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Thursday, April 17, 2014
NHTSA passes ruling for Car Manufacturers to install Rear-View Cameras by Tuesday May 1st 2018 - Self-Driving Cars First Steps as Jamaica falls behind in Vehicle Regulations
“Safety is our highest priority, and we are committed to protecting the most vulnerable victims of back over accidents — our children and seniors. As a father, I can only imagine how heart wrenching these types of accidents can be for families, but we hope that today’s rule will serve as a significant step toward reducing these tragic accidents.”
U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx speaking on the new ruling handed down by the NHTSA (U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) as it relates to Rear-View Cameras by Tuesday May 1st 2018
We’re getting closer and closer to the day when we’ll have self-driving cars, probably based on technology developed either by Google or Volvo and the SARTRE (Safe Road Trains for the Environment) Project as explained in detail in my blog article entitled “Volvo Testing Autonomous Motor Vehicles in Spain in Live Traffic - EU Project SARTRE adds self-driving AI with smartphone Control”.
Now the NHTSA (U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) on Monday March 31st 2014 has decreed that as of Tuesday May 1st 2018, all vehicles will have to have rear-view Cameras installed by default as reported in “ALL NEW CARS WILL BE REQUIRED TO HAVE REARVIEW CAMERAS”, published March 31, 2014 by Mike Flacy, DigitalTrends and “US requiring back-up cameras in cars by 2018”, published March 31, 2014 11:04 AM PDT by Wayne Cunningham, CNET News.
In other words, no vehicle produced in that year or for that year in the United States of America will be allowed on the road unless it has a camera kit installed, which will add an extra US$140 to the cost of making a Motor Vehicle.The ruling by the targets mostly Cars, and Minivans and SUV i.e. under 10,000 lb, but 2019 Trucks and anything over that size will also have to have rear-view Cameras.
The stipulation also specifies a 10-foot by 20-foot field of view, possibly via Apple Carplay as explained in my blog article entitled “Apple to launch CarPlay at Geneva Auto Show in Geneva, Switzerland - Siri Voice Assistant and Primesense bring Hands-free Remote Control Revolution to The Grand Budapest Hotel” or other appropriate Viewing Technology, such as a dashboard embedded Tablet.
First Steps towards Self-Driving Cars – Jamaica Falling behind in Vehicle Regulations
The Americans have begun the first few tentative steps towards the legalization of Self-driving Cars. This as by adding Rear-view Cameras, it makes it easy in the future for automobile owners to buy Self-Driving DIY (Do It Yourself) kits. These DIY kits can be added to any car post-production along with an addition camera and sensor kit to make the Car self-aware and thus self-driving.
Safety is the main concern, as the stats cited by the NHTSA and the cost for the implementation of this basic feature show:
1) 210 people are killed each year while reversing
2) 15,000 injuries each year while reversing
3) 33% of the fatalities while reversing are children under age 5
4) 25% of the fatalities while reversing are adults aged 70
Everything appears to be falling into place even while the hard research is being conducted by Google and SARTRE. I just hope that by the time they’re ready to roll out Semi-autonomous Self-Driving Motor Vehicles, they have developed a defense against hacking and virus attacks as predicted in my Geezam blog article entitled “Intel’s McAfee researches Virus attacks on All-Electric Vehicles as AI’s Project SARTRE hits the road”.
Otherwise hacking vehicles and taking over the system and using the vehicle’s Hard-drive to launch DDOS (Distributed Denial of Service Attacks) as explained in my blog article entitled “Proofpoint says Refridgerator hacked and used to send Spam email - Internet of Things Terminator 3 Rise of the Machines for hacker's DDOS and Spambots”, and even using the on-board Cameras to spy on you, may become another commonplace occurrence.
How long will Jamaica take to adopt this even as we cling to our SUV (Sports Utility Vehicles) that are still powered by Gasoline as pointed out in my blog article entitled “GOJ buys SUV's for Ministers of Government from Toyota Jamaica - All-Electric Vehicle Importation Support is needed from GOJ to be The Master of our Fuel Consumption”?
Not any time soon, as the GOJ has shown no signs of remorse as it relates to implementing tough regulation to keep out older Vehicles and introduce Flex-Fuel Hybrid and All-Electric Vehicles into Jamaica as stated in my blog article entitled “Minister of Justice Mark Golding Environmental Policy changes to Vehicle Importation - All-Electric Vehicles and Flex-Fuel Vehicles put Used Car Dealers on The Guilt Trip”.
Wednesday, April 16, 2014
Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service develops artificial Type O Negative Blood - Stem Cell Cloning of Type O Negative Blood for Cheaper Transfusions in 2016
“Although similar research has been conducted elsewhere, this is the first time anybody has manufactured Blood to the appropriate quality and safety standards for transfusion into a human being,”
Professor Marc Turner, Lead Researcher in the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service developement of Laboratory grown Type O Negative (–) Blood for Transfusion
Researchers at the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service have made an incredible breakthrough by developing artificial Laboratory Grown Type O Negative (–) that can be transfused into any human being as stated in “First Artificial Red Blood Cells Made”, published 4/14/2014 @ 11:19AM by Paul Rodgers, Forbes.
The Project, funded to the tune of £5m ($8.5m) by the Wellcome Trust, achieve this remarkeable breakthrough via Stem Cell Cloning in the field of Regenerative Medicine that's developing replacement tissues for Transplant.
Artificial skin, liver, bone, cartilage, Blood vessels and even Vaginas are now possible as stated in the article “Artificial vagina, nasal cartilage grown in lab, implanted in patients: What next?”, published April 13, 8:46 AM By James Maynard, Tech Times and “This Week In Lab-Grown Organs: The Artificial Vagina”, published April 14th, 2014 By Lina Chappelle, NYU Local.
In the case of the Blood, it's the Type O, a rare type of Blood that's common in only 7% of humans as explained on the Nobel Prize’s Website article “Blood Groups, Blood Typing and Blood Transfusions”.
Yet carriers of this type of Blood can donate Blood to anyone for transfusions, hence the reason for artificially growing this type of Blood. Also, Rhesus Negative (–) can donate to anyone that’s Rhesus Positive (+), hence the reason why the artificially manufactured Blood is Type O Negative (–)!
Lack of the knowledge of the different types of Blood meant that the developement of Blood Transfusion, pioneered by 17th Century physician Jean-Baptiste Denys in France during the reign of Louis XIV’s, saw many persons dying mysteriously because they were transfused with the wrong Blood.
It wasn't until the discovery of Blood Types, that being A, B, AB and O by Karl Landsteiner and later the discovery of the Rhesus + and - Factor by Alexander S. Wiener before the deaths stopped and transfusions became mainstream.
Red Blood Cell Transfusion – Cloning Type O Negative Blood for Transfusion economy-of-scale
The process basically involves cloning Red Blood Cells under conditions that simulate those present in Bone Marrow. Stem cells are harvested from an adult donor’s skin or Blood. They are then chemically induced to become iPS (induced pluripotent stem), capable of growing into any of the body's 200 cells or skin tissue.
Then the fun part begins, with the iPS cells exposed to a chemical culture that simulate the conditions in the Bone Marrow, thus inducing them to grow into Red Blood Cells, a process that reminds me of the of the cloning of Dolly the sheep back in 1997 as stated in “1997: Dolly the sheep is cloned”, published 22 Feb 1997, BBC News and how far we’ve come full circle to the original purpose of cloning: Regeneration of Human Tissues for Transplants.
Like that famous cloning process back in 2007, some of the Cell do not grow into Red Blood cells. A Centrifuge is used to separate the Red Blood cells by mass from the other tissue that may grow from the iPS Cells. Then the Blood is cooled and stored. Thanks to the fact that it is grown, it has no diseases and thus can last longer than the 120 day life cycle typically of human harvested Blood.
This developement now means that Transfusions costs will soon go down. Currently in the US of A, a pint of Blood that matches the donor costs US$500; in Britain it's £120. Scaling up the process is apparently rocket science, as it requires more than just adding more ingredients according to Professor Marc Turner, Lead Researcher in the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service, quote: “It’s one thing to bake a cake and another thing to bake a cake 100 times the size.
It’s not just a matter of putting in 100 times the ingredients”.
But the demand may mean that may not be immediately a concern, despite the staggering numbers needing transfusions Globally:
1. 100 million units are donated world-wide annually
2. 40,000 units are transfused daily in the US of A
The main concern is safety. There are test trials planned with three (3) patients that have a haemoglobin deficiency genetic disorder known as thalassaemia in 2016. If those trials are successful and the patients can accept daily transfusions of this artificially grown Type O Negative (–) Blood, then I won’t be such a rare person anymore. Not to mention saving thousands of lives around the world with my rare Blood type.
…for you see, dear reader, I’m a carrier of Type O Negative (–) Blood…. And I’m scared of Needles!
National Lionfish Project reaps 66% reduction as Lionfish Population is down - NEPA's MTIASIC suggests Commercial Lionfish Farming possible for Restautants and Fast Food Industry
The Red Lionfish (Pterois volitans) are now on the retreat thanks to the work of NEPA’s (National Environment and Planning Agency) MTIASIC (Mitigating the Threat of Invasive Alien Species in the Insular Caribbean) which after four years is reaping success as stated in “NEPA reports big drop in lionfish sightings”, published Wednesday, April 16, 2014, The Jamaica Observer.
This assessment was made by Minister of Water, Land, Environment and Climate Change, Robert Pickersgill at a closing out ceremony for the MTIASIC project, more popularly known as the National Lionfish Project that was held at the Pollyanna Hotel in Kingston on Friday April 11th 2014 as stated in “Lionfish population down”, published Saturday, April 12, 2014 4:46 PM, The Jamaica Observer.
At 66%, that a dramatic rate of success that's as simple as hunting the invasive species of fish that eats other young fish and ...well…..eating them. Escapees from the protected pond environment in Florida during a Hurricane back in 1992, they quickly made the Caribbean their home in 2006, with populations reaching 250 Red Lionfish (Pterois volitans) per hectare.
That 66% since MTIASIC began its work in 2009 translates to 80 Red Lionfish (Pterois volitans) per hectare, mainly thanks to the National Lionfish Project PR (Public Relations) campaign literally getting Jamaicans to consume the butterfish-tasting Red Lionfish (Pterois volitans), after having removed their poisonous fins or course.
But is there commercial value for the Fast Food Industry in farming the Red Lionfish (Pterois volitans)? I did an article suggesting they’d be a big hit as a Fast Food Delicacy as Jamaicans were showing an interest in comsuming them in that setting as explained in my blog article entitled “Rainforest Seafoods vs the Lionfish - KFC iTwist in Yendi Phillip's Emerald Forest”.
Red Lionfish are Commercially Viable – Lionfish are the Cattle of the Aquaculture Farming World
However, their numbers being reduced, they're no longer commercially viable in that sense as far as Rainforest Seafoods was concerned. However, an enterprising Fish Farmer can grow the Red Lionfish (Pterois volitans) commercially in a Fish Pond, as their very fast rate of growth in the Wild suggests that they are efficient converters of protein into body mass, excellent for commercial Farming.
Thus Red Lionfish (Pterois volitans) weighting several pounds is possible in a matter of weeks. That enterprising Fish Farmer can grow them very quickly and resell them to restaurants and Agro-Packaging companies such as Best Dressed and CPL to be gutted and vacuum sealed and sold to Jamaicans and exported abroad as explained in my blog article entitled “CB Group's Safe Food Movement Vacuum Sealed Tray-less Meats - Trend toward Vacuum Sealing in Jamaica to stretch Food Budget and reduce Refrigeration”.
Just like Rabbit Farming, it’s just for one persons to start the venture of growing the Red Lionfish (Pterois volitans) and introduce it to others, as was the case with Marcus Garvey Technical High School planning to help other schools with the rearing of Rabbits in the St. Anns Area and elsewhere as explained in my blog article entitled “Marcus Garvey Technical High School Rabbit Rearing Program - How the St. Ann School is teaching Teenagers and Millenials about Modern Farming Techniques”.
Red Lionfish (Pterois volitans) are carniverouse by nature, making feeding them a matter of having a secondary pong to grow the fish and other marine life that are then let into their area for feeding time. Thus commercial weights of 2lb and 3lb fish may be achievable within 2 to 3 weeks, making them ready sale to Restaurants and eventually the Fast Food Restaurants that want a regular supply of the rare yet poisonous delicacy!
Tuesday, April 15, 2014
Sweetie Confectionery CEO Patria-Kaye Aarons to launch Jamaican Flavoured Candy - May the Force be with the Weather Presenter as it's Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs
An interesting story popped up while Googling “Sweets Jamaica” on CVM News and Weather Presenter and CEO of Sweetie Confectionery Patria-Kaye Aarons who is now making her own Jamaican-themed candy with her own company called Sweetie Confectionery as stated in “The 'sweet' story behind Patria-Kaye Aarons”, Published Monday April 7, 2014, The Jamaica Gleaner.
The candy maker apparently plans to commercially launch her Jamaican fruit flavoured Candy in May 2014. One thing’s for sure; I’m adding “Sweetie Confectionery” and “Patria-Kaye Aarons” to my already growing watch list in Google Alerts that includes Kim Kardashian and Chromebooks as explained in my Geezam blog article entitled “Google Alerts Diamond in the Rough coming to Google+ to deliver Technology News”.
I’m am fascinated by this story, as it fulfills the prophecy which I spoke and suggests what I’ve always said is true; many of the foods we import can be manufactured here in Jamaica, candy included, as we do have the manufacturing capability to make our own foods as stated in my blog article entitled “Jamaica's Basic Item Food Bill mostly from 1st World Countries - Buy Jamaican Build Jamaica made from Imported Raw Materials in containers that says Made in Jamaica”.
Apparently the CVM News and Weather Presenter realized that foreign imported candy, mostly made in Latin america, simply did not reflect the island flavor, as made evident by her god-daughter’s desire for Jamaican Candy that had Jamaican fruit flavours.
While she’s at it, I hope she also makes a series of Natural Toothpaste to cure all those kids of cavities she’ll be creating along the way as explained in my blog article entitled “Going back to Mother Earth - How to make Natural Toothpaste and Listerine and save money and your sensitive teeth”.
Teaching kids about good dental hygiene is important, especially as so many sweets are out there to rot their little teeth as per the article “Tips to help kids form healthy dental habits”, Published Wednesday February 5, 2014, The Jamaica Gleaner.
Sweetie Confectionery’s Patria-Kaye Aarons – Sweet Tooth Natural Candy made from Vacuum Pyrolysis
Takes one hell of a leap of faith to leave a cushy job as a Sponsorship and Communications Manager at GraceKennedy to go through the process of making an original a product as Caribbean Fruit flavoured candy that, according to her, is made from REAL Fruit flavours, not HFCS (High Fructose Corn Syrup), quote: “The flavours are not synthetic. They are natural Oils extracted from the fruits themselves, and we had to do a lot of taste testing and experimentation to find a supplier that could get it right and to make sure that the flavours were as close to the fruit as possible”.
Indeed, Sweetie confectionary may actually be the only Candy maker in Jamaica that's all Jamaican. This based on the flavours on deck:
1. Custard apple
6. June plum
10. Otaheiti apple
Extraction must have been done using a process similar to Vacuum Pyrolysis as described in my blog article entitled “How to upgrade your Solar Desalinator to a Solar Cooker and make a Solar Foundry for Vacuum Pyrolysis”. This process, also done in a vacuum in a low- Temperature, low pressure Evaporator, extracts the volatile Essential Oils of each fruit being extracted and concentrates them using some kind of natural stabilizer.
This process can also be used to extract Essential Oils to make Perfumes and it can even be done using Solar power using a Fresnel Lens, much in the same way it extracts Bamboo Vinegar during the making of Bamboo Charcoal as explained in my blog article entitled “Jamaica's Bamboo Charcoal exports stalled by lack of Bamboo Furnaces – How to build a Fresnel Lens Solar Powered Bamboo Furnace and produce Activated Charcoal byproduct”.
They are then made into the various shapes and sizes as per specification of the candy maker, with care to preserve the flavor of the fruit without ruining it with too much heat or addition of artificial flavours or even Aspartame, an artificial sugar which even the ant’s dislike!
The packaging is clearly Jamaican thanks to OGM's Marketing Department, with sweets draped in Jamaican flags and sold in 1/2 pound and 1 pound bags similarly emblazoned with our country's colours. She must have gotten a considerable deal of assistance in the financing department, as pension funds don't last too long.
The Jamaica Business Development Corporation (JBDC), Scientific Research Centre as described in my blog article entitled “JN Foundation and JNSBL launches Jamaica's first Crowdfunding website, i Support Jamaica - Local Crowdfunding to the rescue of Jamaican Innovators so you don't have to be The Lone Ranger”. The Branson Centre of Entrepreneurship apparently also chipped in to help her along to transition from idea-in-my-kitchen to actual product.
Her showing at the Jamaica Manufacturers' Association/Jamaica Export Association expo, a manufacturing feat made possible thanks to the help from Paul Lue-Yen of Miel, Currently Jamaica's only other Candy manufacturer.
If you remember the Jamaica Manufacturers' Association/Jamaica Export Association expo, then you should also remember the introduction of the 1 litre Red Stripe Beer that's made using Cassava as a replacement for the Hops as reported in the article “RED STRIPE LAUNCHES 1 LITRE BOTTLE”, published Thursday, April 10, 2014, The Jamaica Observer.
So folks, it is indeed possible to manufacture in Jamaica and make money, proof of which we’ll see next month in May 2014 when her company Sweetie Confectionery goes live.
Food Manufacturing in Jamaica – Electronics and other products are also possible
We don’t need to import the raw materials though, the only thing about the story I didn’t like. Most of the flavouring could be found and made in Jamaica at Caribbean Flavours, whose recent IPO (Initial Public offer) was oversubscribed on the JSE (Junior Stock Exchange) as stated in the article “Caribbean Flavours IPO oversubscribed”, published Friday, September 27, 2013, The Jamaica Observer.
Then again, the quantity of original fruit to use in an Evaporator to extract the Essential Oils lacking, as we’re just beginning to revive the idea of growing Fruit Trees via the National Fruit Tree Crop Project as explained in my blog article entitled “Breadfruit and Fruit Tree Revival coming under RADA's National Fruit-Tree Crop Project - Red Stripe and Agro-Investment Corporation an example of how Agriculture benefits both Farmer and GOJ”.
Even Red Stripe getting the Government of Jamaica o give them land for a test run to grow Cassava as a replacement for hops in Beer faced challenges as stated in my blog article entitled “Red Stripe and Agro-Investment Corporation signs lease Agreement on 36 acres of Land - Farmers benefit from Cassava’s Day in the Sun as we catch up with Africa's by September 2014”.
This is also true of even small electronics items such as Solar Panels and Electronics components as explained in my blog article entitled “No news on progress of the Rare Earth Pilot Plant at JBI - Cuba-Jamaica CFL Project Heralds manufacturing of LED's, Li-Ion Batteries and Sapphire Screens in Jamaica”.
LED (Light Emitting Diode) Bulbs and even Cellphones and Tablets can also be manufactured at low enough cost for export as explained in my blog article entitled “Haiti's Surtab SA and Handxom SA making 7-inch Tablet to supply Digicel - Pengelley's Tablets need Cheap Electricity for Plants to make LED, Li-Ion Batteries and Solar Panels”.
Computer Repair Hobby – Sweetie Confectionery Sweet Success suggests possible bright future
As for financing, that’s now a breeze, as once you have a working prototype of your concept, you can raise funding via I Support Jamaica, a Crowdfunding venture run by the JN Foundation and JNSBL as described in my blog article entitled “JN Foundation and JNSBL launches Jamaica's first Crowdfunding website, i Support Jamaica - Local Crowdfunding to the rescue of Jamaican Innovators so you don't have to be The Lone Ranger”.
As for me, I’m just doing my thing as a Computer Repair Specialist with a side interest in CCTV Camera Installation and also installation of Telecom Networks. Not really a business, just my interests to keep some money in my pocket, as I’m not completely interested in being a Businessman, merely needing the money to pay rent and survive.
But who knows, maybe my “hobby” in Computer Repair and Installation work (CCTV, Alarms, Networking) will eventually blossom into something worthwhile.
So Sweetie Confectionary joins a long list of entrepreneurs who are making uniquely Jamaican Products. As usual funding is always a hurdle, as stated by CEO of Sweetie Confectionery Patria-Kaye Aarons, quote: “Every entrepreneur you talk to will tell you that financing is a huge issue for them. It was easier for me to get a car loan than it was to get a loan to finance my business”.
In the meantime, this sweet story about CVM News and Weather Presenter and CEO of Sweetie Confectionery Patria-Kaye Aarons is blogworthy enough for me to write home about on my blog and track via Google Alerts!
Monday, April 14, 2014
Amazon Fire TV is a bonafide hit and is out-of-stock according to Amazon - The Bamboo powered smartphone running Amazon apps cometh
“We're thrilled with the customer response to Fire TV so far -- we're building more as quickly as we can and we're expecting more inventory next week”
Amazon spokeswoman Kinley Pearsall commenting on Amazon Fire TV being out-of-stock
It’s early days yet, but it appears that the Amazon Fire TV is a bonafide hit according to Amazon as stated in “Amazon: Fire TV sellout must mean we're on fire”, published April 11, 2014 12:38 PM PDT by Joan E. Solsman, CNET News.
The Amazon Fire TVwas launched on Wednesday April 2nd 2014 with much fanfare by Amazon, as this 2-in-1US$99 Streaming Box also threw in a US$40 Game Controller as stated in my blog article entitled “Amazon launches Amazon Fire TV Set Top and Gaming Console - Amazon Prime Delight challenges Apple iTV, enflames Cord-Cutter's Nirvana portending Console Gaming Renaissance”.
No stats were given or numbers, save to say that they said the out-of-stock situation was a result of backorders and not supply chain issues i.e. the Amazon Fire TV is so hot, it’s selling like hot bread! Just like the Tablet, the Amazon Kindle Fire as stated in my blog article entitled “Amazon launches a pair of Kindle Fire 2 - ACS-Xerox Call Centers in Jamaica ramp up as Kindle Fire begin to Sparkle” and my Geezam blog article entitled “Amazon sells 5.5 million Kindle Fires in Fourth Quarter 2012 – Apple iPad sales drop and plans January Press Event”.
To which I’d reply “like duh-uh”, it must be selling like hot bread at that price, even as hot as the Google Chromecast HDMI Streaming Stick, which was selling for US$35 when it launched as stated in my blog article entitled “Google launches a 4G LTE Google Nexus 7 and Google Chromecast Streaming Device - Uninspired Tablet upgrades but US$35 Google Chromecast is the Streaming World's Blue Jasmine”.
Amazon smartphone cometh – The Bamboo powered smartphone running Amazon apps
But Amazon appears not to be done yet, as according to the Wall Street Journal, Amazon has plans to launch a smartphone in September 2014 as stated in “Amazon, chasing Apple, Samsung, may enter smartphone market”, published April 11, 2014 2:20 PM PDT by Donna Tam, CNET News. If true, then Amazon can easily beat Apple or at least grab a sizeable chunk of the market as I’d predicted in my blog article entitled “Amazon set to launch smartphone in Fourth Quarter of 2012AD - The App Economy and the Increasing Importance of Digical Content”, even though they’re launching this late.
Although they’ve yet to beat the Apple iPad, their introduction of the Amazon Kindle Fire forced Apple’s hand as I’d predicted in my Geezam blog article entitled “Amazon sells 5.5 million Kindle Fires in Fourth Quarter 2012 – Apple iPad sales drop and plans January Press Event” and my blog article entitled “Apple iPad 3 Launch on March 2012 - Amazon Kindle Fire is a Sweet Dream but a Beautiful Nightmare for Apple”.
Apple thus had to debut their Apple iPad Mini in 2012 making the whole world realize that there is indeed a market for 7” Tablets as stated in my Geezam blog article entitled “The Two Towers of Tablets, 7” Amazon Kindle Fire and 7.9” Apple iPad are the Global Tablet size of Choice” .
Now Apple has shown more faith in the 7” market with the launch of yet a second iteration, the Apple iPad Mini 2 launched in October 2013 as stated in my Geezam blog article entitled “Apple iPad Air’s the World Thinnest Tablet and Apple iPad Mini 2’s a 3DS and Vita killer”.
If Amazon launches a smartphone, it will have the same effect on Apple and Google as the Amazon Kindle Fire. I just hope by then CEO Jeff Bezos perfects his Fall Prevention Technology as I’ve described in my blog article entitled “Amazon patents Fall Prevention Technology for smartphones and Tablets - The Research begins with Amazon’s patent that’s Hyde Park on Hudson”, so at to make his new smartphone unbreakable, albeit making it out of bamboo would be quite ok.
Here’s hoping it’ll also come with some sort of Tracking Technology to locate my smartphone. Sorta like the Nokia Treasure Tag as explained in my blog article entitled “Nokia Treasure Tag to launch in April 2014 - Pirates on the Caribbean on Stranger Tides will find locating lost keys that much easier”. A departure from Android would also be good, as there’s a need to have alternative Operating Systems introduced in the smartphone arena.
With 200,000 app Store and a slowly growing Developer Clan, making a smartphone that sells would push them into the same arena that Facebook is also pushing into as described in my blog article entitled “WhatsApp VoIP Calling in Second Quarter of 2014 - WhatsApp kills International Calling at the Advent of Facetime-eqsue Premium Video VoIP Calling on smartphones” but with a physical Device.
Folks, keep following my blog for any News on the Amazon smartphone with Fall Prevention Technology and Tracking Technology coming by September 2014.
Saturday, April 12, 2014
EWI secures US$550 million in Loans from Development Bank of Philippines - Conflict of Interest in EWI and EWC ownership even as Renewable Energy can power the Entire Island
“We are extremely pleased to announce this important financing milestone for our Philippines projects, which represents a strong statement of support for EWC's strategy to bring clean and green energy to Asia by one of the Philippines' leading financial institutions. We look forward to working in close cooperation with the DBP and other local and international lenders in finalising this project financing transaction in the coming months”
CEO and Chairman of EWC Stewart Elliott, commenting on the loan agreement with the DBP (Development Bank of Philippines)
Great News for those worried about Jamaica’s Energy future under Hong Kong based EWI (Energy World International), especially as it relates to the construction of the 360 MW LNG Power Plant!
They’ve finally secured some US$550 million in loans from the DBP (Development Bank of Philippines) as stated “Energy World Corporation secures financing with Development Bank of the Philippines”, published Friday, April 11, 2014, The Jamaica Observer.
This represents 74.62% of the original US$737-million price-tag that EWI estimated for the construction of the 360 MW LNG (Liquid Natural Gas) Power Plant. The agreement apparently had been signed with the DBP in Manila, Philippines on Friday 28th February 2014. With this agreement, securing supply contracts for the 300,000 tonnes of the LNG needed to fuel the LNG Power Plant.
Opposition Spokesman on Energy Karl Samuda Concerns – Conflict of Interest in EWI and EWC ownership
This should help to ease any suspicions that members of the JLP (Jamaica Labour Party) led Opposition, especially Karl Samuda, has about EWI and CEO and Chairman of EWC Stewart Elliott as also pointed out by the Traditional Media Houses and most recently by The Jamaica Observer’s Caribbean Media Report
EWI Board owns 334,572 million shares of EWC (Energy world Corporation), a publically listed company. Interestingly too, CEO and Chairman of EWC Stewart Elliott also owns EWI, the local Jamaican Consortium that was formed to bid for and build the 360 MW LNG Plant and has some 639 shares of EWC. Not sure why this is a big deal, save for the fact it suggests that CEO and Chairman of EWC Stewart Elliott has his fingers in more than one pie, being both Owner of EWI and CEO and Chairman of EWC.
Conflict-of-interest issues may be the case that Caribbean Business Report and other Traditional Media houses are trying to make, as he can easily influenced decision making if he sits on the Boards of 2 separate companies, suggesting he's not of reputable character, a big issue among shareholders worried about their investments in such companies.
EWI business is as follows:
1. Development, Building and operating in property
2. Managing infrastructure
3. Power generation
4. Electrical Energy projects
Our deal with EWI should sooth some passions though:
1. 50% payment and takeover should EWI default on the Construction of the Power Plant or meet the agreed Criteria
2. 15% control of the Power Plant after 20 years
With the 20 year PPA (Power Purchase Agreement) and a partnership deal forged with JPS Co (Jamaica Public Service Company Limited) to build the 360 MW Power Plant under their belt one month later as described in my blog article entitled “JPS Co and EWI forge deal to build 360-MW LNG Plant together - The Wolf of Wall Street makes an American Hustle to Energise Jamaica's Energy Future” , this Plant is looking more and more to be completed within the required timeframe.
Especially as word is now wafting about that suggests that the Power Plant may be split in two (2) as a means of increasing the level of Redundancy, with one Plant located in Bull Bay, St. Thomas and the other in Bogue, St. James as stated in my blog article entitled “EWI Plant to have 2 LNG Plants - LNG Plant Banana Split between St. James and St. Thomas may mean LNG Fuel coming for Large companies and Auto LPG for JUTC to reduce fuel costs”.
115 MW Renewable Energy Projects too small – Renewable Energy can power the Entire Island
Personally, I’m awaiting word of the progress with the Bidders who’d also been awarded Licenses for the 115 MW of Power from Renewable Energy sources which occurred around the same time as the EWI’s award as chronicled in my blog article entitled “360 MW LNG Power Plant and 115 MW Renewable Energy Project Bidders have submitted Bids - Congratulations to the Energy Bidders as Liberated Energy Sector is Power to the People”.
The total Renewable Energy thus far is 78MW, or 67.83% of the total amount as stated in my blog article entitled “Wigton Wind Farms Limited submits Bid Bond for 24MW Wind Farm - 78MW Total from WWFL, BMR and WRB Enterprises Inc means were 37MW short on Renewable Energy”, which is currently being supplied by the confirmed bidders as follows:
1. WWFL (Wigton Wind Farms Limited) is providing 24MW of Wind Energy
2. BMR (Blue Mountain Renewables) is providing 42MW of Wind Energy
3. WRB Enterprises Inc is providing 20MW of Solar Power
There is still a shortfall of some 37 MW of Power, with no official announcements of any additional Bidders or current Bidders stepping forward to fill that Gap.
This as in my eyes, Renewable Energy is of greater importance than the 360 MW Plant. It has the greatest potential to not only just save on the importation of Fossil Fuels but ultimately power the entire island as argued in my blog article entitled “June on El Hierro, Canary Island's smallest Island to become the first Territory to go 100 percent Renewable - Canary Island makes many wonder if the same isn't possible in the Caribbean”.
Manufacture and production of our own Solar Panels in partnership with Cuba as it relates to using Solar Panels to connect the last 3% of Jamaica as described in my blog article entitled “Jamaica and Cuba collaborate on Solar Panels Production in Jamaica to connect the last 3% - Jamaica's rebranding of the REP to the JESL started the Alternative Energy Hunger Games Catching Fire” should also be extended as an option to the rest of Jamaica that wants a low-cost way to come off the JPS Co Grid altogether.
As it relates to Renewable Energy, the Ministry of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining is thinking a bit too small in just using Renewable Energy to reduce our Oil Importation Bill. I await more information on the 115 MW Renewable Energy Licenses and even its expansion even as I celebrate the 360 MW Project showing further signs of life to renew my faith.
Licensed JUTC KMTR Franchise holders begin operation on April 8th 2014 - Attack of the Stone Throwing Jamaicans against JUTC State sponsored Terrorism again JATOO
Looks like the Injunction filed by the more than 300 Private Bus Operators failed to block the coming takeover of KMTR routes by the JUTC as I’d reported in my blog article entitled “Mandatory SmarterCard Cashless System coming in March 2014 – JUTC Legal challenge NATO over Routes as JA$100 Wi-Fi needed to keep Unruly High School Students Happy”.
On Tuesday April 1st 2014, the JUTC (Jamaica Urban Transit Corporation) took over the KMTR (Kingston Metropolitan Transport Region) from the more than 300 Private Bus Operators as stated in “Smooth JUTC takeover from KMTR minibuses”, published Tuesday, April 1st, 2014 11:28 AM, The Jamaica Observer.
In the process, the Ministry of Transport and Works is effectively forcing all the 300 Private Bus Operators to paint their buses in the same colours as the JUTC’s as noted in the article “JUTC dictates all KMTR buses be painted yellow”, published Friday, March 28, 2014, The Jamaica Observer.
The GOJ (Government of Jamaica) are also making sure that no Minibuses or Buses with less than a seating capacity of 15 persons are a part of the new KMTR Franchises as stated in “Operators want more time before retake of routes”, published Tuesday April 1, 2014, The Jamaica Gleaner.
Finally to top it off, it anyone is caught taking a non-complaint or “Robot” Bus or Taxi, they could face either a fine of JA$100,000 or six (6) months in Jail as stated in “$100,000 Or Six Months In Jail For Taking 'Robot' Vehicles, Says JUTC”, published Friday March 28, 2014 12:59 pm, by Jerome Reynolds, Staff Reporter, The Jamaica Gleaner. That is harsh but logical; you create the improved JUTC Bus system and now you need the public to support it, hence the need to impose fines in sake of Public Safety.
This based on a presentation on Monday April 7th 2014 in the House of Representatives Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Anthony Hylton entitled “Motor Vehicle Import Policy” in which they laid out their intention to restrict the purchase, importation and transfer of Vehicle titles and ownership of these small minibuses.
JUTC takeover of KMTR – Franchise Requirements by the Numbers
So now’s a good time to get rid of these Minibuses, as the GOJ is trying to make the JUTC profitable via a takeover of the routes, with revenues coming in from the payment of licenses by the Private Bus Operators who have accepted the terms of their Franchises.
The following things need to be noted about the Franchises:
1. JA$175,000 per annum is the cost of a KMTR Franchise License
2. JUTC is to reclaim the 3, 17Express, 19A, 31A, 32 and 42 routes from the Private Bus owners
Of the 319 Private Bus Operators, only 43 took up the offer at that time on Tuesday April 1st 2014, citing the difficulty of finding funds:
1. Paint their buses in the appropriate JUTC Colours
2. Wearing uniforms and be generally neatly attired
3. Issue Tickets to passengers
4. Pay off their outstanding Traffic Tickets
5. Have their Vehicles fully licensed, insured and Roadworthy
This new arrangement, after some teething pains, became effective officially a week later on Tuesday April 8th 2014 after a one (1) week extension was granted to the 319 Private Bus owners to regularize their Buses in order to qualify for a Franchise License.
Eventually by Tuesday April 8th 2014, 129 of the 319 Private Bus Operators having eventually ponied up the money to correct the above and be fit to take up the KMTR Franchises on offer as stated in “New sub-franchise system in full effect today”, published Tuesday April 8, 2014 8:36 am, The Jamaica Gleaner.
That’s when the problems began and the Rock-stones began to fly!
JUTC and JATOO – Attack of the Stone Throwing Jamaicans against perceived State sponsored Terrorism
It was at that point that the Stone-throwing incidents began in what effectively was a War or words that broiled over into a pitched battle between the JUTC and JATOO (Jamaica Association of Transport owners and Operators), the association that represents most of the 319 Private Bus owners.
The first set of attack, 18 in total, occurred on Monday March 7th 2014 and Tuesday March 8th 2014 as reported in “JUTC set back by $2.5m after attacks on buses”, published Thursday April 10, 2014 by Sheldon Williams, Staff Reporter, The Jamaica Gleaner.
It reportedly cost the JUTC approximately $2.5 million to repair, based on the statement issued on Tuesday March 8th 2014 by Chairman of the JUTC, the Reverend Garnett Roper, quote: “The incidents, which numbered 18 between yesterday (Monday) and today (Tuesday), caused damage to the buses. The vandalism included the smashing of the windscreens of two of the buses, breaking of two side windows in one of the buses, smashing of a door and tampering with the engines of two of the buses”.
The most recent stone throwing incidents occurred on Friday April 11th 2014 the Gordon Town, Papine Area and Heroes Circle close to Downtown Kingston as reported in “More JUTC buses attacked”, published Saturday April 12, 2014 by Sheldon Williams, Staff Reporter, The Jamaica Gleaner and “Attacks on JUTC buses continue”, published Friday, April 11, 2014 8:47 AM, The Jamaica Observer.
Apparently, one Franchise route had to be taken over by the JUTC in the Waterhouse area. That area is very volatile and is nothing like the calm, almost tranquil laid back atmosphere of Swallowfield. I often refer to Swallowfield as the Hidden Village of Konoha, due to the fact that you’d never know that people actually live beyond the Shopping Façade presented at the front of Old Hope Road.
Good to note that one woe is passed. The second woe, which is the implementation of the JUTC’s SmarterCard Cashless Card System as described in my blog article entitled “JUTC to debut RFID & NFC Readable SmarterCard Cashless Bus Ticket System in April 2013 - The Last Stand for a Cashless Society to empower the Multi-Modal Concept”, it yet to come on stream.
Most Jamaicans will be a bit daunted by the prospect of having to give up their personal information to get a JUTC SmarterCard Cashless Card and still have to pay JA$300 to register to get this piece of plastic that can ONLY be used on the JUTC Buses.
I suspect that the Private Bus Operators will also have to implement their own system as well of stricter accountability, as they need to raise the needed JA$175,000 each year along with the other aforementioned fees to pay to maintain their KMTR Franchise Licenses.
Now we’re at War with the JUTC, the foot-soldiers of the Ministry of Transport and Works, I’m expecting it’ll be a long time before any Bus is safe for anyone to travel. For that reason, only walking is safe right now, and personally I’m glad I live within walking Distance from Half-Way-Tree, Cross Roads and Downtown, making travel long but pain-free.


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Black Friday is right around the corner, and Origin has already given us a sneak peek of what’s coming to their store. Today, they have launched a poll for players to choose which game they want to purchase for $1 on Friday, November 29th. Included is The Sims 3 Pets. Go vote!
Game.co.uk has listed The Sims 3 Pets Prima Guide for only £1.99! If you don’t already own it, hurry and snatch it up soon!
Thank you Amber for the tip!

domain: news


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Credit Reports: Fixing ErrorsPosted: Updated:
Each year thousands of people find errors in their credit reports that could prevent them from getting a loan or even a job.
Starting this week there's new help out there.
Tawanna Sellers is a food service employee at a Washington D.C. high school.
She's hoping to start her own food truck business.
The she hasn't is because she got a bad credit report and can't get a loan for her business.
"A lot of stuff that was on there, and some didn't belong to me, and some were a lot of mistakes," she says.
She's not alone.
A recent study found that 79 percent of all credit reports have some type of error.
"A small error on a report, like a new collection that's not mine, can affect you," warns Mattias Kraemer of the Latino Economic Development Center.
Kraemer is helping Tawanna resolve the problem.
He specializes in negotiating with credit companies to correct reports.
"It's a thin line between doors that open and doors that close," Kraemer says.
Now the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is supervising large credit reporting companies like Experian, Equifax and Transunion to make sure these complaints get resolved.
"Bad credit can bar people from getting a job, cost them more money on car loans and home loans or even block them from borrowing money at all," says CFPB director Richard Cordray.
Both Transunion and Experian say they're reports are "highly accurate".
In a statement Transunion writes:
"Our goals are to continually improve our processes..."
"We look forward to working with CFPB."
The CFPB was created as a result of the Consumer Protection Act of 2010.
If you have an issue with your credit you do still have to try to resolve it with the credit reporting companies directly before going to the CFPB for help.
To dispute a credit report with the CFPB you can go to you can go online to: www.ConsumerFinance.gov
Consumers can also receive free copies of their credit reports every 12 months from AnnualCreditReport.com.
This is the only authorized source that provides free disclosures from the three major national credit reporting companies - Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion.


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In the sea of cryptocurrencies that have proliferated in recent months, one crypto is making waves: it is called StopElon and it is the crypto of those who no longer tolerate Elon Musk.
The CEO of Tesla has been able to heavily influence the market in recent months.
After he announced in February that Tesla had invested 1.5 billion dollars in bitcoin, he led the market to an unprecedented rally. The whole sector hit historic highs. He later announced that those who want to buy a Tesla will be able to do so by paying in bitcoin. But then in recent weeks, Elon Musk realized that Bitcoin mining and transactions consume far too much energy, so Tesla will no longer accept BTC payments.
From the hype, the bubble seemed to burst and the whole market found itself in deep red. This situation is also complemented by the new imposition of China, which is applying further restrictions on bitcoin and cryptocurrencies.
Today, Elon Musk met with leading North American mining companies and Microstrategy CEO Michael Saylor to discuss the production of bitcoin with renewable energy.
StopElon crypto: purpose, market cap and community
For the crypto community, this embrace of Elon Musk has become stifling.
This is why StopElon was born, the crypto whose ultimate goal is to oust the CEO of Tesla… from Tesla, by buying shares in the company of which Musk is the founder.
On the official website, it is explained that:
“Elon Musk is infamous for irresponsibly manipulating the cryptocurrency market with his Twitter account. Just recently, he did it again, causing a massive crash across all frontiers when he tweeted that Tesla will cease to accept Bitcoin as payment.
Anyone with even a shred of critical thinking sees through his lies. He has been trying to pump crypto for ages, tweeting about it to no end, and even going on Saturday Night Live as a last resort to get Dogecoin up! It’s ridiculous!
He’s toying with people’s portfolio like candy, like the narcissistic billionaire he is and always will be.
We say ENOUGH. Hence, we created $STOPELON. Where we get rich, without anyone controlling our fate except ourselves.
All you have to do is BUY and HODL”.
It actually sounds like yet another speculative cryptocurrency with no use case. In fact, in the road map divided into phases, it says that in phase 4, the last phase, StopElon wants to enter Tesla’s equity, obviously by buying the shares.
At the moment 1000 billion StopElon tokens have been issued, which can be bought on Pancake Swap as they are tokens issued on Binance Smart Chain.
The numbers for the moment say that the token has reached $34 million in capitalization with about 19,000 addresses.
The Telegram channel has 15,000 members, while Twitter has 2,700 followers.
These are small numbers, but they also give a measure of the existence of a part of the crypto community that is fed up with seeing the market hanging on the tweets of Tesla’s CEO.


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Sterling and the stock markets surged after the Conservatives’ election win, which will be a mixed blessing for farming.
The pound had risen almost two cents against the dollar to U$1.54 by 10.30am on Friday (8 May).
This was just back on a 2.4% rise earlier in the morning – the biggest single one-day gain for the pound since January 2009.
Sterling had also risen two eurocents against the euro, with a pound buying €1.38.
The strength of the British currency over the last year has put extra pressure on agriculture, at a time when most sectors are depressed by oversupply.
A strong pound has made British exports more expensive and foreign products cheaper, weighing on farmgate prices and making imports tempting for retailers.
The CLA’s foreign exchange update said sterling was “firing on all cylinders” after the exit poll, which suggested a shock Tory victory.
But it said there were still market concerns over an EU referendum and Scottish Independence, after the SNP’s dominance north of the border.
“Of course, while the news of a Tory majority may take some of the near-term risk out of sterling assets, there are still some very important questions to answer,” the report said.
Shares in publicly quoted food and farming firms also enjoyed a bounce, as the chance of a Conservative majority offered stability.
In early trading, the FTSE 250 index jumped 3.02% to 17,974 and the FTSE 100 rose 1.87% to 7,016.
Shares in land agent and property firm Savills were trading almost 7% higher.
Pork processor Cranswick was up 4.7%, while Dairy Crest and Associated British Foods (ABF) were enjoying a 2.4% rise.
Retailers also benefited from the positivity, with Tesco shares rising 2.5% and Sainsbury’s up 2.4%.


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Dell is understood to be looking for its first pan-European advertising agency. The PC company previously worked with ten above-the-line agencies across Europe.
The National Magazine Company’s Company magazine is to downsize. It will move from an A4 to American A4 format from its August issue, on sale in July.
David Benady’s cover story (MW March 6) raised some interesting questions on the luxury goods market. However, the fact that BMW’s sales have fallen comes as no surprise to myself. BMW has built a formidable reputation for luxury, quality and desirability but in doing so it has made its cars ubiquitous. When I recently announced […]
Has Sainsbury’s trading manager for beauty Lisa Collins just done a Gerald Ratner? Or are most of its customers really pikeys? The extraordinary admission came as Collins described the supermarket’s roll-out of health and beauty departments to delegates at an IGD conference last week. Having abandoned its partnership with Boots, Sainsbury’s decided to test its […]
From nurturing a fierce curiosity in customer behaviour, to becoming more agile and honing their digital skills, marketers must be prepared to upskill if they want to futureproof their careers in 2021 and beyond.
We may be in the middle of a third lockdown, which has undoubtedly set back the job market once more, but make sure you’re ready and well placed for future opportunities as they will arise.
Mark Ritson, Helen Edwards and CMOs from Nationwide and KFC confirmed for a new March event called The Bottom Line that will deliver insight into what marketers should spend their time and money on.
Former Costa Coffee CMO Sarah Barron has been appointed to lead the restructured team, filling the role which has been vacant since ex-McDonald’s marketer Emily Somers departed last March.


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Belle of the ball! Kim Kardashian took to social media on Thursday to share an behind-the-scenes photo of herself in an over-the-top tulle pink gown that completely covered up her physique
Inspired by Kim Kardashians style? Browse the latest fashion trends at Outletcity in Metzingen. Save up to 70% off all designer fashion brands. Shop discount Belts, Jewelry, Handbags, Coats, Denim, Dresses, Hosiery, Jackets, Jumpsuits, Knitwear and more for men and women.


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DDR Corp. (NYSE: DDR) said its plan to spin off lower-quality U.S. shopping centers and its Puerto Rico assets will create value for shareholders and complete the retail REIT’s broader portfolio transformation.
DDR first announced plans to create a new REIT, Retail Value Inc. (RVI), at the end of 2017. RVI is expected to begin trading on July 2.
Matt Ostrower, CFO of DDR, said the whole purpose of creating a new public company is to sell assets, a strategy that is a “value-creating exercise.” DDR says it will ultimately liquidate the new REIT perhaps as early as the next two to five years.
“We’ve put into place a structure that gives us optionality,” Ostrower said, noting that DDR has a range of assets in RVI. “That’s a sound strategy for realizing value for shareholders.”
Analysts have responded positively to the strategy, saying it will better position DDR for the long-term.
Alexander Goldfarb, an analyst at Sandler O’Neill & Partners, has covered DDR for more than 15 years. He believes that the company’s new management team is “finally being allowed to do what the old team wanted to do”—exit Puerto Rico and prune its portfolio even further. DDR has undergone a number of C-suite changes in recent years. Ostrower, DDR President and CEO David Lukes, and COO Michael Makinen, all joined the company in March 2017 from Equity One Inc.
“What’s positive now is that they’re finally getting the company into a much better place [and] cleaning out things that need to be cleaned out,” Goldfarb said. “For years, the company has not been right-sized.”
Following the devastation of Hurricane Maria in September 2017, there is now tremendous opportunity in Puerto Rico, Goldfarb said. “There’s an uncertainty in where the rents are going to roll down,” he said. “Everyone knows there’s value there, but how do you get at the value and what value do you ascribe [to it]?”
Path to Realizing Net Asset Value
With the creation of RVI, DDR now has a path to realizing net asset value (NAV), according to Green Street Advisors. The firm says that with the Puerto Rico overhang removed, DDR’s remaining centers are of a higher quality. Green Street predicts that each standalone entity will now trade better than the former combined REIT.
“In our opinion, [DDR was] being heavily undervalued,” said Vince Tibone, an analyst on Green Street’s retail team. He said that RVI is effectively a liquidity trust, which is what he finds so interesting about the spinoff.
Tibone acknowledged that there will still be rent roll-downs in Puerto Rico over the next two years. “The management team is candid that there are some above-market leases that are rolling. It’ll be a battle to show that the cash flows are stable from these properties,” he said.
Despite the challenges ahead, Ostrower said DDR is optimistic about the new REIT and excited about the liquidity spin, something that “happened to work” for what DDR was trying to do. “We have a high degree of confidence we can sell the U.S. assets in [the coming years],” he said.
Green Street agrees that the spinoff into RVI is a sound move.
“It’s going to take time to deliver, but they’ve done a great job so far,” Tibone said. “They’ve done all the right things, [and] they’re positioning the company for the future.”


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Juan Solis named to Port S.A. board
Published 5:48 pm, Wednesday, October 2, 2013
SAN ANTONIO — Juan F. Solis III, a former elected official and current bank executive, has been appointed by District 5 City Council member Shirley Gonzales to the Port San Antonio board, the port announced Wednesday.
Solis was elected District 5 City Council member in 1992, a position he held five years. He later won a seat in the Texas House of Representatives, serving one term.
Solis' experience includes being a tri-chair of the Initial Base Adjustment Strategy Committee, formed in 1995 to develop a plan as Kelly AFB began closing and its ownership transitioned to the organization that today is Port San Antonio.
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For the past seven years, Solis has been vice president and branch manager for Citibank N.A. in San Antonio. He also has previous private-sector experience as an advertising executive specializing in Hispanic marketing.


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The Future of Fashion Is 3D
We will be printing high-fashion dresses in our homes- but not for now.
On May 5, the Met Costume Institute’s Spring exhibition will open the doors and visitors will be treated to 90 fashion mise, including many items made with 3D printing, pretty much as the exclusive purview of haute couture, up to now.
But if the technology is adopted by more apparel makers and trickled down to the masses, “it can be as revolutionary as the sewing machine,” said Andrew Bolton, curator of the exhibition. “It means you can 3D print your dress to your exact measurements at home.” “Because it has the ability to mould exactly to your measurements, it’s environmentally friendly, too” Bolton said. “There’s no waste, whereas there’s always waste with textiles.”


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Last week, the Minister for Business and Knowledge, Jordi Baiget, led an institutional and business mission to the United States with the aim of promoting business cooperation and in search of business opportunities in the food and technology industries. Organized by the Government of Catalonia’s competitiveness agency, ACCIÓ, the Catalan delegation visited Florida, California and Washington DC.
On Monday, the delegation attended the eMerge conference in Miami, which is considered to be one of the most important platforms for Latin America, North America, and Europe in the digital technology industry and brings in over 10,000 visitors from 50 different countries. During the event, Catalonia-based companies such as Medtep, openTrends and iContainers, met with other enterprises from around the world in search of business partners and opportunities as they took part in the various conferences, pitching sessions and networking activities organised by the event.
The Minister also met with representatives of the Beacon Council, the official agency for economic development in Miami that supports companies in the region and works to attract foreign investment. The organization’s directors had already met with representatives of the Government of Catalonia during this year’s Mobile World Congress which allowed the representatives to establish a formal relationship with the aim of establishing ways of co-operation that promote trade relations between Florida and Catalonia.
In San Francisco, the Catalan delegation met with representatives of the Government of California to reaffirm the commitment to closer co-operation and continue working together to expand new lines of action after last year’s Memorandum of Understanding signed between the two territories. Additionally, Minister Baiget also met with companies from the region in a public-private event organised by the Bay Area Council.
On Wednesday, the Catalan delegation attended the Worlds of Flavor conference in Napa Valley, one of the leading gastronomic events in the United States. Cadí, Moritz, Molí Parellada and Caves Torelló were among the 15 companies and wineries from Catalonia attending the event. Also in attendance were Mateu Casañas and Sergio Andreu from two of Barcelona’s well-established restaurants, Disfrutar and La Pepita, respectively.
In the context of the 2016 Year of Gastronomy and Wine Tourism, the Catalan Tourist Board made a sensorial presentation of Catalonia as a gastronomic destination. Attendees were able to try national products, listen to the Patum, or “fish” in Catalan waters through virtual reality glasses. The visit to California concluded with a presentation of traditional Catalan products, such as calçots, Montserrat tomatoes and rice from the Delta region.
The last part of the mission took place in Washington DC, where Minister Baiget met with executives of the World Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) to seek new ways to boost trade and innovation for Catalan companies.
Trade relations between the United States and Catalonia
The United States is the 6th largest importer of Catalan products. In 2015, Catalan sales to the US grew by 21% in comparison to the previous year and brought in over 2.5 billion euros in revenue through a network of 2,709 regular exporters (companies exporting in the last four consecutive years).
The commercial relationship between Catalonia and the United States began in 1797 with the establishment of the first American consulate in Barcelona. There are currently more than 500 Catalan companies based in the US and 710 American multinationals present in Catalonia.


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London-based mobile software firm Globo today announced that it has acquired Silicon Valley’s Notify Technologies for $5 million (£3 million).
Globo, based in Tech City less than a mile from Old Street’s “Silicon Roundabout”, said the acquisition was a “significant step” towards its goal of becoming a world leader in enterprise and consumer mobility.
Notify is a mobile management start-up headquartered in San Jose, California, that aims to help businesses address the BYOD trend. Globo believes that Notify's products provide the management, control and oversight needed to maintain a secure and productive mobile environment for businesses.
Founded in 1994, Notify now boasts 1,800 customers in financial services, government, healthcare, education and manufacturing sectors. Notable customers include Oracle and Securitas.
Globo Chief executive Costis Papadimitrakopoulos said: "The acquisition of Notify significantly strengthens Globo's competitive position to address the BYOD trend and accelerate growth in the US and elsewhere, as well as adding to our rapidly growing customer and revenue base.
"Notify brings highly skilled and experienced people, our most valuable asset."
Last month, Globo revealed that its pre-tax profits had increased by 30 percent for the six months leading up to June 30. The growth was driven by the company’s GO!Enterprise software, which gives users secure access to work email and intranet and helps businesses build secure apps.


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The bulls have continued to lead grain markets higher over the past week, translating into a selling opportunity for 2015 and even 2016, according to bearish analysts.
From the Cereals North America market outlook conference in Winnipeg, here’s our weekly farm news recap for October 30th, 2014. Kelvin recaps what’s happened in the markets, the canola plant explosion in Yorkton, and some exciting technological developments.
Check out the new Real Ag futures app here.
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Categories: audio / Eastern Canada / Features / Industry Issues / Markets / News / Podcasts / This Week on RealAg / United States / Western Canada


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Majority of homes are now being supplied by 'green' energy firms - but while environmental interest grows it is mainly down to company rebrands
- Around 65% of households are now supplied by green energy firms
- This could be as a result of 'greenwashing' where providers buy REGO papers
- It could also be due to many larger suppliers rebranding as 'green' companies
More than three in five households in Britain are now supplied by green energy firms, new research has revealed.
Homes with 'green' suppliers – those only offering electricity tariffs backed by Renewable Energy Guarantee of Origin certificates – rocketed from less than 20 per cent in 2017, according to data from Cornwall Insight.
The main reason the figure has ballooned is thanks to a few large suppliers re-branding as 100 per cent green energy in recent years, such as Shell Energy, according to the energy analysts.
Could the number of households now with green suppliers just be a result of greenwashing?
It said the boom in green tariffs has been partly driven by consumers doing their bit to reach net zero.
It says some are increasingly factoring in renewable credentials when switching energy providers.
At the start of 2019, 9 per cent of respondents to an Ofgem survey over perceptions of the energy market gave green energy as a main reason for switching supplier. By the end of last year, this had risen to 19 per cent.
Oliver Archer, senior analyst at Cornwall Insight, said: 'Switching trends do not tell the whole story.
'Nearly 80 per cent of the increase seen between 2019 and 2021 can be attributed to a few large suppliers re-branding as 100 per cent green through 2019 and 2020.
'It is also difficult to tease out the relative contributions of price, service, and renewable tariffs to the fast growth of green challenger brands such as Octopus Energy and Bulb.'
The soar in households joining green suppliers could also be down to the practice of greenwashing which is becoming rife.
This is where suppliers say their energy is renewable but in some cases, the fuel is not actually being sourced sustainably.
Instead, an energy tariff can be labelled as green or renewable if a supplier purchases Rego certificates for a small fee, but this does not require them to purchase power directly from renewable generators.
In fact, the Rego scheme requires licensed providers to disclose to potential and existing customers the mix of fuels used to generate the electricity supplied.
The number of customers with green suppliers has rocketed in the past couple of years
Ofgem issues one Rego certificate per megawatt hour of eligible renewable output to generators of renewable electricity.
However, there is an oversupply of these certificates, because there have been times when an excess of renewable energy has been produced.
These additional certificates can be bought cheaply by suppliers whether their power is sourced renewably or not, leading critics to claim that 'green' tariffs do little to encourage the generation of renewable energy.
Archer added: 'The low price of Rego's has made it possible to be labelled a green supplier without heavily sacrificing on the main tool for attracting new customers – cheap tariffs.
'As a result, more than half the suppliers in the market are now green.
'Critics would say the current system makes it hard for consumers to understand which suppliers provide truly additional support for green generation.
'As green tariffs become more ubiquitous, the government plans to consult this year on reforms to give consumers more transparent information, including quantifying the additional benefit of tariffs marketed as green.'
Therefore, while many consumers believe they are on a green tariff, they may wish to check what credentials their supplier actually holds.
The soar in households joining green suppliers could be down to the practice of greenwashing
Best green deals on the market
There are a number of green energy deals on the market at the moment.
The best one tariff is currently with challenger supplier, PFP Energy, on its Green Variable s2 Paperless deal costing an average of £844.61 a year.
The provider appears three other times in the list - totaling two fixed deals and two variable tariffs.
Neo Energy has the second cheapest tariff on its variable NEO 4.1 deal costing £858.59.
Meanwhile, Eon Next is the only Big Six supplier to feature on the list with its Next Exclusive v2 deal.
The fixed tariff will cost customers an average of £942.10 a year.
Several found in the top ten are also variable tariffs which is unusual as fixed deals are typically much cheaper thanks to their fixed cost.
|Supplier Tariff Name
|Annual Bill Value (£)
|Green Variable s2 Paperless
|Green Variable s2 Paper Billing
|East Lothian Fixed Tariff March 21
|Priced for Protection s1 Paperless
|Next Exclusive v2
|Outfox the Market
|Summer 21 Variable v2
|Priced for Protection s1 Paper billing
|Source: Compare the Market (prices correct as of 18 June 2021)
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|Day Low/High||213.13 / 216.07|
|52 Wk Low/High||184.50 / 301.98|
Jim Cramer considers how President Trump might impact stocks in the Action Alerts PLUS charitable trust.
Jim Cramer doesn't like retail and he doesn't like health care stocks. Here's why.
Jim Cramer says he does not like the retail and health care sectors right now.
New bowel drug Trulance will be available for patients later this quarter.
Once-Daily Treatment Reduces Persistent Facial Erythema (Redness) Associated With Rosacea Through 12 Hours(1)
The pharmaceutical company's new strategy emphasizes new product launches and international expansion.
Deals already are popping up, and we'll soon have earnings reports from the industry giants.
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Doug Kass shares his thoughts on how he had one of his best days in recent memory, and warns you not to look in the rear view mirror.
Doug Kass shares his thoughts on animal spirits, and discusses his astonishment at some rising optimism.
In highlights from this week's trading diary and posts, Kass tells us about how he's selling some Allergan shares and how he feels about the jobless claims.
Trump's press conference puts a charge into an otherwise flat week. We add a position to the portfolio.
TheStreet's Jim Cramer weighs in on Donald Trump's comments regarding biotech and pharmaceuticals during his first press conference since the election.
Is the renewed Obamacare debate an opportunity to buy health care stocks?
But the 3% drop in the sector yesterday is clearly an overreaction to Trump's comments.
-- Company to Provide Full-Year 2017 Guidance --
Wall Street secured gains again by late afternoon Wednesday in unpredictable trading following President-elect Donald Trump's first press conference since July.
He's never really been a stock market guy anyway.
Drug company Allergan is set to shift its focus towards accretive M&A and away from the early-stage pipeline acquisitions that have disappointed investors.
CEO Brent Saunders plans to reward shareholders after striking a slew of R&D acquisitions in the latter half of 2016.
America Online and Time Warner see the 17-year anniversary of their combination come and go, as both companies are involved in separate merger dramas today.
Allergan is out with two important deals on Monday, just as the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference begins.
The pharmaceutical maker announced two deals Monday as a part of the JP Morgan health care conference.
Doug Kass shares his thoughts on how January has a lot of nonsense, and reviews his investment troops.
Doug Kass shares his thoughts on the deepening of retail stocks' weakness and the Amazon Effect.


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By DOROTHY WILLIAMS, staff writer
Even though the school lost much of its food from the fire last week at the Two Seasons Dining Hall, practically all of the contents of the freezers have been saved.
Culinary arts teacher Rand Rosecrans said during the building evacuation that he closed all the doors where food was stored after he made sure no one was in there. He said that he made sure all the food storage was closed and the canned goods area was closed.
Over 99% of the food was saved back in the freezers, he said, which were shut during the fire. The freezers are in an entirely another building. The ventilation is separate, so no smoke or contaminates got into the food storages.
“I’m real thankful to all the people that came in and helped us,” said Chef Rand. “We had a lot of good community support.”
Despite the fast action by Chef Rand, the school still lost a fair amount of food. He wasn’t able to give a cost estimate for how much was lost.
Before the building got really smoky, Chef Rand went and closed all the doors after he made sure no one was in there. He made sure all the food storage was closed, the canned goods area was closed.
He said that the dining hall lost all the food the students were eating in line and the food they were serving, and the food they were preparing for dinner that night. Any containers that were out were sealed – but not the original factory sealed – so the dining hall staff couldn’t take any chances of the food being contaminated from the smoke or any chemicals in the smoke. That food was thrown out.
Chef Rand said that the school doesn’t need any donations. He said that it will take a few more days to return to the normal school menu. That food has been reordered.


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The deal, announced today by the New Jersey Attorney General, also requires PointRoll to refrain from overriding users' cookie-blocking settings -- including default settings -- and to implement a privacy program, among other terms. Other states joining the settlement are Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Maryland and New York.
The settlement stems from revelations by Stanford graduate student Jonathan Mayer, who reported two years ago that PointRoll and three other companies -- Google, Vibrant Media and WPP's Media Innovation Group -- developed a workaround to Safari's privacy settings, which block third-party cookies by default. As a result, the companies were able to drop tracking cookies and serve ads to Web users based on their Internet activity.
Google, Vibrant Media and PointRoll confirmed Mayer's report when it came out in February of 2012. They said at the time that they had stopped tracking Safari users, or would soon do so. WPP has never confirmed the report. None of the companies were accused of linking cookie-based data to users' names or other personally identifiable information.
Google, but not the others, was hit with a Federal Trade Commission complaint as a result of Mayer's report. The FTC alleged that Google's circumvention by Safari users' settings violated a previous consent decree that required the company to honor its privacy promises. Google agreed to pay around $23 million to settle those charges.
A fifth company not named by Mayer, the online ad exchange PulsePoint, also allegedly bypassed Safari's settings. That company, formed by a 2011 of Datran Media and ContextWeb, agreed to pay $1 million to settle an investigation into the matter by the New Jersey Attorney General.
Meanwhile, consumers filed class-action lawsuits against the companies named by Mayer. Those lawsuits, unlike the actions by government officials, haven't yielded much in the way of results.
PointRoll agreed to settle that litigation by deleting any cookies it collected from Safari users, but the other three companies convinced a trial judge to dismiss the lawsuits.In a ruling issued last year, U.S. District Court Judge Sue Robinson in Wilmington, Del. said the consumers couldn't proceed because they didn't show they were harmed by the potential privacy violation. Robinson also ruled that even if the companies circumvented Safari's default settings, doing so didn't violate the federal wiretap law.
The consumers have appealed that ruling to the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals. That court heard arguments in the matter today.


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“Everybody talks about the weather, but nobody does anything about it.” Charles Dudley Warner
Pardon me, Mr. Warner, but you haven’t heard of the Titleist company. It’s doing something about the weather for golfers who play in the rain.
For years, I’ve been looking for a waterproof (not water resistant!) carry bag so when I’m caught in inclement weather my clubs will stay dry. A diehard golfer who’ll walk and play in a light rain, I recently discovered the advantages of Titleist’s new Players 4 Plus StaDry lightweight stand bag. It’s a winner due to its high quality construction and a smart array of features.
First off, it’s indeed light, weighing in at 4.2 lbs—ideal for carrying, with a push cart, or in my case with a power caddie. It’s also well-balanced and will stand up on its own on a flat surface. Secondly, it sports just the right amount of pockets, including a full-length apparel pocket to stow a rain jacket and pants. Most importantly, it’s waterproof inside and out with seam-sealed zippers. Your clubs and accessories won’t get wet in the bag even during one of those horizontal rain squalls.
It always struck me odd that U.S. bag manufacturers didn’t offer a waterproof bag unlike the ones I found in Scotland and Ireland. In my recent conversation with Sean Slater, Titleist’s Director of Marketing, I learned the company has been selling a waterproof bag in Europe.
“We’ve offered a waterproof bag overseas for years but then realized there was a demand for such a product in the U.S,” said Slater. “The Players 4 Plus StaDry is new for us in 2021.”
Using focus groups and consumer testing, Slater said a number of “best practices” were added to the new model. Nifty touches like velcro grabbers for a golf glove and a padded hub to lend comfort to one’s back when being carried are among these features.
“Another feature added for 2021 is a quick-access accessories pocket with magnetic closure below the apparel pocket. Players told us they wanted a pocket for their range finder or scorecard,” explained Slater who’s been with Titleist for over three years.
Based on Tour-inspired feedback, even the waterproof club cover was redesigned. “It’s completely waterproof and easily attached to the top of the bag with velcro and with a quick access flap,” said Slater.
When the Covid clouds dissipate and overseas golf travel resumes again, this will my bag of choice. Of course, it also works well on this side of The Pond, too.
For more information visit your local golf retailer or www.titleist.com
image courtesy of Titleist.


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The Baby Lodge, a premier company providing baby products and parenting aids for families everywhere, has recently launched a new childproofing product. The company is introducing their TV and furniture wall anchoring system. The anti-tip safety straps secure television screens and furniture in place so that they cannot be knocked over by pets or children and cause harm to anyone in the home. The new product is available for ordering at The Baby Lodge website. —
Phyllis Greene, a spokesperson for The Baby Lodge, commented “Freestanding furniture and televisions have pretty much become a staple in our households. Consequently, we don’t tend to think of them as something that could pose a threat to our families. However, if there are small children or pets in the home, the truth is that the risk of them being hurt because of furniture tip over is huge. The good news is that there are steps that parents can take to ensure greater protection, and our new product can help them do just that.”
The Baby Lodge TV and furniture wall anchor can be used to secure televisions to the wall or to furniture as well as securing freestanding furniture to the wall to prevent fall over accidents. The anchoring system is made of high-quality metal plates and a metal cam buckle with nylon webbing. Parents can rest assured that there are no plastic parts involved in the system. The product comes with easy installation instructions included in the packaging.
As Greene goes on to say, “Our mission is to offer products to parents that will help make their lives easier, and we believe that our new anchor straps fit the bill. We are so proud to be launching this product in our store, and we invite parents to check out our video review and installation video on YouTube to learn more about how these anchor straps can bring more peace of mind to everyone in their household.”
About The Baby Lodge:
With parents as their biggest priority, The Baby Lodge offers top quality baby products at affordable prices that are designed based on modern parenting needs. Their team understands the needs of parents and aims to create products that they themselves use daily. They painstakingly ensure that every product is of the highest quality and can be easily incorporated into a parent's daily routine so that they not only can sleep well at night, but also cast their worries aside during daytime parenting duties.
Release ID: 132087


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Carlos Ghosn, who heads the automakers Nissan of Japan and Renault of France, said Wednesday he remains interested in a partnership with a major U.S. automaker, although he is not in talks or aggressively looking just yet.
Nissan Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn told reporters the timing wasn't right to expand the Nissan-Renault alliance, formed in 1999, because Nissan Motor Co. is now in a lull of “consolidation” before going to the next stage of growth.
“The only partner that would make sense is somebody who is very big in North America,” he said at a hotel on the sidelines of the Tokyo Motor Show.
He did not mention by name any of the three biggest U.S. automakers — General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co. or Chrysler LLC.
Speculation has been growing that Chrysler and Ford may be looking for partners as they struggle to restructure their operations and boost profits.
A year ago, talks between Ghosn and GM about a possible alliance ended without a deal. Proponents said the alliance would create significant savings, but critics said it could be a distraction from GM's efforts to return to profitability.
The talks ended after three months when GM sought payment from Renault SA and Nissan for what the U.S. carmaker said would have been a disproportionate share of the benefits of an alliance.
Other cross-continental auto alliances have failed, such as the one between Daimler AG of Germany and Chrysler of the U.S.
Ghosn noted he has made the collaboration between Nissan and Renault work to the benefit of both companies.
Nissan was on the verge of collapse before entering the alliance and has now turned around its business. Renault has also gained in status, size and engineering as an automaker by joining forces with Nissan.
The two companies save costs by using the same auto parts and sharing research.
“If you want to do more of this kind of value, you need a third partner,” Ghosn said. “I still consider the strategy is right. But if we move, we must move at the moment when confidence in Nissan and Renault in terms of growth and profit is very strong.”
Ghosn also said Nissan would introduce an inexpensive $3,000 car in India by 2010 with Renault and a local partner.
Indian automaker Tata Motors Ltd. has already announced plans to roll out such a car for its domestic market.
India offers low-cost manufacturing and suppliers, and the Indian auto market is expected to grow in coming years, especially if cars affordable to the middle class are offered.
Ghosn said the unanswered question was whether such cars can be exported to other markets, such as Europe, China, Brazil and the U.S.
Touching on a more futuristic topic, Ghosn said Nissan is targeting the commercial mass production of electric cars by 2012.
He said the future was in electric cars, especially for urban driving, and Nissan has made advances in lithium-ion batteries.
Lithium-ion batteries are more advanced and pack more power than the nickel-metal hydride batteries used in Toyota Motor Corp.'s Prius, the most widely sold gas-electric hybrid.
Ghosn has often played down hybrids as a niche product that doesn't make business sense.


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In recent years, you may have heard that only 9 percent of plastic gets recycled. Wide misrepresentation of this statistic, among other reasons, has led many people to question whether the plastics they put in their blue bins are getting recycled. Some have even stopped recycling as a result, believing their recyclables (and their efforts) are going to waste.
The reality is, nearly all recyclable plastic collected in Manitoba is recycled. Let’s look at what the 9 percent statistic really means, how much plastic Manitobans are recycling, and why plastic in the recycling stream occasionally can’t be recycled.
Is it true that 9 percent of plastic is recycled?
In 2017, a study found that 9 percent of plastic produced globally got recycled. It gained a lot of media coverage and left many with a misunderstanding of what it means.
The statistic refers to all plastic ever made—recyclable and non-recyclable. Most plastics aren’t accepted for recycling due to the lack of end-markets or because they’re not recyclable. Although 9 percent is a low number, it represents millions of tonnes of plastic annually that are kept out of landfills and environments across the world. As technology, public policy, and education improve, so will these numbers.
The next phase of Canada’s federal ban on several single-use plastics comes into effect in December 2023. Retailers and restaurants will no longer be able to offer plastic straws, food containers, stir sticks, and other single-use plastic items. The government estimates the ban will reduce Canada’s total annual plastic waste by about three percent. Other environmental groups estimate about a five percent reduction.
For now, the best way to eliminate plastic waste is to reduce consumption or reuse/repurpose items. But when that’s not possible, recycling accepted materials will keep them out of landfills.
What happens to my recycling in Manitoba?
Any accepted materials collected from your blue bin will get recycled unless they’re contaminated. Recycling contamination can occur in many forms. Thankfully plastic is much harder to contaminate than other materials. There are three main causes of plastic contamination:
- When containers or bottles contain food or liquid.
- When recyclables are placed in opaque plastic bags or nested together.
- When unaccepted plastics are placed in the blue bin.
In Manitoba, there’s a 10-15% contamination rate in residential recycling. This means that 85-90% of materials collected are recycled. To avoid contaminating your recycling, it’s crucial to follow recycling guidelines in your area.
Like any other accepted material, once plastics have been sorted and baled, they’re shipped to an end market. MMSM monitors where communities are sending their recycling. They must ensure recyclables go to an acceptable end market to receive funding from MMSM—burning or sending materials to landfill is unacceptable . Recycling from Manitoba is shipped to end markets in Ontario, the U.S. and sometimes exported overseas depending on market conditions. Where they get sent depends on market conditions and can change daily.
The plastic collected from blue bins will get recycled, but we can only recycle as much as we collect.
How much recyclable plastic is recovered in Manitoba?
MMSM tracks recovery rates for all accepted materials in Manitoba each year. In 2020, Manitobans recycled 10,878 of the 23,692 tonnes of plastic packaging that entered the province. That’s a recovery rate of 45.9 percent—nearly double what it was 10 years ago at 23.3%.
While there have been steady increases in recovery rates, there’s still lots of room to improve. Keep a recycling bin close to your garbage can, and if you’re unsure whether you can recycle something, look it up in the Recyclepedia. You can also view or print a recycling guide with common materials if you scroll past the Recyclepedia search tool.
Please recycle whenever you have the opportunity and encourage others. You can rest assured knowing that the items you roll out to the curb each week are being recycled.


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CONSUMERS BOUGHT MORE IN MARCH
According to a report from the Department of Commerce, retail sales jumped 0.6% last month. That was the biggest monthly gain recorded since November (and the first monthly advance of 2018). Sales of cars and trucks were up 2.0%, making March the best month for that category since September.1
CONSTRUCTION ACTIVITY INCREASES
New Census Bureau data shows housing...


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BPL Mobile has forged a marketing alliance with WorldSpace Corporation, distributor of multimedia and satellite digital radio broadcasting services.As part of the tie-up, BPL will offer a special festive offer to their subscribers. BPL users will get a discount of 12 per cent on the WorldSpace Satellite Radio receivers. BPL Mobile and prepaid subscribers will receive 8 per cent on the maximum retail price and the balance four per cent as free airtime on its mobile phone.
Users can also dial 745 from their BPL mobile handsets to book and get home delivery of receivers. Initially, BPL will showcase WorldSpace's technology products and services across 16 BPL Mobile galleries.
WorldSpace Corporation will cash in on the present cellular subscriber-base and the marketing strengths of BPL Mobile. The cellular operator has over 3.5 lakh users in Mumbai and distribution strength of more than 16 galleries and 3,500 outlets across the city.
Powered by three satellite, WorldSpace broadcasts music across 18 time zones, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. It also offers news from international broadcasters like BBC, CNN and Bloomberg.
At present, the Indian broadcasters on the WorldSpace platform include BPL Indigo, Radio Mid-Day, RM Radio and the Asianet group.


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- Sony Mobile exec hints that the Xperia Compact line has been axed - GSMArena.com news GSMArena.com
- Sony Could Make a Mobile Comeback at MWC Tom's Guide
- Sony reshuffles its mobile division, gears up for comeback at MWC Digital Trends
- Sony Xperia XZ4 will be presented during the MWC 2019 Gizchina.com
- Tall Xperia XZ4 Leaks With Extremely Thin Bezels, It's Probably Not Real Though Android Headlines
- View full coverage on Google News
The first step of Sony's new mobile strategy will be revealed at the MWC with a focus on photography.
Sony said in a recent interview that it'll unveil a new line of devices at Mobile World Congress.
After a tough year, Sony Mobile is looking to change strategy and we'll see a new smartphone from the firm next month at MWC in Barcelona. We sat down with VP or Marketing, Don Mesa, to find out more about what the company is planning in the year ahead and what we can expect.
Sony Xperia XZ4 will be presented during the MWC 2019
The Sony Xperia XZ4 had leaked a number of times thus far, and we’ve already seen some convincing leaks, which we’ll talk about a bit later. Before we get to that, it’s worth noting that


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Michael Willner was the cable industry’s most popular CEO — and one of its most prominent representatives — up until February, when The Carlyle Group sold Insight Communications for $3B to Time Warner Cable. Now Willner and fellow Insight co-founder Sidney Knafel have paid an undisclosed amount for a controlling interest in Pittsburgh-based Penthera Partners. Willner be CEO and Knafel will be Penthera’s vice chairman. The software firm has developed a patented engine that moves HD video between Internet servers and digital devices including smartphones, tablets and IP-enabled set-top boxes. It’s also developing applications for cable companies. “Our transition to a new-media technology company, which is focused on next-generation consumer experiences, is the next logical step for us,” Willner says.
Cable Vet Michael Willner To Run New Media Software Firm
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iTunes Connect returns from winter closure one day earlyApple on Thursday resumed operations of iTunes Connect, with the developer portal reopening a day ahead of schedule following a brief closure for the holidays originally scheduled for Dec. 21 to Dec. 28.
Source: AppleInsider reader Gregg
Following up from his tip earlier in November, AppleInsider reader Gregg furnished a screenshot of the now active iTunes Connect, which returned to service on late Thursday after a six-day winter closure.
iTunes Connect is Apple's developer portal for managing apps sold through the App Store, including updates, pricing, and descriptions. The service also grants developers access to daily and weekly sales trackers, contract management and financial reports.
Thursday's iTunes Connect reactivation mirrors 2011's, when the portal was returned to service a day earlier than its scheduled reopening date of Dec. 29.
On Topic: General
- Canada court orders Apple divulge documents in iPhone anti-competition probe
- Apple's World AIDS Day campaign raised over $20M for (RED) foundation
- Apple Pay job listing hints at upcoming international rollout in EMEIA
- Judge rules videotaped Steve Jobs deposition to remain out of public eye
- How to use iCloud Drive on the Web, iOS and OS X


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The US Food and Drug Administration announced today that 465,000 pacemakers have a security vulnerability that could be exploited to make the device operate too quickly or deplete its batteries, and these devices need firmware updates to keep them from getting hacked.
“Many medical devices – including St. Jude Medical’s implantable cardiac pacemakers – contain configurable embedded computer systems that can be vulnerable to cybersecurity intrusions and exploits. As medical devices become increasingly interconnected via the Internet, hospital networks, other medical devices, and smartphones, there is an increased risk of exploitation of cybersecurity vulnerabilities, some of which could affect how a medical device operates,” the recall said.
“The FDA has reviewed information concerning potential cybersecurity vulnerabilities associated with St. Jude Medical’s RF-enabled implantable cardiac pacemakers and has confirmed that these vulnerabilities, if exploited, could allow an unauthorized user (i.e. someone other than the patient’s physician) to access a patient’s device using commercially available equipment,” it added.
The recall said potential hackers could harm patients by changing the programming of the pacemakers.
“This access could be used to modify programming commands to the implanted pacemaker, which could result in patient harm from rapid battery depletion or administration of inappropriate pacing,” the recall said.
The FDA said it has received no reports of anyone hacking the devices that are being recalled.
The update affects about 465,000 devices in the United States and another 280,000 devices outside the U.S., according to Abbott spokesperson Candace Steele Flippin.
“The pacemaker devices to which this update applies include the RF telemetry versions of the following devices in the U.S.: Accent SR RF™, Accent MRI™, Assurity™, Assurity MRI™, Accent DR RF™, Anthem RF™, Allure RF™, Allure Quadra RF™, and Quadra Allure MP RF™,” the company said on its website.
Patients with pacemakers will need to visit their heath care providers for a firmware update, which the FDA said will take about three minutes.
The pacemaker will not need to be removed, the FDA said.
“All industries need to be constantly vigilant against unauthorized access. This isn’t a static process, which is why we’re working with others in the healthcare sector to ensure we’re proactively addressing common topics to further advance the security of devices and systems,” said Robert Ford, the executive vice president of medical devices at Abbott.
Abbott said in a statement that patients are not likely to be hacked.
“The risk of hacking is extremely low – in fact, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security said that compromising the security of these devices would require a highly complex set of circumstances. The FDA and Abbott recommend that patients talk to their doctors during their next regularly scheduled visit about the firmware update,” the statement said.


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Loblaw Companies Ltd. reported a higher fourth-quarter profit and revenue compared with a year ago as the supermarket giant met the challenge of “outsized sales growth,” the company’s executive chairman Galen G. Weston said Thursday.
Amid the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, the grocery and drugstore retailer said sales in its food retail business were positively impacted, though costs associated with the safety and security of customers and workers remained elevated in the quarter.
“Our purpose–helping Canadians live life well–has inspired ongoing commitments to colleague safety, lower prices, and strategic services that matter to customers,” Weston said in a statement.
“Looking ahead, we have financial momentum, our strategy has advanced, and our core business is well positioned.”
Loblaw said it earned net income available to common shareholders of $345 million or 98 cents per diluted share for the 13-week period ended Jan. 2, boosted in part by an extra week in the quarter.
The result compared with a profit of $254 million or 70 cents per diluted share for the 12-week period ended Dec. 28, 2019. Revenue totalled $13.29 billion, up from $11.59 billion.
Meanwhile, Loblaw’s e-commerce sales spiked 160% during the quarter as many provinces reinstated lockdowns and stay-at-home orders.
On a comparable 52 week basis, the company reported food retail same-store sales growth of 8.6% and drug retail same-store sales growth of 4.9%.
Loblaw includes grocery stores under the banners Loblaws, Zehrs, Your Independent Grocer, Real Atlantic Superstore and Provigo, as well as its discount division, which includes No Frills and Maxi.
The company also has a network of Shoppers Drug Mart and Pharmaprix drugstores.
On an adjusted basis, Loblaw said it earned $1.26 per diluted share for its most recent quarter, up from an adjusted profit of $1.09 per diluted share a year earlier.
Analysts on average had expected an adjusted profit of $1.25 per share, according to financial data firm Refinitiv.