more than 20-year online gaming and following the gaming industry\
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At the moment, summer fruits arriving from the southern areas of Spain and Murcia are entering the markets with regularity, despite the consistent rainfall that is expected to continue into next week.
So far, many apricots have been seen on the Spanish market stalls, minus peaches and nectarines. The quality is not heterogeneous, and the sizes are still small. The maximum size is 24 for peaches and nectarines, at the moment. The best batches of apricots mark a price range between 3.00 and 3.50 €/kg. Extra quality peaches quote a price of 2.50 €/kg, and then decrease according to the different quality categories," said Giuseppe Iacovazzo, an Italian operator based in Spain, who pointed out that the prices of summer fruit are dropping, as the climate does not encourage consumption. "It's been cold, the campaign hasn't taken off yet."
"As for vegetables, 7-10 days ago eggplants were registering cheap quotations, ranging between 0.30-0.40 €/kg. Now the trend is upward for eggplants, which are worth €0.90-1.00 for the best product, while the trend for courgettes downward."
(Photo provided by Giuseppe Iacovazzo)
Finally, with regard to the foreign product that is arriving on Spanish and Italian markets, Iacovazzo said that: "All the Moroccan watermelons that are traveling now will be on the shelves competing with the Spanish and Italian products. Egyptian grapes and Icerberg lettuce are also starting to arrive more regularly, and the latest clementines, which are highly sought after at the moment, are also arriving from Egypt."


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“Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound MP Larry Miller says it’s time to regulate the sale of raw milk.
“It isn’t about whether you like Michael Schmidt or don’t like Michael Schmidt or whether you want to consume raw milk or you don’t want to consume raw milk. The ultimate thing that needs to happen here is for the province to get off its fanny and regulate raw milk,” Miller said after a visit to the Schmidt farm on Wednesday.
“I was raised on it, my kids were raised on it and there isn’t one dairy farmer in my riding that I know of that doesn’t drink milk from their own cows. So what’s the difference . . . If people want that choice then let them have that choice, but put regulations in place that make it safe to drink,” he added.
Miller and Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound MPP Bill Walker toured Schmidt’s Durham area farm at Schmidt’s invitation. Miller says he found the operation as clean and safe as he’s seen anywhere.
Walker said he appreciated the information that Schmidt provided about the growing acceptance of raw milk in many of the American states and across Europe, including England.
“Safety has to be paramount but if there is a way to do this safely then I think it should be studied. Maybe the federal government agricultural committee does a study and gets some conclusion . . . let science rule rather than politics or hyperbole and go from there,” he said.
Miller said cleanliness is paramount.
“I used to milk cows myself and we kept our facilities very clean; you have to do that when you’re selling to the public and Michael’s is as clean or cleaner that most I’ve seen . . . nobody can say that his facilities are not OK,” said Miller.
Miller said there have been advances in technology since the 1930s when the sale and distribution of raw milk was banned in Ontario.
“We haven’t heard of anyone of Michael’s cow share owners being sick, so obviously if you do it right, and I believe Michael is doing it right, as far as safety goes,” said Miller, who noted that some people prefer to consume only organic vegetables, or organically grown meat or cereals….”


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After suffering through the legal nightmare of trying to reacquire ModernWarfare3.com, a URL that at one point redirected to Battlefield 3‘s official site, it appears that Activision isn’t taking any chances. Recently the publisher has registered a wide swath of domains in relation to China and Black Ops 2.
Since the game centers around the idea of China invading American soil — an umbrella attack for a more personal confrontation with Raul Menendez — these domain registrations are most likely in relation to the sequel’s content rather than an indication of what’s to come. But if it is, Activision has invested quite heavily in a few key phrases spelled out in Chinese, along with URLs like BlackOpsChina.com and ModernWarfareChina.com.
As we said before, there is likely not much to get excited about in relation to these domains being purchased — it could easily be chalked up to Activision being gun shy about letting any domain slip away — or it could very well be an indication of the types of confrontations the publisher is looking to explore in future iterations.
While we had known for quite some time, despite Treyarch refusing to comment, that Black Ops 2 was going to be the developer’s next iteration, the status on Infinity Ward’s next is still up in the air. Couple that in with recent developments that suggest new developers are hopping on board to develop their own Call of Duty experience, and you have a good old fashioned rumor trail.
What we do know is that Black Ops 2 and Black Ops: Declassified (Vita) are slated for release later this year, and that a few developers are trying their hands at adding a new iteration to the Call of Duty franchise. We wouldn’t be surprised, though, if the next game didn’t prominently feature China as a setting or once again a source of conflict.
What do you make of these Activision domain registrations? Have the Call of Duty developers run out of clever villains to put against the player?


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BRAZIL: AmBev share up, Schincariol down, just
AmBev's Brazilian market share registered a slight rise in May, according to figures released this week. The brewer saw market share rise to 66% in May, compared to 65.4% in April, according to data from market research organisation AC Nielsen.
All of AmBev's beer brands - Brahma, Skol and Antarctica - increased their share of the market last month.
AmBev's bitter rival in its home market, Schincariol, saw its market share drop by 0.1% last month to 11.6% from 11.7% in April.
The market share for Molson, which sell Kaiser and Bavaria in the country, fell to 7.7% last month. Although April's figures for Molson were not available, at the beginning of 2003, Kaiser held an 11% market share.
Sectors: Beer & cider
The global roll-out of InBev's Brazilian beer, Brahma, adds a third premium brand to the global brewer's international portfolio but some observers have suggested it's an unnecessary step which threat...
Functional soft drinks are relatively undeveloped in Latin America in comparison with Europe but there is significant growth potential. Hope Lee of industry analysts, Euromonitor International, examin...
First quarter losses announced last week by Molson Coors are wider than originally reported, according to a recent filing....
Molson Coors Brewing Company disappointed investors yesterday by reporting a net loss for the first quarter of 2005. The company said that it had achieved higher consolidated net sales and sales volum...
Molson Coors Brewing Company said yesterday that Daniel J. O'Neill, Vice-chairman, synergies and integration and formerly president and CEO of Molson Inc, has chosen to leave the company May 31 of thi...
Molson Canada has announced it has acquired Ontario microbrewery Creemore Springs Brewery Ltd. Established in 1987, the brewery in Creemore, Ontario, 120 kilometres northwest of Toronto, employs 50 pe...
Southern Wine & Spirits of America (SWS) has appointed a new vice president, category management and business intelligence....
Peter M. R. Kendall, chief executive officer of Coors Brewers Limited, the European business unit of Molson Coors Brewing Company, will retire from his post on 1 May....
- Can craft breweries compete in lager arena?
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- Global Scotch whisky insights - market forecasts, product innovation and consumer trends


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BakerHostetler Partner Alan Friel Talks Big Data and Data Collection
Polsinelli Podcasts - Removing Caps on Punitive Damages: What is the Impact on Business?
Coco Chanel said that nature gives you your face at 20, but you earn your face at 50. Perhaps that is not so different from Mark Twain’s theory that one’s wrinkles should merely be monuments to smiles. Those platitudes do...more
On Friday, the Supreme Court granted the certiorari petition of Pom Wonderful in its Lanham Act false advertising case against Coca-Cola. Pom Wonderful LLC v. Coca Cola Co., 679 F.3d 1170 (9th Cir. 2012), cert granted, ___...more
In a significant blow to the U.S. government’s enforcement efforts against the pharmaceutical industry, a panel of the Second Circuit overturned the conviction of a pharmaceutical sales representative for conspiracy to...more
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Spot resin trading was mixed last week. Polyethylene (PE) business improved but was offset by slower polypropylene (PP) sales. Overall spot prices ended mostly steady, though there was deep producer discounting along the way to help improve month-end sales. It remains to be seen if one-off deal levels will return in May, reports the PlasticsExchange in its Market Update.
|Image courtesy Cool Design/|
Average PE contracts saw a $0.04/lb decrease in April, while most PP contracts declined two cents. In an effort to combat over-supply, resin producers have begun to reduce production by either throttling back reactor rates or idling plants. Resellers continue to shed their inventoried stocks while also seeking back-to-back orders. Though recognizing the current advantageous price level, most believe there is still plenty of time to buy and replenish inventories. Houston prices were soft as sellers chased limited demand amid the pandemic-led slowdown and cost-based shifting of supply channels. Contributing to general market anxiety and economic uncertainty, growing geopolitical tension between the United States and China concerning COVID-19 fallout and blame has caused some resin buyers in the Far East to hit the pause button, fearing possible retaliatory tariffs.
The spot PE market ended April and began May with surprisingly good activity amid a difficult economic environment. A heavy flow of railcar offers materialized, as producers sought sales for their excess output, domestic or export, given reduced demand from many of their normal processing customers. The PlasticsExchange trading desk reports closing a high percentage of opportunities presented, bringing completed volumes above the short-term average and closer to its normal market figures. Processors have been shrewd, only ordering small quantities as they wait for lower prices ahead; in most cases, they have been very aggressive with low-priced bids.
Most grades held steady this past week, however, supported by news that Dow will idle three PE plants for at least one month to help balance against lower demand (and diminishing storage space). The PlasticsExchange expects other producers to follow suit to a certain extent, which may help to curb the price slide. A $0.04/lb contract price decrease seems to be solid for April PE contracts, and the battle for May begins with processors calling for another $0.03 to 0.04/lb decrease. The export market remained busy, though prices have fallen sharply to compete with new low crude oil–based monomer costs, which feed international resin producers. The global PE market is still trying to find a bottom.
PP trading slowed last week: Supply was ample, but buyers were conservative, and spot prices ended flat with a weak undertone. Of the transactions completed, truckloads outsold railcars as processors continue to buy in reduced volumes, said the PlasticsExchange. April PP contracts will mostly settle down $0.02/lb with potential variance based on the index/metric, as producers have tried to implement a small margin increase.
Homo-polymer PP outpaced co-polymer PP sales, and prime was favored over wide spec, as the contract decrease has helped narrow the spread. Upstream resin inventories jumped 40 million pounds to begin April, but remain very low historically after shedding 355 million pounds over the previous five months. The market awaits a normalization of demand, which could begin to develop as shelter-in-place orders begin to ease. Still, PP prices seem poised to slide further in May, as spot monomer levels already point to a potential cost-based price decrease.
Read the full Market Update on the PlasticsExchange website.


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According to data prepared by Hortoinfo from the Estacom statistical service, Spain imported 165.32 million kilos of tomatoes in 2021 for 152.03 million euro, and an average price of € 0.92/kg.
Morocco was its biggest supplier with 78.05 million kilos, the largest volume of Moroccan tomatoes that Spain has ever imported in a year, 14.26% more than in the previous year and 307 % more in the last ten years. Tomato imports from Morocco totaled 78.31 million euro, at an average price of € 1/kg.
Portugal was Spain's second-biggest tomato supplier in 2020 with 33.15 million kilos worth 31.77 million euro and an average price of € 0.96/kg.
The Netherlands ranked third with 30.73 million kilos worth 24.5 million euros and an average price of € 0.8/kg.
It was followed by Belgium with a volume of 14.58 million kilos of tomatoes worth 9.23 million euro and an average price of € 0.63/kg.
France ranked fifth with 4 million kilos worth 3.34 million euro, and an average price of € 0.84/kg.


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The free streaming platform VIX Filmes e TV reached three million monthly users in Brazil, in just over a year. After its launch in August 2020, the service that offers more than 5,000 hours of content in Portuguese without cost or registration, reached 250,000 daily surfers with an average connection time of 32 minutes.
By October 2019, the app was already working in the United States and some Latin American countries. It was not until the beginning of the pandemic that the consumption of the service began to grow enormously in the regions where it was already enabled, so the company decided that it was the best time to bet on an expansion and advance its launch in Brazil.
Currently, the platform is in the top 10 of the most downloaded free entertainment apps for Android in Brazil; as well as its Spanish version, which is in the Latin America ranking and leads the Hispanic audience in the United States through the Roku device.
Regarding the rapid growth of the service, Enor Paiano, country manager of VIX Filmes e TV in Brazil, told the Brazilian news portal Telaviva: “We had a very positive surprise in terms of audience growth, it’s not that we did not believe in Brazil as a promising market, but we couldn’t invest in marketing and user acquisition”. “People were discovering the platform, sharing it and our base grew” he added.


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Los Angeles Haunted Hayride is a California haunt tradition that has seen its share of scary moments. This year with the pandemic all but wiping out the “heritage” haunt events, however, isn’t afraid. In fact the Hayride is stepping it up. This year, they’re taking the hayride off the trail and bringing it to you with the Los Angeles Haunted Hayride: Live Drive-Up Experience.
Claiming to be a first of its kind haunted experience, guests will experience the haunt from the “safety” of their vehicle. A combo drive-thru/drive-in, the “Drive Up” experience will begin with guests will venturing down a dark stretch of “All Hallows Lane” that will feature some of the awesomely creepy scenic environments. Next patrons will drive into horror where you will experience a haunted show featuring an original multimedia story displayed on a 40′ screen, accompanied by horrifying sets, lighting, sound, effects, and most importantly live characters from the town of Midnight Falls!
“With all of the other heritage Halloween events canceling in Southern California, it drove us to find a way to bring a safe and unique experience to Halloween fans,” says Thirteenth Floor Entertainment Group CEO, Chris Stafford, whose company produces the annual event, “I’m so excited to show our fans what we’ve created for them, and that this reimagined hayride experience will be entertaining people this season.”
New Location, Same Scary Fun
Another change this year is a new temporary location for the event. Los Angeles Haunted Hayride: Live Drive-Up Experience will take place at Bonelli Regional Park, in San Dimas next to Raging Waters. “There was just no way to bring cars into the hayride location at Griffith Park. We had to find the right spot, one where we could implement the new drive-up experience and an outdoor environment that gives you the right fall feeling,” says Jon Cooke, Creative Director. “When I saw the space we’re using at Bonelli, I knew that it would be perfect,” Cooke continued, “the hayride has become a Halloween tradition for people, and although it may be a little different this year, I think people are really going to love it. As a huge fan of the fall season in SoCal, I couldn’t be happier to be able to share this experience with everyone.”
Los Angeles Haunted Hayride: Live Drive Up Experience will take place select nights from September 25th through November 1st. Tickets will go on sale Tuesday, August 25th at noon Pacific. Don’t wait! Capacity is very limited for this event, much lower than hayride has had in the past, and tickets are expected to sell out nightly. Complete details can be found at losangeleshauntedhayride.com


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Homebrew on a PlayStation3 has always been Sony’s nightmare. This time around, George GeoHot Hotz has introduced to the world and entire new way for gamers to take advantage of their consoles. Till date, the Sony PS3 has been the only gaming platform that remained unmodded and that of which gave game developers a reason to smile.
On Friday, GeoHot revealed his all new custom firmware that allows users to update their systems to a compatible OS that supports Homebrew applications. While George did mention that his update was not intended for using the console to play pirated games, let’s see if he stands by his promise.
For those that do not know what a Jailbreak does, let’s put it in simple terms. GeoHot’s custom firmware offers users with the opportunity to play backups of their games that they can transfer from their BluRay discs to an external harddrive.
Additionally, they can also access Homebrew applications that will give them a new sense of gaming dimension that takes a new turn from the only available PlayStation Store. While no confirmation has been made by Sony yet, only time will tell if SCE will be able to bounce back and reclaim their land.


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UK: Honda plant to ship hot hatch to Japan
Honda is to export its British-built Civic Type R to Japan from next year, the automaker announced on Thursday.
The three-door 'hot hatchback', manufactured at the automaker's plant in Swindon, recently reopened after a four-month inventory-reducing break, will go on sale in Japan during 2010.
The model will be called the Type R Euro in Japan to distinguish it from the locally-made four-door Type R sedan already sold there. Honda said the UK hatch would be sold "in limited numbers".
Japan is the third country to take the UK Type R after Australia and South Africa. The UK plant is the only Honda factory building three- and five-door Civic hatchbacks; plants in Japan, Thailand, the US, Canada and elsewhere make only the sedan versions.
Honda of the UK Manufacturing (HUM) also builds the CR-V SUV for Europe and is gearing up for output of the Jazz (Fit) for Europe from next autumn.
Honda Japan also imported the previous generation Swindon-built Civic Type-R in 2001.


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Spain’s apparel imports from Cambodia, which experienced substantial growth in 2022, have continued their upward trajectory in the first four months of the current year. Imports have seen a significant 19.16 per cent jump to $326.555 million from January to April 2023, compared to the same period in the previous year.
Spain imported apparel worth $274.042 million during the first four months of 2022. This represents a 51.61 per cent increase compared to the $180.755 million worth of imports from January to April 2021. The trend demonstrates a recovery in Spain’s import activity, which had declined by 22.71 per cent to $231.514 million in the first four months of 2020, and further dropped by 21.92 per cent to $180.755 million during the same period in 2021, according to data from Fibre2Fashion’s TexPro market insight tool.
In the first four months of 2023, Cambodia was the fourth largest supplier of apparel to Spain. During this period, Spain imported 5.04 per cent of its total apparel from Cambodia, which amounted to a value of $6.485 billion.


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Telecom Namibia hosts ICT Summit
COMPUTING| Sept. 29, 2012, 8:05 a.m.
Telecom Namibia will host its sixth annual ICT Summit next month.
The Telecom Namibia Information Communication Technology (ICT) Summit will be held at the Safari Hotel & Conference Centre in Windhoek from 9-11 October 2012.
This year, the Summit celebrates its sixth anniversary and coincides with the 20th Anniversary of Telecom Namibia. The Summit will look at the revolution that transformed the IT and telecommunications sector in Namibia and Telecom Namibia, as the key player, over the past 20 years.
The theme for this year’s event is: “ICT – an integral part of everyday lives,” which provides an opportunity for ICT users, policy makers, industry players and the sector itself to interrogate how best the ICT potential – through social inclusion - can be harnessed to achieve real sustainable development for business, society and the environment as Namibia moves towards Vision 2030.
Through a series of high-level speeches, debates, interviews and case studies, our distinguished speaker line-up will look at the enormous potential of ICT to boost economic development and improve Namibia's competitiveness, by leading to new sources of growth and addressing key societal challenges we are facing as we forge ahead with the implementation of NDP-4. There will be a strong focus on how the industry players, the regulator, policymakers can work together to promote ICT penetration in the country.
One biggest challenge to be addressed by the Summit is how to harness the potential of ICT to create an inclusive society, to promote the development goals of NDP-4, namely the eradication of extreme poverty and hunger; achievement of universal primary education; promotion of gender equality and empowerment of women; reduction of child mortality; improvement of maternal health; to combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases; and ensuring environmental sustainability.
Many ICT companies will be showcasing their products and services and close to 600 delegates are expected to attend the Summit. The event programme has an impressive line-up of local and international experts, who will deliver presentations and participate in panel discussions and workshops.
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FEATURED STORYIHS plans to inject fresh $500m to grow capacity
Mohammed Darwish, managing director of IHS Towers, says the firm will soon inject another $500million into the business after raising some $2.5billion to finance expansion drives. Darwish spoke with biztecafrica.com in Lagos.
BEST READ NEWS
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Samsung Electronics South Africa has announced that MTN Business has been appointed as a reseller of Samsung’s KNOX licenses to its customers.


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Apple CEO Tim Cook made a second visit to China this week and revealed in an interview with Chinese reporters that the cellular iPad mini version will launch in China by the end of January. The Wi-Fi only model was released in China on December 7, just a month after launching in the U.S.
The cellular version of the iPad mini was awarded its Chinese network licenses in December, so it was only a matter of time before it officially arrived in the country, which is quickly becoming one of Apple’s largest markets.
Cook said that Apple devices do take longer to arrive in China because of the time it takes for them to gain approval. He also confirmed that the company is trying to decrease those wait times.
While in China, Cook also said that China will eventually be Apple’s biggest market and the company will have more than 25 retail stores there. Right now there are eight stores on the mainland. The Greater China region, which includes Hong Kong and Taiwan, is Apple’s second largest market right now, having brought in about 15 percent of revenue in the last fiscal year.
Cook revealed having visited China many times before, with his first visit in 1996. He told reporters, “I love China because it is full of life, full of energy and it’s a quickly-changing market.”
While in China this week, Cook reportedly met with China Mobile chairman Xi Guohua to discuss a future deal for the iPhone. China Mobile is China’s largest mobile carrier and an iPhone deal would be huge for Apple. Cook also took the time to visit a sanctioned reseller and take pictures with fans and staff.
Image Credit: CapMac


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HUMP DAY: PUBLIC OPINION OF E-CIGARETTES
In previous days, we’ve talked about the controversial debate of research arguing that e-cigarettes are safer or more likely, more dangerous than the use of normal cigarettes. With the possibility of cancer an eminent result soon to be found and plenty of growing statistics surrounding the use of these questionable products, it seemed only due time for a survey on public perceptions to be done. In the article below, NPR discovered that 57 percent of people polled agree with proposed regulations through the Food and Drug Administration on e-cigarettes. In addition, the survey found that nearly 2/3 of college educated individuals believed that the FDA should do more to regulate these problematic products. Some outlined parts of proposals include the ban of selling e-cigarettes to minors and necessary warning stickers. Currently, the FDA does not regulate e-cigarettes. Read more by following the link below.
Riley Ackley, Lifestyles Center Intern
Photo Cred: Variety of tobacco products


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Resident Evil 4 Remake Coming to PS4 Why Are Xbox One Users Left Behind
The Resident Evil 4 remake is set to launch in 2023, as confirmed a few months ago.
The game will arrive on slightly older consoles, including the PS4. But a new leak suggests that Resident Evil 4 won't be coming to Xbox One.
Resident Evil 4 Remake will launch on Xbox Series S|X, PS4, PS5 and Steam.
New updates for the Resident Evil 4 remake were announced at the Capcom TGS 2022 online event.
it was revealed that the new game will be available across console generations, in addition to Xbox One.
So if you own an Xbox One and are hoping to play Resident Evil 4, you're out of luck.
Despite being a generation old, the Resident Evil 4 remake is still coming to PlayStation 4.
the upcoming Resident Evil 4 remake is coming to Xbox Series X|S, PS4, PS5, and Steam.


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Millions of dollars are spent on social media to support brands. According to the survey, The CMO Survey Highlights and Insights February 2012, conducted by Fuqua School of Business at Duke University, 7.4 percent of marketing budgets are currently being allocated to social media where brand building could account for the significant increase in spending, as it has increased by 26.3 percent within just the past six months. As the financial resources are being spent, meeting branding objectives maybe difficult for some social marketers.
Why? Simply put, brands can be easily taken from corporate entities via social media thanks to one keystroke, the pound sign (#) . Case in point: Labatt Breweries.
As word got out about the beer company’s potential lawsuit against The Montreal Gazette regarding a picture on Facebook that was published of Luka Rocco Magnotta, individuals on Twitter hijacked the Labatt brand name and created the hashtag, “#newlabattcampaign”. Figure 1 is a highly influential tweet with the infamous tag as of June 6th, 2012.
From an online reputation management point of view, getting your brand hijacked via social media is the last thing that public relation and marketing professionals would like to deal with. Dealing with a situation similar to the #newlabattcampaign controversy is equivalent to fighting a fire that does not want to stop burning. As of June 11th, 2012, ugly tweets with the hashtag are still being sent.
What Can Brands Learned From Labatt’s Situation?
- It only take one individual to take an offline event to place it online via social media in a matter of seconds.
- Do not overreact when you brand is highlighted in the traditional media.
- A brand is not invincible. Individuals will make a mockery of your brand with a simply hashtag, in good and bad times.
- Analysts and bloggers will quickly highlight weaknesses in a company’s social marketing strategy.
- A brand does not belong to a company on social media. It belongs to those who wish to engage in conversation, for better or for worst.
Want To Know More?
Please read our past posts:
About The Author:
Ian is a content strategist and the competitive intelligence researcher at Intelegia. With his knowledge of social media tools and an understanding of branding on the web, Ian formulates content marketing strategies for clients’ needs. As co-author of the Canadian Cities Online Marketing Index© and chief blogger at Intelegia, Ian documents and assesses global best practices of organizations’ approaches to social media marketing in terms of integrating their branding and communications strategies to obtain their marketing objectives. Follow Ian on Twitter @citweetz. __________________________________________________________________
Intelegia is a social marketing firm in Montreal, Canada. The firm delivers social media strategies to efficiently engage with stakeholders in economic development, business to business and business to consumer segments. It assists clients by defining and executing sustainable social web strategies that will allow their brand message to stand out in a competitive environment where target audience engagement is a must.
To receive updates, follow Intelegia on LinkedIn.


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The Home Construction Regulatory Authority (HCRA) has posted new licensing fees along with guidelines for builder conduct and consumer complaints.
Effective February 1, 2021, the HCRA will be designated by the Ontario government as the regulatory authority under the New Home Construction Licensing Act, 2017 to assume responsibility for regulating and licensing the people and companies who build and sell new homes in Ontario. The HCRA will take over the licensing function from Tarion Warranty Corporation. Tarion will continue to deliver Ontario’s new home warranty and protection program.
“The HCRA will enforce high professional standards for competence and conduct in the homebuilding industry, giving new home buyers confidence in one of the biggest purchases of their lives,” said Tim Hadwen, interim CEO of the HCRA. “We will also ensure consistency across the sector, curtailing unethical and illegal builders and maintaining a fair marketplace.”
Licensing fees will cover all costs for the HCRA to oversee a new modern licensing regime for builders and protect consumers when purchasing a new home.
A new regulatory oversight fee—a flat fee paid on a per-home basis—will enable the HCRA to continue monitoring licensed homebuilders and vendors, identify and take action against illegal and unethical builders, manage the complaints process for consumers, provide educational materials, and maintain the Ontario Builder Directory as the official source of background information about Ontario’s more than 5,000 homebuilders and vendors.
Guidelines posted on the HCRA’s website include:
- Guide to Good Conduct for Builder/Vendors: setting out the behaviour expected of all new homebuilders, acting with honesty and integrity.
- Consumer Complaints Guideline: explaining a streamlined complaints process