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July 22, 2021
Retailers may be facing even more supply chain delays as a nationwide shortage of HGV drivers looks set to make existing problems even worse.
This is the stark warning from skills development specialist Enginuity, which believes the supply chain to manufacturers is on the brink of collapse this summer and is calling for urgent intervention by the Government before it goes into summer recess.
Blamed for the latest crisis are factors such as a Brexit-induced exodus of European drivers, Covid testing delays at British and European ports, self-isolation, summer holidays and the impact on driver training of the pandemic.
Research indicates that there are currently almost 100,000 vacancies for HGV Class 1 and 2 and delivery drivers.
BMA chief executive Tom Reynolds says it is unwelcome but not unexpected. He told kbbreview: “HGV driver shortages are an unwelcome development, but sadly are not a surprise. Hauliers’ trade bodies have been warning for some time about a real risk of the supply chains grinding to a halt, and BMA members are already experiencing some problems. Right away the Government should reconsider adding foreign drivers to the Shortage Occupations list.
“Bathroom manufacturers are facing many of the same supply-side challenges as in other parts of the economy. A period of exceptionally high demand has coincided with limited availability of certain raw materials, problems in global shipping and volatility in costs. While there has undoubtedly been some supply disruption, bathroom manufacturers have been working flat out to prevent more widespread product shortages.”
On behalf of specialist KBB retailers, KBSA national chair Richard Hibbert added: “The market is experiencing delays on the delivery of goods and materials, which is making it challenging for everyone in the supply chain to plan ahead. KBB retailers have consumers ready to move ahead with projects and are having to juggle to meet start dates and keep projects on track.
“If the situation continues, we are also likely to experience issues with getting spares in good time, as it will not be viable for these to be delivered ad-hoc when required, as they are now. The KBSA is working with members to help them remain flexible and agile, as it is likely to be some time before these issues are resolved.”
Ann Watson, Enginuity Group chief executive has called for urgent action from the Government to avert a potential catastrophe.
She said: “We are on the verge of a crisis which threatens the viability of manufacturing across the country – we need some urgent intervention from Government before the House rises for summer recess. Manufacturing is of strategic importance to the UK economy and never more so as firms seek to assert themselves globally post-Brexit. Supply chains have already seen major disruption due to parts and materials shortages caused by Covid.”
Watson added: “Unless our supply chains function effectively, firms risk their own financial security – something that will have major knock-on effects for employment and skills.”
Road Haulage Association (RHA) chief executive Richard Burnett said that this longstanding problem has been exacerbated by the upturn in the economy.
“Increasing demand across supply chains and the reopening of non-essential retail outlets and parts of the hospitality sector is making the situation even worse,” he said. “The long-term ineffectiveness of apprenticeships for lorry drivers and the general hostility from authorities and Government is also unhelpful for recruiting and retaining drivers. We need Government to act and address the driver shortage for the industry and the drivers.” •
For more analysis and industry reaction, click here
• Listen to the latest episode of the award-winning kbbreview Podcast by clicking below…
Have something to say? Email the editor


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(Reuters) -Microsoft Corp on Tuesday rolled out an image-creation feature for search engine Bing and browser Edge that will use the technology behind OpenAI’s DALL-E to create pictures based on text prompts.
The tool, named ‘Bing Image Creator’, will be available to users of the latest AI-powered version of Bing and Edge preview.
Bing Image Creator will be integrated into Bing chat, rolling out initially in Creative mode starting Tuesday for users on desktop and mobile, Microsoft said in a blog post.
Companies large and small are locked in a fierce competition to deploy software that could reshape how people work after a frenzy started with last year’s launch of ChatGPT, the OpenAI-owned chatbot sensation that showed the potential of so-called large language models.
At the center are Microsoft and Alphabet Inc’s Google, touting AI features for their most popular products from spreadsheet software Excel to Gmail.
Redmond, Washington-based Microsoft has sought to outpace peers through investments in OpenAI, which last week released GPT-4 that performs a range of tasks from creating a real website through a hand-drawn mock up to helping individuals calculate their taxes.
The software giant also launched new features – Visual Stories and Knowledge Cards 2.0 – for Bing users. The features will use AI-generated graphics and more interactive elements such as charts and timelines to provide information and key facts at a glance.
(Reporting by Eva Mathews in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D’Souza and Shinjini Ganguli)

domain: news


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Chinese mobile payment market, already the largest around the world, keeps growing at a decent pace, according to a recent report by Chinese internet market researcher Analasys International.
The total transaction volume of the sector in China, as per the report, amounted to over RMB 37.7 trillion (US$ 6 trillion) in the fourth quarter of last year, up 27.91% quarter-over-quarter.
Alibaba’s Alipay and Tencent’s Tenpay, remain the top two players with a market share of 54.26% and 38.15% respectively. The duopoly’s market position hasn’t changed much since last year-end when a then report from Analysys International pegged the two players’ market share at 54.1% and 37.02% respectively.
The fourth quarter, thanks to Alibaba’s Singles’ Day sale, is usually a strong quarter for Alibaba and its financial affiliate Ant Financial. Additionally, some of the new functions with social elements Alipay added – such as Red Envelop – also contributed to the mobile wallet’s growth.
Tencent also kept its momentum, due in part to WeChat Pay’s growing popularity among small- and mid-sized offline vendors.
Alipay and WeChat Pay dominated the mobile payment sector with a combined 92.41% market share, leaving a very narrowed space for the much smaller players to maneuver.
The being said, the smaller players still managed to carve out a slight piece of the cake for themselves, including Lianlian Pay, UMF, and Yeepay, as they changed courses to dip their toes into vertical transaction scenes, avoiding competing with Alipay and WeChat Pay directly. The verticals include logistics, real estate, automobile sales, travel booking, etc.
China is the world’s largest market for third-party mobile payment by transaction volume. Its $6 trillion total transaction volume is almost 59 times more than that in the US, which is $100 billion in 2017, according to business intelligence portal Statista.


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The first electronic linked-bingo games are being rolled out in the north Twin Cities metro Thursday evening, almost a year after the state legalized them to help pay for a Vikings stadium.
The first games are at Jimmy's Food and Drink in Vadnais Heights, the Running Aces harness park outside Forest Lake, and Blainebrook Bowl in Blaine.
Jon Latcham, owner of 3 Diamond Corporation, a games distributor, predicts electronic linked bingo will boost charitable gambling where electronic pulltabs have been disappointing.
"This was the one game that convinced me to even become involved in electronics," Latcham said. "And prior to that time, I was probably the biggest opponent of it."
Boosters said that electronic bingo, which will link games in bars and restaurants around the state, will eventually offer jackpots up to $75,000 and draw more gamblers than smaller pulltab prizes.
"We want to look at these three sites, learn from the mistakes that maybe some of the customers might make, or something that we didn't teach as well as we should have," Latcham said. "You know, use that, rather than just have a mass rollout."
Sales taxes on the electronic bingo and pulltab games have been pledged to pay for a $350 million state contribution to the new, billion dollar stadium project.


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I am now working on Tecnon OrbiChem’s Bio-Materials newsletter before next week’s American Cleaning Institute’s (ACI) annual meeting in Orlando so unfortunately blog posting will be a bit slow. I have recently interviewed somebody from GlycoSurf about rhamnolipids and Penford about the industrial starch market, which brought in several fascinating information that hopefully will be coming out on the blog.
In the meantime, let me post this news from my hometown about the ban on single-use expanded polystyrene (EPS) foam products in New York City starting July 1, 2015. The blog first posted about this ban proposal in June 2013 and my colleague at Tecnon OrbiChem wrote the ongoing challenges facing the styrene market.
According to the city’s De Blasio administration, food service establishments, stores and manufacturers will not be allowed to possess, sell or offer these EPS foam products including foamed cups, plates, trays, clamshell containers and polystyrene loose fill packaging such as packing peanuts by July 1. And here I just received a package containing these foamed peanuts (I actually find it annoying to clean up these foams that keep on clinging to my fingers…)
According to the city’s Department of Sanitation, these EPS foam is unrecyclable and that there is no market for post-consumer EPS collected in a curbside metal, glass, and plastic recycling program – hence the decision to ban them. NYC claims to be the largest city in the US to ban EPS foam.
The law allows businesses a six-month grace period from July 1 before fines can be imposed. For the first year of the ban, businesses will be given a warning in lieu of a fine. Non-profits and small businesses with less than $500,000 in revenue per year may apply for hardship exemptions from the Department of Small Business Services (SBS) if they can prove that the purchase of alternative products not composed of EPS would create undue financial hardships. SBS will begin accepting applications for waivers in March 2015.
The NYC Department of Education will begin replacing foam trays with compostable plates on May 1, and all school meals will be served on these compostable plates starting September. Summer meals will be served on compostable plates. I do wonder if these compostable plates include bioplastics. I need to contact my sources at NYC DOE…
According to city estimates, the Department of Sanitation collected 28,500 tons of EPS in fiscal year 2014, and approximately 90% is from single-use food service products like cups, trays and containers. Over 830,000 foam lunch trays are used every day in NYC schools alone (now that will be a boon for bioplastic alternatives).
EPS is already banned in other cities such as Washington D.C., Minneapolis, San Francisco, Oakland, Portland, Albany and Seattle.
According to the American Chemistry Council, the ban will miss an opportunity for the city to recycle foam packaging instead as most alternative foodservice packaging and foam protective packaging will continue to be sent to landfills instead of being recycled. The association noted that food-contaminated paper or cardboard and paper take-out containers with heavy wax or plastic coatings are not accepted for recycling in the city. These alternative foodservice packaging materials should be held to the same standard as foam packaging, according to the ACC. The organization also noted that alternatives to foam foodservice packaging typically are between two and five times more expensive.
|Image from Crain’s New York Business|


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2022 was a difficult year for markets with the MSCI World index returning -18%. Declining markets offer opportunities for stockpickers like ourselves to hunt for bargains that may have become unjustly caught up in the broader sell-off. The market hit its low in October and the latter part of the year saw value opportunities start to emerge in a number of different areas.
We’ve identified four particular areas below that are of interest for value investors.This is by no means an exhaustive list – there is still value to be found in other regions and sectors too – but these areas are the ones that are piquing our interest currently.
1. UK: retailers and housebuilders
2022 saw UK mid-caps, and in particular retailers and housebuilders, sell off aggressively. The economic sensitivity of these businesses meant short-term recessionary fears dominated investor decision-making, which in turn meant share prices in these industries have fallen a long way.
For the homebuilders, there are likely to be challenges to short-term profitability. However, most companies in the sector have very strong balance sheets after years of high returns, which should help them weather a more difficult period.
Looking across the whole UK market (not just at mid-caps), it seems there is an additional discount for buying UK companies in most industries compared to their European or US counterparts.
2. Europe: banks and German industrials
While Europe as a whole is looking attractively valued, there are even greater opportunities within the market. One example is European banks which are on average trading on multiples well below their 20-year average, so it’s easy to see why we’ve gone fishing there.
Banks around the world are seeing significant profit growth after a decade in the doldrums. Today they are growing earnings and, as a result of real balance sheet strength, are returning capital to shareholders. They also remain out of favour with most investors. That’s the kind of combination we like and we continue to hold a number of the most attractive banks.
Elsewhere in Europe, we have seen a number of German industrial businesses come onto our screen in the second half of the year. With Germany’s reliance on Russian energy, plus wider economic uncertainty, lower forecast order numbers, and supply chain squeezes, its industrial sector has seen larger share price falls than elsewhere.
Nonetheless, we can still find businesses with structurally growing end markets, that have delivered high single-digit revenue growth every year for a decade, have well-capitalised balance sheets, yet still trade at a wide discount to our estimates of fair value.
3. Emerging markets: ‘China, China, China’
Regulatory crackdowns, political worries, a property market crash, extended zero-COVID policy and weakening GDP data led many investors fleeing mainland companies in China. This caused the Chinese stock market to fall far from the heights reached in 2019/2020. Far enough to mean that our valuation screen has been throwing up an abundance of Chinese businesses across a broad range of industries for our emerging markets value portfolio managers to examine.
Outside of China, financials are also screening as attractively valued, notably in Kenya and Argentina.
4. Global: China, US and Japanese cyclicals, US technology
China has also been a key area of research focus for our global value portfolio managers.
Elsewhere, a number of US and Japanese cyclicals are beginning to flash on our screen as looking very cheap, especially in the memory and semiconductor space.
We have done a significant amount of work on the memory chip sub-sector, looking at a number of the major global players. This comes after a fall in shares prices owing to a sudden fall in memory demand and the change in cost structure of the various memory mediums.
Memory businesses are very cyclical but are likely to grow over time, make decent returns on capital and have reasonable balance sheets.
Finally, an area that many investors will know has struggled consistently over the past year is large cap US technology. Rising interest rates, alongside some idiosyncratic factors, have seen the share prices of a number of these former growth darlings fall considerably this year. Some of their share prices are beginning to approach realms which have begun to pique the team’s interest and as such we are keeping a close eye on them as we move further into 2023.


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A trio of punks threatened a man with a blade on a Bay 14th Street alley on July 14 and stole $800 plus his cellphone and driver’s license before fleeing on foot, police said.
The assault and theft occurred between Benson and Bath avenues around 11 pm, and began when one of the perps approached the man from behind, put the blade to his neck, and shoved him into the alley, police reported. The other two baddies then appeared and stole the goods from the man’s pockets before kicking him to the ground and fleeing on foot in an unknown direction, according to the report. The man was uninjured, police said.
A no-goodnik broke into a Benson Avenue school and stole thousands worth of electronics and a jumper cable on July 9.
The theft occurred at the school at Bay 35th Street around 3:30 pm, police said, adding that the perp broke into the school by damaging the padlock on the security gate.
Couldn’t work it out
A baddie stole a man’s wallet from an 86th Street gym on July 11 — and then returned it with $200, a credit card, and MetroCard missing.
The theft occurred around 1:30 pm at the fitness center near 20th Avenue, according to the report.
A thief stole a 2008 white Ford from its 16th Avenue parking spot on July 12.
The perp stole the car from its spot between 65th and 66th streets at around 7 pm, according to the report.
Police arrested a man who allegedly broke into a Bath Avenue store through the basement on July 12 and stole $1,500.
The theft occurred at the store at Bay Parkway around 2:50 pm, the report states.
Back to the drawing board
A good-for-nothing stole a backpack with $5,000 inside — along with a hammer and dirt mask — from a 17th Avenue sidewalk on July 13.
The owner of the backpack left it on the sidewalk between Benson Avenue and Rutherford Place briefly around 9:10 am and returned to find it missing, police said.
Better the wallet than the baby
A thief stole a woman’s wallet — with $102 plus a credit and MetroCard inside — from an 86th Street store on July 13.
The theft occurred at the store at Bay 19th Street at 12:30 pm, when the woman left the wallet unattended on top of a stroller.
— Julianne McShane


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MV Agusta has just recieved a capital injection of around 40 million Euros and announced the appointment of new CEO Timur Sardarov – as it begins to make plans for the future, after years of financial turmoil and uncertainty.
The latest injection means that MV has received a total of around 50 million Euros of investment from its shareholders over the past 12 months – as it looks to strengthen its assets and improve its commercial success. More specifically, MV Agusta has come up with a bit of plan, focusing on several key areas for its future. It’s going to continue concentrating on producing premium high quality products – but it’s real aim is to further develop its sales network, and increase the level and quality of its service.
To do that, it’s adopting a new strategy which aims to reduce the current number of MV dealers, instead allowing its best dealers to increase their territories – as well as promoting new mono brand stores. In that vein, MV Agusta Moscow is set to open this month, while MV Agusta London should be open by the middle of 2019, along with a further six mono-brand stores over the next 12 months.
That’s not all – MV also plans to improve the service to its existing network and new clients through the introduction of a new integrated system, directly linking MV Agusta, its network and supply chain to help reduce the lead time of spare parts and accessories as well as the delivery of new product to market.
Of course, MV is also going to be building plenty more bikes. In fact, it’s launching a new range of premium four cylinder machines with 1000cc displacement – which kicks off with the reveal of the all-new Brutale 1000 hyper-naked – which is set to become the fastest and most powerful naked bike ever produced, with a record top speed of 312 kph and an astonishing 212bhp on tap. And along with the new Brutale 1000, MV Agusta will unveil the F4 Claudio, a limited edition machine dedicated to Claudio Castiglioni, the inventor of the F4 Superbike.
Giovanni Castiglioni commented: “In the last 5 years MV Agusta made an important growth throughout the enlargement of its product pipeline ranging from 3 to 4 cylinders and different segments of the market. Now is time to consolidate the efforts and concentrate to increase our service and network bringing to our customers a unique purchase experience, which reflects the values of our brand. On the financial side, I am proud of the incredible work we have done in the last 24 months that enabled us to reduce our net debt position by over 60% allowing MV Agusta to be a solid and stable company also thanks to the large amount of capital brought in by our shareholding company. These important achievements are the results of a great teamwork that Timur and myself did in this intensive period. Now that MV Agusta is strong I can finally concentrate on the industrial side, which is what I love, having the clear objective of bringing to the market the most advanced products in the industry. I personally took to our Board the idea of Timur being the future CEO of MV Agusta and I am very happy he accepted this role: his vision and his focus on innovation will bring the group to the next level”.
Timur Sardarov, MV Agusta’s new CEO added: “I joined MV Agusta almost two years ago and work closely with Giovanni and our team in order to bring to the company not only vision and strategy, but also the financial resources needed, allowing MV Agusta to become more modern and dynamic. We can describe our company in several ways, but I still believe Claudio Castiglioni sentence is just perfect: ‘There are many beautiful motorcycles in the world but MV Agusta is something else.’ I am honoured by the trust I received from our Board and our employees and will fully dedicate myself to the company with the objective of bringing MV Agusta to a higher level where it belongs. This company is a true family of incredibly skilled people, passionate and loyal customers, a patrimony of the 2 wheels industry and of Italy.”
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Our press releases
Press release: February 2010
Talk to the Press recognised as one of UK’s smartest businesses with a win at the Smarta 100 awards.
Click to read the Smarta win press release in full.
Press release: November 2009
Natasha wins at the 2009 Startsups Awards.
Click to read the Start-ups-win press release in full.
Press release: July 2008.
The real reasons Brits sell their real life stories to the national press – top ten motivations revealed in a new survey.
Click to read the Reasons Brits sell stories press release in full.
Press release: April 2008.
New website helps Brits top up their income by selling their story.
Click to read the New website press release in full.


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LG launched the flagship LG G5 at its event in the MWC 2016
last month. The LG G5 was launched with amazing features and Dual camera. There
were rumors that LG is working a new lite variant of the LG G5 called as LG G5
Lite and may be launched soon. Now the device has been certified by TENAA in
China and we can now expect that it will be launched soon by the company.
The new device comes with model number LG-H848 on
TENAA and has lite specifications as compared to the main flagship.
The TENAA listing reveals the smartphone will feature:
5.3-inch TFT display with 2560 × 1440 pixel
processor that is expected to be the Snapdragon 652 Soc.
Adreno 510 GPU.
Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow
3GB of RAM.
inbuilt storage capacity with 64GB of expandable storage capacity.
8-megapixel + secondary 16-megapixel rear dual
8-megapixel front facing camera.
Connectivity options: 4G LTE, 3G, USB,
Bluetooth and other standard connectivity options.
Dimensions :149.4 × 73.9 × 7.3 mm, weights 156 grams.


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LAMAR — This town understands as well as any the idea of priming a pump to get it flowing.
And so city leaders are priming their economic pump with $50,000 in incentives for people willing to spend money in town.
Anyone who buys a car this month from the eight local dealers receives a certificate for $100 worth of gas. And anyone who spends $300 within the city limits this month for items other than groceries, liquor and pharmaceuticals gets a $30 gift certificate that’s good at most merchants.
“It’s our own way of stimulating the economy,” said Roger Stagner, 50, a member of the City Council and co-owner of Stagner Inc. automobile dealership. “It’s good for anyone who shops in Lamar, even if you’re from Kansas. It’s a way of thanking people for shopping in Lamar, for supporting the local businesses.”
The incentive plan is the brainchild of City Administrator Ron Stock, who has run a dozen towns in Colorado. He has been at Lamar’s helm since September 2007.
“We’ve had several stores close their doors on Main Street, and we’ve lost just about every manufacturing job,” he said. “We’re still an agricultural economy, but if it’s not raining or snowing, these farmers are holding on to every nickel like it’s their last one.”
Lamar, located in southeastern Colorado a few miles from the Kansas border, is fiscally conservative.
Under Stock’s direction, the city has built up its financial reserves to about $5 million — nearly a third of its annual budget of $17 million. State law requires cities to keep 3 percent of their budget in reserve.
So the City Council agreed to Stock’s proposal to spend $50,000 on gift certificates.
Stock explained the rough math: “If people buy 50 cars for an average of $3,000 each, that’s $150,000 in sales and only $5,000 worth of gas certificates. We’ll have $45,000 left, or enough for 1,500 gift certificates. If we pass out 1,500 gift certificates, that translates into $450,000 in sales. That totals about $650,000 in sales, including the cashed-in certificates.”
Stock estimates the incentives could return about $17,000 in sales taxes.
Bankers like the plan
Even the bankers are going along with the plan.
“I think it’s good,” said Jim Van Arsdale, senior vice president at Valley National Bank. “The (incentive) money grows about seven times, they say, and it has to be spent in Lamar.
“It looks like they’re trying to do what we elected them for.”
About 2,500 over-the-road trucks travel through town on U.S. 287, also Lamar’s Main Street. But the city saw two large manufacturing plants close recently, eliminating about 250 well-paying jobs. One plant was Neoplan, which made buses, including those used on Denver’s 16th Street Mall. The other was C.F. Meyers, which built specialized trailers.
Some new jobs coming in
The city’s coal-fired electricity-generating plants, which supply power to Lamar and five nearby cities, recently added 15 new jobs. And a new plant that refines raw sunflower oil to food-grade oil just brought in 16 jobs.
“But the strength of our economy has always been agriculture,” Stock said. “The irrigated crops have done well with plenty of water from the mountains. The price of corn has been high because of ethanol, and the price of beef has been good because of Japan.
“But dryland farming has suffered a drought and people aren’t buying calves this year. Some ranchers are selling off their herds because of the lack of moisture in the ground. This recent snow helped, but we need more snowstorms this spring.”
Stagner, who grew up in Lamar, also worries about the drought.
“If we get more moisture, the farmers will plant and not worry that the seed will burn up,” he said. “If we don’t get the farmers out in the field, they don’t buy diesel, tires, machinery parts and new trucks.
“So programs like this incentive help out. If it doesn’t work, we’ll try something else.”
Mike McPhee: 303-954-1409 or firstname.lastname@example.org


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The headset will be available, first in the United States, for $3,500. LOREN ELLIOTT / REUTERS
DECRYPTION – The helmet launched on Monday is considered a new man-machine interface by the American group. If some applications seem very promising, the uses remain to be built.
“Today marks the beginning of a new era for computing.” Like his predecessor Steve Jobs, Tim Cook, Apple’s current CEO, is not known for holding back his side effects during key notes, these ceremonies for the presentation of new products and features of the apple brand. Probably for the first time he has led the group in eleven years, the Apple boss is convinced by the words spoken on Monday evening.
From Cupertino for its traditional annual conference dedicated to developers, the Californian group launched its long-awaited mixed reality headset. To put it simply, the user will be completely immersed in a virtual universe, but cameras placed on the helmet will also allow you to juggle to see what is in front of your eyes. The first launch of a new category since the Apple Watch nine years ago, this product is also the group’s first step into immersive technologies. More than a helmet…


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The days of suit-clad men shouting out orders on the bustling floors of stock exchanges are mostly gone, replaced by windowless rooms full of servers, but the stock market is still a busy place. On the 13 US stock exchanges combined, around 50 million trades happen every day. And yet there’s another digital marketplace out there that processes tens of billions of transactions daily, one whose complexity makes the NASDAQ look like a lemonade stand: online advertising. … [Read more...] about Should Google’s Ad Market Be Regulated Like the Stock Market?
Google my business places
Hoang from FIA said that Vietnam is doing its utmost to improve its legal and institutional framework, simplify administrative procedures, and facilitate investors. Vietnam has also come out with some outstanding incentives, although the existing ones were already better than those of other countries. "These outstanding incentives are built particularly for high-tech, modern projects with more participation of Vietnamese businesses in global value chains," Hoang emphasised. … [Read more...] about VIETNAM’S BUSINESS NEWS HEADLINES SEPTEMBER 7
Google Maps on Thursday introduced three new features available to Indian users: a redesigned, India-inspired Explore tab, a new For You experience, and dining offers that will help users explore areas they’re likely to enjoy, offering suggestions tailored to their tastes.“We’ve heard that Indian Maps users prefer a more assistive and visual browsing experience that is easy to access. To reflect this, we have a redesigned, India-focused Explore tab, the For You feature, and dining Offers. This will help Google Maps users discover a new side to their city, whether looking for things to do around town, getting offers on dining out, or getting recommendations that are personalised to their unique tastes", said Krish Vitaldevara, director, Google Maps. Read Also: YouTube to be available on FireTV as Amazon-Google spat endsThe ‘Explore’ tab has been a one-tap route to getting suggestions on dining, events, and things to do in the area being viewed in Google … [Read more...] about To discover local places, Google Maps brings three new features for Indian users
A spokesman said: “We’ve already removed the reviews in question, issued a formal cease and desist legal letter, and placed a consumer alert on the company’s profile page making consumers aware that this business and its reviews are under investigation.” … [Read more...] about The verdict on Google Reviews: one star
Sticking to his guns, Ronan responded: "I don’t set the rules and laws for what charges should be paid. The UK is an important place to us and we see a lot of digital trends start in the UK - we want to continue to be a huge supporter of the UK and business." … [Read more...] about Google’s VP grilled by GMB’s Adil Ray and Charlotte Hawkins for not paying 20 per cent tax


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O2 has announced the launch of its Wallet application that allows mobile users on any network to send and receive up to £500 between devices and shop online using their bank cards in the latest development in the growing mobile payments space.
The service is available for iOS, Android and BlackBerry users from 8am on Thursday, while a mobile web version will also be available for users on other platforms, such as Windows Phone devices or feature phones, which are currently not supported.
The application allows users to send money either from their bank accounts, or load cash onto the application itself that can be sent to contacts or used to pay for goods, with the maximum transaction set at £500, and daily limit set at £800.
James Le Brocq, managing director for O2 money, unveiled the application in London and said that the firm is confident it will appeal to device owners due to the raft of services the applications offers.
"O2 Wallet will allow users to send and receive money, scan and compare prices and buy products using their mobile devices," he said.
Le Brocq also said that at present the service will be free for the first six months of use, but it may start to levy a charge of 15p per transaction on payments between devices, although he noted that as the Pingit service is entirely free, this may be shelved.
He also revealed that as well as an entry PIN code to the application and a master pass code that's required to confirm a payment or money message, O2 had extensively tested the back-end security of the system powering the service.
"We know security is a hot topic for consumers so beyond the customer facing security the entire stack is secure, and we don't store any card of payment details on the devices," he said.
"We even spent money on getting ethical hackers to crawl over the service, even providing them with some extra information on how it works to try and hack, so we are confident it will be secure from launch."
Le Brocq said Windows Phone was not supported at present due to a lack of internal resources at O2 to develop for the platform, but said it "absolutely intends to" develop for the platform, while dedicated versions of the application will also be developed for use on tablets.
The Wallet application will compete with Barclay's Pingit application, which offers a similar service by letting customers from any bank text money to one another's accounts, as the mobile market continues to grow.
Furthermore, Barclaycard last week unveiled a near-field communication enabled PayTag service that provides a physical piece of sticky material that can be placed on the back of smartphone to enable payments of up to £15.
Cotton seedling freezes to death as Chang'e-4 shuts down for the Moon's 14-day lunar night
Fortnite easily out-earns PUBG, Assassin's Creed Odyssey and Red Dead Redemption 2 in 2018
Meteor showers as a service will be visible for about 100 kilometres in all directions
Saturn's rings only formed in the past 100 million years, suggests analysis of Cassini space probe data
New findings contradict conventional belief that Saturn's rings were formed along with the planet about 4.5 billion years ago


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New update for WhatsApp Beta: what’s new?
WhatsApp Beta just got a new one updatewhich brought the version of the application dedicated to beta testers to issue 18.104.22.168. The update added some cool features to the system, including the ability to create new skin tone combinations for couple emojis. Furthermore, some bugs have been fixed. Let’s find out all the details together.
The update of WhatsApp Beta: the new functions
Finally the new update has arrived and WhatsApp has fixed the missing notification sounds problem. Meanwhile, the development team is continuing to work on new features coming with the next updates. A few weeks ago, it had been revealed through Twitter that WhatsApp was going to support skin tone combinations for the couple emoji.
The feature has been in development for some time and now it is finally arrived. The new emojis have been added and you can see in the image above.
As you can see, users will be able to create different combinations of skins using two different emojis. A new beta update to improve this feature is expected in the future but, at the moment, an official release date is not available.
The update 22.214.171.124 for WhatsApp Beta is currently available to registered users on the Play Store beta channel. If you prefer, you can install manually its APK by downloading it from APK Mirror. Among the other news of WhatsApp we remind you that today Google announced that it will be possible transfer your chats from iPhone to Android even on smartphones Pixel.
This will be possible through smartphones that have the new system Android 12.
More news from WhatsApp
- IPhone to Android chat transfer is now available on all Pixels
- On WhatsApp comes the message evaluation function
- WhatsApp may require payment documents


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The new machine from the Turkish manufacturer picked up a ‘Winner’ award within the Red Dot Design Award 2022 event, and a ‘Product Design’ award in the 2022 staging of the IF Design Award.
With the new awards, HİDROMEK’s total number of international design awards for its machine range has reached 29.
Hidromek design studio manager Hakan Telışık said: “We are happy and proud that our new K4 Series, which was designed in two-and-a-half years with a completely user-oriented design process approach, won two such valuable awards.”
Figures produced by İMDER (The Construction Equipment Distributors & Manufacturers Association of Turkey) show that Hidromek has been the biggest seller of backhoe loaders in Turkey for 11 years. The manufacturer has also been Turkey’s biggest-selling excavator manufacturer for eight years.


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ALAMEDA COUNTY, Calif. (KRON) – Indoor and outdoor retail businesses, including malls, are now allowed to reopen, this after the public health officer issued an order easing restrictions this week.
The order notes the number of COVID-19 hospitalizations has stabilized over the past two weeks.
Normally, long shopping lines are a turn off and they might get old quickly but you’d better get accustomed to them if you head to a mall.
They’re a product of social distancing.
“Been in line for an hour and a half here at the Gucci store. Yeah, just coming out — getting out the house a little bit,” Terrell Temple said.
On Saturday, the San Francisco Premium Outlets in Livermore reopened.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the state’s largest outdoor shopping mall had been closed since March 19th.
Shoppers saying the outdoor option seems more safe compared to indoor malls.
”Little more spaced out — air flowing through,” Temple said.
The mall is implementing health protocols.
Hand sanitizer stations are set-up throughout the property, as is signage listing Centers for Disease Control and Prevention safety guidelines.
The ground and seating areas are marked encouraging shoppers to keep their distance from one another.
Benches are also partially taped off to make sure only one person can take a seat.
“I noticed that some of the cashiers, they were cleaning off the area after paying, and they have sanitizer next door, so it made me pretty safe. I would come back in the near future,” Myra Romero said.
Not all businesses are back open at the mall, including the Nike store.
If they reopen, they’ll do so at their own pace.
When it’s fully up and running, the outlets provide more than 1,400 jobs.
”People are finally happy to be out and they just want to spend some money,” Jordan Delizo said.
The mall says face coverings, sanitizing wipes and temperature testing are available to shoppers if needed.
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Turnaround plans include the closing of about 150 stores
UNION, N.J. — Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. today announced reforms intended to hasten its latest turnaround. The changes — including store closings, job cuts and a revamped merchandising strategy — are aimed at improving its balance sheet and cash flows, the company said.
The chain said same-store sales declined 26% for the three months to August 27, the steepest drop it has reported in years.
Bed Bath & Beyond said it has secured more than $500 million in new financing that would help steady its business heading the year-end holiday season.
“We are embracing a straight-forward, back-to-basics philosophy that focuses on better serving our customers, driving growth, and delivering business returns,” said Sue Gove, a company director who is serving as interim CEO. “We have made significant changes and instituted enablers across our entire enterprise to regain our dominance as a preferred shopping destination for our customers’ favorite brands and exciting products. We command a special presence in the home and baby markets, and we intend to fulfill our opportunity to be the category retailer of choice.”
Key elements of its merchandising shift include the introduction of emerging direct-to-consumer brands and bringing back popular national brands. An earlier turnaround effort, led by ousted former CEO Mark Tritton, featured an attempt to sell more private-label merchandise and an everyday-low-price emphasis that would allow the retailer to wean many shoppers from a reliance on ubiquitous 20%-off coupons.
Three exclusive brands — Haven, Wild Sage and Studio 3B — are being discontinued inventory of others are being significantly reduced.
In its latest turnaround push, Bed Bath & Beyond plans to close about 150 of its “lower producing” stores and reduce about its workforce by about 20%, including cuts in its corporate and supply chain operations.
A “first wave” of store closings should result in the shuttering of 50 or more stores by the end of the company’s fiscal year in February. Bed Bath & Beyond now has about 900 stores.
The company today announced the departure of Chief Operating Officer John Hartmann, said the his role, as well as the chief stores officer role, have been eliminated.
Other changes to its executive leadership team reflect the new strategic priorities, Bed Bath & Beyond said. Mara Sirhal has been appointed to executive vice president and brand president of Bed Bath & Beyond. And Patty Wu has been promoted to executive vice president and brand president of buybuy BABY.
The company said it is “in the earliest phase” of the process of hiring a new CEO.
“While there is much work ahead, our road map is clear and we’re confident that the significant changes we’ve announced today will have a positive impact on our performance'” Gove said on a conference call with investors.


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Jungheinrich AG's first quarter orders rose by 2% from EUR370 million (USD440.7 million) to EUR376 million (USD447.8 million), but net sales dropped 4% from EUR358 million (USD426.4 million) to EUR345 million (USD410.9 million).
Net income, at EUR8.7 million (USD10.4 million) just surpassed last year's EUR8.6 million (USD10.2 million) for the first quarter.
The 2004 results will be affected by plant closures in Leighton Buzzard (UK) and Argentan (France). The company said the transfer of production of IC engine powered forklifts from England to Moosburg, Germany, was proceeding to plan. Battery-powered pedestrian vehicles, which were produced in Argentan, would be transferred back to Norderstedt, Germany. Hand pallet trucks would be obtained from Chinese manufacturer Ningbo Ruyi Joint Stock Co Ltd.


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Yamaha has issued a press release today with an accompanying video that continues its ‘Darkside of Japan’ theme from previous MT model releases. As is the case with most motorcycle promotional material of late, the video gives virtually nothing away save for plenty of money to ad agencies who continue to push out the same schlock.
There’s really not much lacking in Yamaha’s current range for a brand new engine to be put into the mix, so it’s hard to guess what exactly we will see next week. Could it however be an updated FZ1 like we wrote about just a few weeks ago? That would work well in America where the MT series is actually known as the FZ series. Or could it be a production model of Yamaha’s PES2 electric bike? That’s a possibility, given the wording used in Yamaha’s press release talks of ‘dark energy’ – oooh.
In the end, it’s likely to be a derivative of either the current MT-09 or MT-07 which makes sense barbecue as a base to work off, both bikes are brilliant. Yamaha today also ‘officially’ unveiled the Roland Sands Design ‘Faster Wasp’ concept which will soon morph into the production version XSR900.
All will be unveiled next week when EICMA kicks off.


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just the Round-Up - The week in drinks
The week in drinks
The top ten stories published on just-drinks this week:
Treasury Wines Estates (TWE) is to open up its books after receiving an increased AUD3.4bn (US$3.2bn) takeover proposal from two private-equity suitors.
The Coca-Cola Co has gone back on a decision to mix stevia into its Vitaminwater recipe in the US after a social media backlash.
Gruppo Campari has seen its half-year results bolstered by a stronger performance in Q2.
The Coca-Cola Co has pledged to invest a further US$5bn in Africa over the next six years, bringing its total commitment to the continent since 2010 to $17bn.
SABMiller has lined up the chairman of Rio Tinto to become its next chairman.
Diageo is set to appeal a legal ruling in the US against its use of the term 'Explorers' Club' in the Johnnie Walker Explorers' Club brand extension.
Molson Coors has posted a sharp jump in first-half profits as its Europe and the US units boosted margins in the face of slow sales.
Coca-Cola HBC has seen a slower fall in Q2 volumes contribute to a lift in profits in its half-year, although 2014 looks set to be a difficult year for the company.
MillerCoors, the US JV between SABMiller and Molson Coors, has seen a slight rise in first-half sales, but volumes were down as further declines for light lagers were propped up by higher-end brands.
Asahi Group has reported a healthy rise in first-half profits as its beer, spirits and soft drinks businesses all saw a lift in sales.
For a look at the most popular subscriber-only content on just-drinks this week, click here.
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China's Ministry of Commerce hopes to see the country's farm produce exports grow by at least 7 percent a year so that they will be worth US$38 billion by 2010.
Sources with the ministry's foreign trade department said that this "modest" objective would allow China to grow better quality farm produce and raise the sector's competitiveness in the world market.
China raked in US$27.2 billion from farm produce export last year, representing 3.6 percent of China's total exports and 3.2 percent of the world's farm produce trade. The exports account for 9.6 percent of the value added of China's agricultural industry official data revealed.
As the farm produce prices on world markets were much higher than domestic markets over the past two years, China's farm produce exports have been on the rise. Of the 30 staples monitored by the ministry, 20 registered a growth in 2005 according to a report from the foreign trade department.
For instance, the average export price for apples, pears, chickens, gingers, potatoes and carrots were four to five times higher than the domestic price last year. Chinese farmers were said to have raked in 1.89 billion yuan from garlic alone.
China has also set up a special fund to provide export credit insurance for domestic farmers. Last year, the insurance service has assisted the export of farm produce worth US$1.44 billion, twice as much as in 2004.
The report also revealed that more than 25 percent of farm produce exporters who had their credit insured last year engaged in risky poultry trade.
To facilitate China's farm produce export, the ministry also plans to release monthly reports for 14 other products and export guides on six additional regional markets this year including the European Union and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
(Xinhua News Agency June 29, 2006)


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Starbucks ups some prices in China
Saturday 01 January 2011
US coffee chain Starbucks said Friday it plans to increase the price of some drinks in China next year due to soaring commodity prices.
The price of Frappuccinos will be hiked by two yuan (30 cents) from Saturday, Shanghai-based Starbucks spokeswoman Caren Li told AFP. The current price for a small Frappuccino is around 30 yuan (4.50 dollars).
Starbucks, which has 400 stores in China, will however reduce the cost of other products such as vanilla lattes, as well as extra syrup, cream and coffee shots, Li said, without providing further details.
The price adjustments will "reflect increases in commodity prices and provide better value for our customers", she said.
Global raw material costs have skyrocketed in 2010 due to weather-related disasters and strong demand in emerging economies such as China.
Coffee prices have been trading around record highs after heavy rain destroyed coffee bean crops in Central and South America.
In November, US fast-food giant McDonald's raised the price of its hamburgers, fries and chicken nuggets by up to one yuan in response to spikes in meat, egg, and oil prices in China.
Beijing has been battling to rein in soaring food costs, which drove inflation in November to its highest level in more than two years.
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The Micromax series will be released today. After people’s expectations and a series of trailers, the Indian supplier made a comeback in the smartphone market by launching the In In series of smartphones. The new series will be provided with the MediaTek SoC. Micromax has not disclosed the complete specifications of its new smartphone. However, it is believed that the Gurgaon, India-based company may launch at least two new models aimed at competing with Chinese competitors such as Realme and Xiaomi.
Micromax series release time, live broadcast details
Micromax will host the launch of the In series in India today at 12 noon (noon). The conference was broadcast live through the company’s social media channels and YouTube.
India Micromax series price (expected)
Although the exact price details of the phone have not been revealed, Micromax co-founder Rahul Sharma told TechnologyShout in an interview that the price of the In series will be between Rs. 7,000 and Rs. 25,000 of these phones will only be available for purchase through Flipkart and the country’s Micromax website, according to The most recent trailer.
Micromax series specifications (expected)
Micromax plans to launch several new models under the In series. According to Sharma, the co-founder of Micromax, all of these phones will run on Android devices with almost no stock, which will not contain any outdated software or ads. The company also plans to target the In series products to young people in the country by providing some performance-centric features on new models. In addition, the Micromax In series was initially ridiculed as having at least two smartphones-MediaTek Helio G35 and Helio G85 SoC. These phones will also have the “In” logo on the back, and one of the new models will also have an X-shaped gradient design on the back.
Rumors say that the cheap phones in the new series will be equipped with a 6.5-inch HD+ display and include up to 3GB of RAM and 32GB of onboard storage. This model is also said to have dual rear cameras and a 5,000mAh battery. On the other hand, it is said that the premium version supported by the MediaTek Helio G85 SoC has triple rear cameras.
Why are the prices of smartphones in India rising? We discussed it on the weekly technical podcast Orbital, you can subscribe via Apple Podcast, Google Podcast or RSS, download the episode, or click the play button below.


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Apple has released Motion 1.0.1.
Motion is Apple's powerful motion graphic design and production application. The company recommends the new software update for all Motion users.
The update also offers free effects for download, including five filters and one generator.
Motion costs £199 (inclusive), and requires a minimum 867MHz G4 Power Mac, 10GB hard drive space and 512MB.


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More information is not available for iPhone SE 2 at the moment, but in a report from China, it has been claimed that Apple is preparing to launch it at the WWDC Developers Conference this year. It has also been claimed that this updated model of iPhone SE will have new specifications.
According to the report, the A10 processor and 4.2-inch display will be given in it. KGI Security analyst Ming-Chi-Kuo has informed that in this up-to-the-cost affordable model, the features of the iPhone X, iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus will not get wireless charging support and 3D sensing. However, this model can run out of the box on iOS 12.
In a recent report published by QQ, this information has been given that iPhone SE 2 can be introduced by June this year. iPhone SE 2 models will have a 4.2-inch display, 2GB RAM with A10 processor. It will be loaded into two variants of 32GB and 128GB and the fingerprint sensor will remain intact on the Home button.
At the moment, it will be interesting to see how Apple increases the display of 0.2 inches in the new iPhone SE. 9to5Mac’s report also says that if the company also reduces the beverage in the old model for the new iPhone, then it will be hard work and it is possible that there will be no value for this effort. Neither this time, whether or not this iPhone will launch, nothing can be said about this at the moment.


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US: Willamette Valley income hit by inventory contraints
Inventory constraints have weighed on Willamette Valley Vineyards in its second quarter and first half results.
The company reported yesterday (14 August) that net income for the three and six months period was US$265,177 and $499,440, respectively, compared to net income of $259,206 and $616,500, in the comparable prior year periods.
Revenues increased 8.5% and net income before taxes increased 2.3% for the three-month period to the end of June, as compared to the prior year period. For the six months, revenues increased 2.6% and net income before taxes decreased 19%, as compared to the prior year period.
In a statement, the company said: "Continuing demand from out-of-state distributors for the company's Pinot Noir and Pinot Gris, in excess of recent year's production levels, has drawn down the inventory of those varieties to the point that income from those products is now being significantly affected.
"Although the company continues to have constraints on inventories of key varietals produced which have been allocated to distributors to be shipped on a scheduled basis over the calendar year, the company has increased sales of other producers products which have a lower profit margin."
Despite these inventory constraints, the company generated $0.05 and $0.06 basic earnings per share in the first and second quarter of 2007 respectively.
"The company believes the proper steps are being taken to increase the generation of high quality wine inventories over time as vineyard plantings mature. In the first quarter of 2007 the company loaned one of its growers $250,000 to support additional plantings during the first quarter. The company continues to improve its internal staffing and management systems in anticipation of these higher, future volumes," the statement added.
In the first quarter of this year, the company entered a long-term lease for Elton Vineyards, a related party, located in the Eola Hills, to help address the inventory constraints. The vineyard consists of 60 acres of mature grapevines of which approximately 42 acres are Pinot Noir. Willamette Valley Vineyards has an initial 11-year lease with the option to renew for four successive terms of five years each plus a first right of refusal on the property's sale.
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J.C. Penney’s top executive over marketing has left the Plano-based retailer.
Shawn Gensch, who has been Penney’s chief customer officer since June, resigned this week.
When he was hired, Penney CEO Jill Soltau said he filled “a vital component” of her new team. He was responsible for driving aggressive strategies to grow traffic and improve customer retention while working to revitalize the brand and shape Penney’s message and digital experience.
Penney confirmed his departure without providing details.
Earlier this month, Penney said it hired two more executives to fill out Gensch’s team of four vice presidents. They are over key marketing strategies, including digital. That was an area where Penney fell behind in recent years, and it stopped separating out those results before Soltau came to Penney in October 2018.
Among the executives who reported to Gensch was chief digital officer Karl Walsh, who came to Penney before Christmas with extensive e-commerce experience.
There have been no other departures on the marketing team, the company confirmed.
“The company thanks Shawn for his contributions in developing the plan for renewal and building a strong team of marketing leaders,” Penney said in an emailed response.
Gensch was chief customer officer at Phoenix-based Sprouts Farmers Market before he came to Penney. Before that, he cofounded a loyalty program company and earlier spent 10 years at Target. Gensch was granted 750,000 shares of stock options that vested over three years. Penney’s stock is at risk of being delisted as it’s been trading below $1.
Penney reports fourth-quarter results on Thursday.
The company previewed those results in January, saying its combined November and December holiday sales fell 7.5%. Excluding the impact of discontinued major home appliances and furniture, Penney’s sales decline was 5.3%.


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The photo has been used for illustrative purposes.
Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) remain a substantial health and developmental challenge in the UAE. NCDs include cardiovascular and chronic respiratory diseases, cancers, and diabetes. NCDs result from different factors, mainly obesity. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), in 2018, the NCDs accounted for 77% of all deaths in the UAE.
In this context, the UAE government must take active measures to curb such diseases. And in its efforts to address them, the UAE government has been levying health-related taxes on specific items since 2017.
On October 1, 2017, the excise taxes have been levied across the UAE with a rate of 50% on carbonated drinks, 100% on energy drinks, and 100% on tobacco and its products. Consequently, a research from London-based Euromonitor International showed that the excise taxes on energy drinks resulted in a 65% drop in the sales of the energy drinks companies in the UAE.
Later on August 20, 2019, the UAE included all forms of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs), and electronic smoking appliances and liquids under its 2017 excise taxable products list. With these amendments, starting from January 1, 2020, the SSBs will be taxed at a rate of 50% and the electronic smoking appliances at a rate of 100%.
A very interesting thing to notice here is that all the mentioned taxes are on the sales-value, including the SSBs. But, in reality, all the SSBs vary in their sugar content, right? Then how to tax them equally?
Taxing the SSBs is, in fact, a good decision. But still, the UAE government that aims to prevent chronic diseases linked to sugar and tobacco, when taxing the SSBs may consider revising the announced approach that can bring different implications to the consumers and producers, and it may adopt the sugar-content based tax approach that will yield benefits.
SSBs that are taxed on sales-value affect everyone regardless of their lifestyle choices. So even if I eat a well-balanced diet, and play sports, when consuming SSBs in my weekends, I will need to pay more to do so.
In contrary, SSBs that are taxed on sugar-content bring results to different actors:
• From the consumer’s perspective: when the drinks with the most sugar are taxed the most, it encourages the consumer to switch to cheaper drinks that are less in sugar content.
• From the companies/producers’ perspective: this approach will encourage and incentivise the companies to endeavour to reduce sugar content and pay less taxes, as well as come up with healthier products. Indeed, this will make the beverages industry a healthier one.
• From the healthcare industry actors’ perspective: this approach will allow a proper health track, as they will easily correlate consumers’ sugar intake to their health outcomes.
Many may question if the sugar-content based tax is a feasible approach or no. Well, yes, it is. There are different successful examples of countries that have already enacted SSBs taxes based on sugar-content. Hungary, for example, has a one-tier levy that taxes drinks with relatively high sugar levels. The UK recently announced a two-tier levy through which it taxes moderate-sugar drinks at one price and high-sugar drinks at a higher price.
Finally, here are a couple of recommendations to the policymakers in the country that may complement the health-related taxes.
• Sugar is not the only or the actual cause of the NCDs that the UAE government is trying to control. Therefore, there is a need to have UAE-focused studies in the broader diet and sugar intake. For instance, the health authorities in Singapore have identified that white rice is the leading cause of diabetes in the country, rather than sugar. So, UAE-focused studies will help in understanding the national health problem and will lead to an effective solution.
• The UAE needs to continue with the awareness-raising campaigns that educate the society on the importance of a balanced diet and regular physical activities.
• There should be a balance in the price graph. So, the UAE, while increasing prices of certain unhealthy products, should decrease the prices of healthy and diet products or any healthy alternatives. This can promote a healthy lifestyle and consumption.
• Targeting only one group of food, and in this case, the sugary beverages doesn’t guarantee to resolve the health issues in the UAE. Hence, if the UAE aims to promote its population health, then, junk food taxes should be considered too. Nevertheless, the question will remain if the government will tax all its ingredients or will tax the final product.


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A few days ago, Ascend: Hand of Kul
disappeared from the Xbox LIVE Games Store thanks to a compatibility issue between the game's latest patch and the game itself. Developer Signal Studios has since confirmed that the removal is permanent
and that Microsoft had discontinued support for the title. Now, inevitably, things have gotten worse.
Microsoft has now confirmed that the game's servers will close for good on November 18th, 2014. From this point onwards, players will be unable to purchase any more Souls from the marketplace, although previously purchased content will remain available to use until the servers are closed.
Thanks to the members of the community who alerted us to this!
We've got the full list of Ascend: Hand of Kul achievements
- check the list for guides to unlocking them.


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Racked is no longer publishing. Thank you to everyone who read our work over the years. The archives will remain available here; for new stories, head over to Vox.com, where our staff is covering consumer culture for The Goods by Vox. You can also see what we’re up to by signing up here.
Trying to work out but this winter's weather is making it difficult? Fear not, New York City residents. 92nd Street Y has just the deal to get you back into fighting shape: a free night out, in the gym.
On Tuesday, February 11, from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m., 92nd Street Y will be hosting FIT-FEST. Guests are invited to join free classes—including silks, yoga, HIIT, gymnastics, spinning, beginner swimming, and more—or exercise independently using new Technogym® cardio and strength equipment. Plus, personal trainers will be around to dole out pro tips and expert nutrition advice for lean living. And low-cal treats will be served, courtesy of 16 Handles. Sounds like a party.
During the open house, guests have the opportunity to join 92nd Street Y for as low as $69 a month.


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Big things are in the works at Amazon headquarters. Not only has the company vastly expanded its infrastructure in recent years, but it’s also been steadily building an army of delivery robots to prepare for real-world deployment. It may sound like a science fiction concept, but Amazon pledges to make its vision of drone delivery a reality in the coming year.
And to kick off its robot revolution, Amazon is releasing its latest delivery drones into the wild. Unlike the previously revealed aerial robots, these six-wheeled drones move by land and are already navigating neighborhoods to deliver packages to excited Prime customers.
Amazon says that it hopes its delivery bots become an ordinary part of the everyday scenery in American neighborhoods, but are we truly ready for robots to start delivering out packages? With Amazon’s infrastructure partners starting to flee them in fear, these robots might just become the company’s bread-and-butter for local deliveries.
Amazon Scout on the move in California
In a new press release, Amazon announced that it has officially begun deploying its land-based Scout drones to select customers in Irvine, California. According to the company, only a small amount of these six-wheeled robots are patrolling neighborhoods.
Unlike competitor projects, however, Amazon’s robots are completely autonomous — meaning they are able to navigate without human interaction.
That’s not to say that these drones are unaccompanied, mind you. According to Amazon, the Scout drones are watched over by roving Amazon employees nearby — who assess the results of each delivery and provide feedback to Amazon to improve the program in the future.
The news of this recent drone deployment comes on the heels of another announcement from Amazon and FedEx, where it’s been revealed that the companies will no longer be working together on ground deliveries. According to reporting from Business Insider on the matter, FedEx no longer sees Amazon as a partner, but rather a “threat to its bottom line.”
With an army of robots at its disposal, it’s no wonder. But before Amazon’s robot program is fully up and running, it’s likely that the company will deepen its existing partnership with UPS, which has been undergoing some hardships of its own. For them, the windfall of FedEx’s departure might be just what the doctor ordered.
What’s next: eyes on the skies
Now that Amazon has proven that ground-based drone delivery is feasible, it’s turning its eyes to the sky as it continues to perfect its aerial drone program. In previous stories, we’ve discussed Amazon’s designs for durable drones that are capable of vertical takeoff and landing — but an unexpected development in Alaska may spur the program ahead quicker than we expected.
The Federal Aviation Administration announced that it recently approved the first civilian drone flight that goes beyond the pilot’s “line of sight.”
Prior to this approval, drones were legally required to be within eyeshot of anyone piloting from below — which created a major hurdle for Amazon’s fledgling drone initiative. With this restriction seemingly lifted, Amazon now has the opportunity to invest even further in bringing its dreams of aerial deliveries to life.
With delivery robots now able to approach our homes by land and air, Amazon may very well be the first company to mainstream the use of drones in an everyday setting.
The company claims this factors into the design of drones like Scout, which is intended to look cute and approachable — yet bland and unremarkable. By blending into the background like an ordinary mail truck, Amazon’s bots will likely pave the way for even more robots to enter our lives. Let’s just hope they’re all friendly.


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The past few weeks have been heart-breaking for all in the sector.
No matter if you are a delivery driver, MD, CEO, licensee, supplier, manager, cleaner, bar staff… everyone has been affected by the coronavirus. And that’s not just on a business level, many in the sector will have lost or know of others who have lost family, friends or beloved regulars to the virus.
The Morning Advertiser started reporting on coronavirus before it emerged in mainland Europe and the UK. We knew it had the potential to negatively impact the great British pub. Little did we know how bad it would be.
We’ve listened to you and your desperately sad stories about how this is affecting your lives and businesses. It has been painful to hear and see how the pandemic has obliterated a sector we all love, and especially how it has impacted the thousands of people we know and admire in the trade.
But, as always in the pub trade, with one brush there is darkness, yet with the next there is light and colour. I’ve said it before – countless others before me and many will afterwards – pubs and the people behind them are made of stern stuff. We are creative and clever survivors.
Also, while we have heard heart-breaking tales of sinking businesses, we’ve been lucky enough to hear from hundreds of operators who aren’t willing to let the virus stop them from serving their communities or keeping their businesses alive. You don’t have to search for long before you see the operators who are providing meals for locals, delivering beer to regulars or opening up their expertise to help raise money for the NHS.
For some, right now, it may seem like the end. But have faith. Two world wars, a smoking ban and one of the biggest financial crashes all failed to kill off the pub.
As licensees, delivery drivers, MDs, CEOs, suppliers, cleaners, bar staff, customers – and everybody else who contributed to the trade before now – together, we will see the great British pub trade open its doors once again.
And we are here to help make that happen. Tell us how we can help, where you’re having problems and what can be done to resolve them. We can point you in the right direction or at least find out why there is a problem.
We don’t have any other option but to succeed. We can do this.


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Demand for dark poultry meat is on the rise in the US, increasing prices for the product and helping the industry recover from a 2011 slump.
Rising US immigrant populations, industry innovation that makes it easier for producers to supply boneless dark meat to satisfy domestic consumer demand, and growing exports to foreign markets that favour chicken on the bone have all contributed to the rise in demand.
US consumers prefer buying chicken without the bones, tendons and veins. Poultry processors have gotten better at deboning thanks to new manual and automated methods. Boneless, skinless thigh meat a decade ago sold for just over half the price of boneless, skinless breasts. That gap has disappeared, with prices for both cuts holding around $1.30 a pound for the past nine months, according to data from the US Department of Agriculture.
Tyson Foods, the US’s largest chicken producer by volume, is developing more products made from dark meat than ever before, including a new line of chicken sausages. The company said its grocery-store sales of boneless skinless cuts of dark meat are growing as well.
Competitor, Pilgrim’s Pride is using the global reach of its majority shareholder, Brazil-based conglomerate JBS SA, to expand exports of dark meat and whole birds to Asia and the Middle East. Pilgrim’s has said it is dedicating one of its US processing plants to filling export orders.
Source: The Wall Street Journal


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A federal district court in California has held that federal law preempts state consumer protection laws that would provide a cause of action for certain claims that nutritional information on food labels is false or misleading.
In Peviani v. Hostess Brands, Inc., No. 10-2303 (C.D. Cal. Nov. 3, 2010), the plaintiff (seeking to represent a class) alleged that the front packaging of certain Hostess food products contained misleading representations that the products had “0 Grams of Trans Fat” when, in fact, the products had slightly larger amounts (less than 0.5 grams of trans fat per serving). Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulations provide that “if [a] serving contains less than 0.5 gram[s of trans fat], the content, when declared, shall be expressed as zero.” Relying on these regulations under the federal Nutrition Labeling and Education Act (NLEA), the court held that the NLEA expressly preempted the plaintiff’s claims under California’s Unfair Competition Law, Consumer Legal Remedies Act, and other state consumer protection statutes. The court reasoned that because the NLEA and accompanying FDA regulations permit food makers to round down small amounts of trans fat to zero, the plaintiff’s claims “would necessarily impose a state-law obligation for trans fat disclosure that is not required by federal law.”
Peviani is one of a host of class actions that have been filed under state consumer protection laws to challenge a food manufacturer’s nutritional claims. (For example, a federal lawsuit filed in California alleges that the nutritional claims on Quaker Chewy Bar labels violate state consumer-protection law.) The court’s decision in Peviani will help food manufacturers argue that compliance with FDA regulations is sufficient to preclude the risk that nutritional information on food labels will, in effect, be regulated by juries applying the different laws of fifty states.


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It has taken a year, but the stress on the major hotels here is beginning to show. Only two years old, the Gansevoort Hotel (its roof pool area is above) is going into a bankruptcy auction and the Sagamore has reached out to the Playboy Empire to save it as "The Art Hotel" finds itself three months behind in its mortgage payments. In the past five years, there was an orgy of development and renovation, but only for the high-end. Hotels that used to cater to students and middle class visitors were eagerly turned into "boutique" condo/hotels. The City fully supported anything that would keep those rowdy people out of The Riviera of America. Then, one day, the Grim Hotel Reaper knocked on the door and informed the greedy that there weren't enough people willing or able to pay $350 and up a night and some would have to die. Along with them would go the stores and restaurants that relied on the same, seemingly endless, crowds of wealthy fun-seekers.
The Tides, I am assured tonight by Dr. Alan, is doing fine, which is a relief; I would miss those crazy pool parties he gives there. And, a word to the wise at those parties: Never tell a seven foot tall Amazon drag queen that a dress like that makes him think that someone must be missing a pair of draperies in Hialeah.
There are still much to smile about; and you can add The Twelve Gays of Christmas to them.


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On 21 December 2017, Monaco’s National Council adopted a draft bill setting out a general experimental framework governing the use of blockchain technology in the Principality, one of the first of its kind internationally.
Blockchain, a new technology, emerged with the creation of Bitcoin in the late 2000s. In addition to its use for cryptocurrencies, the blockchain technology has an infinite number of potential applications.
The banking and financial industry has led the way by creating private blockchain platforms, designed to allow smoother interbank payments and post trade transaction settlements for unlisted securities.
In view of this, the National Council has put forward proposals for minimum regulations on blockchain, to promote the freedom and creativity of Monegasque businesses looking to use this technology.
This draft bill proposes a general framework for blockchain technology, including recognising blockchain content as having evidentiary status. The text also makes provision for two recent blockchain applications, namely smart contracts (e.g. Blockchain Ethereum) and cryptocurrencies (e.g. Blockchain Bitcoin).
Articles 1 to 4 of the text take on the difficult task of establishing a legal definition for some of the technical terms associated with blockchain technology.
The bill also includes a new proposal for a three-year test period for blockchain and its applications in the Principality, during which businesses will see no additional regulatory restrictions.
Another measure included in the bill is the creation of a “Monegasque Blockchain Authority”, tasked with controlling blockchains effects in the Principality, as well as promoting Monaco’s blockchain activities in the international arena.
Finally, Article 12 of the bill identifies some priority sectors for blockchain, such as the issuing of cryptocurrencies, market finance and business finance, or digital intelligence.
It is clear that the bill aims to make Monaco a real testing-ground for future technologies.


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There's definitely some truth to the adage that a dog is man's best friend. And it seems man will do whatever it takes to keep his best friend healthy.
Humanization of our pets is one of the reasons pet health services today are similar to our own health care. In fact, pretty much any health service we can get is also available to our pets. Today, your pet can get a massage to relieve pain, acupuncture, a chiropractic treatment or a dose of traditional Chinese medicine to name a few of the alternative health care services now available to animals.
"Pets are really important to people and they're more interested than ever in doing more for their pets," says Dr. Tracy Cornish, president of the College of Veterinarians of British Columbia.
Steveston resident Katherine Robinson is one of those people. Her 10-year-old mutt, Maggie, was starting to feel the effects of aging. Maggie was suffering from back pain and was
sensitive to touch so Robinson took her into Amherst Veterinary Hospital for acupuncture. "It was really cool to watch. She was not uncomfortable at all. She was super relaxed letting the doctor do whatever she wanted with the needles."
Robinson said before the treatment, Maggie - who is a retriever and border collie cross - would flinch when her back was touched but afterwards she didn't recoil at all and was able to walk up the stairs more easily.
Pet owners like Robinson are increasingly turning to alternative health care solutions in a pet health industry that continues to grow each year.
More than half (55 per cent) of Americans say they are willing to spend whatever it takes to maintain their pets' health, and two-fifths believe preventive health care is a must, according to a recent report by Mintel, a global market research company.
In a report published last March, Mintel found pet owners are demanding quality in pet health care and better food choices to help maintain their pets' health. Pet food took the
biggest share of pet-related retail sales in 2012 at 39 per cent ($19.7 billion), followed by veterinarian services at 24 per cent.
The pet industry grew slightly above the GDP growth rates, rising at an average annual growth rate of 2.8 per cent versus 2.3 per cent from 2007-12, totalling $50.5 billion in 2012 and Mintel is predicting the industry will have a 2.9 per cent average annual growth rate, reaching nearly $58.2 billion in 2017.
Statistics Canada does not collect data on how much Canadians spend on their pets, but our spending habits would parallel our neighbours to the south, said Cornish.
"Pet owners are willing to spend money on their pets even in the face of financial uncertainty because of the emotional connection between them," the Mintel report states.
In British Columbia, more and more veterinarians are expanding their practices beyond the basics and offering specialty services.
"Pet owners are seeing their pets as family members and are looking for options," Cornish says.
She says in the last 20 years veterinary medicine has seen a significant growth in specialists. In B.C. there are now 60 specialists in a field of 1,250 veterinarians provincewide.
When Vancouver veterinarian Dr. Michael Goldberg, of the Animal Wellness Hospital, started his practice 15 years ago, he did conventional medicine only. But by 1999 Goldberg was doing homoeopathy on animals, and in 2005 included acupuncture, chiropractic medicine and laser therapy for animals.
"It's what the consumer is demanding - a more integrated approach," said Goldberg. "They want their pet to feel better and not suffer and there may be two or three ways for that to happen. Say I have a dog that comes in with a certain set of symptoms associated with back pain. Ninety per cent of the time a strong anti-inflammatory (prescribed with conventional veterinary medicine) was given, but the advantage I find is if we see the same case rather than give the one choice, we can look at the spine and give a treatment option or two, either with an acupuncturist or a chiropractor and get at the root cause of that pain," he said.
However, one of the main issues today is ensuring the people providing the alternative treatments to animals are properly qualified to do so.
In B.C. the provincial Veterinary Act clearly sets out who is licensed to provide health care to animals, but the College of Veterinarians of B.C. is finding people not qualified to practice are getting into the field.
Recently, the college struck an unauthorized practice committee to look into non-veterinarians encroaching on their field.
"It's an increasing issue," Cornish says. "You'll tend to see human practitioners branching out to animals. That is against the Veterinary Act."
She said the worst culprits are chiropractors for humans working on animals, and people who have no credentials at all performing teeth cleaning, which is under the umbrella of dental veterinary work.
"You just look online, in classified ads or pet expos, to see how many are doing it," she said.
Cornish said there is a place for alternative health practices - such as Chinese traditional medicine, homoeopathy and chiropractic care - but they must be under the supervision of a veterinarian or be done by a vet who has had the proper training.
Goldberg said in order to have the right to provide chiropractic medicine for animals himself he did an additional 200 hours of training, which took six months.
He did the same amount of training to learn acupuncture for animals and to learn homoeopathy.
"It's amazing how things have changed since I first became a veterinarian. It's all based on how we can better treat our animals and that's how medicine grows," he said.
"It's all mirroring human health. People are seeking out better treatments and the response of the industry is to train people to fill that demand. It's exciting to keep learning and exciting to have answers to help your patient feel better."
Cornish said it takes about four years to become a veterinarian and then, on average, another four years to become a specialist in a field such as oncology or animal dentistry. The vet would then need to write qualifying exams in that field and be certified by the college in order to practice.
Specialized treatment Often vets must travel outside the province to get the training they need.
For instance, veterinarian Dr. Nina Speyer, who performs acupuncture on animals at the Amherst Veterinary Hospital, obtained her certification from Colorado State University earlier this year.
Speyer said the principles used in acupuncture for humans are the same for animals.
"The main difference is with animals you can't leave them alone in a room with needles," she said.
Speyer said acupuncture has been performed on animals in the mainstream only for the last 15 years.
She added that while it is used on horses and exotic pets she sees mainly dogs and cats suffering from pain or inflammation in her own practice. After a conventional medical examination and diagnosis, acupuncture can be used in addition to other treatments, she said. \ It involves placing needles at specific points to induce the release of certain neurotransmitters that can block pain and reduce inflammation.
Acupuncture and chiropractic medicine are such useful techniques that they can prevent animals from having to undergo surgery, said Dr. David Lane, who is trained in both methods.
Lane, who has been a veterinarian since 1992, got into chiropractic medicine in 2006, in part after witnessing the results in a horse.
"It was always a miserable, ornery horse. But when I saw it (one time) it was a completely different horse and I asked what happened. A chiropractor (vet) adjusted its back. It
was behaving that way before because it was in chronic pain," he said.
Lane said chiropractic medicine is one of his "best tools" to help a patient suffering from muscular skeletal pains.
"We'll get a dog brought in on a board screaming in pain and 15 minutes later (after an adjustment) running around happy."
He said the demand for chiropractic medicine is huge and he has a one-month waiting time for patients in Vancouver, which is why many of his urban patients end up visiting him in
Squamish and Whistler, where he also practises.
Sports medicine "The agility people with competition dogs are all over this. They're very aware of sports injuries and very proactive about their high-end competition dogs," he said.
Lane was the team veterinarian for the Canadian National Agility Team at the World Agility Open last March in Spain. The Canadian dogs took six out of 13 gold medals.
"My hotel room was turned into a treatment area to get them into top form. There was one competitor who had dropped three or four bars (during an agility course) and I could see the dog wasn't fully extending (its legs) and had lower back pain from weak underlying muscles."
After an adjustment was made the dog went on to finish the competition and only dropped one bar for the rest of the day.
He said geriatric animals are often brought in for chiropractic and acupuncture treatments
to help their muscle tone and stimulate the nerves.
"We can at least stop the decline and make them more happy in their last years," he said.
Lane said in a typical case, a dog who had a bad fall and then wasn't moving right afterwards could have his issue resolved after two or three chiro appointments costing $400 to $500 in total.
He pointed out that cost would be significantly lower than if the animal had to have X-rays (which wouldn't even show the problem if it was muscular), surgery and medication.
As for medical insurance for pets, Goldberg said just as with humans, coverage for alternative treatments depends on the insurance agency.
"Most pet insurance companies will cover conventional medical specialties like radiology or ophthalmology but when it comes to alternatives like Chinese medicine, acupuncture or homoeopathy, some of the insurance companies are stickier. It mirrors our human medical model. It can be difficult to find coverage under MSP (Medical Service Plan) for an acupuncturist," he said.
Despite the uncertainty surrounding pet insurance, public attitudes toward alternative treatments are changing, even if some pet owners don't want to admit it, said Lane.
He gave the example of two of his clients - farmers who are neighbours - who are using his chiropractic services but would never admit that to each other.
"Pets are family members. They're not just the old farm dog anymore. These old-school farmers are almost embarrassed they are bringing in their dogs to me but they're doing it because they see it works."
The evolution of pet food - from table scraps to the raw food diet
A generation ago it wasn't uncommon for pet owners to simply feed their pets table scraps.
But no more. Now only the very best highend pet food will suffice for the vast majority of pets.
According to a recent report by Mintel, an international market research company, nine out of 10 pet owners view their pet as "family members" and as such seek only the very best pet food to ensure their pets' good health.
In fact, the pet food industry comprises the biggest share of pet-related retail sales, making up nearly 40 per cent of the total amount spent on pets at $19.7 billion in 2012, according to the U.S. report (similar statistics in Canada are not available). "Anthropomorphism of pets has an increased effect on the dietary aspects of commercial pet foods including ingredient selection and nutritional composition," said animal science researcher Kelly Swanson of the University of Illinois.
He said the raw food diet has become increasingly popular in recent years, since some pet owners no longer accept animal byproducts in their pet foods
and are insisting on real meat. This has an impact on sustainability since "pet foods compete now directly with human consumption."
"Homemade diets and raw feeding is using human foods. A pork chop or steak for your pet is different from a secondary product," said Swanson. He added that obesity among pets is a risk on a raw diet because the animal's protein intake is often significantly higher than what is required. And it's not just the raw diet fad where pets are at risk for obesity, he said.
"More and more companies are selling products that have more protein and that can lead to obesity."
Swanson said some diets have 40 to 60 per cent protein with a few even advertising in the 90 per cent range, yet most dogs or cats only require 30 per cent of their diet to be protein. "The raw food diet is fairly controversial. I have friends who feed their pets raw food and their pets are fine. But it's a tricky
thing to do and people forget about the issue of sustainability. They'll recycle their cans on one hand but food shortages in some countries are not on their radar when they are dealing with their pets' food."
Swanson said if you are looking at this issue from a sustainability standpoint it is far better to feed your pets animal byproducts, which can still be a good protein source.
Vancouver animal behaviourist Dr. Rebecca Ledger said she's found that if an animal's protein levels are too high there can be increase in aggression. She also recognizes the raw food diet is controversial among pet owners but 99 per cent of scientists "are on the same page" and don't believe it is appropriate.
"Dogs are living longer, healthier lives because of how much healthier the dry kibble diets are now from reputable food manufacturers," she said.
Ledger said people sometimes equate expensive pet food with the best but that's not always the case and pet owners need to read the ingredient list to ensure the diet is balanced.
Kim Pemberton, Vancouver Sun
Pet food history 1860s and 1870s - James Spratt sells first dog food, called "dog cakes," in 1866 in London, England. In 1870, he introduces them in the United States. 1908 - Milk-Bone enters the market. From that period, up until 1920 there are only two food companies in the market. 1920s and 1930s - Canned horse meat is sold for pet food. 1940s - Not much changed in the industry, but war and societal changes altered perceptions of pets, with people increasingly viewing them as companions. 1950s - Purina begins extruding pet foods in 1954, a process that revolutionized the industry. This form of processing improved the product and how it was digested by pets. (Most dry foods today are extruded.) 1950s to 1980s - A lot of research is done with the goal of identifying nutrient requirements. Foods before this time were not necessarily "complete and balanced."
1980s to today - The modern pet food industry sees a great expansion of pet food types for life stages, activity levels, and allergies.
Kim Pemberton, Vancouver Sun


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“When the shutdowns were happening, there were farmers markets and restaurants closing down, and a little bit of panic was setting in,” Miller said. “It put farmers in a bind. They were now without those immediate markets to sell their products.”
CFSA organizers also began considering those who had lost their jobs during the pandemic. Eventually, the association partnered with the Piedmont Culinary Guild, a forum for farmers and culinary professionals. Soon thereafter, they began working with local food hubs to sign up laid-off restaurant and hospitality workers to receive produce boxes.
Jesse Leadbetter, co-founder of Charlotte-based foodhub and delivery service Freshlist, said that 95% his business was restaurant based prior to the pandemic. When the shutdowns began, Freshlist began doing home deliveries, and also partnered with FarmsSHARE to distribute produce.
“We had helped the CFSA do a sustainable ag conference every year, and we helped them source local ingredients from our farmers for the conference,” Leadbetter said. “And this program (FarmsSHARE) had a lot of layers of benefits. We had money going into farmers’ hands quickly, food to hospitality workers. Last year we distributed products from 191 different growers.”
Since its inception, FarmsSHARE has delivered more than a quarter-million pounds of produce in 30 North Carolina counties, as well as 19,000 pounds of meat, 2,500 gallons of milk and 1,000 pounds of cheese.


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Gladys Knight gave "The Chew" a lesson in cooking tasty treats this week.
Appearing earlier this week, the R&B/soul veteran revealed a few of her secrets, while assisting with a white wine braised chicken recipe.
"I love family. I love friends. And I have cooked for more people on the road than I've cooked for in my kitchen," Gladys Knight told "The Chew" (ABC).
Knight also spoke of her successful restaurant, Gladys Knight Chicken and Waffles, which now has three locations in Atlanta.
See Gladys Knight's banana pudding recipe on The Chew's official website.


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Rumors suggest that with iOS 15, Apple will introduce a new feature, which will allow you to set different priorities for notifications depending on the current status, as well as easily update these statuses from the lock screen or control center. Siri could be used to quickly change status, such as “driving”, “working”, “sleeping” or some custom category.
- Apple introduces AirTag
- Apple introduced new and faster iMac with an M1 chip
- Apple Launching iPhone in New Purple Color
For each status, it will be possible to choose how the device will notify you. It will also be possible to set up automatic replies to messages depending on the current status of the user.
There are also some improvements for iMessage, which will make the service more like a social network at some point, but for now, there aren’t too many details about this option.
When it comes to the iPadOS 15, the tablet platform should support home screen widgets, which were added to iOS 14 last year and are now finally arriving on iPads as well. Users will be able to place widgets anywhere on the home screen, and widgets will be able to replace the entire network of applications if the user so wishes.
Finally, iOS 15 and iPadOS 15 should have new privacy protections, including a new menu that shows which apps seamlessly collect user data.