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Bhubaneswar (Odisha) [India], April 2 (ANI): On the occasion of Utkal Diwas, Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, launched the ticket sales of an international flight from Bhubaneshwar to Dubai, the Odisha government informed in a press release.
The maiden international flight from Bhubaneswar to Dubai will take off from Biju Patnaik International Airport on May 15.
Launching the ticket sales at Naveen Niwas, CM Naveen Patnaik said, "Connectivity is key to development and it has been a focus area of our government. Direct connectivity with Dubai which is one of the biggest aviation hubs will open up a direct gateway to the world".
"Not only it will provide seamless connectivity but also it will have a huge multiplier effect on investment in Odisha in sectors like IT, manufacturing and tourism. This is the aspiration of New Odisha and I am very happy to open ticket sales for the Dubai Flight," he added.
The CM handed over the first eight tickets to Mission Shakti women, sportspersons, tribal leaders, 'Skilled in Odisha' students and artists.
Notably, IndiGo will be the first Indian airline that will commence international operations from Bhubaneswar.
The company is working in close collaboration with the Odisha government to commence international operations from Bhubaneswar, strengthening connectivity from the state, a press release stated.
The Head of Global Sales in IndiGo, Vinay Malhotra said that IndiGo has been at the forefront of enhancing international connectivity at affordable fares.
"We are pleased to announce the launch of maiden international flights from Bhubaneswar, enhancing direct connectivity to key international destinations. The new direct flights between Bhubaneswar-Dubai will reduce the need for travellers to connect to international destinations through metro cities only. This will not only enable faster connectivity, enhanced accessibility but also encourage trade and tourism in the state," he said.
He further added, "This partnership between the government and private enterprises is a great example as it will open up new opportunities for economic growth and create efficient ways for people to travel. We will continue to explore more flight options for our customers and stay true to our promise of courteous, hassle-free, on-time and affordable travel experience."As per the release, CM Patnaik, while attending the Make In Odisha Conclave in Dubai, had assured the investor community and Odia diaspora that direct flight will commence to ease travel from Middle East.
The CM said a larger delegation from the state will go on first flight to Dubai.
"Dubai being one of the biggest travel hubs, commencement of direct flight connectivity will open up new avenues for investment, trade and tourism. It will also offer a convenient option for leisure travelers from across the world, looking to visit Odisha," the release stated.
The release also informed that within two weeks of the launch of direct flight to Dubai, international flight operations will also commence to Singapore and Bangkok realising Odisha's vision to become the gateway to the East.
"Direct connectivity to aviation hubs like Dubai, Singapore and Bangkok will give a huge boost to connectivity facilitating travel for investor communities, tourists as well as seamless and economic travel option to Odia people working in these regions," the release stated.
Indigo Airlines has recently won the bid to operate direct flights to these three important gateways.
As per the agreement, Indigo Airlines will operate direct flight from Biju Patnaik International Airport thrice a week. Inaugural ticket prices have been set to begin at Rs10,000 per single side journey and Rs 20,000 for round trip. Each flight will have this subsidised tickets on first come first serve basis, the release further stated. (ANI)


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Here's What Movie Theaters Are Losing Due to Coronavirus
It's going to be an ugly period for theater companies and movie studios as people avoid crowds.
Kroger CEO Says Not to Worry About Food Shortages
The supermarket chain chief says there's plenty of food in the pipeline, it's just a matter of getting it to the shelves.
AT& Keeping Most of Its Retail Stores Open
The company sits in a difficult position.
Should Nonessential Retail Close Due to Coronavirus?
Some areas aren't giving them a choice.
Best Buy Sees a Coronavirus Sales Spike
More people need tech gear to work from home.
T-Mobile Closing Most, Not All of Its Stores
It makes sense for the company to keep some locations open.
Whole Foods Opening Early for Seniors Due to Coronavirus
The retailer wants to protect a vulnerable population.
All Las Vegas Casinos Forced to Close Due to Coronavirus
Nevada's governor has ordered all nonessential businesses to close.
Macy's Is Closing All of Its Stores Due to Coronavirus
The retailer joins a growing list.
Adidas Reverses Its Decision, Decides to Close Its Stores
After saying it would stay open, the company has changed course.
Costco Changing Store Protocols Due to Coronavirus
The company has implemented new measures designed to keep workers and employees safe.
Disney to Pay Theme Park Workers During Coronavirus Shutdown
The company has had to close its theme parks, hotels, and cruise line.
Microsoft Follows Apple, Nike in Closing Its Retail Stores Due to Coronavirus
The technology giant has not set a date to reopen.
Microsoft Shares Details on the New Xbox
The company promises it most powerful console ever but it's not even hinting at what it will cost.
Domino's Offers Contact-Free Delivery
The company has always been a leader when it comes to delivery.
Comcast's Universal Pictures to Offer New Releases Via Streaming
With movie theaters shutting down, this move just makes sense.
Coronavirus May Kill These 4 Struggling Retailers
Shoppers are avoiding malls, and may have no need for certain items until the pandemic passes.
In Wake of Coronavirus, What Restaurants Are Open for Takeout and Delivery Only?
The list of restaurant chains cutting back on services to address the coronavirus pandemic is growing.
T-Mobile Drops Data Limits and Won't Cancel Customers Who Can't Pay
The company has continued its policy of putting its customers first.
AT&T and Verizon Cancel Customer Shutoffs During Coronavirus Pandemic
Both companies seem to understand the struggles many Americans may face.

domain: news


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THE recent weakening in Congress of a bill that would have severely restricted cigarette advertising is not the end of the issue, backers and opponents of the measure say.
The bill, by Representative Henry A. Waxman, Democrat of California, was weakened substantially in a House subcommittee last week when provisions that would have restricted print advertisements were stripped from the measure. Had the provisions not been removed, the bill would have banned, for example, the cowboy and distinctive ''red roof'' design from Marlboro ads in favor of bleak text-only advertisments. The vote was 13 to 9 to delete the provisions.
Provisions were approved, however, to restrict outdoor advertising, establish a national smoking age of 18 years, double the size of the Surgeon General's warning and move it to the front of the cigarette pack from the side panels. The bill may go to the House floor later this month.
In Europe, the movement to ban cigarette advertising is growing. The European Community is considering a uniform advertising ban that would apply to all 12 member nations, which are expected to have 1990 retail sales of about 570 billion cigarettes, worth about $44 billion.
That is larger than the United States market, which last year had retail sales of $39 billion, or about 524 billion cigarettes.Continue reading the main story
Tobacco companies hope that Europe's internal divisions - like those between France, which is likely to favor a ban, and West Germany, which probably will not - will scuttle the proposal. Many European countries already ban or severely restrict advertising, yet consumption has often remained steady or increased in those nations.
If a European ban passes, it would strengthen American proponents, tobacco companies fear, and hamper the companies' ability to introduce new products or win market share. ''They'll look for any precedent to help them out,'' said John Dollisson, a spokesman for Philip Morris International Inc., a foreign unit of the Philip Morris Companies, the world's largest cigarette company.
The ban-the-ad movement comes at a time when cigarette companies are advertising less.
In Europe, companies spend less because of government restrictions. In America, they do so because of growing industry preference for promotions, like discounts and cents-off coupons, which are thought to be more effective and certainly cheaper than mass-market print advertising.
Still, the six leading United States cigarette companies spent $655.1 million on advertising in 1989, up 8 percent from 1988, according to Leading National Advertisers.
But Emanuel Goldman, an analyst with Paine Webber, estimates that ad spending in this year's first quarter totaled $124.7 million, down more than 14 percent from the $145.5 million a year earlier. Even spending for Marlboro, the Philip Morris brand that is the world's best-selling, declined 15 percent, to $21 million.
The original Waxman bill, which incorporated ideas of other Congressional opponents of cigarette advertising, would have restricted print advertisements to text-only ''tombstones'' without photographs, graphics or fashion models.
''The issue's not over,'' said Brennan Dawson, a spokeswoman for the Tobacco Institute, a trade group. ''It is sleeping, not dead. If nothing further happens this year, it will definitely be back next year.''
Added Daniel L. Jaffe, an executive vice president with the Association of National Advertisers, a trade group: ''We are not gloating. This is far bigger than just cigarette advertising. Censorship is habit-forming.'' Even if Congress does pass an ad ban, opponents say they can successfully appeal to the Supreme Court on the ground that such a law infringes the freedom of speech. ''Thank God we have the Constitution and the First Amendment,'' Ms. Dawson said.
Supporters of a ban say they are on equally solid legal ground. Cigarettes should be treated as if they are prescription drugs, which often have serious or lethal side effects, said Scott D. Ballin, a member of the steering committee for the Coalition on Smoking or Health, the lobbyist for the American Heart Association, the American Cancer Society and the American Lung Association. Case law would support such an interpretation, he said, adding, ''The Constitution is on our side.''
Mr. Ballin also took heart from the relative closeness of the subcommittee vote. ''We've made tremendous progress on this issue,'' he said. ''I can remember not so long ago when this wouldn't even come up for a vote. Thirteen to nine is pretty close, when you think about it.''Continue reading the main story


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Apps are at the front and center of any smartphone experience, and with over a million apps on the Google Play Store and new apps being submitted to our forums every day, staying up to date on the latest apps and games can be a hassle. At XDA, we don’t discriminate apps - if it’s interesting, innovative, original or useful, we mention them. The XDA Portal Team loves apps too, and we usually share and discuss the latest app releases...
Cyanogen Inc Partners with Ex-Oppo Employees in OnePlus Startup
When the CyanogenMod team became Cyanogen Inc, they embarked on a journey to bring the formerly power user-only world of their aftermarket ROM into the hands of standard consumers. Their first move towards this goal was the launch of the Oppo N1 CyanogenMod edition. That N1 CM Edition was significant because it was the first device to come bundled with CyanogenMod, as well as the first time that CyanogenMod has come with bundled Gapps since Google’s famous C&D letter many years ago.
Then a month and a half ago, the CyanogenMod team announced that they had a new hardware partner. And given a meeting that was publicized on CM founder Steve Kondik’s Google+ a couple weeks earlier, many believed that this partnership would be a new startup comprised primarily of ex-Oppo employees.
Now, some time has passed, and an official announcement has arrived. The new hardware partner is Pete Lau‘s new startup OnePlus, a company aiming to bring devices without compromises, as evidenced by their “#NeverSettle” slogan.
The name for this debut phone? OnePlus One.
But rather than just building a phone that will run CyanogenMod out the gate, the OnePlus One will run a “specially designed version of CyanogenMod with exciting new elements and features.” There is no word on pricing or specifics on availability other than “first half of 2014,” but we assume that due to their #NeverSettle slogan and stated goals of avoiding compromise, this will be a premium device with a premium price tag.
Those interested in reading the official announcement can do so on here. Are you going to be picking up a OnePlus One, or are you dead set on another phone like the crowd favorite Nexus 5? Duke it out in the comments below.
Want something on the XDA Portal? Send us a tip!
Lollipop brought a revamp to the lockscreen, taking away custom widgets but showing your notifications instead. If you're a fan of that, you might want an easier way to check your notifications as they come in, without losing your current lockscreen. Glimpse Notifications by XDA Senior Member xrad offers just that. You'd normally have to turn your screen on manually to see your notifications. Instead, Glimpse Notifications will do it for you when a notification comes in. That doesn't mean...
As more developers are updating their apps with Material Design elements, we're starting to see a plethora of beautiful new apps on the Play Store. But which ones are the best? Let us know what you think the best looking apps on Android are and why.


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VeriFone Holdings (NYSE: PAY), today announced it has formally changed its corporate name to VeriFone Systems. Henceforth all corporate information will be issued in the name of VeriFone Systems.
The name change does not otherwise affect the company's outstanding stock certificates, and the company's common shares will continue to trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the stock symbol "PAY".
"VeriFone Systems more appropriately reflects the business identity we have established as the global leader in delivering electronic payment systems solutions to the marketplace," said VeriFone CEO Douglas G. Bergeron. "We continue to proudly serve our customers operating under the VeriFone banner."
The company's core business entity will continue to operate as VeriFone, Inc.


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Keith Lemon’s face is coming to an outlet near you following the launch of promotional Hooch SKUs.
Launching a limited edition promotional bottle and can, Hooch is literally putting Keith Lemon’s ‘face on’t bottle’. Featuring an image of Keith, the SKUs give consumers the chance to enter a competition to win ‘Keith Lemon’s Dream Holiday’ to ‘H’orange County’, which can be entered via the Hooch website at www.hoochlemonbrew.com.
The new SKUs build on the brand’s huge ATL campaign bringing ‘OOOCH’ to the nation, with their TV campaign launching to great acclaim. Praised by The Guardian and listed as The Drum’s Ad of the Day, the advert is continuing to run across popular slots on ITV2, Channel 4, 5 and Sky. Supported by a big social media drive and promotional material in outlet, the total reach of the campaign is a staggering 16.5 million* consumers and counting.
Simon Green, Global Brands Marketing Director, comments:
“The massive Hooch campaign has already put ‘OOOCH’ on the lips of a new generation, with 31% of all UK adults aged 18-24 seeing the advert 2.8 times, helping to drive engagement on social media up by over 2000%. The new promotional SKUs bring the TV campaign into outlet for the consumer, making Hooch a must-stock brand for summer 2014.
* 1.3m divided by 2.8 (freq) on TV, 7.7m socially, 2.7m PR (consumer and trade), 0.3 KL bottles in outlet, 0.9m KL neck collars in outlet


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MCUBE engages MiCE professionals
Marriott group’s MCUBE – (Marriott Meetings Matter), held recently at the newly-opened JW Marriott Jaipur Resort & Spa, brought together professional conference organisers
The two-day event saw a healthy mix of both sides along with the General Managers, Market Leaders and Senior Marriott leadership of South Asia culminate along with industry professionals from the MiCE segment to enhance synergies and strengthen partnerships.
EXPLORING MiCE IN TIER II CITIES
Sanjay Sharma, Market Vice President for North India, Nepal and Bhutan, Marriott International, shared some insights on the viability of MiCE in India and why bringing events to cities helps elevate local economy as well. “MCUBE is an opportunity to showcase Jaipur as a MiCE destination. Jaipur is really upcoming at the moment and with the availability of new infrastructure and development, it can avail more business from the segment.”
The brand of Marriott is witnessing double digit growth and hopes to retain it in future as well. “Marriott had a double digit growth of RevPar during the period of 2016-17 and 2017-18, for F&B, we had a little bit of a crisis due to liquor
ban, GST and demonetisation; a couple of our hotels were hit. We still held on even in F&B. So overall 2017 was a stellar year for us and we performed far above our market share against our competitors,” Sharma added.
Through collaboration with brands, more international events will come to India
Collaborating with a brand has its own benefits, from being the suited collaborative providers, Marriott as a brand considers it vital. Said Sharma, “By collaborating not only within our hotels but with other brands as well and marketing that destination as ‘collaborative service providers' will make more headway in bringing in more and more international events into the country.
India is the optimal inbound destination because it has the excellent infrastructure now and myriad options of cuisine, has great value for money and building service levels here are exemplary.” On stating why MiCE agents and players should choose Marriott as their choice, he concluded, “We are easy to do business with and have largest footprint in the country. We have a total of 108 hotels in South Asia.”
MCUBE: A HIT
Kadambini Mittal, Senior Area Director of Sales & Distribution -South Asia, Marriott, expressed, “MCUBE is in its fifth edition. It has really grown over the years. The way we engage and showcase our products exudes a personal touch more than a business setting. Initially when we launched in 2013, the event had selective participants, but, now it has surged to over 50 partners.
PAINTING A CSR CANVAS
The event also saw the group participating in CSR activities. Participants painted the walls of a government school, which was adopted by JW Marriott Jaipur for their literacy programme. They also played games with the school children, taught them how to paint and gave away gifts.
Elaborating on the CSR activity the brand does, Anuraag Bhatnagar, Multi Property Vice President, Mumbai & Goa, Marriott International, said, “The JW Marriott, Jaipur will be involved in developing the literacy programme. All our hotels does CSR activities, in their immediate community, through our business council programmes.”
SCOPE OF MCUBE
Weddings in India is a never-ending business. To make it a thriving one, hotels ensure plethora offerings for that special day at a special rate. MCUBE gave a platform to wedding planners and other segment buyers
a chance to build fruitful opportunities. Further pointing out on the segment, Chandra Shekhar Joshi, General Manager, JW Marriott Jaipur, said, “We have, till now, done 25 residential weddings. These were mostly full buy-outs.” Giving his input on MCUBE, he added, "We had 50 to 60 event planners, EMCs, corporate customers, discussing the way forward as far as MiCE is concerned.”
Naveen Rizvi, Regional Director, India, Indian Ocean Pacific world and Executive Director, Integrated Conference & Event Management, added, “It was a good opportunity for networking for understanding the new products of Marriott."
Rizvi added, "MiCE is gaining traction in Northeast and also in cities like Bikaner, Jaisalmer.” Rizvi informs that outbound MiCE is vital, and that 60 per cent of business is gained through it. “We did a really big group for Turkey, for almost 700 people. Similarly, Singapore, Thailand, Dubai are always evergreen,” he added.
MCUBE saw fruitful interactions over a span of three days of all MiCE veterans choosing to unwind and discuss business in the lap of luxury in Jaipur. Vinita Kripalani, Associate Regional Vice President, Helmsbriscoe, elaborating on destinations for domestic MiCE, said, “There are metro cities, and Tier II cities like Chandigarh, Jaipur, Goa, Delhi, Bengaluru, Mumbai, Lonavala, Khandala.
We have seen the culture is picking up a little bit from Mumbai while Mussoorie has performed well. A good hotel, coupled with the essence of the city can definitely push a destination. Corporates always want lower rates, especially if it is a repeat business.”
Rishi Khandelwal, Director, Wish Bone India, said, "MCUBE saw conglomeration of general managers of major MiCE properties along with partners." On outbound popular destinations, he added, “Nowadays, the CIS countries like Almaty, Baku, Tashkent, are the destinations that are really in. Almaty is a three-and-a-half-hour journey from Delhi, it has direct connectivity and well suited convention hall.”
MiCE IN OFFERING
Indian MiCE hotel General Managers gathered at MCUBE to deliberate upon what they have to offer on their platter.
Faiz Alam Ansari, Complex GM, Sheraton Grand Bengaluru Whitefield Hotel & Convention Center and Aloft Bengaluru Cessna Business Park, shared, “Our hotel offers the biggest MiCE space in Bengaluru. It can seat about 2000 people. We have 12 breakout rooms and another ballroom which can accommodate another 800 people, and an additional 360 rooms to support it.”
Taieb TJ Joulak, General Manager, W Goa, on the unique properties of MiCE, the hotel incorporates, exclaimed, “We opened on Christmas 2015. We have 130 rooms, including Chalets and villas. Goa is a great destination, there are up to 20 flights a day." On business
Outbound MiCE is vital, about 60 per cent of the business is gained through it
he said, “We are touching `20,000 ADR, in occupancies we are in the high 80's . We have about 25 wedding lined up in this year. Goa as a destination is leisure so people come in the weekends. We target incentives from Monday's to Thursday's. We have about two to three meetings in a month on a weekly basis, which carries on till June, when the monsoon starts.”
Nicholas Dumbell, General Manager, Renaissance Mumbai Convention Centre Hotel, said, “We have 773 rooms. So, we can accommodate some really big groups for optimal MiCE business. We have a huge meeting space, that encompasses a 13,000 sqft ballroom. Even with such exquisite facilities, I think it's the outside space that makes a difference at the Renaissance.”
Piyush Tyagi, General Manager, Le Meridien Jaipur Resort & Spa, said, "In terms of where we are located, 70 per cent of our business comes from weddings. Weddings are very specific with regard to the auspicious dates.”
Rahul Puri, General Manager, The Westin Gurgaon said, “Exciting new hotels opened over last year and are opening, which should actually help us.”
Vineet Mishra, General Manager, J W Marriott Pune, said, “We have been having great numbers coming in. We had almost 10 to 11 per cent growth as far as business is concerned. Pharma is moving in in a big way. IT offsites have started coming into Pune as well. I think it's a city that offers everything for any industry.”


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NGP Gamer presents out list of down to Earth predictions of what Sony's Press Conference at E3 this year will reveal about the new portable's release, price, features and games.
Definately getting a PS Vita i'm sure whatever its price it will be worth it.
i'll be getting one as well
PS2 remakes would be really cool, can't wait to see the conference
N4G is a community of gamers posting and discussing the latest game news. It’s part of NewsBoiler, a network of social news sites covering today’s pop culture.


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We’re delighted to be part of the Loop programme again this year. The successful growth programme for South West-based technology startup founders which launched last year is now inviting applications for the 2021 cohort of ambitious companies.
The initiative, aimed at South West based tech start ups. It offers structured access to practical advice from local experts across a range of business services, including product development, marketing, PR, accounting and finance, grants and investment.
Founded by Affecton and a group of like-minded Bristol based organisations. The adviser panel includes other founder entrpreneurs from Cookies HQ, ADLIB, Lightholm and Sim7, who share a common commitment to help tech startups grow.


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The Nobel-prize winning economist Paul Krugman has posted his thoughts on Bitcoin, following the heavy drop in the cryptocurrency this week.
Krugman was previously known for being a crypto-skeptic, self titling himself as this based on what he says are the inherent flaws in Bitcoin. Notwithstanding, the economist appears to have altered his 2008 views somewhat, admitting that, flaws and all, Bitcoin is here to stay.
“It’s not a convenient medium of exchange; it’s not a stable store of value; it’s definitely not a unit of account,” he wrote. “Its value rests on the perception that it’s a technologically sophisticated way to protect yourself from the inevitable collapse of fiat money, which is coming one of these days, or maybe one of these centuries. Or, as I say, libertarian derp plus technobabble.”
As the cryptocurrency market plunged to a 14 week low, several pundits voiced concerns that it signalled the imminent arrival of a bear market. Almost all major coins were impacted by the market drop, with ether losing almost 50% of its market value – their lowest since last April.
Krugman’s twitter comments on the survival of Bitcoin were somewhat more measured than other economists. The well-known Columbia economist Jeffrey Sachs, has spoken strongly against Bitcoin, stating that the world would be a better place without the digital currency.
And while Sachs may view the mass sell-off as a sign of the imminent demise of Bitcoin, there is an alternative narrative to read from this. Many have described this drop as a ‘healthy correction’, with Vinny Lingham, cofounder of Civic, describing this as a “pullback and a great buying opportunity”.
Bitcoin as an emerging money phenomena, flies in the face of the traditional financial system. And with the ability to shatter existing financial models, cryptocurrency takes away the power from financial institutions, governments, and a system that prioritizes spending over investing.
As investors and skeptics alike, react to the recent pullback, the extreme volatility of Bitcoin has been demonstrated once again. The impact of which has been reflected in China’s recent strengthening of their Bitcoin ban, as well as a general unease surrounding the future of the most popular cryptocurrency.
And yet, economists such as Krugman reluctantly admit that while Bitcoin has a number of flaws, it may just stick around.
“I’ve given up predicting imminent demise. There always seem to be a new crop of believers. Maybe just think of it as a cult that can survive indefinitely.”
Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.


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SEOUL, South Korea, June 30, 2014 / PRNewswire — Kakao Corporation, the company behind the free call and messaging app KakaoTalk, today announced its addition of Arabic, making it the 15th language supported within the service. Arabic will be available to Android users (Android Jelly Bean 4.2 and higher) supported by a reverse UI allowing the text to appear from right to left within KakaoTalk.
Photo – http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140617/118809
Chosen by more than 150 million users worldwide, KakaoTalk provides users with the opportunity to connect with friends, family and others conveniently and freely. Through this update, Kakao demonstrates its commitment to designing an interconnected and global, mobile future.
KakaoTalk’s support for Arabic is a testament to Kakao’s commitment to expanding its cross-platform service universally, regardless of language or geographical region. Language support for Arabic proactively addresses the rapid smartphone growth in the Middle East.
KakaoTalk is also available in English, Korean, traditional and simplified Chinese, Indonesian (Bahasa), Russian, Vietnamese, Thai, Italian, French, German, Turkish, Portuguese, and Spanish. Other features include:
- Location sharing
- Unread message count
- Multitask during free calls (send messages in other chat rooms)
- Schedule appointments, lunches, gatherings (w/ reminders)
- Multiplatform availability on any smartphone, plus Mac and PC
- Have more fun with Kakao mobile games
KakaoTalk for Android is available for free in the Google Play store.
About Kakao Corp.
Kakao Corporation is the provider of KakaoTalk, a mobile messaging application and global mobile social platform based in South Korea. Since the launch of its app in 2010, Kakao has solidified its position as a leader in the mobile industry, expanding its service beyond messaging to a social platform encompassing games, digital content, marketing, commerce and more. KakaoTalk currently has more than 150 million registered users across the world, and 6.5 billion messages are delivered everyday in form of text, photos, video, voice and more. As a global, cross-platform application, it is available in 15 languages, on Android, iOS, BlackBerry, Windows Phone, Bada OS and Nokia Asha. Kakao’s mission is to build a symbiotic mobile ecosystem at the global scale, offering a mobile social platform that provides win-win solutions for users and third-party partners alike. For more information, visit www.kakao.com/talk/en.
Kakao Communications Team
Sonia Im email@example.com
Buster Suh firstname.lastname@example.org
Kane Lee email@example.com
Charlotte Hammond firstname.lastname@example.org


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Access all our streamed content for free
SHOWCASE: Will the consent-based model of Open Data deliver real value?
The shift to a more balanced data sharing model is set to challenge traditional credit risk methods. Scott Zoldi and Olly Betts will look to the future discussing the impacts of Open Data, consumer contributed information, machine learning, and advanced analytics. With examples of the early innovations that showcase how consumers and lenders are embracing the benefits of Open Data – the journey to the future has already begun.


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|Bid||38.96 x 0|
|Ask||38.98 x 0|
|Day's Range||38.68 - 39.07|
|52 Week Range||34.82 - 47.75|
|Beta (3Y Monthly)||N/A|
|PE Ratio (TTM)||25.83|
|Earnings Date||Nov. 6, 2019|
|Forward Dividend & Yield||N/A (N/A)|
|1y Target Est||35.62|
If you're looking for timely bets, consider Canada Goose Holdings Inc. (TSX:GOOS)(NYSE:GOOS) and another stock that could skyrocket into year-end.
TORONTO , Nov. 11, 2019 /CNW/ - Spin Master Corp. (TSX: TOY; www.spinmaster.com ), a leading global children's entertainment company, continues to build on its legacy of innovation, racking up seven nominations ...
Toronto-based Spin Master Corp. say it is grappling with several layers of disruption caused by the trade dispute between the U.S. and China.Benoit Gadbois, president of the toy company, said on a conference call Wednesday that Spin Master has had to shift production, shipping schedules, warehousing and deal with changing demands from buyers as uncertainty continues on tariffs between the world's two largest economies.He said changing rules about which items were subjected to tariffs "was disruptive to our's and the industry's supply chain."The company said it was forced to rush in shipments from China to the U.S. to get them in before another round of tariffs, which put pressure on its supply chain and drove freight costs higher.It also found that warehouses for some of its retail customers were filling up as they also tried to bring in inventory to avoid tariffs, further complicating plans.The logistics crunch in the third quarter, which helped push about US$40 million in shipments to the fourth quarter, came as the company also works towards a wider diversification push outside of China.The disruptions knocked down its adjusted net income to US$93.2 million, or 90 cents per share, lower than the US$129 million or $1.23 per share analysts were expecting, according to financial markets data firm Refinitiv.Gadbois said the company expects to have less than half of its sourcing come from China by the end of next year, down from 70 per cent two years ago and over 90 per cent when it went public in 2015."Our diversification program out of China accelerated this year due to the U.S.-China tariff dispute," said Gadbois.The trade disruptions are part of wider pressures it faces as the retail landscape continues to evolve rapidly. The company says it has also had to restructure its warehousing strategy to respond to more online orders that require just-in-time shipping, while it is also moving more into direct marketing to customers.Spin Master bought app developers Toca Boca and Sago Mini back in 2016 and is working to use them to compete in the kids mobile app and direct-to-consumer space, with the two companies averaging over 20 million monthly active users.Company board chairman Ronnen Harary said on the call that the company continues to hunt for acquisitions, but that private equity is driving up valuations in the mid- to -large-size toy space to unsustainable levels. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 6, 2019.Companies in this story: (TSX:TOY)The Canadian Press
TORONTO — Spin Master Corp. says earnings dropped in the third quarter as several challenges, including U.S. tariffs on Chinese production, affected results.The Toronto-based toy manufacturer, which reports in U.S. dollars, says it earned $92.1 million, or 89 cents per share in the quarter ending Sept. 30, compared with $107.9 or $1.06 per share in the same quarter last year.It says adjusted net income was $93.2 million, or 90 cents per share, compared with $117.7 million or $1.15 per share last year.Revenue was $548.1 million, down from $620 million for the third quarter last year.Analysts had expected adjusted income of $129 million, or $1.23 per share, and revenue of $632.2 million, according to financial markets data firm Refinitiv.The company says efforts to shift production out of China and warehouse consolidation created congestion in its U.S. supply chain to push a significant volume of shipments and orders to the fourth quarter.This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 5, 2019.Companies in this story: (TSX:TOY) The Canadian Press
Reaffirms 2019 Gross Product Sales Outlook Amid Shift from Q3 to Q4 TORONTO , Nov. 5, 2019 /CNW/ - Spin Master Corp. ("Spin Master" or the "Company") (TSX: TOY; www.spinmaster.com ), ...
Companies like Spin Master Corp. (TSX:TOY) tend to do very well in bull markets, but when the tides turn, investors can be left holding the bag.
TORONTO , Oct. 19, 2019 /CNW/ - Spin Master Corp. (TSX: TOY; www.spinmaster.com ), a leading global children's entertainment company, hosted premiere screenings of PAW Patrol TM : Mighty Pups Super Paws ...
TORONTO , Oct. 10, 2019 /CNW/ - Spin Master Corp. ("Spin Master") (TSX: TOY), a leading global children's entertainment company, will report its third quarter 2019 financial results after markets ...
Why young investors should still consider growth stocks like Spin Master Corp. (TSX:TOY) amid the growth-to-value rotation.
TORONTO, Sept. 27, 2019 /CNW/ - Spin Master Corp. (TSX: TOY; www.spinmaster.com), a leading children's entertainment company, announced today the launch of Owleez, the first ever interactive toy pet that kids can teach how to fly. With over 100 interactive sounds and movements, the baby owl responds to touch, love and care. "We are incredibly excited to introduce Owleez, our first ever interactive toy pet that can fly," says Kate Keller, VP Marketing RC.
TORONTO , Sept. 26, 2019 /CNW/ - Spin Master Corp. (TSX:TOY; www.spinmaster.com ), a leading children's entertainment company announced today that it has prevailed in a lawsuit alleging that its preschool ...
If you own shares in Spin Master Corp. (TSE:TOY) then it's worth thinking about how it contributes to the volatility...
Winning over their hearts are Spin Master's Juno My Baby Elephant™, Owleez™, Monster Jam™ Mega Grave Digger RC Truck, PAW Patrol™ Mighty Lookout Tower, Cool Maker™ Go Glam™ Nail Stamper and DreamWorks Dragons, Interactive Hatching Toothless Dragon.
Spin Master Corp. (TSX: TOY; www.spinmaster.com), a leading global children's entertainment company, reveals its cool fall launches that will be the talk of the playground with school back in session. Now, Twisty Petz lovers can add to their collection with these plush pets with a secret twist. Bring the salon home with the Go Glam™ Nail Stamper.
Fairfax India Financial Corp (TSX:FIH.U) and these two other stocks can give Canadian investors some important geographical diversification in their portfolios.


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China Eastern Air invites private investors to logistics business
China Eastern Air Holding Company has sold a 45% stake in its Eastern Air Logistics ...
US high-tech supply chain specialist and contract electronics manufacturer Flextronics yesterday posted revenues of $6.2bn for the quarter up until the end of June, and an operating profit of $183m, significantly higher than the $5.8bn revenues and $137m operating profit it delivered in the same period last year.
“Our balance sheet is in great shape,” said chief executive Mike McNamara, referring to the company’s $1.35bn cash reserves – although deploying that in merger and acquisition activity was deemed unlikely, he said, unless it was highly targeted.
“We have a lot of cash and our portfolio of capabilities is already built, so we aren’t in the marketplace in a position of weakness – we pretty much have what we need across the globe.
“However, we would look at possible acquisition in the automotive and medical sectors – those are the areas that we would invest in,” he said.
“In general we see a strengthening economy and at the same time we are winning new business in the areas that are important to us – we are growing about 10% in automotive and industrial, and those sectors themselves aren’t growing at that rate, so our growth is through increased sales and bookings,” he added.
The big question hanging over the business is the future of its largest customer, Motorola’s mobile phone manufacturing, which was acquired by Chinese manufacturer Lenovo from Google at the beginning of this year in a $2.9bn deal.
Mr McNamara said: “We have outlined the original value proposition and this was further highlighted by Lenovo’s award of logistics excellence to our European operation earlier this week. But we have no further update other than to say that Motorola exiting the Dallas Forth worth manufacturing plant is going to have no material impact on us.”
The threat hanging over Flextronics is Lenovo’s predilection for in-sourcing as much of its operations as it can, particularly the manufacturing areas that Flextronics has hitherto been contracted to perform. And given that it is currently its largest customer, analysts have questioned the value of becoming so embedded in particular sources of revenue.
The current contracts generate $100-150m in cash, and it would cost Flextronics a further $50m to redeploy its assets.
However, Mr McNamara defended the strategy. “The original premise of us getting into the ecosystems of these very big companies continues to be valid today.”
The company has four main divisions: Integrated Network Solutions, which covers the telecoms industry and saw revenues decline 1% year-on-year to $2.5bn; the Consumer Technology Group, under which the Motorola contracts falls and which brought in revenues of $2.2bn in the quarter, a 40% year-on-year increase; Industrial & Emerging Industries which saw revenues increase 25% year-on-year to $1.1bn; and High Reliability Solutions, which supplies the avionics, medical and security industries and saw 5% year-on-year growth and earned $846m in the quarter.
EXCLUSIVE: Indian digital forwarder Freightwalla shuttered
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Panama Canal restrictions could halt US coastal shift
Shippers hold back on contracts amid uncertainty and ample capacity
DB Schenker – sale, float, nothing
Airlines that adapt quickly will survive likely freight pain in H2
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Box lines look to slash their bloated equipment pools
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Moonlight Madness is set to take over downtown Lamar on Oct. 25.
This year’s theme is “Dancing With the Stars,” and various downtown businesses are taking part in the annual event.
Thirteen merchants so far are involved in the annual event, according to organizer April Forgue, who manages Brew Unto Others in downtown Lamar.
Moonlight Madness is from 6 to 8 p.m. with the merchants staying open late. Most of the participating businesses are within a two-block radius, though, there are some that are further south of the immediate downtown area.
“Most of them are right here,” Forgue said. “We’re really going to utilize the Shore Arts Center Park.”
With the theme being “Dancing With the Stars,” the Shore Arts Center Park will be utilized that evening with multiple performances scheduled on the stage. At 6:30 p.m., entertainment will get kicked off with Spirit Dance and they will feature a few solo dancers.
At 6:45 p.m., the Parkview Elementary School choir will perform under the direction of Kaylee Weakley, new music teacher at the school.
“They’re gonna perform some of their Halloween songs,” said the event organizer.
At 7 p.m., the All The Right Moves dancers will perform on the Shore Arts Center Park stage.
“The idea is for kids to dress up; vendors are going to be handing out candy and treats,” said Forgue about the annual festivities.
It will be similar to a treat-street with merchants handing out candy to children and the kids are encouraged to dress up in costume for the festivities.
Also on tap for the night will be carnival food offered by vendors. Some of the available food includes hot dogs, chips, cotton candy, pretzel and cheese and all will be on sale in downtown Lamar for the event.
This provides an opportunity for those coming out to Moonlight Madness to grab a light supper that evening.
“We’ll have specials for that evening,” Forgue said. “All the downtown merchants will be having downtown specials.”
Cosmetology students from Lamar Community College also will offer face-painting for the kids.
Another event will be done in conjunction with the Moonlight Madness event. The Shore Arts Center will host an arts show that evening.
Lamar residents soon may be seeing decorations going up in front of the downtown merchants. Going along with the theme of “Dancing With the Stars,” downtown merchants will be displaying stars in front of their business.
“So all of the businesses that have the stars out front of their business, you’ll know they’re gonna have Moonlight Madness specials, just different things like that,” Forgue said.
The use of stars is also about unity between the downtown merchants for the event.
The event is being designed so there is something fun for all ages.


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Beef Checkoff's #RethinkTheRanch Campaign Promotes Use of Modern Tech in Cattle ProductionWed, 06 Dec 2017 10:36:27 CST
The beef checkoff is using its beef-promoting #RethinkTheRanch campaign to help consumers gain a better understanding of how cattle producers are using advanced technology to benefit their businesses and the environment.
A perfect example of how technology is being used can be found at the Bear Valley Ranch, located near Parkville, California. The Kester family put down roots and started ranching there 150 years ago in 1867. Back then, no one could have predicted how technology would be used to manage cattle and operate ranches and farms.
"Every time there is a new technology, we try to take advantage of it," says Kevin Kester. "Most recently, we purchased a commercial drone that we use to gather cattle, look at our water troughs, and make sure everything is functioning correctly."
Kevin says that with over 100 miles of roads on the ranch, the drone saves them a lot time and energy that would be taken up in driving down those roads.
"If cattle are in a rugged part of the country where it's harder to herd them on horseback, we can fly the drone over them and get them moving in the direction we want for gathering them," he says.
Along with drone technology, the Kesters are using solar technology to operate water systems and manage grazing systems.
"We've developed a lot of solar technology for our water systems that allows us to pump water in the higher elevations," he says. "That helps us manage grazing. It's also good for the wildlife after the hot summer we had. Not only does technology help us in our business, it's beneficial for the environment and conservation."
Brian Medeiros is also using technology to reduce energy costs on the Medeiros and Sons Dairy Farm in Hanford, California.
"We want to be as self-sustaining on power as we can. We put in solar panels and that's going to take care of eighty percent of our electrical uses," says Brian. "In the future, we're going to look at other things such as methane digesters and projects that can help us be as self-sustaining."
And that's what your checkoff's efforts are all about. We want to provide a consumer-friendly, easy-to-understand way to communicate the complexities of raising beef today and the technologies that are being used. We've put together a video about the Kester ranch that does just that by showing consumers what you do every day. (See for yourself what the video looks like.)
Read more about #RethinkTheRanch efforts here. Be sure to check out the new BeefItsWhatsForDinner.com website, and stay up to date on what your beef checkoff investment is doing for YOU at MyBeefCheckoff.com.
Source - The Beef Checkoff
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S4 ringmaster Sorrell adds Circus to stable of takeovers
S4 Capital will announce the purchase of Mexico City-based Circus Marketing on Wednesday, Sky News understands.
Wednesday 8 January 2020 07:58, UK
The advertising tycoon Sir Martin Sorrell will on Wednesday unveil the eleventh acquisition by his new holding company in little more than 18 months with the purchase of a Mexican agency whose clients include Netflix and Uber.
Sky News understands that S4 Capital, the London-listed vehicle run by Sir Martin, will announce that it is buying Mexico City-based Circus Marketing.
The deal will add roughly $38m in projected revenues and $20m in gross profit, as well as another 350 employees, to S4.
It will also take S4 into Spain for the first time, as well as strengthening its presence in a number of Latin American countries.
In keeping with the way S4 has funded its takeover spree to date, half the undisclosed purchase price will be in cash and the remainder in stock.
The cash element of the deal, which will see Circus merged into MediaMonks, S4's global content agency, will be funded from the proceeds of a £100m capital-raising unveiled by Sir Martin late last year.
Circus also counts Facebook, Google and Spotify as clients, underlining Sir Martin's insistence that S4 is focused on 'new economy' areas of marketing services.
Earlier takeovers by S4 included that of Firewood, the largest marketing agency in Silicon Valley, and Delhi-based content business WhiteBalance.
Further acquisitions this year are expected to focus on areas such as programmatic media, social marketing and digital transformation consulting, including in further countries where S4 has yet to establish a presence.
S4, described by Sir Martin as "a peanut" and then "a coconut" as it expanded, now has a market value of more than £900m.
It recently added two senior women to its board, strengthening the company's focus on building its operations in Asia, where Scott Spirit, its chief growth officer, is based.
Since leaving WPP Group, which he effectively founded during the 1980s, Sir Martin has been a staunch critic of the company, wasting few opportunities to take public potshots at his successor, Mark Read.
His departure came in controversial circumstances, and sparked a barrage of legal salvos between the two parties.
One of their fractious exchanges centred on S4's purchase of MediaMonks, which Sir Martin outbid WPP to buy.
A threat by WPP to withhold part of Sir Martin's long-term compensation on the grounds that he had breached confidentiality obligations has since dissipated, however.
While Sir Martin's pipeline of takeover candidates looks very different to those he pursued during much of his WPP reign, the playbook of bolt-on acquisitions and targeting of faster-growing geographies is similar.
Over more than three decades, he built WPP into a global force, presiding over hundreds of acquisitions in disciplines such as advertising, media buying, public relations and sports marketing.
Sir Martin remains a shareholder in WPP, with a big chunk of his wealth tied up in the stock of the company he took from a manufacturer of shopping baskets in 1985 to bestriding the global advertising industry.
By the time he stepped down in April 2018, WPP was valued by the stock market at more than £16bn, although a series of client losses and accelerating shifts in spending among global advertisers away from traditional media have hurt its shares.
Mr Read has embarked upon a drive to streamline WPP by merging some of its agency subsidiaries and selling stakes in businesses such as Kantar, its market research division, to Bain Capital.
S4 declined to comment on Wednesday morning.


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La Jolla Group Names New CEO
La Jolla Group Announces Leadership Evolution
January 24, 2022 – La Jolla Group, Inc. (LJG) today announced an evolution in leadership. Having served as CEO since May 2013, Daniel Neukomm will now assume the role of Executive Chairman, effective immediately. Michael Pratt, Chief Financial Officer and SVP Strategy, has been promoted to Chief Executive Officer, reporting to Daniel.
“Michael has been a key component of our leadership team over the last four years, navigating the global pandemic, solidifying LJG’s strategic direction, and delivering record financial performance” Daniel said. “I look forward to partnering with Michael in La Jolla Group’s next chapter as we drive profitability and sustainable growth across our family of brands, while also making significant investments to expand our “platform as a service” offering to accelerate growth for our consumer businesses. Originally assuming responsibility for LJG when it was struggling, I am proud to pass my CEO responsibilities to Michael and the team who helped me turn things around.”
Michael will oversee all aspects of the business. “I am excited for the opportunity to lead a talented group of individuals in the next phase of our growth and want to thank Daniel and the Board of Directors for the trust placed in me to manage through the challenging environment that lies ahead,” Michael said. Prior to La Jolla Group, Michael spent ten years in various strategy and finance roles at NIKE and No Fear. He began his career on Wall Street after business school, and advised consumer clients on mergers, acquisitions and capital raising.
In his new role, Michael will continue to partner with Josh Wellington, COO, to drive profitable growth across La Jolla’s family of brands and businesses. “La Jolla Group is a family-owned business and I am excited about the partnership between Michael and Josh as they lead the next stage of growth, allowing me to focus my efforts across a wider variety of activities,” said Daniel.
To support the leadership transition, Allen Zakharin has been promoted to Vice President, Finance and will oversee all financial aspects of the business. Allen has been instrumental in driving financial performance for La Jolla Group and has implemented an enterprise performance management application, ensuring the prioritization of accurate forecasting and cross-functional alignment capabilities. Previously Allen led Financial Planning & Analysis at Mophie and held leadership roles at Oakley, including corporate FP&A, wholesale finance and demand planning.
In addition, Mike Jones has been promoted to Vice President, Planning & Analytics. Mike has built a “best-in-class” planning and analytics organization at La Jolla Group to support multiple brands across both direct-to-consumer and wholesale channels during the challenges posed by the global pandemic. Previously, Mike was Director of Global Brand Operations for the SWIMS brand at Centric Brands and spent six years at Deckers Brands as head of planning for the Sanuk and UGG brands. Mike began his career in planning at the Disneyland Resort. In their new roles, Allen and Mike will continue to report to Michael Pratt.
In addition to the evolution of leadership, LJG is proud to announce significant investments in people, processes, and systems to strengthen its already powerful back-end platform that forms the foundation of its growing business. In the back half of 2021, LJG hired Kelvin Toulmin as Vice President of Operations to support Josh Wellington in driving operational excellence throughout the organization. Kelvin brings 30 years in progressive supply chain operations roles both domestically and globally, having supported both high growth private business and billion-dollar public brands. Most recently Kelvin drove transformational strategies at Stussy and TOMS.
To support Kelvin in his new role and to ensure continued delivery of quality products to consumers, LJG added a Director of Production & Sourcing and a Director of Quality Assurance, bringing a combined 60+ years of experience to La Jolla Group. LJG also committed to material investments in systems to further strengthen the product development process at all stages.
“These investments will allow us to continue to deliver exceptional quality and value to consumers and our retail partners,” said Chief Operating Officer Josh Wellington.
About La Jolla Group
Having held the license for the O’Neill brand since 1993, La Jolla Group is a multi-brand operator of growth consumer businesses. In addition to O’Neill, La Jolla Group designs and distributes the Voyager brand globally and Hang Ten apparel in the United States under license. With years of experience delivering consumer products, La Jolla Group also invests in and provides shared services to growth consumer businesses, including PSD Underwear and Spiritual Gangster.


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If speed is the main thing, if all you want to do is get from Point A (say, Salt Lake City) to Point B (say, southern Utah), they have a road for you: I-15 (at least, say, south of Draper).
But if the journey's the thing, if a slower pace mixed with gorgeous scenery and unusual places to visit is more important, if you like to smell the flowers and shop for creative treasures, you also have a road: Heritage Highway 89.U.S. 89 from Fairview in Sanpete County to Kanab in Kane County is definitely "the road less traveled." But a new alliance of business, tourist and historic enterprises hopes to give you -- and others like you from around the world -- even more reasons to choose this route. The Utah Heritage Products Alliance, a non-profit, private business association, wants to create a heritage corridor that would promote handmade, traditional crafts and arts as well as historic sites and events in this part of the state.
Up and down this highway, given the heritage designation by the 1998 Legislature, are little towns, quintessential rural Utah, with a feel, a flavor you don't get anywhere else, says Laurel Christensen, who is working with the alliance in Sanpete County.
In many of these places preservation came about because of poverty. "They were too poor to tear things down and replace them with something better. Now the old things have become valuable," Christensen says.
In Mt. Pleasant, for example, the golden era was after 1890 when the railroad came. A lot of the buildings along Main Street were built then. But with the Depression came economic decline. "People couldn't afford aluminum siding, let alone new buildings," says Mont Bona, who is on the Mt. Pleasant City Council. "Now we have these wonderful old places and a real opportunity to do something with them."
Its time has come
As far as Wilson Martin is concerned, it is an idea that's time has come.
"Highway 89 has such potential," says Martin, associate director of the Utah Historical Society, which is lending support and credence to the project. Unfortunately, he says, we live in an era where history must become economically viable in order to survive. "It would be nice to think we could save things just because they are worth saving," adds Bona, but economics teaches a harder lesson.
Luckily for those who believe in the power of the past, business and tourism are proving to be a strong partnership. "Heritage tourism is the No. 1 reason people travel in the U.S.," notes Martin, citing a 1996 survey that found more than 65 million Americans visited a historic site or museum or attended a music, arts or other cultural event that year. Twenty-seven percent of U.S. adults took at least one trip that included a visit to a historic place or museum that was more than 50 miles from their homes. The survey also shows that this group tends to stay longer and spend more money than other visitors.
"The heritage products and tourism industry is many times larger than the ski industry," says Susan Holt, president of the alliance. And while Utah is not now a major player in this industry, it could be, she says -- if the alliance succeeds.
Reason for optimism
Those involved in the project know that's an important if. They know it will take time and hard work and sophisticated marketing and maybe even a little luck. But they also have reasons for optimism.
The alliance is modeled after similar corridors in North Carolina, the Amish Country of Pennsylvania and sites in New England. The group has studied the North Carolina experience in particular. In western North Carolina, various "heritage craft trails" featuring Appalachian handwork capitalize on visitors who come to the Great Smoky Mountains. These trails have an annual economic impact of approximately $122 million.
"North Carolina gets 2.1 million visitors a year. With the parks and all, we already get 2.4 million visitors," notes Ron Bushman, a rug-maker in Marysvale, who is one of the alliance members. "We're not inventing the wheel. But the numbers are comparable. Anything they do to be successful, we should be able to do here."
The alliance was given $50,000 in seed money from the 1999 Legislature. Eventually, it will become self-supporting. In practice, the alliance is much like the Dairy Commission, says Martin. Under one umbrella, entities with similar interests come together to promote niche marketing. They each pay dues. But by banding together, they can have more impact than they could on their own.
The alliance can provide a wide variety of services to individual members, says Ed Meyer, business development executive with the Utah State Department of Community and Economic Development, who is serving as interim director. "It can provide revolving loan funds, business training, market research, even group insurance."
Eventually, the alliance will publish a catalog and create a Web site to showcase products. The group can sponsor trade and craft shows and, more importantly, market the entire corridor. Eventually, he says, the corridor could be "one, big, huge heritage products mall."
He knows that will take time. "If it were easy, we've have it done by now."
The talent is there
As a first step, the alliance is surveying people up and down the highway to assess both potential and interest. The variety is exceptional, says Meyer, everything from pottery to furniture to rug- and broom-making.
"I'm staggered at the number of talented people in these towns. And not just those with skills they've picked up from their parents and grandparents, although those are significant; but we have an amazing number of degreed artists, those with bachelor's and master's degrees, as well."
So far, 135 members have come on board. Meyer thinks by the time they are done, they could easily have 500 to 1,000, maybe even new people who want to move into the area.
However, many of the people who are producing products now do it as a part-time thing, Meyer says. "If the demand increases to where they have to work full time, how many will want to do that? We don't know. That's not at all the same as working in your spare time."
Eventually, they may want to bring in heritage products from other communities -- jams and jellies from Box Elder County, for example. "This could be a crafts mall for the entire state," Meyer enthuses. You look in shops along the corridor now, he says, "and 80 percent of those products aren't made in Utah. I think we have a tremendous opportunity to turn that around."
The alliance plans to develop a jurying system and establish standards for members so everyone who buys something with a "Utah Heritage Products" tag will know they are getting locally made goods of high quality. This is also one of the big challenges, Meyer says. "There may be people who originally don't meet the standards, so maybe we'll have to offer classes to upgrade their skills."
A wide variety
A heritage product, he says, can be any good or service representative of the local heritage. His list of possibilities is wide open: a Moroni Feed Company diner that sells turkey pizza; a Richfield Museum where a tour guide tells wonderful stories about Butch Cassidy; a woman in Sigurd who rents out bits of her garden -- she does the work and people come and claim their produce in the fall; an Aurora quarry where stonemasons craft benches in a turkey coop; a salt mine in Redmond that provides a tour and samples of salt; a woman in Marysvale who designs replicas of wedding dresses for dolls by looking at wedding pictures.
"Being there, seeing how things are made enhances the experience," Meyer says. But that's not all. There may be dutch-oven dinners and tours of old gold mines and chances to stay in historic bed-and-breakfasts. Events and historic sites are also an important part of the equation.
"The artisans and craftsmen are the foundation, but we don't want to limit it to that. People want the total experience," he says. And in this way, the alliance is hoping to go beyond even what North Carolina is doing.
"As far as we know, the alliance is the first of its kind in the country," says Martin. The more that is involved, the richer the experience will be, he says.
But getting the word out is going to be another challenge. "We have to convince the affluent buying population that now goes to Santa Fe or Amish Country to travel to a new rural area to buy new products. That's not going to happen overnight."
And the success of that mission ultimately depends on both the quality and the uniqueness of the products. "These people, the ones who will pay premium prices, are looking for something no one else offers, something you don't see in every magazine."
But that's the value of having a formal organization, he says. "We can help address those issues. We can help with things that would be very difficult for individuals to deal with. Those things that are the greatest challenges individually are opportunities for the organization."
"The main thing is to enhance a visitor's sense of what Utah is all about," Holt says. "And that's a vision you don't get if you only visit the urban areas." Like everyone else in the state, the alliance is also eyeing the Olympics. They hope to be going strong by 2002. "Maybe we can even lure some of those visitors on a southern Utah journey," Holt says.
This has been a depressed area for a long time, adds Martin. Visitors have gone through, but not many have stopped. "These towns have had all negatives of visitors, none of positives." But with the development of more things to see and do, with more historic bed-and-breakfasts, with more quaint little restaurants, with more chances to shop for truly unique products, in time that could change.
"What we hope," says Bushman, "is that Marysvale can go from being an irritation in the road to being a destination."
Towns are close enough along Highway U.S. 89 that the drive can be one continuous adventure, Christensen says. "This is one place that has not lost that true, rural flavor," she says. And you can go at your own pace, see as much as you want. "That's the beauty of being off the interstate."


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Xiaomi 12T Pro becomes the company’s first global smartphone with eSIM
Many Android smartphone manufacturers, from Samsung to Google, support eSIM, Apple has also launched the iPhone 14 series with eSIM (but only in the US). Xiaomi also has devices with eSIM support, but, in fact, only the recently introduced Xiaomi 12T Pro became the first global smartphone from the Chinese manufacturer with eSIM.
How it works
eSIM means you don’t need to install a physical card – the digital SIM is already installed on your smartphone and you will never lose it. In addition, eSIM simplifies the transition from one mobile operator to another. For example, Redmi Note 10T also supports eSIM, but it only works in Japan.
As for Xiaomi 12T Pro, eSIM support is announced in many European countries, in the UK, Chile, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Thailand, etc. – there are several dozen countries in the global market in the official list. The carriers that support eSIM on Xiaomi 12T Pro are also listed. For example, in Ukraine these are Kyivstar and Lifecell, in the UK – EE, O2 and Vodafone, in Poland – Orange, Plus and T-Mobile, in France – Bouygues Telecom, Free, Orange and SFR.


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MOSCOW, January 31. /TASS/. McDonald’s may reduce the like-for-like new restaurant openings in Russia by almost a third in 2017, McDonald’s president of the Russian division Khamzat Khasbulatov said at the press conference on Tuesday.
The company opened 73 outlets in Russia in 2016, mainly in regions of its presence. At the same time, new cities joined the network - Tomsk, Kemerovo, Pskov and Barnaul, Khasbulatov said.
"We will open about 50 restaurants this year," the top manager said. The year of 2017 "will be challenging" just as two previous ones, he added. This is related to the recession, ruble volatility and continuing stagnation of the eating-out market. However, the pool of loyal clients continues growing for the brand and the company sees opportunities for growth in Russia, Khasbulatov added.
"We do not plan to do so [to curtain the investment program - TASS]. We plan to continue development and attract more and more visitors," the top manager said.


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NEW YORK (Reuters) - Sprint Nextel Corp plans to upgrade its network in time to launch high-speed wireless services by the middle of 2012 and expects to complete its upgrade by the end of 2013, a top executive for the company said on Friday.
Sprint also said at an investor event in New York that its partnership with LightSquared should help it meet its spectrum needs through 2015.
The company, which started taking pre-orders for the Apple Inc iPhone on Friday, said that while the device is more expensive than others, the iPhone will be "quite accretive" to profitability and cash flow over time.
Chief Executive Dan Hesse said he expects the popular device to be one of Sprint's most profitable, but he did not give specifics.
Sprint plans to upgrade its network using Long Term Evolution (LTE), the same high-speed wireless technology being used by its two bigger rivals AT&T Inc and Verizon Wireless, a venture of Verizon Communications Inc and Vodafone Group Plc.
(Reporting by Sinead Carew and Supantha Mukherjee; editing by Gerald E. McCormick)
What? The White House just said something epically stupid ... and disturbing
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Ted Cruz finds a question that the Sierra Club DARED not answer. | RedState
Thomas Sowell - Charlatans and Sheep: Part II


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Truck driver turnover at the nation's large trucking fleets hit 89 percent in the third quarter, the highest level of driver turnover since the first quarter of 2008, the American Trucking Associations (ATA) said Monday.
The third-quarter number represents a 10-percentage-point increase over the prior quarter's 79-percent turnover rate, according to ATA. Since bottoming out at 39 percent in the first quarter of 2010, turnover at large truckload fleets has risen by 50 percentage points, an unprecedented increase, according to Bob Costello, the trade group's chief economist. The driver turnover rate at large truckload fleets has averaged 81 percent so far this year.
The turnover rate at small truckload fleets, defined by ATA as carriers with under $30 million in annual revenue, jumped 10 points to 57 percent, the highest level since the third quarter of 2008, ATA said. Turnover in the less-than-truckload (LTL) segment remained relatively low at 10 percent, a reflection of the generally shorter hauls in this sector of the industry, which allows drivers to achieve a better work-life balance than their truckload counterparts.
In addition, LTL drivers are generally better paid than truckload drivers. According to recent data from consultancy FTR Associates, the median LTL driver's salary is about $58,000 a year, compared with $48,000 a year, on average, for truckload drivers.
For large truckload fleets, the highest turnover level on record was 134 percent, set in the fourth quarter of 2005, which was the tail end of the last great driver shortage cycle and the dawn of what would become a four-year freight recession that devastated the trucking industry. The subsequent decrease in driver turnover from late 2005 to early 2010 was also unprecedented, according to Costello.
In a statement, Costello reiterated ATA's long-held warning that an increase in freight tonnage, combined with the impact of federal safety regulations that will force marginal drivers off the road, will make it even harder for trucking companies to attract and retain high-quality drivers. Proposed changes in driver hours-of-service regulations, which could have the effect of putting more trucks on the road, will further increase demand for good drivers, Costello said.


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January single-family home sales statewide saw the largest year-over-year decline since January 2009, according to the latest report from The Warren Group, publisher of the Commercial Record.
However, local realtors and appraisers say the numbers don’t equate with activity in central Connecticut.
January single-family home sales statewide totaled 1,835 transactions, a 14.5 percent decrease from January 2018 when there were 2,145 transactions. This marked the largest year-over year decline for the month of January since 2009 when sales fell 35.3 percent on the same basis at the start of the recession. Meanwhile, the median price of a single-family home fell 0.4 percent on a year-over-year basis to $235,000, compared with $236,000 in January 2018.
“Last year the number of home sales fell in nine of 12 months and for the entire year sales fell by 1.9 percent,” said Timothy Warren, chief executive officer of The Warren Group. “However, no month in 2018 had a decline approaching the 14.5 percent decline that we saw last month. Homeowners and prospective buyers are standing fast with their current living quarters.”
Condominium sales in Connecticut also experienced a notable decline, falling 17.6 percent on a year-over-year basis with 519 transactions. On the same basis, the median sale price for condos increased 2 percent to $153,000, the highest price for the month of January since 2015.
“This is the first uptick we’ve seen in the January condo price since 2015,” Warren said. “Despite the increase, the median sale price is still well below the peak price of $191,000 seen in January 2006.”
Jonathon Carbutti, of Carbutti & Co. Realtors, said the local market does not reflect all of the Commercial Record findings.
“My experience has been very different,” Carbutti said. “I’m coming off a holiday in January. I listed 33 properties in January and sold 38. We’re getting multiple offers off the asking price.”
Carbutti said he had a recent sale in Meriden that was $25,000 over the asking price.
Meriden appraiser and real estate agent Rob Clermont said that there is pent up buyer demand and less inventory in the local market that is keeping prices and sales numbers up.
Homes under $300,000 are selling the quickest in Wallingford and Meriden and the spring market is predicted to be one of the busiest in years, Clermont said. Condos are also selling close to the listing prices.
“I’ve been in the business for 21 years, and this is the busiest I’ve been in January and February in the past three years,” he said.
Clermont said homes in foreclosure or distress and homes in need of remodeling are going quickly in Meriden.
“People are starting to see that Meriden’s value is it’s a place where you can buy a house and get a bang for your buck,” Clermont said. “The market is very hot right now, normally we have 130 to 140 homes coming to the spring market, now there are only 93 homes.”
As an appraiser, Clermont looks at supply and demand when recommending price.
The low-end and foreclosure market is seeing brisk activity with investors competing against each other to bid on distressed properties. And there is considerable interest is in flipped homes.
He points to a house at 19 Silver St. Meriden on the market for $189,900 that had seven to eight showing requests and received an offer in less than 24 hours. It had sold for $100,000 in November and was recently remodeled. A sale is pending.
The tight inventory has helped boost local prices, he said.
According to Clermont, in the last 365 days, there were 555 single-family home sales in Meriden, ranging in price from $25,000 to $375, 000. The average price was $169,817 and the homes stayed on the market for 54 days. Many sold for small percentages within their lowest selling price.
In 2017 to 2018, there were 616 single family homes that sold in the city ranging from $15,000 to $375,000, with an average price of $158,409. Most stayed on the market an average of 51 days and sold for 98 percent of lowest list price.


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The SimplyBiz Group has come up with a system that allows homeowners to give chartered surveyors a virtual tour of their home without breaching social distancing guidelines.
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10 August 2020
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The Federal Trade Commission has recommended that Congress use a light touch when broaching the issue of internet access and network neutrality. It put a special FTC task force on the case, and the task force has put out a report called "Broadband Connectivity Competition Policy."
FTC Chair Deborah Platt Majoras summarized its recommendations, saying, "This report recommends that policy makers proceed with caution in the evolving, dynamic industry of broadband Internet access, which generally is moving toward more – not less – competition. In the absence of significant market failure or demonstrated consumer harm, policy makers should be particularly hesitant to enact new regulation in this area." The FTC notes that in its estimation, the jury is still out on significant issues, and that "…certain conduct and business arrangements that broadband providers may pursue, including data prioritization, exclusive deals, and vertical integration into online content and applications, can benefit consumers."
In a release, the FTC noted, "The primary reason for caution is simply that we do not know what the net effects of potential conduct by broadband providers will be on all consumers, including, among other things, the prices that consumers may pay for Internet access, the quality of Internet access and other services that will be offered, and the choices of content and applications that may be available to consumers in the marketplace."
SmartMedia observation: Supporters of network neutrality would argue that enforcing it is not adding new regulation, it is retaining the existing protocol, which holds that Internet providers are the same as a phone company which may not prioritize one phone call over another. In using the words vertical integration and prioritization, Platt Majoras is probably igniting the worst fears of net neutrality supporters. When the issue has come up in Congress, Democrats have tended to support the neutrality concept with some support from across the aisle, all of which would indicate that this battle is far from over.


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Toys “R” Us, the once King of everything toys and video games, is once again making a comeback after a six-year hiatus following its 2017 bankruptcy. This revival is led by WHP Global, Toys “R” Us’s parent company, which acquired a controlling stake in 2021. This marks the third revival attempt for Toys “R” Us since 2017, including a lackluster showing at Macy’s department stores around the country.
In addition to these flagship stores, Toys “R” Us is diversifying its presence by opening shops in airports and on cruise ships through a partnership with Go! Retail Group. The first airport location is scheduled to debut in November at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, one of the world’s busiest travel hubs. WHP Global CEO, Yehuda Shmidman, had this to say about the revival:
“The Toys”R”Us brand is growing fast and our expansion into air, land and sea is a testament to the brand’s strength,” said Yehuda Shmidman, Chairman and CEO of WHP Global. “Since acquiring Toys”R”Us, we have increased our global retail footprint by more than 50% with openings in the United States, United Kingdom, India, Dubai, and Mexico. We now have over 1,400 stores and e-commerce sites across 31 countries, and as we head into 2024, we are excited to bring Toys”R”Us to consumers everywhere, whether you’re visiting one of our stores at Macy’s, at our flagships, in an airport, or onboard a cruise ship.”
Now, as a genuine Toys “R” Us kid myself, the idea of bringing back the brand has been something I’ve been optimistic about for some time. However, after walking into one of the saddest excuses for a Toys “R” Us at my local Macy’s last year, part of me wonders if the Toys “R” Us brand survives in name only. Here’s hoping that this latest comeback sticks the landing a bit better than the last few attempts.
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“I believe that everyone should experience my husband's food at least once in their lifetime,” says Detric Fox-Quinlan about her husband and chef Malik Rhasaan. Detric is the owner and administrator of the restaurants they jointly operate, Che Butter Jonez and now Butter + Scotch.
Detric and Malik recently ran a successful Honeycomb community investment offering and raised $63,200 from 70 investors! Read on to learn more about their story from protest to pots and pans, and from activism to accolades.
From activism in the streets into the kitchen
Malik is a well-known community activist, working to increase the presence of people of color in the Occupy movement in 2011, and was recognized by Time magazine as one of the People of the Year in the Year of the Protestor. However, food has also always been a passion of his.
“I begged him for 5 years to open a restaurant,” continues Detric. “After quitting my corporate job, we decided it was the perfect time to pursue his dream.” And so, Che Butter Jonez was born in 2018, starting off as a food truck and growing into a brick and mortar restaurant in 2021.
Che Butter Jonez began to gain a lot of local attention, and was named Eater Atlanta’s #1 best restaurant for September 2021 to December 2021.
“We were initially going to use Honeycomb when we moved into our first brick-n-mortar from our food truck,” notes Detric. “We were able to build our first restaurant without the assistance of Honeycomb, but kept them in mind because we loved how allowing those who support our brand to invest in our business and receive a return on that investment was incredibly rewarding.”
Expanding their brand into upscale dining at Butter + Scotch with community investment
About a year later after Che Butter Jonez moved into their brick-and-mortar, a new opportunity arose.
“We actually were presented with an incredible opportunity to bring Che Butter Jonez to a boutique hotel, Origin Atlanta, in downtown Atlanta. We decided to establish an upscale version of our current brand and Butter + Scotch was born.”
Detric and Malik decided that with their current success and with this new restaurant coming up, this would be the opportune time to pursue a Honeycomb investment offering.
“[Running a Honeycomb campaign] seemed like the best way to ensure our customers felt like they were an actual part of our growth and development,” says Detric.
They decided to use their Honeycomb loan to fund the move into the new restaurant space, putting it towards new kitchen equipment, a point of sale system, glassware and plateware, and bar equipment.
About the experience, Detric found it easy to navigate and that they received a ton of support on the crowdfunding journey from the Honeycomb team. “It was just fun all around the board,” says Detric. “Not too much work involved, friendly team who worked with you to ensure you were getting the absolute most from the platform.”
Taking advantage of Small Business Saturday - Honeycomb style
Butter + Scotch also greatly benefited from Honeycomb’s Small Business Saturday push. On Small Business Saturday, that is the Saturday after Thanksgiving, Honeycomb drops investor fees, making it all the more easy for people to invest in small businesses like Butter + Scotch. Because their campaign landed on Small Business Saturday, Malik and Detric were able to build momentum towards their eventual success.
On Small Business Saturday weekend, Butter + Scotch received $20,250 across 23 investments alone! That’s almost a third of their entire raise in just one weekend!
“Small Business Saturday was phenomenal!” says Detric. “The support was more than we imagined, but the appreciation for that support is beyond measure. We're humbled by how you rallied behind our vision!“
Detric and Malik’s Honeycomb investment offering for Butter + Scotch ended up immensely successful - they raised $63,200 from 70 investors - many from their community! And we’d be willing to bet those local investors are going to be some of the first people at Butter + Scotch’s door on opening day, later in 2023.
“This is going to be a restaurant unlike anyone Atlanta has ever seen and we are so grateful to everyone who has invested to help make this a reality!” says Detric. Butter + Scotch’s 1-3 year plan is to continue cultivating the Atlanta culinary scene, and to also expand their brand into other cities across the country.
Start your business funding journey with Honeycomb Credit - your community is at your side.
Malik and Detric are prime examples of business owners who deeply care about their community - their history of activism is just the iceberg! It goes without saying that this community involvement was an element of success in their Honeycomb offering. If you’re ready to grow your business, why not put your community to the test? Learn more about running a Honeycomb investment offering by filling out the form below.


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Leominster Cannoli Festival 2023
Visit downtown Leominster on the evening of Monday, October 9 for the 7th annual cannoli festival! Many cannoli vendors are expected to attend, serving up one of Italy’s most famous desserts.
You’ll find a wide of assortment of cannoli from lots of different vendors. There are even cannoli food trucks! The best thing is, you can get multiple cannoli and bring them home to try later.
This year, there will be live entertainment from George Lyons, and a beer & wine garden!
The four hour festival has grown since it was introduced a few years ago in 2016. It initially started as a way to showcase local bakeries and get people downtown. Now, it’s a popular event the entire city looks forward to every year that attracts visitors and bakers from beyond Leominster.
For additional information, feel free to check out the official Facebook page.


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Next big challenge: Moderate taxes
The passing of the 122nd constitution amendment bill by Rajya Sabha last week may have eased the process of introducing Goods and Services Tax (GST) sometime next year, after the bill is passed by the required number of state legislatures, but its positive impact on economy will principally depend on a centre-state agreement to keep GST rates at moderate levels – say, below 18 percent on an average -- to drive domestic demand, consumption and to expand market, increase production, raise economic growth and improve tax compliance. The GST must expand the market to boost the economy.
The expansion of domestic consumption will automatically lead to higher tax collection, benefiting both the centre and states. High rates of indirect tax under GST will choke the demand and consumption. Even luxuries need not be highly taxed to make them the preserve of only the super-rich. The consumer base in each segment must grow, including those for aspiring super rich. Otherwise, there will be little incentive for the domestic production of such items of consumption restricted by price for only the reach of the super-rich. Those items will be imported denying possible domestic production to serve both the local and export markets and diminish the government’s “Make in India” effort. Moderate rate levels will make GST a success from the very beginning and keep the inflation rate within the government’s latest target of 4-6 percent.
However, states seem to have their own agenda concerning GST rates. Some of them are against moderate GST rates, which, they fear, may eat into their own annual revenue expectations and development spending. This is despite the fact that the Union government has assured the states full compensation for five years for any revenue loss. But, states are still worried about funds to spend adequately on health, education, and other crucial development schemes. Not many are willing to increase their borrowings to cover fiscal deficit. Naturally, they want more.
Maybe, there also exists a trust deficit between the Centre and states. Or, there could be doubt about the GST compliance level in view of the fact that the number of habitual tax offenders has only grown over the years. And, indirect tax administration of both the Centre and states is among the most corrupt bodies. Unfortunately, both the states and the Centre do not quite admit the logic that higher GST rates may lower their compliance, as it has been always experienced, benefiting dishonest individual tax administrators more than the tax administration. GST, along with the government’s latest drive for financial inclusion and cashless transactions, should act as a part of major combined initiative to substantially reduce trade and economic corruption the country. During a recent state-level discussion on GST rates, it was found that some northern states currently levy taxes combining as high as up to 28 percent, including VAT, entry tax and others.
Some of them want the standard GST rate should be around 23 percent. In fact, Kerala’s Finance Minister Thomas Isaac had reportedly wanted the standard GST rate to be fixed at 24 percent during the meeting of the Empowered Committee of State Finance Ministers on July 25. Isaac strongly opposed the Congress party’s demand to cap the overall GST rate at 18 percent. Despite the statements made last week by the Union Finance Secretary Ashok Lavasa, Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das, and Chief Economic Advisor Arvind Subramanian that GST will follow moderate rates having practically no impact on inflation, bigwigs in the BJP party are believed to be in favour of an average rate of 20 percent. This is a cause for concern. The political parties and administration, both in the Centre and states, don’t seem to appreciate the fact that lower direct and indirect taxes since the 1991 economic reform have significantly expanded the market and government’s annual tax revenues over the years.
Being an international economist, Subramanian himself does not seem to be much in favour of high GST rates. A panel headed by him last year had suggested 17-18 percent “standard” GST rate for most of the goods and services while recommending 12 percent for “low rate goods” and 40 percent for demerit goods like luxury cars, aerated beverages, chewing tobacco such as pan masala and manufactured tobacco. For precious metal, it recommended a rate ranging from two to six percent.
The Subramanian panel had pegged the revenue neutral rate at 15-15.5 percent. The Chief Economic Advisor feels that a standard rate higher than 18-19 percent will stoke inflation. He is rightly concerned that an increase in GST rate by a percentage point may reduce its compliance by the same margin. The government seems to have changed its earlier perception on the standard GST rate and inflation, probably under pressure from states, including those ruled by BJP. It now says even if the standard GST rate becomes 20 percent, it would have no average impact on inflation. The next rounds of dialogue between the centre and states and in the GST Council are very important for the achievement of the desired goal behind GST.
The constitution amendment bill does not provide the GST rates and the GST Council. The latter will be formed with representatives of both the centre and states. Subsequently, there will be legislations on Central GST (CGST) and integrated GST (IGST). The government is trying to hurry up the process. The BJP-governed states may summon special Assembly sessions to pass the constitution amendment bill before the next session. It is still not clear if other states will do the same or wait for the next regular Assembly session to take up the issue. The Union government is, however, very hopeful to take up the matter of CGST and IGST in the coming winter session of Parliament. Until then, the GST rates may remain as a matter of speculation.
(The views are personal.)


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September 19, 2019
Alliance Growers Corp. reports that the Company is in advanced discussions with a company that has created a turn-key waste...
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Are you interested in cannabis investment? Here's a list of Canadian marijuana stocks for investors to reference.
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More and more marijuana stocks are joining the Canadian Securities Exchange. Here's a breakdown of the companies listed there.
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Canadian companies dominate the global cannabis market, but US cannabis stocks show much potential for savvy investors.


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- Selected Instagram users and influencers in the US will test the NFT sharing feature
- Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg first revealed at South by Southwest in March that the company was working on bringing NFTs to Instagram
A limited number of users in the US can now share digital collectibles and NFTs via Instagram, revealed Adam Mosseri, head of the social media platform, in a video posted to Twitter on Monday. Initially, only NFTs (non-fungible tokens) minted on the Ethereum and Polygon blockchains will be able to be shared on Instagram feeds, Stories and via direct messages.
Mosseri said that this new feature is an opportunity to “help creators make a living from what they love” while “bringing Web3 technologies to a much wider range of people”. He added that the company intends to learn from the community to “adopt these principles of distributed trust and distributed power” that are central to Web3.
He also clarified that there are no fees associated with posting or sharing an NFT, compared to Twitter which only allows Twitter Blue subscribers in the US, Australia, Canada and New Zealand to set their NFTs as their profile pictures (PFP). for a fee of $2.99 per month.
As seen in the video, NFTs displayed on Instagram contain a “Digital Collectible” tag that includes a description of the digital asset and details about the artist and owner.
Among the first NFT collections included in the study are those of Boss Beauties, actor Jayden Smith and VaynerX Chairman Gary Vaynerchuck. according to TechCrunch.
Similar features will soon be activated on Facebook and other meta-apps, CEO Mark Zuckerberg Approved in a Facebook post. Meta recently announced plans to charge 47.5% on every item sold in its new Meta Quest App Store and include NFTs as part of its Horizon Worlds virtual reality platform.
While Zuckerberg anticipated the news that Instagram would support NFTs “in the near future,” during a virtual appearance at the South by Southwest conference in Austin, Texas, in March, he hinted that users might soon be coining their own NFTs as well. But for now, NFT support on Instagram is limited to sharing.
The post “Meta Trials NFT Display Feature for Instagram Creators and Collectors” is not financial advice.
Source: Crypto News Austria


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Google must stop listening to voice recordings from people using its Assistant software in the European Union, German regulators said Thursday. The ban will last three months while Germany's data watchdog agency investigates privacy concerns.
The search giant's Assistant service, similar to Amazon's Alexa and Apple's Siri, lets people use their voice to turn on a light or get the morning's headlines through devices including a Google Home smart speaker, Android phone or iPhone. A small percentage of those voice recordings are heard by human workers at Google and third parties, with the goal of improving the software and better understanding people's queries, the company has said.
But those recordings could include sensitive and private information, not only from people using the device, but also from others in the same household, the Hamburg Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information said in a statement.
Last month, Google confirmed that third-party workers who analyze language data from the Assistant leaked private Dutch conversations. Belgian public broadcaster VRT NWS said more than 1,000 files had been leaked, including recordings from instances where users accidentally triggered Google's software.
"The use of language assistance systems must be done in a transparent way, so that an informed consent of the users is possible," Johannes Caspar, the Hamburg Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information, said in a statement. "In particular, this involves providing sufficient information and transparently informing those affected about the processing of voice commands, but also about the frequency and risks of mal-activation."
Google said it "paused" language reviews of the audio data after the Dutch audio leak. The company also said it's working with the German regulators.
"We are in touch with the Hamburg data protection authority and are assessing how we conduct audio reviews and help our users understand how data is used," a spokeswoman said in a statement. "These reviews help make voice recognition systems more inclusive of different accents and dialects across languages. We don't associate audio clips with user accounts during the review process, and only perform reviews for around 0.2% of all clips."
Other tech giants have been under fire for how they use their voice data. Amazon has said an "extremely small" number of Alexa recordings are annotated to help make its speech recognition systems better. Apple contractors reportedly hear private recordings too, including medical information, according to a report last month from The Guardian. Apple told The Guardian a "small portion" of the data is used to help improve Siri and dictation.
Originally published Aug. 1, 12:19 p.m. PT.
Update, 2:53 p.m.: Adds comment from Google.