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Food truck explosion challenges chefs to come up with the new next
Posted March 24, 2016 5:48 p.m. EDT
Updated March 25, 2016 6:02 a.m. EDT
Durham, N.C. — “Don’t buy a space,” Becky Hacker’s father pleaded.
Becky and her husband, Mike, were Durham food entrepreneurs striving to start their own business. The couple had a long history in the restaurant industry. Becky worked front-of-house as a waitress at Watts Grocery, where Mike has 25 years of experience as a chef.
“His favorite food is pizza, and pizza wasn't being done on a food truck yet [in the Triangle],” Becky Hacker said.
With a $35,000 budget and an old trailer from Mike’s defunct touring rock band, the couple decided to take a chance on the Triangle and become part of the burgeoning food truck industry.
Their plan: he’d cook the food and she’d manage the business.
And with that, Pie Pushers was born.
Every week starts the same way for the Hackers. Mondays and Tuesdays consist of food preparation and running errands in anticipation of the busy weekends when they see the bulk of their business.
As head chef, Mike is in charge of acquiring ingredients and curating the menu with new specialty pies. With the help of their seven employees, Mike prepares the food, sets the truck up (usually in 90 minutes), and takes customer orders while simultaneously placing pizzas in the oven.
Becky, who received an MBA from Marquette University, handles the business side of the truck’s operations by making budgets, analyzing costs and promoting the truck on social media. She spends a majority of her day in front of the computer -- about 10 hours a day on average.
“When we set up our truck for just a few hours at one spot, it’s pretty much like you’re setting up a small event every time,” Becky Hacker said.
In peak times of the year, the Hackers said they work at least 60 hours a week.
Although Becky described the venture as “successful,” she declined to provide figures detailing Pie Pushers' monthly expenses and profits.
But that success has come with a host of challenges.
A lukewarm reception by some Triangle municipalities, food truck laws that vary from city to city, stringent health code regulations and a struggle to increase profits in a near-saturated market are just a few of the problems the duo has encountered.
What was once old, now is chic
The food truck phenomenon isn’t new.
In fact, its roots date back to the 20th century when food trucks became synonymous with greasy, cheap food, construction sites and blue-collar workers.
Bob Kramer, supervisor at Food Protection Program for Columbus, Ohio, believes there’s a reason you see mostly young people patronizing food trucks across the country nowadays.
“It’s an age thing. Older people still think of them as ‘roach coaches,’” said Kramer.
Many industry experts and food truck owners see the modern food truck era as a product of the Great Recession.
At the time, Americans had cut back on extravagances such as eating out. As a result, restaurants’ revenues plummeted, and there were 251,000 fewer jobs nationally in 2010, due to downsizing or closures, than before the recession started in 2007, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
This period of high unemployment, stagnant wages and poor job growth forced many trained and talented chefs out of their traditional restaurants and into the trucks.
Food trucks saw their national resurgence in 2008 when Los Angeles-based entrepreneurs Mark Manguera and Caroline Shin and Chef Roy Choi garnered national attention for their food truck, Kogi BBQ. They combined Korean BBQ and Mexican tacos to make inexpensive entrees served out of the back of a truck.
The rise of the smartphone, social media and mobile apps allowed owners of food trucks to reach customers, market their brands and be accessible to many communities.
It was the perfect storm.
Restaurant employees, chefs and foodies took note, and the idea spread rapidly across the country. Food trucks were, and still are, a way for chefs and entrepreneurs to bring new food concepts to the public without incurring the traditional expenses and overhead that come with opening a traditional sit-down restaurant.
The Hackers are one example of this. They were among the early local pioneers of the food truck movement that has spread rapidly across the country, onto American streets and into the stomachs of millions.
When Pie Pushers came onto the local food truck scene in 2010, there were just 12 trucks in the Triangle, Becky Hacker said.
Now, there are more than 120 that criss-cross the Triangle everyday, driving from downtowns to suburban business parks in search of hungry customers.
Kramer feels that food trucks — forecast by Intuit to reach $2.7 billion in revenue by 2017 — are one of many ways people can now order food in the Internet age. “It’s not really a new idea, but it’s a great way to serve people at where they work or play,” he said. “It’s an ever changing industry.”
Regulation and growing pains
From the exterior, restaurants on wheels are reveling in unprecedented publicity and are increasingly seen as a glamorous new way of eating.
An expectation of food trucks is that they're inexpensive to set up and run, when compared to traditional brick and mortar restaurants. However, there are a plethora of costs that tend to be overlooked.
Food is usually the largest cost, closely followed by gas, especially if the truck uses a gas cooker.
“Mainly because we’re traveling and pulling that trailer, we fill up every couple of days on propane,” Becky Hacker said.
“It was more work than I thought it would be. It was all we did all the time for the first couple of months,” she said. Many industry insiders, including Kramer, believe that some 60 percent of food trucks fail within the first three years.
“It’s not just the part where we feed you, there’s so much more that goes into it,” she said.
“I’ve seen [food trucks operated by] either younger people or older people with families that think it will be easy … and then it takes up so much time and resources that they are like, ‘Oh wow, this isn’t what I wanted from it.’”
In addition, Hacker believes some Triangle cities are more hospitable to them than others. That has made operating in the area “very challenging,” she said.
“Durham and Carrboro welcomed [food trucks] with open arms,” she said.
Laws governing food trucks vary from city to city across the country. Becky Hacker says that the Triangle’s two most populous cities -- Raleigh and Durham – have, in her opinion, opposing views on food trucks, with Durham being the “friendliest” and Raleigh being “the most difficult” to work with.
Both cities require mandatory permits in order to operate a food truck within city lines. Durham is the less expensive at $25, while Raleigh is the most costly at $150. If truck owners wish to do business in different Triangle cities, they must purchase a permit from each one.
For a food truck, serving food in the Triangle isn’t as simple as driving up to a parking space and waiting for customers to arrive.
They’re heavily regulated as to where they can park and how long they can operate.
In Raleigh, food trucks are allowed only on private property. Durham, on the other hand, allows trucks to locate on the streets and on private property. Unlike Raleigh, trucks in Durham also may serve customers at all hours of the day.
Hacker claims this regulation keeps parking spaces free for diners and prevents customer poaching. Many restaurant owners believe that food trucks, often with quicker service and lower costs, are taking their business.
In Raleigh and Chapel Hill, Hacker feels the restaurant scene is predominant, and restaurants associations in these cities said “no” before the new movement started.
“That voice already had a presence and was able to influence a decision,” she said.
In her view, the two industries provide “very different services” and target different audiences. She feels that food trucks and traditional restaurants can, and often do, live in harmony.
“If you wanna go sit in a restaurant, you’re not gonna go and get a piece of pizza from the window,” she said.
“It’s competition, but it’s not necessarily bad.”
The food truck’s greatest asset — it’s mobility — has also become one of its biggest liabilities. The fact that food trucks are always on the go poses significant risks for the quality of food consumed by an increasing number of Triangle residents.
“When we started it wasn’t a business model yet and there were less things we were inspected on,” Hacker said.
In 2014 alone, Raleigh and Durham had a combined 300 food truck applications submitted to their health departments. This gives Mark Meyer, general inspections supervisor with the Durham County Public Health Department, cause for concern.
“[Food trucks] have special health challenges,” Meyer said. “They’re mobile and disconnected from reliable water, power and food sources.”
Traditional restaurants, by law, must have kitchens and industrial-grade equipment to help prepare food and keep areas occupied by employees and customers clean. Food trucks aren’t exempt from this.
The average food truck kitchen measures 14’ long by 6’ wide. Due to these rather small confines, food trucks can’t fit all the necessary equipment in their mobile kitchens.
It is, therefore, legally necessary for them to prepare and store their food in a commissary.
Most cities — including all Triangle municipalities — won’t allow individuals to prepare food in their homes before selling it to the general public. Health departments, Meyer stated, can’t go into homes to inspect them, and they almost never have the right equipment or supplies to meet the health code.
A commissary serves as a home base for food trucks and allows vendors to obey the law while cutting costs.
Often times, these special areas are kitchens owned by brick-and-mortar restaurants that food trucks pay to use, in order to avoid building expensive kitchens of their own. Here, owners of food trucks prepare and store their food in a sterile environment that meets health code ordinances. Commissaries also allow a place for food trucks to park their vehicles and safely dispose of grease, used water and solid waste.
Meyer said food truck owners have the option to create their own kitchens that comply with health laws, if they don’t want to pay rent for a commissary. However, doing so would result in thousands of dollars of extra expenses that many “just wouldn’t be able to afford.”
North Carolina was the last state to adopt the FDA’s 2009 Food Code in September 2012. The new food code, Meyer said, is the most far-reaching change ever to North Carolina’s food preparation standards. He said it has taken the General Assembly “almost 20 years” to adopt a newer version of the FDA’s Food Code.
For the first time, the new food code lists specific rules for “mobile food units,” better known as food trucks. It now requires all food trucks to post sanitation-rating cards that are commonly displayed in all restaurants.
“If they don’t have a grade, the public should ask,” Meyer said.
What the new law doesn’t address, however, is the shared commissaries food trucks and restaurants are utilizing. Meyer says the standards should be updated, because “coordinating menus becomes a challenge.” This, according to Meyer, is “unlikely to happen anytime soon” because of the “tense” political climate present at the General Assembly.
However, he believes food trucks can be “just as safe and clean” as restaurants if they’re well run.
“You want to get a sense if they’re clean,” he said.
Where do we go from here?
With the explosive food truck growth the Triangle has witnessed, the trucks are no longer considered unique.
“It is harder for the sake of [people] now have more options. The biggest challenge is getting people to know [new food trucks] exist,” Hacker said. “How do you stand out from 100 people if you're new?”
Industry experts, in addition to Hacker and Kramer, believe the answer is developing menus around signature gourmet dishes and employing unique marketing techniques that will help set them a part from their peers.
Pie Pushers has more than 9,000 followers on Twitter, close to 2,000 likes on Facebook, and a 4-star rating on Yelp. The outlet is established enough that the Hackers no longer have to travel from event to event across the Triangle in hopes of attracting customers.
Their frequent updates on social media allow their current – and future -- customers to find out where they’re located on any given day. They also try to be consistent with locations during the week.
“We don’t just pull up on a street,” Hacker said.
She wants the industry to continue growing. She encourages her truck’s customers to visit other food trucks in the Triangle.
“The food trucks get along more than you think,” she said. “In general it’s a very welcoming industry, and we’re all helpful even though we’re competing. Everybody is pretty supportive.”
Kramer added, “It’s not going to go away.”
Carys Edwards is a study-abroad student from the U.K. studying at the UNC School of Media and Journalism. Evan Semones is a senior broadcast journalism major also in the school. The students produced this story as part of UNC Media Hub. They can be reached at email@example.com and firstname.lastname@example.org.
Photos for this story were taken by Tegan Johnston, a senior photojournalism major at the UNC School of Media and Journalism. She can be reached at email@example.com.


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India is turning fashionable, and what’s more, it is starting young. Unlike previous generations when only a select few included fashion in their daily choices, today’s world is one where almost every person is into fashion. Today’s fashion is not just about wearing trendy clothes but also the knowledge to accessorize and blend fashion with one’s own taste, all at the same time.
A leading fashion portal like Myntra cannot but be elated at this change. Anant Narayanan, CEO, Myntra & Jabong, in an interview with CNBC, said that fashion and lifestyle are undergoing a major transformation in recent times.
In fact, he went so far as to describe fashion as having emerged as a culture. The reasons for this, elaborated Ananth, was fashion becoming one of the best forms of self-expression; the modern Indian woman becoming aware about what she wants to do; and existing biases getting better. Making Myntra a daily habit for women was a task they had undertaken, shared Ananth.
What better example than Deepika Padukone’s All About You when it comes to a clothes brand created to give the wearer the freedom to actually wear what one wants, be it in the material that best suits the Indian weather, or having the choice of wearing western as well as Indian (which not many brands offer) and also being one of the most affordable brands in fashion, costing just between Rs 800-Rs 4000.
As Deepika Padukone shared in the same interview, when she initially thought of launching her own clothesline, it was to give expression to the girl inside. But her passion soon evolved into the idea of empowering girls and women, from age 15 to age 40, by giving them the right to find their preferred fashion within this brand.
Deepika said that fashion was an extension of a person’s personality and it truly came into fruition when one had the liberty to wear what they wanted to at home, work or any social setting without any peer pressure. Talking of her Spring-Summer collection launched recently, she said it had softer and lighter fabrics, lace, florals and pastels, with comfort being the key word. Deepika also emphasized that knowledge and acceptance of one’s own uniqueness is key and it is upto each one of us to mould it into our strength. Only then can a person drive out the irrelevant and embrace themselves.
All About You has also proved to be one of the top five women’s wear brands on Myntra, and among the top ten on Jabong, according to Ananth. The unique partnership of Deepika and Ananth, one an actor and the other a businessman, can be credited with the success that All About You has seen in the online retail space. By making the brand a lot more accessible to a larger audience, by endorsing simplicity as well as pizzazz, All About You has reduced the isolation that a lot of brands create by catering to specific trends and audiences. As Deepika has stated, it is all about exploring and embracing your true self which would in turn reflect in one’s style and clothing, the idea on which All About You is based on. As a matter of fact, Deepika based the idea of the brand based on her own mother’s elegant and relatable fashion which inspired her.
All About You has seen good growth in recent years. With a Year on Year growth of 150%, it’s no surprise that the brand is so hugely successful and will continue scaling higher in the foreseeable future.

domain: news


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You now have an easier online way to manage your Home Delivery subscription for The Oklahoman. Go to our secure server to update account information, make a payment, set up vacation no-delivery times, change your delivery address, or report delivery concerns.
Activist associated with the Occupy Wall Street movement perform a skit during a gathering of the movement in Washington Square park, Saturday, Sept. 15, 2012 in New York. The Occupy Wall Street movement will mark it's first anniversary on Monday. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)


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Google Chrome 'might introduce an ad-blocker'
Report - Move could help Google rival services such as AdBlock Plus
Google could be about to add a native ad blocker into its Chrome browser, preventing certain ads from showing up if it thinks they're likely to disrupt the experience.
"People familiar with the company's plans" told the Wall Street Journal that the feature could be turned on by default in the coming weeks, although they made it clear it wouldn't block all ads, just those that impact the user experience.
Those ads would be identified by the Coalition for Better Ads, which released a list of what it deems to be "acceptable" ad formats back in March. The blacklist includes pop-up adverts, auto-playing video ads with sound and "prestitial" ads with countdown timers, so it's likely these would be the first targets of Chrome's new ad blocker.
The WSJ's source said that instead of just blocking the ads, Google could go one step further and block the websites these ads appear on, then giving the user the opportunity to unblock the content if they wish, rather than asking users if they want to block the websites first.
Although the WSJ noted that Google's revenues are mostly made up of advertising income, this would be an important step to stay competitive against third party tools like AdBlock Plus.
By acting as the gatekeeper, Google will hopefully be able to keep its paying advertisers happy as well as helping boost its market share for those using alternative browsing tools such as Firefox, Safari and Edge.
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It’s called the last mile and Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZNC) has invested a lot of money and manpower into squeezing every last second out of the time span between when you click on the “Buy” button and that item arrives at your house or place of business.
Mode is wide-ranging and includes everything from driverless vehicles, drones, airplanes, forklifts, you name it.
Related: HAS THE RETAIL APOCALYPSE ARRIVED?
Amazon has assembled a team dedicated to figuring out how to use and leverage autonomous vehicles. Little is known because Amazon won’t comment but it’s believed the group wants to create an army of autonomous transport vehicles to both deliver packages to customers and move large quantities of merchandise between Amazon.com warehouses.
The latter part could come from self-driving semi-trucks traveling frequent routes along the nation’s highways, a problem that might be easier to solve than one involving finding and pin pointing specific addresses when customers place an order.
Amazon Not Alone
Amazon may not create its own fleet of vehicles. It may not have to. Everyone from Alphabet Inc.’s (NASDAQ:GOOGC) Waymo LLC, to General Motors Co. (NYSE:GMA), to Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLAC) to Uber and others is working at a feverish pace to put self-driving vehicles on the road as soon as possible.
Amazon’s work may be more behind the scenes, technical or it may involve building the vehicles themselves. At this point, thanks to Amazon’s penchant for secrecy nobody knows. What is known is that delivery giants like United Parcel Service Inc. (NYSE:UPSC) and FedEx Corp. (NYSE:FDXA) are on notice that Amazon would eventually like to compete for their business.
Taking On Costco
When it comes to that infamous “last-mile” the ultimate distance is zero – as in ‘walk in the store, pick up the item, walk out.’ To that end Amazon may be about to compete with warehouse club giant Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ:COSTB). This thanks to a rumor Amazon may be interested in privately owned warehouse club chain, BJ’s Wholesale Club.
BJ’s has just 213 stores, compared to Costco’s 508 so even if Amazon bought the chain there wouldn’t be much competition initially. Analysts, however, point out that should a deal be struck it likely wouldn’t be long before Amazon began a program of adding stores. What’s especially interesting about the Amazon versus Costco angle is the fact both businesses thrive on a membership model. Amazon Prime is similar to Costco annual membership so converting customers would not be a big issue.
Earnings Come Soon
For investors it all comes down to earnings. Amazon.com is scheduled to report Q1 earnings Thursday. Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter recently booster his PT for Amazon to $1,250. That’s the highest among 46 analysts surveyed by FactSet.
Pachter says he expects “substantial earnings growth” and uses that as justification for this higher than normal target. Pachter’s new target, up substantially from his previous $900 target is 39% above Friday’s closing price of $898.53.
Goldman Sachs analyst Heath Terry just raised his Amazon.com price target to $1,100 from $1,000. Terry also cited expectations of revenue acceleration. Amazon stock has jumped 20% to date. The S&P 500 SPX has gained just 4.9% over the same period.


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The Sainsbury’s loyalty programme Nectar, set up over a decade ago, is central to the UK grocer’s push to further develop as a multi-channel business.
That’s the message from Sainsbury’s group development director Luke Jensen as the UK’s multiples battle for a larger share of the country’s growing online sales. Sainsbury’s is benefiting from the existing data at its disposal via Nectar – and making the loyalty scheme a key part of a series of multichannel initiatives.
For example, the data from Nectar has been commercialised to become a direct revenue generator for Sainsbury’s in the same way it is for Tesco and its Clubcard. Jensen says the grocer has formed a joint venture, Insight 2 Communication (I2C) with Aimia, owner of the Nectar programme, to offer its large FMCG suppliers multi-channel marketing solutions in and around Sainsbury’s stores and its online operation.
“Through this suppliers have access to customer insights, enabling them to develop the most targeted and effective communications mix for reaching their customers.” However, with a nod to concerns over privacy, Jensen adds: “At no point do we sell customer specific data to third parties as we run all campaigns on their behalf.”
Sainsbury’s, meanwhile, is looking to tie its Nectar programme to individual customers amid signs consumers are increasingly making their shopping journeys down multiple channels.
“One challenge we face is that we’re more complex – with things like financial services and e-books – so we need to set up Nectar so that we create an incentive for customers to check-in to the scheme so we can bring them into the equation [across the channels]. We need an easy mechanism to get the details from them and not have them sign-in as we do not want to create any barriers,” he explains.
Part of Sainsbury’s work on this front involves mobile. It is trialling an initiative called Mobile Scan and Go in three stores – one superstore and two convenience outlets – with a specific group of customers. “They download an app to their smart phone, check-in to store [via a QR code], scan products in to their trolley/basket then proceed to checkout. They then just scan their Nectar card and the trolley contents transfers to the till for payment in the normal way,” Jensen explains.
Feedback has so far been positive, he says, with customers enjoying the convenience of packing products directly into their own bags without the need to remove them at the till. “Customers have also found that being able to see a running total of what they have purchased so far means they can easily stick to their budget, something really important in the current climate,” Jensen says.
Such digital devices are not just the domain of younger early-adopters, according to Jensen. He cites the example of an elderly couple using an iPad in-store who “loved using it as they had big text on it and it added up the value of their basket”. He adds: “The design [of technologies] is often done by twenty-somethings but in grocery it is 40-year-old mums or older customers who will be using it.”
This is one example of how mobile devices are impacting on the grocery sector, with Jensen suggesting mobile will continue to be a very important factor across Sainsbury’s multi-channel business. “We know that customers are increasingly using mobiles in store to learn more about products, check recipes, and compare prices,” he says.
In fact, such is the impact and future potential of the use of mobile that he believes they are usurping other in-store technologies with which retailers have been experimenting. “We are always looking at new technology and assessing how it can meet the needs of our customers. With over 50% of the population already using a smartphone – that can potentially deliver personalised interaction within stores – kiosks and screens are likely to be less critical to the future of retail than was anticipated a few years ago,” he argues.
The retailer’s “personalised interaction” also involves connecting to shoppers via social media networks like Facebook and Twitter. Jensen says Sainsbury’s is “directly connected to over 800,000 people through our Facebook and Twitter profiles”.
“This direct link provides us with the opportunity to listen and respond to our customers in real-time, helping them with customer service enquiries,” he adds. Sainsbury’s, meanwhile, is also working with Facebook ‘fans’ and Twitter ‘followers’ on new product development.
All these activities are vital for Sainsbury’s as there has been a clear shift to multi-channel shopping. Last month, it reported a near-20% increase in online grocery sales in the fourth quarter of its financial year.
Online is still a relatively small part of Sainsbury’s overall turnover but Jensen points to market reports that indicate online grocery sales will double in the next five years. IGD predicts sales will increase from GBP5.6bn today to GBP11.1bn by 2017. He suggests the future is very much multi-channel: “Most of our customers will be supplementing their in-store shop with online (cross channel shopping).”
Amid the continued development of new digital technologies and use of social media platforms, Jensen insists he does not see any diminishing role for the Nectar programme within Sainsbury’s. “Twenty-two million customers visit our stores and websites every week and over 70% of those transactions are through Nectar. This is and will remain the most powerful point of interaction with our customers.”


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McDonald’s introduces CosMc’s, a small-format, nostalgic beverage-led concept, starting with a pilot in Bolingbrook, Illinois, and plans for 10 locations in Texas by 2024, according to an ABC News article. They say,
“The golden arches are officially welcoming CosMc’s — a new small-format, beverage-led restaurant concept with retro-style stores — that embraces an air of McDonald’s nostalgia into the fast food chain universe.
The first location in Bolingbrook, Illinois is one of approximately 10 CosMc’s pilot locations, McDonald’s announced, where the brand will have new opportunities to create “mood-boosting escapes” across the Dallas-Fort Worth and San Antonio metro areas, all set to open by the end of 2024.”
CosMc’s menu highlights vibrant, bold drinks like Sour Cherry Energy Burst and Blueberry Ginger Boost, aiming for beverage exploration with unexpected flavors and functional boosts to elevate moods, according to a Daily Herald article. They report,
“Colorful, zesty drinks called Sour Cherry Energy Burst and Blueberry Ginger Boost are among the top items in the menu revealed for an experimental McDonald’s spinoff called CosMc’s, which will open in Bolingbrook.
In a statement Wednesday, McDonald’s officials said the menu for CosMc’s is “rooted in beverage exploration, with bold and unexpected flavor combinations, vibrant colors and functional boosts.”
CosMc’s menu features top items like Sour Cherry Energy Burst and Blueberry Ginger Boost, emphasizing bold flavor combinations, vibrant colors, and functional boosts for beverage exploration.


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U.S. Eaters Heading to China?
MLE and Nathan's Famous will give the opportunity for American eaters to compete in Beijing on May 18. In what will be the first-ever qualifier held in China, a limited number of seats will be opened to American eaters. The top finishers from the U.S. and and China will each earn seats to compete in Coney Island on July 4th.
To sign-up for a potential spot in this contest, visit IFOCE.com tomorrow at 11:00am EST.
More news regarding a new look to this year's Nathan's Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog Eating Contest will be released in the days ahead.


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The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has released final guidelines on non-discrimination provisions. The Press Release announcing the guidelines explains the ACCC’s approach: “if more favourable supply terms are only offered to a limited number of customers the ACCC will consider this to be discriminatory, except in limited circumstances.”
The guidelines will apply to the National Broadband Network (NBN) to ensure that they will not be discriminating between their customers. The new non-discrimination provisions are found in Part XIC of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010.
Full content: ACCC Press Release
Want more news? Subscribe to CPI’s free daily newsletter for more headlines and updates on antitrust developments around the world.


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Kohl's Corp. reported a slightly higher third-quarter profit on Thursday, as sales perked up later in the period, and the department store operator forecast same-stores sales will rise during the current holiday quarter.
Kohl's, which has 1,146 stores, expects holiday quarter earnings of $2.00 per share to $2.08 per share, compared with the $2.16 Wall Street analysts had been expecting, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
Editor's Note: Prepare for Financial Pearl Harbor -- See Surprising Video With Steve Forbes
The retailer, which competes most directly with Macy's Inc and J.C. Penney Co Inc, forecast sales at stores open at least year would be up 3 percent to 4 percent in the quarter that includes the Christmas period, an improvement over the 1.1 percent pace in the third quarter.
Kohl's posted a third-quarter profit of $215 million, or 91 cents per share, up slightly from $211 million, or 80 cents per share, a year earlier.
As previously reported, overall sales rose 2.6 percent to $4.49 billion.
© 2014 Thomson/Reuters. All rights reserved.


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It seems difficult to turn on the news these days without hearing about Bitcoin or blockchain technologies and how they are going to change the world. Many industries are being turned head over heels, including the coffee supply chain. So, what does the blockchain coffee…
We’ve all seen the “fair trade coffee” certification on coffees, and even have a rough idea of what they are. But, other than roughly knowing it is better for the coffee farmers, what do we really know?
What does it take to get that certification?
To fully understand the fair trade certification, you need ((continued))


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According to a report by Hardware.Info, Crucial is developing their next generation 16nm MLC NAND Flash based MX100 SSDs series. Powered by Micron’s 16nm MLC (Multi-Level Cell) NAND Flash technology, creating an highly compact storage solution.
Crucial Next Generation 16nm MLC NAND Flash Based MX100 SSDs
The Next Generation Crucial MX100 SSDs will feature the 2.5″ form factor and would be the successor of Crucial’s M500 and M550 SSDs. Performance figures a re not known but it is mentioned that the MX100 SSDs will feature very competitive price points which is a good sign in the SSD market since costs are going down and SSDs become the choice for storage globally due to the attractive prices. Micron unveiled their 16nm MLC NAND Flash process in 2013 and sampled a 128 GB SSD drive. Since the MX100 SSDs are a direct replacement for the M550, we will be looking at different capacities of 128, 256, 512 GB and possibly more.
Micron’s 128Gb MLC NAND Flash memory devices are targeted at applications like consumer SSDs, removable storage (USB drives and Flash cards), tablets, ultrathin devices, mobile handsets and data center cloud storage. The new 128Gb NAND Flash memory provides the greatest number of bits per square millimeter and lowest cost of any MLC device in existence. In fact, the new technology could create nearly 6TB of storage on a single wafer.


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Tick processing software vendor Vhayu will this week announce the launch of a version of its Velocity real-time tick capture and analysis engine for fixed-income markets, officials tell Inside Market Data.
Four major brokers in New York, Chicago, London and Paris have deployed custom versions of the system, developed for them last year by the vendor, says John Coulter, vice president of marketing and business development at Vhayu.
The main challenge of adapting Velocity—which is predominantly
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IPhones can already be used for underwater photography but new generations will have IP68 certifications. So Apple's upcoming mobile will be able to sink into the water without the risk of some damage.
IP68 certification is one of the steps that Cupertino looks at to improve the quality of iPhone photos when it swims, and this is seen in a recent patent application.
Technically, what Apple wants to do is equip iPhone with a set of sensors that will be responsible for setting the right settings for taking better underwater photos. According to CultOfMac, iPhone sensors could measure the amount of light in water, color changes, depth, pressure and distance from the subject.
In other words, if you want to take a picture of a fish, for example, iPhone will be able to correctly determine the settings needed for the photo, all based on an algorithm that collects information from all of these sensors.
Of course we should mention that, as with any patent, the above news does not mean that the company is preparing for mass production. At least it gives us a look at Apple's vision of the future features of the iPhone's camera.


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The playing field on which brands and consumers face off has never been more level. Where previously brands controlled the means of broadcast (through PR, advertising and news coverage), consumers now have a megaphone of their own in the form of social media.
Social sharing and viral content means an angry mob has never been easier to assemble, and brands behaving badly can now find their reputation in tatters in a matter of hours. Just ask Addison Lee's cyclist-bashing chairman John Griffin, who turned the company into a virtual punching bag for the denizens of Twitter and Facebook overnight. Griffin sparked anger by claiming the majority of cyclist road deaths in London are the result of inexperience on the part of the cyclist.
This is just one example from recent times when the consumer's megaphone has become louder than that of the brand. Not only does social media amplify complaints, but with criticism out in the open it allows media outlets to offer coverage of the discourse, amplifying the criticism further How many news stories have you read which cite "Twitter outrage" or a "Facebook campaign"?
This reshuffling of power has forced many companies – both large and small – to rethink their customer service and marketing. Having suddenly had power wrested from them, many are now fighting back and employing some experimental and interesting methods to get back in the driving seat.
One company taking such an approach is Sainsbury's. Apparently emboldened by their previous success in renaming Tiger Bread to Giraffe Bread based on an inquisitive three-year-old's feedback, Sainsbury's have allowed their customer support staff to let their hair down on social networks, resulting in more viral success.
Oke Eleazu, director of customer service strategy for Sainsbury's says their customer service agents are left to their own devices "to gauge the feel of each customer interaction and reply as they feel is appropriate". He added that although they do not directly connect their customer service with their marketing, the viral appeal of their more light-hearted support "is not a 'coincidence' either".
Social influence benchmarks such as Klout, PeerIndex and Kred are also playing a part. Although the methods used to calculate these scores are still fuzzy at best, marketing departments are using them to decide, essentially, who is worthy of preferential treatment. Individuals who score highly in these metrics are branded "influencers", and their endorsement of a brand is deemed to have greater worth than any old Tom, Dick or Harry.
One of the first companies to publicly attempt to woo "influencers" was Cathay Pacific, who opened up access to their business class lounge at San Francisco international airport to those boasting a Klout score of 40 or higher.
While Sainsbury's and Cathay Pacific are generating positive coverage for themselves through social channels, other companies are adopting decidedly reactive methods.
Large companies with the capacity to do so are now employing so-called social risk management staff. These are essentially teams of customer service Übermensch, ready to leap into the social fray if a particularly bad comment is made to start a dialogue with the offended party. If you can look past the rampant overuse of trite buzzwords, this LeWeb talk from IBM's Sandy Carter gives an interesting overview of their attempts to "leverage social" for the good of their brand.
Due in no small part to companies such as IBM wishing to monitor, participate in and, to a certain extent guide, the conversation surrounding their brand, a slew of social media monitoring tools have sprung up. Services such as Brandwatch or Mention allows brands to track conversations about themselves and respond where appropriate (this would be where Sandy's social risk management team come into play, I imagine), and even to use sentiment analysis to gauge the mood among customers.
Only time will tell whether a proactive or reactive approach will prove most effective – although it's most important to remember they are not mutually exclusive. A recent study by American Express found that customers who receive good service on social networks are significantly more likely to buy from that brand again compared to customers who telephone or email their complaints.
It seems a certainty that customer service on social media is becoming more and more important, and woe betide the brands who fail to react.
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Charlotte Tilbury is Leaping Bunny Approved by Cruelty Free International
We are delighted to announce that Charlotte Tilbury Beauty is now Cruelty Free International Leaping Bunny approved as it joins our growing family of brands that meet our rigorous, globally applied criteria.
Launched in September 2013 by iconic makeup artist and beauty entrepreneur Charlotte Tilbury MBE, Charlotte Tilbury Beauty was born out of Charlotte’s long-held desire to empower everyone to feel like the most beautiful version of themselves, helping people around the world gain the confidence to achieve their biggest and boldest dreams. The company now employs over 1,200 people globally and is available to buy in over 76 locations.
Our CEO, Michelle Thew, said: “I am thrilled to be partnering with Charlotte Tilbury Beauty and bringing great cruelty free choices to consumers everywhere. For a company this size, Leaping Bunny approval is a huge undertaking and shows just how serious the brand is about being cruelty free and ending the suffering of animals for cosmetics. This demonstrates that it is possible to be global and innovative without cosmetics tests on animals.”
Charlotte Tilbury MBE, Founder, President, Chairman and Chief Creative Officer of Charlotte Tilbury Beauty said: “I am incredibly proud that we have achieved Cruelty Free International’s Leaping Bunny approval, a crucial industry benchmark for cruelty free beauty. Today marks a huge leap forward in our disruptive global expansion plan - with a strategic partner that supports our purpose, positive values and disruptive way of doing business! I believe that with the right makeup and skincare, we can build confidence and we can change the world - being cruelty free really is at the foundation of that!"


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What was your favorite food story of 2012
As 2012 draws to a close, we take a look back at some of the trending stories and topics on CultureMap Austin this year. We'll start with a look at the hottest news in the world of food and wine. Which one of the trending food-related stories below left you hungry for more in 2012?
In February, Austin's Paul Qui, former executive chef at Uchiko, took home the $125,000 grand prize on Bravo’s Top Chef: Texas. Week after week Qui exposed the nation to his culinary talent and the Capital City as he worked his way to victory. Soon after his big win, Qui, now a hometown hero, announced expansion of his East Side King food trucks into several brick-and-mortar spaces.
In Late April, Trader Joe's announced it's setting up shop in downtown Austin, making it the first confirmed retail or restaurant tenant to be nailed down for the Seaholm mixed-use development. The announcement was welcome news for Trader Joe's loyal following in Austin. Known for its unique organic and natural food, Trader Joe's is expected to bring some competition to Whole Foods Market.
In March, C3 Presents, the team behind the Austin City Limits Music Festival, debuted the Austin Food & Wine Festival at Auditorium Shores. The event showcased top chef talent, sommeliers and winemakers from Austin and across the nation in a weekend full of tasty events. C3's first stab at a food and wine festival received its fair share of criticism (some were not so happy about the ticket prices) but overall, most agree the festival raised Austin's culinary presence on the national scene.
In October, LeAnn Mueller announced her brother, John Mueller, would no longer be the manager and pitmaster of J Meuller BBQ. Few details were given, but LeAnn Mueller said he "mismanaged again," and there were rumors of substance abuse issues. The news was heartbreaking for fans of Mueller, considered one of the most accomplished pitmasters in town.
In June the food trailer lot located on 2nd and Congress closed up shop for good. The food court, which included trailers such as Snap Pod, Kebabilicious and Turf and Surf had to move to make way for a new 33-story hotel.


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We've been giving a lot of virtual ink to the problem of food insecurity lately — the challenges people face when they frequently can't put enough food on the table. And sometimes it seems like an insurmountable problem.
Take the city of Iqaluit, in Canada's largest territory, Nunavut, just a few hundred miles south of the Arctic Circle. There's no highway, so in the grocery store, a few slices of watermelon can cost $12, heads of cabbage can go for $28, and people sometime stretch cans of meatballs and noodles out for a week. Plus, it has become more expensive for the Native people — the Nunavummiut — to hunt the traditional foods that have sustained them for 4,000 years.
Featured on "Facebook Stories"
Can you imagine spending $12 for a just few slices of watermelon? In the Canadian territory of Nunavut, shipping costs continue to drive up the cost of food while residents slide further into poverty. Can community members use a Facebook group to solve the problem?
Leesee Papatsie stands in her kitchen, slicing whale and arctic char on sheets of recycled cardboard laid across the table. Her steady hand rolls a small curved blade, a traditional arctic knife called an ulu, in quick but calculated strokes.
Papatsie, a mother of five in Iqaluit, Nunavut, Canada's largest territory, calls her family over to eat, stealing bites for herself as she chops. Arctic char is one of the primary fish caught in the bays around the area – Papatsie prepares it raw, like the whale. Narwhal skin and blubber make up a dish called muktuk, a traditional Inuit delicacy that has a thick, rich taste, like penne noodles in butter. Today, her family dips it in soy sauce. Dried fish and muktuk are just a few of the "country foods" of the north and are part of the traditional diet of the Nunavummiut people that has sustained them for the last 4,000 years. This particular meal has a dual purpose: it's an edible homage to Papatsie's Inuit heritage and is one of the only ways to avoid soaring food prices at local stores.
Nunavut is the largest Canadian territory and the only one inaccessible to the rest of North America by highway. As such, the high costs of transportation drive up prices on any goods that aren't produced locally. That means it's staggeringly expensive to live here, which becomes obvious in the community's grocery aisles where four slices of prepackaged watermelon can cost upwards of $12 and heads of cabbage can climb to more than $28.
In early June, Papatsie created the "Feeding My Family " Facebook group to bring attention to the high cost of keeping food on family tables across Nunavut. It's since attracted more than 20,000 members who have organized protests outside of local stores, promoted a return to traditional diets and generated a global press cycle. "I'm worried about the kids that go to bed hungry," Papatsie says. "I worry about the elders going hungry. I'm going to keep going until the people start to stand up."


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Tag: mass immunization
China Says it Aims to Vaccinate 40% of Population by June
TAIPEI:Health experts in China say their country is lagging in its coronavirus vaccination rollout because.
Blue Dart Strengthens its Specialised Temperature Controlled Logistics (TCL) Solution
MUMBAI:Blue Dart, India’s leading express logistics service provider and part of the Deutsche Post DHL.


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IBM has been disparaging products made by a smaller rival in order to protect its lucrative mainframe business, according to a lawsuit filed on Monday.
The suit was filed by Neon Enterprise Software and concerns a software tool called zPrime that the company released in July. Neon says zPrime can reduce operating costs for mainframe users by allowing them to shift more of their computing jobs onto IBM’s zAAP and zIIP specialty mainframe processors.
Customers don’t pay software licensing fees to use those specialty processors, or SPs, instead of IBM’s standard central processors, which has caused IBM to lash out at Neon in order to protect its mainframe business, according to the lawsuit (PDF).
IBM told its mainframe customers in a letter that “the use of zPrime will cause Neon’s customers to become obligated — contrary to IBM’s original promises to customers that purchased SPs — to pay software license fees for workloads shifted to SPs,” Neon said in its lawsuit. That claim is false, Neon said.
It also accused IBM of selling additional SPs to customers only if they agree not to use Neon’s product, and of characterizing zPrime as an unlawful “circumvention” technology. The lawsuit seeks damages and a permanent injunction to prevent IBM from repeating those claims.
IBM is not taking the suit lying down. In a brief statement via e-mail, it said Neon’s claims “have no merit, and its product offers no innovation.”
“Neon’s software deliberately subverts the way IBM mainframe computers process data,” IBM said. “This is akin to a homeowner tampering with his electrical meter to save money. IBM has invested billions of dollars in the mainframe this decade, and we will vigorously protect our investment.”
IBM is also dealing with an antitrust inquiry into its mainframe business by the U.S. Department of Justice, following a complaint filed in September by the Computer and Communications Industry Association (CCIA).
The trade group said IBM has been refusing to issue licenses for its mainframe OS to competitors, something it had been required to do by the DOJ after actions taken against the company in the 1970s. The DOJ ended a longstanding antitrust consent decree with IBM in 2001.


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On Tuesday, Facebook announced a digital currency called Libra that will roll out for use in 2020 and allow the platform’s billions of users across the globe to make financial transactions online.
The new technology threatens to change the landscape of banking and is already the subject of scrutiny, as Facebook faces increasing calls for regulation and antitrust measures.
But regulatory questions aside – how soon can you use Facebook’s new digital coin to buy coffee? Here’s what you need to know.
What is Libra?
Facebook says Libra is a “global currency and financial infrastructure”. In other words, it is a digital asset built by Facebook and powered by a new Facebook-created version of blockchain, the encrypted technology used by bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.
Why is it called Libra?
The name Libra comes from the basic Roman measurement of weight. The abbreviation lb for pound is derived from Libra, and the £ symbol originally comes from an ornate L in Libra.
Why is Facebook launching a cryptocurrency, and are they allowed?
Facebook claims it wants to reach the 1.7 billion people around the world who do not have access to a bank account.
The company is likely to run into regulatory hurdles and antitrust concerns, especially at a time when many regulators want to break up Facebook, but no specific legislation has been put forth ahead of the launch. Amidst rumours of Facebook’s new financial expansion, members of the US Senate wrote to CEO Mark Zuckerberg in May asking for clarification on privacy concerns.
Who is in charge of Libra?
The currency will be serviced by a collective of companies called the “Libra Association”. It functions as what is known as a “stablecoin”, pegged to existing assets like the dollar or euro, in the aim of making it less subject to the volatility that many cryptocurrencies experience.
The Libra Association is described by Facebook as an independent, not-for-profit organisation based in Switzerland. It serves two main functions: to validate transactions on the Libra blockchain and to manage the reserve Libra is tied to and allocate funds to social causes.
Within the Libra Association will be a governing body called the Libra Association Council, comprised of a representative of each member of the association, which will vote on policy and operating decisions.
Facebook claims that although it created the Libra Association and the Libra Blockchain, once the currency is launched in 2020 the company will withdraw from a leadership role and all members of the association will have equal votes in governance of Libra.
The companies who contributed a minimum of $10m(£8m) to be listed as founding members of the Libra Association include tech companies such as PayPal, Ebay, Spotify, Uber and Lyft, as well as financial and venture capital firms such as Andreessen Horowitz, Thrive Capital, Visa and Mastercard.
How will I get Libra?
Facebook isn’t going into details about how the currency will be available at launch, but signs point to a hybrid approach. The presence of traditional payments firms, such as Visa and MasterCard, in the list of founders suggests that the company will be perfectly happy to let users simply buy the currency.
But Facebook is also likely to carry out what’s known in cryptocurrency circles as an “air drop”, handing out small amounts of currency for free in an effort to kickstart the ecosystem. That will be crucial if it is to fulfil its goal of bringing financial services to people without bank accounts.
Ultimately, of course, those users will need a more reliable source of Libra income than simple handouts from Facebook. In the long-term, then, we can also expect some of Libra’s founder members to offer their employees all or part of their pay in the currency.
How can I use it?
When the cryptocurrency launches, users can download Calibra, a digital wallet, that will allow them to send it to anyone with a smartphone. It will be available in Messenger, WhatsApp, and as a standalone app.
It is not clear which countries the coin will launch in first, though Facebook said “almost anybody” in the world with a smartphone will be able to download the app.
What can you buy with it?
Facebook will launch Calibra, the Libra digital wallet, to allow users to send money to and from each other.
Apart from transactions on the app itself, Facebook wants to facilitate the use of Libra at various vendors for day-to-day transactions.
Ride-hailing firms Uber and Lyft are early investors in the project, suggesting that perhaps users will be able to pay for services on the apps using Libra, though neither company responded to a request for comment.
Is this safe?
There are a number of privacy concerns regarding a financial app run by Facebook. The company said it will implement technologies to prevent money laundering and fraud.
“We will be using all the same verification and anti-fraud processes that banks and credit cards use, and we’ll have automated systems that will proactively monitor activity to protect and prevent fraudulent behaviour,” Facebook said.
It also claims it will have “live support” to help users who lose access to accounts and, if a user loses money through fraud, Facebook has offered refunds.
Facebook’s Libra Blockchain will be built on open source code that allows the developer and research community to monitor it for design and security flaws, and the company will implement a “bug bounty” program to incentivise security experts to point out vulnerabilities in the platform.
How will this make Facebook money?
Libra will be sustained through a small charge per transaction on the blockchain, Facebook said. Many of these charges will be transferred to vendors who can then absorb the costs themselves or relay them to users.
Is Facebook going to sell my crypto data to ad companies?
Facebook claims it will keep financial data from transactions on Libra separate from user ad profiles. The blockchain is “pseudonymous”, the company said and, like many crypto networks, will allow users to hold one or more addresses not linked to their real-life identities.
“Calibra customers’ account information and financial data will not be used to improve ad targeting on the Facebook, Inc family of products,” the company said.


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Inflation jumps to 10.79% in January
- IPL spot-fixing case: Net widens, police watching 3 more players, other bookies
- IPL 2013: Imperious Brad Hodge powers Rajasthan Royals to qualifier
- Sonia Gandhi, PM Manmohan Singh slam BJP for disrupting Parliament, stalling bills
- IPL spot-fixing: 'Bookie' Vindoo was close to BCCI chief's son-in-law, say cops
- Jessica Lall case: Shayan Munshi to face perjury trial
India's Jan consumer price inflation at 10.79 pct-Govt
(Reuters): India's annual consumer price inflation accelerated to 10.79 percent in January from the previous month, government data showed on Tuesday.
India's retail inflation is the highest among the BRICS group of emerging economies - Brazil, Russia, China, and South Africa.
Food prices for consumers rose 13.36 percent in January from 13.04 percent in December.
- Paddy shortfall blamed for mystery death of procurement officer
- 'Bookie' Vindoo was close to BCCI chief’s son-in-law: cops
- Net widens, police watching three more players, new set of bookies
- Suspected Islamists behead soldier on London street
- Malegaon 2006 case: NIA names four right wing terror suspects
- BJP invokes 'sarcasm, ridicule' against PM


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Summary: Links to news about Apple
A few weeks ago, Amanda Stanton’s iPhone suddenly went black.
She had been talking on it and navigating with a GPS app during a work trip to Los Angeles. Then, without any warning or error message, the phone quit.
Everything was gone — all her contacts, photos and even the phone’s ability to make calls.
It was only after she got home to Silicon Valley that she found out that her phone had been killed by her employer, a publishing company.
Issuu, a popular document sharing service that may have provided some competition for Apple’s planned digital newsstand, has abandoned plans to release an iOS app after Apple rejected the company three times. The New York-based firm isn’t divulging many details, but hinted in its blog that its openness was the cause of its rejection by Apple. “Based on the latest rejection, we don’t think it’s realistic that we can get it approved,” Issuu co-founder and spokesman Martin Ferro-Thomsen told me in an interview. ”We would have to make some changes we’re not comfortable with. We would have to restrict the community more than we’d like to. It’s really a sad day for us, because we love Apple, but it’s their platform and App Store, and we just live in it.”
Today’s Wall Street Journal features an article by Christopher Lawton that talks about the difficulty independent app stores face when competing with Apple and Google for developer and consumer attention. Paul Reddick, chief executive of third-party app store HandMark told WSJ that he couldn’t simply bet the whole company’s fate on independently distributing apps with a presence like Google to compete against.
It may not even be a prudent bet to be in the app store business at all.
SPIL Games, a Dutch company that built its audience of more than 130 million gamers on browser-based Flash games, has found that the behavior of casual gamers doesn’t translate well to the app-based distribution model.
A while back I wrote an article titled Apple – The Competent Danger to Free Software. It got a lot of hits. It also caused a few people to send me emails, one of which called me a traitor to Free Software.
The problem that everyone ignores, is that if you are a musician, you haven’t really got a lot of choice. Apple’s products are the best available for musicians. Sure, there’s some software available for the Windows platform, but really it’s not all that good. There’s some software available for Linux too, but it’s limited.
“We’ve always been shameless about stealing great ideas.”
–Steve Jobs, Apple


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Sleaford businesses have rejected a proposal to renew the BID which was set up in 2007. A ballot in July 2012 in the Lincolnshire town rejected plans to renew the BID. The BBC reports that residents want to keep the CCTV cameras, while John Elkington chair of the BID claims that the town “has a collection of individuals who only tend to look after their own businesses”. I wonder what they thought of him?
- Bridgend business improvement district and its discontents Sun, 15 Mar 2015 10:58:19 +0000
- Anti-BID Facebook group grows past 1,500 members Sat, 14 Mar 2015 20:01:05 +0000
- Advice on how to stop or challenge a BID Sat, 14 Mar 2015 19:32:28 +0000
- BIDs are accountable in some ways and not others Sat, 14 Mar 2015 19:18:04 +0000
- Court orders Dartmouth businesses to pay BID levy Sat, 14 Mar 2015 18:53:11 +0000


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McCormick Canada launched its line of Filipino recipe mixes in Toronto and Vancouver.
There are 11 mixes in the lineup, and they’re categorized into Adobo Mixes (traditionally served with rice); Sinigang Mixes (a traditional Filipino soup); and Filipino Seasonings (traditional Filipino dishes).
Both in Canada and the U.S., food bloggers have said Filipino food would be the next big ethnic food to the mainstream.
The Adobo and Sinigang Mixes, Asado, Curry, Menudo and Caldereta contain no MSG.
The mixes will retail for $


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One of the biggest Xbox One exclusives is coming to PC and that’s Halo: Master Chief Collection. This game is a collection of past Halo titles but revamped with a big overhaul in terms of graphics and tweaks to mechanics. However, before its fully ready for the release on PC, the development team over at 343 Industries are bringing out public test events known as flights. Each flight will be based around something in particular for the game and gamers participating should prepare for the next public flight this month which will focus on Firefight.
If you’re not familiar with Firefight, this is essentially a Halo horde game mode where players must fight against increasingly difficult waves of Covenant. This can be enjoyed alone or with a group of friends which will allow players to help one another as they attempt to reach the next wave level. As it stands right now, the next public flight will start sometime this month though it was not unveiled just when it will take place. Instead, 343 Industries are keeping things under wraps but you can join the flight by signing up right here.
For those of you who are unaware of the Halo: Master Chief Collection, this was once a collection of Halo games available for the Xbox One. It’s not slated to release on the PC platform which will include Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary, Halo 2 Anniversary, Halo 3, Halo 4, Halo 3: ODST, and lastly, Halo: Reach. Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like Halo 5 is being added into the mix nor is it available on its own for the PC platform. Likewise, we don’t know when the collection will launch for the PC platform. For now, it’s only slated to release sometime this year.
Source: PC Gamer


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Facebook announced another glitch with its metrics and marketers start wondering whether they can really trust the social network’s measuring methods.
It’s the third time in the last three months that Facebook reports a problem with its metrics and this has affected its credibility among marketers and publishers.
As the most popular social platform the expectations are high and Facebook’s ambitious plans that keep growing year by year bring out bigger challenges. As marketers and publishers invest more time (and money) on it, they are expecting a Return On Investment for their efforts. Thus, they weren’t happy when they found out a problem in accuracy that occurred several times.
Case #1 – September 2016
The first case was revealed in September when Facebook admitted that there was a miscalculation in the average viewing time for video ads the past two years. This led to an artificial inflation in the video views
This led to an artificial inflation of the viewing time in video ads, as it took into consideration all the video views of more than three seconds. According to Publicis Media, this has overestimated the average viewing time by 60% to 80%, while Facebook made it clear that this error didn’t affect billing.
Case #2 – November 2016
November was a busy month for Facebook and everyone working on its metrics, as there were miscalculations with the video views, the monthly Page reach, and the time spent on Instant Articles.
In more detail:
Facebook uncovered a bug in Page Insights with the weekly and monthly summaries miscalculating the total numbers without taking into consideration the repeat visitors. This brought a reduced reach of 33% for the 7-day summary and 55% for the 28-day summary. According to Facebook, this didn’t affect the paid reach.
There was a small miscalculation to the length of the videos, with a difference of one to two seconds in the final result, due to occasional problems of syncing the audio and the video to each device.
There was an over-reporting of 7-8% on the time spent on Instant Articles since last August. Facebook reported that this issue is now fixed.
The “Referrals” metrics on Facebook Analytics for Apps was also miscalculated, as it didn’t simply track the links to the app or the site, but also the clicks to the posts via the app or the site, which also included the clicks to view photos and videos.
Case #3 – December 2016
Facebook announced more updates for its metrics, along with new miscalculations and fixes, this time affecting the estimated reach, the measurement of the reactions in live videos and a problem with like and share buttons.
There will be an improvement in the estimated reach during the ad creation, which will provide a more accurate estimate for the potential target audience. We should expect from now on a change of less than 10% (increase or decrease).
Facebook is fixing the reactions in live videos by counting from now on multiple reactions during a live streaming. These multiple reactions were calculated up to now on the “reactions from shares to post” and they will be now measured on the “reactions on post” metrics. This means that we should see an increase of 500% on average to the “reactions on post” and a decrease of 25% on average to the “reactions from shares of post”.
Facebook also identified a discrepancy between the like and share buttons on the Graph API and the URLs used in the mobile search bar, fixing this difference to make the metrics match up.
Is Facebook ready to improve its metrics?
It is more important than ever for Facebook to include third-party verification for its metrics and it already made it clear last month that they are heading towards this direction:
We believe strongly in third-party verification to prove the business value we’re driving for our partners, and we have a long history of working with global industry leaders like comScore, Moat, Nielsen and Integral Ad Science (IAS). We’re now exploring additional third-party reviews to validate the reporting we offer partners. We’re also launching the ability to verify display impression data through our third-party viewability verification partners, including Moat, IAS and comScore. This integration addresses requests we’ve received from partners for independent measurement of the amount of time ads are viewed on-screen.
For publishers, we’re partnering with Nielsen to include Facebook video and Facebook Live viewership in Nielsen’s Digital Content Ratings (DCR). This will give publishers access to third-party verification for video metrics and allow for comparable digital and TV metrics in Nielsen’s Total Audience Measurement.
Should marketers be concerned?
Marketers and publishers have every right to be unhappy with Facebook’s continuous glitches and it certainly affected its credibility up to a point.
However, looking on the bright side, it may be a good opportunity for the social network to evaluate the growing needs and examine third parties that could help them scale their efforts.
As the products evolve, it’s important to focus on maintaining its quality and we are hoping that these problems will help Facebook work harder on the right direction.
If it wants to be taken seriously for its advertising platform and its business aspect, then it’s crucial to bring back the much desired trust and invest in the proper tools that will make the measurement more accurate. This should be an interesting challenge for 2017.


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Xiaomi Watch 2 Pro is all set to make its global debut at the company’s upcoming launch event. The wearable device will be launched next week with upcoming Xiaomi 13T series At the Xiaomi launch September event in Berlin. The company has confirmed the launch with a teaser video on X (formerly known as Twitter), which points to a round dial on the smartwatch. It has also been confirmed by Google to be powered by Wear OS. However, no other details have been confirmed by the company yet. Earlier, it was reported that the upcoming Xiaomi smartwatch may feature an AMOLED display.
Xiaomi has announced Xiaomi launched its upcoming wearable Xiaomi Watch 2 Pro via an X (formerly known as Twitter) post. The smartwatch will be unveiled alongside the Xiaomi 13T series at the company’s event in Berlin on September 26. Xiaomi has also confirmed that the watch will be powered by Google’s Wear OS. The watch also shows a round display in the teaser video. Apart from these, the company has not yet revealed any details about the design and specifications of the smartwatch.
However, a previous report The design, color options and specifications of the soon-to-be-launched smartwatch have been leaked. The wearable is expected to feature a 1.43-inch AMOLED display with a circular rotating dial. The smartwatch is likely to feature HD resolution and always-on display. The report also suggests that the Xiaomi Watch 2 Pro may come in Bluetooth as well as 4G LTE versions.
The report also revealed that the Xiaomi Watch 2 Pro is likely to offer body composition analysis, sleep monitoring, and SpO2 tracking along with multiple sports modes. Furthermore, it is expected to come in two color options – one with a brown leather strap and the other with a black fluoroplastic strap.
Meanwhile, Xiaomi will also launch the Xiaomi 13T series on September 26. Recently, alleged marketing photos of the Xiaomi 13T series were revealed. leak Three different colors of the series have been suggested online, with Leica-tuned cameras at the back. The top-of-the-line Xiaomi 13T Pro is said to run on the MediaTek Dimensity 9200+ SoC, while the vanilla model is likely to be equipped with the MediaTek Dimensity 8200 Ultra SoC under the hood.


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A Mizoram-based trade group wants to start monitoring trade between Myanmar and India after it says millions of Indian rupees in taxes are being lost every day from unlicensed merchants selling and buying goods on the border.
The Importer and Exporter Code Holder Association of Mizoram says it will monitor illegal trading in Burma’s # 2 border trading camp located in Rihkhawdar town, in Chin state and India’s Mizoram State.
“Trading between Rih and Zokhawthar amounts to millions of Indian Rupee every month but traders aren’t paying taxes on this. The Indian government is losing millions of rupees every month. We need to stop it. We will monitor all cargo vehicles entering and leaving Mizoram,” said R. Lalruatfela, head of the association, during a recent press conference in Aizawl, the capital of Mizoram.
Seventy-percent of imports to the Indian state are illegal transactions, R. Lalruatfela said. Most traders aren’t licensed, especially in the # 2 border trading camp.
The Mizoram State government wants to make all trade between the two nations official, said an anonymous Chin businesswoman.
“Currently, most of the border trade is illegal. Almost all Burmese traders don’t have official licenses and we need them,” she told Khonumthung News.
Yet, Myanmar merchants will suffer if the Importer and Exporter Code Holder Association of Mizoram has its way, she said.
“(Without licenses) we won’t be able to continue trading. We need to wait and see what the situation will be. I don’t know for sure what will actually happen.”


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CEB segment revenue increased 16.4% during 2012 to $564.1 million from $484.7 million in 2011. There was $12.6 million of PDRI revenue included in CEB segment revenue in 2012. CEB segment Adjusted EBITDA in 2012 was $154.6 million compared to $120.8 million in 2011. CEB segment Adjusted EBITDA margin in 2012 was 27.4% of segment revenue compared to 24.9% in 2011.
CEB segment Contract Value at December 31, 2012 increased 12.5% to $561.8 million compared to $499.4 million at December 31, 2011. CEB segment Wallet retention rate at December 31, 2012 was 102% compared to 100% at December 31, 2011. CEB segment Contract Value per member institution increased 6.0% at December 31, 2012 to $92,252 from $87,040 at December 31, 2011.
SHL segment revenue was $38.1 million in the fourth quarter of 2012. SHL segment Adjusted EBITDA in the fourth quarter of 2012 was $11.6 million. SHL segment Adjusted EBITDA margin in the quarter was 24.8% of segment Adjusted revenue.SHL segment revenue was $58.6 million in 2012. SHL segment Adjusted EBITDA in 2012 was $19.6 million. SHL segment Adjusted EBITDA margin in 2012 was 25.9% of segment Adjusted revenue. SHL segment Wallet retention rate at December 31, 2012 was 97%. Unlike CEB members, a majority of SHL customers do not typically enter into contracts for fixed periods, so Contract Value is not a relevant operating statistic for the SHL segment. QUARTERLY DIVIDEND The Company announces that its Board of Directors has approved a cash dividend on its common stock for the first quarter of 2013 of $0.225 per share, an increase of 30% compared to the dividend paid in the fourth quarter of 2012. The Company will fund its dividend payments with cash on hand and cash generated from operations. The dividend is payable on March 29, 2013 to stockholders of record on March 15, 2013.


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Google Secretly Invested $100+ Million In Zynga, Preparing To Launch Google Games. Google has quietly (secretly, one might say) invested somewhere between $100 million and $200 million in social gaming behemoth Zynga, we’ve confirmed from multiple sources.
The company has raised somewhere around half a billion dollars in venture capital in the last year alone, including $150 million from Softbank Capital last month and $180 million late last year from Digital Sky Technologies, Tiger Global, Institutional Venture Partners and Andreessen Horowitz. The Softbank announcement was never officially confirmed by the company, however, and the Google investment was likely part of that deal as well. The investment part of the deal closed a month ago or so. A larger strategic partnership is still in process. The investment was made by Google itself, not Google Ventures, say our sources, and it’s a highly strategic deal. Facebook, Zynga, Groupon... la valeur des stars du web social a bondi de 300% en un an.
Report: Zynga Worth More Than $3.3 Billion. A new report by Global Silicon Valley Partner’s NeXt Up Research states that Zynga, the world’s top Facebook Application developer, may have a valuation of more than $3.3 billion.
This is based on 35% growth over the next four years to expand this year’s revenue projection of $460 million to $1.1 billion in 2014. In addition to the valuation, the report’s analysis includes some interesting facts about their sources of revenue and user behavior. Specifically, the report mentions that Zynga has grown from 30 million to 230 million over the last 10 months, and is continuing to grow, largely on the strength of Farmville at close to 80,000,000 MAU. Zynga by the Numbers. By this point everyone has heard of Zynga, the company behind Facebook megahit FarmVille and a slew of other hit social games.
But just how big is the company? We decided to take a step back from the rhetoric and take a look at some cold, hard numbers to get an answer. Zynga Pushing Nine Figures In Revenues Thanks To Micro-Transactions. Zynga, the online gaming publisher, is making a ton of money.
Just how much? Well, earlier reports put revenue at something around $50 million, but some new numbers obtained by Sarah Lacy suggests that it’s closer to $100 million. And clearly, it’s accelerating. We’re hearing that the run rate for 2009 may even be well above that. So in case it wasn’t already clear, there looks to be a bright future in the online gaming sphere and specifically around micro-transactions. Scamville: The Social Gaming Ecosystem Of Hell. Last weekend I wrote about how the big social gaming companies are making hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue on Facebook and MySpace through games like Farmville and Mobsters.
Major media can’t stop applauding the companies long enough to understand what’s really going on with these games. The real story isn’t the business success of these startups. It’s the completely unethical way that they are going about achieving that success. The Zynga Statistics: Games, Platforms, Timeline and Revenue Analysis. One of the hottest startups right now is, without a doubt, Zynga.
Hot not because of all the features and its sudden rise in popularity, but ‘hot’ because the company led by CEO Mark Pincus has a real business plan and is estimated to earn more than $1million per day already. Even though it had been the subject of a crude attack by Michael Arrington, Zynga continued to grow and Mark Pincus was voted CEO of The Year 2009 by Michael Arrington’s organised Crunchies. Needless to say, Zynga has continued to grow and now counts even more games than before. We sat down and analysed the company, its platform and timeline, as well as Zynga’s revenue. Many thanks to the team of Infographiclabs who created this graphic for us. Zynga Reveals Profit And Revenues As It Looks To Raise $500 Million - Agustino Fontevecchia - Moral Hazard.
Farmville, la poule aux œufs d'or de Zynga. The Latest Stats on Zynga: New Traffic, Revenue and a $1 Billion Valuation? As the largest and most aggressive social gaming company on the market today, Zynga is a great target for rumor, speculation and criticism.
And so we have a few more data points on it, both internal numbers and independent reports. Traffic – Last week, the company crossed the 200 million total monthly active user market on Facebook, according to AppData — with more than half of those users coming since the beginning of September. We Estimate Zynga Revenues Around $270M In 2009 And $240M In 2010 YTD.
This is a guest post by Jeremy Liew, a managing director at Lightspeed Venture Partners where he invests in the internet and mobile sectors.
His investments include Flixster, Living Social, Playdom, Rockyou and Shoedazzle. He blogs at lsvp.wordpress.com. We estimate Zynga revenues around $270M in 2009 and $240M in 2010 YTD. This also appears as a guest post on Techcrunch There has been a lot of speculation about Zynga’s revenue.
Last week Business insider said:


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Container carrier diverts vessel as Port of Montreal labor strikes continue
German container carrier Hapag-Lloyd rerouted one of its ships as another strike by the Port of Montreal longshoremen’s union threatened to further disrupt port operations.
Hapag-Lloyd said it would divert the M.V. Detroit Express to the Port of Saint John, New Brunswick, for its expected arrival in Canada on Aug. 8, although its ship M.V. Toronto Express would maintain its call to Montreal Aug. 5.
The longshoremen’s union began another strike on Aug. 3, which is set to last until early morning Aug. 7. The strike is targeting two container terminals at the port of Montreal belonging to the Tremont company.
The strike announcement came on the heels of another four-day strike last week, which was initiated after negotiations over working hours and wages stagnated.
A major retailer with a distribution center near the Port of Montreal said they were considering rerouting their container shipments to Halifax and moving them from there by truck or rail.
“The shipping industry is very competitive, and once you start rerouting supply you may not want to change it back,” the retailer said. “The Port of Montreal is not like New York or Los Angeles where it can not be avoided.”
The Port of Montreal had a throughput of 826,705 20-foot equivalent units (TEU’s) in the first half of 2020, a 3.8% decrease from the same period last year. The Port of Montreal is Canada’s second largest container port by volume.
The Platts Container Rate 9 — UK Continent to East Coast North America — has remained steady at $1,800/FEU through July into early August.


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LOS ANGELES, CA -- (Marketwired) -- 06/20/13 -- POPSUGAR Inc., a global media and technology company at the intersection of content and commerce, today announced Robert Pattinson as the 2013 POPSUGAR 100 winner. Commenting on the win, Molly Goodson, POPSUGAR VP of Content, had this to say: "Robert Pattinson's fan base is more loyal than any other I've seen in all our years at POPSUGAR. The past 12 months have been a turning point for Rob, in his career and personal life. Robert said goodbye to Twilight and most recently signed on to be the face of Dior Homme, which further solidifies his status as a global heartthrob. Rob's fans voted him to the No. 1 spot for an unprecedented third time following his POPSUGAR 100 crowns in 2009 and 2010. The POPSUGAR 100 is unlike any other fan-voted contest out there. This year the four categories -- Fresh Faces, Game Changers, Phenoms, and Classics -- allowed for a new variety on the list. We are so proud of the 100 our readers selected. We have the people who are changing the world as women, like Michelle Obama, Hillary Clinton, Angelina Jolie, and Jenna Lyons, alongside the stars we've loved and admired for years, such as Johnny Depp, Jennifer Aniston, and Gwyneth Paltrow."
The POPSUGAR 100 gives the hottest names in fashion, film, TV, music, and politics the opportunity to face off in a true battle of talent! This year's contest brought in record numbers with more than 1.4 million votes determining the winner.
From May 8 to June 4, readers voted online for their favorite celebrities across four categories. While Pattinson took the overall title, he also beat out many of his contemporaries in the Fresh Faces competition. Jennifer Lawrence reigned supreme in the Phenoms category, while Kate Middleton won the title of Game Changer. Former POPSUGAR 100 winner Johnny Depp proved he's still popular with fans by winning the most votes in the Classics category.
For more information, go to POPSUGAR 100. The Summer fun is just getting started, so be sure to check out POPSUGAR.com for a soon-to-launch bikini bracket featuring Hollywood's sexiest stars like Gisele Bündchen, Julianne Hough, Rihanna, Britney Spears, and more!
About POPSUGAR Inc.
POPSUGAR Inc. is a global media and technology company at the intersection of content and commerce -- online, on mobile, and at your door. POPSUGAR.com is the go-to destination for the biggest moments, the hottest trends, and the best tips in entertainment, celebrity, fashion, beauty, fitness, food, and parenting. In addition to the best original lifestyle content, POPSUGAR's growing portfolio of commerce brands includes ShopStyle, the leading fashion search engine, and POPSUGAR Must Have, a monthly subscription box featuring editor-curated products. Targeting women 18-40, POPSUGAR draws over 20M users worldwide, 50M live and on-demand video views per month, and half a billion in annual retail revenue. POPSUGAR Inc. is a privately held company funded by Sequoia Capital and Institutional Venture Partners with offices in Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and London. For more information, visit POPSUGAR.com and follow @POPSUGAR on Twitter.
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RBS seeks to sell stake in Bank of China
Taxpayer-controlled Royal Bank of Scotland has put its £2billion stake in Bank of China up for sale, paving the way for a sweeping clear-out of its overseas businesses.
New boss Stephen Hester is believed to have travelled to Beijing this week to find a buyer for its 4.3 per cent holding in BoC.
A sale would mark the first step in unpicking the sprawling global empire stitched together by his deal-hungry predecessor, Sir Fred Goodwin.
Get rid: RBS boss Stephen Hester is reportedly trying to find a buyer for the bank's stake in Bank of China
Hester, who took the reins in October, is expected to sanction a raft of foreign disposals over the coming months as he attempts to repair the lender's tattered finances.
Offloading its Citizens U.S. subsidiary would go some way to shrinking RBS' £2trillion balance sheet, which needs to be reduced by at least a third, according to analysts.
However, Hester is expected to shelve the protracted auction of the group's insurance wing, which includes Churchill and Direct Line.
An RBS spokesman said: 'We are currently examining all of its investments as part of the strategic review, including our investment in Bank of China.'
Shares in RBS closed 1.6p higher at 50.6p.
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Ariba Inc. (Nasdaq: ARBA) rose 8 to 143 Tuesday following positive comments about the outlook for the company, and for business-to-business (B2B) e-commerce generally, from Credit Suisse First Boston analyst Christopher Vroom.
Other B2B stocks also rose on the comments, and on news that the European Union (EU) had approved a B2B marketplace.
i2 Technologies (Nasdaq: ITWO) advanced 17 5/16 to 143 3/8 Tuesday, and PurchasePro, FreeMarkets and VerticalNet, Inc. also gained.
Vroom reportedly sees a $250 million revenue backlog at Ariba, which posted a 101 percent sequential revenue rise in the first quarter. Companies are starting to see online exchanges as a better way to do business, according to Vroom’s reported comments.
B2B stocks got an added lift from news Monday that the European Commission gave the green light to MyAircraft, a B2B marketplace planned by i2, Honeywell, Inc. (NYSE: HON) and United Technologies Corp. (NYSE: UTX). MyAircraft will be operated as an independent company open to airlines, equipment manufacturers and suppliers, and expects to start offering services in the fourth quarter of this year.


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A recent analysis by Nielsen Insights focused on consumer behavior in the context of a continuing COVID pandemic. Initially we saw panic buying by consumers focusing. In recent months however this has shifted somewhat. As Nielsen notes:
“Shoppers have been primarily driven to make purchases based on health and safety concerns throughout the pandemic. However, a second layer of consumption behavior has been emerging from those experiencing (and anticipating) financial restraint.”
This behavior is especially important if we move to a second wave.
“Brands and retailers need to pay the closest attention to the newly constrained and cautious middle consumer groups. As the U.S. continues to face a recession, more Americans will join these groups and will look to recalibrate their shopping habits. Brands, retailers and manufacturers need to determine how to maintain their sales as the majority of consumers substantially cut back on spending and seek deals through various channels. This is particularly important in an environment where prices are inflated.”
To see the complete Nielsen analysis click HERE.
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Even as credit card use increased in the fourth quarter of 2019, a record share of consumers paid off their bill in full each month, according to the American Bankers Association’s latest quarterly Credit Card Market Monitor. Seasonally adjusted monthly purchase volumes rose compared to the previous quarter, particularly among super-prime (+4.0%) and prime (+2.9%) accounts, reflecting moderate consumer spending during that period. On a year-over-year basis, purchase volumes grew moderately among prime (+5.8%) and super-prime (+5.7%) accounts and rose modestly for subprime accounts (+2.0%).
At the same time, the share of Transactors (those who pay their monthly balance in full each month) rose to an all-time high of 31.9%, while the share of Revolvers (those who carry a monthly balance) inched up 0.2 percentage point to 44.1%, little changed over the last 3.5 years. Meanwhile, the share of Dormant accounts fell 1.0 percentage point to 24.0%, the lowest level on record.
“This report demonstrates that consumers were generally in a solid financial position before the current downturn,” said ABA Senior Economist Rob Strand. “Banks will continue to actively work with their customers based on their financial needs to help ensure they can continue to manage their finances during and after the public health crisis.”
The effective finance charge yield (which measures interest payments relative to total outstanding credit in the market) dropped 33 basis points to 12.9%. This movement suggests that the effects of the Fed cutting its benchmark rate in the second half of 2019 was partially offset by the increase in revolving accounts. Meanwhile, credit card credit as a share of disposable income (seasonally adjusted) increased 19 basis points to 5.50%, but remains 2–3 percentage points below levels seen prior to the last recession.
The May 2020 Monitor, which consists of credit card data from October through December 2019, also found that the number of total credit card accounts pulled back slightly compared to the third quarter, marking the second consecutive quarterly decline. This quarter’s decrease was driven by easing in total prime (-1.2%) and super-prime (-0.6%) accounts. Meanwhile, new account volume (accounts opened in the previous 24 months) in the fourth quarter also declined compared to the previous quarter for the eighth consecutive period, led by a 1.6% and 1.1% decrease in new super-prime and prime accounts, respectively. New subprime accounts increased a modest 0.6% compared to a year ago.
“Over the last several years, banks have been slowly bringing individuals who lost access to the credit card market in the aftermath of the last recession back into the fold with lower credit lines that could rise over time with good payment behavior,” said Strand. “While the COVID-19 pandemic has changed underlying economic conditions and increased uncertainty, greater access to short-term financing provided by credit cards can help some consumers who face temporary income disruptions.”
Average credit lines grew across risk tiers for both new and total accounts in the fourth quarter. Growth was led by prime credit lines, which increased 1.6% among all accounts and 1.2% among new accounts. Although credit lines for new subprime accounts increased 1.1% on a quarterly basis, they remain roughly 31% below their peak (inflation-adjusted) in the first quarter of 2009.
The full report with detailed charts and statistics is available here.
About the Credit Card Market Monitor
The American Bankers Association Credit Card Market Monitor is a quarterly report that provides key statistics on industry trends and relevant economic factors affecting the industry. The credit card data used in the report is taken from a nationally representative sample provided by Argus Information Services LLC. Credit card data are presented as national averages for all accounts based on actual credit card account information. No individual account holder’s information or specific financial institution’s data can be identified from the data set. Other data used in the report are taken from various public and private sources, including the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Economic Analysis and the Federal Reserve.
Answers to Frequently Asked Questions and definitions of the data presented in the ABA Credit Card Industry Monitor can be found in an Appendix attached to the monitor.
Results of this and all previous reports can be found at www.aba.com.


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The Iranian president left Tehran for India's Hyderabad on Thursday morning for the official 3-day trip aimed at strengthening the bilateral ties and reciprocating a visit two years ago by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He will be landing in Hyderabad on Thursday where he will address a gathering of Muslim intellectuals and clerics before meeting the prime minister in Delhi.
After offering Friday prayers, Rouhani will address a congregation at the historic Mecca Masjid in Hyderabad.
"Iranian President Hassan Rouhani will travel to India on February 15", the Iranian Students' News Agency (ISNA) said.
Dr Rouhani will also meet President Ram Nath Kovind and Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu during his stay in the national capital.
Amazon to launch own delivery service to undercut rivals
That's because Walmart has partnered with and owns an equity stake in JD.com, China's second largest e-commerce provider. Shipping With Amazon doesn't replace the courier or postal truck that delivers a purchase to the end customer.
India, Iran and Afghanistan have already signed an agreement to give Indian goods, heading toward Central Asia and Afghanistan, preferential treatment and tariff reductions at the Chabahar port city in southern Iran. Religious scholars from different schools of thought will also participate in the session.
He is also scheduled to visit Salarjung Museum, famous for the world's largest one man collection of artefacts. "After completing his schedule here, he will leave for New Delhi on Saturday", said a diplomatic source. Both India and Iran are set to discuss regional and global issues of mutual interest.
Indian sources have quoted the South Asian country's Ministry of External Affairs as saying that Rouhani and Modi will "review the progress achieved in bilateral relations and also exchange views on regional and global issues of mutual interest". This is the second time Rouhani will be visiting Hyderabad, but it is his first visit after assuming charge as the president.
During his visit, the Iranian President will talk about the latest regional and global developments with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other leaders. Both sides signed "The New Delhi Declaration", which set forth the vision of strategic partnership between the countries.


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There is a significant, national shortage in the number of HGV drivers and the Road Haulage Association (RHA) has warned
Looking for Air Freight Forwarders in Manchester? When it comes to different modes of transport, each mode has its own
As you may have seen in recent media reports including on the BBC, ports in the UK are struggling to
Why should you choose sea freight shipping? Any business that is considering starting to import or export good to the
Despite the obvious slump in volumes in the first half of 2020, as a direct result of the coronavirus pandemic,
It seems implausible, given the ongoing pandemic and lockdown restrictions of 2020, but figures show that that the global demand
The recent industrial action that saw the 24-hour closure of the Port of Calais caused a range of disruption to
While the market is still feeling the repercussions of the Coronavirus, air cargo demand was up month-on-month in July (Source:
The current outbreak of the Coronavirus has been well-documented across the media. It is both a major news story and a major concern. And, as we have seen evidence of panic-buying and empty supermarket shelves for some essential items, it will come as no surprise to hear confirmation that the outbreak is causing disruption to supply chains.
It’s still unclear what the UK’s future trading relationship with the EU looks like. A no-deal Brexit is still a possibility. In this scenario, the UK will trade as a 3rd country with the European Union. This will have implications for traders, importers and logistics firms alike.


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Extremely ecological, the way Ford discovered that millions of plastic water bottles could have a second life. Since 2012 Ford launched EcoSport for the first time around the world, it has given a new life cycle to more than 650 million bottles of 500-ml, weighing roughly 8,262 metric tons.
The carpets of each EcoSport leaving the Ford factory production line are manufactured from 470 disposable recycled plastic water bottles. Since the first time recycled plastic was used in Mondeo more than 20 years ago, Ford recycles worldwide 1.2 billion bottles a year.
The transformation of the plastic into a car carpet first includes the fragmentation in tiny pieces of both the bottles and their lids. Then, the pieces are heated to 260 °C and melt before they are shaped into fibers with a width comparable to a human hair. These fibres go through a spinning process from which the yarn used as a component of the carpets arises.