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Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, has halted the sale of futures and derivatives across Europe, beginning with Germany, Italy, and the Netherlands. It stated it was “taking aggressive efforts” toward harmonizing crypto rules when it announced the action. Users from these countries were no longer allowed to open new futures or derivatives products accounts on Binance.
In July, Binance also stopped selling digital tokens linked to shares after regulators cracked down on its “stock token”. It also said it would stop offering crypto margin trading involving the Australian dollar, euro, and sterling.
In a statement, the corporation claimed that the new tool is part of a “broader approach” to improve user protection and risk management measures. To protect its consumers, Binance has altered daily withdrawal limitations and updated leverage limits for futures accounts.
That it is lowering the withdrawal limit for users who have completed its lowest-tier account verification, a move that comes as the firm and the exchange market as a whole has come under increased scrutiny from international regulators.
Previously, those with Basic Account Verification completed could withdraw up to 2 BTC per day. For newly registered accounts, the limit has been reduced to 0.06 BTC per day, effective immediately. Additionally, between August 4 and August 23, Binance will phase in this policy for existing accounts.
Furthermore, due to “excessively high fraud rates,” key banking institutions and payment processors in the United Kingdom have begun to restrict payments to and from Binance. This month, the business is also expected to reduce daily withdrawal restrictions from two Bitcoin to 0.06 BTC. Despite recent attempts to please regulators, Binance has been obliged to stop trading and supporting stock tokens.
Binance’s corporate structure remains a mystery, with reports claiming that its holding company is based in the Cayman Islands. Binance’s headquarters are “decentralized,” according to a spokesman, and the company “works with several regulated entities around the world.”
Binance has amassed a sizable following around the world, including Telegram channels dedicated to users.
In the United Kingdom, cryptocurrency trading is largely uncontrolled, while some operations, such as issuing crypto derivatives, may require approval.
Regulators, such as the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), are growing concerned about the grade of anti-money laundering checks performed by crypto exchanges and the risks that crypto trading poses to consumers.
China’s crackdown on bitcoin miners and order for banks to halt crypto transactions, as well as Tesla’s withdrawal of its announcement that it would accept bitcoin payments for vehicles due to environmental concerns, have all been headwinds for Binance and the broader crypto industry in the last three months. Cyberattacks in the United States against critical infrastructure and public companies that demanded cryptocurrency ransom payments also drew negative attention. Bitcoin has dropped about half of its value since April when it hit an all-time high of $64,805.
Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have surged in popularity among retail investors during the global pandemic, prompting regulators to put trading platforms under increased scrutiny even though most cryptocurrency trading is unregulated.
Cryptocurrency trading is largely uncontrolled, while some operations, such as issuing crypto derivatives, may require approval.
Regulators, such as the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), are growing concerned about the grade of anti-money laundering checks performed by crypto exchanges and the risks that crypto trading poses to consumers. I order to get people on board and to safeguard their interest ,it is extremely important to work towards an action-oriented and well-regulated system.
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Restaurant & Catering Australia (R&CA) CEO John Hart says the decision will provide labour cost relief with more hospitality businesses able to remain open or re-open on a Sunday.
“This is a win for operators, staff and consumers with restaurants and cafes now inclined to open their doors on a Sunday,” Mr Hart said.
United Voice lodged a Federal Court appeal of the Fair Work Commission Full Bench Decision in May this year that decided to reduce penalty rates under the Restaurant Industry Award.
United Voice claimed they were denied procedural fairness and sought a rehearing of the case.
Today, the Full Federal Court consisting of Justice Rares, Justice Bromberg and Justice Griffiths dismissed the United Voice application, ensuring the reduction of penalty rates under the Restaurant Industry Award will stand.
Mr Hart has welcomed the Federal Court Decision as vindicating the case for reducing penalty rates made by the industry.
“Labour costs remain a significant problem for hospitality employers and this decision confirms the Fair Work Commission Full Bench Decision to allow businesses to remain or re-open on a Sunday, is a step in the right direction” Mr Hart said.
R&CA Workplace Relations Director Greg Parkes says the Federal Court Decision will remove the uncertainty that this appeal caused for industry employers.
“The industry is made up of predominantly small businesses and the confirmation of Sunday penalty rates being reduced to 150 percent for casual employees at level two and below under the Restaurant Industry Award may provide a boost for employment opportunities across Australia,” said Mr Parkes.

domain: news


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THE supplier of the 39,583 laptops for public school teachers on Thursday said it is willing to face any probe, stressing that the units it delivered to the Department of Education (DepEd) meet “all” technical specifications imposed by the government.
“We are ready and willing to participate in any proceedings where we will be given the opportunity to show that our product is reliable and capable for its intended use,” the joint venture (JV) of Sunwest Construction and Development Corporation (SCDC) and LDLA Marketing & Trading Inc. (LDLA) said in a news statement.
They maintained that the laptops are “competitively priced and perform according to their intended use” and are “fully compliant with all technical specifications” provided by DepEd and the Procurement Service-Department of Budget and Management (PS-DBM).
“The PS -DBM solicited bids for the supply and delivery of laptop computers with very specific technical requirements. As qualified bidders, we made an offer and won the comprehensive and competitive bidding fair and square. As of early this year, all units have been delivered to DepEd regional offices throughout the Philippines,” the supplier said.
The supplier added that the package came with required specifications, taking into account the cost of the unit, peripherals, software, commercial grade durability, comprehensive 36-month warranty and technical support anywhere in the Philippines, including nationwide delivery and other add-ons.
“This also includes customization of the items/units as required by DepEd. The public should also note that the Dell Latitude 3420 laptops delivered to the government were custom-built direct from the factory and according to the requirements needed by DepEd and therefore cannot be easily equated to a regular off-the-shelf consumer unit. It is inaccurate and unfair to say that the offered price is for the laptops alone,” they stressed.
They explained that while the JV was contracted to supply the equivalent of a 10th-generation processor, they said that they actually delivered the 11th-generation processor, which was the “latest” generation at the time of the project.
“Our clients can also attest that we have been faithfully honoring our after-sales support and warranty and have been aiding end-users through our after-sales partners,” it added.
As to the audit findings, the group said it is not aware of any conclusive or final Audit Report that has been published by the Commission on Audit.
“Our companies have a combined experience spanning more than a decade and we intend to protect our respective reputations as honest and ethical business enterprises,” the group stressed.


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Lee Anne Gilkey in studio September 19, 2017
Lee Anne Gilkey was in studio Tuesday morning to talk to WKPY about the Hustlin’ for the Harpers fundraiser Saturday, September 23, at Trilogy Performance Sports in Princeton.
Lee Anne will be set up in the Cash Express parking lot selling butterfly pork chop and chicken breast sandwiches as well as half chickens by the meal or by themselves. LeAnn is still taking pre-orders and you can contact her at 270-625-4627 to place that order.
Jesse and Emily Oliver, who own Trilogy, will have several different stations set up in the gym where people can do various exercises to raise money. It’s a dollar to enter and participate but various businesses and individuals have sponsored the stations and will donate money mattering on how many reps are completed. Trilogy is still looking for sponsors and you can contact Emily Oliver at 270-625-6166 or through the Trilogy Performance Sports Facebook page if you’re interested in sponsoring a station.
There will also be several vendors there raising money including Hambone Apparel, LulaRoe, Simply Bonded Sisters and more. Danielle Chastain and her company Babycakes Cupcakes will also be there and for an extra charge you can get a cupcake with your meal from Lee Anne, or you can buy the cupcakes by themselves.
The event will start at 8AM at Trilogy and is for all ages. Lee Anne stressed that all are welcome, you don’t have to be a member of the gym to participate. LeAnn also said that she hoped food will be ready to pick up starting around 10:30AM.
You can catch the full interview with Lee Anne Gilkey below.


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MG Motor India officially launched the new Comet in the Indian market recently. The new car replaced the Tiago EV as the most affordable electric car and then the fanboys started trolling each other. While advertisement war has been common in the past, this time, the fanboys took it on their own to troll each other.
It seems like MG or Tata fanboys started the internet battler after releasing a poster trolling the other vehicle. There are several posters of the MG Comet EV showing the Tata Tiago EV down by positioning it as an ICE car.
Since the Tiago EV is based on a petrol model, the MG fanboys have trolled the Tata hatchback to have its roots in an Internal Combustion Engine powered car. The MG Comet is based on a pure electric platform. MG fanboys have also trolled the Tata Tiago EV for not being “cool” among other things.
Also read: 5 upcoming Maruti cars: Baleno Facelift to all-new Vitara Brezza
Meanwhile, a Tata Motors dealership had enough of it and shared a poster saying “Own a car, not a cartoon.” Following which, Tata Motors shared an official response on Twitter disapproving of the entire brouhaha.
— Tata Passenger Electric Mobility Limited (@Tatamotorsev) April 27, 2023
“We have noticed that an image is under circulation on WhatsApp and several social media platforms, that showcases our vehicle and another OEM’s recently launched product in an distasteful manner. We have received several queries about it and take this opportunity to categorically affirm that this image is not created or distributed by us. We have also advised our channel partners to refrain from engaging with it in any manner. Tata Motors is governed by a robust code of conduct and follows ethical business practices.”
MG Motor India has denied sharing the images as well but there is no official statement from the brand at the moment.
Tata Motors has trolled Hyundai and Maruti in past
On Valentine’s Day, Tata Motors released a video that trolled the Altroz’s competitors, the Maruti Suzuki Baleno and the Hyundai i20. The video, which was uploaded to Tata Motors’ official YouTube channel, featured the Baleno and i20 hatchbacks covered in red wraps with their daytime running lights switched on. Tata Motors decided not to use the original names of the competitors, opting for “Bae-Leno” and “Hi 20” instead. In the video, the Altroz invited the other two vehicles for a “Crashdate.”
Later, Tata Altroz outsold the Hyundai i20. To celebrate this sales milestone, Tata utilized their social media platforms to target Hyundai.
It is not uncommon for manufacturers in international markets to take playful jabs at one another. For years now, European manufacturers, in particular, have publicly mocked each other on large billboards, and this healthy competition is considered a standard practice.
On many occasions, these same manufacturers will also send congratulatory posts to one another on social media platforms during important events. Maintaining a healthy level of competition generates significant interest among followers and draws out brand loyalists to support their chosen manufacturer.
CarToq Shorts: Citroen C3 Aircross SUV


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“Seeing some issues with [version] 10.3, so rolling back to 10.2 temporarily,” he wrote in a tweet. “Please note, this is to be expected with beta software. It is impossible to test all hardware configs in all conditions with internal [quality assurance], hence public beta.”
The update had already proved troublesome earlier in the weekend, as Tesla delayed its initial release Saturday morning because of what Musk wrote was “regression in some left turns at traffic lights” found by internal quality inspectors. But he said Sunday that the company has proceeded with the rollout, noting that it leans on the public to gather more data on driving conditions and parameters.
It was the latest twist in a saga that has disrupted typical car industry practices and drawn the attention of safety advocates and regulators, who fear the consequences of Tesla foisting the largely untested software on the public. Full Self-Driving is an expanded iteration of the software that Tesla calls Autopilot, which can navigate highways, summon and park cars, and conduct other maneuvers with an attentive driver behind the wheel. Full Self-Driving brings those capabilities to city streets, allowing the software to navigate Tesla cars through local roads and residential areas. Users must pay attention at all times, and the software — despite its name — is not considered autonomous by industry or regulatory definitions.
Tesla, which had initially provided the Full Self-Driving beta to a group of about 2,000 users, has since expanded the program using a “safety score” beta that rates owners’ driving on a zero-to-100 scale. The first rollout to around 1,000 new users included those who scored 100 in the safety assessment, which rates driver on factors such as aggressive turning and hard braking.
This weekend’s rollout included those who had scored a 99.
Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration acknowledged a request for comment but did not immediately provide a response.
NHTSA, the country’s top auto-safety regulator, has pressed for more information on the software and says it relies on the public to provide insight into how it works. Its chief counsel sent a letter to Tesla earlier this month decrying its use of nondisclosure agreements, for example, to prevent Full Self-Driving users from sharing information on the beta.
“Despite Tesla’s characterization of FSD as 'beta’ it is capable of and is being used on public roads,” Ann Carlson, the NHTSA official, wrote. “Given that NHTSA relies on reports from consumers as an important source of information in evaluating potential safety defects, any agreement that may prevent or dissuade participants in the early access beta release program from reporting safety concerns to NHTSA is unacceptable.”
Musk has indicated users will not be bound by nondisclosure agreements going forward.


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Market Update for April 18th
General Market News
- Inflation increased 8.5 percent year-over-year in March, according to data released last week. Faced with this multidecade high, markets eagerly await the Federal Reserve’s (Fed’s) May meeting to see what’s in store for interest rates and the Fed’s balance sheet. An increasing number of top Fed officials have signaled support for a rate hike of 50 basis points (bps) at the May meeting, and minutes from the central bank’s March meeting point to the addition of an aggressive balance sheet runoff of roughly $100 billion per month. The U.S. Treasury yield curve steepened, with the 2-year down 12 bps to 2.35 percent and the 5-year falling 3 bps to 2.65 percent. The 10-year increased 10 bps to 2.7 percent and the 30-year rose 18 bps to 2.81 percent.
- The S&P 500 fell for the second straight week. Investors continue to question how the Fed will navigate a soft landing for the economy with inflation and expectations for inflation reaching historic highs. Earnings season got rolling, with JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Goldman Sachs, and Morgan Stanley among notable banks reporting. Trade desks and better-than-expected credit quality were supportive, though JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon cited the Ukraine crisis as creating potential “storm clouds on the horizon.” Despite this outlook, we saw additional signs of continued strong consumer demand via earnings reported by Delta Airlines, as people look to return to travel. Top performing sectors were materials, industrials, and energy. Underperforming sectors were technology, communication services, health care, and financials.
- On Tuesday, the March Consumer Price Index report was released. Consumer prices increased 1.2 percent, more than February’s 0.8 percent increase but in line with economist expectations. Year-over-year, consumer prices rose 8.5 percent, up from 7.9 percent in February and slightly higher than the expected 8.4 percent year-over-year increase. Most of March’s acceleration in consumer inflation was due to rising energy prices, which were caused by an 18.3 percent increase in gas prices. Core consumer prices, which strip out the impact of volatile food and energy prices, were much more encouraging. Core prices increased 0.3 percent, the lowest monthly increase since September 2021. On a year-over-year basis, core consumer prices rose 6.5 percent, slightly less than the expected 6.6 percent. Core consumer prices benefited from lower prices for used autos in March, and other signs indicated supply chain issues we’ve seen for the past year have improved.
- Wednesday saw the release of the Producer Price Index report for March. As was the case with consumer prices, producer prices increased at a faster pace last month. Headline consumer prices increased 1.4 percent, more than economist estimates for a 1.1 percent gain and greater than the 0.9 percent rise we saw in February. Year-over-year, producer prices rose 11.2 percent, up from 10.3 percent in February and above forecasts for a 10.6 percent increase. Core producer prices, which strip out the impact of food and energy prices, increased 1 percent during the month and 9.2 percent year-over-year, both above expectations. The larger-than-expected increases to headline and core consumer prices came about in large part because of an increase in producer service prices, including transportation and warehousing. Economists still mostly expect to see producer inflation peak soon as a result of global shipping improvements.
- Thursday saw the March retail sales report released. Headline sales increased 0.5 percent, slightly below economist forecasts for a 0.6 percent rise. February’s retail sales growth was upwardly revised, however, from 0.3 percent to 0.8 percent, so the modest miss against expectations is understandable. Core retail sales, which strip out the impact of volatile auto and gas sales, increased 0.2 percent, in line with expectations. The solid headline and core retail sales growth in March was encouraging. Combined with the upward revision to the February report, this shows that consumer spending held up well to start the year following a temporary lull in sales in December.
- Thursday also saw the release of the preliminary estimate of the University of Michigan consumer sentiment survey for April. The report showed that sentiment improved, with the index rising from 59.4 in March to 65.7 against calls for a drop to 59. Improving consumer sentiment surrounding current economic conditions and future expectations drove this better-than-expected result. The index sits at a three-month high, which is an encouraging result after falling sentiment to start the year. Consumer expectations for inflation over the next one and three years did not change in April, which was also a sign that consumers don’t expect to see the recent increases in energy and food costs linger. The strong job market also supported consumer sentiment; consumers expect to see income increase 2.7 percent, the highest such increase since 2006, over the next year. This may signal the start of a rebound in consumer confidence, particularly if inflationary pressure declines over the next few months.
|MSCI Emerging Markets||–1.23%||–2.39%||–9.20%||–15.61%|
Source: Bloomberg, as of April 15, 2022
|Fixed Income Index||Month-to-Date||Year-to-Date||12-Month|
|U.S. Broad Market||–2.77%||–8.54%||–7.58%|
Source: Morningstar Direct, as of April 15, 2022
What to Look Forward To
On Monday, the National Association of Home Builders Housing Market Index for April was released. In line with expectations, this measure of home builder confidence dropped from 79 in March to 77. This is a diffusion index, where values above 50 indicate growth, so this result signals expansion for home builders, just at a slightly slower pace than in March. Home builder confidence has been well-supported throughout the past two years. Low mortgage rates, high levels of home buyer demand, and a lack of existing homes for sale have contributed to faster new home construction growth. That said, this report marks the lowest point for the index since September 2021, reflecting the challenges home builders are facing. So far in 2022, rising material and labor costs have weighed on home builder sentiment. These headwinds are expected to remain, at least for the short term.
Tuesday will see the release of the March building permits and housing starts reports. Both measures of new home construction are expected to slow, with permits and starts set to drop 1.4 percent and 1.2 percent, respectively. These reports can be very volatile on a month-to-month basis, however, and both permits and starts are well above pre-pandemic levels. So, if estimates prove accurate, the reports would mark very strong levels of home building on a historical basis. February saw housing starts hit their fastest pace since 2006, and permits weren’t far behind. Given large home-builder backlogs, low supply of existing homes for sale, and rising prices, new home construction is expected to remain well above pre-pandemic levels. This environment should continue until we see home buyer demand dry up or new construction add enough units to offset some of the supply-and-demand imbalances in the housing market.
On Wednesday, we’ll get a better look at home buyer demand with the release of the existing home sales report for March. Sales are set to drop 3.7 percent after a 7.2 percent decline in February. The large drop in February was largely due to a surge in existing home sales in January, which likely reflected buyers’ efforts to lock in relatively low mortgage rates. Throughout the first quarter, we’ve seen mortgage rates rise notably. From the start of the year to the end of March, the national average for a 30-year mortgage rate increased from 3.27 percent to 4.9 percent. In the short term, higher rates, low supply of existing homes for sale, and rising home prices are expected to serve as a headwind for sales growth. If the March estimates hold, however, the pace of existing home sales would sit well above pre-pandemic levels, continuing to signal high levels of buyer demand.
Disclosures: Certain sections of this commentary contain forward-looking statements that are based on our reasonable expectations, estimates, projections, and assumptions. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve certain risks and uncertainties, which are difficult to predict. All indices are unmanaged and are not available for direct investment by the public. Past performance is not indicative of future results. The S&P 500 is based on the average performance of the 500 industrial stocks monitored by Standard & Poor’s. The Nasdaq Composite Index measures the performance of all issues listed in the Nasdaq Stock Market, except for rights, warrants, units, and convertible debentures. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is computed by summing the prices of the stocks of 30 large companies and then dividing that total by an adjusted value, one which has been adjusted over the years to account for the effects of stock splits on the prices of the 30 companies. Dividends are reinvested to reflect the actual performance of the underlying securities. The MSCI EAFE Index is a float-adjusted market capitalization index designed to measure developed market equity performance, excluding the U.S. and Canada. The MSCI Emerging Markets Index is a market capitalization-weighted index composed of companies representative of the market structure of 26 emerging market countries in Europe, Latin America, and the Pacific Basin. The Russell 2000® Index measures the performance of the 2,000 smallest companies in the Russell 3000® Index. The Bloomberg US Aggregate Bond Index is an unmanaged market value-weighted performance benchmark for investment-grade fixed-rate debt issues, including government, corporate, asset-backed, and mortgage-backed securities with maturities of at least one year. The U.S. Treasury Index is based on the auctions of U.S. Treasury bills, or on the U.S. Treasury’s daily yield curve. The Bloomberg US Mortgage Backed Securities (MBS) Index is an unmanaged market value-weighted index of 15- and 30-year fixed-rate securities backed by mortgage pools of the Government National Mortgage Association (GNMA), Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae), and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (FHLMC), and balloon mortgages with fixed-rate coupons. The Bloomberg US Municipal Index includes investment-grade, tax-exempt, and fixed-rate bonds with long-term maturities (greater than 2 years) selected from issues larger than $50 million. One basis point is equal to 1/100th of 1 percent, or 0.01 percent.
Authored by the Investment Research team at Commonwealth Financial Network.
Kris Maksimovich is a financial advisor located at Global Wealth Advisors 4400 State Hwy 121, Ste. 200, Lewisville, TX 75056. He offers securities and advisory services as an Investment Adviser Representative of Commonwealth Financial Network®, Member FINRA/SIPC, a Registered Investment Adviser. He can be reached at (972) 930-1238 or at email@example.com.
© 2022 Commonwealth Financial Network®Back To Blog


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The elusive street artist known as Banksy grabbed headlines on Halloween when a painting he donated to a New York charity sold online for $615,000.
But the buyer immediately defaulted on his bid, according to officials at the charity. And now other bidders are crying foul over the way in which the attention-getting sale was conducted.
The auction was a seeming good deed, capping Banksy’s monthlong residency in New York, during which the anonymous British artist led fans and detractors alike in a hunt around the city to spot his street art.
“The Banality of the Banality of Evil,” was a run-of-the-mill landscape painting to which Banksy added his own flourish: an image of a Nazi guard.
He signed and authenticated the work and donated it to Housing Works, which hung it in the window of its thrift store near Gramercy Park.
The nonprofit organization, which helps homeless people and people with H.I.V. and AIDS, put the painting up for sale on the online auction website Bidding for Good, that same day, Oct. 29.
As the terms of Banksy’s donation stipulated, the auction ended two days later, with the highest bidder offering $615,000 minutes before the 8 p.m. deadline. But that buyer, under the name “gorpetri,” immediately shirked on the bid, said Matthew Bernardo, chief operating officer of Housing Works.
Rachel Hirschfeld, an art collector and the second bidder with an offer of $614,800, received a call on Nov. 1 from an auction official about the painting.
“She said, ‘You win the Banksy,’ ” Ms. Hirschfeld recalled. “I said, ‘Why? Somebody bid more than me.’ She said, ‘He’s out.’ ”
But Ms. Hirschfeld didn’t think it fair to have to pay the full price, if gorpetri’s offers were not genuine. “Every bid that he made has to be out,” she said.
Wil Emling, who served as proxy for one of the anonymous bidders, said he was contacted by Mr. Bernardo on Monday.
“What they did was contact everyone, myself included,” said Mr. Emling, whose top bid was $500,400, “and say whatever you’re willing to pay, let’s make a deal.”
The painting was eventually sold, in a deal completed on Wednesday, Mr. Bernardo said. He would not reveal the sale price and said the buyer wished to remain anonymous.
“We were happy with the sale,” he added, “we were happy with the process which we closed with, and it’s at a very good home.”
But Mr. Emling and Ms. Hirschfeld, a collector of street art who owns other Banksys, complained that the way the company handled the sale was unorthodox at best, and fishy at worst.
After being offered the Banksy, Ms. Hirschfeld eventually offered Housing Works $400,000.
“They came back and said they’d sell it to me for $450,000,” she said. At their repeated insistence, she faxed over an offer letter. But on Wednesday, she was told that she lost the sale to a higher bidder.
“I think they used my fax to bid that person higher,” she said. “I felt very used.”
Suspecting gorpetri had backed out because of authentication issues, Mr. Emling asked for proof the painting was by Banksy. He was told that Banksy would mail him the certificate after the sale. He was also told time was of the essence, and said he felt pressured to make the decision swiftly.
“It’s just odd to be told I have 24 hours to wire any amount and first person that does gets the painting,” Mr. Emling said in an email.
Buyers at auction houses like Christie’s or Sotheby’s are typically vetted financially before they can make large purchases. But Bidding for Good, which works with smaller-scale donations like tickets to “The Daily Show,” simply requires contact information and a credit card, the company said.
A representative for Pest Control Office, the mysterious entity that deals in and authenticates Banksys, confirmed that it planned to send the certificate of authenticity after the sale: “You wouldn’t give someone the deeds to your house before they had paid for it.”
Ms. Hirschfeld wondered if perhaps Banksy himself had bid up the sale, and Mr. Emling suspected that there was more to the painting’s origin story.
He said that Mr. Bernardo told him that Housing Works knew four weeks in advance that Banksy was going to donate a painting, and that Banksy’s people specifically requested a landscape because the artist was going to “put a monster in it.”
Mr. Bernardo denied this or any prior knowledge that a Banksy would be dropped on the doorstep at Housing Works’s Gramercy Park store. “It all happened that day,” he said. The complaints of other bidders amounted to sour grapes, he said.
As for the idea that Banksy himself drove the price higher, Mr. Bernardo admitted it was fun to think about, but said, “there’s no evidence to support that at all.” (Pest Control denied it as well.) Beyond the sale price, whatever it may be, Housing Works benefited in other ways from its brief association with Banksy.
“It’s the most press that we ever had,” Mr. Bernardo said.


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January 29, 2018
Satellite-based LPWAN technologies are expected to overpower cellular-based network technologies such as LTE-M,NB-IoT, and strengthen IoT use cases for global asset tracking in oil and gas, and transportation, according to new research from Frost & Sullivan that examines the Industrial IoT platform market. It is one of four key industry trends around Industrial IoT platforms identified in its report, “Landscaping IIoT Platforms—Vendor Clusters and Growth Prospects.” In turn, the research says Application Programming Interface modules will be at the center of Industrial IoT strategies, and open cloud developer platforms such as Predix DOJO that allow collaboration between industry experts and in-house software developers will accelerate proof-of-concept modeling for customers. Finally, artificial intelligence engines and cognitive capabilities “will soon become a hygiene factor” in IIoT platforms primarily driven by the need to surpass the competition and boost solution performance, according to a press release.
VMware Pushes to the Edge
Advancing its edge computing capabilities, VMware announced the availability of its preview of the AWS Greengrass Core VM Appliance 0.5 this week. AWS Greengrass on VMware vSphere allows select AWS services to run on vSphere in the data center or at the edge. “The majority of our customers have use cases that include cloud, data center and edge scenarios, and it’s important for VMware to provide choice and consistency everywhere applications and services run. The new VM appliance makes it simple to now deploy AWS services such as Greengrass Lambda Functions anywhere that vSphere runs,” VMware CTO Chris Wolf wrote in a blog post announcing the news.
Software AG Gets Support for Streaming Analytics Use Cases
Strengthening its Industrial IoT portfolio, Software AG will partner with AXOOM to help customers perform industrial strength analytics on high data volumes and interactions using streaming and predictive analytics, according to a press release. The AXOOM digital business platform comprises a variety of off-the-shelf frameworks and pre-built modules that can connect to a wide variety of partner solutions via the AXOOM Apps store and to IoT devices on critical production equipment. That data can be captured upstream in real time by modules within the Software AG Digital Business Platform. On its earnings call this week, Software AG said its Industrial IoT unit would double in size in 2018, according to Reuters.
C3 IoT Raises $100 Million in Funding
AI and IoT platform vendor C3 IoT announced a new round of $100 million in financing by existing investors TPG Growth, Breyer Capital, Sutter Hill, Pat House and Thomas M. Siebel, according to a press release. In November, C3 IoT’s analytics platform was selected by the Defense Innovation Unit Experimental, part of the Department of Defense, according to coverage in RTInsights. C3 IoT also provides applications for predictive maintenance, fraud detection, sensor network health, supply chain optimization, energy management and customer engagement.
IoT Spending Not in Top 10 for Government CIOs
IoT spending is a top 10 priority for private sector CIOs, but ranks slightly lower in the public sector, according to a Gartner press release on IT priorities for federal CIOs. “The Internet of Things (IoT) is a top 10 item for all industries, but is not present for government (ranked 12th). The two exceptions are local government due to smart city projects, as well as defense and intelligence, which relies on data flowing from sensors that monitor a wide range of activity,” according to a press release.
Bridgestone Tests Smart Tires
Bridgestone has launched a pilot of its Tirematics solution, which leverages IoT data to enhance fleet management and operational efficiency, for yard management in the Asia Pacific region, according to coverage in Traction. The combination of sensors and software monitors tire pressure and temperature in real time, and alerts service managers via email or SMS when abnormal tire pressure or temperature is detected.
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Antibacterial Handwash Soaps Are Ripping You Off
There have been reports in the past suggesting antibacterial soaps or handwash are not really more effective in killing germs s germicidal soaps do.
In fact, scientists and medical experts worry that these so called germ-killing liquid soaps could even worsen the harmful effects of bacteria in the long run as germs mutate and become immune to the soap.
Now, a new study confirms that these hand soaps are not really special and don’t provide extra germ killing benefit for the user.
Now experts call on manufacturers to stop marketing such products in such a way that will confuse consumers.
Exaggeration in advertising is the main concern of netizens.
One netizen says products like Safeguard should be examined by experts and government agency.
Link to more news about triclosan


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This. Is. Huge.
It attracts Hollywood A-listers each year come TIFF – not bad for a basement experience, huh? – and now it’s heading west to Oakville.
And we don’t even have a Four Seasons within walking distance.
Very famous people who’ve dined at this Toronto hotspot include Oprah Winfrey, Drake, Blake Lively, Robin Williams, and Mark Wahlberg — and that’s just a fraction of its star power.
(Side note: this puff pastry dumpling with pear tastes as good as it looks!)
So … are you ready to say you’ve Sotto’d?
Sotto Sotto, one of Yorkville’s most established restaurants, is going to be opening a downtown Oakville location.
It’s going to be on the ground level of The Randall Residences, currently under construction at the southwest corner of Randall St. and Reynolds Rd.
“I don’t believe there is an established move-in date yet” for the restaurant, said Rosehaven Homes marketing manager Heather Weeks back in 2017.
Sotto Sotto will likely open in late 2019, said Weeks.
The menu includes Italian staples such as risotto, gnocchi, tiramisu, steak, branzino, and veal.
Did we mention steak?
They’re known for using fresh ingredients to craft simple classics.
Favourite dishes, such as Vongole In Padella (steamed clams in white wine), Sardine Alla Griglia (grilled fresh sardines), Carpaccio Di Manzo (beef tenderloin with shaved parmigiana and baby arugula), and Pennette Via Frattina (penne, salmon and asparagus in a rose sauce) will soon be so much closer to home.
And that wine list is absolutely unreal.
This means our town’s Italian food scene just got even more legit.
Are they taking reservations now for date night?!
Photos courtesy of Sotto Sotto


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To comply with new European regulations, WhatsApp has raised their minimum age from 13 to 16 years, effectively making a chance that will be mandatory for every tech company working in the European Union (EU) starting on May 25.
“WhatsApp has established an entity within the European Union to provide your services there and to meet the new high standards of transparency for how we protect the privacy of our users,” the company detailed in a recent blog post.
The new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) expands and updates rules that have been in place in the EU since 1995, way before hacks, data leaks, and security breaches were common. The new legislation gives European users more control over personal data and requires that companies obtain individual consent from every user to store and process their personal data, and only for a short period at that.
In the case of anyone under 16, the companies handling personal data will have to have consent from a parent or guardian, and are responsible for “reasonable efforts to verify” the ages.
WhatsApp will also make available for all users to download any personal data the company has stored. “In the coming weeks, you will be able to download and see the limited data that we collect. This feature will be rolling out to all users around the world on the newest version of the app,” the company’s blog post reads.


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“Investors, regulators, consumers are all demanding more, and more accurate, sustainability data. They want to know the environmental and social impacts of the products and services they buy..
San Diego, Calif. (PRWEB) May 13, 2015
Measurabl, the startup for sustainability data management, analytics and reporting now serves more than 1 billion square feet of commercial real estate across 6 countries. The milestone coincides with the 2nd anniversary of the start-up’s founding. The aggregate size, number of commercial buildings, and geographic breadth served make Measurabl one of the fastest-ever adopted software products in the commercial real estate sector.
“We’re pleased with the reception” says Matt Ellis, Measurabl’s Founder and CEO, “but these are still early days for our company and there remains much to do.” Ellis explains the company’s next steps include offering better and more reporting, more data integrations, and delivering curated energy and sustainability solutions based on each customer’s unique requirements.
Rick Smith, Managing Director of Crosscut Ventures, one of Measurabl’s early investors, says there are many applications of Measurabl’s technology. “Investors, regulators, consumers are all demanding more, and more accurate, sustainability data. They want to know the environmental and social impacts of the products and services they buy, and of the companies with whom they do business” notes Smith “and this is a global phenomenon.” By making the data collection and reporting process easy and accurate, Measurabl has not only liberated companies from onerous compliance requirements, but is unlocking the potential for energy efficiency solutions, green bonds and other innovative sustainability solutions.
The 1 billion square foot milestone is best understood in comparison to CBRE Inc, a Fortune 500 company and the world’s largest real estate services company, which manages 5 billion square feet and has been in business since 1906. Ellis was Director of Sustainability Solutions at CBRE before founding Measurabl in 2013. Soon after, Measurabl added CTO Lance Onken and Lead Engineer Dave Schumann, formerly of Websense and Bloomberg respectively, who each brought over a decade of senior enterprise software experience to Measurabl’s development team.
Onken points out that Measurabl is a pure play software company. “This singular focus allows us to build elegant, powerful technology to solve the biggest challenge of our generation: enabling transparency around environmental and social impacts.” With this goal in mind, the company is now taking its platform beyond the commercial real estate sector and into corporate and municipal markets. If its adoption in the real estate market is any indication, Measurabl’s mission remains on solid footing.
Measurabl is sustainability reporting, simplified. Our software uses automatic data import technology and a guided step-by-step process to help organizations collect and report data as well as benchmark and improve performance. By making it possible for any organization to act upon sustainability regardless of size, expertise or resources, we’re setting the standard for financial-grade sustainability reporting and creating the global market for non-financial data. To learn more about Measurabl, please contact info(at)measurabl(dot)com or visit http://www.measurabl.com.


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One country’s project spans over 3 continents, touches over 60% of the world’s populations, includes over 65 nations, and is quietly reshaping the world. If you connect the dots it’s not hard to see which country that is — it’s China.
China is using the most ambitious trillion dollar geoeconomic infrastructure project in modern history to solidify it’s position as world leader and to reroute global trade. This is how China plans to become the world’s next super power.
China’s One Belt One Road Initiative (OBOR):
- Also known as the “belt and road progress, “The Silk Road Economic Belt”, and the “21st-century Maritime Silk Road”.
- Ancient Silk Road: A network of trade routes that spread goods, ideas, and culture across Europe, the Middle East, and China as far back as 200 BC.
- All part of Beijing’s push to increase global influence and promote economic cooperationin such areas as trade, investment, finance, transport and communication:
— Building modern infrastructure can attract more investment and trade along the route.
- The BRI is expected to bridge the ‘infrastructure gap’ in Asia, thus accelerating the economic growth across the Asia Pacific area and Central and Eastern Europe.
- Aims to connect Asia, Europe, Middle East, Africa, and most recently Latin America, with a vast transport network including logistics using:


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The fashion world’s sustainability efforts are ramping up, and Chanel is the latest brand to make a long-term commitment to reduce waste and utilize renewable resources.
Chanel Mission 1.5, the label’s new detailed plan aimed at directly addressing climate change, gets its name from the Paris Climate Agreement, which set out to limit the world’s mean temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
The ambitious program involves every facet of the Chanel business, including retail, supply chain and events like runway shows. It centers around four main goals: 1) to reduce carbon emissions across all operations; 2) to shift to 100 percent renewable electricity by 2025; 3) to offset residual carbon emissions; 4) to finance climate change adaptation by working with communities most impacted by climate change.
“We have a responsibility to be at the forefront, especially with climate strategy, and we belong to the small group of companies that are leading the action,” Chanel chief sustainability officer Andrea d’Avack told WWD. “This is not a reaction to what the clients are telling us; it’s coherent with the way we’ve been working for many years.” D’Avack joined Chanel in 1987, only a few short years after the brand was brought back from anonymity by Karl Lagerfeld. He believes these steps mirror the company’s products by focusing on long-term value.
The brand has taken heat in the past for its grand runway shows, which have gone to the extremes of shipping icebergs, creating a fully stocked supermarket and even a forest all in the name of spectacle. D’Avack told WWD, “We are aware that there could be environmental consequences; that’s why we are really working hand-in-hand with our partners to conceive these shows in an eco-friendly way, trying to reduce the impact on the environment, making sure that we use materials that can be reused and recycled.”
Other efforts include working with sugar beet farmers in France (all alcohol in Chanel’s fragrance line is produced from these sugar beets) and a new partnership with Finnish startup Sulapac to produce biodegradable packaging made from cast-off wood chips. This plant-based packaging would most likely be implemented in the company’s extensive cosmetics portfolio and could help reduce overall weight and related carbon emissions during shipping.
“They are ambitious targets and mean that we have to transform our whole value chain, the way in which we source, produce, distribute to the retailers and merchandisers—our product,” D’Avack told the industry newspaper. “It demands resources, dedication and the involvement of pretty much everybody in the company.”
It’s a challenge that will be costly and take time, but if any company in the fashion world has the resources to make it happen, it may be Chanel. Privately owned by the Wertheimer family, the company has only ever publicly released two revenue reports, the last of which came in 2019 detailing the 2018 fiscal year. In 2018, Chanel generated $11.12 billion in revenue, a figure which increased 10.5 percent from the year prior. For perspective, LVMH brought in $60.67 billion in revenue for 2019––a sum culled together from the dozens of luxury brands under its umbrella.


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Bengaluru: E-commerce giants are back with online sales again. Amazon started its ‘Freedom Sale’ on Thursday and Flipkart would jump onto the bandwagon on Friday.
The State Bank of India is offering 10 per cent discount on a minimum purchase of Rs 3,000 on Amazon during the four-day sale. Similarly, Citibank is offering a 10 per cent cashback on Flipkart during its ‘The Big Freedom Sale’.
Here are the top deals:
- Honor 7X 64 GB is available at 35 per cent discount of Rs 10,999.
2. The Honor View 10 128GB gets a 30 per cent discount, which brings the price down to Rs 24,999.
3. Honor 7A, 32GB is available at Rs 7,999.
4. Apple iPhone SE comes at 30 per cent discount of Rs 17,999.
5. Honor 9 Lite 32GB is available at Rs 10,999 instead of Rs 13,999 on Flipkart.
6. Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro is available at an exchange value of Rs 9,999 with an additional Rs 999 off for Citibank users.
7. Google Pixel 2 will have a discount of Rs 11,001. The net price will be Rs 41,999.
8. Nokia 5 will be available for Rs 5,299 less, bringing the price down to Rs 9,999 during the sale.


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Rebound has launched a business-to-business global online exchange to enable organisations to trade their excess inventory of consumer goods.
Rebound's website focuses on food and beverages, consumer electronics, fashion, household and lifestyle products.
Jeremy Tang, Rebound's joint founder and chief executive, said the company's site differs from other general purpose exchanges because it provides vendors with control over where their stock is sold.
For example, a US supplier of branded goods may not want its excess inventory to be bought and sold by another company in the same country.
"Auction sites don't concentrate on the cross border issues and can't control who is selling where," said Tang.
He added that excess inventory resulted from cancelled orders, production overruns and other problems, but said all the goods are checked for quality.
Rebound is also in negotiation with a supplier of liquidated goods in the offline world to bring its offerings to the web.
Comcast's £29.7bn winning bid more than twice the £13.7bn Rupert Murdoch valued Sky at just eight years ago
A nuclear strike has been considered, but Bruce Willis is nowhere in sight
Spray-on antenna could enable seamless integration of antennas with everyday objects
Parker Solar Probe, TESS and GOLD missions will deliver exciting data, claims NASA


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Mountain America Brings Business Remote Deposit to Small Business Owners
SALT LAKE CITY -- To make the busy lives of small business owners a little less hectic, Mountain America Credit Union has started offering business remote deposit.
The $2 billion CU began offering business remote deposit in late January and has already signed up eight businesses. Through a partnership with MoneyGram and Creative Payment Solutions, the new service allows business owners to scan and deposit checks directly from their place of business, anytime day or night.
"Saving time is often one of the most valuable services we can offer our small business owners," said Jared Johnstone, vice president of business services at Mountain America CU. "The credit union benefits also, by increasing branch efficiencies in transaction processing. That efficiency enables us to serve more members."
The credit union said it has more than 10,000 business accounts within its membership of 240,000 consumer members. Mountain America has been offering business services for nearly three years including Small Business Administration loans, commercial loans, cash management and insurance products.
Jacquetta McCracken, member and owner of G3 Enterprises, said, "The system is very easy to use. I love not having to make the drive to Albuquerque [200 miles round trip] to make my deposits. It just takes the couple of clicks just like Mountain America showed in the demo and the deposit is done. I figure that in just a couple of months it will have paid for itself in the amount of gas and time that I'll have saved."


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The battle between Apple and Epic continues to heat up, with the news that Apple has filed a lawsuit against the Fortnite developer.
In the application, Apple’s lawyers write that Epic has violated its contract with Apple and has caused financial damage by charging customers in unauthorised ways. Apple is seeking compensation for that damage, and wants the court to ban Epic from using its own payment systems in Fortnite and all other apps on the App Store, reports CNBC.
In a statement submitted with the lawsuit itself, Apple writes that Epic is trying to portray itself as “a modern corporate Robin Hood, [but] in reality it is a multibillion-dollar enterprise that simply wants to pay nothing for the tremendous value it derives from the App Store”.
The two firms have been busy devising multiple avenues of attack on one another. Earlier this week we reported that Epic had submitted a preliminary injunction asking a court to force Apple to put Fortnite back on the App Store (it was removed in August) and give back access to its developer account (which Apple closed last week).
The dispute centres on Apple’s 30% cut of revenues from the App Store, and Epic’s use of alternative payment methods to bypass this cut.
This article originally appeared on Macworld Sweden. Translation by David Price.


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:: 4.02.2004 ::
More info on Kerry's economic plan
Found on YahooNews:
Domestic employment at Intel Corp. slipped by more than 3,300 people last year, but it grew by more than 4,300 abroad. By the end of 2003, the company had $7 billion in cumulative foreign earnings, $700 million more than it had sheltered in 2002, according to SEC filings. The semiconductor powerhouse stated that it "intends to reinvest these earnings indefinitely in operations outside the U.S."
I can't believe it's a big coincidence that the drop in corporate tax revenue as a result of tax avoidance started the year Bush took office. There is, of course, some disagreement around whether Kerry's plan would actually fix our very broken corporate tax structure. Sounds like a good start, tho.
The Kerry campaign said U.S.-based multinational corporations are deferring taxation on $12 billion in foreign earnings each year, a figure that may be low, corporate tax experts say. Corporate tax revenue in 2003 fell for the third straight year, to its lowest in a decade. As a percentage of the economy, business taxes last year reached the second-lowest level since the Great Depression. Few doubt that tax avoidance has been a reason for meager corporate tax collections, and the deferral of taxes on foreign earnings may be one of the biggest factors.
Under Kerry's plan, U.S.-based companies would have to pay taxes immediately on virtually all foreign profits that are not taxed by another country. Firms could still defer taxation on profits from subsidiaries set up abroad to serve local markets, but if a U.S. company sets up overseas to ship goods back home, taxes would be due in full.
The $12 billion in additional taxes would be used to lower the corporate tax rate to 33.25 percent, from 35 percent. By closing a major loophole used by only the largest multinationals, the plan would bestow a tax cut on more than 99 percent of U.S. companies, Kerry advisers say. Kerry would also try to lure an estimated $639 billion in untaxed foreign earnings back home with a "tax holiday" that would lower the rate on repatriated earnings to 10 percent for one year.
:: Deb 12:12 PM :: permalink ::
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Re-design netflix’s envelope, or else
December 7, 2007
Netflix has been hailed as one of the most innovative business ideas in recent history.
Much of its success has been down to the brilliant design of its envelope, a very simple, but important element that allows the business to function.
It now appears this envelope has been adding costs the United States Postal Service that it can no longer tolerate.
According to Engadget.
“Apparently, those buggers have cost the US Postal Service a staggering $41.9 million in additional labor costs over the past two years due to their “nonmachinable nature,” and if things aren’t changed, it could cost ’em another $61.5 million over the next couple years. In a letter from the Inspector General’s office, Netflix is being, um, asked to rework its mailers or face a $0.17 surcharge per envelope, and if such a fee was tacked on, it would reportedly decrease the outfit’s monthly operating income per paying subscriber by a whopping 67-percent. Not surprisingly, it sounds as if Netflix will bite the bullet and redesign the problematic mailer if the USPS is serious about the charges, so feel free to keep an eye out for a design change in the not-too-distant future.”
Given that Netlfix offered a $1 million prize to anyone who could improve their recommendation algorithm, it’s possible we could be about to see Netflix launch a design competition for its new envelope. That 67% decrease in operating income means the prize money is likely to look rather good.
Posted by Ed CottonNext post Previous post
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This story is from October 19, 2018
Soon, traffic sentinel to get own application
PANAJI: The traffic sentinel scheme, which enables citizens to report traffic violations via WhatsApp to authorities in Goa, is in the final stages of getting its own automated mechanism.
Director general of police Muktesh Chander said, "The automation of the traffic sentinel scheme will be announced shortly."
A registered user accumulates points for every violation that he or she reports on this number and for every 100 points gathered, the user can get a reward of Rs 1,000.
After the scheme gets its own app, the entire process will be carried out using the new platform and even payment to citizens who report the violation will be carried out electronically. Various brands of e-wallets and a credit and debit card system will be linked with the app.
more from times of india cities


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Jack Levine: Pioneer and Risk Taker
Jack Levine, founder and CEO of CorpLogoWare, Miami, a Promo Marketing Top 50 Distributor, died yesterday of an apparent heart attack. In the wake of recent news reports that cast a critical light on his legacy and business acumen, one thing that cannot be disputed is Mr. Levine’s pioneering spirit of entrepreneurship. Reported to have started a new business “roughly every five or ten years” according to the asicentral.com Web site, the now-defunct CorpLogoWare was Levine’s sixth and most-recent venture. With an eclectic taste in business, Levine had borne the title of founder and CEO to five other companies offering a range of products and services from fashion jewelry to mortgage lending. Levine was hardly afraid of taking risks. It is this same risk-taking that spurred Levine to establish a philanthropic arm to CorpLogoWare.
In previous years, the company took pride in donating its time and products, including hats, T-shirts, bags and awards to a Miami-based charity run by family friends. Michael’s Magic—a camp for underprivileged children—was founded by the parents of Michael Sholtz, who perished in an automobile accident. At the camp, the children learn about nature, and are introduced to a variety of sports and outdoor activities. With all the talk of environmental conservation, it should come as no surprise that Levine would want to get in on a good thing. Before the companies close this month, he was in the process of rolling out his company’s GreenLogoWare—a program that would have enabled sales representatives to offer clients energy-saving and biodegradable promotional products. Levine also made an impression on many of those who worked for him.
Reflecting on his time with CorpLogoWare, a former colleague said, “My take on Jack is that he was a man of devotion and very sincere about his efforts. I think he was truly motivated to really make this company work. I think it was a desire of his to make this company a very strong success.” At the end of the day, it is evident that an industry mover, shaker and risk-taker had lived and thrived among his peers. And it is this spirit of entrepreneurship that Levine embodied that makes the promotional products industry so attractive to all those that encounter it.


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Looks like US Federal regulators are likely to approve Google’s deal to buy Motorola Mobility for $12.5bn, leaving the main hurdle to cross in Europe with the European Commission EC.Google needs to get approval from the US Federal Trade Commission FTC, the EC, the Texas attorney general, and the Senate Judiciary Committee, according to the Associated Press. The FTC and EC are traditionally the two major barriers to a big deal like this, so the likely approval by the FTC will be comforting to Google.One of the things that will go in Google’s favor is its promise to run Motorola Mobility as a separate company, rather than absorbing it into the larger company.
This will allow it to operate on its own and give Google the freedom to spin it off or sell it on further down the line.However, regulators might fear that Google could priorities Motorola Mobility over other providers of the Android operating system, so much so that Google could even give it early releases of new versions of the software ahead of its rivals.Despite this fear, competition is likely to increase across the entire mobile sector. Microsoft’s shares skyrocketed after the announcement, as investors took the view that Google was effectively becoming a rival to its strongest mobile partners, such as HTC and Samsung.
This led some to suggest that Windows Phone 7 could benefit if these companies decide to cool their relations to Google and try to find another partner. Both HTC and Samsung already make Windows Phone 7 devices, but their primary operating system is undoubtedly Android.Despite the caution over what Google might do with Motorola Mobility, HTC, Samsung, Sony Ericsson and LG have all voiced support for the deal, primarily because Motorola Mobility has 17,000 mobile phone patents at its disposal, which Google could use to help defend the Android operating system.
Both HTC and Samsung are involved in bitter patent disputes with Apple, so it’s not surprising to see their support of more patent muscle for Google.Google is already being investigated by the FTC for potential antitrust abuse of its dominant position in the search engine market, where it is accused of bumping its own links up to the top of the list. That case has yet to be decided, but it seems that for buying Motorola Mobility, at least, Google will get the all clear.


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Nokia has a new tablet on the way, and from the sound of things it's going to be one of the hottest gadget offerings coming out this next year. CrunchMobile has already given a thorough overview of this tablet, which is known as either the N900, the Rover, or the RX-51. Whatever it's real name is, the Rover comes with a 3.5” WVGA touchscreen, 5 MP camera with a Carl Zeiss lens, 1GB virtual runtime memory, 32 GB of internal storage, and a host of other nice specs.
The N900 has just recently passed FCC investigation and, if TmoNews is right, it might be hitting the T-Mobilenetwork soon. This new Nokia tablet will be 3G enabled, and powered by Maemo 5. TmoNews noted that it has a front facing speaker, which means that this pseudo-tablet could also end up being a juiced up smartphone.
There's no info on pricing or a release date yet, but more news about this perky superphone should be leaking out over the next couple of days. Nokia hasn't exactly been very good at keeping a lid on this gadget so far.
Robert Evans The excitement about new smartphones, tablets and anything mobile drive
Robert to unearth the latest rumors and developments in this fast
moving space. He adopted 4G as soon as it become available and knows
where the mobile market is going.
Robert can be contacted directly at email@example.com.
Amber Heard Topless Photo Leaked
This weekend another big leak of private celebrity photos has hit the web. First time victims Kaley Cuoco and Jennifer Lawrence are hit again and now reports surface that a private message from Amber Heard to Johnny Depp containing a topless photo has leaked
Kmart Black Friday
Black Friday is still a couple of months away, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t start getting prepared now. If you want to get in on the action in the best way possible it is important to have a good understanding...
About the Geek Mind
The “geek mind” is concerned with more than just the latest iPhone rumors, or which company will win the gaming console wars. I4U is concerned with more than just the latest photo shoot or other celebrity gossip.
The “geek mind” is concerned with life, in all its different forms and facets. The geek mind wants to know about societal and financial issues, both abroad and at home. If a Fortune 500 decides to raise their minimum wage, or any high priority news, the geek mind wants to know. The geek mind wants to know the top teams in the National Football League, or who’s likely to win the NBA Finals this coming year. The geek mind wants to know who the hottest new models are, or whether the newest blockbuster movie is worth seeing. The geek mind wants to know. The geek mind wants—needs—knowledge.


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Apple released its latest software update yesterday and in the process the tech giant might have given us an accidental look at its new Bluetooth earbuds, the Powerbeats 4 wireless earphones. MacRumors spotted the leak in the iOS 13.3.1 release. If legit, the next generation earphones could rival Apple’s new AirPods.
Similarly to the Powerbeats 3, these earphones are expected to have superior sound quality and better battery life than the AirPods. What’s more, if the leaked artwork is anything to go by, the design seems to feature a snug in-ear fit and connecting wire, which means they’ll be much harder to lose than AirPods, too.
Check out the leaked design below.
MacRumors understands that the Powerbeats 4 will have the same H1 chip as AirPods, enabling improved connectivity and “Hey Siri” support, and will undercut the AirPods Pro price tag by $50 — putting them in an estimated $199 price bracket.
When will the Powerbeats 4 arrive? While nothing has been officially announced, when Apple made the same error last year, the PowerBeats Pro launched within days. Stay tuned for updates.


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NetroMedia to showcase Mobile streaming solutions at Mobile World Congress 2011Global CDN and streaming service provider will attend the mobile industry’s pinnacle event in Barcelona for a second year in a row, revealing some of the new mobile solutions it intends on delivering in 2011
NetroMedia has announced today that it will attend the Mobile World Congress, held between February 14 and 17 in Barcelona. The event, generally averaging close to 50,000 attendees, is the world’s largest mobile-specific exhibition.published 6 years ago read more
NetroMedia Announces opening of new office location in LondonThe new location will serve as a central hub for sales, client services and technical support benefiting clients and prospects in that region.
NetroMedia, global CDN and streaming service provider, has announced today the establishment of a new Client Services and Information center in London, United Kingdom.published 6 years ago read more
IBC 2010: NetroMedia Introduces Live Multiplatform Streaming with VSiCasterProduced in partnership with Visionary Solutions Inc, VSiCaster is an end-to-end multiplatform streaming solution for professional video broadcasters. This one unit can deliver scalable live streaming to the PC and Mac, iPhone, iPad, Android, BlackBerry and Set-top Boxes.
NetroMedia, global CDN and streaming service provider, revealed VSiCaster for the first time in Europe at IBC 2010 conference and exhibition, held in Amsterdam. The company adds this hardware device to its existing "cloud-based" multiplatform solutions.published 6 years ago read more
Global CDN NetroMedia will Exhibit at IBC 2010 in Amsterdam, September 9th to 14thNetroMedia will showcase VSiCaster for the first time in Europe and conduct one-on-one business meetings with attendees
NetroMedia, global CDN and streaming service provider, will be exhibiting at IBC 2010 convention held in Amsterdam in the coming September (9th – 14th).published 6 years ago read more


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FILIPINO consumers may have to shell out more money for their beloved sweets as the price of refined sugar zoomed to P115 per kilogram amid crippling supply woes.
Latest Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) data showed the price of refined sugar in Metro Manila markets as of July 15 was as high as P115 per kg, the third consecutive week that authorities recorded above P100-per-kg price level for the commodity.
SRA data showed the average price of refined sugar in Metro Manila wet markets jumped by P2.43 to P89.93 per kg from P87.5 per kg while average quotation in supermarkets rose week-on-week by P3.57 to P85.47 per kg.
Monetary Board member V. Bruce J. Tolentino said Filipinos should brace for more expensive food products that contain sugar, given the skyrocketing price of the raw material.
Tolentino stressed that local sugar prices have remained higher for a “long time” compared to neighboring countries like Vietnam and Thailand.
“Sugar is an administratively-controlled commodity where the controls are in the sugar growers—that means to protect the sector to the detriment of anybody who consumes sugar including manufacturing,” Tolentino, a former agriculture undersecretary, told the BusinessMirror.
“If you go to Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia there are many products that contain sugar and these food products are very cheap. Sugar is an input in the manufacturing process,” he added.
Roehlano M. Briones, senior research fellow at Philippine Institute for Development Studies, said the country’s refined sugar is now the second most-expensive sweetener in the world next to Oman’s. More remarkably, he noted that Oman imports virtually all its sugar supply while the Philippines grows sugar cane.
Briones proposed that the SRA expand its current sugar import program to allow more stocks to enter the country and temper the rising prices that have been hurting both manufacturers and consumers.
Price monitoring report by GlobalProductPrices.com showed that sugar price in Oman as of March is the most expensive in the world at $2.57 per kg followed by the Philippines at $2.42 per kg.
SRA data showed that as of June 26 about 88,410.30 MT of refined sugar has entered the country under the agency’s 200,000-MT refined sugar importation program that is aimed to boost sweetener supply for industrial and bottlers’ use.
However, SRA data showed the country’s total refined sugar remained 7.41 percent lower at 1.040 MMT, compared to last year’s 1.123 MMT.
The wholesale price of refined sugar has steadily risen since the start of sugar crop year 2021-2022. As of July 15, the wholesale price of refined sugar rose to a fresh record level of P4,249.23 per 50-kilogram bag or about P84.98 per kilogram.
Last week, Agriculture Undersecretary-designated Kristine Y. Evangelista said the DA is exploring options, including the importation of more sugar, to temper the rise in sugar prices.
“The importation of sugar is something the SRA [Sugar Regulatory Administration] is looking into, but we [may] have to come up with a new order to ensure our consumers will have access to cheaper sugar,” Evangelista told reporters in an interview in Quezon City. (Related story: https://businessmirror.com.ph/2022/07/19/government-eyes-ways-to-temper-rising-sugar-prices/)
The BusinessMirror reported last month that the country’s sugar stocks will be depleted by August, as demand for the sweetener has outpaced supply due to lower cane production and the delay in import arrivals.
Calculations made by the DA and the SRA showed that the country will run out of refined sugar as early as the last week of July. (Related story: https://businessmirror.com.ph/2022/06/29/phl-may-run-out-of-sugar-by-august-sra/).


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ANAHEIM, Calif., Jan. 22, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- In the townships of South Africa, it is not uncommon to find street musicians playing instruments created out of unconventional and recycled materials. Drawing from this inspiration, Bohemian Guitars officially launches its line of premium six-string oil can guitars at the 2014 NAMM show.
"Growing up in South Africa, we wanted to share this unique local tradition globally. We simply reimagined the design and sound of a timeliness instrument to create a one-of-kind, affordable and sustainable way to make music," said Adam Lee, CEO of Bohemian Guitars. "It's a metal body masterpiece that creates a very unique harmonically-rich sound, and we are so excited to be sharing it at NAMM this year along with our new accessories, the Bohemian Guitar Amplifier and Case."
Bohemian Guitars are perfectly balanced and lightweight. The new harmonically rich Boho Series guitars feature:
- Single coil, humbucker, and p90 pickups
- Twenty-six inch maple necks with 24 frets and rosewood fingerboards
- Adjustable truss rods
- An internal wooden structure for improved acoustic sound amplification
- Three different design options – Surf Wax, Moonshine and Motor Oil
The existing Vintage Series offers a one-of-a-kind guitar with the original antique oil can or lunchbox used as the body. In addition, each guitar is built using parts from used instruments. It's simply up-cycling at its finest.
"While Bohemian Guitars have a distinct artistic appeal, they are made for real, everyday use," added Lee. "We have already started to expand production to meet international demand and look forward to introducing our distinct brand of guitars to musicians all over the world."
Bohemian Guitars will be demonstrating its new line of guitars at NAMM 2014 at booth #1153. For more information, visit www.BohemianGuitars.com or one of its social media channels: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Pinterest, and Google+.
The Bohemian Guitar Boho series starts at $250 and will be offered as a bundle with accessories including the Amp ($50-$100) and the vintage inspired hard case ($75).
About Bohemian Guitars
Founded in 2012, Bohemian Guitars launched its first product line through a successful Kickstarter campaign in January 2013. Bohemian Guitars puts a creative spin on a timeless and classic instrument, the guitar, by creating one-of-a-kind electric guitars, basses, mandolins and ukuleles, using unconventional materials such as vintage oil cans and lunch boxes. Stay in tune with Bohemian Guitars by visiting BohemianGuitars.com or through our social media channels: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Pinterest, and Google+.
Read more news from Bohemian Guitars.
SOURCE Bohemian Guitars


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Following the brand's successful program in 2013, Corona Extra has unveiled its 2014 Limited Edition Boxing bottles collection, available in the brand's 18-pack.
Introduced recently at the Canelo/Lara fight weigh-in in Las Vegas, Nev., the specially-wrapped promotional bottles feature the image, stats and signature of six Golden Boy boxers, including Danny Garcia, Marcos Maidana, Adrien Broner, Paulie Malignaggi, Daniel Ponce de Leon, and Leo Santa Cruz.
The Corona Extra Limited Edition boxing bottles will be available at retail between Aug. 15 and Oct. 31.
In support of the product launch, Corona Extra is offering consumers a chance to win a VIP trip to the Mayweather vs. Maidana fight on Sept. 13 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. Fans can enter Aug. 9 – Sept. 2 through the Corona Boxing hub at www.CoronaExtraUSA.com. The site also features exclusive content including fighter bios, videos and photos, and visitors can vote for which fighters will appear on the 2015 promotional bottles.


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Nokia and Yahoo have announced a partnership that'll see the two companies teaming up to try and break the stranglehold that Google is beginning to exert on email, mapping, instant messaging and navigation on mobile phones.
The deal, which was announced at Nokia's headquarters in Finland, will see Nokia's Ovi maps being rolled out across all of Yahoo's maps and navigation services on the web, with a little badge saying "powered by Ovi". Yahoo's mail and instant messaging services, on the other side of the deal, will be rolled out in place of Nokia's Ovi Mail and Ovi Chat, with a badge saying "powered by Yahoo".
Yahooovi, as I'm hoping the partnership will be called, will also include the federation of the two companies' respective ID services, meaning that your Ovi ID will be usable on your Yahoo account and vice versa. That could help stem some of the ill-feeling from consumers who are unwilling to sign up for yet another account that they know they'll forget the password to.
The first co-branded services will come online in the second half of 2010, but it'll take a while for them to roll out globally -- something which isn't expected to occur until 2011. Of course, the big question is: will the combined offering be good enough to tempt customers away from Google's ecosystem? So far, Nokia's strategy of pre-loading its own Ovi apps onto handsets has had limited success.
Tell us what you think in the comments.


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We have already told you guys that Honor is going to reveal its Play 4 lineup on Wednesday. Thanks, to the leaks and renders, we have come to know much about the devices. Also, the phones have appeared on various certification platforms like MIIT and TENAA. However, there is something new that we came to know about the Honor Play4 Pro. The brand manager in China has shared a video of the phone, revealing it will have a body temperature sensor.
Honor Play4 Pro will have a Body Temperature Sensor
Keeping in mind the need for the sensor in these pandemic times, Honor has taken a really good step. It will really be quite useful during the COVID-19 outbreak. Moreover, the phones have also appeared on Geekbench listing.
The Honor Play4 Pro appears with the model number the OXP-AN00. The listing has revealed that it will come with a Kirin chipset and 8GB RAM. Moreover, it will run Android 10 operating system and EMUI 10 on top without Google services. Also, it will have a 6.57” display and will measure 162.7×75.8×8.9mm. The listing also revealed that it will have a 4,100mAh battery.
On the other hand, the Honor Play4 has a model number DVC-AN00. Unfortunately, the listing does not reveal any information regarding the specs. But thanks to the previous leaks, we know that Play4 will have a 6.51-inch, 1080 x 2400 pixel LCD display. It will have a 4,000 mAh powerful battery. The phone will be available in different RAM and storage configurations. The RAM options include 4GB, 6GB, and 8GB. The storage options include 64GB, 128GB or 256GB storage sizes.
There are variations in many leaks. The official information will come on Wednesday.


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Dollar stores are the fastest-growing food retailers by household expenditure share, according to a new study from experts at Tufts University School of Medicine and the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy.
The study used data from a yearly, nationally representative survey of about 50,000 households from 2008 to 2020 to find the role of dollar stores at the household level. The biggest growth was seen in rural areas where the household expenditure share increased by 102.9% from 2008 to 2020.
What does this say about grocery shopping habits?
"On one hand, as people purchase more food from dollar stores and dollar stores don't necessarily sell the most healthful things, people are concerned that does that mean households consume more unhealthy food items at home?" said Wenhui Feng, an author of the study and a professor at Tufts University School of Medicine.
On the other hand, dollar stores do have a price advantage.
Salvage grocery stores are booming as food prices soar
Many grocery stores will often throw away items that are damaged or nearing their expiration date, but salvage stores sell them at a discount.
Based on the study's findings, the authors have a number of educated guesses as to why there's this increase.
"One possible reason for more people shopping in dollar stores could be that they're maybe filling in the gaps in some of the voids left by grocery stores," Feng said. "Grocery stores have had a consolidation going on in recent years."
The other thought is that the competitive pricing is possibly driving out competition.
Feng said which scenario is dominant is not clear, but these are their educated guesses.
The idea for the study came about when Feng went on a cross-country road trip a few years ago. She noticed while traveling that there were certain stretches with dollar stores as the main option.
"What's interesting is that some of the chains started offering fresh produce, and we're very much looking forward to seeing what that means in terms of the food combinations that people purchase in dollar stores," Feng said.
Although the study was released, Feng said there are still many factors to look into when it comes to dollar store shopping trends.
"There is so much we don't understand yet about what dollar stores mean for the whole population and especially the populations that are historically disadvantaged," she said. "The rural non-Hispanic Black shoppers, those households spend 11.6% of their food budget on dollar stores."


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Thursday, May 18, 2017
East meets West in Indonesian fusion food.
From a restaurant serving burgers and pizzas made with local noodles to a social media star giving street food a touch of haute cuisine, a new wave of innovative chefs are putting a modern twist on Indonesia's traditional fare. New eateries have sprung up rapidly in recent years in the capital Jakarta offering a wide array of foreign foods to cater to a growing consumer class which has emerged after a long economic boom. But rather than focus entirely on cuisine from overseas, some chefs decided to fuse the new influences with age-old Indonesian foods.more


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On Tuesday the Senate Agriculture Committee approved the Safe and Accurate Food Labeling Act, also known as SAFE, which would prevent states from passing mandatory food labeling laws for genetically modified organisms, including one such law scheduled to go into effect July 1 in Vermont, according to The San Francisco Chronicle.
Fourteen of 20 members of the committee, including three Democrats, voted in favor of the markup of the bill by Chairman Pat Roberts, R-Kan.
Opponents of the bill, who call it the Deny Americans the Right to Know Act, or the DARK Act, say it preempts state law and keeps consumers from getting information they want about their food. The legislation, which does not prevent companies from providing voluntary labeling, will now go to a vote on the Senate floor.
“Let the buyers make up their mind,” said Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., who voted against the bill. In the committee meeting, he also said the legislation was too rushed. “You seem to be saying to the world that GE producers have something to hide.”
To read more, click here.


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Downturn in Consumer PC Business Doesn't Ruffle HPBy Channel Insider Staff | Print
Apple and Android tablets cut into PC sales at HP and other computer makers, but the company says there's room for all devices in the all-connected world.
Some observers of the IT world were taken aback by Hewlett-Packard's most recent quarterly earnings report, which plainly showed that the world's largest supplier of personal computers had slipped in the consumer laptop/notebook department.
People who follow the PC business closely, however, were not surprised. These folks already knew that Apple's iPad and iPad 2, as well as a flock of Google Android-based tablets had cut deeply into all mobile PC sales during 2010 and early 2011.
The numbers were stark. Along with all the major PC makers, HP's consumer PC sales fell sharply in the quarter compared to a year ago, before Apple's iPad and numerous other tablets hit the marketplace. Analysts have projected worldwide sales of between 30 and 50 million iPads in 2011 -- not to mention all the other Android and Windows-based tablets now on the market.
"HP experienced uneven consumer performance across its product categories during the quarter with continued softness in consumer PCs across all geographies," was the soft way CFO Cathy Lesjack positioned the company's consumer PC cliff dive in the quarterly report.
HP's consumer PC sales fell a whopping 23 percent in the quarter compared to a year ago. Overall, the worldwide PC market shrank by 3.2 per cent in the first quarter of 2011 compared with 2010, researcher IDC reported. IDC actually had predicted growth of 1.5 percent in the quarter.
Another industry researcher, IHS iSuppli, reported that portable PC sales slumped by more than 11 million units during Q1 2011, attributing it directly to increased interest in tablets. IHS iSuppli expressed surprise at a slight quarter-on-quarter decrease (to 81.3 million units), because PC shipments had reached a quarterly high at the end of 2010 on strong corporate demand.
For more, read the eWEEK article: HP Unruffled by Downturn in Its Consumer PC Sales.


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Texans in areas impacted by the storm may be approached by door-to-door repair and debris cleanup companies. Consumers should make sure they know their rights before signing a contract or paying a salesperson, the consumer alert said.
“Home improvement scams often flourish in the wake of disasters, especially violent storms, such as hurricanes and tornadoes,” the attorney general’s website said. “Some legitimate repair specialists may work door-to-door in these circumstances, but so do con artists.”
Texans should take their time when choosing a contractor, the attorney general’s office said. This includes getting price estimates from multiple companies and speaking with previous customers of the contractor they are interested in hiring.
Most home repair and improvement work is completed under a contract. The attorney general’s office said consumers should:
- Never sign a contract they have not carefully read through or do not understand;
- Never sign a contract that has blanks in it, as the blanks will likely be filled in later with terms the customer did not agree to; and
- Never let anyone rush them into signing a contract.
Consumers often have the right to cancel a contract with a door-to-door salesperson within three days after signing the contract, according to the consumer alert. Door-to-door salespeople are required to inform customers of that right, or else the contract may be considered void.
Texans can report suspicious or fraudulent activity to the Texas Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division by calling 1-800-621-0508 or filing an online complaint here.
The attorney general’s office has more information about home improvement scams here, while information on natural disaster scams is available here.


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It’s only Wednesday and this week has been an exciting one for cryptocurrency. Yesterday Bitcoin hit another all time high of $65,000 and today the excitement builds with Coinbase’s listing on NASDAQ.
Coinbase is one of the leading cryptocurrency exchange platforms and the first to make a public offering. By the time this article goes live, their direct listing will be available on NASDAQ under $COIN. The company has a mammoth valuation of $100 billion and a reference price of $250 so it will be interesting to see where this goes.
What’s the opportunity?
Potentially huge. The cryptocurrency market cap is currently $2 trillion and growing. Anyone with a mobile device can download the coinbase app and buy cryptocurrency making cryptocurrency more accessible than ever before.
Around 90% of Coinbase’s revenue is generated by retail investor transaction fees with the remaining 10% from products and services supplied to institutions, corporates and ecosystem partners.
In 2020, Coinbase’s user base grew from 32 million to 43 million and this year they have continued this growth, now boasting around 56 million users on the app.
While the retail part of its business is heavily dependant on the crypto market and subject to its volatility, there are also opportunities for expansion into less volatile revenue streams – for example, partnering with new corporate clients (they already work with Tesla and many hedge funds, adding new products and services and expanding into new geographies).
The valuation and the excitement around this listing is no doubt going to have an impact on price but it’s difficult at this stage to say whether it’s justified.
Another risk around the valuation is that it depends to some extent on the performance of the crypto market, which is very much outside of Coinbase’s control. A crypto bear market could pose a significant threat.
The competition faced by Coinbase is high and not just from other exchanges like Kraken and Binance. It seems everyone wants a piece of the action and Coinbase could face competition from fintech companies, neobanks and payment apps like PayPal and Square.
Cryptocurrency is also very much in its infancy and there are potential risks from both a regulatory angle and also security threats from cyber attacks.
Will I be buying?
Not yet, but as a believer in the potential of blockchain, I will be adding it to my watch list and looking for an opportune moment to buy in. This is a key milestone in cryptocurrency market history and a significant step in democratising cryptocurrencies. If anything, I look forward to seeing the benefit of this listing reflected in my crypto wallet.


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Doritos Silent is the world’s first AI-augmented snack powered by Crunch Cancellation. Aimed at gamers, the groundbreaking crunch-cancellation technology lets users enjoy their favorite chips without distracting others.
Doritos came up with this latest offering after recent research found that 85 percent of gamers choose Doritos chips as their snack of choice. Now, Doritos has empowered gamers with crunch cancellation chips to enjoy.
Fernando Kahane, Global Marketing Head at PepsiCo, said the connection between Doritos fans and the gaming community is undeniable. “Both boldly and unapologetically embrace their individual flavors. Doritos Silent recognizes this bond and demonstrates the brand’s continued commitment to innovation and elevating the experience for gamers who choose Doritos.”
Doritos collaborated with Smooth Technology for the new crunch cancellation technology. It took six months to develop and involved the technical analysis of more than 5,000 different crunch sounds. Dylan Fashbaugh, the lead developer at Smooth Technology, said it has been an incredible journey working with Doritos to create cutting-edge technology. “We all know that gamers love Doritos, but that unmistakable crunch can often disrupt those intense gaming moments. With ‘Doritos Silent’, we’ve worked to ensure gamers can enjoy the crunch of Doritos without disturbing their fellow players, making for a better gaming experience.”
Matt Watson, the executive creative director of Europe for PepsiCo, said the brand wants to create a ‘stop and stare’ moment. He added the idea is to be disruptive while attempting to solve a problem that gamers say they dislike.
The brand hopes Doritos Silent can benefit millennials and Gen Z who classify themselves as gamers.


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The generic drug makers of the country are set to benefit from the recent changes made by the United States Food and Drugs Administration to the new drug application/generic application rules.
The stocks of these companies may well see an uptrend following this benefit, analysts said.
The US FDA has announced significant changes to the new drug application/generic application rules, which streamlines its approval process for both the patent holder as well as the generic pharmaceutical companies.
The changes place specific emphasis on preventing evergreening of patents, which have delayed generic launches in the past.
It also stresses on the importance of reducing unnecessary delays in approval of generic products.
The changes come into effect from August 19, 2003, with prospective effect.
The pharmaceutical stocks have been witnessing consistent upward trend in the last few months beginning March.
The new US FDA norms are likely to add more zing to the northward movement of the stocks.
The stock price of Dr Reddy's Laboratories which closed on Monday at Rs 1038.20 has appreciated sharply from Rs 888.30 on March 3.
The stocks of pharmaceutical companies such as Alembic closed today at Rs 238.70 has jumped from Rs 142.75 on March 3.
Similarly, Aurobindo Pharma has increased at Rs 336.55 (Rs 234.10 on March 3), Wyeth Lederle at Rs 236.50 (212), Duphar Interfran at Rs 120.65 (118.75), Merck at Rs 257.60 (239.10), Fulford (India) at Rs 99.60 (81.50), GlaxoSmith Pharma at Rs 357.00 (310.85), Aventis Pharma at Rs 340.65 (267.95), Ipca Laboratories at Rs 297.15 (179), JB Chemicals at Rs 204.05 (164.45), Kopran at Rs 33.20 (27.95), Lupin at Rs 229.60 (153.65), Morepen at Rs 13.56, Orchid Chemicals at Rs 139.75 (167.30), Ranbaxy Laboratories at Rs 713.85 (631.55). Only Cipla has declined at Rs 752.35 (774.10).
According to a report by Alchemy Research, the new rule announced by the US FDA is a positive step for the generic drug industry.
The generic companies like Dr. Reddy's Labs may benefit more than the others due to its emphasis on patent challenges.
The underlying purpose of the changes is to ensure quicker introduction of generic drugs for the benefit of the consumers.
These changes will ensure that patent holders do not get unnecessary patent protection due to ever greening of patents.
Only one 30-month stay per abbreviated new drug application or a 505(b)(2) application is expected to reduce the time taken for settlement of patent litigation as well as the cost of such litigation.
The numbers of patent lawsuits are also expected to gradually decline in the coming years due to the strict patent listing criteria under the new rules.
Patent holders will not be able to prevent generic competition by listing frivolous patents for packaging of the drug, changing the colour of the drug, etc.
The FDA has also proposed hiring of additional employees in its generic drug review program, who will guide generic applicants to ensure that rejections are reduced to a minimum and as a consequence squeeze the time required for approving generic applications.


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Several Renton businesses will be exhibiting in the upcoming Seattle Home Show, which kicks off Feb. 17 at CenturyLink Field Event Center in Seattle.
The Seattle Home show is the largest and oldest consumer home show in the nation.
“The Seattle Home Show offers consumers a one-stop venue to see just about everything they might need for the home, from design advice to building materials and more,” said Mike Kalian, managing director of the Seattle Home Show, in a press release.
Renton businesses that will be present at the show include Air-Care USA Inc., Alpine Gentle Roof Cleaning, Aqua Quip, Cummins, Inc., Habitat for Humanity Seattle-King Co., Lake Washington Windows & Doors, Northwest Log Home Care, P & P Local 32, Pan Abode Cedar Homes, Inc., Puget Sound Abatement, Seal Team One, Sound Door Services and Xtreme Pet Products.
Admission to the event is $13 for adults, $9 for seniors, $3 for kids aged 7 to 15 and free for kids under 7.
For more information or to purchase tickets, visit http://www.seattlehomeshow.com/.