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With the nights drawing in and temperatures dropping, it’s finally wine harvest time across Northern Europe. And the Champagne region has already announced its start dates for this year’s harvest.
Villages across the Champagne region in France are now harvesting grapes. The start date varies for each variety of grape and each village. This is to make sure the precious Champagne grapes are harvested at their peak ripeness.
What makes the Champagne harvest special?
Each year, all grapes harvested in the Champagne region are carefully hand-picked. This adds to the special atmosphere that always surrounds the Champagne’s region’s strict regulations. It’s all part of the steps necessary to produce the high-quality, unique sparkling Champagne that is loved all around the world.
The rules state that only grapes from delineated, specific plots across the appellation are used to make Champagne. The region is around 90 miles north-east of Paris and covers an area of less than 80,000 acres. From how the grapes are planted, grown and harvested, to the winemaking process itself, every step is carefully regulated. There is a carefully controlled system of adjustments and refinements that all come together to make Champagne, including how it is blended.
Champagne is fighting back against climate change
The growing season in 2019 has had to deal with various challenges from climate changes. This includes extremely high temperatures throughout the summer. And, as with many traditional growing regions, Champagne is developing innovative solutions to adapt for the future.
From growers to suppliers, the Champagne region’s industry is united in working together to combat the changes taking place due to climate change. They are also focusing on maintaining the high quality which is Champagne’s traditional strength.
Jennifer Hall is director of the Champagne Bureau in the United States. She says that climate change is a growing problem for the Champagne industry: “The region is committed to sustainable development and seeks to do its part to reduce its environmental impact and protect the unique terroir of Champagne.”
Reducing carbon footprint is a priority for wine makers in Champagne
Champagne is one of the most progressive regions in terms of reducing its emissions. Back in 2013, it was the first wine region in the world to initiate an audit of its carbon footprint. This led to a campaign focusing on reducing the carbon footprint of the Champagne region by 25% by 2020, and by 75% by 2050. During the last 15 years, Champagne has reduced the carbon footprint per bottle of wine by 20%, which is close to target.
It has also reduced the use of nitrogen fertilisers by 50%, and now recycles 90% of all industrial waste and 100% of all wine by-products and effluents. To boost the motivation of the region, the Comité Champagne introduced a certification standard in 2015 for wine growers in the region to prove their environmental commitment. Between 2015 and 2019, more than 20% of the wine growers in Champagne have been certified, and from this 15% are certified “Sustainable Viticulture in Champagne”.
For a full and detailed list of all of the harvest dates across villages and by grape in Champagne, click here.


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Walmart stock is on the rise as Q2 2019 earnings beat Wall Street estimates
U.S. major retail corporation Walmart’s stock is on the rise since Thursday, August 15, when the company revealed its outstanding earnings in the second quarter of 2019.
As per the report, Walmart’s revenue in Q2 2019 reached $130.4 billion, which is slightly larger than the amount expected by the analysts ($130.07).
The earnings per share also grew more than it was earlier predicted ($1.27 instead of $1.22). Moreover, the net income also surpassed the expected amount and reached $3.64 billion versus $3.51 billion.
E-commerce was one of the most successful sectors for Walmart, as its sales gained 37% during Q2 2019. The boost is linked to the growth of the company’s grocery delivery business.
Due to the successful quarter, the retail guan decided to raise its expectations for fiscal 2020 U.S. comp sales, operating income, and EPS.
What is your sentiment on WMT?
As the company unveiled its report on Thursday, its stock grew 6.5%. In total, Walmart was up 21.6% on a year-to-year basis. On Friday opening the stock continued to grow, gaining over 1% at press time.
FURTHER READING: Wall Street indexes fall 2 per cent on record retail drop

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January 29, 2019
Apple is reportedly planning a new subscription service that would serve like a Netflix for games, according to people familiar with the initiative. The company began private meetings with game developers during the second half of last year. Insiders suggest Apple has also discussed potential publishing partnerships that could provide the tech giant with control over distribution, marketing and other areas. Plans are believed to be in the early stages and details, including cost of a possible subscription service, are not yet available. Meanwhile, Apple has also been working on subscription video and magazine services.
“The move to create a gaming subscription service comes as Apple faces pressure to grow its services business while hardware sales plateau,” reports Cheddar. “The iPhone-maker is developing a slew of original shows for a video streaming service to rival Netflix, partnering with carriers to boost the subscriber base for Apple Music, and is also planning to release a news subscription service this year.”
Gaming and eSports continue their growth, while Apple’s iPhone sales are slowing. A move into gaming could prove a revenue boost for Apple, although it is unclear what kind of service is being considered. Newzoo predicts that mobile gaming will expand to a $100 billion industry by 2021.
“The vast majority of revenue coming out of the App Store is games,” said BTIG analyst Brandon Ross. “Subscription has proven to be a successful way of monetizing on mobile. It is completely unproven in games except for some minor success from Microsoft, Sony, and Electronic Arts.”
“Apple has also been signing deals with TV producers in order to put together a streaming service,” notes TechCrunch. The company “has been working on a magazine subscription service, as well” and “acquired Texture back in March 2018 to build the foundation of the service.”


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SHANGHAI, May 22 (SMM) – Lead prices will rebound slightly after finding support at lows this week, SMM foresees.
LME lead will trade at $2,100-2,140 per tonne this week, and SHFE 1706 lead will move at 15,400-16,000 yuan per tonne.
Market participants are pessimistic toward lead prices, but downstream battery producers will have low-price goods replenishment demand in mid-May. Transaction will improve slightly as SHFE 1706 lead stabilizes at lows. Besides, output restriction in Henan will be continuing, shoring up lead prices.
For news cooperation, please contact us by email: email@example.com firstname.lastname@example.org.


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Hakainde Hichilema Writes
Mealie meal prices have gone high again.. As of today , this is the situation around supermarkets in Lusaka. Only God knows what the situation is in Zambezi, Muyombe, Tendere Muchinga Province , Lundazi etc .
We need urgent measures to address the escalating prices of mealie meal, cooking oil and other essential commodities.
The current prices are way out of hand and completely unaffordable by the majority of our citizens, especially with the current high rate of unemployment in the country.
Blaming adverse weather conditions is merely a convenient way of avoiding the problem. There are countries that are deserts, but their citizens are far much better in terms of living conditions because they rightly invested in correct projects.
For example, we have been talking about creating more water harvesting mechanisms such as dams, canals, boreholes, etc to make farming an all year round activity, than waiting for rains.
Farming and related activities from crops to livestock can employ a lot of our citizens directly and indirectly through value addition industries, while ensuring there is available and affordable food in the country.
These are the kind of investments we should promote as they touch a great majority of our people.
Our target with our agriculture policies is to make sure a 25kg bag of mealie meal is kept at K50 or below. This is about survival of our people.


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“Déjà Vu” is the twenty first studio album by Italian record producer, remixer and deejay Giorgio Moroder. It’s scheduled to be released on 12 June 2015 via RCA Records and Sony Music Entertainment.
The album comes preceded by the buzz single “Giorgio’s Theme“, the lead single “74 Is the New 24“, released in late-2014, and the most recent and second official single “Right Here, Right Now” featuring Kylie Minogue, released on 20 January 2015.
The album features a new batch of notable collaborators including Britney Spears, Sia, Kylie Minogue, Charli XCX, Mikky Ekko, Foxes, Matthew Koma and many others. During an interview with PopJustice, Moroder revealed some details of the upcoming project on Monday 26 January. PopJustice added:
So we find Foxes with the perky, disco-influenced ‘Glitter’, whose middle eight is a warm sonic homage to ‘Flashdance (What A Feeling)’; Charli XCX’s contribution ‘Diamonds’, meanwhile, is a noisy, clattering megabanger. Then there’s Sia’s song, ‘Deja Vu’ – a melodramatic, string-laded pop explosion of such devastating intensity that the crater it leaves will be visible from space.
The third official single is the track “Deja Vu” featuring Sia, released into digital retailers on 17 April 2015.


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Small business in New Zealand will have access to an “unprecedented level of data” unveiled by Xero, in the form of Xero Signals.
According to the Kiwi cloud accounting firm, the initiative is based on aggregated data from almost 10,000 businesses across New Zealand and surveys of approximately 500 nationally representative small businesses and 1300 Xero customers.
Xero Managing Director, Anna Curzon, says this data can help small business owners understand how they’re faring, compared to a larger segment of the market.
“For too long big-data has been the domain of big businesses and today’s release democratises data for small businesses in New Zealand,” Curzon says.
“By drawing insights from aggregated data, small business owners can use Xero Signals to make clearer business decisions and plan for the future.
“It’s our responsibility to provide the technology tools to small businesses to help them thrive. These insights will enable New Zealand’s small businesses to assess their own business using comparative insight from thousands of other similar sized businesses.
“It’s also valuable for advisors, helping them see how their clients are navigating business challenges and opportunities.
“The data shows how much opportunity there is for small business owners to tighten their operations, become more efficient and grow.”
While there is a dearth of data available, Curzon says during the first rollout, findings report that seven out of ten small business owners do not want to grow their business - however, the majority (83 percent) want to improve efficiency.
Delving deeper, less than one in ten small businesses have an accountant and only one in three small businesses have a business plan with small business revenue declining compared to last year, despite “steady profits”.
In addition, Curzon says New Zealand’s small businesses should consider growing their online presence - 78 percent of New Zealanders aged 18 years make online purchases, but only 15 percent of small businesses have an online shop.


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Gary Weisman, chief operating officer of Magni, talks about his experience and shares insights about the industry.
This month, Editor Hannah Bounford sits down with Alex White, Sales and Operations Director of Magni Telehandlers UK Ltd to learn more about the company.
The Magni RTH 6.51 is the highest lifting telehandler in the world, with a maximum lifting height of 167 feet.
German rental company Beyer-Mietservice has started taking delivery of a further 45 Magni RTH 360 degree telehandlers after taking 40 last year.
Magni America LLC has opened a new facility in Pasadena, TX, parent company Magni Group announced.
Magni Telescopic Handlers has named Pinnacle Cranes as its first dealer in the Carolinas.
The TH U 5.8 is a low-profile fixed telescopic handler with features tailor-made for mining environments.
The new product line will be available at Texas First Rentals and Holt Crane and Equipment locations throughout their 118-county territories in Texas.
A new range of telehandlers has recently been launched by Italian company Magni Srl.


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Pop-up shop the InConvenience Store will take ‘shoppers’ on a journey to a future without nature, showing the grim reality of what life in Wales could look like, if we fail to tackle the nature and climate crisis.
The shop will take members of the public on an immersive shopping trip to a dystopian future in which nature has collapsed, our skies have fallen silent and entire cities have disappeared under rising seas.
Today a new chain of pop-up shops, the InConvenience Store, opens in central Cardiff, Manchester and Edinburgh, taking members of the public on an immersive shopping trip to a dystopian future in which nature has collapsed, our skies have fallen silent and entire cities have disappeared under rising seas.
The InConvenience Store shows the public how a future without nature will impact their lives. Its products - like sandbags, clean air and drinking water - paint a grim picture of everyday essentials we'd need to survive if nature's no longer helping us combat problems like pollution and flooding.
A new RSPB report also launched today shows how governments could change the course of history and even unlock billions of pounds a year in public benefits. The report shows how nature is crucial to our efforts to revive our world by storing carbon, helping to prevent flooding and safeguard communities’ way of life, while creating amazing havens for wildlife that everyone can enjoy.
Peatlands are a great example of a Nature Based Solution to the challenges we face. If healthy and well-managed, they can capture and store carbon, filter and slow the flow of water into our streams and rivers as well as providing homes to some of our most precious wildlife.
RSPB Cymru and Hafren Dyfrdwy, with support from the National Peatlands Action Programme, has been restoring areas of blanket bog around the RSPB Lake Vyrnwy reserve in mid Wales. Not understanding the value of these habitats for carbon and water led to these peat bogs being drained in the hope of improving agricultural productivity. Not only did this fail, but the damaged peat emits carbon rather than storing it. The restoration work aims to re-wet the bog recreating the natural sponge effect of the sphagnum mosses - the key to healthy blanket bogs. This traps in both carbon and water and is a wonderful habitat for our precious mountain wildlife.
Katie-jo Luxton, RSPB Cymru Director, said:
“The nature and climate emergency is happening right now. More than 50 per cent of our wildlife is in decline and extreme weather is putting our homes and our health at risk now.
“Nature, if we invest in it, could be one of our greatest weapons against climate change. Our coastlands, woodlands and peatlands are more than just beautiful landscapes - a hidden power lies beneath. These natural habitats lock in huge amounts of carbon, provide homes for endangered wildlife and protect our homes from extreme weather. The Welsh Government, along with all governments across the UK and the world, must change the course of the future and unleash nature’s potential - before it’s too late.”
Without nature, instead of hula hoops and fizzy pop, corner shop essentials will include cans of breathable air, precious bottles of unpolluted drinking water and sandbags to protect our homes from constant flooding.
Open from July 1- 8, the InConvenience Store will also sell insect protein as meat and fish will have become too expensive and scarce for most consumers to buy. Birdsong vinyl to recreate the lost treasure of live birdsong will also be on the shelves, as well as UK grown rice – one of the few crops which can survive the new hotter, wetter climate. Fruit at the InConvenience Store is now a pricey luxury item after the extinction of pollinators saw prices skyrocket as human pollinators have had to step in. It’s vital that this imagined future is not allowed to become a reality.
World leaders are negotiating last-resort targets to save nature at two global summits this year. The RSPB wants the public to support their campaign by visiting an online shop and helping add a selection of survival items to shopping baskets that will be handed over to Wales First Minister, Mark Drakeford, and other UK political leaders at the end of the eight days. This shopping trip doesn’t need your money – just your name. Every time 15,000 names are added, another product will be put in the basket. Our message to them – this year we need you to lead the world’s efforts to save nature by setting an example other nations can follow – we need targets for nature’s recovery at every level of government.
‘Today we mark the centenary of the 1921 Importation of Plumage (Prohibition) Act (banning the import of feathers for fashion) the RSPB’s first successful campaign to protect nature. A century later, with the nature and climate emergency pushing us into the sixth extinction event, the stakes are higher than ever before. With one in six species in Wales under risk of extinction, the crisis is very close to home. We need every voice raised for nature – the future of our incredible wildlife depends upon it.”
To find out more about how the RSPB is helping everyone call on politicians to revive our world visit www.rspb.org.uk/reviveourworld
For further information and to arrange an interview, please contact:
Carwyn Evans: RSPB Cymru Communications and Events Officer on 07761 331050 or email@example.com
Deio Gruffydd: RSPB Cymru Communications Manager on 07734985975 or firstname.lastname@example.org
Images of shop products available here.
Notes to the editor:
1. The RSPB is the UK’s largest nature conservation charity, inspiring everyone to give nature a home. Together with our partners, we protect threatened birds and wildlife so our towns, coast and countryside will teem with life once again. We play a leading role in BirdLife International, a worldwide partnership of nature conservation organisations.
2. The 1 July also marks the centenary of the 1921 Importation of Plumage (Prohibition) Act, the RSPB’s first successful campaign to save nature, and the start of our journey as a conservation organisation working for nature both in the UK and internationally. In 1889, sickened by a mass slaughter of exotic birds for their feathers, Emily Williamson started the Society for the Protection of Birds to campaign for change by banning the import of feathers for fashion. Her efforts, alongside Etta Lemon and Eliza Phillips, helped bring about the 1921 Plumage Act and the founding of a global force to save nature – the RSPB.
3. Currently, peatlands in Wales are in a shocking state with around 90% degraded whether through historical drainage for agriculture or afforestation. This means they’re emitting carbon rather than storing, and actually contributing to climate change. However, with support from the National Peatlands Action Programme, RSPB Cymru has been restoring blanket bog around RSPB Lake Vyrnwy reserve in mid Wales. We are blocking ditches and removing inappropriately located trees from these important peatlands, allowing the ground to become wet again which encourages the growth of sphagnum mosses, the key to healthy blanket bog.
4. The InConvenience Store will be open to members of the public from July 1-8 at Cardiff (St David’s Dewi Sant, Bridge Street, CF10 2EF).
Last Updated: Thursday 1 July 2021


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MUMBAI: Consumer goods conglomerate Godrej Group is planning some big acquisitions in the non-food consumer goods space and exploring a stake sale in its flagship Godrej Consumer Products to private equity investors as it looks to catapult the company into one of the top five consumer products players in the country.
"We want to catapult Godrej Consumer into one of the top five FMCG companies, primarily through big-ticket inorganic acquisitions. And we are exploring all possible options to ensure that we have the capabilities to raise adequate funding if needed," group chairman and Godrej Consumer CMD Adi Godrej told ET in an exclusive interview.
Mr Godrej refused to discuss possible take-over targets or expected deal size, but made it clear that the company will not go overboard in its bid to expand. "Currently, we have a comfortable cash flow in our books and negative debt. The caveat is that the promoter holding in the company should not go below 51%. We also do not like Godrej Consumer to be highly leveraged and the debt equity ratio has to be within manageable limits," he said. Currently, the promoter holding in Godrej Consumer is 70%.
Godrej Consumer, however, will not enter the foods segment and will operate through independent joint ventures Godrej Hersheys and Godrej Tyson, owing to a non-compete clause with its partners, Mr Godrej said. The group has started consolidating its household and personal care operations under Godrej Consumer as it looks to strengthen its balance sheet and portfolio to raise funds for big buys.
The group is moving its entire 49% stake in Godrej Sara Lee (GSL), a joint venture with US-based Sara Lee, to Godrej Consumer. On Wednesday, the company board cleared the merger of group companies Godrej Hygiene Care and Godrej ConsumerBiz, which hold 20% and 29% respectively in GSL, with itself. The group is reported to be looking at buying Sara Lee's 51% stake in Godrej Sara Lee following the US company's decision to exit its household and personal care business globally. Mr Godrej declined to comment on the same.
With a significant stake in Godrej Sara Lee, Godrej Consumer will now get access to a well-established distribution network besides a large product portfolio includes home insecticides like Goodknight, Jet and Hit, Ambipur air freshners, Brylcreem hair gel and Kiwi shoe polish. Industry analysts say Godrej Sara Lee enjoys relatively higher business margins.
Godrej Consumer has a 10% share in the toilet soap market. The company reported total income of Rs 1,098 crore in 2008-09 and a net profit of Rs 161.5 crore. The unlisted Godrej Sara Lee has an estimated topline of Rs 600 crore. The group, which had earlier been criticised by the investing community for not taking aggressive moves in the FMCG marketplace given its strong brand equity, has set up an FMCG cell, headed by Godrej Sara Lee managing director A Mahendran, to create common strategies for companies like Godrej Consumer, Godrej Sara Lee and Godrej Hershey's.
A Leadership team has also been put in place with Messrs Adi Godrej, Tanya Dubhash, A Mahendran, H K Press and Dalip Sehgal on board. The group is sharpening focus on FMCG businesses and brands and reviewing non-core business verticals.
Godrej Industries recently exited the pesticide services business by selling its stake in Godrej HiCare to joint venture partner ISS of Denmark.
The group had also hived off its urban gourmet-retailing venture Nature's Basket, formerly a part of Godrej Agrovet, into a separate subsidiary. It is exploring options to rope in a global gourmet retailer as partner.
Godrej group companies include Godrej Consumer Products, Godrej Industries, Godrej Agrovet, Godrej Properties, Godrej Hershey's, Godrej Tyson and Godrej Sara Lee.


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10 Apr, 2016
Beijing, 2016-04-08 (Xinhua) — A change of China’s tax policy on retails sales on cross-border e-commerce platforms has triggered mixed feelings among buyers and sellers as the policy is expected to raise retail prices.According to the new rules, retail goods purchased online will no longer be treated as personal postal articles but as imported goods, which carry tariffs, import VAT and consumption tax.
Personal postal articles carry a tax of 10 percent, if they are worth less than 1,000 yuan ($154). And taxes under 50 yuan were waived.
Import VAT and consumption tax vary on goods, but combined they are almost certain to exceed 10 percent, though e-commerce consumers will enjoy a 30 percent discount on their taxable amount.
The tariffs for all goods are set at zero, for now.
Besides, the new policy only allows a maximum of 2,000 yuan per single cross-border transaction and a maximum of 20,000 yuan per person per year. Goods that exceed these limits will be levied the full tax for general trade.The new policy shall apply to 1,142 commodities most often traded online, as published by the Ministry of Finance on Thursday.
During the past few years, China has witnessed a booming cross-border e-commerce sector, which registered more than 30 percent annual growth last year despite a sluggish foreign trade.
The new tax policy, aiming at leveling the playing field for e-commerce platforms and traditional retailers and importers, is bringing about anxiety as well as new hopes to both consumers and retailers.
Yu Jianmin, CEO of Shanghai supply chain management company Xinshiyang, said the new policy will mainly affect low-price products, such as baby products and food, and luxury products priced above 2,000 yuan.
Not all goods will see a growth in taxes, some products including cosmetics and clothes within certain price range will have their taxes dropped under the new policy, said Mo Daiqing with China e-commerce research center.
Zhang Siwen, mother of a two years old baby from Heilongjiang province, has been stocking up some foreign baby formula these days. “I heard that prices for baby products could grow by over 10 percent,” she said.
Zhang Jingxue, staff of Tsinghua University and also a young mother, believes that the price growth for baby formula will have limited influence. “Milk powder is a daily necessity, and I think a 10 percent price rise will not change the consumption habit for most people,” she said.
“As for the 2,000 yuan transaction cap, buyers of luxury goods will be affected,” she said, “the 20,000 yuan personal consumption restriction will not have too much impact on individual buyers, since we can use other family members’ quota to buy.”
Experts suggest tax levied on products on online platforms is still lower than that of traditional imports. Moreover, the tax rise for certain goods will not necessarily pass on to consumers.
Liu Peng, general manager of Tmall International, cross-border e-commerce platform under Alibaba, said many sellers on the platform will keep the prices unchanged by squeezing their own profit.
Qiu Huang, director of cross-border platform under e-commerce platform JD.com, said that though the new policy may deter some consumers’ desire to buy, it will benefit the whole industry in the long run.
China currently has over 5,000 cross-border e-commerce platforms. The Ministry of Commerce predicted the volume of cross-border e-commerce in 2016 will reach 6.5 trillion yuan and will soon account for 20 percent of China’s foreign trade.
Industry insiders believe that the new policy will help promote fair competition and create a more orderly cross-border e-commerce sector.
Zhang Bin, researcher with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said personal postal article tax is not for trade purposes, which is exactly what online retailing is. It is unfair for conventional importers and domestic producers.
The new policy will benefit traditional imports and real economy, he said, adding that it will also prevent tax evasion and improve market order, since under the previous policy, some online purchasing agents have taken advantage of postal article tax and used new methods such as repackaging and mailing products separately to avoid tax.
Zhang also noted that consumers’ rights will be better protected under the new policy, as products imported through online platforms will have to submit to the customs their transaction, payment and logistics information.
At the same time, the new policy will speed up customs clearance so consumers will receive most orders from overseas within two weeks, instead of the previous two months, he added.
Liu Peng said the cross-border e-commerce sector lacked entering threshold and oversight mechanism in the past. The new tax policy and online retail imports list encourage healthy development of e-commerce companies.
Companies with more product variety and higher ability to readjust supply chains and products structure will get more development chances, while those that solely relied on price competition and imported products through illegal means will be regulated, he said.


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Movie-inspired celebration will feature Jedi training, character meet-and-greets and more.
-themed events took place last year.
Day at Sea, which will take place on one day of every Disney Fantasy sailing, will include a full day of celebrations including a deck party with fireworks, encounters with the galaxy’s formidable and heroic characters, themed family and youth activities, unique food and beverage offerings and special merchandise.
The day will also include at-sea screenings of all the
films and television series as well as character meet-and-greets, Jedi training, arts and crafts, trivia games and more.
"The Force is stronger than ever onboard the Disney Fantasy, and we are excited to bring back
Day at Sea in 2018," says Karl Holz, president, Disney Cruise Line. "The popularity of the event over the past two years inspired us to continue immersing our guests in the
The Disney Fantasy sailings featuring the
Day at Sea event will kick off in January 2018.
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Keep up with the digital identity landscape.
The inaugural Nonconformist Innovation Summit (NIS) is a free online event, bringing together global leaders in privacy and digital identity. The event will address key tech trends and subjects that include regulatory and privacy implications of COVID-19 contact tracing and exposure notification apps. The conference explores trends in privacy, data protection, digital identity and nonconformist innovation.
Taking place on July 2 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. PST, the summit features experts, business leaders, investors and strategists such as:
The idea for NIS came after identity industry veteran and host of the Nonconformist Innovation Podcast, Steve Tout, saw the opportunity to evolve his podcast into a full day digital summit with previous guests of his show and other distinguished speakers in their respective fields of expertise. These leaders will explore ways to create a safer world post-COVID-19 with privacy enhancing technologies and privacy by design standards.
“We are reminded daily how the world around us is in chaos despite living in modern civilization with the most advanced technologies in history that the planet has ever seen,” said Steve Tout. “Yet we still have devastating data breaches and a growing privacy deficit that threatens our democracy and personal freedoms.”
Organizations from all sectors have registered to attend the summit, from founders to CTOs and executives from CEOs to Trust Officers. Many attendees seek a greater understanding of what a new decentralized internet architecture means to them and their business. The event will also explore how it will enable them to achieve not only compliance with GDPR and CCPA but also be more competitive and endearing to their customers in the new stakeholder-driven economy. The summit is appropriate for executives and line of business managers who are responsible for ensuring that consumer data is protected at the design and want to use privacy and security by design to differentiate their products and services.
Attendees can expect to hear timely updates on CCPA and CCPA Version 2.0 aka the California Privacy Rights Act and recommendations from leading companies such as Sentinel, IBM Security, Evernym, 1Kosmos, Sovrin Foundation and others on creating a safer post-COVID-19 world with privacy-enhancing technologies and privacy by design.
“What we are going to talk a lot about at the Nonconformist Innovation Summit is that a decentralized internet (DID) and self-sovereign identity (SSI) is the best hope that we have for maintaining privacy and keeping control over data which is rightfully ours to keep,” said Tout. “The identity industry at large has done a fantastic job of creating a schema and technology or managing identities according to the rules and policies of the operators and service providers, but not always according to how data owners wish for their data to be used.”
In discussing future plans for the summit, Tout notes that the direction for future initiatives will depend on what his audience wants from both his podcast and Nonconformist Innovation themed content.
“I wanted to have deeper conversations with business and technology leaders whom I greatly admired like Tom Kemp, Richard Bird, Eve Maler, Dr. Steve Herrod. I hope that listeners get as much from the podcast, and the forthcoming summit, as I do from creating it. That would really make me happy.”
The use of contact tracing and notification applications has dramatically increased, bringing with it concerning privacy implications. Dr. Cavoukian, a keynote speaker for NIS, will be discussing her views, experiences and recommendations for combatting this issue.
“We must remain vigilant to ensure that our privacy, which forms the foundation of our freedom, remains firmly intact after the COVID-19 pandemic has ended,” said Cavoukian. “There is presently such a push for tracking and surveillance in pursuit of public health, that it must be held firmly in its tracks—it cannot come at the expense of privacy—never! We must reject zero-sum, either/or models, in favour of positive-sum, win/win models that result in multiple positive gains.”
Privacy by Design, GDPR and the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (CCPA) are all initiatives toward building privacy enhancing technologies and safer online experiences. However, most organizations struggle to implement proper safeguards. New privacy technologies help to enable organizations to satisfy compliance obligations and business objectives while also introducing a privacy management layer that measures, monitors and manages data value, privacy and security considerations. Aaron Weller, former PwC Managing Director and co-Founder of Sentinel is scheduled to give a keynote speech at NIS on how taking a broader view of privacy can help organizations close the gap between regulations, frameworks, execution and compliance.
“Too many organizations see privacy as a legal compliance issue rather than a path to consistent management of constraints on data usage,” said Weller. “My experience shows that taking a broader view of the issue leads to much better outcomes. I’m looking forward to providing some insights on what I’ve learned from this approach.”
For more information and to register for the Nonconformist Innovation Summit visit https://www.nonconformistinnovation.com.
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Queensland’s smart card drivers’ licences will continue to be underpinned by Unisys facial image processing technology after the state’s transport department opted to re-sign the longstanding deal.
The Department of Transport and Main Roads on Wednesday announced the new “multi-year agreement”, which will also support the state's soon-to-be-trialled digital licences.
Unisys has provided facial image processing technology and services to TMR since the state government introduced smart card licences in 2010 in a bid to reduce identity fraud.
The smartcards are also embedded with a small computer chip that stores basic personal details of the licence holder.
Under the deal, Unisys will provide TMR’s new facial signature image processing system, which will be used to verify the identity of Queenslanders applying for or renewing a licence.
Unisys said the system, which will be based on its Stealth (identity) multi-factor identity management and authentication solution, will automate the process of capturing biometric data used to authenticate identities.
It will also provide “configurable application programming interfaces to integrate biometric authentication across physical and digital channels, including mobile devices”.
The deal comes as the department prepares the state’s first digital licence trials in the regional towns of Maryborough and Hervey Bay on the Fraser Coast. The trials will see digital photo identification cards, learner licences and recreational marine licences available to residents later this year.
TMR’s chief information officer Sandra Slater said the deal would ensure Queensland’s smart card licence continue to be a “very secure form of documentation”.
“This helps reduce the risk of identity theft to Queensland licence holders and gives them confidence their personal licence information is being kept secure,” she said.
“By moving to Unisys' Stealth (identity) modern image capture platform, we are ensuring the high standards are maintained into the future."
The solution, which will include facial compliance software and image capture devices, will be delivered to TMR as-a-service, which Unisys said would allow for faster rollout of software upgrades.
Unisys also continue to support TMR’s existing fleet of facial image capture devices and case management software under the deal. It will also deliver field services to support TMR service centres.


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Verizon LTE to focus first on business users
LTE smartphones coming in '11, but consumer data usage could be a concern
Computerworld - Verizon Wireless will launch its faster Long Term Evolution (LTE) wireless network in 38 cities reaching 110 million people on Sunday, with an initial focus on business users who deploy LTE over new $100 USB modems connected to laptops.
What's less clear is when actual smartphones will be sold by Verizon that are ready for advertised LTE download speeds of 5Mbit/sec. to 12 Mbit/sec. That speed is about 10 times faster than what Verizon currently offers.
Verizon CEO Ivan Seidenberg recently said LTE smartphones will be launched by February, while Verizon CTO Tony Melone today said they would be ready by mid-2011, although he added that his timeline should not be taken as "any different" from Seidenberg's. More information on devices and release dates will be announced at next month's Consumer Electronics Show, Melone said.
The emergence of LTE smartphones will be important for Verizon's early success with LTE. Sprint Nextel's wireless WiMax network running over the Clearwire network supports two WiMax smartphones that function in 68 cities already, as well as laptop modems and other devices. Sprint puts its average download speeds with WiMax at 3Mbit/sec. to 5 Mbit/sec.
While business users and consumers will be able to buy the first USB modems for Verizon's LTE network on Dec. 5, Verizon seems more focused on laptop-centric business users in its marketing.
Dan Hays, a telecommunications consultant for PRTM in Washington, said LTE will be "very compelling for businesses" especially with the emergence of data-heavy applications such as video chat over wireless.
The first modem to be sold by Verizon will be an LG VL600, selling for $99.99 after a $50 rebate and a two-year contract. The LG modem will be followed by the Pantech UML290 soon, Melone said.
The modems and other devices will be sold with two-year plans that run $50 for 5GB of data per month and $80 for 10GB monthly. Both plans are not capped, Melone said, and users will receive four online updates about how much data they are using. Any overage will cost $10 per 1GB.
Melone called the two plans a way of reaching the broadest possible audience of business and consumer users. With LTE, a 10MB business presentation could be downloaded wirelessly in less than 10 seconds, Verizon officials said. That would be about 10 times faster than now.
Starting with USB modems that focus on business users will be a "safe way" for Verizon to launch the network, Hays said, since data usage could be very high -- especially with consumers on smartphones who stream audio and video. "There will be a large pent-up demand for smartphones on this network, and we expect Verizon will launch LTE smartphones building on the success of its Droid phones running Android," he said.
- Sprint to resell Google Apps for Business cloud service
- Samsung's S5 mini: Slimmer and slower than S5, but still scans fingerprints
- Privacy-focused Blackphone starts shipping to early adopters
- Why you shouldn't buy the Amazon Fire phone
- A closer look at the new technologies in Amazon's Fire smartphone
- Amazon's Fire phone is 'Prime' example of customer first
- Amazon's expected smartphone already faces skeptics
- Update: Tizen OS declared 'dead in the water'
- LG's new G3 smartphone: Simpler is better
- LG G3 sports quad-HD screen and laser autofocus
- 802.11ac Non-Disruptive Migration Strategies Emerging 802.11ac standard promises a significant boost in performance to support ubiquitous mobility.
- City Solved Network Mystery - Saves $30K The City of Jacksonville put their hunch to work and not only solved a mystery, but found a new and innovative use for...
- Making it work: Using Cisco and Microsoft Lync to Drive Collaboration Microsoft Lync is posting impressive adoption rates. As a Cisco Premier Partner and a company that has deployed Microsoft Lync to its own...
- Using Video to Gain a Competitive Advantage: A Business Strategy for Mid-Market Companies The insights provided in this white paper are based on industry analysts and 30+ years of experience from the Video Collaboration Group at...
- NSS Labs & Cisco Present: Evaluating Leading Breach Detection Systems Today's constantly evolving advanced malware and APTs can evade point-in-time defenses to penetrate networks. Security professionals must evolve their strategy in lockstep to...
- Will the Real Endpoint Threat Detection and Response Please Stand Up? This webinar explores new technologies & process for protecting endpoints from advanced attackers as well as the innovations that are pushing the envelope... All Wireless Networking White Papers | Webcasts
Our new bimonthly Internet of Things newsletter helps you keep pace with the rapidly evolving technologies, trends and developments related to the IoT. Subscribe now and stay up to date!


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A healthy supply chain is key to a sustainable, thriving business model, putting immense pressure on the procurement professional as the first line of defense.
Adeptus Health recently filed for bankruptcy and creditors may have missed the early warning signs. Adeptus Health's FRISK® score, however, caught the trouble as it signaled increasing financial risk over the last twelve months.
Learn how we can provide early warning on critical supplier financial risk: Visit us at ISM2017 in Orlando, at Booth 717.
The new crowdsourcing component of the FRISK® score helps identify public company financial risk more quickly and with better precision. The research activity of procurement, credit, and other financial professionals are collectively the vital driver of this proprietary model component.
Retailers across the board are still under tremendous pressure as consumers shift toward online shopping.
The avalanche of print media digital disruptions may claim yet another daily news publisher. See the financial red flags that point to a possible bankruptcy filing by The McClatchy Company.
Unilife Corporation (NASDAQ:UNIS) is one of the latest casualties in the medical equipment and supplies industry, a space that warrants increasing attention from risk professionals today.
Even in the financially distressed retail sector, Gymboree Corporation is severely under-performing and bankruptcy risk is high.
The McClatchy Company, a broad-based domestic news and information provider, has battled a disrupted industry over the last few years. CreditRiskMonitor's predictive FRISK® score of 1, the worst risk rating, indicates that the company faces an elevated probability of financial distress.
Here's how to convince your management to get on board, for customized Trade Contributor reports that provide insight into your financial risk.
The Gymboree Corporation (Nasdaq: GYMB) has a FRISK® score of 1, the worst score on our 1 to 10 bankruptcy risk rating scale. Companies who do business with this children's apparel retailer are exposed to substantial financial risk today.
Are you taking advantage of the insight your own data can offer? Learn how the Trade Contributor Program saves you time and drills into credit risk, absolutely free.
Although the restaurant industry is showing signs of growth in 2017, consumers are still looking elsewhere for dinner.
Continued struggles in the energy industry have claimed yet another victim. See the financial red flags to look out for in your oil & gas counterparties.
We predicted that medical device maker Unilife Corp. was headed for bankruptcy in our High Risk Report; they finally pulled the plug. What can we learn from their financial distress?


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KWV, the renowned South African brandy producer, has launched its latest masterpiece, the KWV VS (Very Special) POTSTILL Brandy. With a legacy of crafting exceptional spirits dating back to 1918, KWV has solidified its global prominence in the fiercely competitive world of premium spirits. The launch of KWV VS marks a momentous step in the company’s journey, positioning it to challenge the revered Cognac segment.
Pieter de Bod, an expert in the premium spirits industry and a dedicated African Brandy Foundation Board member, is at the forefront of this exciting endeavour. With three decades of experience, De Bod applies his extensive knowledge to oversee KWV’s diverse range of brandies.
De Bod’s passion for his craft goes beyond personal accolades, as he holds a deep reverence for the art of spirit-making, noting, “It’s not about yourself. You create a product that could most likely be consumed by the next generation, which is especially true for the premium products aged 20 years and older.” KWV’s dedication to excellence is further exemplified by the expert leadership of De Bod, which amplifies the significance of the KWV VS POTSTILL Brandy launch.
This extraordinary brandy is meticulously aged in small French Oak barrels and composed of 100% POTSTILL Brandy. De Bod describes this golden liquid as the embodiment of ripe apple and oak spices, elevated by delicate nuances of vanilla. He continues, “These elements harmonise to craft a smooth brandy with a tantalisingly spicy and fruity palate. The aroma entices with the fragrance of ripe apples, accompanied by subtle notes of vanilla.”
While KWV’s VS POTSTILL Brandy was only recently released, it has already garnered acclaim with a Double Gold medal at the Veritas Awards on October 15, 2023. This prestigious event celebrates wines and spirits of exceptional quality, making the swift recognition of KWV’s latest creation a testament to its outstanding craftsmanship.
KWV Spirits Marketing Executive Nuno Fernandes says, “We are incredibly proud! The Veritas Double Gold accolade ranks among the industry’s most esteemed, underscoring the quality and excellence that define our products”.
In 2022, KWV was awarded the prestigious World’s Best Brandy and Cognac Producer Award, reinforcing its position as the most consistently awarded brandy and cognac producer over the last decade. This achievement marks the fifth consecutive year KWV has received this recognition, underscoring its commitment to excellence.
Whether enjoyed neat, on the rocks or as the foundation for exquisite cocktails, KWV VS POTSTILL Brandy is guaranteed to leave a lasting impression on even the most discerning palates. Its versatility and exceptional quality make it the perfect choice for connoisseurs and new enthusiasts
KWV’s VS POTSTILL Brandy is available for purchase via its online store: https://kwv.co.za/product/kwv-vs-potstill-brandy/


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HTC’s third Android device, the HTC Hero, has seemingly been snapped in the wild. Previewed as part of HTC’s 2009 smartphone leak back in January – then rocking an eye-wateringly vivid pink color scheme – the Hero seems to have adopted a more subdued casing for its public appearance; we’re also noticing that, as the render suggested, HTC really have dropped the trackball.
That leaves the touchscreen for navigation, which will likely frustrate and please would-be buyers in equal measure. The angled “chin” seen on the T-Mobile G1 and HTC Magic is still present (looking a little Photoshopped in image four, though that could be a side-effect of the poor lighting and low-resolution), but a welcome addition is the 3.5mm headphone jack on the top.
Unlike some of the handsets in their roadmap, HTC gave no launch carrier suggestion for the Hero. Without a hardware QWERTY keyboard it doesn’t look to be a replacement for the G1, and it’s not as consumer-friendly as the Magic; it’s also not mentioned in T-Mobile’s leaked 2009 roadmap.
[via Android Community]


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Cannabis effects on driving are not nearly as predictable as those of alcohol, said Professor Iain McGregor, academic director of the Lambert Initiative for Cannabinoid Therapeutics.
Most street cannabis contains large quantities of THC, the chemical in cannabis that gets people ‘high’, but there is increasing use of medicinal products that also contain cannabidiol (CBD), a non-intoxicating cannabinoid best known in the treatment of severe epilepsy but also useful in treating anxiety, psychosis and pain. It has often been proposed that administering CBD may reduce some of the impairment caused by THC.
“This is a red hot issue for patients using medicinal cannabis many of whom are being told by their doctors not to drive under any circumstances,” said Professor McGregor.
But on some measures, cannabis does not impair driving to the same extent as alcohol, and prescription drugs such as benzodiazepines and opioids.
“And while it is illegal in NSW to drive with any amount of THC in your system, other countries and jurisdictions have more refined laws that attempt to more clearly link driving prohibition to THC-induced impairment.”
The study, published in the journal Psychopharmacology, and led by PhD student Thomas Arkell, compared the effects of standard THC-dominant cannabis, cannabis containing equivalent amounts of THC and CBD, and placebo cannabis on simulated driving and cognitive performance.
In a randomised, double-blind, crossover design, 14 healthy volunteers with a history of light cannabis use attended three outpatient experimental test sessions in which simulated driving and cognitive performance were assessed.
The THC-dominant cannabis was vaporised at a dose (125 mg) that caused strong feelings of intoxication in users and a reluctance to drive, the study found.
When tested on a sophisticated driving simulator, those given THC were impaired for up to four hours on a demanding car following task, although not on a more straightforward standard highway driving task. The study found the type of impairment seen with THC-dominant and THC/CBD equivalent cannabis involved greater lane-weaving.
However, on other measures intoxicated participants were somewhat safer, tending to leave a larger gap between them and the car in front and showing no tendency to speed.
In some circumstances, the study found that the presence of CBD even exacerbated THC-induced impairment.
The THC-containing cannabis had only a modest impairing effect on simulated driving performance. The only performance measure to significantly worsen with cannabis was lane-weaving and participants in both the THC-dominant and balanced THC/CBD groups tended to leave a larger gap between them and the car in front compared with the placebo group.https://www.sydney.edu.au/news-opinion/ ... iving.html


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Chennai-based SaaS firm CloudCherry has raised $6 million from prominent venture capital firms including Vertex Ventures, Cisco Investments and existing investor IDG Ventures – which have picked up a significant minority stake in company. The SaaS-based platform for customer experience management owned by Customer Analytics Technologies, will utilize the Series A round of funding to expand its business outside India in markets such as the US, Southeast Asia and West Asia.
Apple Inc has acquired Indian machine-learning start-up Tuplejump Software Pvt Ltd as it seeks to expand its expertise in artificial intelligence. Tuplejump’s software specializes in processing and analysing big sets of data quickly
Fin-tech startup InMotion Media Ventures Pvt Ltd has received an undisclosed amount of funding from online drug marketplace 1mg’s founders Prashant Tandon and Gaurav Agarwal. The startup is raising a total of INR1.5 crore ($225,000) as part of the pre-Series A round. The company provides financial services to daily wagers and low-income groups. It transfers money in any bank account in India on real-time basis and converts local grocery shops into a bank with the help of the app.
Child development app ParentLane has received angel funding from Capier Investments, the personal investment firm run by Rohit MA, cofounder of Cloudnine Hospitals. The app focuses on child development from infancy to the age of eight. “We answer queries across 60-70 categories of child development starting from food to different parameters of growth and development.
Singapore-based startup incubator IdeaWaveLabs said it has made three investments in India, including one in Mumbai-based startup First Moms Club, an online community of first time mothers, in which it has picked up a minority stake.The amount invested in First Moms Club was undisclosed, but the Singapore incubator said it usually invests between $25,000 to $100,000.


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OUR ULTIMATE COVID BOOKING GUARANTEE. FIND OUT MORE
‘Singularity Black’ is product design and development organization Nano-Lab, Inc.’s answer to Vantablack, the world’s blackest paint. But unlike Vantablack, Singularity Black changes the game for artists around the world, who have open access to this new technology.
When British sculptor Anish Kapoor won exclusive artistic rights to Vantablack in 2016, it kickstarted a heated debate regarding an artist’s right to commandeer a color.
Artists were openly furious at the outcome of Kapoor’s victorious legal battle for Vantablack—particularly Stuart Semple, whose subsequent vendetta against Kapoor banned the sculptor from Semple’s own brand of “pinkest” pink, “yellowest” yellow, and the “most glittery” glitter.
Thanks to Massachusetts-based Nano-Lab, there’s no need for any more color wars, as Singularity Black is publicly available. Initially developed for and under contract with NASA, Singularity Black is “a nanotube filled, solvent based paint that has exceptionally strong absorption in the visible,” according to the product description. The paint is so black that it visually flattens any three-dimensional object it coats.
Last month, Boston-based artist Jason Chase unveiled the first artwork using Singularity Black, “the blackest American made paint available off the shelf,” Chase said in a recent statement. The artwork, titled Black Iron Ursa, is “the first of many pieces [Chase] will make with this new ‘blackest black’ paint.” The artwork features an ultra black cast-iron bear in the center of a wooden color wheel.
“Being the first artist to use this technology, I want to share it with my fellow artists and collectors,” Chase writes in reference to Vantablack’s unpopular exclusivity. “It is important to create access so artists can use it. Artists are always the ones who take new materials and push them to new limits. This super black paint and its possibilities have been stunted by not being available to experiment with. Starting with my work those days are over.”
Black Iron Ursa will go on view at Laconia Gallery, 433 Harrison Avenue, Boston, MA 02118 on August 24 from 7pm until 10pm, and at the Artisan’s Asylum, 10 Tyler Street, Somerville, MA 02143 on September 6 from 7pm to 10pm.


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NFINIT Appoints Phil Kenney as New CEO
SAN DIEGO — January 14, 2021 — NFINIT, a leading provider of hybrid cloud solutions, connectivity, and colocation, has appointed Phil Kenney as CEO. A proven results and profit driver for high-growth companies across various sectors, Kenney has led IT, software and retail teams throughout his 30+ year career, with customer satisfaction always at the core of his work.
“Phil Kenney’s past achievements are impressive, and we believe he will deliver the same results-oriented leadership at NFINIT,” said Bob Fanch, Chairman of NFINIT’s Board of Directors. “Together with this company’s excellent executive roster filled with deep data center and IT expertise, we’re confident that Phil’s appointment will accelerate our growth trajectory.”
After starting his career as a programmer, Kenney quickly moved into various executive roles, delivering the following results:
- Grew the eCommerce business of Hot Topic, a 700+ store retail chain, and led the retailer’s 110-person IT function
- Drove significant growth over three years as Chief Operating Officer of Jerome’s Furniture
- As CEO and & President of ecUtopia, transformed the cloud-based supply chain management company, tripling its growth and delivering strong profitability over 3 years
- Most recently, as Senior Vice President of TrueCommerce, led the division to record results
“I’m honored to join the incredible team of experts at NFINIT,” said Phil Kenney. “My blueprint for accelerating growth includes a focus on customer service, teamwork, and results. With the right team, solutions, and consultative approach, NFINIT is well-positioned to help mid-size companies and enterprises navigate the increasingly complex IT landscape.”
NFINIT provides full stack technology services, including connectivity, colocation, and enterprise-class cloud. Every workload has unique challenges, and NFINIT’s consultative approach and focus on innovation ensures that we deliver the best customized environment, every time. Serving thousands of clients worldwide from our home base in San Diego, NFINIT aims to fulfill our clients’ technology roadmap with best-in-breed solutions and expert support. For more, visit www.nfinit.com.
For media inquiries, please contact:
JSA for NFINIT
+1 866.695.3629 ext. 19


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Albany’s Cuckoo’s Nest Opening Second Restaurant Location
The Cuckoo's Nest has been making quite the waves in Albany since it opened two years ago. So much so, that they're expanding to a second location in the Capital Region.
The Cuckoo's Nest is known for its contemporary-Southern dishes and their food has become so popular that they're opening up a second location in Downtown Schenectady, according to the Times Union.
The Cuckoo's Nest sibling, to be called "The Nest," will be taking the recently vacant space on State Street that until a few months ago was home to Slidin' Dirty. This is the third restaurant from Kaytrin and Devin Ziemann, including their "fast-casual burger" spot, Crave. They have signed a three year lease for Downtown Schenectady with the option to renew the lease for another three.
You won't see the restaurant open for another couple of months. They plan on doing some renovations to the space and want to wait for the holiday rush in their other restaurants to be over before they focus on a third space.
The Nest will offer a lot of the same things that it's parent restaurant has, but will also have it's own personality with special menu items specific to that location.


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Texas Instruments is upping its bid to become a leader in the world of autonomous cars with its new millimeter-wave radar chip, which can sense its surroundings more accurately and help cars avert collisions.
TI rolled out its second-generation chip for short- to long-range automotive radar, the AWR294x family, which can support 33% higher resolution and 40% longer range than other solutions on the market. One of the world’s most prominent automobile chip firms, TI said the new millimeter-wave radar sensor puts it a step ahead of rivals such as NXP Semiconductors, Infineon Technologies, and Analog Devices.
The chips at the heart of radar sensors, which use radio waves to measure the velocity and distance to objects in a car’s surroundings, are one of the key components in the race to roll out autonomous cars.
Most radar sensors on the market now are bulky boxes containing RF components and a separate processor to pinpoint cars or other obstacles hundreds of feet ahead of the road. But TI is instead integrating a 77-GHz frequency-modulated continuous-wave (FMCW) radar transceiver with radar processing engines onto a single system-on-a-chip (SoC) around the size of a postage stamp.
TI released the first generation of its single-chip millimeter-wave radar system for cars in 2018. Since the launch, it has shipped “millions” units of the radar chip to car manufacturers and Tier-1 suppliers.
But to reduce carnage on the road, TI is upgrading its radar processors to pinpoint cars and obstacles on the road faster and more accurately, keep an eye on blind spots, and more safely switch lanes and turn corners. TI said the AWR294x could be used to bring more redundancy to Level 2 or more advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), such as automated emergency braking (AEB) or lane-change assist.
“This is a complete upgrade,” said Yariv Raveh, general manager of millimeter-wave radar at TI, citing the improvements in the radar’s RF subsystem, computing resources, and memory.
Raising the Safety Bar
Today, the average car generally has three radar sensors that tend to be slapped on the corners of the vehicle to alert people to potential dangers in a car’s blind spots at a range of 80 meters, TI said.
But TI anticipates that cars could have eight or more radar sensors with varying resolutions and ranges in the future to create a 360-degree cocoon around the car that can flag objects up to 250 meters away.
The front- and rear-facing cameras in cars today continue to have the advantage of high resolution. They are also very affordable and compact. But for a system to achieve more rigorous safety standards and even fully autonomous driving in the future, cameras will need backup sensors such as radar and lidar that fail under different conditions, such as in stormy weather, at night, or in direct sunlight.
Radar sensors can tolerate years of jolting vibrations and harsh temperatures while mounted on cars. They are smaller and significantly cheaper than lidar sensors and can measure the velocity of objects on the road instantaneously. They can also penetrate fog, rain, and other weather that can obscure cameras and costly lidar sensors. With it, cars can pinpoint obstacles out of sight on the road ahead.
But they have long had one major disadvantage. They only have a fraction of the resolution of other sensors such as lidar and cameras, which means they can struggle to tell objects apart.
The AWR294x from TI stands out by integrating four antennas instead of the three that are standard on most radar sensors from its rivals, boosting the radar's output power. TI said that translates to a 33% boost in resolution, giving it the ability to pinpoint obstacles on the road ahead more accurately and tell the difference between cars, motorcycles, and people.
The radar sensor provides 5 GHz of available bandwidth.
Under the Radar
At the heart of TI’s radar sensor is a central processor subsystem based on a programmable lock-step Arm Cortex-R5F CPU clocked at up to 300 MHz, upgraded from the real-time Cortex-R4F CPU in its predecessor. The chip also integrates a TI-designed digital signal processor (DSP) clocked at up to 360 MHz to process radar signals into a more accurate picture of the car’s surroundings.
TI said the radar runs a more advanced type of signal processing technology called Doppler division multiple access (DDMA) that helps it pinpoint other vehicles or obstacles on the road at up to 40% further distances.
Also under the hood is a hardware accelerator (HWA 2.0) that offloads a wide range of signal processing chores from the CPU and DSP cores, freeing up resources to run more advanced radar software. TI said it doubled the on-chip memory to 4 MB, opening the door for more advanced radar software to run inside, including up to 2.5 MB of shared L3 cache physically close to the HWA.
The radar sensor also raises the bar with a programmable hardware security module (HSM), which adds layers of protection against hackers with secure boot and hardware accelerators for cryptography.
“All of these blocks would typically come in a separate device,” Raveh said. TI used its 45-nm RFCMOS process technology to fit the RF transceiver, CPU, DSP, and hardware accelerator all on the same chip.
TI said the second-generation radar is housed in a 0.65- by 12- by 12-mm flip-chip ball-grid array (FCBGA) package. As a result, TI said it is approximately 30% smaller than rivals’, saving on cost, area, and weight.
Flexibility Takes Priority
Flexibility is also one of the merits of the millimeter-wave radar sensor. TI said the software that controls inside the front end of the radar sensor is locked in place. But TI said customers can program the CPU, DSP, and HWA in the radar chip to build different types of sensors, such as short-range radar that can locate objects in a car's blind spots, assist with parking, or help navigate tight spaces.
The chip can also be configured as mid-range radar for lane-change assistance or other features or long-range radar mounted on the front of a car that can determine the distance to objects up to 250 meters (820 feet) away. TI said it could also be used as a “multimode” sensor that can adjust its range dynamically based on the resolution needed by its customers—all bundled in a single chip.
The automotive-grade radar sensor supports the ASIL-B standard for functional safety and can tolerate operating temperatures of –40°C to 140°C. The chip also has embedded self-monitoring, the company said.
The radar sensor incorporates a pair of CAN-FD ports to connect to the central processor in the system. In addition, the company said the chip is supplemented with a 10 MB/s to 100 MB/s Ethernet port. It is also loaded with I/O connectivity, including I2C, SPI, UART, and GPIOs.
TI is trying to keep the cost of the radar in check so that its customers can add more of them to cars in the future. The company said it would sell the radar sensor for $23.95 each in orders of 1,000 units.
“We are trying to turn radar into a very easy to use and very affordable sensor,” Raveh said.


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- The 2014 Mercedes-Benz CLA45, which debuts at the 2013 New York Auto Show, is being teased in a new video game called Driveclub.
- Driveclub is a new racing game developed for the Sony PlayStation 4 by Evolution Studios.
- The game includes the CLA45 AMG and the Mercedes-Benz A45 AMG.
Daimler on Thursday said the CLA45 AMG will be equipped with a turbocharged AMG 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine generating 360 horsepower. The automaker notes the AMG-developed unit is the most powerful four-cylinder engine in series production. The CLA45 AMG will come standard with the AMG 4Matic all-wheel-drive system.
Driveclub is a new racing game developed for the Sony PlayStation 4 by Evolution Studios. The game will launch at the end of 2013. It will take advantage of the new console's upgraded graphics, controller and movement-sensing peripheral.
The game includes the CLA45 AMG and the Mercedes-Benz A45 AMG. The A45 AMG is set for a debut at the 2013 Geneva Auto Show. Daimler said "further vehicles with the three-pointed star will join Driveclub."
Driveclub is described as a networked game to be played in real clubs, encouraging players to team up and collaborate and compete with one another "while experiencing the thrill of driving the best cars in the world, on the best roads in the world," according to Daimler.
Mercedes-Benz earlier confirmed for Edmunds that the CLA45 AMG will go on sale in the U.S. in late 2013. The CLA45 AMG's debut in U.S. showrooms will be a few months after the arrival of the base CLA in September.
Pricing has not been announced, but the CLA45 AMG is expected to be more expensive than the base CLA, which starts at $30,825, including a $925 destination charge.
Edmunds says: Driveclub promises a visceral feel, much like driving the real 2014 Mercedes-Benz CLA45 AMG.


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Addressing 'unauthorised' debit orders
“Many consumers agree to buying goods or services over the phone yet are unaware that these verbal contracts can be legally binding and may have financial implications,” said Paul Brown, CEO and founder of DigiCash.
DigiCash is a registered third party payment provider that processes payments and collects debits on behalf of merchants.
Debit order mandates
Brown suggested that most consumers expect ‘debit order permissions’ or mandates, to be synonymous with endless paperwork, but that isn’t always necessary in legalising the mandate.
“A telephonic mandate is just as legitimate as a paper one, but all mandates need to contain certain information to be enforceable,” stated Brown.
This information includes:
-The consumer’s name,
-Confirmation of merchant and the consumer’s authorisation pertaining to the debit,
-Agreement on amount to be deducted,
-First and succeeding debit order dates,
-Consumer’s ID number, and
-A code that enables the consumer to identify the company that has conducted the deduction.
Next year will see the implementation of an ‘automated-mandate verification system’. This forming part of the double-opt-in system, explained Brown.
The system will make it possible and easier for banks and other payment providers to confirm that a debit has been properly authorised by the consumer before processing it.
Consumers will also better be able to manage their financial agreements and mandates, as the system will provide them with secondary communication for example SMS or email, to confirm the debit order.
“When this system comes in, it will be harder to lock consumers into a deal without them realising what they are getting into. All these changes will better protect the consumer and ensure that they know what they are getting into when they agree to a contract,” noted Brown.
Another protection measure will take the form of electronic mandates.
“The e-mandate will make it possible for consumers to shop online without having to enter their bank details repeatedly and comes with built-in safeguards. Because it will be electronic, it will also be easier to source the original permission document quickly,” said Brown.
According to Brown the following are ways in which companies can better guard consumers’ interests:
-Vetting merchants to make sure their processes are above board, and holding them accountable if they fail to produce proof of consumer authorisation.
-“When a consumer queries a debit with us, we give the merchant up to 48 hours to get back to us with proof of the deal, or we reverse the amount and charge the merchant,” said Brown.


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Coronavirus could spell the end for fashion’s toxic hype obsession
With global consumerism thrown into crisis for the foreseeable future, will we rethink our troubled relationship to trend-chasing and fast fashion in the post-coronavirus rebuild?
still from Arthur
History has shown us that crisis often makes way for renewal. In Italy, the aftermath of the bubonic plague produced conditions that contributed to the Renaissance. In Britain, the NHS and Welfare State were built in the ashes of the Second World War. As we speak, the coronavirus is turning society upside down, simultaneously seeding fear and the possibility of a fresh start. Many in fashion are quietly hoping that pressing stop on consumerism may finally lead to the much-needed reforms that activists and scientists have been calling for.
To date, fashion’s meagre sustainability efforts have been all about reducing impact. But recycled polyester and organic cotton will only go so far when our shopping habits are out of control. Fashion tells us that shopping is an essential part of modern life, that it’s the answer to anything and everything. In an industry that is supposed to be about craftsmanship, the clothes themselves have become disposable, sold with a built-in expiry date no matter how much they cost. If we want to change this wasteful, destructive industry for the better, we need to address consumerism itself, rather than waste our time pondering more “conscious” collections.
To do this we need to dismantle fashion’s addiction to hype. It’s easy to point the finger at Instagram or the kids queuing up outside Supreme, but the truth is that it’s an inescapable problem that’s infected the entire industry. Hype is the relentless cycle of drops, collabs, pop-ups, cruise shows and designer appointments. It’s the idea that everything needs to be viral, shareable, a “moment”. It’s newness for the sake of newness, buying for the sake of buying. It never stops: even now, in the midst of a global pandemic, we’re told that this is the time to upgrade our loungewear and perfect our working from home looks.
The problem with the hype carousel is that the more people ride it, the faster it spins, and now fashion moves so fast that even professionals are struggling to keep up. There's four, eight, 52 seasons a year. We buy more clothes than ever, and discard them in a heartbeat. And while we treat the products themselves as transient -- here in an instant, then forgotten -- garment production leaves a permanent impact on the planet. A sneaker collab makes quick headlines, but parts of it could last up to 1000 years in a landfill. The cotton feeding our never-ending appetite for merch exhausts water supplies in countries that already suffer from droughts, and the pesticides used to grow it obliterate biodiversity. And that’s saying nothing of the exploitation and human rights abuses that we’ve known about for years.
Until coronavirus brought it all crashing down, the global fashion industry was producing somewhere between 80 billion and 150 billion garments a year, for a planet with 7.8 billion inhabitants. How are we supposed to even wear all of that? It turns out, we don’t. Charity shops, textile warehouses and third-world marketplaces are overflowing with cheap, low-quality castoffs. The sad irony to this mess is that we’re not trashing the planet for beautiful pieces that make a meaningful contribution to our lives, we’re doing it for disposable crap that shouldn’t have been made in the first place.
The pandemic has put a stop to all of that, at least for the time being. Hopefully, in the coming weeks and months we’ll take more notice of the new ideas that have been blossoming underground, perspectives that could help us to finally address fashion’s sustainability problem. Curated vintage shops that make old pieces feel new again; natural dyers drawing on ancient knowledge to create truly organic clothing; upcyclers turning castoffs into unique curiosities; resell apps connecting unwanted pieces with new buyers; and the rental services doing away with ownership altogether. These new perspectives challenge the idea that newer is always better. They’re about making more from less. That’s a message that burned-out creatives and exhausted shoppers need to hear.
As the lockdown hits our pockets and forces us to examine our priorities, the downtime will hopefully spark changes in the way we think as consumers, too. We need to understand that whether we like it or not, everything we buy has an impact on our lives. From picking up packages to dry cleaning to uploading photos to resell apps, clothes don’t just cost us money, they cost us time and energy as well.
When you put it like that, the importance of only buying what you love becomes much clearer. We need to reconnect with the reason we fell in love with fashion in the first place, to rediscover the tangible, everyday joys that come from owning and wearing our clothes. We should remember that clothes have the power to make us feel like our best selves, to help us discover hidden parts of our identities.
Twelve months ago I took Extinction Rebellion’s pledge to only shop second-hand for a year. I had no idea that fashion could feel so slow, even intimate. The trends and runway shows passed me by and I barely noticed. Instead, I chatted to dads on eBay about their old suits, and met up with bikers who were selling their leather jackets. Stepping away from all the noise freed up so much space to really think about what I really need from fashion. Turns out it’s got nothing to do with collabs or drops or limited-edition whatever.
We are only just starting to reckon with the turmoil and chaos that the coronavirus pandemic is wreaking on the world. Whether for good or bad, the crisis has brought consumerism to a standstill. And despite all the suffering and chaos unfolding around us, we have the opportunity to walk away from fashion’s exhausting culture of overconsumption. Let’s not waste it.
Alec Leach is a writer and consultant, and the founder of @future__dust, an Instagram platform for responsible fashion.


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Wall Street Eyes Focused on Apple
Description:Chris Dieterich lists key stocks to watch on Wall Street Tuesday, including Apple which unveiled a raft of new hardware products and operating systems on Monday.
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The Wall Street Journal


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Jersey Mike's Peter Cancro is named RB's 2024 Restaurant Leader of the Year
The CEO was chosen by the editorial staff of Restaurant Business in recognition of the success and give-back culture the Jersey native has made constants for the high-flying chain.
You can't take the station wagon out of Peter Cancro
His hands-on, down-to-earth style, forged when he bought the chain at just 17, has persisted through five decades. It’s a success formula that has earned him the selection as this year’s Restaurant Leader of the Year.


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In his speech to the shareholders at the 76th annual general meeting, Tata Motors chairman N Chandrasekharan said the pandemic has resulted in muted consumer demand along with disruptions in production, supply chain and retail networks.
Chandrasekharan said the business improved its EBIT margins by 260bps to Rs 6,471 crore and auto-free cash flows of Rs 5,317 crore despite volumes declining by 10.3 percent to 903K units and revenues declining by 4 percent to Rs 2.5 lakh crore.
Here are the key highlights from Tata Motors AGM:
The pandemic resulted in muted consumer demand along with disruptions in production, supply chain and retail networks. To address this crisis, we put in place a comprehensive Business Continuity Plan. Our agile and ecosystem centric ways of working helped us to absorb the initial shock of total lockdowns and as demand started coming back, we swiftly shifted gears to significantly scale up capacities and moved fast to serve customer demand thereby ending the year on a stronger note.
The business improved its EBIT margins by 260bps to Rs 6,471 crore and auto-free cash flows of Rs 5,317 crore despite volumes declining by 10.3 percent to 903K units and revenues declining by 4 percent to Rs 2.5 lakh crore.
While the overall industry volumes declined by 6.1 percent, our domestic business grew 2 percent by volume, 7 percent by revenues, and improved EBIT margin by 370bps.
The Passenger Vehicles segment was the star performer of the Indian business. A shift to personal mobility over public transport and a rising preference for our ‘New Forever’ range of cars and SUVs, led to the PV business recording its highest-ever annual sales in 8 years and growing its market share to 8.2 percent and now touching double digits. The launch of ‘Altroz i-Turbo’ and the iconic ‘Safari’ in an all-new avatar have been received well. Additionally, the “Reimagine PV” strategy to rejuvenate front-end sales and dealerships while stepping up customer experience has delivered excellent results.
Within PV, the performance of the EV business is particularly noteworthy. We strengthened our market leadership to 71.4 percent led by sales of more than 4,000 Nexon EV units since its launch last year. EV penetration has now doubled to 2 percent of our overall PV volumes. Overall PV volumes grew by a robust 69 percent, even as the overall industry volumes reduced by 2 percent while within that EV volumes grew 218 percent.
CV sales mirror economic growth and the reduction in overall economic activity resulted in CV volumes dropping by 23.4percent this year. Amidst a tough demand scenario, Tata Motor’s CV business posted sequential quarter-on-quarter growth on the back of improved consumer sentiment, buoyancy in e-commerce, firming freight rates and higher infrastructure demand.
We improved our market share in M&HCV to 58.1 percent (+410 bps vs FY 18), ILCV 45.9 percent (+90bps vs FY18). Disappointingly, our SCV market share was 37.5 percent, losing 250bps vs FY18. The company is committed to win in this segment too and is taking concerted actions with a richer product portfolio and by driving smarter engagements with customers.
Tata Motors Finance business also delivered a strong performance despite the pandemic. The Assets Tata Motors Finance business also delivered a strong performance despite the pandemic. The Assets Under Management grew by Rs 5,928 crore to Rs 42,810 crore and it delivered a PBT of Rs 266 crore and a pre-tax ROE of 9.2 percent.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank Guenter Butschek who led the Indian business over the last 5 years for his contributions to the company.
Jaguar LandRover also delivered a resilient performance during the year. Retail sales declined 14 percent for the year with China being the exception growing at a strong 23 percent. The all-new LandRover Defender was a standout performer clocking a robust 45.2K units for the full year as well as winning the 2021 Word Car Design of the Year. Despite a 14 percent drop in revenue to £19.7B, the business improved its EBIT margins by 250bps to 2.6 percent and generated positive free cash flows of £185m.
Jaguar LandRover has now unveiled its Reimagine strategy to make the company a world leader in electrified luxury vehicles, sustainability, manufacturing efficiency and new automotive technologies.
As the impact of the pandemic recedes globally with more people getting vaccinated, we expect demand to remain strong with consumer preferences shifting further towards personal mobility. The supply situation however is expected to be adversely impacted for the next few months due to disruptions from COVID-19 lockdowns in India and semi-conductor shortages worldwide for the auto industry globally which will take time to work through. This will impact production volumes, sales, cash flows and margins.
We expect the situation will start to improve in the second half of FY22 even as the broader underlying structural capacity issues resolve with new capacities coming online over the next 12-18 months. Some level of shortages will therefore continue through to the end of the year and beyond.


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SHS Partners has struck an exclusive deal for WKD to be the official alcohol partner of Love Island series 8.
The partnership will include broadcast media, co-branded pack designs, price-marked packs, on-pack promotions, in-depot activation, and a huge social, digital and influencer campaign, including exclusive WKD-themed content featuring Islanders. Plus, a Love Island promotion as part of an activation in pubs and bars will feature for the first time this year as an additional strand of the campaign, to further increase awareness amongst convenience shoppers.
Alison Gray, head of brand – WKD, at SHS Drinks, said: “We’re really proud to be linking with Love Island for a second time; we’re the perfect couple and just meant to be together! The programme is a TV phenomenon with huge reach and fans can’t get enough of it. In a fragmented media landscape, the continued success of Love Island highlights just how much our target consumers still relish a shared media experience. Last year, Love Island attracted three times more all-important 18-25 viewers than other similar programme formats.
“Consumer and trade feedback was extremely positive last year and we’re back with an all-inclusive package deal that’s even bigger and better. Consumers are going to see WKD and Love Island brands partnered up on TV, partnered up on retailers’ shelves and partnered up on social media. In addition, this year we’ll be filming exclusive WKD content on location in the sun and also setting Islanders some of our very own cheeky ‘YourWKDSide’ challenges. As 2022’s winning couple, WKD and Love Island are going to serve up some sizzling summer fun to entertain, engage and engender sales growth.”


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Ken Brownell's phone isn't ringing as much as he'd like these days, a silence that can be deafening for a commercial real estate broker.
"Our phone volume has dropped probably 50 percent from eight or nine months ago," said Brownell, co-managing director at Vanguard Fine LLC in Guilderland.
The sky isn't falling, but Brownell and a few others in commercial leasing said activity has slowed as some national retail chains contend with stagnant or falling sales.
Many are taking a wait-and-see approach before committing to new leases or are even more picky about where they will open a store.
"I would say the retail climate is more cautious," said John MacAffer, a broker at CB Richard Ellis/Albany. "Some chains are not expanding as quickly as they were. At some point you reach a market saturation with some chains. ... I'm not sure we've hit that yet."
To be sure, Brownell and other brokers are still securing leases.
For instance, he and Barry Feinman brokered a 10-year lease with a national chain, Five Guys Burgers and Fries, for a 2,500-square-foot shop at Southside Plaza in Clifton Park.
Windsor Development recently expanded the shopping plaza, which is anchored by Borders.
Brownell also learned a national retailer will fill the 25,000-square-foot space that CompUSA vacated at Latham Farms.
He said he couldn't divulge the name of the company.
MacAffer has 400,000 square feet to 450,000 square feet of space he's trying to fill, most of which are buildings that won't be ready for occupancy until 2009.
The listings include Van Rensselaer Square, a 240,000-square-foot development at Routes 4 and 43 in North Greenbush that was tied up in court battles for 10 years.
The development was pursued by The Nigro Group. The project was purchased by BET Investments Inc. in Horsham, Pa., after the final legal obstacle was cleared in January, MacAffer said.
Although TJ Maxx, Bed Bath & Beyond and Old Navy have been mentioned as possible tenants, MacAffer said there are no signed leases.
"I'm positive there will be some good interest in it now that it seems to be moving forward," MacAffer said. "There were a lot who were hesitant to do anything before the lawsuit was resolved."
Another developer, Nigro Cos., wants to build a 370,000-square-foot retail, office and residential complex on Route 4 down the road in East Greenbush.
The town approved the site plan but the developer still needs permits from the state and federal government, said Steven Powers, vice president of Nigro Cos.
Lowe's will serve as one of the anchors for the development, called The Village at Tempel Farm, but the search is on for another anchor and smaller tenants.
Powers said there has been strong interest in the site, but he has also noticed an overall slowdown in leasing activity that he considers temporary.
"They're looking at opportunities a lot more carefully," he said.
Deane Pfeil, vice president of J.W. Pfeil & Co. Inc. in Saratoga Springs, said the post-Christmas holiday period is typically a slow time for retail leasing, but it generally picks up in the spring.
Among the roughly 80,000 square feet that Pfeil & Co. is trying to lease is 6,000 square feet on the first floor of The Conservatory, a 19-unit luxury apartment building in downtown Troy.
Pfeil and her husband, Jeff, renovated the former Stanley's department store into upper-floor apartments with space for a retailer on the street level.
"Right now to find retail tenants it takes a little bit more work," Pfeil said. "They're not knocking on the door so much and we have to be more aggressive finding them."


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Wellness Boom: Get Ready for the Coronavirus-Driven Wave of Immunity-Boosting Natural Supplements
Even before the Coronavirus swept across the planet and drove most of humanity into self-isolation and social distancing, there was a significant and long-lasting wellness boom.
While some predict there will be a surge of babies born at the end of the year, there is a much safer — and more lucrative — bet to be made: American wellness brands will introduce a slew of new functional food products as worldwide consumers begin to reset their priorities.
Foods that contain immunity boosters like Vitamins C and D, or less mainstream ingredients like elderberry or olive leaf extract, are already surging, and data insights point to this trend snowballing in a big way over the coming months as life * hopefully * returns to some semblance of normalcy.
Israeili-based food intelligence startup Tastewise analyzes billions of data points across social media, online recipes and online menus to assess up-to-date consumer trends. Tastewise describes the growth it is seeing for Internet searches for “functional foods” — products that serve a purpose beyond mere sustenance, like “immunity-boosting” or “stress relief”— as “staggering.”
The growth is remarkable because typically those types of searches would be decreasing at this time of year, as the cold/flu season gives way to spring. Tastewise reported 66% month-on-month growth for “immune system” as a desired function of food and beverage.
CEO Jim Emme of NOW Foods, the Illinois-based makers of natural supplements, essential oils, beauty products, and food products, told the New Hope Network that anything associated with immunity is selling three or four times more than usual.
Over at Maypro Ventures, President Dan Lofton told New Hope he expects a “permanent expansion” in the immunity category after seeing dramatic upticks in ingredient sales for herbs like echinacea and astralagus. Lofton also said the biggest consumer motivation for use of these products will be prevention.
CEO Wyatt Taubman of Vive Organic told Forbes: “It’s possible that over the next three to ten years, concerns around the flu and boosting our immune systems will remain at a new high, and this will in turn drive purchase behavior and intent.”
Lifeaid Beverage Company provides a clear example. Its lightly carbonated and fruit-flavored ImmunityAid beverage delivers vitamins and nutrients and is normally the company’s fifth-best SKU. During one week in mid-March, it quadrupled sales at Whole Foods and is No. 1 in its category on Amazon, according to CEO Orion Melehan.
How else is COVID-19 creating growth in this space? Because retail is dealing with various supply chain issue and shelter-in-place orders in many cities, e-commerce is seeing its already robust growth explode. Foodstirs and Tosi Superbites, according to Forbes, both have more than doubled their e-commerce revenues in the most recent period.


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Corporate restructuring in Japan has intensified significantly since
September 2001, according to research by Credit Suisse.
The research shows that in the last five months many Japanese firms have
restructured more fundamentally than just by cutting jobs. Many are withdrawing
from unprofitable businesses and are seeking more alliances with other firms to
The research analysed the financial conditions, cost-cutting measures and
business reorganisation of nearly 1,500 Japanese firms. A Credit Suisse analyst
said the intense restructuring will help many companies achieve improved
profitability by 2003.


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19 October 2018
F1’s best dressed man? Lewis Hamilton’s 10 best looks from last season
New Aston Martin factory ‘on target’ to be opened in August 2022, says Szafnauer
From Suzuka to San Marino – Ranking Alonso's best Renault wins from 10-1 ahead of his F1 return
Ferrari line up old-spec car test for Sainz, but no such luxury for Vettel or Ricciardo with their new teams
Red Bull announce F2 and F3 seats for junior drivers, with Daruvala set to stay with Carlin for 2021


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Posted on September 20, 2011, Phil Owen Warner Bros. Delays PC Version of Batman: Arkham City
So Warner Bros. today decided to give a big ole middle finger to PC gamers by delaying the PC version of Batman: Arkham City to sometime in November. Only the PC version! This seriously just happened.
Look, it’s one thing for a studio push back the PC version of something like Call of Juarez: The Cartel, because nobody cares about that, but this is one of the most anticipated games of the year, and those who opt for the PC version are going to have to wait? I’m pretty bummed right now. November is already going to be the most packed monh for games in my lifetime, and I didn’t really need another one cramming the release schedule. I wish I could make jokes about this, but I’m just too sad!
Follow Phil on Twitter: @philrowen
The Bat is back — check out our huge text and video walkthrough for Batman: Arkham City.


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Stephen is a regular contributor to the cars section at Digital Trends. He’s been obsessed with cars since long before he could see over a steering wheel, building up an encyclopedic knowledge of all things automotive. He began his career in journalism as the editor in chief of his college newspaper, and has gone on to write for multiple publications on a range of automotive topics. He keeps an eye on the future of electric cars and connectivity, but maintaining an ample appreciation for what made cars great in the first place, from good old-fashioned horsepower and speed to motor sports. If he’s not in front of a computer pounding out a story, Stephen is usually traveling the country driving the latest cars. He’s also an avid photographer, always searching for the perfect combination of stylish car and scenic photo location.
The redesigned BMW Z4 will be available in sDrive30i Roadster and M40i Roadster guises when it goes on sale next year. The more powerful M40i will do zero to 60 mph in just 4.4 seconds, according to BMW.
The Ferrari Monza SP1 and SP2 are inspired by some of the Italian automaker's most legendary sports cars. They mix old school rawness with modern carbon fiber construction and 789-horsepower V12 power.


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In Android this week we had news of Cyanogen teaming up with Microsoft, Google will let searchers install Android apps from within search results, and Verizon says Android security is not very good.
Showing results 1 to 20 of 166
Apple, Google, and Microsoft have all admitted that they are being audited by the Australian Taxation Office.
Ahead of the Christmas break, Google has rolled out a slew of Drive updates that improve file format support, file sharing and document search.
Websites and apps should load faster from Google search for users of Chrome for Android following moves to prioritise slow-loading resources.
Google's Search app on Android now better caters to the billions of bilingual people in the world.
LinkedIn's new job search app is being touted as a one-stop shop for job seekers without the distractions of news feed updates and digital content postings.
The search giant's Google My Business service provides SMBs a suite and apps to manage their presence. The move highlights how Google and Facebook are actively courting SMBs and their ad dollars.
DuckDuckGo could grab some market share from Google and Bing.
More of Google's voice actions from its networked Glass devices are making their way to Search for Android.
China's largest search engine has taken data from its location-based apps and used it to show how hundreds of millions of people travel during the Spring Festival.
The new feature means participating apps can accept search terms straight from Google Search, integrating Google's features deeper into the ecosystem.
Businesses can leverage missed calls, voice, e-mail, apps, and SMS-based products to offer, at zero cost to users, services such as alerts, notifications, voting, product sampling, surveys, and feedback submission.
UPDATED 3. The search giant said it was "investigating reports" of issues with three of its main cloud-based productivity apps, following reports of sluggish or downed service.
After five years of Google's Chrome browser, the search giant is hoping to take Chrome apps to the desktop.
In a lawsuit, two former employees claim they were not compensated for time spent waiting on daily bag searches while working at Apple retail stores.
Chinese search giant's investments in location-based services, apps and online video help it gain traction in mobile. Overall, it booked a 4.5 percent dip in net profit to US$430.8 million, amid rising expenses from marketing and R&D.
For Microsoft, losing Office 365 deals to Google Apps is losing the platform. For Google, Apps is a nice business designed to distract Microsoft from search.
You may not think Google Glass has any practical applications in the enterprise — not yet, anyway — but one U.S. firm is working on disproving the naysayers by bringing a range of enterprise apps to the search giant's wearable technology by early 2014.
Google will soon start showing in-app activity for certain apps that include Google+ integration alongside its desktop search results.
What will result when an American technology giant develops mobile apps with China's leading search engine?
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