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With Battlefield 2042 creeping ever closer to launch, there is an obvious hunger on fans’ part to learn more about what comes next. Although details are not exactly clear, EA and DICE have shared a little more about the upcoming first season of Battlefield 2042, alongside more about the battle pass system.
At launch, dubbed the Preseason period, there will be Weekly Missions and Rewards up for grabs. Players can also experience more Limited Time Modes, featured Creator Spotlights, as well as more Battlefield Portal shenanigans.
Following that, Season 1 of Battlefield 2042 will begin early next year, which will also bring the game’s first battle pass and new specialist. Players can expect to see a new operator with unique abilities and traits, and there remains a possibility of a new map as well. More Portal content will also be added.
In all, DICE is looking to deliver a total of four Seasons and four Battle Passes for Battlefield 2042 in the first year. That means a total of four new Specialists and even more maps for mayhem to unfold. If you much rather mess around in Battlefield Portal, the team will look to provide more updates as well.
Although DICE has not detailed the upcoming content further, knowing that a concrete plan is in place should put the minds of fans at ease for now. If everything goes according to plan, you will have more Battlefield 2042 enjoyment in the future.
We can expect to hear more from DICE and EA in the coming months once the first-person shooter has launched and found its sea legs.


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The Reserve Bank is expected to come out by June-July with guidelines to regulate the Indian peer-to-peer (P2P) lending market.
The bill was passed by voice vote at the special session of the House. The bill was introduced by Chief Minister Dr. Shurhozelie Liezeiestu, who also holds the Finance portfolio.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) yesterday held marathon meetings in its efforts to tackle the bad loan mess. Watch accompanying video of CNBC-TV18's Ritu Singh for more details.
A record 99 lakh new PAN cards have also been made in the last one year, he noted.
The National Green Tribunal has allowed the conditional reopening of 578 textile units in Rajasthan's Pali district that had been shut for the last eight months for flouting pollution norms.
While the government has not released any official statement on the jobs that will be created by GST, human resource consultants believe that between 2,00,000 to 3,00,000 jobs will be created in the next two to three years.
The plan was disclosed by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Friday in Nagpur after inaugurating the country's first multi-modal electric vehicle project and Ola electric charging station.
In order for organisations to attract, retain and develop millennial talent, the employer will need to understand the diverse range of millennials and what their key objectives are, for pursuing a job.
The biggest advantage from demonetisation has been seen by insurance entities promoted by large banks. who have been able to cross-sell products to their depositors.
"The state government will frame a policy to set up electric vehicle charging stations for electric vehicles across the state," Fadnavis said.
Universities abroad seek holistically developed individuals, so you’re going to need a lot more than just good test scores and recommendations. You will need to start building your profile from a young age by pursuing your strengths and interests.
The Vishwa Hindu Parishad today termed fresh restrictions on sale of cattle as mere "tokenism" that will not address the issue of cow slaughter.
Mauritius Prime Minister Pravind Kumar Jugnauth today said a comprehensive economic cooperation pact with India is being negotiated that will boost bilateral trade and cross-border investments.
Various bodies and political parties reacted sharply to the government's decision to ban the sale and purchase of cattle from animal markets for slaughter, saying it is an "ill advised" decision which will widen the "terrorism" by cow vigilantes.
With the FIPB on its way out, there will be a new system for FDI and that shall it become a reality very soon, that's the word coming in from Ramesh Abhishek the secretary of the DIPP. Speaking to CNBC-TV18's Rituparna Bhuyan, Abhishek said that the Department of Economic Affairs should issue the order in the next four weeks.
The meeting will take stock of status of stressed assets and various measures taken to clean up balance sheets of the banks so that they can start lending.
Ramesh Singh, Executive Director of Dena Bank, said the bank envisioned a sustainable growth in auto loan segment with this tie-up and recent introduction of dealers pay out scheme.
With this bracket of consumers coming under serious risk of a job loss, there is a possibility that recovery of residential sector in the mid-premium category will be delayed
He said that the company is developing electric cars but to anticipate a significant number of such cars on Indian roads is early, mainly because of infrastructure and affordability.
GST implementation will be a positive development for the road logistics sector, where a more efficient and organised sector is expected to improve gradually.

domain: news


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A charity boss who feared his organisation would have to close when thieves stole a vital forklift truck is delighted after a £12,000 replacement was donated.
For 24 years Rod Jones has run Convoy Aid Romania - a charity which exports consignments of donated goods out to north east Romania for those in need between four and five times a year.
But when thieves stole the charity’s forklift truck in December last year, Rod, 67, feared it could have been the end for the charity.
Speaking at the time Rod said: “We’re in a situation where we were going to have to close down. This could wipe us out completely,
“It’s devastating - there’s no big wigs here, nobody makes any money out of it.
“Whoever has stolen it - if only they knew what damage they’re doing to people who have nothing.”
When forklift specialists Jungheinrich UK heard about Rod’s plight, the company decided to donate a newly refurbished replacement truck free of charge.
Convoy Aid Romania took delivery of the truck worth £12,000 today with Martin Hall, area sales manager at Jungheinrich UK handing over the keys to a jubilant Rod.
Martin said: “We got to hear about Convoy Aid losing their truck from the newspapers and we just thought it’s a fantastic cause that we can do something to help.
“For that reason we’ve decided to donate a refurbished truck from our Dresden plant in Germany.
“Rod’s dedicated his life to this. It’s a fantastic charity.”
Following last year’s theft, Convoy Aid has tightened security with someone remaining on site 24 hours a day and the yard having a CCTV system.
Rod was delighted with the delivery of the truck and is keen to get work started on sending a new convoy to Romania straight away.
He said: “It’s a whole new ball game now. We can actually move stuff again.
“To fill a truck, 25 men would take all day lifting by hand - with the forklift truck, one man can do the same work in four hours. The difference is huge.
“At this moment, if we can get a truck down here on Friday we can be sending a convoy off on the same day.”


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GR: "You'll find the latest DMC: Devil May Cry trailer above, straight out of Germany's Gamescom. Here's a preview, incase you can't be bothered to watch the gameplay for yourself:
slash-slash-slash, shoot-shoot-shoot, lift-slash-lift-slash, shoot-shoot, slash-slash-slash
Seems like Devil May Cry to me! Regardless, fanboys started out DMC's development cycle with a laundry list of complaints, mostly surrounding Dante's new look. While developers Ninja Theory have been pretty up front about the fact that this DMC is a prequel and will tell the story of Dante's... uhh... unique look, we didn't know how that would take place or if white-haired Dante would even show up in game."


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If you're a regular attendee of the NRF "Big Show," held in New York in January each year, you see trends come and go. Next-big-thing candidates ripple across the exhibit floor from year to year, and this one was clearly the year of the tablet.
There were many, many companies this year looking to entice retailers into outfitting stores with their tablet-based solution, most of them more alike than different. Video highlights of a few of them are below, from Microsoft, ShopKeep and Zebra, respectively.
What will be interesting to watch in the coming months, as retailers move to a store design scheme that incorporates tablets, will be the evolution of the software feature sets. How important will wish lists be? In the cloud, or not in the cloud? And given our editorial focus, we have to ask the question that we haven't heard asked yet: Do customers want more technology in stores?
There's a lot of competition in this space — and a whole lot of room for innovation.
James Bickers /
James Bickers is the senior editor of Retail Customer Experience, and also manages webinars for Networld Media Group. He has more than 20 years experience as a journalist and innovative content strategist, with publication credits in national, international and regional publications. www


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SEACOM secures $207 million from IFC to boost digital connectivity in Africa
SEACOM LTD, one of the leading Pan-African data services providers, has secured $207 million in funding from the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to accelerate digital connectivity in seven African countries.
The funding will be utilized to expand and upgrade its submarine and terrestrial cable infrastructure across the African continent. The funding will also support deploying new fiber-optic networks and enhancing existing infrastructure, ensuring faster, more reliable, and affordable internet connectivity for businesses and consumers.
The seven countries set to benefit from SEACOM’s infrastructure development include Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, South Africa, Rwanda, Uganda, and Djibouti. These countries were selected due to their strategic geographic locations and potential to significantly impact regional digital transformation efforts. The investment aligns with SEACOM’s commitment to bridging the digital divide and promoting inclusive growth in Africa.
The project aims to unlock opportunities in various sectors, including e-commerce, telecommunication services, healthcare, education, and finance, by bolstering digital connectivity. Improved internet access will enable businesses to expand operations, drive innovation, and enhance productivity.
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Core DAO has announced the launch of the African Innovation Fund, a groundbreaking initiative to provide resources and networks to support local Web3 builders and projects across the African continent.
Endeavor and FMO, the Dutch entrepreneurial development bank, have announced the launch of the second cohort of their African Agritech Accelerator program.
Swedish automaker Volvo Cars and Egyptian bus manufacturer Manufacturing Commercial Vehicles (MCV) have signed an agreement to manufacture electric bus bodies in Egypt for export to Europe.


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The public's reluctance to return to the office or use public transport is having a "devastating effect" on shops in town and city centres across the UK and will lead to more job losses and store closures, the British Retail Consortium has warned.
The latest figures for footfall in August showed high streets are bearing the brunt of consumers' nervousness to return to shops, seeing 41.7pc fewer visitors than the same month last year.
Meanwhile footfall at retail parks - which generally have wider open spaces, a higher proportion of essential shops such as supermarkets, and larger stores which were quicker to reopen - was down 11.1pc year-on-year.
Overall footfall in shops in the UK fell by 34.8pc in August compared to the previous year, an improvement of only 7.3 percentage points on July’s figures.
There was an increase in the final week of the month. The BRC and ShopperTrak, which compile the figures, attributed the uplift to the last days of the chancellor’s Eat Out to Help Out scheme.
Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the BRC, said: "Footfall remained well below normal levels in August. In-store discounting and demand for school wear helped lure some customers back to the shops, but with many office blocks still empty and much of the public avoiding public transport, footfall is not returning to towns and city centres and this is having a devastating effect on the local economies in these areas."
She said that although many businesses have been investing in making workplaces safer, towns and city centres were "unlikely to see significant growth in footfall" while a significant number of people are still working from home.
The government has begun to encourage people to return to the office in a bid to kickstart the economy. Earlier this week, the Prime Minister promised that ministers were "working at pace" with rail companies to launch flexible season tickets for reluctant commuters.
As a result of fewer customers, businesses could struggle to meet their costs, Ms Dickinson warned. "The Government should also recognise that, while footfall is so low, many businesses will not be able to manage their fixed costs – rent and business rates in particular – and unnecessary job losses and store closures will follow."
According to a Confederation of British Industry survey released last week, retail job cuts have surged to their worst level for a decade.
Last month M&S announced it will cut 7,000 roles. Boots, John Lewis and Topshop owner Arcadia have also shed workers this summer.
However, the BRC and ShopperTrak data showed that, compared to its European counterparts, UK shopping has recovered reasonably well, ahead of Germany, Italy and Spain but behind France.


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SUNNYVALE, Calif., April 12, 2016 – Intertrust Technologies Corporation today announced it is showcasing its suite of Internet security and trusted computing products at the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) Show in Las Vegas, which runs from April 18-21. Intertrust is demonstrating products that enhance the way people make content and devices trusted across the entire digital entertainment ecosystem – including pre-production, production, post-production and consumption. Intertrust products provide content protection and app security and enable monetization of protected content by sharing data across distributed trusted cloud services.
Attendees at NAB seeking to build security for devices, such as remote drones and camera controls, collaboration systems, playback systems, and more, or simply looking for ways to monetize protected content distributed across the cloud, can find solutions and meet the Intertrust team at the South Hall, Intertrust Booth SU10002CM.
Intertrust, the inventor of trusted distributed computing and digital rights management (DRM), has been a force in content management and protection technologies for many years. Intertrust has recently expanded its technologies to enable a broad range of vertical markets, adding authentication and tamper resistance technologies for platforms that provide cloud rights management capabilities.
“Today, it’s important that the connected devices in the digital entertainment ecosystem are secure and trusted – whether it’s for remote controlled drones, VR goggles, digital dailies or consumer playback devices,” said Tim Schaaff, Intertrust’s chief product officer. “All touchpoints within the ecosystem have trust vulnerabilities, and anybody sharing cloud-based data must be armed with an assortment of digital rights mechanisms as the data journeys across the many touchpoints in the entertainment network.”
The company is showcasing the following products at NAB 2016:
Digital Rights Management – ExpressPlay Multi-DRM Media Cloud: Intertrust invented DRM in the 90s and has pioneered many groundbreaking DRM platforms over the years. ExpressPlay is its latest multi-DRM cloud. Today, Intertrust offers a cloud service that manages content deployed to all major smartphones and smart devices using all major DRM technologies from Apple, Google, Microsoft, and Marlin, the world’s only open DRM standard. ExpressPlay offers advanced features including multi-device support and forensic watermarking and is approved by all major content providers.
Software Tamper Resistance – whiteCryption: Every mobile app or device developer who has a secret to hide knows that hackers will attack the app’s software instructions. whiteCryption provides the world’s most advanced code obfuscation and white-box crypto technologies that protect apps with sensitive information and thwart attacks on apps. Today, whiteCryption protects major media players. Applications that need app security are limitless as remote devices, IoT devices and M2M systems proliferate. whiteCryption is rapidly becoming the standard of care against app hacking.Trusted Analytics for Mobile Video Advertising – Personagraph: Intertrust created Personagraph as a high-performance distributed Big Data platform to support horizontal applications. Today, Personagraph collects and analyzes behavioral data from hundreds of millions of mobile users and uses the insights from that data to fuel targeted mobile advertising. Personagraph has advanced Big Data rights management capabilities that include privacy and enterprise policy management. In addition to providing powerful mobile video advertising to thousands of mobile apps on Android and iOS, Personagraph can be used by operators to analyze in-house data sets in a secure fashion. In addition to the demonstration booth, Intertrust executives will also participate in a panel debate called “Are You Ready for the Mobile Video Revolution,” which takes place Monday, April 18, at 3 p.m. in the Connected Media Pavilion, and will also be giving a seminar called, “Emerging Markets and Content Protection – Not an Oxymoron!” on Wednesday, April 20, at 4 p.m. in the Connected Media Pavilion.
###About Intertrust Technologies Corporation
Intertrust provides trusted computing products and services to leading global corporations – from mobile and CE manufacturers and service providers to enterprise software platform companies. These products include the world’s leading digital rights management, software tamper resistance and privacy-driven data platforms for ad tech, DNA storage and IoT.
Founded in 1990, Intertrust is based in Silicon Valley, with regional offices in London, Tokyo and Beijing. The Company has a legacy of invention, and its fundamental contributions in the areas of computer security and digital trust are globally recognized. Intertrust holds hundreds of patents that are key to Internet security, trust and privacy management components of operating systems, trusted mobile code and networked operating environments, web services, and cloud computing.Additional information is available at intertrust.com, or follow the company on Twitter or LinkedIn.


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Chip-maker Elpida is to raise over $990 million in an effort to concentrate on producing silicon for smartphones and tablets.
The company, which is best known for its production of memory products like DRAM, is refocusing its efforts on areas that it sees as being significantly more profitable, but it needs to raise close to a billion dollars to fund such a major change in direction.
To generate the cash, Elpida will dilute existing shares to create new ones, a move which won't go down well with current shareholders. It will also add convertible bonds to bring in more money, reports Reuters.
The DRAM market, in which Elpida is a dominant player, has been losing money recently, with iSuppli figures showing a drop in revenue from $10.8 billion in 2010 to $8.2 billion in the first quarter of this year.
This lack of demand has led to Elpida making a loss of $65 million in the first quarter of the year, compared to a profit of $470 million a year earlier.
It's therefore not surprising that Elpida decided to refocus on the smartphone and tablet markets, which have been booming over the past 12 months.
Elpida will spend $310 million of the new funds on a new factory in Hiroshima, which is expected to open in 2013. It will use some of the other money to pay off its debt.
Rivals like Samsung and Hynix are storming ahead in the smartphone and tablet chip markets, so it won't be an easy battle for Elpida, but it's certainly a better bet than the ailing DRAM sector.


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The chairman of the board of an Israeli clothing manufacturer told "Business Under Fire'' author Dan Carrison a joke that speaks volumes about how Israelis and Israeli businesses cope with the waves of terror, especially in the past four years.
"One day G-d called all the leaders of the world into Heaven. He told them they had made a mess of the world, and that it was time to start the whole experiment over. 'Go to your peoples,' he thundered, 'and tell them in six months I shall cover the earth with another flood.' Contrite, the American president advised his countrymen to repent and prepare to meet their Maker. The Russian president told his subjects to eat, drink and be merry, for soon the world would end. The Israeli prime minister told the Knesset, 'We have six months to learn to live underwater.'"
The joke teller was Dov Lautman of Delta Galil Industries, which makes about $600 million worth of underwear each year that is sold under such brands as Calvin Klein, Hugo Boss, Nike, Ralph Lauren and Donna Karan through such retailers as Marks & Spencer, Target, Wal-Mart, Victoria's Secret, J.C. Penney and the Gap.
Lautman was among 30 Israeli business executives and managers whom Carrison interviewed for "Under Fire,'' all determined to weather the worst that those dedicated to their destruction can throw at them no matter long they do it.
That determination, Carrison writes, is not founded on any hope of peace in the foreseeable future. But neither does it reflect despair.
"A lack of optimism does not necessarily translate into poor economic performance. In fact, it can be argued that Israeli companies are rock solid because of their indifference to rumors of peace or war. The Israeli CEOs, executives and managers I interviewed all had an implacable air about them, behind the charm, behind the humor. Like soldiers too long in battle or like patients whose constant pain has finally smoothed the facial features these managers were imperturbable," Carrison writes.
He came away from his interviews with the impression that those businesspeople would not be overjoyed by a peace treaty. Nor would they be devastated by a Palestinian violation of the treaty. They are dismissive of the news media and not overly concerned about world opinion. They see it as their responsibility to lead their country and their economy to increasing levels of performance.
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"The Israeli business community has demonstrated to the world that the issue of peace with terrorists as a prerequisite for business excellence should be forgotten. Peace is not a realistic possibility as long as there are legions of fanatics in the world, and it should be completely irrelevant to the profitable functioning of a business.
"If there is reason for optimism, it is the certainty that the civilized societies will eventually reduce the frequency of terrorist attacks to an acceptable level. Just as organized crime has been controlled but not conquered, terrorism can be stifled," Carrison writes.
Lautman's company has not been hit directly by terrorism because 90 percent of its sales are in Europe and the United States. It has contingency plans for meeting delivery schedules through plants in industrial zones outside Israel.
But Lautman told Carrison that every business is affected by the Palestinian intifada, or uprising, because it makes investors squeamish about Israel.
Moreover, he points out, Israel is small, the size of New Jersey, and everyone knows someone who has suffered from terrorist attacks.
The theme of everyone being affected was echoed by other executives and managers of companies with facilities and customers abroad and well-secured, largely inaccessible domestic plants. Some are high-tech companies providing cutting-edge terrorist-detection and protection equipment to customers in Europe, Asia and the United States.
Tourism is the Israeli industry hurt worst by terrorism. Yet hotel managers make money with occupancy rates as low as 15 percent. They have had to drastically reduce staffing and the percentage of rooms available. But they insist on providing first-class service.
Their customers are primarily locals: Many Israeli companies provide incentives for employees to vacation in Israel. At the same time, however, they focus marketing efforts on American Jewish organizations and American Christian evangelicals.
Everyone Carrison interviewed who is in tourism criticizes the news media for exaggerating reports of bombings and scaring people into believing that Israel is unsafe. Israeli cities, which have little violent crime other than terrorism, are safer than most European and U.S. cities, tourism businesspeople say.
Nevertheless, from their own descriptions of the continuing suicide bombings and assaults on buses, the horrors of the bombings of Mike's Restaurant, the Bialik Cafe and Dolphinarian nightclub, it is understandable that some venture capitalists and other investors who go to Israel keep their planes ready to leave.
Carrison offers a readable account of a business community thriving under extraordinarily difficult circumstances. And he extracts valuable lessons for businesses in the United States, should the same terrorists trying to sink Israel's economy mount a similar effort here.


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Instagram is launching a ‘visual refresh’ for branding this week, the company announced. blog post On Monday. The company is introducing a new, slightly tweaked, brighter logo, typeface, and full-screen marketing layout. Instagram says the new refresh is designed to embrace continuous evolution and help “create more immersive and inclusive experiences.”
The new typeface is called “Instagram Sans” and is inspired by the Instagram logo. Instagram says the font is inspired by squares and circles, or “squircles.” The new font also includes several global scripts. The company says Instagram Sans is a modern remix of a grotesque, geometric style. Among the new fonts are Instagram Sans Regular, Bold, Light, Medium, Condensed, and Condensed Bold. You can play with new fonts. Here.
“Instagram Sans is a new way for our global community to express themselves on Instagram in places like Stories and Reels,” the company said. “While designing this new typeface, our goal was to make Instagram Sans globally accessible. We’ve worked with linguistic experts around the world to adapt fonts to global scripts, including Arabic, Thai, and Japanese. We want to support all creators and community members who advance their culture and empower them to fully express themselves in any language of their choice.”
For the new logo, the gradients are a bit more vivid, giving it a “bright and alive” feel. Instagram says they used a 3D modeling process to reconstruct the gradient. When it comes to the new full-screen marketing layout, Instagram says it’s designed to celebrate “content delivery” and simplicity.
The launch of the full-screen marketing layout came as Instagram was testing full-screen home feeds like TikTok. Layout affects how photos are displayed in your home feed, and records show that whenever Instagram changes the way posts are displayed, there is some controversy. In the full screen home feed test, you can use the bottom navigation bar to access the Search tab, Reel, Shopping, and your own page. Icons for switching accounts, composing posts, checking notifications, and browsing messages are still in the top bar.


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The Austin Chronicle's longtime "Style Avatar" and "After a Fashion" columnist Stephen Moser has a new gig and new digs in Dallas.
Fashion Scoop Daily bills itself as "The ultimate source for collection reviews and in depth coverage of all major fashion weeks from around the world, from New York, to London, and Milan, to Paris."
Almost two years to the date of his departure from The Austin Chronicle, Moser again takes the mantel of fashion gadfly and Texas style icon at the new venture launched by Dallas socialite Jhonatan Arreola. The venture held a launch party earlier this month at the Joule in Dallas.
A note to readers: Bold and uncensored, The Austin Chronicle has been Austin’s independent news source for almost 40 years, expressing the community’s political and environmental concerns and supporting its active cultural scene. Now more than ever, we need your support to continue supplying Austin with independent, free press. If real news is important to you, please consider making a donation of $5, $10 or whatever you can afford, to help keep our journalism on stands.


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Sony have unveiled plans for their new PlayStation 4 at a conference in New York.
Showcasing new games, ways to share and stream gaming, and features of the console's controller, the only thing fans did not see was the console itself.
Speaking to Daybreak, gaming expert Paddy Smith from Stuff magazine said it was disappointing fans did not get to see the new PS4 console, but not surprising.
He said yesterday's announcement from Sony came earlier than expected, and the product might not be finished.
More top news
A couple have got married for the second time after the bride forgot their first big day following a car crash.
Sir Bruce Forsyth, Sir Cliff Richard and the Prime Minister have been among those paying tribute to Cilla Black following news of her death.
TV favourite Cilla Black, who has died aged 72, gave viewers a "lorra, lorra laughs" during her long career.


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UK retail spending returns to pre-pandemic levels — but a 15.9% drop in clothes sales show the recovery is 'deceptive,' one expert says
- British shoppers bought 15.9% fewer
clothesin August than in February, according to new data published Friday.
- Household goods stores are selling more than they did before the pandemic as the home-renovation boom continues, and overall retail
salesare slightly higher than they were in February.
- Marc Ostwald, chief economist at ADM Investor Services, said that while this suggests a "robust recovery in consumer spending" on the surface, this is "deceptive," and
retailjob cuts will continue.
British shoppers have drastically cut back on clothes purchases since February, making
Clothes sales in August were 15.9% below their levels in February, before the UK went into lockdown.
Overall retail sales have returned to pre-pandemic levels — in total, British shoppers spent 0.7% more in August than in July, and 2.5% more than February, the ONS data showed. This was fueled by a home-improvement boom: Sales-by-volume in household goods stores were 9.9% higher than in February, the ONS reported.
Marc Ostwald, chief economist at ADM Investor Services, said that this suggests a "robust recovery in consumer spending" on the surface — but the figures are "deceptive," he said. Sales in bricks-and-mortar stores have plummeted, and "considerable further job losses" will follow, he added.
Separate data from the Retail Sales Inquiry and the Business Impact of Coronavirus Survey showed that fewer customers were
Online sales and footfall are both falling
Online sales are dropping across most sectors, though they still remain much higher than before the pandemic. For every £100 shoppers spent in August, £28 of this was spent online, ONS data shows. This is 2.5% less than in July, but still more than 50% higher than this time last year.
After "other stores," the sector that saw the highest drop in online sales other than clothing was food, the ONS reported. Online food sales were nearly 5% down in August compared to July as customers returned to supermarkets — but British shoppers are still spending nearly twice as much on grocery deliveries than last year.
Total food sales across both online and physical stores fell by around 2% from July to August. Britain's "Eat Out to Help Out" scheme – which saw diners eat more than 100 million meals out in August as part of a government-subsidized scheme to boost the hospitality industry – caused supermarket sales to plummet by £155 million ($201 million) in August, research by data company Kantar shows.
Footfall data from Springboard suggests that the number of shoppers visiting physical stores also fell. In the week starting 7 September, around 28% fewer shoppers visited bricks and mortar stores than the same time a year ago, compared to just a 25% decrease during the two weeks before that.
Ostwald, from ADM Investor Services, said that the migration from bricks and mortar retail to online, and reduced spending on non-retail recreation and leisure activities, "will likely result in considerable further job losses, especially with escalating reintroduction of lockdown measures."
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New partnership to develop Yangshan Port
Zhejiang Seaport Group has signed a strategic agreement with Shanghai International Port Group (SIPG) to jointly develop the Yangshan Port area.
The agreement will see Zhejiang Seaport Group invest US$740m to acquire 20% equity shares in SIPG’s subsidiary Shanghai Shengdong International Container Terminal Company, the operator of Yangshan Port, reported Splash.
The two groups will work together for the development of a new feeder container terminal in the north of Yangshan.
SIPG handled 40.01m teu in 2018, making it once again the largest container port in the world.
The port has been facing congestion issues over the past few years and is making effort to solve the issue by increasing its handling capacity.
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UK - Farmer-owned dairy company Arla Foods has announced its intention to close its fresh milk processing production facilities at its Hatfield Peverel dairy in Essex, England.
The proposal will result in the potential closure of Hatfield Peverel dairy by the end of July 2016, with the loss or relocation of up to 200 jobs.
Another 32 employees could be transferred to a logistics company, which Arla proposes will run its outbound logistics operations as part of a process to improve the business' model.
The company’s Aylesbury site, which now has the ability to process a billion litres a year after a significant ramp up operation since it opened in 2014, will take on the majority of Hatfield Peverel’s processing and smaller volumes of milk will be delivered to other Arla fresh milk dairies dependent on customer requirements.
Hatfield Peverel has the capacity to process 356,000 litres of milk per day and processes fresh milk for Arla's Cravendale and Big Milk brands plus own-label fresh and organic milk for major retailers.
Dan Kolding, Senior Vice President, Supply Chain, Arla Foods UK said: ”As a farmer-owned dairy company, our mission is to return the highest value for our farmers’ milk, creating opportunities for growth. The development of Aylesbury is helping us to deliver this vision in the UK, as the dairy approaches capacity.
”We are entering into full consultation with all colleagues affected by both proposals, and their trade union representatives. We are committed to supporting our colleagues at this difficult time and will do everything we can to support colleagues in their search for suitable alternative employment either within Arla or elsewhere.”
TheCattleSite News Desk


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Glass manufacturer O-I recently announced it will shutter its 79-year-old bottle factory in Waco, Texas, leaving a “significant void” in the regional recovered-glass market.
The company on Sept. 21 disclosed that executives have opted to close the plant around Oct. 16, a move that will affect 300 employees. The plant, which has three furnaces, uses some amount of recovered bottle cullet.
The decision means the end of local drop-off collections through a program called Glass4Good, which was run in conjunction with the nonprofit group Keep Waco Beautiful.
“This plant’s closure, which has been a vital partner in our recycling efforts, leaves a significant void in our glass recycling initiatives that we are actively trying to fill,” the group wrote on its website.
In its disclosure, O-I said it expects to record a $60 million charge associated with the closure of the plant, including $32 million in impairment of assets such as furnaces and machinery and $28 million from employee separation benefits and other costs related to the closing.
“The Company remains strongly focused on optimizing the overall efficiency of, and investments in, its regional plant network, and the decision to close the Waco plant is consistent with the Company’s previously communicated initiatives to improve performance across its operations,” the disclosure stated.
The mill, which was opened in 1944 and is one of the glass manufacturer’s oldest, has undergone starts and stops in recent years. In late 2019 the company idled one of the three furnaces there, but it restarted the furnace in late 2020 as beer and liquor sales rebounded.
The Waco Tribune-Herald reported the company earlier this year laid off dozens of employees in Waco, citing lingering damage to a furnace caused by the February 2021 freeze and power crisis in Texas.
For its part, Keep Waco Beautiful said it’s “actively collaborating with various organizations, including the City of Waco, to explore alternative solutions for glass recycling in our community.”
Beer sales have been on the decline nationally, affecting manufacturers of beer bottles. O-I has shut down assets elsewhere, citing the market conditions. The company has laid off much of its workforce at its Portland, Ore. bottle factory, citing a decline in regional wine market sales, according to the Northwest Labor Press.


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It’s an “active conversation” within the firm.
Lexus has admitted to the media that its F performance sub-brand may expand to include some (if not all) of its SUVs, a move that would surprise absolutely no one. While the idea of a ‘performance SUV’ remains somewhat oxymoronic, the popularity and abundance of them means that not a single car brand can afford to ignore the prospect entirely. Lexus is no different.
On the sidelines of the Rolex 24 at Daytona endurance race, product strategy boss Cooper Ericksen spoke to Motor1 saying that the idea of an F SUV is an “active conversation” within the ranks at Lexus.
“[What] we’re currently trying to figure out is [if] the on-road performance aspect [is] more important [for Lexus] to invest in, [rather] than the off-road performance.” – Cooper Ericksen, Vice President (Product Planning & Strategy), Lexus
It was previously Chika Kako, the executive vice president, who alluded that Lexus’ compact UX crossover had “potential” as an F car, setting the rumour mill alight. While cars like the UX, the NX, and the RX would very obviously become even more road-biased in their respective F forms, cars like the Lexus GX and Lexus LX would have to take into consideration that their buyers tend to appreciate the go-anywhere capabilities of their SUVs.
That said, it’s more than likely that we’ll see an F-branded Lexus SUV in the near future. As we said at the beginning of this piece, the demand for sporty SUVs is strong and healthy, and Lexus would be insane to simply ignore those customers in the name of brand purity (which in the case of F, isn’t even that well-established compared to BMW’s M and Mercedes-Benz’s AMG). But as of right now, we’ll just have to wait and see.


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As corn-based snacks go, Wotsits are way up there as far as I’m concerned.
The original cheese flavour is glorious, but we do remember the good old days of stuffing a bag of sizzling steak Wotsits in our mouths at break time. Or getting flamin’ hot dust all over our fingers during a post-swim snack. So, we’re over the moon with the latest news from Walkers.
The brand, which makes lovely Wotsits, has announced that they’re bringing back these two iconic flavours!
(Admittedly, sizzling steak was originally called BBQ beef, but they’re going to taste basically the same, according to the manufacturer.)
Both flavours will launch on 13 January in 50g grab-bags, which will cost £1, and sharing bags, which will set you back £2. They’ll also be available in multipacks (£1.25 for 6 x 16g bags). The 16g bags are pretty low in calories (flamin’ hot contains 85 calories and sizzling steak contains just 65 calories), so these are good for anyone trying to watch what they eat a bit this January.
Nick Day from Walkers said: “People have been reaching out to us non-stop on social media to bring back our iconic flavours.
“We’re pleased to announce that Wotsits flamin’ hot and sizzling steak will soon be back in their hands, kicking off the year with a bang.”
Unfortunately, there’s no word on whether the prawn cocktail Wotsits will be making a return too, but we sure as hell hope so.
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WASHINGTON – The Labor Department reports on U.S. producer price inflation in September. The report will be issued at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Friday.
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SLIGHT RISE IN WHOLESALE PRICES: Economists forecast that producer prices, which are charged by farmers and manufacturers and reflect the cost of goods and services before they reach the consumer, rose 0.2 percent, according to a survey of economists by data firm FactSet. Prices were flat in August and were unchanged during the past 12 months, reflecting the impact of cheaper oil and gasoline.
MODEST INFLATION: Prices have barely stirred over the past year, a sign that inflation remains largely in check despite steady hiring gains. Overall economic growth has been sluggish, while oil prices stuck at roughly $50 a barrel have kept inflation in check.
Many Americans feel squeezed by rising costs for more expensive items such as health care, a college education and housing, but those categories actually make up a relatively small part of the government's inflation measures for consumers.
The Federal Reserve would like to see inflation closer to 2 percent as a hedge against deflation, which would cause a drop in wages and prices that could choke off economic growth.
Yet the Fed's preferred inflation gauge has risen less than 1 percent in the past year. This has made the central bank cautious about raising the short-term interest rate it controls. It increased that rate from a record low near-zero for the first time in nine years last December. The financial markets expect a second rate hike at the upcoming meeting this December.


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Amazon.com is amid the world’s greatest-grossing online shops, with $281 billion in net sales and approximately $365 billion in estimated physical/digital gross merchandise quantity in 2019.
The enterprise has been a beneficiary all through the COVID-19 pandemic as buyers flock to online implies of getting their procuring carried out.
Amazon stories next-quarter earnings success on Thursday just after the near. The earnings per share and sales quantities are generally crucial, with consensus estimates of $1.forty six and $eighty one.fifty three billion, respectively, but every enterprise has its individual distinct assignments and updates to look out for.
In this article are three issues to look out for in Amazon’s earnings report.
E-commerce Figures. As persons commenced investing extra time at property, procuring on Amazon grew to become increasingly effortless.
“The enterprise noticed a spike in need for groceries and other domestic necessities all through Q1 as a end result of retailer


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The heart drug Tikosyn was allegedly found in some bottles of Effexor by a pharmacist. Tikosyn, also known as dofetilide, is a heart medication produced by Pfizer. One 0.25 milligram capsule found in a bottle of Effexor is said to have been unknowingly put in on the same line with Effexor.
“Although Pfizer has not received any other such reports, these three lots are being voluntarily recalled as a precaution because they were packaged on the same line,” the company said in an announcement.
Some side effects of Effexor often include loss of appetite, anxiety, insomnia, drowsiness, and nausea. Mixed with its ingredient venlafaxine, Tikosyn can lead to irregular heartbeats or even death.
The company said that among three lots, there were also 104,450 bottles of medicines with nearly 65,800 of which had reached pharmacies in the country. This recall has included one lot of 30-count bottles of Effexor XR, one lot of 90-count bottles of the branded drug and one lot of venlafaxine 150 mg extended release capsules, sold by Greenstone LLC.
WebMd’s article says that not all drug lots were recalled or contaminated, but Pfizer did so as a precaution to ensure safety for those taking the medicine.
“Pfizer has responded rapidly to this situation to ensure the safety of patients who take our medicines,” Pfizer said. “This recall is being conducted with the knowledge of the US Food and Drug Administration.”
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As Haier's shareholding in Fisher & Paykel Appliances edges up, investors have cause to ponder the performance of the New Zealand company's far larger competitor in the United States, Whirlpool.
The Michigan-based firm's share price has gained 75 per cent since June without the benefit of a takeover offer.
Whirlpool shares have traded in a US$45.22 to US$97.96 range over the past 52 weeks and are near the top of the band.
The American manufacturer this week reported a higher-than-expected quarterly profit as it benefited from price increases and improved productivity, and raised its earnings outlook for the year. Just after the result's release, Whirlpool's stock pushed to its highest level since April last year.
Whirlpool, the world's biggest appliance manufacturer, has a joint venture with F&P Appliances.
Tower Investments' Sam Stubbs has said F&P Appliances shares are worth more than $3 each to Haier if the Chinese firm manages to acquire 100 per cent of the firm.
Haier is offering $1.28 a share.
At $1.28, Haier's offer price represents a 71 per cent premium to the pre-offer market price for the Kiwi manufacturer's shares.
F&P Appliances announced yesterday that Haier's shareholding in the company had reached 54.37 per cent.
One senior market participant said: "I suspect F&P Appliances will be another example of New Zealand being the short-sighted seller."


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Brewing giants Anheuser-Busch and SABMiller have been hit by a $4bn (£2.2bn) lawsuit accusing them of targeting under-age drinkers in their advertising campaigns.
The suit was filed in a Californian court last week and while both companies have denied the claims, there are fears that the drinks industry could become a litigation target in much the same way as the tobacco sector.
One industry insider said: "Tobacco litigation has run its course in the US now and you get the impression that alcohol and food producers are going to be the next targets."
The suit is not the first to be served on the industry: brewer Adolph Coors and the owner of Jack Daniels, Brown-Forman, said in November that they had been accused of marketing their products to under-age drinkers.
The Californian suit, which focuses on "alcopops", has been filed by Steve Berman, a Seattle-based class action lawyer. In the past, he has claimed partial successes in suing tobacco firms over claims they were targeting the young.
Mr Berman is reported to have filed the suit because of recent studies examining the link between teenage beer consumption and advertising. The suit also claims that the two brewers are bolstering their profits with sales to under-age drinkers.
It is based on two pieces of Californian legislation, one of which bans advertising that promotes under-age drinking. The parents of a 20-year-old woman killed by a young drink-driver are understood to be involved in the suit.
US giant Anheuser-Busch, the world's largest brewer and owner of Budweiser and Michelob among other brands, said: "We do not believe that this lawsuit has merit. Our marketing and advertising is directed at adults and is placed in programming that is watched overwhelmingly by adults."
SABMiller's US business, Miller Brewing, called the suit "frivolous" and said it was "completely without merit".
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Verizon Communications on Friday reported revenue of US$27.5 billion for the second quarter of 2011, up 2.8 percent from the second quarter of 2010, largely driven by mobile subscriber additions.
Verizon Communication reported revenue of US$27 billion for the first quarter of 2011, up 0.3 percent from a year earlier, with the company pointing to growth in mobile customers as a cause for optimism.
Verizon Communications reported revenue of US$26.4 billion for the fourth quarter of 2010, down from $27.1 billion a year earlier, although net income nearly doubled because of gains from one-time items.
Google and Verizon Communications have released a proposal that would give the U.S. Federal Communications Commission limited power to enforce network neutrality rules, including levying fines up to US$2 million for violations by broadband providers.
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Geely sets profitability plan for new British acquisitionUpdated: 2013-02-26 10:37
Manganese Bronze Holdings, a producer of London cabs, has been sold to Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, which has expressed a desire to rebuild the financial position of the taxi maker and expand its exports. [Matthew Lloyd / Getty Images]
Plan to turn around UK taxi maker includes huge 5-year investment
Zhejiang Geely Holding Group plans to invest 100 million pounds ($151.4 million) in a global taxi project that the company expects will make Manganese Bronze Holdings - its newly acquired British taxi maker - profitable within a year, Geely's management said.
"The acquisition won't make Geely lose money in business," Li Shufu said. "Manganese Bronze will regain profitability this year, much sooner than our previous perspective for three years."
Li told the media during his London visit on Friday: "We are making a new business plan for the taxi company and aim to rebuild the future of the globally renowned and respected brand."
He announced a global taxi project, which will introduce London's iconic black cabs' service and culture to China and world cities across the globe.
Li Donghui, Geely Group chief financial officer and chairman of Manganese Bronze's London Taxi Co, said that the plan involves an investment of 100 million pounds over the next five years.
Li Donghui also disclosed that the new company has restored its sales and expanded the reach of the black cab outside London, courting customers in Saudi Arabia and Australia.
"We have sold 400 taxis recently, with 200 to Saudi Arabia and 200 to Australia," he added.
The Zhejiang-based company finalized the acquisition of ailing Manganese Bronze on Feb 1 for 11.04 million pounds, after the cab maker collapsed into administration.
The acquisition includes a plant, equipment and property, intellectual property rights and trademarks, said Geely, which already was a Manganese Bronze shareholder after buying a nearly 20 percent stake of the company in 2006.
In 2011, Manganese Bronze sold 1,502 cabs in the UK, down from 1,653 in 2010.
"Now that we have taken over all business and core assets of Manganese Bronze, and thus can help its international expansion," Li added.
Li said that Geely's priority is to restore Manganese Bronze's business back to where it was before its current difficulties and to continue production of its latest model, the TX4, at its plant.
After presenting itself as the most ambitious Chinese automaker in the world by acquiring Swedish luxury vehicle producer Volvo Cars from Ford Motor Co in 2010, the Zhejiang-based company has made headlines more frequently, especially in the past month.


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(WFSB) -- As people stock up on products, truck drivers are spending more time in the road in an effort to get that product back on the shelves quickly.
“Because of everything that's going on, some weird things have happened to put drivers in a tough spot,” said Joe Sculley, president of Motor Transport Association of CT.
He said drivers are working longer shifts, doing what they can to get people what they need from food, to paper goods and hospital supplies.
“Hey, one of the large hospitals in the state is telling me I got to do everything I can to get the supplies that I always bring here, can I drive a little bit overtime to make that happen? And yes, that's exactly the type of flexibility,” Sculley said.
The state and federal government eased up on overtime regulations for the industry, and with more time on the road, drivers are taking precautions.
“If a load gets dropped off, oftentimes there's a signature involved. If we can eliminate the need for that, that's good, it'll eliminate interaction where you could spread something,” Sculley said.
They’re also wiping down their steering wheels, door handles, gas pumps, and some are wearing gloves.
Here’s what drivers need from the public -- “Please do not panic buy. The trucks will get everything to the stores. It is going to be there,” Sculley said.
It’ll also mean drivers won’t be doing as much overtime and taking better care of themselves.
Also, with restaurants offering take-out only, drivers are having a tough time getting food.
“So maybe just offer to go through the drive thru for a truck driver or something like that, so that's a small way to help out,” Sculley said.
Lastly, he's reminding folks to stay home.
“I talked to a couple of drivers last week who said there is no traffic. It's like the first time it's ever happened in their career,” he said. “They can get their load to where it needs to go, faster. They can restock the shelves faster, and load up the hospitals with supplies faster.


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The bill on distance selling of medicines supposed to promote the rapid development of logistics chains, quick and safe delivery of the medicines optimisation pharmacy inventory costs resulting in lower consumer prices. This opinion was expressed by the head of Department of reform of medical assistance of the Department of reforms and development of medical aid of Ministry of health of Ukraine Konstantin Inflated, commenting on the prospects for distance selling of medicines, considerations of use or danger to the citizens of the new version of the Law “On medicines”, the work which is being finalized in the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine.
“The fact that the logistics of medicines should and will evolve, no doubt. Especially given the cost of storage. Once I had to deal with the planning of pharmaceutical business. I saw the situation on zatvaranju pharmacies. In the end we managed to get on the trade regime with the wheels, when the stock was 1-2 days max. It turned out to be very beneficial both for pharmacies and for consumers, since it managed to reduce selling prices and increase the profitability of the business”, — says Inflated.
The representative of the Ministry of health States that huge pharmaceutical areas entails large financial costs that result from automatically are placed in the consumer prices of medicines. To start a problem of increasing the availability of drugs on what focused the attention of lawmakers and government the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky, aims a bill regulating the rules of distance selling and mail delivery of medications. It will be beneficial to all: manufacturers, pharmacy chains and final consumer.
“Given the fact that drugs are a socially significant category of goods, public health policy should be aimed at optimizing health-care costs, about what the President said Zelensky. That is, removing the wasteful expenditure in the cost of drugs, you can increase the availability of medicines. So the idea for legislative regulation of the market for distance selling of medicines is very timely. Now it is very important competent technical implementation of this legislative initiative”, — concluded Konstantin Inflated.
As previously reported, on March 23, 2020, in the extraordinary session, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine adopted the decision on the temporary permit licensees to conduct business at remote sale and mail delivery of medicines and related medical products for the duration of the quarantine. The draft law “On medicinal products” is intended to legislate the practice of online Commerce and targeted delivery of medicines in podkarantinnoy period.


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FRANKFORT - A Kentucky-based company has been ordered to return $7.75 million in assets to more than 350,000 people who were caught up in what officials say was one of the country's largest pyramid schemes.
Officials said Fortune Hi-Tech Marketing would charge people $249 for the rights to sell products like satellite TV service and home security systems. The company would target Spanish-speaking communities and promised them they could get rich if they sold the products. But state and federal officials said the company's promotional materials focused on recruiting new members, not selling products.
"This was a classic pyramid scheme in every sense of the word," Kentucky's Democratic Attorney General Jack Conway said in a news release. "The vast majority of people, more than 90 percent, who bought in to FHTM lost their money."
The Federal Trade Commission, along with Conway and attorneys general in Illinois and North Carolina, announced the settlement Tuesday with the Lexington-based company.
Kentucky officials started investigating Fortune Hi-Tech Marketing in 2010 after officials in North Dakota, Montana and Texas reached settlements with the company. Conway's office said it received about a dozen complaints from consumers.


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Fresh fruit company, Blue Skies, has secured a seven-figure loan from HSBC UK through the Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CLBILS) to ensure continuity throughout its supply chain during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Founded in 1997, Blue Skies, which is headquartered in Pitsford, Northamptonshire, provides fresh-from-harvest fruit to major retailers across the UK, Europe, the Middle East and Africa. During peak seasons, the company employs up to 5,000 people and exports approximately 80 tonnes of fresh fruit per day, made up of 220 product lines.
As a large exporter of consumer goods, the company has taken action to retain its skilled staff, support farmers and invest in logistics during these challenging times to ensure continuity across its entire supply chain, and most importantly, provide its customers with a consistent supply of fresh fruit. The funding from HSBC UK will assist Blue Skies in pivoting its distribution model, as it takes necessary steps to reduce the impact of supply chain disruptions.
Anthony Pile, Chairman and Founder of Blue Skies Ltd, said: “As a company that relies on a fluid supply chain to get our fresh-from-harvest products to market, the challenges caused by COVID-19 have led to us implementing important measures across our entire logistical programme. I would like to thank the team at HSBC UK, including our Relationship Director Nick Clements, for being supportive and understanding the unique challenges faced by our business in the UK and our export markets during these uncertain times.”
Simon Pyatt, HSBC UK Area Director South Midlands Corporate Banking, added: “Blue Skies has a responsibility to the customers and communities it serves, more so than ever during these difficult times. We were delighted to provide additional support to the company as they continue to keep retailers’ shelves stocked and provide the public with access to fresh fruit.”
In April 2020, Blue Skies was awarded its fourth Queen’s Award for Enterprise in the Sustainable Development category, in recognition of the company’s sustainability plan.


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Sustainability is more than reducing carbon emissions and sounding purposeful; it’s a deep-rooted, systemic change in the ways of doing business. Companies like Maersk, one of the largest logistics companies in the world, are not just changing the way they make products, they are changing the products themselves and launching industry-wide collaborations.
Companies are under tremendous pressure from people across the world to account for the environmental and social impact of their business. Global investors are demanding action at scale because nothing else will do in the current state of climate emergency.
In this desire to be sustainable, the logistics sector has generally been a laggard. Worryingly so, since the global economy rests on the ability to move things around. This massive ecosystem of moving goods and materials is enabled by the logistics sector, which consists of trucking, railways and shipping. Steeped in old world technologies and practices, the logistics sector has mostly been seen as part of support services and backend infrastructure. The transport sector is responsible for 23 per cent of global energy-related emissions. Shipping alone accounts for 3–4 per cent of global emissions. Even if companies want to decarbonize their supply chains, their efforts are largely dependent on third-party logistics providers like Maersk. Now, things are beginning to change. A combination of efforts to decarbonize, increased digitization and large scale collaborations are transforming business while increased protectionism by countries to global trade are resulting in newer challenges.
A.P. Moller – Maersk is a transport and logistics business that employs over 85,000 people across operations in over 120 countries. In 2018, the Executive Board of Maersk approved a new company ambition for climate change: to have net-zero CO2 emissions from their operations by 2050. Over the last four years alone, Maersk has invested $1 billion and engaged fifty-plus engineers each year in developing and deploying energy efficiency solutions. A major contribution will come from replacing older vessels with new and more efficient ones, taking advantage of the company’s continuous work to optimise hull dimensions, hull shapes, propulsion systems and auxiliary systems. Another significant contribution will come from further optimising the Maersk network in terms of both network operations and voyage execution. Over the next few years, the company will be able to reap the benefits from investments in connecting and digitising vessels as part of the Connected Vessels project. This will focus on upgrading data collection and reporting systems on shipping vessels, real-time, coordinated data for the routes sailed, reducing time spent in ports that will lead to lower fuel consumption, less time wasted and fewer delays. These initiatives are expected to reduce fuel consumption corresponding to a removal of approximately 847,000 tonnes of carbon over five years.
Efficiency gains cannot, however, are not the only solution, deeper impact can only be achieved through decarbonisation. The company is working on a range of collaborative efforts with several partners to drive the transformation of the shipping industry towards use of carbon-neutral fuels. Maersk has launched Eco Delivery a way of transportation that uses sustainable biofuel to provide immediate carbon reductions. One of the largest fashion and design groups in the world, H&M Group, has chosen Maersk ECO Delivery to reduce the company’s carbon footprint in transportation. The initiative uses sustainable biofuel to power selected Maersk-vessels and helps H&M to make progress towards its ambitious sustainability goals.1
Further, the company is slowly moving from managing internal CO2 emissions to the entire logistics system. Copenhagen Airports, Maersk, DSV Panalpina, DFDS, SAS and Ørsted have formed the first partnership of its kind to develop an industrial-scale production facility to produce sustainable fuels for road, maritime and air transport in the Copenhagen area. The project will produce green hydrogen based on offshore wind power as soon as 2023. This initiative is pathbreaking in sheer scale and ambition and will have multiple large scale impacts. At one level, it will certainly help reduce the emissions of all project partners, and the next level impact will be that the City of Copenhagen will also be able to achieve its targets for decarbonization by 2025. Further, the project is expected to create jobs and new value chains to reinforce Denmark’s role as a green energy leader.2 When the facility is fully scaled-up by 2030, the project could deliver more than 250,000 tons of sustainable fuel for buses, trucks, maritime vessels, and aeroplanes annually. The fully scaled facility can reduce annual carbon emissions by 850,000 tons.
The past decade has seen companies make incremental efforts to fix sustainability issues. Which is not to say nothing got done. It did, but not at the scale that was needed. Today, the climate change movement is picking up strength. Led by activists, NGOs and scientists, several ground-level movements are taking shape and putting pressure on governments, companies and cities to take positive steps to reduce carbon emissions that are leading to climate change. Additionally, the spotlight is also on social risks, food, livelihoods, poverty and rising inequality which are some of the consequences of climate change that need to be addressed. Initiatives at scale, such as the ones Maersk is spearheading are the need of the hour.


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Husqvarna have slowly and steadily been releasing more and more information about the Husqvarna 701 Supermoto. It started with just a concept photograph and then came the teaser videos and then the official announcement of the specifications. And now we have a proper track video of the 701 Supermoto that pretty much sums up what the motorcycle is capable of.
Intended as a road going supermoto machine the Husqvarna 701 Supermoto quickly came under a lot of criticism. The primary of which was the fact that it was too front heavy to be a thoroughbred supermoto. But then this is a road machine, a motorcycle that will mark the return of Husqvarna to the street. A motorcycle that is aimed to be your companion for the daily grind and then some weekend fun. When you consider that fact, the Husqvarna 701 Supermoto makes a lot of sense. With an engine capacity of 690cc that produces close to 66 Hp of power, coupled with goodies like a slipper clutch and ABS, this supermoto could essentially be the perfect blend of fun and everyday practicality. The Husqvarna 701 Supermoto would be officially available in the EU region by November.
The Husqvarna 701 Supermoto is not the only new bike from the company for the street. Also coming are the Husqvarna Vitpilen and Svartpilen. Both these will mostly feature the engine currently doing duty on the Duke and the RC390. While the Vitpilen is a cafe racer based design, the Svartpilen is like a scrambler and looks the more fun motorcycle. There is a good chance that these new lower capacity Husqvarna’s will be made right here in India. The amount of part sharing between these and the existing KTM models are very high and could lead to KTM making them alongside the Duke’s and RC’s. There were reports that Husqvarna could even start selling their motorcycles here, but at this point of time there are no concrete leads to confirm this news.


text: Planet Fitness Inc. /zigman2/quotes/203234487/composite PLNT +1.23% reported Tuesday second-quarter profit that was in line with expectations but revenue that missed, while same-store sales rose more than forecast. Net income that rose to $22.3 million, or 26 cents a share, from $14.0 million, or 17 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Excluding nonrecurring items, adjusted earnings per share of 38 cents matched the FactSet consensus. Revenue grew 63.5% to $224.4 million, above the FactSet consensus of $230.1 million, while same-store sales growth of 13.6% beat expectations of an 11.0% rise. "During the second quarter, our join trend returned to pre-pandemic seasonality with the addition of approximately 300,000 net new members, ending the quarter with more than 16.5 million," said Chief Executive Chris Rondeau. The company affirmed its 2022 guidance for same-store sales growth in the low double-digit percentage range and for revenue to rise in the mid-50% range. The stock, which was still inactive in premarket trading, has rallied 17.5% over the past three months, while the S&P 500 /zigman2/quotes/210599714/realtime SPX -1.03% has gained 3.7%.


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1. Jordan ($1091.01) / 2. Turkey ($1063.10) / 3. Romania ($1012.55) / 4. Hungary ($1004.75) / 5. Greece ($999.03) / Source: MobileUnlocked
As US tech giant Apple officially starts selling its new and expensive iPhone X, customers are meant to love its AI-ready features. But the firm's rivals are already in the starting blocks or even ahead of the curve.
Apple has unveiled a new lineup of iPhones with a number of improvements on previous models. A special anniversary edition is even smarter, but its high price tag is bound to put off many customers.
The iPhone maker has reported stronger-than-expected results, buoyed by strong sales of its smartphones, sending its shares to a record high. It hopes to keep this momentum with a new gadget to be unveiled this fall.
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El Salvador, the first country in the world to adopt bitcoin as legal tender, is hosting an Adopting Bitcoin conference which will see more than 110 speakers from over 30 countries gather to discuss financial inclusion, per a press release.
Galoy Inc., the company behind the Bitcoin Beach Wallet, is organizing the nonprofit event while cryptocurrency exchange Bitfinex will be the headline sponsor. The event will take place from November 15-17 and El Salvadorans can grab discounted tickets for $21.
“El Salvador is now making strides to become the Singapore of Central America and a beacon for financial inclusion, while bitcoin is proving itself as an excellent medium of exchange that can facilitate millions of daily transactions,” said Nicolas Burtey, CEO of Galoy, per the release.
The first two days of the event will take place at the Crowne Plaza convention center where speakers will share the latest developments relating to technology and economics in the Bitcoin ecosystem.
Jon Atak, a Bitcoin Core developer who recently received a $50,000 grant from the Human Rights Foundation, will deliver one the key technological presentations at the conference.
Additionally, Mexican Senator Indira Kempis will be the most prominent speaker focused on the economic discussions. Kempis made headlines in the past for her support of central bank digital currencies, but also for her attempts to establish bitcoin as legal tender in Mexico.
The third day of the event will see the attendees travel to Bitcoin Beach, in El Zonte, to see where the adoption of bitcoin in the country started.
“After less than one year, we are seeing one in five people use bitcoin daily,” said Mike Peterson, director of Bitcoin Beach. “Now delegations of representatives, bankers and technologists from all corners of the world are coming to El Salvador to learn how bitcoin can be used as a tool for financial inclusion.”


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Despite the availability of vaccines, we should continue masking to prevent the spread of COVID-19 until more people are vaccinated. In this article, Get Us PPE looks at different masking options and when each option is appropriate.
Loosened FDA restrictions allowed new manufacturers to supply the demand for hand sanitizer when the pandemic broke out. But months after, several of these new products have been recalled, with the FDA issuing a list of products consumers should not use.
Get Us PPE is excited to announce the release of Heroes Need Masks, an anthology of comics honoring frontline workers during the COVID-19 crisis.
Welcome to Get Us PPE’s new series, Generation Z(oom): High school senior Anna Dai-Liu chronicles the historic 2020-2021 school year from the perspective of students, teachers, and others to learn how the pandemic is changing education. By Anna Dai-Liu There’s a pair of heels in the top shelf of my closet that sit untouched. They were supposed to click across the hall of a museum, or tap across the tiled floors of a dance floor, or patter across a field of grass quickly before the knife-like stilettos began to sink into the mud. Now the only floor they ever touch…


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Sony denies that hacked credit card details are for sale
Security researchers last week claimed that there was a list of 2.2 million PlayStation Network users' credit cards, complete with three-digit security codes, for sale on the black market.
Allegedly, the details and data was originally offered to Sony by the hackers wanting to make some cash, but they were ignored. However, Sony are denying the claims.
“To my knowledge there is no truth to this report of a list, or that Sony was offered an opportunity to purchase the list,” said Nick Caplin, the firm’s head of communications in Europe.
Sony, of course, had to confess that hackers had made off with the details of 77 million PlayStation Network users which left everyone worrying that their credit card data had been stolen too. However, Sony noted that this data was encrypted. That said, they concede that 10 million credit cards could be at risk. Presumably, they're not sure which ones.
They're nervously eyeing up "an outdated database from 2007… may have also been obtained" which held around 23,400 European customers’ credit card details or direct debit information.
That all said, as yet, no fraud has been detected.


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MARQUETTE COUNTY — If you still need to buy a gift for someone this holiday season here’s a suggestion.
It’s a popular game but with an Upper Peninsula twist.
It’s called Yoopopoly. Instead of properties players make their way around the board to buy businesses from the Negaunee and Ishpeming area.
Jason Schneider is the Executive Director of the Marquette Chamber of Commerce. He says, “Something like this is great because it brings a lot of awareness to the small businesses in our community.”
One player rolled a seven. It got him to Jubilee Foods and IGA Fuel. The cost to buy it is 100 Yoopopoly dollars.
The money shows different banks in the area like Northern Michigan Bank and Trust and Tru North Federal Credit Union.
Danielle Lacavalla is the Executive Director of the Greater Ishpeming Negaunee Chamber of Commerce. She says, “It’s kind of seeing those repetitive businesses and logos you start to become more aware.”
For kids the game can come to life. Let’s say they land on Fox Negaunee and buy it. After the game is over you can take them there to show them what the business is really like.
Schneider says, “Maybe you’ll see something on the board that you had forgotten about or you didn’t know it was there. And, it gets you to think about it.”
You can get Yoopopoly for $10. The proceeds will be used to help businesses in the area with professional development, workshops and other things.
Lacavalla says, “Marketing or advertising. And, also being able to do mini campaigns kind of like our Holiday Punch Card Campaign.”
To order a Yoopopoly game you can email firstname.lastname@example.org.


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July 12, 2013
NY Wine and Grape Foundation receives $374,000 in federal dollars
"After touring the New York Wine and Culinary Center last month, I know that this funding will help the New York Wine and Grape Foundation grow and promote their products abroad," stated Collins.
© 2014 Wine Communications Group - all rights reserved.
privacy & terms


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If you followed this year’s CES, you probably heard about the streaming wars. Its presence was inescapable. While there were still plenty of new gadgets and Smart TVs showcased on the show floor, it was the streaming news that captured everyone’s attention. A number of the industry’s biggest players showed to CES to share product and strategy announcements through keynotes, panels, and press interviews. The biggest splash at the show came from Quibi, who used CES as their own personal ‘coming out party,’ differentiating themselves from the pack through a number of press interviews and even a keynote Wednesday morning.
We know how overwhelming CES can be, so we kept track of the biggest streaming TV news to come out of last week and made it a little easier to take in.
Quibi, the mobile-first streaming service launching in April, was out in full force during CES. Its main goal was to showcase their incredibly unique Turnstyle video technology, and to reinforce the narrative that it is so massively different than the other streaming services, it doesn’t even consider them competitors. Quibi’s founder, Jeffrey Katzenberg, said as much to the Verge during a CES interview.
Quibi has yet to showcase any true UI mockups of the service, but the company did showcase how Turnstyle video technology will work. Turnstyle will allow for multiple perspectives during a show by turning your phone horizontal or vertical (right).
In other Quibi news:
- Quibi plans to release three hours of new content every weekday starting on launch.
- Quibi’s services will roll out more than 175 original shows and 8,500 episodes of it’s “quick bites” within its first year.
- A basic Quibi subscription will cost $4.99 per month, and an ad-free subscription will cost $7.99 per month.
- Quibi has already met its first year advertising goal of $150 million.
- Content will come in 3 tiers:
- Lighthouse – star-studded, high-tier content; $125,000 per minute.
- Quick bites – mid-tier content; $20,000 – $50,000 per minute.
- Daily essentials – the news focused “secret sauce”; $5,000 – $10,000 per minute.
If you missed Quibi’s first trailer, shown during its keynote, you can view it here.
NBCUniversal announced One Platform. Previously comprised of separate tools, One Platform is a new tool which will help advertisers buy ads and measure impact across digital and linear TV. The platform includes the ability to purchase ads on their streaming service, Peacock, set to debut in April of this year.
While NBCUniversal had a star studded keynote panel, there was very little talk of the actual streaming service as the panel focused more on the future of NBCUniversal. Details of the streaming service are expected to be released later this week during NBCUniversal investor day.
WarnerMedia executives Jeremy Legg and Andy Forssell participated in a CES panel to provide some new details on HBO Max. The two chatted content, strategy, and UI with Axios’ Sara Fischer, and gave some early indication of what the HBO Max interface might look like. According to Legg, there has been a tremendous focus on the HBO Max UI to eliminate what he called the “endless scroll” and make the interface less grid-like. Notably, Legg called the interface “swipey”.
In a separate exclusive interview with Axios, Xander, AT&T’s advertising division, confirmed plans to further integrate its advertising and data operations with WarnerMedia’s advertising and data operations later this year.
Debuting its new logo, Pluto TV had a presence in the “C-Space,” an area reserved for media and advertising companies. The AVOD platform, which was recently acquired by Viacom, said it had its best month ever in September 2019 with over 3,500 brands advertising on the service. Pluto TV hopes to continue that growth in 2020.
TiVo released a new piece of hardware, TiVo Stream 4k, designed to compete with Fire TV, Chromecast, and Roku. The device includes access to TiVo Plus, TiVo’s free streaming content network, but does not include any traditional DVR or access to over-the-air television unless the owner has a Sling TV subscription. The device costs $49.99 and will go on sale in April.
At CES, TiVo also stated that its previously announced Roku and Apple TV apps are ‘on hold.’ The apps, announced at CES 2019, allowed users to access their TiVo DVRs on other TVs throughout the home. While the company said the apps have not been definitively cancelled, the Apple TV and Roku apps in particular are “in limbo.”
The Apple TV app will hit LG’s webOS televisions later this year.
Dabby, a smart streaming device which previously received funding on Kickstarter, debuted at CES this year. The streaming device aims to end app switching between services with its advanced search function. Among the device’s unique features, perhaps the most interesting is the ability to watch a show or movie with someone else in another location via a video call to simulate a co-viewing experience.
The app is currently listed for sale on their website for $399.
Last but not least was Conviva’s presence at CES.
Our team hosted dozens of meetings with customers, prospects, partners, and press all week long at our suite at the Nobu Hotel. We want to thank everyone who left the CES show floor to meet with us, and those who attended our invite-only Nobu sushi event. We consider it an honor to discuss the future of this fast-paced industry with so many remarkable minds. We look forward to seeing the progress over the next year and catching up at CES 2021.


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According to the federal government, the nation’s inflation is at a 40-year-high. It’s impacting rent, mortgages, and groceries and more. USF researchers recently surveyed 600 Floridians across the state., varying across race, ethnicity, gender and political party for their opinions on inflation, the housing and more.
"Forty-eight percent of our respondents agreed that inflation was impacting their ability to pay essential bills," said Christina Stevens, the associate director of development at USF Libraries and an MPA candidate at the university. "So 80 percent of our respondents said that their discretionary spending is being impacted, and 65 percent of our respondents said that their travel plans are being impacted as well."
A majority of Floridians surveyed blame the COVID-19 pandemic, higher federal spending and supply chain issues. The supply chain disrupted everything from store shelves to construction timelines.
"Well the uncertainty’s there. Our plumbers, our air conditioning people, our subcontractors, they can’t tell us what their costs are," said Chuck Fowke, a Tampa Bay home builder and president of the National Association of Home Builders. "If someone’s asking you to give them a price for a house today, it’s very difficult to do that because our subcontractors, our suppliers can’t guarantee us prices for the time in the foreseeable future."
Inflation impacts Floridians in the housing market too. Fowke said he’s sounded the alarm to the federal government.
"The inflation, we’ve been ringing the fire alarm for well over a year now with the housing industry. I testified back in October before Congress regarding supply chain issues. So the unpredictability of labor and costs of labor, availability of materials, it just keeps ratcheting up the pricing.," said Fowke.
Inflation shows no signs of slowing down, and the survey shows how far its reaching.
"We hope that people can kind of look at these results and policymakers might be able to use some of this data to make decisions that will hopefully help some of the people in our state who are experiencing financial hardship," said Stevens.
Data from NAHB shows fewer Americans want to buy a home, the desire dropping for the third time within a year. It also found that first time home buyers are giving up, matching responses from Floridians polled in USF’s survey.
"I think it just further solidifies how crazy the housing market is. I think that Tampa is a great place to work, live and play. But, you know, hopefully the housing prices might be able to decrease a little bit just to give more people an opportunity to move here and live here," said Stevens.
The NAHB said builders are also dealing with lumber shortages and rising labor costs, which all trinkles down to homebuyers.
"So we continue to deal with lumber tariffs. We’re pleading with the administration to reduce tariffs or eliminate tariffs for the time being until we can get housing affordability back in line," said Fowke.
Just 12 percent of people from USF’s survey said they would sell their house. Stevens said that’s likely because they may not be able to afford to buy anywhere else in the current market. Home builders said there just aren’t enough homes being built right now, and they are trying to catch up. Until the inventory levels out, Fowke said homebuyers will continue to face some challenges.


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What’s new in MLB The Show 17? Here are the biggest changes in MLB The Show 17 vs MLB The Show 16, to help you decide if it is worth upgrading or buying this year.
Sony San Diego Studio delivers the best baseball simulation game, and it’s a PS4 exclusive. Each year we see the team push forward with more realism, but this year one of the new features is just about fun.
When you look for a baseball simulator for 2017, there are some other games you can try, but ultimately MLB The Show 17 is where most users come back to.
This is how MLB The Show 17 compares to MLB The Show 16, so you know what’s new and can decide if you should upgrade or wait for a great deal.
The biggest we hear about sports games is, “Is MLB The Show 17 more than a roster update?” It’s a question we get every year, for every sports game made, and MLB The Show has a good record of delivering features, not just tiny upgrades.
After a rocky start thanks to MLB The Show 17 problems with the servers, the game is finally ready for you to play.
Here is how MLB The Show 17 and MLB The Show 16 compare in key areas, with a special highlight of what’s new in MLB The Show for 2017.
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Classifieds company Quikr has launched a new instant messaging feature called Quikr Nxt, that enables real time conversations between buyers and sellers. The feature is available on Quikr’s mobile site, desktop site as well as on its mobile app.
This feature seems to have rolled out to all newer ads on Quikr and it also shows when the seller was last online. Interestingly, we also noticed that sellers now have an privacy option called ‘Maintain my Privacy’ which allows them to hide their phone numbers, instead directing buyers to contact via chat.
Buyers can click on the ‘Chat Now’ icon displayed next to product, a chat window pops up and gets the user to register (if not registered). It also lets participants share images with each other. Users can also have multiple parallel chat sessions with multiple other users, save notifications when users are offline and access the entire chat history on their respective accounts.
Implications (by Vikas SN)
This is a significant move for Quikr, since it will enable sellers to avoid all unsolicited calls and chat with the buyer before closing the deal. This will also allow users who are wary of sharing their numbers on their ads, to post ads on Quikr. I’ve heard of several instances wherein people have avoided postings ads on Quikr or Olx because they had to share their phone numbers.
It also allows Quikr to play a more prominent role in the transaction cycle and the next logical step for the company would probably be powering the payments for these transactions, and take a commission for them. Online listing site turned services marketplace JustDial had also started selling electronics earlier this week, although its worth noting that JustDial lists local businesses while Quikr primarily includes classified ads from individuals.
Quikr competes against other classified sites like Naspers backed OLX, Sulekha and Click.in. It had raised two rounds of funding in 2014: $60 million led by Tiger Global with participation from the existing investors Kinnevik, Matrix Partners India, Nokia Growth Partners, Norwest Venture Partners, Omidyar Network, Warburg Pincus and eBay Inc in September 2014 and $90 million led by Kinnevik in March 2014. The company had raised total funding of $300 million across multiple funding rounds until now.


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David Bowie Will Be Immortalized As An iPhone Emoji
The emoji is technically called the 'singer', but we all know what Apple was up to with this one
When it comes to honoring the dead, an emoji probably isn’t the first thing you think of, but that’s exactly what Apple is doing for David Bowie. The iPhone maker created a tiny likeness of the music icon, who died in January at the age of 69, which will be available with the latest update to iOS 10.
The tribute to Bowie depicts the singer in the now famous lightning makeup he wore on the cover of his 1973 album Aladdin Sane. The Bowie emoji is technically called “singer,” and will be one of the 16 new professions that are being added in both male and female form (and in all skin tones). They also include a cook, judge, firefighter, and astronaut. There’s no date for the official release of the iOS 10.2 update, but it’s expected sometime soon.
When it does arrive, Bowie and his fellow professionals won’t be the only addition to the emoji lexicon. Apple will also be putting some new foods on the menu, including a croissant, bacon, and a pickle (time will tell if it provides any competition for the 🍆). We’ll finally get the long-awaited shruggie, along with a face palm and a fist bump. And, while we’re on the topic of honoring the dead, there will also be a new gorilla emoji. So now you’ll have an easy way to drop an RIP Harambe into any conversation.


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CHIPMAKER Intel said European Union (EU) antitrust regulators used "profoundly inadequate" evidence in its case against the company that ended with Intel receiving a $1.33bn fine.
Intel was judged by the EU to have hindered AMD's chances in the chip market by offering favourable deals to computer manufacturers, leading to Intel being handed a $1.33bn fine. Intel has appealed that decision and said the EU used "profoundly inadequate" evidence in its antitrust case against the chipmaker.
European Union regulators spent the best part of a decade building an antitrust case against Intel, which has already been fined for similar actions by the US Department of Justice, with AMD receiving a one-off payment. However Intel attorney Nicholas Green told the court, "The quality of evidence relied on by the Commission is profoundly inadequate. The analysis is hopelessly and irretrievably defective. [...] The [European] Commission's case turns on what customers' subjective understanding is."
Intel has received some support from the European Ombudsman, which said that the Commission had procedural errors in its investigation. While the Ombudsman's report gives Intel some ammunition it is not dispositive or legally binding.
Intel is seeking to overturn one of the largest corporate fines ever levied by the EU antitrust regulators, which amounted to 4.15 per cent of its 2008 revenues. µ
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Mattel has announced a new range of ‘realistic’ Barbies. Customers will now be able to choose from three body types, seven skin tones, and 24 hair shades. While the collection may have limited direct social implications, and is undoubtedly a ploy to regain lost traction in the toy market, the latest additions do sport the badge of realism and diversity. This has to be seen as a step in the right direction.
As an icon and the most realistic doll out there, the plastic figure has a heavy responsibility, serving as a role model to millions of young children across the globe. So far she has failed in her duties; adults criticise and blame her for embedding all sorts of insecurities while their children play innocently. All the while, they are unknowingly yet another generation to be conditioned to think that being anything other than a white, blonde, blue-eyed, tall ‘woman’ with a pinched waist, thigh gap, and perfect boobs, is no good.
It is in Barbie’s very nature to evolve: she was after all modeled on a German hooker doll, ‘Lilli’. The creator Ruth Handler has been known to say that, “every little girl needed a doll through which to project herself into her dream of her future”. Funnily enough, mothers have not tended to be so keen on their children dreaming of a future involving being paid for sex.
So far, by way of social awareness, the company’s modifications of Barbie have been merely through her clothing: astronaut Barbie in the 60s and disco Barbie in the 80s, for example. Never before have they dared such radical progression as to allow her to eat. Never before have they accepted that children of different races might like to play with a toy that lets them dream about their own personal future.
What Mattel has done is not revolutionary. A number of brands, like Dove for example, have already begun to respond to growing resistance to society’s obsession with the visual utopia presented to women. Consumer demand has called for a reality check. Producers have been, albeit slowly, responding. It is simple economics, not groundbreaking morality.
But the change is still significant, even if it is the smallest of steps towards social equality. Even if it is to keep up with competitors. Even if people only buy the already existing, outdated Barbie. It is important because toys are important cultural symbols: they reflect what we as a society deem appropriate for our children to identify with. Dolls help to shape our children’s – and society’s – future view of beauty. For the individual, ‘realistic’ Barbie will hopefully go some way to show children that their own looks are iconic. Broadly speaking, children playing with dolls that are of a different colour, or body shape, or are ginger, instills acceptance, even a love of diversity.
Beauty ideals are not fixed, but they are pretty entrenched in our culture. Dove may make already insecure adult women feel better about their ‘flaws’, but to really change our perception of what is beautiful, to really create a society that unanimously celebrates diversity, we must look to the impressionable souls of the future generation.
The designers of Barbie’s endeavours most probably boil down entirely to a need to respond to increasing competition. But so what? Their response to consumer demand is a mark of how our culture of prejudice is waning; so much so that an item that has been an icon for 57 years requires dramatic revamping to avoid fading out of the market. For that reason, I could not be happier with this new line of Barbies.
Image credit: romitagirl67


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The NBA plans to carry on Kobe Bryant and his daughter, Gianna's, legacy.
On Friday afternoon, the organization announced they will be making a joint donation of $100,000 with the National Basketball Player Association to the MambaOnThree Foundation.
Addition - NBA - NBPA - Nike - Gianna
In addition, the NBA, NBPA and Nike revealed they will be honoring Gianna and Kobe by featuring their respective jersey numbers, 2 and 24, on the All-Star uniforms. "In addition, both teams will wear jersey patches displaying nine stars, representing those who lost their lives in the crash, including...