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The world’s main cryptocurrency shouldn’t be having fun with value motion and even each day buying and selling quantity however reverse to present traits Bitcoin buying and selling quantity has spiked in few international locations and is at its ATH. On the time of writing it trades at $6,303 whereas registering the 24-hours lack of zero.84 %. With a market cap of $109 billion, BTC s managing the each day buying and selling quantity of $four.four billion.
Nevertheless, a lot of international locations are making information in Bitcoin buying and selling quantity. In response to the Coin Dance information, Colombia, Venezuela, Chile, and Argentina are seeing document quantity whereas Kazakhstan, Peru, and Japan are registering important bitcoin buying and selling quantity as properly.
Although based on the latest research, solely 39 % Chileans learn about cryptocurrency, the nation is seeing its all-time excessive bitcoin buying and selling quantity on native bitcoin trade. The nation can be seeing improvement within the crypto sphere as exchanges are including lightning community.
At over $eight million (Argentine Peso), Bitcoin buying and selling quantity has reached to the moon within the nation scuffling with the financial disaster. With three Bitcoin ATMs already put in within the nation, subsequent yr this quantity is predicted to rise to about 150. Nevertheless, simply final week, as Federal Monetary Supervisory Authority (BaFin) red-flagged the exercise of the corporate known as Crypto Capital that gives crypto-trading merchandise ensuing within the halt of Bitcoin buying and selling.
The nation riddled with hyperinflation and financial disaster is closely investing in Bitcoin because the Bitcoin buying and selling quantity within the nation reaches heights. Moreover, Financial institution of England has denied it entry to gold that may additional drive the residents of Venezuela to go for Bitcoin.
Colombia has registered the all-time excessive of its bitcoin buying and selling quantity within the first week of November at over $eight billion (Colombian peso). These previous couple of weeks have been seeing a surge in bitcoin buying and selling on this South American nation. About two months again, the Colombian President even promised to chop lease taxes on crypto companies.
In March this yr, Kazakhstan’s central financial institution has been making ready to ban cryptocurrencies. The nation is now making ready to launch a devoted cryptocurrency for agricultural holdings and corporations which might be used for getting agricultural equipment subsidies and mortgage loans together with grain buying and selling. This week Bitcoin buying and selling quantity has come actually near hitting its All-time excessive from December.
The top of final month noticed Bitcoin buying and selling quantity hitting its peak within the nation. Although since then it has dropped, the quantity remains to be sustaining an excellent rise.
On Native Bitcoin trade, the bitcoin buying and selling quantity in Japan peaked through the finish of October and is now but once more considerably low. Japan’s involvement in cryptocurrencies is nothing new. The nation is tech-driven and has all the time been supportive of this nascent expertise.
The offered content material could embrace the private opinion of the creator and is topic to market situation. Do your market analysis earlier than investing in cryptocurrencies. The creator or the publication doesn’t maintain any duty on your private monetary loss.


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Victoria’s Secret announces this year’s catwalk Angels, but Miranda Kerr and Cara Delevingne are missing from the line-up
Australian model Miranda Kerr who rose to fame as the first Aussie to be The Victoria’s Secret Angel and it seems that it does not take much time for Miranda Kerr to look more stunning then she is now as she was seen in white dress yesterday in New York. As reported earlier by CBS that it would be live broadcasting the Victoria Secret Fashion show from December 10th but it has not been confirmed that why the famous model Miranda Kerr has not been included in the show along with Cara Delevingne.
The lingerie giant Victoria’s Secret has recently released the schedule of 2013 fashion show starting from 10th December. The 2013 show will star famous Victoria’s Secret Angels Adriana Lima, Alessandra Ambrosio, Lily Aldridge and Candice Swanepoel. Lindsay Ellingson, Doutzen Kroes and Behati Prinsloo, as well as New York fashion week starlet Karlie Kloss will also be appearing on the ramp for the show.Miranda Kerr which has already been chosen to become the successor of Alessandra Ambrosio as the face of PINK in 2006 has become the the most recognizable Victoria’s Secret poster girl. However, the brunette announced in April that she was streamlining her Victoria’s Secret duties to focus on being a mother to her son Flynn. And as for Brit favorites Cara Delevingne and Jourdan Dunn, it is yet to be revealed whether they will walk again. The two are not official Victoria’s Secret Angels, but were made Runway Angels when they walked in last year’s catwalk show. While Cara Delevinge who was also absent from the ongoing New York Fashion week. The models don giant angel and butterfly wings, as well as peacock and ostrich feathers, all of which have become emblematic of the Victoria’s Secret lingerie brand. One Direction were rumored to be taking to the stage during the Victoria’s Secret show, which is taking place in New York. Wife of Orlando Bloom was seen again with her parents enjoying the Natural History Museum in Manhattan but Miranda Kerr’s little boy Finn proved he’s a real American boy by wearing a Yankees cap. The 30 years old Miranda Kerr looking stunning without make up in simple summer dress as she carried her two years old son with Actor husband Orlando Bloom at the New York museum. Miranda Kerr opted to keep it simple in a scoop-neck white T-shirt and a pair of loose green-and-black patterned capri pants.
The mother of one wore her long, straight brunette locks down and her smile stood out with her bright red lipstick. But the fashionista despite being casual and simple was wearing trendy fashion accessories like a pair of large aviator sunglasses and a pair of bracelets with black flats. The model shared a photo on Instagram on Wednesday of one of four quotes by US President Theodore that adorn the walls of the sprawling museum near New York City’s Central Park. Amanda shared the 26th president’s quote titled Manhood that is inscribed in the Roosevelt Memorial rotunda at the museum with her more than two million followers on Twitter.

domain: news


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The Amazon Great Indian Sale will return on May 11 and continue till May 14 as the company as the battle for the supremacy in the Indian e-commerce industry continues. Arch rival Flipkart will start its own sale on May 14, the last day of the Amazon sale, meaning back to back discounts for consumers across the two platforms. In the Amazon sale, users can expect up to 50 percent discounts on smartphones, accessories, and other electronics, along with cashbacks on Citi cards.
Amazon sale offers
Smartphone brands like Samsung (up to 18 percent off), Motorola (up to 40 percent off), Coolpad (up to 9 percent off), and OnePlus (exchange offers and no-cost EMI) will various offers on their smartphones in the Amazon sale. There’s an additional cashback of 10 percent on site purchases, and 15 percent cashback on app purchases using a Citi debit and credit card.
Buyers on the Amazon Great Indian Sale will also get up to 80 percent off on accessories like mobile covers, power banks, screen protectors, and data cables. Amazon products like the Kindle Paperwhite will get a flat Rs. 2,000 off, while the one-year Kindle Unlimited subscription can be availed at Rs. 1,499 instead of the usual Rs. 2,388 during the sale period. Also, if you purchase the newly launched Amazon Fire TV Stick, you are eligible to get Rs. 499 as Amazon Pay balance cashback. To see all the upcoming deals on Amazon India. head here.
Amazon App Jackpot contest
Apart from the Amazon sale, there’s also a contest – called Amazon App Jackpot – that allows users to win a Fitbit Blaze smartwatch, iPhone 7 (Product Red) 128GB, JBL Pulse 2 Speaker, and the Samsung Galaxy C7 Pro. This contest ends on May 31, and only four winners will be selected by a random draw. head here


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The UK government proposed to levy a 25p charge against ‘latte levy’, whereby every paper coffee cup would be charged that would be served in the UK. Rather than introducing of taxes, the ministers decided to explore other available options. Let us delve on them.
Around one in 400 coffee cups that would be recycled, it would be important to determine how government plans to improve recycling rates without affecting the actual cost to the customers.
Adding more recycling plants
Presently, UK has only a handful of recycling plants for disposable coffee cups. The major reason would be combined plastic lining and paper outer that fail to process the cups. A goof option would be increasing the recycling plants or developing their abilities to meet the vast needs.
Increasing the number of recycling facilities would benefit UK today and tomorrow, as UK has set ambitious targets for recycling waste.
Using biodegradable cups
The major problem lies with the combination of paper and plastic in the recycling of disposable coffee cups. Nonetheless, several restaurants, pubs and cafes have started using biodegradable coffee cups as an alternative.
Most biodegradable coffee cups would be free from plastic or oil based linings. It would provide more environment-friendly option without any significant change in price for customers.
Recycling bins are necessary for proper disposal of coffee cups. Lack of recycling bin would lead the coffee cup to landfill through general waste. Therefore, the need for recycling bins would also increase along with increase of recycling plants that would aptly handle the coffee cups recycling needs.
Discount offers to customers
A popular option would be to offer discounted offers and schemes to customers bring their reusable cup to the cafes, bars and restaurants. However, the need for biodegradable cup would be imminent, as customers might forget to bring their own reusable cups.
In order to make complete recycling commitment by UK, the need is to bring all solutions together and in an effective manner.


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Voice-activated digital assistants have not fully achieved their promise, due to concerns over trust and unclear monetization strategies. The focus should be on working "with" technology to enhance human experiences.
A growing interest across many industries in the latest breakthroughs in generative AI, a new era where humans and intelligent systems will work side by side to create new experiences, services and business outcomes.
Both grocers and consumers have embraced a digital future, with 90% of grocers and 70% of shoppers transacting online. But the changes grocers face extend far beyond the mobile app or self-checkout system.


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Plummeting Sky drags market down
New Zealand stocks were down today, dragged lower mainly by the plummeting price of pay TV operator Sky Network Television.
Its shares slipped after the Commerce Commission announced it would be investigating programming rights and agreements with retail service providers.
The NZX50 index fell 0.6 per cent or 20.40 points to 3514.50.
Craigs Investment Partners head dealer Bryon Burke said Sky TV accounted for around 13 points of the drop on the NZX overall.
"Generally our market has been following the world markets slightly although not quite to the same vein ... we are down a lot less than the Australian stocks."
Across the Tasman, the main bourse S&P/ASX200 index was down 2.2 per cent. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index tumbled 2.7 per cent. Japan's Nikkei 225 index fell 1.4 per cent and the South Korean Kospi fell 3 per cent.
"We're rowing our own boat. Investors are quite measured here and obviously looking at where else they could put their money if they did sell. With interest rates at all time lows there are not a lot of options. If anything, people look at these downturns as an opportunity to increase their exposure to equities."
Burke added that investors were considering what was going to happen in Europe where talks continued with Greece likely to go back to the polls and uncertainty around if it would exit the euro zone.
Australian wealth manager AMP fell 4.8 per cent to $5.11. As gold prices continued to fall, down another 1.4 per cent to $1535.70 an ounce, OceanaGold struggled with a 3.5 per cent drop to $2.22.
Rubber goods and milking equipment manufacturer Skellerup Holdings fell 2.7 per cent to $1.43. Auckland electricity and gas supplier Vector fell 2.5 per cent to $2.73.
Carpet maker Cavalier was down 2.4 per cent to $1.60. Clothing retailer Hallenstein Glassons fell 2.4 per cent to $4.00 while children's clothing company Pumpkin Patch fell 1.1 per cent to 93c. Jewellery retailer Michael Hill International was down 1.9 per cent to $1.05.
Of the ten stocks that rose, breathing masks and respirators maker Fisher & Paykel Healthcare led gainers with a 3.9 per cent rise to $2.39. Rakon rose 3.85 per cent to 54c.
Rural services company PGG Wrightson rose 3.1 per cent to 33c. Retirement villages operator and developer Ryman Healthcare was up 2.5 per cent to $3.25. Contact Energy rose 1.45 per cent to $4.90.
Trade Me rose 0.75 per cent to $4.05. Outdoor clothing and equipment retailer Kathmandu Holdings was up 0.6 per cent to $1.62. Auckland International Airport was up 0.6 per cent to $2.60.


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Drybar & Zola have teamed up to bring brides the option to register for a wedding day blowout.
Drybar is known for its quick, affordable and consistent blowdry styling services. By partnering with Zola (an online wedding registry site), brides are now able to ask guests to pitch money towards a hairstyling session. As weddings become more and more expensive, it can be hard for brides to prioritize a top-notch beauty routine for their big day. By adding a wedding day blowout to the registry, guests can help out with the costs and brides can feel their best on their big day.
Brides can register for a solo blowout or a styling session with their whole entourage. The registry also allows brides to cash in on the blow dry for events leading up to the big day.
Drybar & Zola Teamed Up to Bring Hairstyles to Wedding Registries
Mary Van Puymbroeck — August 16, 2017 — Lifestyle


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Senior Vice President and President, Analytical Instruments
Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc.
At a time when Amazon is seemingly disrupting every conceivable industry with abandon, including the laboratory supply and biotech sectors, Thermo Fisher Scientific — and, by extension, Shine — has shown it is no pushover by acquiring a major lab and software provider for a cool $925 million in June. The company, Gatan Inc., a unit of California-based Roper Technologies, manufactures instruments used to enhance electron microscopes, and with it, Thermo Fisher is doubling down on digital and e-commerce investments it made in 2017 in a bid to connect state-of-the-art microscope technology. “Adding Gatan’s technologies to our leading electron microscopy portfolio will enhance our customer offering by creating an integrated system that seamlessly connects microscope hardware, software and accessories,” Shine, a 20-year Thermo Fisher veteran, told Reuters this year.


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Huawei introduced their latest mobile chip the Kirin 970 at IFA 2017 in Berlin last week, the launch event obviously suggests that future devices from the company will have the chipset at their heart. Without going further, Huawei officially announced and confirmed its early leaks of the Mate 10 unveiling this coming October 16 with the event happening in Munich Germany through their official twitter account.
— Huawei Mobile (@HuaweiMobile) September 2, 2017
Along with the event details, the twitter post also confirms that the new Kirin 970 chipset will power the Mate 10 device. Earlier rumors suggests that the Mate 10 will feature an all-screen display, a Leica branded dual camera’s and presumably a lot of improvements of what the company’s current flagship the P10 has that gets ported into the upcoming Mate 10 device.
Besides the already known and rumored features of the Huawei Mate 10, there will be more to watch out for the upcoming device so check us back as the event gets nearer for other bits and on the day of the event to know more about the device in detail.


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Issue 24 of our e-mag is out and ready to download.
In the Q3 2023 issue, SRPInsight comes again packed with key product launches, regulatory updates, news and people moves across the structured product industry in Europe, Asia Pacific (Apac) and the Americas.
In this edition, we include a special France supplement to celebrate the 6th edition of the SRP France Conference that was held in Paris on 29 June.
In Q1 2023, the French market showed a strong appetite for capital-protected and interest rate-linked products which increased their market share by 38% and 25% YoY, respectively.
Additionally, readers will have access to two insightful panel discussions at the SRP Apac Conference & Awards 2023, which took place in Singapore on 3 May, along with a feature story about the winner of the Personality of the Year - Jung-Jin Yoon, head of cross-asset sales & structuring for Apac at Société Générale.
Tim Mortimer at FVC contributed with an analysis on deep barriers deployed on structured products as the recent interest rate hikes has triggered a return to capital-protected structures but has also allowed issuers to offer extra protection on autocall products with lower barriers.
There is also a feature about the anniversary of the reverse convertible payoff and its evolution over the last 25 years.
Our flagship Spotlight analysis this time looks at industry sector indices since 2022 and top US issuers in Q1 2023 where some US$26.6 billion was collected from 8,362 structured products.
If you’re interested in the US market, you should not miss our StructrPro analysis on how US callable notes gained momentum since 2021.


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From: Terry Reilly
Sent: Friday, January 10, 2020 8:28:21 AM (UTC-06:00) Central Time (US & Canada)
Subject: FI Morning Grain Comments 01/10/20
MPOB Malaysian palm S&D was bullish and China CASDE neutral. USDA export sales were flat out poor and one of the worst reports I have seen in a while. USDA weekly export commitments were a marketing year low for wheat, corn, rice, and soybean meal.
Reuters and FI


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Trump and his team are eager to take credit for a reported 4 per cent growth. But they shouldn't celebrate too soonby George Magnus / July 30, 2018 / Leave a comment
The US economy, as we know, has been on a bit of tear recently—confirmed last week by the announcement that it expanded by a little over 4 per cent at an annualised rate in the second quarter, the fastest pace in four years. President Trump and his supporters were quick to cheer and take credit thanks to the government’s tax cuts. Allowing for a fall in inventories, demand (or, technically, real final sales) grew by just over 5 per cent per annum.
Yet, we can also consider this achievement in a calmer and more reasoned way. Faster growth is good news—but it won’t last long, and interest rates are still going to go up.
Remember first that 4 per cent growth is rare but not impossible in a modern, sophisticated economy. It happened 4 times during the Obama administration, once as the economy snapped back after the recession following the financial crisis, then again at the end of 2012, and in the middle quarters of 2015.
Second, the annual, or year-over-year growth rate, also rose but from 2.5 per cent in the first quarter to 2.8 per cent. This a more reliable view about how the economy is growing.
Third, note that 4 per cent annualised growth cannot last unless the economy’s potential growth rate is, itself, higher. It’s a bit like driving your car. The distance capacity (or potential) is set by the car’s physics and petrol tank size. The only way you can change it is to lower it by driving too fast or badly.
Similarly, the US economy’s 1.8-2 per cent growth potential is set by productivity and labour input. It can speed up for a while by using economic capacity more intensively, but unless capacity itself is expanded, it won’t be able to sustain faster growth.
How the acceleration happened
How and why did the US economy accelerate recently? Consumer spending picked up strongly, growing by 4 per cent at an annualised rate, after a paltry 0.5 per cent early in 2018. Averaging the two quarters probably tells you all you need to know about underlying consumption.
The Bureau of Economic Analysis did revise up the savings rate quite considerably for the period since 2016, but this…


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WEPACK ASEAN 2023 was grandly opened in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on Nov. 22, 2023. Fosber Asia has been displayed at H2B120, Hall No.2, Malaysia International Trade & Exhibition Centre (MITEC).
As the most influential exhibition and industrial gathering in Southeast Asia, the industry leaders assembled in MITEC. It is the first time that Fosber Asia showed in Malaysia, we had attracted many customers from neighboring countries in Southeast Asia and local Malaysia.
On the second day of the exhibition, focusing on the theme of " Corrugated Cardboard Intelligent Manufacturing & Future Trends", Edoardo Silvestri of Fosber Sales Director gave a speech on "From IoT to Al, Fosber digital evolution", telling that Fosber has been practicing the concept of intelligent production under the wave of Industry 4.0, providing customers with high-quality intelligent equipment solutions through Intelligent production management system.
WEPACK ASEAN 2023 was ended successfully on November 24. Let us look forward to the future and hope to see you again. Fosber Asia is always FOR YOU, WITH YOU!


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DigitasLBi has partnered with UK youth charity YouthNet to launch a social media insights platform designed to help better understand the relationship young people have with social.
YouthLab will use a combination of ethnographic research, mobile activity tracking, social listening and peer review to offer the agency’s clients and other brands a detailed picture of how social media affects young people.
The first study to emerge from the platform looked at the emotional pressures faced by young people surrounded by social media. The results identified four dominant social media behavioural types amongst people aged between 16 and 24: Microfame Seekers, Expression Seekers, Independence Seekers and Inclusion Seekers.
These behaviours were evident in the continuous experimenting on social media and the management of personal online brands in sophisticated ways. Young people were also found to seek digital privacy, critique brands and plan their futures.
Chief strategy and insight officer at DigitasLBi, Fern Miller, said YouthLab represented “a real opportunity for brands” adding that the greater understanding of young people’s experiences and motivations on social will “enable clients to tailor digital tools and products in a way that reflects their real needs and, ultimately, helps to improve their lives”.
YouthNet’s chief executive officer, Chris Martin, said the platform could give a greater understanding into a community’s motivations and social media habits.
The platform was announced at DigitasLBi UK NewFront event last Friday (16 October). A full roundup of the event can be found here.


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In recent news, Apple is rumored to working on new models of the M1 MacBook Pro according to tipster Jon Prosser which is set to arrive in June this year.
These new models will include a revamped design in two different sizes that is the 14 inches and 16 inches. It is rumored that these models will come upon the WWDC event which will be held on June 7th. However, according to Bloomberg, the new MacBooks will feature a 10-core Apple chip with 8 performance cores and 2 energy-efficient cores. In addition, this will be paired with a 16 or 32 core GPU with an option to head for 64 GB RAM.
Moreover, the MacBook will lose one of its most controversial features i.e. the touch bar. The touch bar although did look fancy and unique but it was hardly convenient in comparison to the physical keys. The infamous touch bar came about in 2016 which went from an intriguing add-on to an annoying feature no one bothers with.
However, in place of the touch bar, an old feature is said to return in the form of the magnetic MagSafe charging port. With this feature coming inbound it will offer faster charging than the current USB-C port and will ensure safety. Moreover, the new MacBook is rumored to have more ports in comparison to its 2020 version which has very few ports.


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[NTT Resonant] API group with functions that can be linked with multimodal AI technology, etc. "AI suit ...
If you write the contents roughly
Even when the server load rises due to a sudden increase in access, we can provide stable services.
November 2021, 11 NTT Resonant Inc. Information Functions that can be linked with multimodal AI technology, etc. → Continue reading
Kyodo News PR Wire
Kyodo PR wire, which distributes press releases and news releases, connects information from "who wants to know" to "people who want to know."
This is a site that consumers should pay attention to, where news releases from major governments and government agencies including local governments and universities are gathered.
Wikipedia related words
If there is no explanation, there is no corresponding item on Wikipedia.


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Analysts expect Macau’s VIP revenue to contract a further 30-50 percent in the coming weeks following the detention of a high-profile junket executive in Macau.
The latest events are a harsh wake-up call for Macau, which had been considered more immune than its neighbors to China’s ongoing cross-border gambling crackdown.
Responding to these significant events, Asia Gaming Brief is organizing a pop-up forum entitled “Is this the end of junkets?” on Thursday, December 9th, 2021 from 4pm - 5pm HKT.
During this forum, industry experts will discuss the implications for Asia's VIP and junket market providing several revenue scenarios for VIP and premium mass, discussing the impact on ex-Macau gaming jurisdictions, how this changes the online gaming landscape, and providing a bigger picture view of China and its latest spate of crackdowns.
Speakers confirmed include:
- Alidad Tash, Managing Director, 2NT8
- Ben Lee, Managing Partner, IGamiX Management and Consulting
- Martin Purbrick, Principal, Purbrick& Associates Ltd
- Steve Vickers, Founder, Steve Vickers and Associates
-Kelly Amato, Director - Southeast Asia Industrials, Fitch Ratings
- More to be announced soon.
You can register for the webinar now on AGB's website.


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An organization of food workers filed a lawsuit against the US president’s move towards pig slaughter lines. The United Food and Commercial Workers International Union says that the rule results in more injuries to employees of slaughterhouses.
The case is 19-cv-02660 and is in the US District Court in Minnesota.
According to the report, the group also worries about the increasing risks of unsafe swine products.
The lawsuit faces the United States Department of Agriculture’s decision last month to end the maximum limit or guidelines of pig slaughtering. The department first estimated that the move would provide an average annual saying for pig slaughterhouse and large plants.
The union said the new rule disregarded warnings that could boost injury rates.
In an interview, UFCW President Marc Perrone said the speed of swine plant lines is a “reckless giveaway” of companies. Perrone added that it would also put workers in danger’s way.
The UFCW said in a statement that the union is not for sale and will not take any cash to withdraw from the lawsuit.
Workers of the processing plants have already suffered from injuries and illnesses brought by the companies’ regulation. Based on government data, an average meatpacking employee has suffered from an injury at least twice in his work.
Reports say that the US Department of Agriculture aims to save $3.78 for pork production plants. The department also said that the new regulations would boost production by 12.5% yearly.
The regulation of the processing companies includes an “innovated” inspection system.
Just recently, Washington imposed levies worth 25% on pig products from the European Union. As tensions between the US and the EU escalates, the new swine sanctions.
The WTO or World Trade Organization allowed the US to apply up to $7.5 billion retaliatory sanctions on EU exports. The sanctions come as a result of the US-EU or Airbus-Boeing dispute.
Both the United States and the European Union claim that their governments unfairly subsidized each other’s aircraft manufacturing company.
Washington published an official list of EU exports affected by the new levies, which will start on October 18. The list includes pig exports, Scotch whiskey, cheese, and other products worth £6 billion in total.
Meanwhile, in China, as the country’s favorite meat starts running low due, the government proposes a new solution.
According to reports, Beijing calls out its strategic pig reserves. It is a pork version of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve of the United States.
As pig products in China go up due to the swine epidemic, the trade between Beijing and Washington isn’t helping.
But everything could start to ease for production as diplomatic teams from the US and China will meet on October 10. The market now eagerly awaits if the giants will end their damaging trade war.
Topics such as technology transfer, services, intellectual property rights, and more will be in the discussions, said the White House Press secretary.
US President Donald Trump wants an agreement with the Chinese side to lessen the trade imbalances between the countries.
Both parties made reconciliatory moves ahead of the October 10 meeting. The US postponed its tariff hike on Chinese goods while China lifted its sanctions on soybeans.
The gestures of goodwill help both Chinese pig breeders and American farmers.


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This “Week in Review” takes a look at Blu-ray Disc potential victory over HD DVD, a list of achievements for Halo 3, the truth about a Gears of War sequel announcement at E3 plus the first clues on which game could be the Game of the Year.
Is HD DVD Losing the War against Blu-ray Disc?
This past week, the next-generation optical format disc war made into the headlines with different reports claiming Blu-ray Disc is beating its archival.
First, the announcement by Blockbuster revealing that for in-store rentals the company will offer only Blu-ray Disc movies because of the format’s larger number of titles.
Then, a report by research firm Digital Entertainment Group (DEG), which revealed that there are 1.5 million Blu-ray Disc players in the U.S. while there are only 300,000 HD DVD players.
The comparison is a little bit unfaier because while the HD DVD hardware base is a nearly equal split of set-top boxes and Xbox 360 HD DVD players, the Blu-ray camp is divided up into 1.4 million PlayStation 3 systems and 100,000 set-top boxes.
You can bet that everyone who got the Xbox 360 add-on did it in order to watch the HD DVD movies but how can you tell which PlayStation 3 owners plans to use their system to watch Blu-ray Disc movie?
Time will tell if Sony finally won a format war…
Call of Duty 4: Game of the Year?
Activision and Infinity Ward released the first in-game footage of Call of Duty 4 and let me tell you, this game is shaping up already as a Game of the Year. The pre-alpha footage showed us a game that looks and plays better than any other shooter we have seen so far.
The first time I saw the footage, I realized this game looks in its current stage better than Halo 3, Unreal Tournament 3 and could be the only console game that can dare to compete with Crysis in the visuals area.
The amount of character on screen and the diversity in gameplay mechanics had all of us here on TeamXbox.com replaying the trailer several times.
McFarlane Working on Halo Figures
This was one of the best things I had to report. One of the best action figures designers has signed a licensing agreement with Microsoft to produce action figures based on the Halo series.
It’s not that JoyRide Studios didn’t perform a good job, is simply that any character or series has not received its action figure treatment if McFarlane hasn’t immortalized it with one of his creations.
McFarlane Toys will create the following figures:
• MASTER CHIEF -- The protagonist of the Halo series stands at 5 inches tall, and has more than 18 points of articulation. Equipped with his trademark assault rifle, Master Chief's mission is to protect Earth against the Covenant, an alien empire threatening the world in the 26th century. Biological and cybernetic enhancements and rigorous military training have resulted in Master Chief's unquestioned status as the finest soldier mankind has ever produced.
• BRUTE CHIEFTAIN -- The highest rank in the Brute hierarchy is the Chieftain, whose articulated figure is the tallest of the series at 6 inches. Belonging to the Covenant, the Brute Chieftain carries the gravity hammer, a close-range weapon with the ability to alter gravity at a local level and crush his enemies and surroundings.
• CORTANA -- Developed by the United Nations Space Command (UNSC), Cortana is a smart A.I. with the ability to project herself as a holographic image and be transferred between computer systems, including the cybernetic armor of Master Chief. This figure's base features an LED light that illuminates her 4.5 inch-tall figure.
• JACKAL SNIPER -- To the benefit of the Covenant, Jackal Snipers have incredibly sharp reflexes and deadly aim. Standing at 5 inches, the Jackal Sniper is equipped with its signature beam rifle, which has the ability for long range shooting and a high degree of damage.
• GRUNT 2-Pack -- At 3.5 inches tall, the Grunt is a menace to the human race, and represents the vast majority of the Covenant infantry. The Grunts are the lowest tier of the Covenant hierarchy, and move in packs. They are expected to unquestioningly obey the commands of their Brute commanders. Outfitted with weapons including the Plasma Pistol and Needler, the Grunts may not seem much more than cannon fodder, but in groups, they can be deadly.
There will also be a three-vehicle line-up that includes:
• WARTHOG -- As the most widely recognized vehicle of the UNSC, the Warthog is a ground vehicle capable of carrying up to three soldiers. Known as the best all-around vehicle for its power, adaptability and toughness, the Warthog measures 3 inches in length and is built of die-cast metal and plastic.
• GHOST -- The Ghost is a single-seat, anti-gravity vehicle used by the Covenant. Mounted with twin plasma cannons, the Ghost is a rapid-attack vehicle designed for speed and maneuverability. The Ghost is 3 inches long and made with die-cast metal and plastic.
• BRUTE CHOPPER -- The Brute Chopper makes its debut in Halo 3. A single-wheeled vehicle, the Brute Chopper will prove invaluable to the Covenant's campaign against humanity. With a length of 3 inches, the Brute Chopper will be made of die-cast metal and plastic.
The figures are expected to hit store shelves Spring 2008.
GTA IV Episodic Content: Only on Xbox 360 for Only $50 Million
Take Two Interactive revealed that it has received two payments for two post-release GTA IV episodes that will be available only on Xbox 360. Chief Financial Officer Lainie Goldstein also revealed when these episodes will be released:
The first 25 is for the first episodic content package that’s supposed to go out and that is in March of ’08. That’s why it moved into current because it’s in the next 12 months. The second 25 will be for the second episodic, the episode, and that will be later in fiscal ’08.
Halo 3 Achievements Leaked
So this past week, the 49 achievements of Halo 3 were leaked, revealing among other things how many missions the campaign will have. The achievements list also revealed there will be nine skulls (one in every mission?) to find after finishing the campaign in any of three modes.
Because of some of the spoilers this list of achievements reveals, you’ll have to click here to get further information.
No Gears of War Sequel Announcement at E3
Every year, speculation runs wild prior an E3 expo and this year wasn’t an exception. Several sites reported a supposed leaked list of announcement Microsoft plans to make at its media briefing in Santa Monica.
Well, one of them was quickly put to rest when Epic Games' Mark Rein stated that there won't be a Gears of War sequel announcement at next month's E3.
Team Fortress 2 Won't Feature PC-Xbox 360 Interplay
For some of you, this was a welcome news; for others, bad news. Valve’s Doug Lombardi, who revealed that such a cross-platform multiplayer between PC and Xbox 360 was achieved at Valve’s offices it was “technically done”, has now confirmed that such a feature won’t make it into the final game.
Shacknews got a chance to preview the entire Orange Box package and got word about cross-platform interoperability being discarded:
In Valve's offices, team members regularly play cross-platform multiplayer games, but the studio's Doug Lombardi noted emphatically that such functionality will not appear in the final versions. He explained that it introduces more problems than it is worth, and if Valve ever decides to go that route it would be in a game designed for it from the start.
This Week in Review has news of a still possible merger of Ubisoft with EA, id Software’s next engine and game, the next America’s Army game being an Xbox 360 exclusive, the launch of a viral marketing campaign for Halo 3 and much, much more.
Ubisoft Still Considering Merger with EA
Ubisoft’s own CEO dropped a big bomb last Monday when he revealed that the French Publisher is still considering a merger with EA after the world’s largest Publisher acquired a big stake in Ubisoft.
We're still considering. The first option for us is to manage our own company and grow it. The second option is to work with the movie industry, and the third is to merge. We think the market is going to grow fast, and we can take a big share of that market, so we don't have to change the way things are done at the moment.
Many gamers simply asked “why?”
id Software Unveils id Tech 5
No one expected to learn anything about id Software’ new franchise until the E3 expo next month but John Carmack surprised everyone when he took the stage at the 2007 at the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference to show the developer’s id Tech 5.
The creator of Doom and Quake unveiled the next-generation of the MegaTexture technology, one of the many features of its id Tech 5, by showing a level of a yet unannounced game. The demo level supposedly used more than 20GB of texture data and it was build in only 10 days.
If creating levels with such a big scope is possible, I guess Sony made a great move when they chose Blu-ray Disc for the PlayStation 3 over a DVD-9.
We’ll learn more about this new franchise and id Tech 5 next month.
Next America’s Army Game Available Exclusively on Xbox 360
One of the achievements of the original Xbox was to establish itself as the “FPS console,” thanks to its clever opposable thumbstick controller design and Halo. A generation later, the Xbox 360 is reinforcing that idea with more games from the Tom Clancy’s series, brand new series like Gears of War and the upcoming return of the Big Daddy; no, not BioShock; Halo.
If you had any doubt about the Xbox platform being THE first-person shooter paradise, the U.S. Army has no doubt and that’s why the next America’s Army game, will be an Xbox 360 exclusive. Published by Ubisoft and developed by Red Storm Entertainment, America’s Army: True Soldiers has you going through a U.S. soldier career and taking on roles such as Rifleman, Grenadier, Automatic Rifleman and Sniper.
If multiplayer is your thing, the game will feature online gameplay over Xbox Live, with eight maps developed by Red Storm Entertainment with full Xbox LIVE Clan support. The game will make use of Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Warfighter 2 game engine.
America’s Army: True Soldiers is scheduled for release in September; bad timing…
Soulcalibur IV Announced
Following an unofficial unveiling through the pages of Japanese magazine Famitsu, Namco officially announced Soulcalibur IV this past week. Other than a teaser trailer featuring huge boobies, the company didn’t reveal much of the fourth Soulcalibur game.
Halo 3 ARG
Oh no, not again please…I hate bees! This past week saw the launch of a new viral marketing campaign from Microsoft and Bungie for a Halo game. As of yet, the alternate reality game (ARG) has users looking for Forerunner glyphs like this:
There is a site with a countdown here, so I can tell you that this game has just started.
May Video Game Sales
It’s getting really boring to report monthly video game sales. Every month, the report looks exactly the same. Nintendo tops sales of both hardware and software across home and handheld platforms.
Once again, and for a fifth consecutive month, the Wii was the top-selling new console and the Nintendo DS best selling system across all platforms. The Wii sold twice as many units as the Xbox 360 and more than four times the PlayStation 3.
Furthermore, Nintendo dominated the software charts again with four first-party Wii or DS games crowding the Top 5.
Even if this past week was a short one, there were some interesting news. New details regarding Halo 3 were revealed, Peter Jackson talked about the Halo movie and we found the first details regarding the Xbox 360 version of Unreal Tournament 3.
Halo 3 Campaign Levels and Achievements Exposed
Modders, cheaters and hackers keep digging through the Halo 3 beta code and this past week they found a list of achievements that also exposed a list of single-player campaign levels.
You can check the list of achievements and levels here *** SPOILERS ***. To learn about the list of weapons, vehicles, game types and their variations, check this story.
More Halo 3 Info Disclosed
In case you didn’t have enough info regarding Halo 3, the latest issue of GamePro revealed the very first details on the weapons and vehicles that were discovered the week before in the code of the Halo 3 beta.
The article shows for the first time the new Magnum, the M6G pistol, and the updated energy sword. The new pistol is more powerful than the one featured in Halo 2 but not as great as the M6D of Combat Evolved. Regarding the energy sword, Bungie revealed to GamePro that is has been tweaked so it no longer has an overwhelming power. The new energy sword has an ammo meter that drops with each attack, so you must use it carefully.
The preview also showed new equipment, including the Radar Jammer (which introduces some interference into nearby players) and maps. The new maps featured in the July issue of GamePro are: Shrine, the largest map to ever appear in the series; Epitaph, an arcane Forerunner cathedral-like structure; Last Resort, a Zanzibar remake; and a secret map that is currently work in progress.
Finally, the other feature revealed in this article was the deeper customization that will be available in the final game, which will offer new armor permutations. In the beta, you can customize your armor and its emblem colors and appearance. But the final game will let you customize your armor from head to toe.
The article shows different variants of the Spartan armor (or is it the power suit featured in Ghosts of Onyx?), with crazy helmets that resemble those seen in HAZE or Star Wars Republic Commando.
Peter Jackson: Halo 3 May Help Revive Halo Movie
The director of The Lord of The Rings trilogy and King Kong said last week that he hopes the release of Halo 3 may renew interest from Hollywood studios in the Halo movie, which is currently on hiatus after 20th Century Fox and Universal Pictures abruptly backed out of the project.
Jackson also reiterated that he and partner Fran Walsh would work on the Halo movie only if Blomkamp is the director.
From the old continent, more precisely, from Spain, came a seven minute clip made entirely of BioShock action sequences. The footage had gamers drooling over their keyboards as the sequences shown end up cementing the idea that BioShock is one of the candidates for game of the year.
Once again, I need to warn you about potential spoilers the movie may contain.
Unreal Tournament 3 – First Details of Xbox 360 Version
Another threequel that got onto the spotlight this past week was Unreal Tournament 3. Thanks to a preview on OXM, we learned the first details of the Xbox 360 version of the game.
First, Epic revealed, and the magazine’s own editors confirmed, that the game is currently looking better than the company’s own Gears of War. The reason for a yet unfinished game looking better than its brother is because in the months after the release of Gears, Epic has keep improving its Unreal Engine 3 technology getting more ouf of the Xbox 360 hardware.
Epic Games’ Steven Polge, the lead designer of Unreal Tournament 3, also confirmed that the Xbox 360 version of the game will support four-player co-op and two-player split-screen in the single-player campaign. There’s a chance that the game may support four-player split-screen but that’s not final. However, 4-player co-op and 2-player split screen support is a fact. Other set of confirmed features include 18 vehicles and 5 types of turrets.
Finally, Epic provided some info on one of the most important aspect of a first-person shooter: controls. Polge revealed that the controls are so good that half the people who work on the game prefer to play the Xbox 360 version. Furthermore, the guy responsible for the controls of the console version stepped in playtest sessions, where everyone was on keyboards, and he kicked everyone’s butt with a controller.
It remains to be seen if Epic will let PC and Xbox 360 gamers play against each other.
Id Software Working on New Franchise and Engine
The CEO of id Software revealed last week that the company is working on an all-new franchise with an all-new John Carmack engine. Speaking to GamesIndustry.biz,Todd Hollenshead said: "We are working on an all-new franchise: it's not Doom, it's not Quake, it's not Wolfenstein, it's not Enemy Territory, it's not even Commander Keen."
"It is a new id brand with an all-new John Carmack engine and I think that when we show it to people, once again they'll see, just like they saw when we first showed Doom 3, that John Carmack still has a lot of magic left."
This also reminds me about the trolls that came this past week claiming this news was old. First, it wasn’t old news as a search on Google news for “id software” will reveal this story was in fact originated from a statement by id in London.
Second, we all are tired of you, “old news, I already knew this” freaks. We are going to ban you for the rest of the eternity and then some.
You didn’t have time to check out the news this past week? Don’t worry. Here comes “The Week in Review,” with the most important stories of the week. Lear everything about The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena, how to unlock the Banshee on the Halo 3 Beta and why Guitar Hero III is going to rock.
The Chronicles of Riddick Next-Gen Remake: Assault on Dark Athena
First unveiled on Spike TV’s GameHead show, this past week saw the official announcement of The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena; a next-generation remake of The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay.
Assault on Dark Athena will have all the previous content seen on the different editions of Escape from Butcher Bay plus new content for the single-player campaign and, for the first time in the Riddick universe, intense multi-player combat. This next-gen Chronicles of Riddick introduces the ominous Merc-ship Dark Athena, which sits silent like a marauding spider, awaiting helpless prey in the dark reaches of the galaxy. Players must face a large, bloodthirsty operation led by the dreaded Captain Revas and her slaves-turned-controllable combat drones, storm though death-defying events and fight fierce enemies in a battle of malice and gore.
An update to the Halo 3 Beta matchmaking playlist that introduced Big Team Battle Training unlocked the new Banshee found in the Valhalla map.
Need for Speed 11 Teaser Trailer
EA plans to reveal the next installment in the Need for Speed series on Thursday but before that the publisher released a teaser trailer of the yet-untitled NFS game. The teaser featured a Mazda RX7 burning some rubber.
Four Player Co-Op – The New Must-Have Feature for Triple-A Shooters
This past week saw two anticipated first-person shooters being confirmed to offer four-player co-op for the campaign. The first one was Halo 3, whose beta was extensively examined by modders. They found references to unannounced weapons, new vehicles and game types but their most precious finding was the fact that Halo 3 will support up to four players co-op on Xbox Live and System Link. Scrolling through the list of on-screen text for party menus, one sentence revealed the following:
The game cannot start because all players are set to observer. Too many players for splitscreen. Only 2 players may play splitscreen coop on the same Xbox 360 console. The party size is too large to start the game. Up to 4 players may play coop on Xbox Live or System Link. Loading information from Xbox Live…
Then, at Ubisoft’s Ubidays, Free Radical Director Dr. David Doak announced that Haze will feature four-player co-op for both campaign and online modes. Many editors from different publications are starting to see HAZE as a true *cough*not*cough*like*cough*killzone* Halo-killer. Time will tell…
Guitar Hero III Officially Announced, Wireless Gibson Guitars Confirmed
After being unofficially announced by Red Octane, Activision finally announced the third installment in the Guitar Hero series, which will launch on Xbox 360, Wii, PS2 and PS3. Among the different features confirmed for the game, the ones that are worth highlighting are the wireless guitars, which will be Gibson Guitar's Les Paul and Kramer models and a new online multiplayer battle mode.
But the true reason that will make Guitar Hero III a popular game in our offices is the fact that among its song list it includes Beastie Boys’ Sabotage. That one only guarantees the game’s a must-buy.
Nintendo: We'll Sell 35 Million Wiis in the U.S. by 2012
George Harrison, marketing chief at Nintendo of America, said in an interview with Bloomberg that the company expects to sell as many as 35 million Wii consoles in the U.S. by 2012. The company has sold 2.5 million Wii players in the U.S. since the console was introduced in November.
A Wisconsin TV channel reveals further info on the next-generation Wolfenstein and the Halo 3 beta Crackdown issue causes an Internet riot. Plus, find out what Michael Bay is doing after he finishes the Transformers movie.
Next-Gen Wolfenstein Update
This past week, a local Madison news channel ran story this past Friday about Raven Software, which is located in this Wisconsin city. The developers of Quake 4 and Marvel: Ultimate Alliance are currently working on a next-generation Wolfenstein game. As the story showed, Rave is taking very seriously the development of this game, blurring the lines between game development and CG animation.
They are using motion capture technology to capture actors’ performance while a state-of-the-art face scanner takes a 3D image of the actors, whose faces will also make their way into the game.
Back at X05, id Software and Activision announced that the next installment in the Wolfenstein series was being developed at Raven Software for the Xbox 360 and PC. Then in 2006, Todd Hollenshead, CEO of id Software, revealed that the Xbox 360 will be the primary development platform for the next-generation Wolfenstein game, confirming John Carmack’s decision to switch his primary development efforts over to the Xbox 360.
skate vs. Tony Hawk’s Proving Ground
Activision announced last Monday the latest installment in the Tony Hawk’s franchise and only 24 hours later EA released new screenshots of skate, so it was inevitable to compare both games. Immediately, you ask yourself; will Tony Hawk’s Proving Ground will be just another edition with a few improvements here and there? Will EA be able to compete with Activision’s established franchise or is time for a new series to take on this sub-genre?
skate certainly looks better than previous Tony Hawk’s game; we’ll see if Proving Ground can compete with the new kid on the block.
Halo 3 Beta and the Crackdown Issues
All good things come to those who wait. The Halo 3 beta finally launched and now around 300,000 Xbox Live users around the world are playing a demo of one of the most anticipated games of 2007.
The launch of the beta would have come and go flawlessly if it wasn’t for the fact that those who own a copy of Crackdown were not able to enter the beta the day it launched. That caused a tremendous riot of angry gamers complaining across many boards, including ours. Hopefully, Bungie and Microsoft found out a solution in less than 24 hours and in the long run the issue proved to be better as the companies decided to extend the beta three more days.
Next Project from Serious Sam’s Creators Announced
Croteam, the Croatian developer behind the Serious Sam series, announced this week it is working on a new series using the third edition of its Serious engine. The three images released revealed that the game is a modern-day military shooter that seems to abandon Serious Sams’ meaningless shooting action for a more tactial, think-before-you-shoot experience.
Michael Bay Enters Game Development
Following an ongoing trend in Hollywood, Michael Bay is the latest movie director to enter the game development arena. The director of Armageddon, Bad Boys, Pearl Harbour, The Rock, The Island and the upcoming Transformers, is upgrading Digital Domain to start creating video games.
Bay revealed his special effect house is working on a first-person shooter with a $25 million budget, an amount that doubles that of games like Gears of War or Halo 2.
"I make world-class images," Bay told the L.A. Times. "Why not put those images into a game?"
Has Mass Effect been delayed? Who is winning the next-gen optical disc war? How can you get your own 120GB HDD for only $80? These and other questions are answered in the latest “Week in Review”
Mass Effect: Delayed or Not?
This past week kicked off with a major bomb; a Microsoft UK spokesperson told Pro-G that Mass Effect has been delayed until September. This caused quite a stir among the community. The game was rumored to launch in July and as a result seen by many as a summer painkiller while everyone waits for GTA IV and Halo 3 to arrive in the fall.
But so far, no one has confirmed either release. Microsoft refused to comment on the rumor. Interestedly, the game received a rating from the ESRB, which means that it should be close to launch and simply in a bug fixing phase.
So, when does Mass Effect is schedule for release? If you ask me, I’d say that at the end of July or in early August.
120 GB HDD for Half the Price
One of the hottest stories I reported last week was the release of a new version of the HDDHacker tool, which has added support for a 120GB HDD, allowing any user to get a regular laptop 120GB HDD and uses it as replacement for the official first-party 120GB HDD. Why would someone do that? Well, to save $100.
Microsoft sells its HDD units a higher price than hard disk manufacturers and while an Xbox 360 HDD sells for $200, a 120GB laptop hard drive such as the Western Digital Scorpio WD1200BEVS can be found for as low as $80. Such a price difference will definitely encourage tech savvy consumers to consider this alternative.
Ken Kutaragi Resigns
Without a doubt, the most shocking news I had to report this year. It’s not like no one saw this coming, it’s just that it happened too early. After he was removed from the President seat of SCE in 2006, now here comes the news that Ken Kutaragi will retire from Sony Computer Entertainment after the disappointing sales of the PlayStation 3, which has caused so far a $2 billion in losses to Sony Corp.
Ubisoft Announces Tom Clancy's EndWar
Alter weeks of teasing us with a dark web site, Ubisoft revealed the name of its new Tom Clancy franchise. Furthermore, the publisher also revealed the genre of the game, surprising everyone with the fact that Tom Clancy's EndWar will be a strategy game similar to the Command and Conquer series.
The latest issue of EGM, whose main article is a first look at the game, has already hit the hands of a few subscribers, who revealed that the game is:
-Directed by Michael de Plater (formerly of Creative Assembly, where he worked on Total War)
-Inspired by... Madden
-No explicit multiplayer or single-player modes. 1 global campaign map for both game types
-Three factions: U.S. Joint Strike Force, European Enforcers, and Russian Spetsnaz
-Persistent Risk-like online campaign map. Everyone plays in this single, global campaign. The war ends when one faction conquers the majority of territories and then a new campaign starts.
-Each campaign can be different. They give the example that if America is conquered in one campaign, they can start the next campaign "to liberate U.S. soil with a massive new 'D-Day' landing on the East coast."
-"[The Battle for Middle-earth II] was a test case for exactly what we didn't want to do" (Referring to them taking a traditional PC RTS and re-mapping the controls"
-"The first thing we did was ban any reference to the PC. We were determined to design it from the ground up for console."
-Camera is always attached to a unit. The idea is to remove the god-like vision found in RTS games by having a more realistic line of sight.
-You can, however, toggle a full battlefield map where you can give your orders.
-Voice-command system that can control every aspect of the game
-7 unit types: Riflemen, Engineers, Tanks, Transports, Helicopters, Artillery, and Command Vehicles
-Limit of 12 units/squads in battle
-Unit costs are all equal
-No "magic", meaning for something to get to the battlefield it needs to be delivered, etc.
-"Everything is destructible"
-On units: "It's a battalion that you own. You can personalize it. You can customize it. You can choose its motto and its heraldry. You can change its compositions and abilities.
-If your soldiers die, they are gone for good along with their upgrades. If they live they gain experience & medals.
-"Nothing in EndWar seems more detailed and obsessed over than the surprisingly varied way soldiers act (and react) on the battlefield."
-For example: "Squadrons of heavily armed soldiers, when ordered to a cluster of firebombed cars, will automatically take cover in different ways, periodically taking potshots at the enemy through windows and over hoods. If a soldier gets shot, one of his squad mates will drag him back to safety"
Blu-ray Disc Outsells HD DVD again and Brakes the 1 Million Mark
Not everything is bad news for Sony and its PlayStation 3. One of the goals Sony had with the console is starting to materialize as March was the third consecutive month the Blu-ray Disc outsold HD DVD sales. In addition, this has allowed Blu-ray Disc to break the 1 million unit sales mark, consolidating further the idea that Blu-ray Disc is winning the war.
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare Unveiled
Finally, Activision unveiled yesterday the fourth installment in the Call of Duty series, which will be developed again by Infinity War and take place in modern day, leaving the WWII backdrop behind. Two facts that fan of the series and gamers in general welcome with open arms.
It was very slow for news this past week, so this “Week in Review” features crazy controller mods, an update to the list of backward compatible Xbox games and the not surprising March video game sales figures.
This past week, modder Ben Heckendorn revealed a new mod he was hired to create: a PlayStation 3 SIXAXIS controller enclosed inside an Xbox 360 controller shell. Since it didn’t have a name, I decided to call this monstrosity the THREESIXTYAXIS controller.
Whoever decided to pay for this mod is openly admitting that the Xbox 360 controller has a superior design than the PS3 controller and the mod will make possible to play on a PlayStation 3 with an Xbox 360 controller.
DIY Xbox 360 Tilt Mod
But the THREESIXTYAXIS controller is not the only crossplay attempt tried last week. A mod group has created a do-it-yourself mod that will give the Xbox 360 controller tilt motion functionality similar to that seen on the SIXAXIS controller.
The Xilt mode will come in two flavors; the Lite and Advanced models, with the latter offering full configuration of tilt angle in relation with thumbstick position.
This could turn out to be a successful mod and a good indication to Microsoft if they should incorporate that functionality in future designs.
Beautiful Katamari Rolling Onto Xbox 360
One of the pleasant surprises of this past week was the announcement of Beautiful Katamari, a next-generation Katamari that will see the franchise’s debut on the Xbox platform, adding to the growing list of exclusive PlayStation franchises that Sony lost this generation.
Namco has revealed that the game will feature an online mode.
Xbox 360: Backward Compatible Xbox Games List Updated
The other big surprise of the week was the latest update to the backward compatibility game list, which incorporated some titles that have been requested by fans since the day the Xbox 360 launched. Among others, the list added Unreal Championship 2, Panzer Dragoon Orta, Breakdown, Return to Castle Wolfenstein and Full Spectrum Warrior. Definitely, one of the best updates ever.
Ubisoft teases us about its next Tom Clancy franchise, plus we finally get a new Gears of War gametype and a date for the Halo 3 multiplayer beta. Plus, get the lowdown on the latest consumer electronics announcements:
Ubisoft Launches Teaser Site for New Tom Clancy Game
We have been hearing the rumblings for quite some time that Ubisoft plans to launch a brand new Tom Clancy franchise. This week, the rumors got one step closer to become a reality when Ubisoft launched a teaser web site for what appears to be a new Tom Clancy game set in right after the next decade.
Visiting www.rev64.com will automatically redirect your to a teaser web site hosted at ubisoft.com that shows the image of a wounded man and a computer interface that plays some audio reports. So far, the clips reveal that:
• The game takes place in the 2020s.
• There are references to Ghosts, Splinter Cells, and special ops groups (aka Rainbow Six).
• A major war for natural and energy resources is going on and it is taking place in the U.S., Europe and the Middle East.
• The US has been attacked.
o Washington, D.C. is no longer the US capital. The new capital appears to be in Boston.
o The fighting is nearing the Midwest.
o The New York Stock Exchange has been relocated to Chicago.
o The CIA, FBI, NSA, and the Pentagon have been relocated.
• A lot of fighting is happening in both Europe and the US, possibly more areas.
• Mass migration, from the USA to China, Mexico, and Canada is occurring.
• OPEC has been disolved.
Gears of War Update – New Gametype
Last week, Microsoft and Epic finally released the latest update for Gears of War, which in addition to fix those ugly VGA bugs and well known issues, it also included a new deathmatch multiplayer gametype called Annex.
So far Annex feels good and it is definitely a gametype that encourages players to fight in groups in well defined areas, something that makes shine the best gameplay moments Gears has to offer.
Although this update is free, it has been revealed that new maps for Gears of War won’t be free as Epic originally promised. Instead, greedy Microsoft wants these maps to follow the same model used for the Halo 2 extra maps, where the maps will be free after a fixed period of time.
Halo 3 Multiplayer Beta Dated
With Spring already started, Bungie finally announced the date the much-anticipated Halo 3 multiplayer beta will start: May 16, at 5 a.m. PDT. The bad news: It will only last for three weeks. Yes, you read that right. Only three weeks.
Those Halo fans who got their copy of Crackdown just to enter the beta must feel scammed. Enabling this long-awaited beta for only three weeks sounds more like it is just a teaser, rather than a beta.
Bungie should at least people play the beta until the game comes out and yeah, it is fair to disable it after the game ships, so people go and buy the retail, final version.
Hopefully, Bungie will listen to its community…
Apple Sells 100 Millionth iPod
A little off topic but since Microsoft has its own MP3 player, I think it is worth mentioning that this past week Apple sold its 100 millionth iPod. That is quite a milestone that only few consumer electronics can dream of ever reaching.
I believe that in the future there won’t be standalone portable music players as cell phones and other handhelds will have enough power to play any type of media and that explains in part why Apple is jumping onto the mobile scene with the iPhone.
Real Pictures of the Xbox 360 QWERTY Text Input Device
Last weekend, when we reported the leak about the Xbox 360 QWERTY keyboard controller attachment, the renders of the device fired a hot discussion over their authenticity. These comments reached Microsoft’s ears and that’s why their PR department took some pictures of a finaly prototype to show the device looks exactly as in those renders:
Team Fortress 2: PC-Xbox 360 Interplay Technically Done
This one was one of the coolest news I reported this past week. Valve revealed in an interview with our buddies at IGN that they already have Xbox 360 and PC users playing Team Fortress 2 against each other. They specifically said that there’s at least one Xbox 360 guy on every test they run.
Furthermore, they said that technically, cross platform gameplay between Xbox 360 and Windows users is done, and it could also be achieved with the PlayStation 3 version. They are now just waiting for Microsoft’s blessing.
Sony Discontinues 20GB PlayStation 3
One of the strangest things that happened this past week was the official announcement of the discontinuity of the 20GB PS3. Sony revealed that the sell ratio between the two models was something close to 6-to-1, so for that reason they decided to drop that model, at least in North America.
This opened another hot debate; what is the sale ratio between the Core and Premium editions of the Xbox 360? Should Microsoft drop the Core now that the Elite is coming?
Samsung Announces Dual Format HD Optical Disc Player
Samsung announced this past week that it plans to manufacture a universal optical disc player that will play both Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD. The announcement was a total surprise, because Samsung cancelled such a plan last year but now it seems that LG Electronics’ move may have caused Samsung to change its mind.
It has been already confirmed that this dual format player will be better than the LG and it will also be cheaper.
Among other topics, this Week in Review features former PS3 exclusive Devil May Cry 4, messianic letters from U.S. attorney Jack Thompson, the big screen adaptation of Gears of War plus details on the Xbox 360 Elite Edition (codename Zephyr).
Devil May Cry 4 Goes Multiplatform
Without a doubt, the biggest news this past week was the announcement made by Capcom confirming that Devil May Cry 4 will be a multiplatform game; furthermore, the game will ship simultaneously for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.
This announcement has further implications other than Xbox 360 owners getting a PS3 exclusive. First, Sony looses another franchise that used to be a PlayStation exclusive. Second, Capcom shows once more its love for the Xbox, following great titles such as Dead Rising and Lost Planet and the much anticipated Resident Evil 5.
The big question remains: How long until Konami forces Kojima to make an Xbox 360 version of Metal Gear Solid 4?
Worst Kept Secret Ever: Xbox 360 Elite (codename: Zephyr)
If it wasn’t for the announcement of DMC4 coming to multiple platforms, the new Xbox 360 codenamed Zephyr would have been at the top of this Week in Review.
First, Kotaku posted scans (bad, very bad!) from the latest issue of Game Informer showing an editorial that confirms the codenamed Zephyr Xbox 360.
According to the article, the “Xbox 360 Elite Edition” will retail for $479.99 and comes with a larger hard drive (120 GB), a built-in HDMI port and cable and for a limited time it will feature a black color finish that includes black accessories, which will also be sold separately.
Following that leak, Ars Technica's Opposable Thumbs reported that the Elite, as well as the new 120 GB HDD that will be sold separately, will come with a data transfer cable that will let existing Xbox 360 owners to move data from their 20GB hard drives to the new unit. The rumor makes sense as Microsoft does not offer a way to move large file sizes from Premium Xbox 360s.
Finally, Spanish site Consolas.com published what are supposed to be official images of the Xbox 360 Elite Edition. You can view all the pictures here.
Hey, Microsoft, announce the Elite already! Everyone knows everything about it.
Analyst: Next-Gen Hardware Sales Are Disappointing
An analyst from the Deutsche Bank came with an interesting report. He has been comparing numbers and found out that next-generation systems are not selling well. The PlayStation 3 is selling fewer consoles than the Xbox 360 during the same month (February) and even less than the original Xbox.
"Next-gen hardware sell-through of 700K units in Feb-07 brought its total HW installed base to 8.0mn in the US, still 30% less than the prior cycle at 11.2mn units at equivalent stages. Xbox 360 (230K) and PS3 (130K) unit sales were below expectations of 250K-300K and 200K respectively. Retail checks reveal that ample supply exists, suggesting a demand problem for next-gen consoles," explained Jeetil Patel.
"Particularly disappointing is Xbox 360 HW sales of 230K in February, which puts its installed base at 5mn or in-line to the original Xbox which was an unproven console and faced substantial competition from the PS2," Patel added.
This is not the first time that analyst issues a warning regarding next-generation console sales but we wonder if this a sort of a red light for the industry and if console manufacturers should review their strategy.
Take-Two Interactive Considering Sale of the Company
One of the shocking news this past week was the announcement made by Take Two Interactive revealing that it is evaluating new strategies, including a sale of the company, as dissident shareholders are trying to seize control of the company. The publisher issued a press release announcing that it has postponed its annual meeting, originally scheduled for March 23, 2007, until March 29, 2007.
In the press release, the publisher said:
"The purposes of the Board’s actions are to provide additional time to review the proposed actions of the shareholder group and also to evaluate alternative courses of actions that could potentially be presented to the shareholders, including a possible sale of the Company."
There are already rumors claiming Microsoft may buy Take Two but the final buyer might be closer than you think…
Jack Thompson Goes Messianic
The neverending story. The stupid confrontation between Florida attorney Jack Thompson and Take Two’s Rockstar continues. This past week, Thompson replied back after Take Two sued him.
Dear Gamers and Gamer Publications on the Internet and Elsewhere:
I have been praying, literally, that Take-Two and its lawyers would do something so stupid, so arrogant, so dumb, even dumber than what they have to date done, that such a misstep would enable me to destroy Take-Two. With the filing of this SLAPP lawsuit last week, my prayers are finally answered.
This lawsuit, filed in US District Court for the Southern District of Florida, is, without a doubt, the single dumbest thing I have ever seen any lawyers do in my thirty years of practicing law -- while in continuous good standing to do so with The Florida Bar, I might add, the shock radio and video game industry's efforts notwithstanding.
I encourage folks to read Psalm 35, a Psalm of David, which is brilliant in its entirety (since God Himself wrote it), but for those who don't own a Bible or who think their hands will catch on fire if they touch one, here is the salient portion that applies to this lawsuit:
7 For without cause have they hid for me their net in a pit, which without cause they have digged for my soul.
8 Let destruction come upon him at unawares; and let his net that he hath hid catch himself: into that very destruction let him fall.
9 And my soul shall be joyful in the LORD: it shall rejoice in his salvation.
The pit Take-Two has dug for itself will be patently clear next week when I strike back. Oh, and by the way, the entire Take-Two management and board will be gone on March 23, so this pit-digging comes at a very bad time indeed.
Amen, and Praise be to God Almighty, maker of Heaven, Earth, and yes, the maker even video games.
After reading the letter, you can tell Thompson has some serious issues that are no crazier than the ghosts he fights.
After his messianic letter, Thompson has announced a countersuit to Take Two’s countersuit.
This is getting ridiculous, seriously.
Gears of War Coming to the Big Screen!
The surprise in this case wasn’t the fact that Gears of War is coming to the silver screen but rather that is happening in less than six months after the game shipped. It took two installments for Halo to get a movie deal and the project is stuck.
For a brand new franchise to sell 4 million copies and secure a movie deal in less than six months, now that’s truly breaking news. Hopefully, this video game movie won’t suck.
Xbox Live Down for Maintenance Next Tuesday
Finally, it is worth reminding that Xbox Live, as well as Xbox.com and its forums, will be down for a scheduled maintenance at midnight Pacific Time on Tuesday March 27, 2007 for up to 14 hours.


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Unedited news and product information from vendors.
DEMO Spring Conference Unveils Diverse Lineup of Emerging Technology Products
Mar 19, 2010 (02:03 PM EDT)
65 companies selected to launch products and introduce their business plans and prototypes at industry launch event
FRAMINGHAM, Mass., March 19 /PRNewswire/ -- The DEMO conference, the world-renowned launch platform for some of the most notable emerging technologies introduced over the past two decades, today announces the spring lineup of 65 companies that will share their never before seen product and value proposition to the technology community at DEMO Spring 2010 on March 21-23 in Palm Desert, Calif.
DEMO conferences opens a window into technology's future and this year the event will feature some of the most promising new products and prototypes from a variety of different industries including Social and Media, Cloud, Enterprise, Mobile and Consumer Technologies.
DEMO Spring 2010 is also excited to have VentureBeat Founder and CEO, Matt Marshall, on board as DEMO's new executive producer, who has evaluated and selected leading-edge innovations to launch on the DEMO stage. In its second year, sitting alongside the demonstrating class of DEMO Spring 2010, the Alpha Pitch program will feature 14 early stage entrepreneurs and pre-launch mode companies that will have 90 seconds in the spotlight to share their prototypes to the critical DEMO audience. To have qualified for the program, each company must be pre-revenue, and have received no more than a seed round of funding.
DEMO Spring will take place March 21-23 in Palm Desert, Calif., at the JW Marriott Resort & Spa. Register to attend at http://www.demo.com/. Live broadcast over the web will be available through a partnership with former DEMO 08 demonstrator and DEMOgod award winner, BitGravity, for registered qualified members of the press. Qualified members of the press may request live viewing access via www.etouches.com/demovideo. Videos from live DEMO Spring 2010 presentations will also be available within 24-48 hours after each presentation on DEMO.com.
In addition to the exciting companies that will take the stage, DEMO will host some of the single most influential entrepreneurs, organizations and venture capitalists in the industry to participate in panel sessions on the key themes for the show, including Social and Media, Cloud, Enterprise, Mobile and Consumer Technologies. Matt Marshall, Executive Producer of DEMO will lead these panel discussions throughout the multi-day conference.
DEMO Spring will also feature an invite-only CEO and Dealmakers dinner. The evening will begin with a 30 minute roundtable discussion on the topic, "Building Companies in the Great Recession: Odds-Busting Stories of Zero to Exit," led by Matt Marshall, Executive Producer of DEMO. Matt will be joined by Brad Barrett, Investment Analyst, Capital Research Global Investors and Scott Stanford, Managing Director, Goldman Sachs.
DEMO provides superior networking opportunities to visionary investors, innovators, entrepreneurs and industry influencers. Back by popular demand, attendees will enjoy drinks, dancing, music and great networking at the annual DEMO After Dark Party. For the first time, DEMO will host a karaoke session and the winner will be presented a special prize during the closing DEMOgod awards.
Register to attend at http://www.demo.com/ and stay connected with DEMO Spring through our communities on the following sites:
DEMO gives attendees a social platform to connect with conference participants. To search and find other attendees, demonstrators, sponsors and press, visit http://www.etouches.com/econnect/DEMOSpring2010
DEMO Spring 2010 Sponsors
DEMO Spring 2010 Platinum Sponsors: BitGravity, BluePoint Venture Marketing, Boston Interactive, the Institute for Information Industry, Microsoft BizSpark, PayPal, Porter Novelli and Qualcomm
DEMO Spring 2010 Gold Sponsors: Comerica Bank, Connect Public Relations, Cooley Godward & Kronish, National Science Foundation, NEC, NYSE Euronext, Silicon Valley Bank, Symantec, TriNet, VCNetwork, and Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati.
Strategic Partners include: VentureBeat, GuidewireGroup, IDG Ventures, The Demo Coach
The official DEMO Spring Live Broadcast Sponsor is BitGravity BG Live™.
About the DEMO Conferences
Produced by the IDG Enterprise events group, the DEMO conferences in the United States and China focus on emerging technologies and new products innovations, which are hand selected from across the spectrum of the technology marketplace. The DEMO conferences have earned their reputation for consistently identifying tomorrow's cutting-edge technologies, and have served as launch pad events for companies such as Palm, E*Trade, Handspring, and U.S. Robotics, helping them to secure venture funding, establish critical business relationships, and influence early adopters. For more information on the DEMO conferences, visit http://www.demo.com/.
The DEMO community also benefits from the award winning DEMOletter. A weekly e–newsletter designed to reach the people who are creating companies, building products and launching new ideas, DEMOletter provides smart insight and analysis of entrepreneurial business issues. To subscribe, go to: http://www.demo.com
About International Data Group (IDG)
International Data Group (IDG) is the world's leading technology media, events, and research company. IDG's online network includes more than 450 web sites spanning business technology, consumer technology, digital entertainment and video games worldwide. IDG also publishes more than 300 magazines and newspapers. Media brands are in more than 90 countries and include CIO, CSO, Computerworld, GamePro, InfoWorld/TechWorld/TecChannel, ITworld, Macworld, Network World, and PC World. The company's lead-generation service, IDG Connect, matches technology companies with an audience of engaged, high-quality IT professionals, influencers, and decision makers.
IDG is a leading producer of more than 750 technology-related events including Macworld Conference & Expo, OpenSource World, E3 Expo, DEMO, Storage Networking World, and IDC Directions. IDC, a subsidiary of IDG, is the premier global provider of market intelligence, advisory services, and events. Over 1000 IDC analysts in more than 100 countries provide global, regional, and local expertise on technology and industry opportunities and trends.
Additional information about IDG, a privately held company, is available at http://www.idg.com
All product and company names are trademarks of their respective companies.
SOURCE DEMO Conferences


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British fashion house Burberry has credited its recent move away from traditional marketing methods to digital marketing for an increase in revenue, according to an article published by Marketing Week.
Earlier this year, the company decided to allocate 60 per cent of its marketing budget to digital platforms – around three times as much as the average amount allocated by the majority of brands.
One of Burberry’s key digital successes was the launch of its Burberry Body fragrance, which was promoted with a social media marketing campaign conducted on Facebook.
As result of the success brought about by the switch to digital, the company has seen its revenue rise by 29 per cent – to £830 million – in the six months leading up to the end of September.
Burberry CEO, Angela Ahrendts, spoke about the financial success for the first half of the financial year.
She said: “Burberry has delivered a strong first half, reflecting our continued investment in innovative design, digital marketing and retail strategies.
“This consistent performance, balanced across channels, regions and product divisions, is enabled by our closely connected global teams and creative thinking culture,” Ahrendts finished.
News brought to you by ClickThrough – experts in Search Engine Marketing & Internet Marketing.


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Hyundai SK Battery
Hyundai is partnering with SK Battery to build a new battery plant in Bartow County, bringing 3,500 new jobs to the county.
Project Description / Details
Hyundai Motor Group and SK On are following up on their MoU regarding cell supply for Hyundai electric cars made in the USA. The carmaker now announced constructing a joint battery plant with SK On in Georgia, a state that has been scoring e-mobility contracts lately.
Hyundai and SK On have selected a site in Bartow County, which is 45 miles north of Atlanta and 65 miles south of Chattanooga, Tennessee (where Volkswagen is building electric cars). Production will start in 2025, and the partners have yet to disclose planned capacities.
Officials say the new facility will be one of the largest economic development projects in Georgia history and will invest approximately $4 to $5 billion into Bartow County.
Plateau Excavation started this project with over 200 pieces of equipment on this 600-acre site, earthmoving over 14 million cubic yards.


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Google search trends illustrate that we’re surrounded by very, very confused people when it comes to the rapidly spreading illness.
Since Tuesday January 21 2020, the GoogleTrends Twitter account noted that worldwide search interest for “coronavirus symptoms” had increased by 1,050% compared to the week before. It also listed the top five related searches during the previous 24 hours, which included things like “how to prevent coronavirus” and “how does coronavirus spread.”
— GoogleTrends (@GoogleTrends) January 21, 2020
But despite a seemingly global attempt to get Dr. Google’s opinion on what we should and should not be doing in order to avoid the virus, another popular Google search illustrates that we’re also surrounded by very, very confused people.
BoingBoing discovered that in the past few days, there has also been a major spike in searches for “corona beer virus”. Apparently people are under the impression that coronavirus, has something to do with our Mexican beer brand Corona. The searches have been prevalent in northamerica, specifically the United States and Canada. Numbers show that not in Mexico, where the beer is produced, also, western Europe as well as in Australia, India, Indonesia, Japan, and New Zealand.
It is actually quite disappointing that this needs to be explained, but the ONLY thing that Corona beer and Coronavirus have in common is the origin of their names.
In Latin, corōna means ‘crown,’ the same as in Catalan, Spanish, and Italian, among others.
Coronaviruses were named because of the crown-like spikes on its surface, and anyone who has ever read the label of a bottle of Corona beer has noticed the crown that sits on top of its “La Cerveza Mas Fina” (the finest beer) slogan. Cerveza Corona was first brewed in 1925, the human coronaviruses were not identified until 1965.
It is not a surprise to anyone, that a respiratory virus with a brand of beer isn’t the dumbest piece of misinformation that has appeared on the internet. The Daily Beast reports that the conspiracy theory believers at QAnon are suggesting that the best way to protect yourself from coronavirus is by drinking bleach. Yes… you read correctly.
In tweets and videos, QAnon associates have suggested that their followers should purchase and consume a very toxic product called Miracle Mineral Solution, Miracle Mineral Supplement, or simply MMS.
Levels of ignorance around the world have reached such heighs that last summer, the FDA issued a warning against drinking bleach and explaining that its ingestion WILL NOT CURE autism, cancer, or HIV.
“Miracle” sodium chlorite and other products that contain sodium chlorite and chlorine dioxide can kill people. The FDA has received reports of consumers who have suffered from severe vomiting, severe diarrhea, life-threatening low blood pressure caused by dehydration, and acute liver failure after drinking these products.
One thing is for sure… As a society, we really need to educate ourselves a little more.
The Yucatan Times
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California company is taking over operations at Schoep’s Ice Cream in Madison
IRVINE, Ca. — The Winkler Family of Brothers Desserts announced Thursday that it will be taking over operations at Schoep’s Ice Cream in Madison.
According to a release, Brothers Desserts has been looking to expand to the Midwest. When Schoep’s entered into receivership, the company purchased select assets of the company, retaining most employees and the brand’s name.
“There’s a lot of cross over between Brothers and Schoep’s.” said Gary Winkler, the founder and CEO of Brothers International Desserts. “We are a family run business, so when we heard of another family run business that was struggling and in receivership in Madison, we jumped at the opportunity.”
Winkler said with 48 years in the ice cream industry, they’re hoping to turn things around at Schoep’s.
“We look forward to continuing the tradition of Schoep’s and creating new opportunities.” Winkler said.
Brothers Desserts was founded in 1973. The company has made ice cream for brands like Natural Choice, Absolute Fruit Sorbet and NutriFreeze.
Brothers Desserts plant to expand production capabilities, add new customers, improve Schoep’s presence in the market and bring growth to Madison, the release said.
COPYRIGHT 2020 BY CHANNEL 3000. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. THIS MATERIAL MAY NOT BE PUBLISHED, BROADCAST, REWRITTEN OR REDISTRIBUTED.


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T Rowe Price has partnered with Hong Kong-based insurance company FTLife to make three of its Sicav funds available to the insurer’s customers, according to a statement from the asset manager.
This is the first time that the manager partnered with an insurance firm in Hong Kong.
“Expanding distribution to the insurance industry further extends our reach to different client segments and is another step in our effort to have a diversified client mix,” Priscilla Leung, head of intermediary business for Greater China at T Rowe, told FSA.
With the partnership with FTLife, T Rowe Price will have access to the insurer’s 70,000 customers investing in investment-linked assurance policies and 3,300 insurance agents, according to Leung.
The three funds that will be available to FTLife’s customers are the US Large Cap Growth Equity Fund, the US Smaller Companies Equity Fund and the Diversified Income Bond Fund. Leung believes that these offerings are good options “for investors looking for a core holding”.
Other distribution channels
The partnership with FTLife adds to the other banking partners that T Rowe has in Hong Kong, including retail and private banks, said Leung, but did not name the firms.
The firm has also partnered with non-traditional distributors, such as online platforms.
“We are constantly accessing different ways to extend our product offerings to a wider range of investors, and we do partner with other platform businesses and online app platforms,” Leung said.
The firm has been active in its efforts of tapping Hong Kong’s mutual fund market in recent years. Since 2016, the firm registered 19 products with the Securities and Futures Commission, including six last year, three in 2018, five in 2017 and five in 2016.
“[We] will continue to build out our Asia intermediary distribution network and explore opportunities to register more Ucits Sicav funds with the SFC,” a spokeswoman of the firm said previously.
In total, T Rowe Price has 23 SFC-authorised products available to retail investors in Hong Kong, according to the statement.


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The euro fell to a nine-month low against the dollar, coming within a whisker of $1.20.
Inflation eased in America. Producer prices dropped by 0.6% in May, and consumer prices fell by 0.1%, the first monthly decline since July 2004. The drop was largely due to a fall in energy prices. Excluding the volatile categories of fuel and food, core consumer prices edged upwards by 0.1%.
However, fuel may be about to become more expensive. The price of a barrel of West Texas Intermediate crude oil reached $56.75 during trading this week.
In America, industrial production expanded by 0.4% in May, leaving it 3.1% larger than a year ago. But the value of retail sales fell by 0.5% in the same month.
America's trade deficit in goods and services widened to $57 billion in April. Net inflows of capital totalled $47.4 billion in the same month.
Industrial output stagnated in France, but rebounded in Italy. French production failed to grow in the year to April, but Italian industrial output grew by 1.9% in April alone, leaving it 0.8% greater than a year ago.
In Japan, first-quarter GDP growth was revised downwards, from an annualised rate of 5.3% to 4.9%.
Britain's unemployment rate remained at 4.7% in April. Average earnings in the three months to April were 4.6% higher than a year ago. Consumer prices rose by 1.9% in the year to May.
This article appeared in the Economic & financial indicators section of the print edition under the headline "Overview"
From the June 18th 2005 edition
Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contentsExplore the edition


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Although it is true that Android is news day and day also about new threats and vulnerabilities, the last one has had as protagonist the iPhone of Apple. The company presumes that its system is one of the safest in the world, but this time it will have to give explanations. It was the Google threat analysis group who detected how some pages They have been taking advantage of bugs present in the iPhone to extract user data. Apparently, the threat, which has been active for two years, has affected devices with iOS 10 and all current versions of iOS 12.
As the Google team points out in its report, the attackers have been benefiting from 14 security flaws to compromise the devices. Most (seven of them) have been found in Safari, the company's browser. Once they accessed the iPhone, hackers could have a lot of information, including GPS location data, private WhatsApp or Telegram conversations, camera images or Instagram or contacts from the phonebook. As they explain from Google, the information was transmitted to an external server every minute.
Apple She was informed of what happened and last February she released a patch to solve the problem. However, at that time nobody knew this issue and it was launched as a normal system update, specifically with version number 12.1.4. The company did not publicly say what was happening. It has taken us six months to know that behind that update to correct common errors and improve the system, was the solution to a security flaw that had been compromising the security of hundreds of users of iPhone.
The conclusion we take from all this is that every precaution is little to avoid the theft of data and personal information. The best thing is always to be prevented and put into practice the different safety tips that we always give you from your expert.
Other news about … iPhone, Security


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One of the most watched ads in recent times has to be the highly emotional “Google’s Reunion ad”. It’s an ad campaign in which Google helps reunite two friends who were split up years ago because of the partition of India and Pakistan. It touched a chord with viewers so soon that the ad, which was first published on Nov 13.2013, has been viewed over 10.43 million times on YouTube.
Now, why would anyone make an expensive three and a half minute ad campaign just for internet users?
The answer to that question is that the advertisers feel that advertising on YouTube is much better than advertising on Television, as in the latter, the impact of the ad is restricted to the reach of the particular channel, but with YouTube, the advertisers can instantly reach out to a global audience; the more people like it, the more they share it with their friends on social networks, hence making it popular.
Here’s the video:
The about section of the video on YouTube says:
“Partitions divide countries, friendships find a way.”
The India-Pakistan partition in 1947 separated many friends and families overnight. In the ad, a granddaughter in India decides to surprise her grandfather on his birthday by reuniting him with his childhood friend (who is now in Pakistan) after over six decades of separation, with a little help from Google Search.
Abhijit Avasthi, head of the Ogilvy India team that developed the ad says, “this (partition) is a sensitive topic, a part of history with bitter memories”. When asked about the two countries’ violent past he said, “But that was the whole point, which is to tell people that those memories are in the past, that there is a way to revive your connection with your lost ones.”
The video was so emotional that it made almost everyone dreary and teary-eyed by the time it ended. And it has managed to evoke deep emotional feelings both in India and Pakistan. Of course, the sequence shown isn’t how it happens in real life, for example, getting a Visa for a citizen of either country to visit the other country is very difficult and time consuming. But nevertheless, the ad has been warmly received, not just in India and Pakistan, but also around the world.
Although, the ad is making waves, not everyone is impressed. Google is waging a losing battle, says Himanshu Gupta, a technology and amalgamation enthusiast. In his column, he writes that Google made such an expensive campaign because it fears that people may switch their loyalties to personalized apps in the future and stop using Google exclusively for their search activities.
Personally, I’ve limited my Google search for only research purposes. When I am on the go and/or accessing the internet on a smartphone and not a desktop; I prefer to use the apps as they are easier to use and faster to access than Google search.
So while Google may be treading on troubled waters, it does not take away from the fact that this ad is truly emotional and has struck all the right chords with the people.
(This post was first published at The Viewspaper, an online magazine.)


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The Calcalist financial newspaper reported on Sunday that Apple has bought PrimeSense, an Israeli maker of chips that enable three-dimensional (3D) machine vision, for $345 million.
Now, a report by AllThingsD confirms that Apple is in talks to buy 3-D sensing company PrimeSense, but citing its own sources the publication says that the deal is not yet done, and that its reported valuation would not represent a huge win for investors. The report further says that the deal is “close” but “hung up on end-game issues like liquidity preferences – in other words, who gets paid first”
PrimeSense has raised $85 million from Israeli and U.S. venture capital funds such as Canaan Partners Global, Gemini Israel and Genesis Partners, Calcalist said.
“We are focused on building a prosperous company while bringing 3D sensing and natural interaction to the mass market in a variety of markets such as interactive living room and mobile devices,” a spokeswoman for PrimeSense said. “We do not comment on what any of our partners, customers or potential customers are doing and we do not relate to rumours or recycled rumours.”
PrimeSense’s sensing technology, which gives digital devices the ability to observe a scene in three dimensions, was used to help power Kinect in Microsoft’s Xbox gaming console, when the technology made its debut. However, Microsoft used homegrown technology for the new Kinect that is part of Xbox One.
The acquisition of PrimeSense would be Apple’s second purchase of an Israeli company. It bought flash storage chip maker Anobit in January 2012.