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GREENEVILLE — Federal prosecutors have charged a Piney Flats man with mail fraud in connection with a scheme where he used more than $200,000 in counterfeit postage over a two-year period.
Jason Matthew Smalling is expected to plead guilty next week to a one-count information charging him with mail fraud. The information was filed in U.S. District Court in Greeneville on Oct. 7. Mail fraud carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
According to court documents, Smalling operated a business from his home in Piney Flats called Value Decals, wherein he created and sold vinyl decals, some being generic images with others being the logos of professional sports teams, including those of Major League Baseball, the National Football League, the National Basketball Association and the National Hockey League.
Prosecutors say the logos of the professional sports teams were unlicensed reproductions.
From August 2011 until June 2013, Smalling created fake team logos and counterfeit postage on a computer, received orders through his business’ website and shipped them Priority Mail through the U.S. Postal Service, court records state.
Smalling used computer software to reproduce informationbased indicia from postage obtained through Stamps.com? , manipulating the address information, but using the same bar-coded information from the original postage.
In other words, Smalling mailed hundreds of packages without paying for the postage.
According to the plea agreement, on May 15, Smalling sent 312 Priority Mail packages with fake postage from the Bluff City post office.
Smalling and prosecutors agree the scheme defrauded the U.S. Postal Service of at least $200,000 but not more than $400,000.
Federal agents have seized more than $26,250 from three of Smalling’s SunTrust bank accounts and $600 in cash on the day of his arrest.
Value Decals’ website is still active and has dozens of generic logos for sale, but all professional sports-related logos have been removed.


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The hospitality giant, Hard Rock, has its eyes set on a new investment opportunity. In fact, the success they had in Atlantic City certainly inspired the company to spread its wings. And this time around, Hard Rock is looking to expand the business to the Gold Coast of Australia.
Although, Kate Jones (The Minister of Tourism of Queensland) confirm that Queensland has no plans to add slot machines to the region. She still supports the interests of overseas operators. Without a doubt, Queensland is a popular holiday destination! In fact, tourism generates around $25 billion a year. Not to mention that the hospitality sector employs over 100,000 people. So, it’s no wonder why Hard Rock is thinking of expanding down under!
A great thing about Queensland is that hotels such as the Hard Rock can apply for a gaming machine license. And once they have the license, they can purchase slots at auction. Indeed, the mayor of the Gold Coast confirmed that. “There is no prohibition for a person operating on a casino or a general license to get gaming machines at an auction.”
How does it work in Australia
In Australia, things work differently than in Atlantic City! In fact, the licensing authority regulates the number of slot machines on the territory. What’s more is that each slot comes with its so-called “operating authority.” And operators who hold a gambling license can attend authorized auction by the Public Trustee of Queensland to buy slots. With their respective license, of course. But know that the number of gaming machines in Queensland can’t exceed the set maximum number by the region.
Bargain up for grabs!
It sure seems that if Hard Rock chose to venture to Australia, they’d get a good deal! Indeed, if we look at the record on Queensland’s government site, we can see a decline in the selling price of slot machines. In fact, since 2015 the average sale prices have dropped by 50% from $101,444 to $50,903 today! So it seems that Hard Rock is also aware of the bargain prices and they want to make the most of it!

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Hong Kong: Dr Jonathan Beard is one of the best known names in ports analysis. Managing director of GHK, a firm bought out recently by US firm ICF, Beard’s pronouncements on ports in Asia in particular always tend to ring true. Maritime CEO quizzes him about key trends to note across Asian boxports.
In Southeast Asia Beard sees “intense competition” for transhipment volumes, something that is only set to grow.
“Increasingly it is a very tough game,” he comments. “These ports have to invest a lot but revenues per teu are not going up.”
In China, the going is getting “really tough” in the south. Hong Kong will continue to struggle, he says, while overcapacity in south China is not helped by Nansha, a comparatively new giant port 54km south of Guangzhou. Beard describes Nansha as “a state-backed entity essentially buying cargoes”.
The Yangtze river delta is “pretty healthy”, reckons Beard, with Shanghai’s new free trade zone likely to be an “extra fillip”.
The northern Bohai Rim ports have enjoyed a very strong year, something likely to continue next year. Despite this, however, neighbouring Busan, in Korea, continues to post solid results. Busan’s resilience does surprise the ports analyst, but he questions the profitability of business in Busan.
Over in Taiwan, meanwhile, the picture is not rosy. With China sooner or later likely to open up transhipment to foreign carriers, Taiwan’s ports need to focus on domestic consumption.
Finally, we ask for Beard’s advice for container terminal operators in 2014: “Focus on Africa and Russia,” he says. [21/10/13]


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IFCO celebrates 25th anniversary
In 2017 IFCO will celebrate the 25th anniversary since its founding in 1992. The anniversary will be celebrated throughout 2017 with a series of customer events and a donation of 25,000 € to food banks across Europe and North America.
“IFCO started as an idea in 1992 and has grown into a global company operating a pool of more than 270 million reusable plastic containers for packaging, transporting, storing and displaying fresh food,” said IFCO CEO Wolfgang Orgeldinger.
Since joining the Brambles family of companies in 2011, IFCO has continued to expand into new geographies and new product categories while also growing its core businesses in fresh goods RPCs with the world’s leading retailers.
Today, more than 1.4 billion shipments of fresh goods – including produce, meat, eggs, bread, seafood, dairy and other items – arrive at grocery stores around the world in IFCO reusable plastic containers every year. IFCO customers are located in 50+ countries spanning six continents, with a pool of more than 270 million containers.
In September, IFCO announced it delivered fiscal year 2016 annual revenue of US $992 million, representing 16 percent growth over the prior year at existing currency.


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It's all politics: Cosco-backed Peru port project at risk
China’s Peruvian dilemma
A Malaysian politician has been slammed as “irresponsible” after calling for a truck driver strike at Port Klang, even as the major South-east Asian transhipment hub grapples with severe yard congestion.
Last week, assemblyman Azmizam Zaman Huri reportedly said truck drivers serving Port Klang could strike if the government didn’t upgrade roads leading into to the port.
But neither the truckers nor trucking associations have made such a claim, according to one local forwarder, who added: “This has probably more to do with politics.”
Furthermore, 11 port and logistics organisations, led by Port Klang Authority, roundly criticised Mr Azmizam for his strike call while debating the Selangor state budget.
They said: “We view very seriously the call, which is irrational, unreasonable and irresponsible, as it would create other problems such as a break in the logistics supply chain for the supply of raw materials, food, vegetables, fruits and medical supplies.
“It can also interrupt commercial and economic sectors nationwide, which are currently recovering from the adverse effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.”
It has been a challenging year for the transhipment hub, which, like other ports in the region, is dealing with the fallout from skewed shipping schedules.
Last month, for example, The Loadstar reported how port congestion in the US and Europe was flowing onto intra-Asia trade lanes, leaving the port of Singapore overflowing with containers, due to delayed connecting vessels loading transhipment cargo.
And a similar situation has unfolded at bPort Klang, where Westports, its biggest container terminal operator and transhipment player, is facing a rare year of zero volume growth, due to yard congestion.
Westports group MD Ruben Emir Gnanalingam told The Loadstar: “The yard is still extremely congested, although the berths are not. Containers are staying for long periods as the effects of lockdowns weigh on supply chains globally.
“This is due to lockdowns in countries we hub for in the region, like Bangladesh, Vietnam and New Zealand. Whenever countries in the region go into lockdown, boxes stay here longer.”
Westports handled 10.5m teu in 2020, down slightly on 2019, and Mr Gnanalingam said volumes would “likely trend flattish” this year as a result of the yard congestion.
He added: “The congestion will only start to ease a few months after countries we connect with stop using lockdowns as a means of fighting Covid. And your guess is as good as mine with regards to when we will no longer have lockdowns.”


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South Africa: Football fans will be able to watch the 2010 World Cup live in 3D
Fifa has signed an agreement with Sony to film up to 25 games from the finals in South Africa in 3D. Fans will be able to watch the games on 3D-ready televisions at home or at special public screens in seven cities around the world, including London, using special glasses.
"During June and July 2010 we will provide our European consumers with the most compelling 3D content to enjoy and experience first-hand, for example at the Fifa International Fan Fests," said Fujio Nishida, president of Sony Europe.
Sky has filmed a number of events, including the recent ATP World Tour Finals at the O2, in 3D. From 2010, Sony will be incorporating 3D compatibility into a wide range of consumer products such as "BRAVIA" LCD TV, Blu-ray Disc recorders and players, VAIO and PlayStation(R)3, to provide a multitude of ways in which 3D content - from 3D movies to stereoscopic 3D games - can be enjoyed in the home. By having viewers around the world experience sensational 3D content from the World Cup tournament, Sony aims to accelerate the expansion of 3D from professionals to consumers in 2010 and beyond.
"The transition to 3D is underway, and, we, at Sony, intend to be leaders in every aspect. Our sponsorship of the FIFA World Cup allows us to leverage our cutting-edge 3D technology and premier products with dazzling content to produce a unique and totally compelling viewing experience. 3D viewers around the world will feel as though they are inside the stadiums in South Africa, watching the games in person," said Sir Howard Stringer, Chairman, CEO and President of Sony Corporation.
"This propels the football fan into a whole new viewing dimension and marks the dawning of a new era in the broadcasting of sport," said FIFA Secretary General Jerome Valcke. "We are proud that the FIFA World Cup can serve as a platform for advancing technology and the viewing experience, and are truly fortunate to have Sony as a partner in this endeavour."
During the 2010 FIFA World Cup, FIFA will host the "International FIFA Fan Fest(TM)" public viewing events in 7 cities around the world (Berlin, London, Mexico City, Paris, Rio De Janeiro, Rome, and Sydney). At Sony's commercial displays located within the "Fan Fest," people will be able to enjoy and experience promotional highlight trailers of the FIFA World Cup in 3D.
In anticipation of the Official 3D Film, viewers will be able to watch promotional trailers for the film of the World Cup in 3D at retail outlets(including Sony stores) that sell Sony products around the world.
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment plans to produce and distribute the Official 3D Film on the Blu-ray Disc* and other formats.
By combining the excitement of the FIFA World Cup with 3D images generated using Sony's technology and products, Sony and FIFA will seek to deliver 3D images that convey the action and emotion of the World Cup to viewers around the world, and a viewing experience as if they were in the stadium itself. 3D specification of BD is under consideration by the BDA (Blu-ray Disc Association).


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Senate passes symbolic Internet sales tax amendment
- Staff Nashville Business Journal
The U.S. Senate Friday approved an amendment sponsored by Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) that would allow states to choose whether to collect sales taxes from Internet-based retailers.
The measure was passed by a 75-24 vote as an amendment to a budget resolution. Because the budget resolution is non-binding, however, the vote on the amendment was largely symbolic, Reuters reports. "Still, the approval should reassure states and 'bricks and mortar' retailers that Congress will come together to pass a bill soon," Reuters reports.
The Marketplace Fairness Act was first introduced in the Senate in 2011, and was reintroduced in February.
In Tennessee, Amazon.com has agreed to begin collecting sales taxes from Tennesseans beginning in 2014 if no national legislation is approved.
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Amazon employees at German warehouses have gone on strike over better pay and conditions until at least December 20, but the company has promised it will deliver Christmas orders on time.
In the long-running dispute which started in May 2013, the union has demanded that Amazon pay the same wages as employees in the mail order and retail industries. Amazon rejected the demands, saying it regards warehouse employees as logistics workers who receive above-average pay.
At a rally with more than 1,000 Amazon employees, the union said "Your courage and your determination will bring Amazon to the negotiating table. You are an example to the whole country,"
The union said out of Amazon's nine warehouses in Germany, six have joined the movement with more than 2,600 employees involved. However, Amazon pointed out it employs almost 10,000 regular employees at its warehouses in Germany, which doubles during seasonal times. It also said it can draw on its 19 other warehouses across Europe to fill gaps.
Amazon said it had not seen any delays so far and that Christmas orders will be delivered on time, it reassured customers by saying "We keep our customer promises."


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There’s an adage in business that it’s cheaper and easier to retain existing customers than to find new ones. It’s been estimated that it costs five times as much to acquire a new customer than to retain ones. This explains why businesses work so hard to keep customers happy.
It’s not just baseball diplomacy that is happening between the United States and Cuba. U.S. mail is now flowing directly to the island nation – another major step in the process of normalizing relations between the two countries.
In March, the U.S. Postal Service reestablished direct...Read More


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As recently as today, Fedex was stating that many of its overseas deliveries are still being impacted by last month's cyber-attacks. According to a Lloyd’s Report (Closing the Gap) the long term impacts of a cyber-attack on a business are being underestimated.
Key Findings of this report were:
The types of cyber-attacks against businesses vary from sector to sector and are constantly evolving. For example:
– There has been a major growth in targeting companies through CEO fraud, which is resulting in significant financial losses.
– The financial services sector finds itself at the sharp end of targeted attacks by organized cyber-crime but retail is increasingly being targeted.
– Professional services firms such as lawyers and accountants are increasingly targeted as a gateway to attacks on their clients, which are often large corporates.
– Ransomware and distributed denial-of-service attacks are increasingly used against businesses with healthcare, and media and entertainment particularly targeted.
– The public sector and telecommunications sectors are highly susceptible to espionage-focused cyber-attacks.
Businesses need to be aware of the full costs of a cyber-attack, in particular, the “slow-burn” costs (i.e. those associated with the long-term impacts of a cyber-attack, such as the loss of competitive advantage and customer churn). When added to immediate costs (i.e. legal and forensic investigation fees, and extortion pay outs), slow burn costs can dramatically increase the final bill.
There are four factors that aggravate the damage caused by cyber-attacks, making it all the more important that businesses mitigate their cyber risks and improve their cyber security:
1. Higher penalties for companies that breach cyber-security rules as set out in forthcoming European legislation.
2. Cyber-breach victims’ greater willingness to sue companies that have lost their data.
3. Increased responsibility for cyber security in the supply chain.


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The new iPhone 5c won't exactly break the bank, but the smartphone is already hitting the bargain bin at some retailers.
On the heels of Best Buy's $50 discount (in the form of a free gift card), Walmart and RadioShack are now offering customers the colorful new device with a sub-$50 price tag.
At launch, Walmart cut the price of the 16GB 5c, selling it in all five colors for $79 with a two-year contract a $20 discount. But those who missed the early waves of crazed Apple product purchasing can now pick up a new plastic iPhone 5c for only $45 with a two-year contract.
RadioShack, meanwhile, is taking over Best Buy's promotion which ends today by handing out $50 gift cards to 5c buyers, which can be applied to their 5c purchase through Nov. 2. As of Saturday, RadioShack customers can pick up their new 5c at a brick-and-mortar store to receive the discount.
Or, trade your old electronic device in to receive credit toward a new one, with the Trade & Save program. According to the company, shoppers trading in an iPhone 5, iPhone 4S, or iPhone 4 will receive a guaranteed $250, $150, or $100, respectively.
Apple unveiled its low-cost 5c in early September, offering a variety of colors green, blue, yellow, pink, and white. If purchased via Apple or a number of other retailers, the 16GB device costs $99, while the 32GB will run you $199 on contract.
Sporting a 4-inch Retina display, the phone is made of a hard-coated polycarbonate material, and carries a multiband antenna under steel reinforcement. An 8-megapixel iSight back camera is complemented by the new FaceTime HD front cam.
The 5c also includes an integrated touch layer, and runs Apple's A6 chip and iOS 7, with a slightly larger battery than the iPhone 5.
This marks Cupertino's first iPhone to come out of the box with such bright coloring. The higher-end iPhone 5s, meanwhile, has gained a lot of attention for its champagne-colored gold outfit.
Sales of both versions broke company records when Apple revealed that it sold 9 million new iPhones during its first weekend.
For more, see PCMag's review of the Apple iPhone 5c and the slideshow above.
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Esports: Exponential Rev, Uncharted Territory
The other day, I had the chance to catch up with a friend from my days in cable television. He’d lived in Europe for several years and had been working in telephony. Recently returned home, he’s considering what to do in the next chapter of his life. You should have seen the look on his face when I suggested video games, and in particular esports. His response was, “I’ve played Candy Crush and I still like Wii, but is that really a growth business?” He was shocked when I replied that the 2020 global video game revenue was forecast at four times global box office revenue and about three times the music industry forecast.
I have to admit that I’m still learning about the world of esports. Helpfully, Kimberly M. Randolph and Colin M. O’Brien, managing director and analyst, respectively, for the financial advisory firm Stout, prepared an article called “A World Apart” for the May/June issue of MFM’s member publication, The Financial Manager. It’s the fifth in our media valuations special report. In it, Randolph and O’Brien lay out the emergence of, massive revenue streams from, and risks associated with the esports business.
For those who aren’t esports participants or fans, perhaps a definition is in order. Esports is a form of competition using video games. It typically takes the form of organized, multiplayer video game competitions between professional players, individually or as teams. Although organized competitions have long been a part of video game culture, they were largely held between amateurs until the late 2000s. That’s when participation by professional gamers and spectatorship in these events through live streaming saw a large surge in popularity. Currently, companies including Beasley Broadcast Group and Comcast have esports teams.
Randolph and O’Brien’s article delves more deeply into esports revenue models, laying out four specific streams, including how each works and makes money. As someone who’s more of an observer than a participant, I find the whole world of esports and esports business models fascinating.
The article begins with some impressive numbers. It describes a teenager named Kyle Giersdorf (known as Bugha to esports fans) who won the Fortnight World Cup, a worldwide tournament for Fortnight, a video game that launched in 2017 and at one point attracted 80 million players globally. In 2019, the 16-year-old Bugha took home $3 million as the grand prize. By comparison, the winner of the 2018 Masters — one of the four major PGA tournaments, which has been played since 1934 — received slightly less than $2 million.
Unlike traditional sports, video gaming opens the doors for some unique ways to make money. The first is developer-backed leagues. What sets this category apart, say Randolph and O’Brien, is that the individuals or companies that create video games also own the intellectual property associated with the games. These leagues offer revenue-sharing agreements with teams and also attract sponsors that advertise during tournaments or other events.
The authors cite Riot Games as a developer with a promising revenue stream. Riot Games reported that its 2018 League of Legends World Championship Finals attracted almost 100 million viewers — a larger audience than that of the Super Bowl of the same year, according to data from Nielsen. Sponsors aren’t just random companies, either: brands including Verizon, MasterCard and even Louis Vuitton are working with esports leagues; some teams have also signed with their own top-tier sponsors, such as BMW and PepsiCo.
The second category of revenue, according to Randolph and O’Brien, is investing and franchises. A number of investors have realized there is serious money to be made in investing in or purchasing an esports league. Somewhat akin to major league sports, esports organizations maintain a pool of gamers who are signed to play in their leagues. But in esports, investors can purchase a franchise spot that allows them to bring in a team of players drawn from the gamer pool — some of whom have expertise in one game and others who may play a range of video games.
This franchise model has responded well to the increase in demand, to say the least. The article describes a single franchise spot, first acquired for $10 million by competitive esports group Echo Fox, acquired two years later for $33 million by a rival group called Evil Geniuses, and subsequently acquired again the same year for an undisclosed amount. An esports team named TeamSoloMid (TSM) currently holds the highest position in Forbes’ annual esports list, valued at $410 million in 2020, with a revenue multiple of a 9.1x; other esports teams have lower valuations but higher revenue multiples.
The third esports revenue category is the players themselves. Right now, gamers can operate in two different ways — either as competitive players or as “streamers”— and some do both. Competitive players are typically signed to an esports group such as TSM, which places them onto rosters and teams for either a single game or across multiple games, depending on the player. These players split earnings with their parent organization.
Streamers are most often gamers who have played competitively over the years, but who want to transition to a model in which they play while streaming each game, sometimes competing against novices, and commentating on their own gameplay. Their notoriety attracts both competitors who want to learn from them, and viewers who simply enjoy watching an expert in action. TSM has several streamers within its group, who they use to promote their organization and earn revenue from YouTube and other social media.
Speaking of streaming, the platforms that bring esports content to viewers take one of the largest slices of the esports revenue pie. Randolph and O’Brien say Twitch is currently the dominant player in the North American market, thanks in part to its purchase by Amazon in 2014 for $1 billion. According to Needham & Co., Twitch is currently valued at $15 billion, and its viewership has grown from 55 million monthly viewers at the time of Amazon’s purchase to 140 million monthly viewers now. In addition to selling tickets to gaming tournaments and other events, Twitch created its own in-house currency, “bits,” which fans can purchase to “cheer” individual gamers.
Randolph and O’Brien close their article with a look toward the future of esports. While they state it’s chiefly full of promise, citing statistics such as Insider Intelligence’s estimate that viewership will grow from $454 million in 2019 to $646 million in 2023, and that esports investment increased to $4.5 billion in 2018 from just $890 million in 2017, esports is not without risks. As they point out, “most esports leagues are still bleeding red ink.”
Moreover, it’s not looking good for many of them to become profitable over the next few years, meaning numerous leagues may not make it and only a few will rise to dominance. They also say the relatively short lifespan of most video games can be problematic for the industry. Nonetheless, investors’ appetite for esports is growing, and there’s every reason to believe that esports will continue to look more and more like traditional sports, drawing ever-larger viewership, more sponsors, greater investment, and higher revenues.
If, like me, you are fascinated by this booming segment of the media industry, you’ll want to read Randolph and O’Brien’s article in its entirety. The digital version of the May/June 2021 issue of TFM is currently available on the MFM website.
In addition, we still have video games-specific sessions scheduled as part of Media Finance Focus 2021, which runs through July 29. Among these are a session about valuation on June 24 and a panel discussing new revenue streams on July 8. The complete conference agenda is available on our conference website.
Mary M. Collins is president and CEO of the Media Financial Management Association and its BCCA subsidiary, the media industry’s credit association. She can be reached at [email protected] and via the association’s LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter accounts.


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Thursday, July 21, 2011
Jagex fucked up.
Mod Craddock posted on the War of Legends forum that the Stellar Dawn Official Forums would be shut down until a time closer to the Beta.
A backup forum was launched to house the community, hundreds of threads were backed up, The Combine included. Took a good 12 hours, but Mod Markg finally showed up and clarified it.
The first official Jagex moderator post on the SDOF since last year is a clarification that basically comes down to, "We fucked up and caused a shitstorm. Sorry, guys."
If you want an example of what the main section on a pre-release video game's forum is not supposed to look like, here's one:


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ERP Upgrades: Love ‘Em or Leave ‘Em?
November 18, 2015 Alex Woodie
What is the value of an ERP system? At most companies that use them, the ERP suite is critical to daily functioning. Without a centralized place to run things like accounts payable and general ledger, the company simply couldn’t operate. But that line of reasoning does not appear to hold true when it comes to ERP upgrades, which companies are increasingly choosing not to perform.
A recent survey from Rimini Street shed some light on the situation surrounding ERP upgrades, specifically for Oracle customers. In its second-annual survey of Oracle customers around world, Rimini (which is a provider third-party maintenance and support for Oracle ERP and CRM customers) found that nearly half of Oracle licensees are running at least one version behind the latest application release.
A full 64 percent of the respondents said their existing on-premise Oracle apps meet their business needs, while 41 percent of them say upgrading would be too expensive, according to the study, which involved 443 current Oracle application customers. Rimini says 40 percent of the respondents were E-Business Suite users, 29 percent PeopleSoft users, 19 percent JD Edwards customers, 17 percent Siebel users.
To be sure, Rimini is no impartial observer here, as the company makes its living by selling maintenance and support services to Oracle customers that cost about half what Oracle charges. With the typical annual maintenance bill accounting for 22 percent of the initial ERP or CRM license, it’s safe to say that Rimini has taken tens of millions of dollars of support business away from Oracle. (The companies have also sued each other fairly extensively, but that’s another story.)
The study specifically calls out Fusion, Oracle’s next-generation ERP platform, as having a particularly rough row to hoe. According to Rimini, only 8 percent of the survey respondents were currently running Fusion, while 60 percent said they “see no strong business case” to migrate to Oracle’s Fusion or cloud applications. Slightly more, 62 percent, say high licensing and maintenance costs are the top reason why they’re not moving to Oracle Fusion or cloud. About 10 percent of the respondents are using one of Oracle’s cloud products.
David Rowe, senior VP and chief marketing officer for Rimini, says the survey results show that Oracle customers are happy with their existing ERP and CRM apps, and are looking elsewhere for apps that extend that core functionality. “IT decision makers no longer need to upgrade their ERP platforms to add new functionality such as mobility, analytics, social and digital capabilities,” he says.
This view meshes with the one held by Anthony Etzel, a solutions executive for Crossroads RMC, which provides manufacturing execution systems (MES) for customers running Infor MAPICS and BPCS environments. In Etzel’s view, the ERP innovation cycle has ebbed and flowed over the years, and is currently ebbing.
“I’ve been in this business before ERP packages even existed,” Etzel tells IT Jungle. “I was a programmer for manufacturing companies, and we wrote our own stuff. Then IBM created MAPICS and they were practically giving it away when you bought or leased a box, it was so cheap.”
ERP was the hot ticket to business automation in the mid to late 1990s, and it drove huge sales of servers and employed armies of implementation specialists. The ERP implementation cycle peaked around Y2K, and since then, as ERP matured, the amount of innovation has leveled off too.
“Over the past 30 years, ERP has improved,” Etzel says. “But there have been so many things added to it that there’s not much more you can do, except to modernize it, maybe tweak it here and there, or to make it more configurable based on the type of industry that you’re in.”
Much of the focus of ERP vendors like Oracle, Infor, and SAP historically has been on boosting front-office productivity, with snazzy iPhone interfaces and “social business” functions that let you track things in a Facebook-friendly way (“Where’s my #stapler?”).
That leaves room for companies like Crossroads RMC to innovate and improve back-office processes. “A lot of focus is given to financial software, all your accounting packages, your customer orders, your purchase order, your scheduling and planning–all those front-office people,” he says. “But when you talk about the shop floor, it’s become an orphan child in my opinion. How do we make it easier to deploy it to the floor and report back from the floor? That’s always been a neglected area, that’s why we’re successful with what we’ve done.”
ERP has had a great run, but it’s no longer the dominant force in the IT business that it once was. Much as the initial electrification of this country had a huge impact on daily life of Americans, ERP helped make American businesses more efficient. But ERP systems are stable today, business processes are automated, and businesses take ERP for granted. It’s become a cost center, not a profit center.
Instead, the game has shifted to the digitization of our lives, both business and personal, and that means businesses are competing to have the hottest website or mobile app, replete with big data-driven recommendations and personalization, all running in a super-scalable cloud fashion. In most cases, you can’t get that from an ERP upgrade.


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NBA legend, Shaquille O’Neal is famous for advising young players to save rather than spend lavishly. However, he was not always so financially wise.
4 times NBA champion, Shaquille O’Neal easily become one of the richest ex-NBA players. He has earned about $285 million in his career. But now, 10 years after his retirement, his net worth is estimated at more than $400 million.
But no one could have predicted it if they considered his insane expenses during his rookie season. After being drafted by the Orlando Magic in 1992, Shaq received $1 million to endorse a card business.
Shaq goes shopping like a kid in the candy store. Considering Shaq’s childhood, when he didn’t even have the money to buy a pair of basketball shoes that fit his size, it’s normal to behave like that.
Shaq wasted no time spending almost half that amount in a single day. He ended up buying three cars that day. One for him and another for his dad, for $150,000 each. Then a $100,000 car for his mother.
“Who is F**k?” : Shaquille O’Neal surprised to read her bank statement
What many people don’t realize is that players don’t get all the money they signed for. First of all, they have to pay a decent tax. Then their agents will cut that amount as well.
Shaq has no say on FICA (the US federal payroll tax) ahead of his rookie season. While looking at his balance sheet, he said “Who is F**k?”. Learning from his rookie mistakes, Shaq saved a lot and made a lot of money through investments, endorsements, and performances.
But over time, his expenses can take the public by surprise. Like one time Shaq gave his son (Shareef) 2 cars for his 16th birthday, one of which was a Lamborgini.
But Shaq prioritized education more than people expected. He also holds a PhD in organizational and leadership studies with a major in human resource development from Barry University. And he wants all of his kids to have at least 2 degrees before they can earn one.
https://thesportsrush.com/nba-news-who-the-fk-is-fica-when-rookie-shaquille-oneal-found-out-about-the-federal-payroll-tax-the-hard-way-through-his-bank-managers-office/ “Who’s F**k?”: When rookie Shaquille O’Neal found out about federal payroll taxes the hard way – through his banker’s office


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Altima Hybrid among top 10 green cars
Dubai, August 16, 2008
The Nissan Altima Hybrid, which offers the efficiency and fuel economy of a hybrid drivetrain has been named one of the Top 10 Green Cars by the editors of Kelley Blue Book's kbb.com.
In compiling the list, the kbb.com editors considered factors such as comfort, performance, utility and technology, along with fuel economy and price.
"The Nissan Altima Hybrid combines impressive fuel economy with much of the same sporty character that has helped establish the Altima's reputation as one of the most fun-to-drive mid-size sedans," said Jack R Nerad, executive editorial director and executive market analyst of Kelley Blue Book's kbb.com.
"The advanced technology isn't confined to the engine bay, either, as the Altima Hybrid offers a slew of electronic comforts and digital conveniences like push-button start, navigation with traffic info and a rearview camera."
"The Altima Sedan has been a success with consumers offering high levels of performance, quality, and fuel efficiency," said Al Castignetti, vice president and general manager, Nissan Division, Nissan North America.
"For Altima Hybrid, we took all the best qualities from the popular Altima Sedan, added a hybrid powertrain, and not only achieved improved fuel economy but added another successful product to the Nissan line-up." - TradeArabia News Service
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Solar in Rawalpindi, In view of the considerable reduction in electricity bills, the government has decided to transition all governmentRead more
The dengue cases were continuously increasing, and Rawalpindi has listed 74 more dengue cases during the last 24 hours, theRead more
A large number of Dengue mosquito larvae has been detected across the Rawalpindi district during indoor and outdoor surveillance, whichRead more
Easypaisa, Pakistan’s premier digital payments platform, signed an agreement with the Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (RCCI) to enableRead more
The Punjab government has closed down Covid-19 wards in three government-run hospitals in the city, leaving the Rawalpindi Institute ofRead more
Sara EhsanRead more
Ammara KhanRead more
ISLAMABAD: Smoke emitting from small factories and commercial units in several areas of Rawalpindi has not only been causing environmental pollution, but also contributing to fatal diseases, reveals a survey report.
The Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA) has allowed several small factories and commercial units to operate in many areas without keeping a check on their standard operation procedures, as smoke emitting from these units have badly polluted the environment.
Staff Report ISD: The annual Science and Art Expo 2015 was held at Roots Ivy International School, Rawalpindi. The expo was officially inaugurated by Dr. Zia ul Islam, Director Pakistan Environmental Protection Agency (PAK-EPA). Students of the school exhibited their talent and ingenuity at the occasion in different Science and Art related categories. Ms. Khadija Mushtaq, CEO Roots Ivy International Schools complimented the participants; parent community in particular.
She emanated that
Microsoft Devices provides access to an amazing Lumia experience to a much wider range of people
Rawalpindi, September 23, 2014: Microsoft Devices Group today announced the availability of Lumia 530 in Rawalpindi, the most affordable Lumia smartphone to date, delivering an uncompromised experience with the latest Microsoft and Lumia innovations.
Available in both single SIM 3G and dual SIM 3G variants, Lumia 530 will expand the reach of Windows Phone as the first Lumia introduced


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May 4, 2017
EXCERPT: Consumer credit card debt is on the upswing in the U.S., placing not only lenders at increased risk, but the economy as a whole.
Credit card debt is on the rise, with associated delinquencies tagging along with it.
For years following the financial crisis in 2008, lenders have been bombarded with an onslaught of heightened regulations and have created more stringent lending criteria that has made it much more challenging for consumers to get approved for home loans. When securing home financing, sub-prime or near-subprime borrowers, in particular, have been faced with major hurdles.
Yet, as explained in a recent Wall Street Journal article, other types of consumer credit - such as student loans, auto loans, and credit card loans - have been steadily growing over the recent past, and that has led to a spike in retail spending and an inevitable growth of the economy.
Along with this jump in extension of credit to consumers also comes an uptick in credit card defaults, which an increasing number of lenders have had to deal with as of late, and these defaults are expected to grow even more into the foreseeable future. As consumers continue to rack up their debt, banks and lenders are increasingly facing heightened risk as the U.S. economy simultaneously experiences a heavier burden.
Debt Mounts Among American Consumers
According to the Federal Reserve, debt balances have reached the $1 trillion mark for each of credit cards, auto loans, and student loans. In particular, credit card debt grew 6.2 percent from the same time last year and has reached its highest level since early 2009.
While an increase in consumer borrowing is usually a positive sign of a healthy economy, such a hefty balance of debt can be seen as somewhat concerning. Though still quite low, missed payments on consumer loans are increasing in the credit-card market, and personal and subprime auto-loan delinquencies are also increasing for the most part.
Consumer Debt Weighing on Major Banks
Major banks may have cut down on corporate lending, but their credit card lending has easily taken one of the top spots for loan growth. Recently, J.P. Morgan Chase announced that its credit card loans increased 7.1 percent by the end of the first quarter in 2016. Citigroup's credit card loans saw a 15 percent jump from the same time last year thanks to its recent acquisition of the Costco credit card portfolio from American Express.
Earnings reports of major banks confirm problems with loans.
After a $470 million write-down on its student loan book, J.P. Morgan Chase placed its student loan portfolio for sale. The bank also experienced a 5 percent climb in expenses related to its auto loans as a result of higher depreciation in auto leases.
As per the Federal Reserve, $3.6 trillion of non-housing debt is currently being carried by consumers.
Wells Fargo has also been toughening its standards on auto loans following a slowdown in its overall loan growth. With a slowdown in auto sales, the bank has been experiencing an increase in net charge-offs.
Credit card defaults are a common theme among all three major lenders and are anticipated to continue their upward trend. Although consumers are more serious about saving, it remains to be seen whether they are concerned enough about their debt to cut back on spending.
It's been years since bank investors have placed their focus on consumer credit risks, but perhaps now is the time to sit up and take notice. Right now a slowdown in consumer spending could point to an imminent risk to lenders, as well as the economy as a whole.
Tapping Into the Expertise of Loan Sale Advisors to Purchase Healthy Loan Portfolios
Considering the real possibility of a weakening economy on the horizon, banks and lenders should start focusing on high-quality, short-term portfolios. The quickest and easiest way to put these quality loans on the books is by purchasing a sound loan portfolio. At Garnet Capital, we have a team of experienced loan sale advisors who have had their hand at bringing together the right partners to ensure all sales and acquisitions are profitable while minimizing risk exposure.
Sign up for our newsletter today to stay abreast on financial ongoings and how they affect the bottom line of banks and lenders.


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The Star Tours attraction at Disney's theme parks is getting another update, with rides to tie into . The news comes just days after ahead of the movie's release on Dec. 20. On the same date, new destinations will be added to Star Tours, including to the ocean moon Kef Bir.
The Starspeeder 1000, piloted by C-3PO and R2-D2, takes guests to a surprise destination each time. To celebrate the latest Star Wars trilogy, Disney Parks has partnered with Lucasfilm and Industrial Light & Magic to add flights to Jakku, Crait and Batuu over the past few years.
The new Rise of Skywalker destinations are being added to Star Tours at Disneyland in Anaheim, California; Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida; Disneyland Paris, France; and Tokyo Disney Resort, Japan.
The additions to Star Tours, a ride located in Tomorrowland (or Discoveryland at Disneyland Paris), comes despite Disney opening up its Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge areas in both Disneyland and Walt Disney World. The newest resort area launched May 31 in Disneyland, and at Disney World in August. So far, you can visit Batuu to build your own droid and lightsaber, and experience all the Star Wars-themed food and drink the land has to offer, including the infamous blue milk.
The Star Wars-specific land currently features just one ride: the interactive Millennium Falcon: Smuggler's Run, which is a similar concept to Star Tours, except that you get to help steer or repair the ship, or even fire the missiles.
The second attraction slated for, 2019 -- Walt Disney's birthday -- in Walt Disney World, Florida, and then not till Jan. 17, 2020, in Disneyland, California.
Disney is calling Rise of the Resistance a multiplatform experience, and "the most immersive and advanced attraction ever imagined in a Disney Park."
"When it opens, Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance will blur the lines between fantasy and reality and will put guests in the middle of a climactic battle between the First Order and the Resistance," the Disney Parks Blog said in July.
The ride will see guests recruited to join General Leia Organa and Rey at a secret base, before they're captured by a First Order Star Destroyer. Guests will then escape with the help of the Resistance, protect the secret base and fight off Kylo Ren.


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Peers warned trade in food and agricultural produce between Britain and the EU would suffer more if policy differences between the two lead to tariffs and more checks.
The committee called for a thorough assessment of potential trade barriers as regulations and support for producers and growers are developed.
It also urged the Government to fix problems affecting groupage transport, stating issues surrounding health certificates and paperwork had caused suppliers to shy away from sending mixed consignments.
Lord Teverson – sub-committee chair – highlighted the difficult challenges, particularly for small businesses, caused by the increases in paperwork and preparation required for food and agricultural exports to the EU.
“Higher haulage rates and issues with groupage and parcel deliveries are putting further pressure on food and agricultural produce exporters,” added Teverson.
“Despite the improvements we hope to see, there are now new barriers to UK-EU relations and new administrative costs and burdens will be structural and long-term.”
The committee called for systems to become fully electronic, streamlined and integrated quickly to make it easier for businesses to submit documentation.
“We are a ’third country’ now as far as the EU is concerned. The UK and EU have largely achieved their objectives and now have to accept the consequences – both the good and the inconvenient,” Teverson continued.
“This could ultimately reduce the profitability of Great Britain’s food and agricultural produce sectors.”
Meanwhile, salmon, beef, pork, cheese and animal feed were the top five UK food chain items exported to the EU taking the biggest percentage hit in January, with overall exports down 75.5% on January 2020.
The impact of COVID-19 and stockpiling by UK businesses in the EU ahead of the end of the transition period were contributing factors in the losses, the Food and Drink Federation stated.
But much of the damage was likely due to new non-tariff barriers faced by UK exporters and the collapse of groupage movements, which had shut out many small and medium-sized exporters, the trade body claimed.


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Micromax announced a new series of smartphones designed to popularize video calling among India. The new Micromax Vdeo 1 and Vdeo 2 smartphones has pre-loaded Google Duo app and support for 4G VoLTE. The Vdeo 1 is priced at Rs. 4,440 and Vdeo 2 is priced at Rs. 4,990. These 4G smartphones will come bundled with Reliance Jio SIMs.
ALSO READ: Micromax Canvas Spark 4G Launched in India
Micromax Vdeo smartphones
Both Micromax Vdeo 1 and Vdeo 2 smartphones are powered by 1.3GHz quad-core processor coupled with 1GB of RAM. The Vdeo 1 houses a 4-inch WVGA display, while the Vdeo 2 has a 4.5-inch FWVGA display. Both smartphones have 4G VoLTE capable dual-SIM card slots and will run on Android 6.0 Marshmallow out of the box.
Both smartphones have a 5MP camera on the rear and a 2MP camera on the front. Both smartphones also have 8GB internal storage, with support for storage expansion through MicroSD card. The Micromax Vdeo 1 has a 1600mAh battery and the Vdeo 2 has a 1800mAh battery.
Commenting on the smartphones launch, Shubhajit Sen, Chief Marketing Officer, Micromax Informatics said, “2016 has seen a marked slowdown in the long term trend of Feature Phones users shifting to smartphones. Two barriers we identified were perceived high cost of data and a lack of a differentiated mass-use case. With the launch of the Vdeo range we have focused on these issues. We believe Video calling that is as simple as making a voice call, in a stable environment, will be a strong use case especially in smaller towns. This feature, coupled with free internet connectivity with the pre-bundled Reliance Jio SIM is a compelling proposition that will accelerate the switch from feature phones to smartphones.”


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Intel showed off what its Shooting Star quadcopters can do when they played the role of backup dancers to Lady Gaga on Super Bowl on Sunday.
By Ian Paul
PCWorldFeb 6, 2017 8:50 am PST
It wasn’t live, but Intel’s 300 drones in the sky behind Lady Gaga at the start of the Super Bowl Halftime Show were impressive nonetheless. What started out as a sea of floating lights came together by the end of the bit to form an American flag. It was impressive, cool, and it was all thanks to the ever-growing interest in drones.
The Super Bowl was the third public outing in the U.S. for Intel’s Shooting Star quadcopter drones following several weeks of aerial shows at Disney World in Florida. It was also a record-breaking moment for Intel’s drones, which were allowed to fly up to 700 feet for the first time after receiving special permission from the Federal Aviation Authority.
Each drone weighs a little less than a volleyball and is equipped with LED lights that Intel says can create more than 4 billion color combinations in the sky.
To make the drones actually operate and move the way they need to, Intel said it developed special algorithms to automate the animation process. But during show time, the drones can be operated by a single pilot from one PC.
Why this matters: Although Intel says the drones were designed specifically for entertainment purposes, there may also be more practical applications for these drones in the future. Intel’s drone chief, Anil Nanduri, told Wired that he sees a future where these drones could be used for purposes such as search and rescue. Just plug in a search pattern and off they go.
Intel wasn’t the only company talking drones on Sunday. Amazon also aired a Super Bowl commercial showing off drone-based Prime Air deliveries. Prime Air is not yet available in the U.S., but it is currently being tested in the UK.
Although Intel’s Shooting Star drones are able to show up for special events, the devices aren’t yet available for sale; the quadcopters still have to get a stamp of approval from the Federal Communications Commission.


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Tianma ranks top LTPS panel supplier in China, says Digitimes Research
Jen-Chieh Yang, DIGITIMES Research, Taipei
Tainma Microelectronics has come out as the top vendor of LTPS TFT LCD panel maker in China thanks to its early deployment in the segment and the ramp-up of related production capacity, according to Digitimes Research.
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Honda Shares New Pictures of Prologue Electric SUV, Coming in 2024
After Honda teased its electric Prologue SUV in May of this year, the automaker has officially begun sharing more details about the vehicle, including a tentative launch date.
Honda unveiled its Prologue electric SUV at the Honda Design Studio in Los Angeles this week, set to launch in North America in 2024 according to a press release from the automaker shared on Thursday.
The electric vehicle (EV) is heavily inspired by what Honda calls a “Neo-Rugged” exterior and interior, featuring 21-inch wheels and a wheelbase of 121.8 inches — making it about 8 inches longer and 5 inches wider than the newest Honda CR-V.
“We are not going to wait until 2024 to attract EV buyers, because we see a natural progression for a CR-V customer to Prologue with its slightly larger size, larger interior and capable handling,” said Honda’s vice president of automobile planning and strategy at American Honda, Gary Robinson. “We will support that transition now by putting smart strategies in place with the CR-V hybrid, that will enable our customers to transition to an EV.”
The interior of the Prologue SUV has charcoal and light gray seat upholstery and trim, along with a tech-rich cabin including an 11-inch driver display panel and an 11.3-inch audio/connectivity display. The car is being co-developed with GM.
Honda says it plans to offer CR-V customers a shorter two-year lease term in ZEV states this fall. This plan will allow these customers to “easily transition” to the Prologue” when the EV launches in 2024 it says.
A Honda executive also said last year that the automaker is targeting 70,000 sales in 2024. Additionally, Honda and LG are set to partner on an EV battery plant in the U.S. for $4.4 billion.


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Headline News is brought to you by Glenbrook Partners. Glenbrook provides payments strategy consulting and education services to payments professionals worldwide!
ON THE WEB
- Visa Europe Partners for Bitcoin Micropayments Trial - Coindesk - "Bitcoin micropayments startup SatoshiPay is developing a new proof-of-concept with Visa Europe's innovation unit. Work on the project was first disclosed earlier this year, when Visa Europe Collab said that it was exploring bitcoin micropayments for connected devices. At the time, the company indicated it was looking at use cases like smart light bulbs that could pay for their own electricity."
- Australian Banks Looking To Collectively Boycott Apple Pay - Ubergizmodo - "It turns out that the four big banks in Australia – NAB, Commonwealth, ANZ, and Westpac have asked Australia’s competition regulator permission to join forces and collectively boycott Apple Pay, at least until they can collectively negotiate some kind of deal."
- A “Classic” Economic Principle Among Blockchains - Medium - "Ethereum is currently a fiscal battle ground over ethical concerns that has produced more than one field to do battle in, and believe it or not that’s probably ok in the long run. If there’s anything the cryptocurrency space has produced in abundance, it’s a variety of blockchains."
- NY&Co rings up in-store traffic with wide-scale beacon deployment - Mobile Commerce Daily - "Following a successful beta test, New York & Company said today that it is rolling out shopkick-enabled beacons to more than 170 of its locations, enabling consumers to earn loyalty points for walking into a store and for visiting a fitting room."
- Reach Millions of Users by Accepting Venmo as a Way to Pay - Braintree blog - "Earlier this year we announced that exclusively through the Braintree SDK, a limited number of Venmo users would get to experience the familiar delight and ease of paying merchants with Venmo within their favorite apps. Now, along with our friends at Venmo, we are thrilled to announce that all Venmo users will be able to make purchases beginning tomorrow."
- Cybercrime Overtakes Traditional Crime in UK - Krebs on Security - "In a notable sign of the times, cybercrime has now surpassed all other forms of crime in the United Kingdom, the nation’s National Crime Agency (NCA) warned in a new report. It remains unclear how closely the rest of the world tracks the U.K.’s experience, but the report reminds readers that the problem is likely far worse than the numbers suggest, noting that cybercrime is vastly under-reported by victims."
ON THE WIRES
- ThreatMetrix Cybercrime Report Reveals a 50% Increase in Global Attacks, With 1 in 10 New Account Applications Now Rejected - "The report revealed that the rise in stolen identity credentials available in the market led to an increased level of attacks on new accounts, a 250 percent increase year-over-year. Fraudsters are using identity credentials obtained from the dark web to run substantial automated bot attacks that have increased 50 percent since last quarter. The Network detected 450 million such threats, thwarting millions of attacks on numerous individual companies."
GLENBROOK PAYMENTS EDUCATION EVENTS
Our next Glenbrook payments education events are coming this fall - in Palo Alto, CA and New York City - we hope to see you there!
- Payments Boot Camp - Palo Alto - October 11-12
- Insight Workshop - Palo Alto - Data in Payments - October 13
Bring your colleagues along! Group discounts are available. For more information or to learn about our private workshops conducted at your location, contact Glenbrook's Russ Jones.
UPDATES FROM GLENBROOK
- We're hiring! Passionate about payments? Love solving tough client problems? If that describes you, come join us! Click here to learn more!
- Join our mailing list for updates about Glenbrook events. Follow us on Twitter: @paymentsnews and @paymentsviews
Note: Headline News is compiled by Glenbrook Partners. Throughout the day, as we spot interesting developments, this post is updated. Do you have news to share? Tell us here: firstname.lastname@example.org!


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Some of the exchanges also have elaborate and slow identity-verification processes, and certain states do not permit users to invest on them yet.The good news is that excitement about. is a digital currency that relies on cryptography to secure the creation of.
Confused about bitcoin? 10 things you need to know
MY LADIES - Dinar Detectives | Latest Dinar RecapsPrices of these and other digital currencies have dipped by 20% or more.
The coverage spans every aspect of the Digital Currency and Blockchain Ecosystem, including its impact on the greater FinTech.A U.S. jury indicted a Russian man on Wednesday as the operator of a digital currency exchange he. often with the help of crypto-currency.Bitcoin prices likely to continue wild ride. often comes crashing. when the price of the digital currency plunged 19% — its steepest drop in more.
About - BitBaySebastian Dinges, 33, the director of operations for Cheeky, a company that makes mealtime products, started his first job after college in 2007.Digital currencies like Dash are opening a new world of business opportunities and is important to be.IN THE FIELD The lives of bitcoin miners digging for digital gold in Inner Mongolia.McKeever said bitcoin and other digital currencies already are often being.
Bitcoin Basics: Everything You Need to Know About theMy Account Support Log Out Get the news Log In or Subscribe to skip Sign in with Facebook Sign in with Google Sign in FAQ.Unsurprisingly, they have more luck with their younger peers. Mr. Guarco, the Duke graduate, has persuaded a few friends to take the plunge.
Bitcoin Hits $2,000: 3 Reasons for the Surge In ValueDigital currency (digital money or electronic money or electronic currency). it is often very difficult to deposit it into bank accounts, especially in rural areas.NYTimes.com no longer supports Internet Explorer 9 or earlier.
How To Create Your Own Cryptocurrency - Fast Company
US indicts Alexander Vinnik, alleged operator of BTC-e
A US jury indicted a Russian man on Wednesday as the operator of a digital currency. often with the help of crypto-currency.To be sure, self-directed IRAs can be more costly than traditional brokerage IRAs, but investors do get the chance to invest directly in bitcoin.Financial Government Solutions Legal Reuters News Agency. jargon and often.
Of the Moment The lifestyle newsletter from the Styles, Travel and Food sections, offering the latest trends to news you can use.
Dash Official Website | Dash Crypto Currency — Dash
Banks significantly lack in that front with their systems often 40 or.But investors can establish something called a self-directed IRA at firms such as Pensco, The Entrust Group, or the Millennium Trust Company and invest in bitcoins directly through those accounts.The easiest place to buy, use, and accept bitcoin, ethereum, and litecoin.
Bitcoin Ups and Downs Don’t Deter Digital Miners in ThailandMore from Zacks ETF News And Commentary. and often do, change throughout.
In the world and industry of cryptocurrencies, the big names often dominate the news,.


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November 9, 2010
Are you tempted every year or two to get a new cell phone? Do your kids demand it? Like many consumer products, electronics are meant to be obsolete quickly — “designed for the dump,” says a new 8-minute animated movie hosted by Annie Leonard, creator of the hit video The Story of Stuff.
As the holiday season approaches, The Story of Electronics looks at the environmental costs of throwaway gadgets and urges consumers to demand less toxic, more easily recyclable and longer lasting products. Its website offers tips on safer products and responsible recyclers.
“If we can figure out how to make an iPhone remember where you parked your car, then we can figure out how to make electronics that aren’t filled with toxic chemicals and en route to the trash can just months after we buy them,” says Leonard, director of The Story of Stuff Project.
“Most of our electronics are laden with problematic substances like lead, mercury, PVC, and brominated flame retardants so when they break it’s not just a bummer, it’s a global toxic issue,” says Ted Smith, chairman of the Electronics TakeBack Coalition, which co-produced the movie. ”
The Story of Electronics is the fourth in a series that The Story of Stuff Project has released in the past year with Free Range Studios and more than a dozen environmental groups. Its previous ones—The Story of Cap & Trade (December 2009), The Story of Bottled Water (March 2010) and The Story of Cosmetics (July 2010)— have collectively been viewed more than 2.2 million times since their releases.


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5 reasons your startup needs an insurance broker
3 July 2017
Startups continue to come to the fore this year, bringing revolutionary ideas and solutions that have never been tried or seen before. It’s an exciting time, especially for those people founding and managing startups, as the possibilities seem endless! But the unique nature of startups offers some challenges – and one of those…
Why insurance is important for Gen Y entrepreneurs who are reshaping Australian business through revolutionary startups
7 March 2017
Gen Y entrepreneurs are reshaping Australian business through revolutionary startups Entrepreneurs aged 25 to 34 have been leading the way in establishing revolutionary startups in Australia. Australian Bureau of Statistics figures amplify Gen Y’s eagerness to reshape business, showing that new company registrations from this age group have been booming since 2014….


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It’s no secret that voice search is on the rise, with tech giants pouring time and money into devices that come with digital assistants. Amazon’s commitment to sell digital assistants and voice search was shown on Black Friday, when it put huge discounts on products like the Echo, Echo Dot and Echo Plus, all of which feature Alexa.
Amazon’s strategy paid off in a big way, with customers purchasing millions of Alexa-enabled devices over the Black Friday weekend. Alexa devices were the top sellers across Amazon, with the Echo Dot coming in as Amazon’s best-seller in all categories across the globe. To encourage sales and growth, the Echo Dot was put on sale for $30, which was the cheapest price it has ever been.
According to Jeff Bezos in an Amazon Q3 report, tens of millions of customers have now purchased Alexa devices, which begins to give us an idea of how many people are currently using voice search via digital assistants. Amazon’s emphasis on digital assistants helped the company account for 55% of online transactions across the Top 50 retailers on Black Friday, which saw over $5 billion in spending from consumers. Amazon also announced a record Cyber Monday, which saw shoppers spend $6.59 billion online.
With Amazon’s success, it makes sense that a tech focus on digital assistants and voice search will only increase. Some of the biggest tech companies in the world offer smart speakers as well as mobile devices with digital assistants, including Apple Siri and Google Assistant. And the success of Alexa on the Black Friday shopping weekend reinforces that voice search is the future.
Today, voice recognition software has expanded beyond simple searches. Amazon is famous for commercials featuring consumers telling the Echo to play whatever music they want to hear (through a Bluetooth system), adding to the functionality of these types. Lately, companies such as Walmart and Google have partnered on voice-based shopping, with many analysts believing that voice will be a major driver of future retail. Some estimates in that area peg Alexa as being a $10 billion business by 2020.
The growth of voice-based shopping was certainly not lost on Amazon when it decided to lower the prices on Echo devices. The company understands that the more Echo devices there are in homes, the more they will be used for shopping, as studies show that Amazon Echo owners spend more on Amazon after purchasing the device.
As each year passes, voice search and devices that utilize digital assistants continue to rise. In addition to the obvious relevance for these tech giants, this change in consumer behavior has far-reaching business impacts, from retailers to SEO companies to e-commerce websites. In the marketing world, this means that old SEO methods will lose effectiveness, forcing companies to tailor their web presence to the rise of voice technology.
I wrote about some of the ways that brands and agencies can adapt their web presence for voice technology, including getting into the heads of target customers. Past strategy was centered on certain keywords and variations of those keywords, but optimizing for voice search involves thinking about how people actually talk. Positioning yourself for voice search means more directly answering customer questions, giving searchers the exact result they are looking for. While this may, in some ways, make keyword research even tougher, it can also lead to more opportunity because the customers that find you will be even more highly targeted and likely to find your content relevant.
With each quarter bringing continued growth, optimizing for voice search is no longer optional, but it is a must for all business. At our company, we're leading the research on optimization for voice search, testing different strategies to allow the Alexas of the world to find our clients. For instance, we found that digital assistants tend to pick businesses with well-optimized listings and good reviews in most location-based queries.
In an ever-changing field, we know that what worked yesterday won’t necessarily work tomorrow, and it’s important to continually refine strategies that meet current demands.


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by TINTSWALO BALOYI
JOHANNESBURG – DIGITAL technologies are improving convenience and driving financial inclusion in the continent.
They are enabling people to transact, bank, invest and expand their financial knowledge, using a mobile device.
Traditionally, retailers have been slower to adopt new payment technologies than e-commerce retailers and small businesses.
However, the advent of COVID-19 and its associated lockdowns accelerated the pace of change.
Retailers are rolling out contactless payments, delivery apps and online e-commerce offerings at an unprecedented speed.
The GMSA State of the Industry Report on Mobile Money for 2022, established that there were 184 million active mobile money accounts in Africa in 2021.
These completed more than 36 billion transactions, valued at more than US$$700 billion.
Finance technology companies such as MFS Africa have been solving cross-border payments issues on the continent, thereby enhancing the capacity of African businesses and people to send and receive funds across geographical obstacles.
“Our guiding principle is that African consumers and businesses should be able to pay for anything, both offline and online,” said Rashi Gupta, Chief Operating Officer at MFS Africa.
“We’ve always known that in order to really eliminate borders, we needed to connect mobile money to the rest of the world; introducing card capabilities into our network seems to be the most effective means to do it.”
Gupta believes MFS Africa’s recent acquisition of GTP is assisting the company reaching this goal.
The Google Wallet was recently launched in South Africa, to create a safer, simpler and more helpful experience when transacting.
Alistair Mokoena, Google SA Country Director, said access to technology is vital for economic prosperity as millions of people use their mobile devices daily for transactions.
“At Google, we have learned that great things happen when technology works for everyone” Mokoena said.
“By including everyone – a dynamic ecosystem of manufacturers, developers and users – we want to make digital wallets accessible to everyone through fast, secure access to their everyday essentials.”
The digital payments sector has seen massive growth, but as this area starts to mature and saturate on the continent, there is an emergence of other digital technologies to help people save, invest and take out loans.
So says Tony Mallam, Managing Director micro-investment platform, upnup.
“Micro-savings and investment products, which allow consumers to put away a small amount of money, are perfectly suited to the South African context where savings rates are low, and the cost of living means that not everyone can put away set amounts of money each month, ” he said.
A 2021 report by Momentum and the University of South Africa established that many South Africans were “financially unwell” because of poor financial decisions or a lack of financial literacy.
“Few people have access to a financial advisor or the resources to learn more about how to manage their finances, but technology has the power to bridge this gap, says Glenn Gillis, CEO of Sea Monster.
– CAJ News


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Wine exports to China under threat amid dumping claims
On RN Breakfast with Fran Kelly
First it was barley, then it was beef.
Now Australia's lucrative wine exports to China look set to become the latest victim of deteriorating bilateral ties.
Yesterday Beijing announced it would investigate claims that the Australian wine industry was receiving government subsidies and selling into the Chinese market at below cost.
If proven, hefty import duties could follow that would put Australia's lucrative $1.2 billion annual wine export trade at risk.
Guest: Mitchell Taylor, managing director, Taylor Wines
Producer: Sheryle Bagwell


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This week was full of spy shots, teaser images, supercar reveals, even first driving impressions. With all of this came some some pretty awesome photos, and once again we've compiled the best of this week's photos in one place for your viewing pleasure.
Hennessey revived the Venom 1000 package based on the new 2013 SRT Viper, and we spied the 2014 Chevrolet Corvette C7. More teaser images of the Ferrari F70's engine leaked onto the Internet, and we drove the new 2014 Aston Martin Vanquish. We also received a look at how the Circuit Of The Americas is coming along.
So before you go and spend your weekend offline, be sure to take a look at the best photos of the week, and be sure to check back next week for more. You can even bookmark our Photos Of The Week page, where we'll continue adding to our collection each week.
First up is this spy shot of the highly anticipated 2014 Chevrolet Corvette C7.
2014 Chevrolet Corvette (C7) shot shots
Next we have a leaked image of what we believe to be the engine bay of the Ferrari F70 supercar.
Leaked image from a Ferrari magazine, showing what's believed to be the F70's engine bay
We don't know about you, but we simply can't get enough of the 2014 Aston Martin Vanquish.
2014 Aston Martin Vanquish
What do you get if you need a 2013 SRT Viper with more than 1,000 horsepower? The new Hennessey Venom 1000.
Hennessey’s Venom 1000 upgrade for the SRT Viper delivers massive 1,120 horsepower
We are happy to see the Circuit Of The Americas is coming along nicely.
Circuit of the Americas construction progress, 10/1/2012. Images via Friends of F1 Austin Texas.


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Crickets are on the menu at this Italian farm that looks at the future.
The Italian Cricket Farm of Scaleghe, in the region of Piedmont, raises crickets as pet food. But the goal is to put on people’s tables. Indeed, it’s the insects on the menu idea.
Inside the Italian Cricket Farm
The specific breed is the Acheta domesticus cricket. This species is a protein food source, an example of insects on the menu. Also, the farm sells flour moths, kaimani, locusts, and honey worms. Each and every insect eats only organic food, approved and selected with care by professionals. Plus, there are no viruses nor bacteria.
Nutritional and organic
Some of the products of the farm are the foods for pets. In fact, they are hypoallergenic, hence ideal for dogs and cats. Also, insects on the menu for animals are ideal for fish, especially the flour. And reptiles and amphibians also benefit from this diet. Since they are delicate animals that need organic and virus-free food, insects are ideal.
Crickets have 69% of protein value. They are also rich in calcium, iron, and vitamin B12. Thanks to these values, the Cricket Farms recommends using the 10% of cricket flour. It’s great for both baking and nutritional shakes. Indeed, a true miracle of food.
Ivan Albano is the CEO of the Cricket Farm, “we don’t want to substitute meat with insects. But we want a sustainable future with proteins that can come from insects. Simply, because otherwise there won’t be enough protein foods to feed everyone,” Albano said.
Do they taste good? You only have to try to find out. Perhaps the crickets will pair well with the Italian Craft Cocktail.
Insects on the menu, the situation in Italy
Also called “Novel food,” insects have made a step forward to be on the menu. In fact, the European Food Authority has recently the use of insects for nutrition. The European organization deemed these sources as “safe” and the next move is up to the Commission, which will leave regulations up to single countries. The specific insect is the mealworm larva, also used to produce flour.
But are Italians ready?
According to the Italian association Coldiretti, they aren’t. In particular, 54% of Italians believe insects are foreign to the country’s culinary tradition. To convince Italians, there are projects like the Italian Cricket Farm.
And the laboratory at the Istituto agrario Cantoni, a school in the province of Verona. Here, professor Claudia Tondolo is teaching innovative techniques to her students, who have grown to love crickets. While the lab’s research stays in the lab and these insects don’t go on the menu, the research can be useful to future farms.
”With a tiny bit of cricket flour paired with the corn flour,” said Tondolo, “we baked a focaccia full of protein. With a bit of oil and salt, it’s as nutritious as a grilled steak. But the cricket flour is also great for cakes and cookies.” Indeed, nutritional and delicious.
The benefits of having insects on the menu
While Italians might not be ready for insects on the menu, their benefits are indubitable. In fact, insects aren’t just rich in protein. They are also eco-friendly. Breeding them doesn’t waste as much water as other animals, like pigs or cows. And they can be the answer to food shortage.
The FAO estimates that by 2050, the global food demand will grow by 70%. So, it is necessary to find a sustainable and nutritious alternative. One that doesn’t affect the environment and that can actually feed people. Hence, insects on the menu.
And you, are curious or disgusted?


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By Wyatt Goolsby
ANDREWS/STANTON - Going wet or staying dry. The tension for many is building over allowing businesses to sell beer and wine in Andrews. Now, that debate is about to get even bigger. A group supporting selling alcohol in Andrews is expanding, and taking their petitions to Gaines and Martin counties.
On Friday, NewsWest 9 learned more on how the group is pushing to get the issue on the November ballot across the region.
"We are trying to make our surrounding communities safer, and that's what our focus is now... Not necessarily trying to get alcohol in the county, this is trying to make the community safer," Amanda Villalobos, President of Promote Andrews, said Friday.
The question of whether to allow beer and wine sales in Andrews is about to move to two neighboring counties. This week, the group promote Andrews, who have been gathering signatures for a petition, announced a new political action committee and new website, called "Wet is Best."
"What is going on is personal...We are passionate about this...it's about safety," Villalobos explained. "Because now that we have done all the research that we have done, all the statistics show that dry counties are not safer than wet counties. And that is the biggest part of why we have decided to expand our efforts."
Starting in April, the group will focus on Gaines and Martin counties along with Andrews. The goal is to allow businesses to sell beer and wine, and restaurants to offer mix beverages. In Andrews this weekend, the group will continue to go door to door trying to get the nearly 1,000 signatures they need to get it on the ballot. For residents NewsWest 9 spoke with in Martin County Friday, they seem hesitant on the idea of becoming a wet county.
"Oh, I think it would be better just to keep it that way [as a dry county]," longtime Stanton resident Ellis Witt said. "Might not have as much trouble."
"It doesn't bother me, but I know it bothers other people because it's always been a dry county," Stanton resident Delia Zamudio explained. "I personally don't drink, but I think the way it is right now is fine. We haven't had so many accidents or inconvenience with the beer situation because I guess we don't have any beer here."
It will likely be a tough road ahead for the Promote Andrews/Wet is Best group. Debate has been brought to a vote in several counties before, and so far, the three have stayed dry.


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It’s a claim made by organisers at every motor show – “our best ever”. But the Australian International Motor Show that opened to the public at Sydney’s Darling Harbour late yesterday may just be this county’s best.
Now recognised as an ‘international show’ on the global motor show calendar, this joint venture effort between organisers FCAI and VACC has a higher standard of presentation and more launches and reveals than ever before seen in Australia.
“The model for this show (in alternating between Melbourne and Sydney) has been vindicated by the number of launches and the high level of commitment by manufacturers,” Show Director Russ Tyrie told TMR.
“In total, there are 44 new ‘reveals’ at this motor show; this compares with the twenty to twenty-five we would previously see at Melbourne or Sydney,” he said.
Ford’s stand, in particular, is stunning. This is its international stand; in the same style that sees duty at Detroit, Frankfurt and other international motor shows.
While some show goers may be disappointed to find that there are no “dreamtime” one-off stunners from our local manufactures – like Holden’s Coupe60 or its Efijy – the high standard of display throughout, and the sheer number of concepts, new models and very special vehicles on display, gives an international sense of quality and glamour to this year’s event.
With nearly 450 Ford Australia engineers involved in its design and development, and based on a new global compact ‘truck’ platform, the Ranger signifies Ford Australia’s key role in the development of rear-wheel-drive products under Ford’s global ‘One Ford’ strategy.
Bigger, wider, with a muscular front and clam-shell bonnet, its reveal was a global first.
Honda’s stand with its interactive ‘Dream Wall’ with facial recognition and emotion-sensing technology capable of reacting to facial expressions to trigger a series of animations, is simply astonishing.
The CR-Z sports hybrid is due in Honda showrooms mid-2011.
Mercedes has jaws dropping with its 358kW Pearl Orange C 63 AMG and the menacing ‘designo magno’ Night Black gull-wing SLS AMG.
Toyota, always a strong presence, has its exquisitely designed FT-86 G Sports Concept on display. Beautifully proportioned, simply gorgeous, the FT-86 is tentatively scheduled for an Australian launch mid-2012.
And Lexus has the world-first appearance of its CT 200h F Sport (with 1.8 litre VVT-i four-cylinder petrol engine and rear-mounted electric-drive motor/generator), the 'new' IS 350, and the remarkable LFA.
With just eight coming to Australia, and all now sold (at a price tag over $700,000), the motor show may be one of the few chances to savour the sculptured lines of this V10-powered supercar.
Mazda ‘dropped’ its new BT-50 “active lifestyle vehicle” onto its stand. While sharing the platform of the Ranger, the distinctively-styled BT-50 defines a new direction for the sports ute.
The standout on Volkswagen’s stand is its new Amarok – due for launch in the first quarter of 2011. In a country that loves its utes and crew-cabs, this car is certain to shake up the sector.
Arriving off the back of rampaging sales success in Europe, the cheeky but practical lines of the Yeti are sure to win hearts for the brand here.
Nissan has no less than five new models on display. Complementing the all-electric Leaf, new Micra and Patrol, it also took the covers off its ‘grunt-filled’ Topline 550 Nm V6 Diesel Navara and Pathfinder.
And Volvo, clearly set for bigger things, revealed its inspired and aggressively-priced new S60 range. Starting at just $51,950 for the potent T5 (with 177kW on tap), its appealing crisply modern lines are sure to generate renewed interest in the brand.
Suzuki, with the unveiling of its Kizashi Turbo concept, is using the Motor Show to gauge customer reaction to a hi-po Kizashi.
“We will closely monitor customer feedback on the concept car and welcome input at facebook.com/suzukiaustralia,” Suzuki Australian General Manager Tony Devers said.
There are a whole lot more to add into the mix: Range Rover’s stunning Evoque, Holden’s edgy Barina Spark and Walkinshaw WP Series II Supercar (fitted with an Edelbrock E Force supercharger), Audi’s quite beautiful A1, Subaru’s powered-up Forester S-Edition, and the surprising new Kia Optima and Cerato Hatch; these among a raft of other new models and concepts.
So, yes, a greatly improved Sydney event. Of course, whether the public agrees and responds with increased visitor numbers will be the test.
But, on the face of it, the 2010 Australian International Motor Show is perhaps Australia’s “best ever” motor show.


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After months of rumors about who will follow the iPhone SE, there is no space left: IPhone 9 is at hand. Iminent, of course, to the point that we saw a few hours ago a case of this model on Best Buy. The question that many (all, perhaps?) Have wondered about is the ease and usefulness of introducing a new iPhone in the midst of a global epidemic.
IPhone 9 in the midst of a never-before-seen health and economic crisis
We live in special times. History is being built as the hours pass by days of hard imprisonment and personal tragedy. And in between there are the tech companies. Apple has taken several steps to continue its mission to protect employees and suppliers, adapting to the right conditions such as liquids.
From the closure of the body shops, to the telephone, it passes additional hygiene and safety measures in important positions. Without forgetting the website and app dedicated to COVID-19 discovery.
With the new product launch in China, stock time and delivery have improved dramatically. However, all over the world things are very different. With Europe bound and North America following its wake, its two major markets are seeing their economic activity reduced significantly.
Translation: the recession will change into a crisis there many companies will close and unemployment will increase. According to Deutsche Bank, reported by the Financial Times:
Economists at Deutsche Bank estimate that the eurozone is on track to suffer a 11.4% contract deficit in GDP in the second quarter of 2020.
Germany will lose 12.2%, France 14.8%, United Kingdom 15.1%, Italy 16.3% and Spain Spain 20.1%, in the second quarter of 2020. And that the epidemic is spreading all over the world. So the question arises as to whether it would be easier to introduce the iPhone 9 within this context.
The iPhone 9 and the world will never stop
Despite all our suffering, those who suffer the most, the world continues to circulate. In the case of Apple, its users continue to use apps and services, as well needs correction for your products
Clearly, Apple users still want to partner with the company in some way. Launch the iPhone in the middle of this panorama It can be seen as a bad or mad decision. But the company is already facing a similar situation with the 2008 financial crisis and knows how to get ahead.
If we trust the rumors, The iPhone 9 will be based on the iPhone 8 but with the essential elements of the present. The A13 Bionic processor, combined with a better camera and more upgrades would make it an ideal candidate for the "low cost" iPhone (depending on Apple's price). Which means, it's not an entirely new iPhone. The offer is to get used to the price it contains.
Some manufacturers have decided to follow in their plans despite the global epidemic. Once the iPhone 9 is ready, this shouldn't be a problem for the company
For the electronic products of a particular building, it makes sense that you want to go to the store to try it out. But with movement and trade ban measures, this is impossible. However, since it is a repository with known appearance, this should not be a major obstacle when it comes to marketing.
Some competitors, however, have not released their footing from the accelerator. Samsung unveiled its Galaxy S20 last month, amid the first expansion of the virus. Just five days ago, Huawei introduced its P40 Pro range. And some smaller manufacturers like Realme continue to produce models.
Of course, the introduction of the iPhone 9 at coronavirus times is entirely possible. In addition, we can imagine bringing a certain spirit of normalcy. Large companies, if they can, should follow in their plans as much as possible.


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Digital freight matching platform Uber Freight has partnered with autonomous truck tech vendor Waymo Via in a deal they say will create a hybrid network where autonomous trucks handle “middle mile” highway routes and human drivers take over for first- and final-mile portions.
The partners say that having autonomous trucks tackle long-haul driving legs will ease the burden of soaring freight demand on human drivers, who can shift into short-haul jobs that enhance the occupation’s quality of life. Handoffs between the autonomous and live drivers will occur at “transfer hubs,” leveraging Uber Freight's “Powerloop” universal trailer pool program to enable fast transfers between AV trucks and human drivers.
San Francisco-based Uber Freight said deal will help companies cope with high fuel costs, a shortage of drivers, and rapidly increasing demand by unlocking capacity for shippers, increasing fuel efficiency, and helping carriers scale up their businesses.
Another implication of the move is that carriers that purchase trucks equipped with the Waymo Driver in the future will be able to opt-in to Uber Freight’s marketplace to deploy their autonomous assets on the Uber Freight network. Carriers will also be able to use applications to streamline the onboarding, load booking and execution, trailer transfers, and payment tasks within the hybrid freight ecosystem, Uber Freight said.
“Uber Freight’s network of shippers, carriers, and marketplace technology is a great match for the Waymo Driver,” Charlie Jatt, head of commercialization for Trucking, Waymo Via, said in a release. “Through this partnership, we can empower carriers to fully utilize their investments in the Waymo Via solution through Uber Freight, and create a great experience for shippers, while keeping our focus on developing the core Driver technology.”
The deal came the same day that autonomous trucking vendor Gatik unveiled an agreement with paper manufacturer Georgia-Pacific and Koch Industries transportation arm KBX. In that deal, Gatik’s class 6 autonomous box trucks will haul loads in the Dallas-Fort Worth region, delivering goods 24 hours a day across a network of 34 Sam's Club retail locations.
Starting in July, that approach will replace traditional, class 8 tractor trailers with 26-foot, autonomous box trucks, creating “a more responsive and flexible logistics network, increasing the cadence of delivery runs and the flow of goods, while reducing logistics costs and enabling near real-time inventory fulfillment,” the company said.
"KBX is focused on providing services that increase capacity and reduce costs in a safe, efficient way for the customers we serve," Paul Snider, president of Green Bay Wisconsin-based KBX, said in a release. "Our partnership with Gatik will enable us to redefine the traditional class 8 short-haul market and deliver Georgia-Pacific goods with even greater speed and efficiency. We’re excited to see these operations form the foundation of KBX’s Autonomous Vehicle Program, as we prepare for wider-scale adoption of autonomous trucks to meet customer demand."
The future of #freight will rely on autonomous and human-driven trucks deployed across an optimized network. Our new partnership with @Waymo Via helps unlock a road map for the thoughtful and safe implementation of autonomous trucks on roads across the US https://t.co/NpMX3kpN2F pic.twitter.com/bHhdRBW3Qk— Uber Freight (@UberFreight) June 7, 2022
We’re bringing together the power of the Waymo Driver with the scale of @UberFreight's vast network and marketplace technology to partner for the long-haul. Discover what this means for Waymo Via and the future of transportation logistics: https://t.co/dStSFzNIIM pic.twitter.com/V77yhu8i5o— Waymo (@Waymo) June 7, 2022
Our newest partnership with @GeorgiaPacific and KBX represents a major shift taking place in supply chain logistics. Gatik's class 6 autonomous fleet will deliver goods to a vast network of @SamsClubs locations in Dallas, Texas. pic.twitter.com/tMBgXg5cQp— Gatik (@Gatik_AI) June 7, 2022


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HIGHER food import tariffs aimed at protecting local producers â€” and new export taxes on primary produce aimed at boosting local manufacture â€” are on the cards, judging by a confidential Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) document.
The document, which has been circulated to government and other stakeholders, says the DTI will fight for the agricultural sector to compete on a level playing field with the worldâ€™s biggest agricultural producers.
Though import tariffs might lead to higher food prices in the short term, the report says, â€œconsumers will generally benefit from sustainable production and lower prices in the long termâ€.
South African farmers have complained bitterly that they are forced to compete without any trade policy assistance against foreign governments that heavily subsidise their agriculture sectors.
The document states that SA will no longer â€œagree to perpetuate the historic injusticeâ€ of previous international trade regimes. It says in Uruguay â€œSA was obliged to undertake developed-country tariff cutsâ€, and in Doha it was forced to make â€œthe deepest and widest tariff cuts compared to any other World Trade Organisation member.
The document notes SA has cut tariffs significantly since 1994, making it â€œopenâ€ compared with other similar_sized economies. This has, however, proven â€œinsufficient as an instrument to restructure the industrial economyâ€.
This echoes agriculture minister Tina Joemat_Pettersson, who recently said that â€œjob creation and poverty eradicationâ€ were the main drivers of agricultural policy.
The report says agriculture has a â€œstrong indirect role in the economyâ€, with linkages to other sectors contributing about 14% to GDP and accounting for about 8% of formal employment. It also contributes to the livelihoods of 3m_4m households, carries responsibility for food security and is the basis of economic activity in rural areas.
Opposition DA shadow agriculture spokesman Lourie Bosman says raising import tariffs is â€œlong overdue because our government has been slow to adapt to circumstancesâ€. For example, SAâ€™s local wheat production has been reduced by a third because government offered tariff protection of just 2%, though it was entitled to go as high as 72%, he says.
However, the proposal to tax exports of primary agricultural produce to encourage local manufacture and value_added exports has drawn criticism. Bosman supports the idea of developing local manufacturing industries, but says taxes on exports might make local producers less competitive internationally.
â€œThere is a danger that export restrictions will depress or even collapse prices of primary crops like maize, by creating an artificial surplus, and depress returns to the farmer at the very point they need to be encouraged to produce more food.â€
Agricultural Business Chamber CEO John Purchase, too, is concerned by the recommendation to tax exports. But he welcomes the shift in thinking and would like to see the issues being debated thoroughly so the â€œlong overdueâ€ policy can be implemented quickly.