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IFA 2016: What to Expect from Berlin
This event is known as Europe's biggest electronics trade show. Here's what to expect from ASUS, Lenovo, Motorola, Samsung, and more.
IFA Berlin, the biggest consumer electronics show in Europe, is an annual riot of cool wearables, big TVs, and jewel-toned washer-and-dryer sets. While it formally runs from September 4 to 7 2016, the big announcements will come out between August 30 and September 1.
The Berlin-based tradeshow tends to be a place where major electronics firms announce key elements of their holiday line-ups, and we're going to be onsite checking everything out.
IFA will then bleed into another hot week for mobile electronics. LG is announcing its V20, the first phone to launch with Android Nougat, in San Francisco on September 6, and Apple is hosting its iPhone event on September 7. We hope to be at both of those events, too, bringing you live views from the scene.
Here's all of what we expect to go down at IFA (and shortly after.)
Acer (4 AM ET, August 31)
We're expecting a super-slim laptop from Acer, if its IFA invite is anything to go by.
Otherwise, Acer could do with an update to its Liquid Jade Primo phone from last year, and maybe some clarity on whatever happened to the disappearing Predator 6 gaming phone. In May 2016, Acer announced a partnership with StarVR to create its own PC VR gaming headset, and it might have a striking demo at this show.
ASUS (7 AM ET, August 31)
The invite from ASUS promised a 'Zenvolution' at IFA this year and its swirly graphic evokes camera lenses and AR space mapping. Last year's IFA brought us the Asus ZenFone Zoom and the ZenFone Max, but TechnoBuffalo mentions that the ASUS ZenWatch 3 just got FCC approval, meaning it could bring us a new Android Wear smartwatch with a round display. We're also hearing rumours that ASUS will bring new convertible laptops to the table.
Fitbit (12:30 PM ET, September 2)
The sports wearable brand revealed the Fitbit Charge 2 and Fitbit Flex 2 late last week and both will be on display in Berlin. These updated fitness trackers are made of black textured rubber, with the smartwatch-like Charge 2 offering a large display and the PurePulse heart-rate tracker from the Charge HR. The Fitbit Flex 2 is a swimmer-friendly, display-free tracker wristband.
HP (No event)
The HP Elite x3 Windows phone is getting very, very close to an official US release, so IFA may be a coming-out party for one of a very few high-end Windows phones in existence. New Spectre laptops may also be in the offing.
Huawei (4:30 AM ET, September 1)
The Chinese electronics brand promised to 'defy expectations' at its press conference, and its teaser video (below) gives away nothing—not even a product category. As is, we've seen Huawei's flagship phones, the Huawei P9 and Honor 8, already, and the Matebook laptop is pretty fresh—so what's left? Huawei hasn't updated its tablet or wearables line-ups in a while, and it's doing relatively little in VR, so we'd expect the announcement to fall under one of those categories. PhoneArena reports than an 8in Huawei MediaPad M3 tablet has also received FCC approval, so maybe that's part of what's coming.
Lenovo (2 PM ET, August 31)
A teaser video from Lenonvo appeared and it seriously oversells its product line: I don't think we're going to see the fully bendable smartphones in the video. However, it did reveal a 'new chapter in tablets' with a "whole new kind of intuitive keyboard' showing a tablet with some sort of very flat glass touch-screen keyboard. This may be related to the company's long-rumoured Yoga Book: a convertible, Android-powered laptop that had been widely leaked throughout March and April of this year thanks to an appearance on the Red Dot design awards website, but never surfaced on the market. Could Lenovo have been waiting for the dual-window functionality in Nougat? We want to know.
Otherwise, we're dying to see a final version of Lenovo's Google Tango-equipped Phab2 Pro, and we're sure to see an array of updated laptops and Yoga tablets.
LG (8 PM ET, September 6)
Bad news: while several sites suggest an LG G Flex 3 will launch at IFA 2016, we've heard nothing of the sort. Rather, LG is keeping its powder dry for its launch of the LG V20, the first phone running Android 7.0 Nougat, on September 6 in San Francisco.
What we need to see from LG at this show, though, is more 'friends' for the LG G5 phone. The G5 may be modular, but it only has one add-on module right now, and its buzzy Rolling Bot never hit the market at all. What's the future of modularity for LG, especially as it looks like it's Motorola is doing laps around it?
Let's not forget that LG is a major home entertainment provider, either. Some big TVs and entry into the UHD video player market would be good things to see as well.
Motorola (See Lenovo, above)
After the launch of the Verizon-exclusive Moto Z earlier this summer, we had been promised a global rollout 'in September'. Well, that month is just around the corner, so we're expecting to see the global variant of the Moto Z at IFA. An unlocked version for multiple carriers would be icing on the cake.
Motorola is also promising additional Moto Mods, the add-on functional backs that attach to the Moto Z. Current mods include a projector, speakers, and add-on batteries. What could come next? Perhaps a Hasselblad-branded camera module, as leaked photos show.
Samsung (12 PM ET, August 31)
The big announcement from Samsung, as expected, will be the Samsung Gear S3 smartwatch. What features could this Tizen-powered sport piece have that the Samsung Gear S2 lacks? Totally unfounded rumours suggest a faster processor, more RAM, and three different bezel designs, but there needs to be something punchier to get people to upgrade from the somewhat successful, as far as smartwatches go, predecessor.
Also, expect some smart home announcements to roll out the next day. At last year's IFA, Samsung showed off SmartThings, a home hub system, and it should develop that ecosystem further this year. The company is also promising curved gaming monitors.
Sony (7 AM ET, September 1)
Usually, Sony trade-show announcements tend to be a carnival of product lines, from PCs to TVs to phones, all at once. Its invite has headphones, mobilephones, cameras, and a TV set on it. In home entertainment, we're looking for an UHD Blu-Ray player and streaming box, breaking out some of the functionality we expect from the upcoming Playstation NEO. Phone-wise, we may get a flagship Sony Xperia XZ or XR handset and master leaker Evan Blass suggests an Xperia X Compact is coming.
Sources close to the Japanese electronics giant in Southeast Asia confirmed that one aspect of the Sony announcement at IFA 2016 is focused on audiophile grade products and cameras. This includes new sound systems and, likely, a new line of Sony mirrorless cameras.
TomTom (2:30 AM ET, September 1)
Industry indicators suggest TomTom may be refreshing its fitness tracker line-up with several new models. We don't know much about these plans yet, but there could be up to three trackers at the low, middle, and high price ranges.
There is a ZTE press conference at IFA and its sub-brand Nubia has one too. The company did some variants on last year's Axon, so it makes sense that it will give us potentially smaller and larger versions of this year's award-winning ZTE Axon 7.
But we're also likely to hear more about its crowd-sourced Project CSX, now that the company is collecting ideas through its Z-Community website. The leading vote-getter right now is an Ubuntu phone; hopefully it doesn't go with that one.
(Additional reporting from Victor Yap, PCMag SEA Chief Editor.)
- Google Android 7.0 …
- IFA 2016
- IFA Berlin


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Tom Hogan was formerly vice president of sales at customer relationship software maker Siebel. President and Chief Operating Officer Paul Wahl will continue to run Siebel's sales operations, the company said in a statement.
Siebel shares dropped $3.75, or 11.15 percent, to $29.88 Tuesday morning. Vignette shares rose sharply, gaining $1.33, or 26 percent, to $6.54.
Hogan's resignation is "clearly not a positive announcement," said Brent Thill, an analyst at Credit Suisse First Boston, who cut his profit outlook for Siebel, Bloomberg News reported.
Hogan will assume responsibility for worldwide operations, including sales, marketing, support, services and product development, at Vignette, the company said.
Mountain View, Calif.-based Vignette makes publishing and personalization software for e-commerce companies and competes with BroadVision. In January, Vignette announced plans to shut some offices and trim its work force by approximately 15 percent to reduce expenses as it prepared for weaker earnings.

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WASHINGTON, D. C. – Attorney General Karl A. Racine announced today that his office obtained a judgment for more than $425,000 in restitution and civil penalties from a company that deceived student borrowers into paying fees for services they could have obtained for free. The Superior Court of the District of Columbia ordered the company, Student Aid Center, Inc., to repay 233 District consumers for all fees the company had unlawfully collected, which total $192,824.95. The court also permanently barred the company from misleading consumers and charging up-front fees for student loan debt relief services.
In addition, the court also ordered Student Aid Center to pay $233,000 as a civil penalty.
“We will not tolerate scammers preying on District residents who worked hard to get an education and are now struggling to repay their student loans,” said Attorney General Racine. “There are many free resources available to make repaying student loans easier, and consumers should be skeptical of any student loan debt relief company that charges advance fees. We will continue to aggressively pursue companies like this one that take advantage of our residents.”
Attorney General Racine previously won a judgment against Student Aid Center, Inc. and the company’s owners, Ramiro Fernandez-Moris and Damien Alvarez, for unlawfully marketing student debt relief services to District consumers — including services that borrowers can get for free from the U.S. Department of Education. The court found the company and its owners liable for misrepresenting the company’s services and unlawfully charging fees of between $600 and $1,000 in advance, while consumers received little in return.
“This win for consumers comes after hard work by our consumer-protection team, and I’d particularly like to thank Office of Consumer Protection Director Phil Ziperman and Assistant Attorney General Ben Wiseman for their excellent legal work in this case,” Attorney General Racine said.
A copy of the final judgment is attached. Student Aid Center, Inc. has also been sued by the attorneys general of Florida, Kentucky and Washington state, and by the Federal Trade Commission.
Student Loan Resources
Borrowers with questions about their student loans should visit the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) Student Loan Resource Page. It provides District residents with free resources about repayment options and up-to-date information about how to manage student loan debt – including information about how to avoid student loan scams. OAG’s Student Loan Resource Page is available at oag.dc.gov/studentloans.
Consumers with complaints against Student Aid Center, other debt-relief scams, or any other consumer issue can contact our Office of Consumer Protection at (202) 442-9828, by sending an e-mail to [email protected], or online using our Consumer Complaint Form.


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The Unpacked event is now expected for February 8 (according to leaks, no official date confirmed yet), so the Exynos 2200 chip should be expected sometime before that. Last month, Samsung stated in a Tweet that the next-generation chipset will be unveiled on January 11. However, surprise-surprise, this tweet is now gone, so it seems like the South Korea-based tech giant is really going to postpone the announcement.
Last month, we speculated on the potential that Samsung’s next flagship chipset, the Exynos 2200, might be unveiled in January, specifically on January 11. However, reputed leaker IceUnivese now reports that the release has been postponed to an unknown date. The Exynos 2200 has apparently been postponed, although it will still be unveiled before the Galaxy S22. The Exynos 2200 is the chip that will power various Galaxy S22 models for specific markets (as Samsung has done in the past), thus the chipset should be released in the coming weeks as we approach closer to the Unpacked event, where the next Galaxy S series will be formally unveiled.
The Exynos 2200 chipset should power the Galaxy S22 series in some markets – Samsung reportedly delayed the Exynos 2200 release. The Exynos 2200 chipset should power the Galaxy S22 series in some markets. Earlier, leaked Geekbench results showcased the fact that the Exynos 2200 was behind the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 in terms of performance, so this could be a reason as to why it could be postponed (maybe Samsung trying to smooth things out?). Another possibility for the delay could be the ongoing chip shortage that has been affecting the entire mobile tech industry for a few months already. The exact reason for this delay, however, may never be known.
According to the leaked Geekbench results, the Exynos 2200 is still performing slightly worse than the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1. As has become the practice in recent years, we expect the Snapdragon-powered Galaxy S22 series to be available in the US and South Korea, while the Exynos-powered ones usually go to Europe and other markets. The recently leaked Geekbench scores show how the two chipsets could be different. The Exynos 2200 on the Galaxy S22 Ultra has reportedly scored a single-core result of 1,014; significantly lesser than the Snapdragon Gen 1, which scored 1,226. On the multi-core front, things are looking a bit better for the Exynos chip, which scored 3,415, while the Snapdragon (still beating it but with less this time), scored 3,462.


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A run down of the 10 most must-watch retail technology trends for retailers, whether you’re brick and mortar, online only, big or small.
As well as the expansion of these existing technologies, there are new ones to watch, such as the TravelTime platform. This API enables customers to search for their nearest store using travel time rather than miles radius distance.
AR & VR
Whilst mobile and tablet devices dominate this area at the moment, the upcoming release of the consumer version of the Oculus Rift could transform the playing field for retailers in the upcoming months.
Cimagine is an excellent example of how retailers can use SaaS to drive customers through the decision-making funnel. The software enables consumers to use mobile and wearable devices to visualise products in their own home. Take a look at the video here.
Companies such as Shopify are helping businesses expand their channel options, offering e-commerce, POS and mobile systems.
CONSUMER MOBILE TECH
Apps also drive purchase decisions when delivering in-store deals and coupons to customers. Target’s Cartwheel app is an excellent example of how to incentivise customers by providing a directory of available offers on mobile that can be scanned off the user’s mobile when they reach the checkout. See how it works.
INTERNET OF THINGS
Combining smart technologies with mobile apps, retailers can begin to bring consumers one step closer to achieving a smart home. One example of this technology is Quirky’s egg minder, which monitors how many eggs are left in the user’s box and sends mobile notifications. It’s still early days for this type of tech and requires a lot of customer investment but still one to watch.
For smaller retailers, the launch of technologies such as iZettle has delivered a quick and easy way to start accepting card payments with minimal spend on hardware.
The Apple watch continues to be the best-selling wearable, there are other technologies that promise to develop contactless payment options such as Pebble and more.
Landing page personalisation is becoming more and more prevalent within the industry, with retailer Very.co.uk able to create 1.2 million different versions of their home page.
One clear sign of the change in the times is when companies such as Perks Loyalty, a company specialising in creating bespoke incentive schemes on mobile, receives a six-figure sum investment.


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“In 2019, FMI sought to protect the confidentiality of store-level sales data for retailers who participate in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. The U.S. Supreme Court’s opinion in Food Marketing Institute v. Argus Leader Media (6-3) clarified the Freedom of Information Act’s (FOIA) Exemption 4 to prevent the disclosure of confidential commercial information that would put businesses at competitive disadvantages. Unfortunately, this bill would bring back the complex test that was rejected by every member of the Supreme Court. Legislative history tells us FOIA was created to shine a light on actions by the government, not on that of private parties.”
“Our industry’s commitment to the shopper remains constant amidst seismic marketplace shifts. The nation’s grocery stores have long kept confidential the amount consumers spend at individual stores whether through payment by cash, credit, debit or the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. This store-level sales data collected by the government to facilitate these benefits remains undoubtedly confidential because its release would provide an unfair advantage to competitors – particularly those without brick and mortar locations in the area.”
More information on Food Marketing Institute v. Argus Leader Media at www.FMI.org/SCOTUS.


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Apple’s 1st mixed-truth headset could occur with the company’s flagship M2 processor, just a single of the “deluge” of new products and solutions the business is anticipated to unveil in the up coming 12 months, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reported Sunday.
The M2, unveiled in June, options redesigned central processing models and a substantial memory boost, which would provide a major improve to the significantly-rumored headset over the preceding M1 chip.
The a great deal-rumored headset incorporating both of those digital and augmented actuality environments is envisioned to give a boon to the gaming industry. Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo mentioned earlier week that the headset —— would be the most complicated item Apple has made but.
Apple CEO Tim Cook dinner has been vocal about his exhilaration about AR. Before this week, he spelled out that the tech industry is still in the “very early innings” of this technology’s prospects.
“I could not be far more energized about the prospects we’ve observed in this area, and form of stay tuned and you will see what we have to give,” Prepare dinner instructed China Each day.
Other products Gurman expects to debut in the subsequent 12 months include things like 4 Apple iphone 14 designs, 3 Apple Watch variants, several Macs with M2 and M3 chips, iPads, updated AirPods Professional earbuds, a contemporary HomePod, and an upgraded Apple Tv.
Apple didn’t instantly react to a ask for for comment.


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Elon Musk takes the stand to defend Tesla takeover tweets
“Retail investors are very important to me,” he said during questioning by shareholder attorney Nicholas Porritt.
The case is a rare class action lawsuit in the securities space, and plaintiffs have already cleared steep legal hurdles, with US Judge Edward Chen ruling last year that Musk’s funding post was untrue and reckless.
Shareholders claimed Musk lied when he sent the tweet.
Musk described the difficulties the company was experiencing around the time he tweeted “funding secured,” including bets from short sellers that the stock would fall.
“A bunch of sharks on Wall Street really wanted Tesla dead,” he said, describing short sellers who profit when a stock falls in price. He said they planted false stories and said the practice should be made illegal.
Previously, Tesla investor Timothy Fries told the jury that he lost $5,000 buying Tesla stock after Musk sent the tweet that sparked volatile swings in the stock.
Fries said that for him “funding secured” means that “there have been some reviews, some critical reviews of these sources of funding”.
Musk’s attorney Alex Spiro told jurors in his opening statement Wednesday that Musk believes he is being funded by Saudi backers and is taking steps to see the deal through. Fearing leaks to the media, Musk tried to protect the “ordinary shareholder” by sending out the tweet that contained “technical inaccuracies,” Spiro said.
Guhan Subramanian, a Harvard Law School professor, told the jury that Musk’s conduct in 2018 was “unprecedented” and “incoherent” in relation to the structuring of an enterprise agreement because he communicated with his intent without proper financial or legal analysis had gone public.
A jury of six men and three women will decide whether the tweet artificially inflated Tesla’s stock price by hyping the funding status for the deal, and if so, by how much. Musk testified less than 30 minutes before the court adjourned until Monday.
Musk has previously claimed he entered the SEC settlement under duress and claimed he secured financial backing for a Tesla buyout in meetings with officials from the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund.
The trial over his Tesla tweets comes at a time when he has been focused on Twitter, which he acquired in October after unsuccessfully trying to retire.
Musk’s stewardship of Twitter — where he has eroded staff numbers and alienated users and advertisers — has proved unpopular with Tesla’s current shareholders, who fear he has spent less time directing the automaker at a time of increased competition. Those concerns contributed to a 65 percent decline in Tesla stock over the past year that wiped out more than $700 billion in shareholder wealth — far more than the $14 billion wealth reversal that took place between the high and low stock prices of the company Company on August 7-17, 2018, the period covered by the class action lawsuit.
Tesla stock has split twice since then, so the $420 buyout price quoted in its 2018 tweet is now worth $28 on an adjusted basis. Shares of the company traded around $133 on Friday, down from the split-adjusted high of $414.50 in November 2021.
After Musk dropped the idea of a Tesla buyout, the company overcame its manufacturing woes, resulting in a rapid upswing in auto sales that sent its stock skyrocketing and made Musk the richest person on earth until he bought Twitter. He fell from the top of the asset list after the stock market backlash over his dealings with the social media platform.
https://www.smh.com.au/world/north-america/elon-musk-takes-witness-stand-to-defend-tesla-buyout-tweets-20230121-p5cef0.html?ref=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_source=rss_world Elon Musk takes the stand to defend Tesla takeover tweets


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US President Donald Trump’s top economic adviser acknowledged that the president said Germany is “very bad” when it comes to flooding the U.S. with cars, but insisted it wasn’t an attack on one of America’s most-important allies.
“He said, ‘They’re very bad on trade,’ but he doesn’t have a problem with Germany,” Gary Cohn, director of the National Economic Council. “He said his dad is from Germany. He said, ‘I don’t have a problem with Germany, I have a problem with German trade’.”
Earlier, Germany’s Der Spiegel reported that Trump threatened to stop German car sales in America during a meeting with European officials in Brussels on Thursday.
“The Germans are bad, very bad,” Spiegel quotes the American President as saying.
“Look at the millions of cars they sell in the US, and we’ll stop that,” he added, according to the newspaper, citing participants in the meeting.
According to a report from German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung, the EU officials were horrified at the extent of the Americans’ lack of awareness of European trade policy.
Apparently, it was unclear to the guests EU countries concluded trade agreements only jointly, the newspaper said.
European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker also denied Trump was hostile to Germany in the Brussels talks.
“He did not say the Germans were behaving badly,” Juncker said, adding that the reports in the German media were exaggerated.
In January, the US president threatened to impose a 35 percent import tax on German cars.
“If you want to build cars in the world, then I wish you all the best. You can build cars for the United States, but for every car that comes to the USA, you will pay 35 percent tax,” Trump said in an interview with German newspaper Bild.
“I would tell BMW that if you are building a factory in Mexico and plan to sell cars to the USA, without a 35 percent tax, then you can forget that,” Trump said.
Trump is also angered by Germany’s €253 billion trade surplus, which he says comes at a loss for the US.
In March, he signed executive orders to review the causes of the US trade deficits with some of its largest trading partners – including China and Germany – and push for stricter enforcement of US anti-dumping laws. The US trade deficit in goods and services topped $500 billion in 2016.


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HOLLIS, N.H. (WHDH) - Police are seeking two suspects after a credit card stolen from a car was used at a convenience store in New Hampshire on Saturday afternoon.
Officers responding to a report of a smashed car window on Maple Hill Farm at Beaver Brook on Ridge Road around 2:45 p.m. discovered that items had been taken from the vehicle after someone broke its window, according to Hollis police.
An alert hiker was able to capture a picture of the suspect.
A credit card stolen from the car was later used at a convenience store in Amherst, police said.
Police have included a surveillance image of a woman who is believed to have used the card.
Anyone who can identify the two suspects in the photographs or who has additional information is asked to call Officer Nicholas Collishaw at 603-465-7637.
(Copyright (c) 2021 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)


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The news that a pitch for Days Gone 2 had been rejected by Sony prompted David Jaffe, the game designer known for creating God of War and Twisted Metal, to host video interviews with Days Gone directors on his YouTube channel. Last week he had Jeff Ross, while yesterday it was John Garvin's turn (who, by the way, was also the game's writer).
Garvin revealed to have left Sony Bend merely days after the game's release in April 2019. When Jaffe asked him how he took the first wave of Days Gone reviews, Garvin replied:
I took it hard, to be honest, because, again...This is just the reality of Sony, Metacritic score is everything. If you're the creative director on a franchise and your game is coming out to a 70, you're not going to be the creative director on that franchise for very long.
Indeed, Sony has had a string of critically acclaimed game releases with the likes of Uncharted, The Last of Us, Horizon Zero Dawn, God of War, Marvel's Spider-Man, Dreams, and most recently Ghost of Tsushima.
On the other hand, there's evidence Sony might actually be looking for both outstanding critical acclaim and commercial success nowadays. For example, Japan Studio's Gravity Rush 2 had an average Metacritic score of 80 but didn't really sell well and that was the last game ever made by Team Gravity. Japan Studio as a whole was essentially shut down and will now focus on supporting Asobi Team, the makers of Astro Bot Rescue Mission and Astro's Playroom, as confirmed by Sony earlier this month.
Days Gone may not have had high critical acclaim (though yours truly did enjoy it a lot), but it did sell pretty well and managed to find a dedicated fanbase. That's demonstrated by the Change.org petition asking Sony to greenlight a sequel; it already got over 32.6K signatures and even Jeff Ross himself asked his Twitter followers to participate while tagging SIE Worldwide Studio head Hermen Hulst.
Damn, I can't believe this Days Gone petition is rapidly approaching one of the top signed petitions on https://t.co/uvgcQWItnB. Please jump on there and help push it over the 25k mark! #DaysGone #PlayStation @hermenhulst pic.twitter.com/ftaMbVPgF5
— Jeff Ross (@JakeRocket) April 16, 2021
Days Gone is about to launch on PC in a month from now. Perhaps a successful launch on this platform could persuade Sony to eventually develop another installment, thus satisfying everyone eager for a follow-up on that story cliffhanger.


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BMW to Launch Blockchain-Based Rewards Program in South Korea
BMW Korea announced a new rewards program based on blockchain, titled BMW Vantage. This program will launch later this year and will provide services like collecting rewards points as coins and using them for payments and discounts. This program will be offered to new customers as well as existing customers. It will launch in Korea then branch out globally.
"Through this open platform, BMW Korea plans to provide various services to experience BMW in daily life, increase contact points with consumers, and continue to communicate sincerely with customers," the automaker said in its announcement in the above Ledger Insights article.
Sephora is Letting its Beauty Insider Members Redeem Their Points as Donations to the National Black Justice Coalition
Sephora has announced it has started letting its Beauty Insider Members redeem their rewards points into donations towards the National Black Justice Coalition. Five-hundred points equals a $10 donation, 1,000 is a $20 donation, and 1,500 equals a $30 donation.
"We are deeply saddened by the recent loss of George Floyd and the pain experienced by African Americans and communities of color across America," Sephora's statement said in the above Insider article. "We believe unequivocally that Black Lives Matter and we are committed to using our platforms and resources to stand against racism and injustice, to amplify Black voices, and celebrate the beauty and diversity of Black lives. With our points-to-dollars donation program, which begins with support of the National Black Justice Coalition, we want to support organizations that provide critical aid in our communities and provide a way for our clients to participate in Sephora's larger giving initiatives, and direct the power and breadth of our community to support their work," the statement continued.
New York Delays Contactless Subway Payments Until December
The MTA has announced that the OMNY (One Metro New York) system, which was meant to allow contactless subway payments, has had to be delayed until December due to the Coronavirus and other complications surrounding the pandemic.
According to the Engadget article above, "OMNY gives commuters a way to pay their fare with a tap of their phones, smartwatches, or credit cards. Users won't have to touch MetroCard vending machines anymore, though the fare payment cards will continue to work until 2023. The local government started rolling out the system in 2019, so there are quite a few stations that already offer contactless payment as an option. As MTA official Al Putre explained, though: "Unless you have OMNY at both ends of your destination you're not going to use OMNY."
King Arthur Flour Crowns New Digital Customer Experience as Online Sales Grow
King Arthur Flour has announced it has announced a new digital experience after seeing its commerce sales grow by up to 200 percent during the pandemic. The brand partnered with Third and Grove and digital content management company Acquia.
"As the situation evolves daily with stay-at-home orders, we couldn't be happier to have Acquia and Drupal in place to help us quickly and reliably deliver the recipes and videos that matter to our customers," said Mike Hoefer, director of web development at King Arthur Flour, in the above Chain Storage article. "Our new digital experience reflects the modern King Arthur Flour brand and has helped us weather the unexpected pandemic baking trend."
Consumer Packaged Goods
Ibotta Introduces Ibotta Go, a Self-Service Platform for Emerging CPG Brands
Ibotta has announced a new self-service platform, called Ibotta Go, that will allow CPG brands to be able to access straightforward, affordable cashback rewards programs.
"While today's world feels uncertain, our mission at Ibotta remains the same. We want to make every purchase rewarding, whether our Savers are buying something from a major brand or an up-and-coming one," said Bryan Leach, CEO and founder, Ibotta, in an Ibotta press release. "At a time when our users are looking for every opportunity to stretch their dollars further, and emerging brands are struggling to stay competitive, Ibotta Go is here to help."


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NEWPORT NEWS-Police say a man who answered an ad on Craigslist was robbed when he arrived to look at a cell phone.
It happened around 5:30 p.m. on November 21.
Police say the 21-year-old hoped to buy an iPhone for $180 and went to the apartment listed in the ad. He knocked on the door and a woman in lingerie invited him in. She said she was going to get the phone and when she left, a man wearing a mask and holding a gun took his money and cell phone.
The ad listed that there were phones for sale, so police are concerned someone else might fall victim to the scheme and warn they usually increase during the holidays.
Anyone with information should call Crime Line at 1-888-LOCK-U-UP.


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Australia’s leading technology companies appear to have gone to ground following the release of the government's key recommendations into IT pricing.
Yesterday, the House of Representatives Infrastructure and Communications Committee released its report into alleged price gouging by the major tech companies in Australia.
If adopted, it will see Apple, Adobe, and Microsoft face several measures which could spell the end of their use of “geo-blocking” (regional restrictions) on the use of their products.
The report found a 50-100% difference in the prices Australians pay for IT software and hardware compared to their US counterparts. In the case of online gaming platform Steam, Australians were being charged up to 300% more.
The inquiry, established a year ago to examine why Australians pay higher prices for IT products compared to other jurisdictions, recommended that Australian consumers be offered more protection under the law when trying to bypass regional restrictions.
When contacted B&T this morning for comment about the findings of the inquiry, both Adobe and Microsoft said they were not willing to comment at this time.
The report recommended the government should educate consumers on how circumvent geo-blocking that has previously prevented them from sourcing cheaper goods in other markets.
It stated that “in many instances these higher costs cannot, even cumulatively, explain the price differences consumers experience in relation to many IT products, and especially those delivered via the internet."
In regard to a possible complete ban on geo-blocking, the report said this should be considered as “an option of last resort, should persistent market failure exist in spite of the changes to the Competition and Consumer Act and the Copyright Act recommended in this report."
However, committee chair Nick Champion has admitted that the Government would not be able to regulate the prices the tech companies charge for their products.
In March, Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayenhe defended the company from allegations of price gouging in Australia saying the Creative Cloud products are charged “appropriately” across the world.
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Canteen’s latest campaign features the combined talents of Director Luna Laure and creative agency Crater. The campaign strives to raise awareness for young people affected by cancer. The awareness campaign centres around Harry Barentson, who at 12 years of age found out his pregnant mum had cancer. While his mother fortunately survived, he lost his […]
In partnership with storytelling agency Enthral, AFL star Kevin Sheedy has voiced a video ‘Love Letter to Victoria’ using visuals to showcase the state’s natural beauty and culture. Victoria has been hit with the worst of the coronavirus pandemic compared with any other Aussie state experiencing four lockdowns. Sheedy has partnered with Ethral to share […]
Telstra’s lower-cost telco, Belong, has awarded its strategy and creative account to Howatson + White, and has reappointed OMD to its media buying account, after a competitive pitch process. Howatson + White will handle strategy, planning, creative and CRM, while former agency Clemenger will continue to have a relationship with Belong, managing PR and retail activation. […]
Coca-Cola Australia has rolled out its new campaign ‘Turn Up Your Break’. The campaign will be led by a TVC that encourages people to truly pause with a Coke on their break so they can walk away feeling refreshed and uplifted. The TVC features two busy chefs stepping outside for a break, the bustling kitchen […]
Nova 919’s Ben & Liam breakfast show announced that they’ll be throwing their support behind and raising awareness for a cause very close to their hearts, mental health. On Monday 21 June Ben Harvey and Liam Stapleton will be locked in a purpose-built glass structure, in the middle of Rundle Mall, for an entire week […]
TRENDii has announced TRENDii Ads, a new contextual advertising solution that leverages content and context to promote eCommerce products at scale around the world. TRENDii Ads is user privacy friendly and offers a new way for businesses and brands to target consumers at the moment that they are most inspired to shop. “We believe good […]
ARN and The New York Times have reached an agreement for ARN to become the advertising sales representative for The New York Times’s podcast portfolio in Australia. The deal will enable Australian brands to connect with Australian listeners to The New York Times’s most popular podcasts, such as The Daily, Serial and This American Life, […]
Verizon Media’s talent program has come to an end for the third year, closing with a hybrid pitch-off event for Musicians Making A Difference (MMAD). The Verizon Media Academy class of 2021, made up of 44 emerging leaders from across Australia and New Zealand media, advertising and marketing industry, were given just one hour to […]


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Blake Griffin may not be stuffing the box stats like he once was but the man is out shaking and baking on the streets of New York with the help of The National Basketball Players Association and has some goodies in store for fans come Black Friday.
On November 26, 2021, Blake Griffin will be teaming with the NBPA to launch it’s first-ever flagship holiday event dubbed the NBPA 450 Gives which will be partnering with numerous sponsors to give fans 14-days of giveaways and prizes. To celebrate #BlackOwnedFriday, the event will kick off on Black Friday at Industrial City in Brooklyn and it will be there that fans will be able to win an exclusive NBPA member-curated gift box. Though the contents of the box remain a mystery, the gift box was curated with assistance from Bifties, a Black, female-owned company that’s all about helping people “give b(l)ack.”
“This is a great initiative by the NBPA to bring together fans, brands, and businesses during the holiday season,” said Griffin. “I am excited to help kick off NBPA 450 Gives and support some amazing Black-owned businesses with our Black-owned Friday giveaway in partnership with Google.”
Aside from Blake Griffin joining in on the festivities, the event will also include be a live DJ set, NBA2K gaming stations, free baked goods from Brutus Bakeshop, a Black female-owned bakery based in Brooklyn, and coffee from BLK & Bold, a Black-owned coffee company which donates 5% of their profits to supporting at-risk youth, to lead off a packed schedule of giving.
The pop-up is set to travel all around NYC and make stops throughout the day. Prizes for those lucky enough to catch up with the event include a trip for two to attend the next NBPA event during All-Star Weekend, Mitchell-N-Ness prize packs, New Era caps, digital gift cards from Merrell and Barcode, and more.
Will you be checking for NBPA 450 Gives come Black Friday? Let us know in the comment section below. We know we will.
Blake Griffin & The NBPA To Kick Off ‘NBPA 450’ on Black Friday was originally published on hiphopwired.com

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08 Mar FOVE, AMD, and Frima Explore Foveated Rendering, Balancing Visual Fidelity and Performance in VR at GDC
Early results on new rendering technique show performance gains anywhere from 30 to 100% framerate improvement on AMD Radeon hardware
San Francisco — February 27, 2017 — FOVE, the creators of the world’s first eye tracking virtual reality headset, announced at the Game Developers Conference (GDC) that they are showing a foveated rendering demo running AMD MultiRes Rendering on Radeon™ graphics hardware for the first time. The VR demo showcases a rendering technique that only renders at full resolution to the part of the screen that user is actually looking at, and uses lower resolutions at the periphery of one’s field of view. The result is a rendering solution that closely matches human vision, preserving crisp details where needed while reducing computing power to maintain the demanding frame rates of VR.
Unlike other VR headsets currently on the market, the FOVE 0 tracks the user’s eye and head movement. This unique ability enables Radeon™ graphics cards to know where the user is looking and take advantage of that information to implement a technique known as MultiRes Rendering. “What FOVE gives us is something we’ve never had before,” said Daryl Sartain, AMD’s Director of VR. “The ability to know precisely where the user is looking at any moment is a crucial feature that enables us to accurately render high-resolution images where it matters.”
Dependent on factors such as screen resolution and the complexity of the scene being drawn, the benefits of AMD MultiRes Rendering can be striking. Using the FOVE 0 HMD, with its 2550 x 1440 resolution, the team was able to achieve a baseline GPU improvement of 30% versus standard rendering. In some parts of the demo, they even saw improvements of over 100%, effectively more than doubling the framerate. “As an industry, we are all still learning about foveated rendering,” said Lochlainn Wilson, CTO of FOVE, “but these early improvements are very real and very exciting.”
Also involved in achieving such significant gains was Frima, the Quebec City-based developer who has been working on innovative VR efforts for some time. “It all started when we realized that we perceived detail only within about 5 degrees around the direction we are looking (Microsoft research).” Said Jean-Philippe Doiron, Frima’s director of technology, “I now strongly believe that foveated rendering will be a fundamental for tomorrow’s experiences. For a while we were talking to FOVE about working together, so when the chance came to use our VR skills in Unreal and work directly with AMD, we didn’t hesitate.”
For more information on FOVE or to purchase the headset, please visit getfove.com or follow the company on Facebook and Twitter. Additional company assets are available here.
Founded in May 2014, FOVE is the world’s first eye tracking virtual reality headset aiming to revolutionize the entertainment, education, gaming and medical industries with gaze control in virtual reality interfaces. FOVE completed the Microsoft Ventures London Accelerator Program in December 2014, and was a semi-finalist at TechCrunch Disrupt Battlefield in 2014. FOVE raised over $480K through its Kickstarter campaign in 2015, and most recently raised $11 Million in Series A funding.
For more than 45 years AMD has driven innovation in high-performance computing, graphics and visualization technologies ― the building blocks for gaming, immersive platforms, and the datacenter. Hundreds of millions of consumers, leading Fortune 500 businesses and cutting-edge scientific research facilities around the world rely on AMD technology daily to improve how they live, work and play. AMD employees around the world are focused on building great products that push the boundaries of what is possible. For more information about how AMD is enabling today and inspiring tomorrow, visit the AMD (NASDAQ: AMD) website, blog, and Facebook and Twitter pages.
Frima is a leader in the entertainment and innovation industry. Since its creation in 2003, the company has developed a wide range of digital products, from video games to visual effects and animation. Frima’s know-how also includes virtual reality, augmented reality, and connected toys. In addition to working in close collaboration with such prominent partners as LEGO, Mattel, Zynga, Ubisoft, Hasbro, and Electronic Arts, Frima’s original property division has released several hit titles, the likes of Chariot, Nun Attack, Zombie Tycoon, and FATED.
Jim Preston, 415-240-4715


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TracFone Scores the Samsung S425G Slider
Samsung today revealed the S425G for TracFone, a sideways slider that includes a full QWERTY keyboard in addition to a standard numerical keypad. The S425G offers a 2.4-inch display with 240 x 320 pixels and runs a Java-based operating system. Facebook, Twitter, and instant messaging applications are installed for keeping in touch. Other features of the S425G include a 2-megapixel camera with video capture, Bluetooth, speakerphone, music and video players, and support for microSD cards up to 32GB. Pricing and availability have yet to be announced.
Jul 13, 2020
US carriers have launched a flurry of new entry-level phones from LG and Samsung in recent weeks. The phones include three new models from each of the two manufacturers.
Apr 4, 2018
Facebook today made significant changes to its platform as it continues to deal with the fallout from the Cambridge Analytica breach. To start, the company now believes Cambridge Analytica was given improper access to the data of as many as 87 million people, mostly U.S.
May 1, 2018
Facebook today made a significant number of additions to its platform that will lead to more features for end users over time. For example, a new tool will allow Facebook users to post to their Facebook Stories directly through third-party apps.
Jun 18, 2019
Facebook today announced Libra, a new digital currency that aims to combine the best features of other cryptocurrencies in order to be more consumer-friendly. The currency will be administered by the Libra Association, a new non-for-profit based in Geneva.
Jun 13, 2018
Twitter today announced a number of changes to the way it arranges tweets, trends, and topics in order to help people find and read about the things that interest them. For example, breaking news will now be added to the Happening Now tool that appears at the top of users' feeds.
Better known as the "Evergreen" for AT&T
It's a good phone for the money,


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DJ Zinhle Celebrates The Success of Her Face Masks Business Venture. DJ Zinhle gives hope to black women out there because, everything she touches turns platinum. Over the years Zinhle has been launching a number businesses, and all of them are lucrative. The business minded personality is not about to stop anytime soon.
Two weeks ago DJ Zinhle announced that she is launching her own brand of face masks. The award winning DJ, TV personality and businesswoman found a gap in the industry and went in full force. Guess what, the masks are sold out and she is looking into producing more.
The masks come in different colours and sizes. Zinhle and her baby daughter Kairo, modeled the masks making them an instant hit on social media.
“I would like to THANK YOU all for your support. Our masks are SOLD OUT. We’re working hard to make sure we meet the demand & the masks will be restocked on Wednesday. To avoid disappointment, please preorder at http://jirehwellness.co.za“


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Chinese electronics manufacturer Oppo has announced that they will have a presence at Mobile World Congress next month, where they will announce new camera and power solutions for mobile.
Oppo has already announced their F series phones which will feature an improved camera experience on a more modest budget, and they already have an excellent recharge option with their VOOC charging, but their announcement promises they will ‘unveil a groundbreaking power solution and an unprecedented smartphone camera innovation that will offer tomorrow’s consumers a reinvigorated user experience’.
The announcement comes after Oppo announced they sold over 50 million handsets in 2015, and improvements in these areas should move more in 2016.
Oppo has often leveraged their ability to bring new technology to market first, a fact addressed by OPPO Vice President and Managing Director of International Mobile Business, Mr Sky Li, who said
With our commitment to equip everyday consumers with the best technology, OPPO invests great efforts in technological innovation. We have a legacy of bringing new ideas to the industry that we are proud to uphold, such as introducing the world’s first motorized rotating camera, the fast and safe VOOC Flash Charge technology, the first front-facing Screen Flash, and the first selfie beautify function for smartphones. We are excited to present OPPO’s latest breakthroughs at the world-class MWC and look forward to creating even more amazing user experiences.
The announcement will seemingly be made at a press event in Barcelona, but details on the event haven’t yet been made public. Chris will be on the ground at Mobile World Congress and we’re reaching out to Oppo for an invitation to their event so we can check out these new innovations.


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Starbucks Manager Called The Cops On Black Men Two Minutes After They Arrived For A Business Meeting
Starbucks is not having a good week.
According to the Huff Post, Rashon Nelson and Donte Robinson revealed that the manager called the police on them two minutes after they arrived at the store!
They told the hosts of Good Morning America that they walked into Starbucks at approximately 4:35 p.m. Rashon said he asked the manager if he could use the bathroom as soon as he entered the store, but was told it was for “paying” customers only.
He said he didn’t put up a fuss and “left it at that” and went to the table with his friend to wait for their friend to arrive for their 4:45 p.m. business meeting.
The manager approached them and asked if they wanted to order something, according to Donte. They ended up saying no and and at approximately 4:37 p.m. the manager called 911.
When they cops arrived Donte said his initial reaction was ,″They can’t be here for us.”
“As soon as they approached us, they just said we had to leave,” Nelson said. “There was no question of, you know, ’Was there a problem here between you and the manager? [or] ‘What happened?’”
Police never told them why they were being arrested and taken out.
“We wasn’t read any rights, nothing,” Robinson said. “Just double-lock handcuffs behind our backs and escorted out and put into a squad car.”
Video of their arrest went viral which prompted Starbucks CEO to issue an apology to the two men.
Starbucks plans to close all of U.S. stores next month so employees can undergo proper racial bias training.
Rashon and Donte have since met with Starbucks executives to find ways to make sure something like this never happens again.
“This is something that has been going on for years and everyone’s blind to it, but they know what’s going on, if you get what I mean” Nelson said. He also said that he and Robinson hope to “help people understand that it’s not just a black people thing ― it’s a people thing. That’s what we want to see out of this and that’s true change.”


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This past Thursday, Congress passed the Sunscreen Innovation Act. The bill’s purpose is to speed up the FDA review process of active sunscreen filter ingredients that are already being used in sunscreens sold in Europe and Canada but not in the USA. Consider this a big win for the all Americans and the skin care industry.
The FDA has been known to drag their feet when it comes to approving pending sunscreen ingredients. The last one approved by them was way back in 2006! So there has been no meaningful innovation in terms of how sunscreen products work to block the harmful UVA/UVB sunrays for almost a decade. The new law requires that the FDA reduce the bureaucratic review process of new sunscreen applications, as well as streamline the review of applications for ingredients that have already been used safely for at least 5 years in another country.
With new skin cancer rates hitting two million cases and almost ten thousand deaths a year, the Sunscreen Innovation Act will pave the way for Americans to fight a highly preventable disease. The FDA has only approved 3 active sunscreen ingredients that block UVA, the rays that penetrate deeper into the skin which can cause premature aging and skin cancer, while the European Union has 7 approved ingredients.
Americans can be assured that the skincare industry will be fast on producing any new sunscreen products with the new actives once approved by the FDA. The companies whose ingredients have been awaiting a FDA review are Ashland Inc., BASF, and L’Oreal.


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As part of strategies aimed at wooing prospective phone users and other electronic devices, a telecommunication service centre, Infinix Mobility Nigeria, has organised a road show across its various outlets in Lagos.
Speaking during one of such activations at the popular computer village in Ikeja, the Trade Sales Manager, network Operator Account of the outfit, Mr. Shobanjo Adebayo, said the road show was informed by the need to bring into focus the numerous offerings on its stable.
He added that one unique thing about the activation is the reward scheme arranged for customers who win after partaking in games with Infinix android mobile devices ranging from Joypad, Surf smart, Race, Race lite, Buzz, Race bolt offered as gifts to customers who participated in the event.
Shobanjo explained that the new range of products brought into the market by the company comes with better features and affordable pricing when compared with other similar products.
"We are organising this give-away road show in order to make Nigerians know about our offerings. Even though, we have most of these devices in the market, we have brought them with better features and at an affordable pricing. As I speak, we have offices located in Saka Tinubu, Adeola Odeku, Megaplaza as well as computer Village. We are in this market to make a difference," he said.
Shobanjo, however, urged Nigerians to take advantage of the unique opportunity to experience its wide range of offering. Asked on whether its business was restricted to Lagos, he noted that the company has services spread across major cities in Nigeria including Port Harcourt, Kano, Kaduna and Abuja.
He added that the firm has a partnership arrangement with MTN to offer its SIM card alongside six month internet access to whoever makes a purchase of its devices. Commenting on the availability of after sales service, he said all its devices have been accompanied with a platinum card that entitles the owner a 365 days warranty adding that this would afford them privilege of a VIP customer care service.
Vice-President, Infinix Mobility, Mr. Jean Alexis, said, "we are having this event with the brand spirit of challenging the norms, Infinix smart devices are designed specifically for young people who want to stand out, reach out and in sync with the world.
"It inspires your daily life, with access to key features that young people look for, such as social networking, access to thousands of free apps and entertainment," he said.


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New Albany test drives farmers flea market
The New Albany Farmers Market celebrated Halloween and the end of the harvest season on Saturday with pumpkin painting, a costume contest, a ribbon cutting and the debut of a new feature.
Farmers Flea on the Green, an area for vendors selling commercial products or other items not normally seen at the weekly market, debuted Saturday, setting up in the green space directly across Market Street from the farmers market pavilion.
“We are a producer market,” said market director Susan Kaempfer. “If you make or grow what you sell, we want you to be part of our market. But we’ve had a lot of requests for other things, too. So we started the Farmers Flea for people who don’t actually make what they sell, like Tupperware and things like that.”
Fifteen vendors set up in the inaugural flea.
“Today was a trial run,” Kaempfer said. “We won’t do it again until next season. We’d like to have 30 vendors over there.”
The New Albany Farmers Market has expanded over the years, growing from only three vendors a dozen years ago, to upward of 70 during the summer peak season. Consequently, the market has overflowed its one pavilion, leaving some vendors more exposed to the elements.
A newly expanded pavilion was officially opened with a ribbon cutting. The new covered space connects to the original structure, creating a U-shaped pavilion called New Albany City Square, which will provide cover for over 30 vendors.
“We’re not going to be adding more vendors,” said Kaempfer. “We’re going to be able to provide shelter for more of our existing vendors.”
According to Floyd County historian David Barksdale, the city’s farmers market “dates back to 1820, and from what I gather, that means continuous.”
Three market houses were included on the original plat of the city laid out by the Scribner brothers when they founded the town.
“There were market houses in the median of Market Street,” he said. “Develop New Albany and Susan Kaempfer really saved this market.”
Mayor Jeff Gahan said the expanded pavilion, funded by the city, “sets the course to keep the tradition going well into the future.”
The events also marked the last day of the market’s full operating schedule. A skeleton crew of vendors will continue to operate in the pavilion from 10 a.m. to noon every Saturday.
“We’ll run that way until after Derby,” Kaempfer said. “We’ll have meat, eggs, milk and some winter veggies. Last year, we have six or so vendors who operated all winter.”
JoAnn Hughes and Marie Bunce, of Greenville, intend to shop every Saturday through the winter.
“We come every week year round,” Hughes said. “We love the people and we like the food. The quality is excellent.”


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It currently boasts 200 hectares of industrial and commercial development and employs more than 5700 people in more than 400 businesses. So what’s next for the ever-growing Tauriko Business Estate, and just how big will it get? Zoe Hunter reports.
Tauriko Business Estate could be the most sought-after industrial and commercial land in Tauranga, with a flood of city businesses choosing to leave behind smaller workshops to move into the rapidly expanding business hub.
Right now, a $400 million plasterboard manufacturing and distribution plant is taking shape on a 12-hectare plot of land. A mega-mall that already fills 35,000 square metres with retail and hospitality businesses is also looking to expand later this year.
There are currently about 200ha of industrial and commercial development, more than 400 businesses and 5700-plus people employed within Tauriko Business Estate.
And it’s still growing.
Building consents valued at nearly $78m were issued last year for building projects in the area.
Once complete, Tauriko Business Estate will cover about 300ha of industrial and commercial development, have more than 16,000 employees and more than 1000 businesses.
But there is still a lot of work to be done on transport infrastructure to open up more land for development.
The next stages
Tauriko Business Estate director Bryce Donne says more than 80 per cent of businesses in the area are local companies that have expanded and need more space.
Others have arrived from out of town, including newcomer Winstone Wallboards’ Gib plant, which has the biggest spot in the business estate on 12.8ha of land - and global electronics and manufacturing company Brother, which moved its headquarters to Tauriko in 2016.
Donne says many companies moving to to Tauriko Business Estate want to operate owner-occupier models, which means the average size of buildings sought by those businesses is getting “significantly bigger”.
Businesses like the estate because it’s an area where “they feel they are building value in their business and their land”.
Earthworks for the business estate first began in 2006 and “Stage 3A” is now being developed.
Donne says Stage 3 was “by far” the fastest-selling stage of the development.
“We sold them all in about a week.”
About 25 of the stage’s 30 titles are about to be issued, he says.
“About 75 per cent of them are intending to build immediately. I expect the council is going to get heaps of consent applications.
“You will see things springing up here quite soon.”
Stage 4 will provide up to 100 extra hectares of industrial land.
However, further development is constrained until the State Highway 29 connection at Redwood Lane is in place.
Donne says the estate is working with Tauranga City Council and Waka Kotahi New Zealand Transport Agency, and consulting with nearby landowners, to “get that linked up as fast as we can”.
Growth is ‘revitalising’
Damian and Catherine Fleming moved their business Bayride Motorcycles into Tauriko Business Estate three weeks ago.
Their new store on Matakokiri Drive is four times the size of their original business on Cameron Rd.
One of the biggest reasons for the move, Damian Fleming says, was space.
“We could not get the kind of space we needed in the middle of the city. Our new site is amazing.
“It is revitalising the space that is out here. It feels like our wings have opened.”
The move was eight years in the making, he says.
Their business had suffered a “huge decline” in foot traffic on Carmeron Rd over the past 18 months due to roadworks and limited parking.
“It just wasn’t working. Our future in the city was just over, which was a real shame.
“This gives us a 10-year plan and security.”
Fleming said the new “bigger and better” store was attracting new customers from out-of-town places such as Rotorua, Taupō, Matamata and Whakatāne.
“It is just so easy to get to.”
It has also been exciting seeing customers from the Cameron Rd store walk in with big smiles, he said.
“Hundreds of our existing customers have come in to check us out and are pretty much high-fiving us. They are surprised to see how big it is.”
Fleming says they have also expanded the business to include marine products, with new Yamaha WaveRunner personal watercraft as well as e-bikes and more clothing and accessories.
About a dozen people are employed at Bayride Motorcycles Tauriko store, and Fleming said the new site meant there was an opportunity to increase staff numbers.
Winstone Wallboards’ programme lead Stewart Vaughan says building and infrastructure works and mechanical and electrical installation of the plasterboard line at its new Gib plant are about 90 per cent complete.
It is also about halfway through building the batch plaster and compounds plants, he says.
Vaughan says it has filled all of its roles, and on-boarded two of four intakes of new staff, with the final intake starting in May.
The proximity to the Port of Tauranga, major road networks, and groundwater capacity needed to support its manufacturing process were key reasons for choosing to build at Tauriko Business Estate, he says.
Vaughan says the company was impressed with the work done to reconfigure part of Tauriko Business Estate’s Stage 3 development to accommodate its 12.8ha site within the timeframes needed.
“But it was more than that. What struck us was that real sense of being part of a development centred around community partnerships, all aimed at creating a wealth of economic benefits and job opportunities to enrich the region.”
It plans to progressively bring its product range online from April this year.
“We are aiming to have our first saleable standard board product available at the end of May.”
It plans to be fully operational at the end of October. A separate processing plant on the same site that manufactures the Gib plaster compounds range is scheduled to be commissioned in late September or early October.
Brother New Zealand has installed a solar energy system consisting of 168 x 455-watt solar panels at its Tauriko-based warehouse and offices.
The technology company expects to reduce energy emissions at the site by 43.5 per cent as it makes the most of the Bay of Plenty’s high-ranking sunshine hours and growing options for commercial solar-powered systems to generate over 90,000 kilowatt hours a year, emissions-free, on its roof.
It expects to recoup the initial outlay of around $120,000 within seven years through power generation.
The 6656sq m building in Tauriko houses Brother’s printing, labelling, sewing and craft products and a 45-strong workforce.
Brother New Zealand managing director Warwick Beban says the initiative is good for the environment and the business.
“It feels good to see this idea come to fruition. Knowing that a good portion of the electricity we use comes from clean, renewable energy that we generate ourselves helps us extend that commitment further into our business operations.”
Brother opened its new head office and warehouse at Tauriko Business Estate in 2014 after it commissioned Deloitte to evaluate all cities with ports throughout New Zealand. Tauranga was recommended for reasons including port access, real estate and living costs, and seismic and tsunami risks in alternative locations.
Tauranga Crossing chief executive Lauren Riley says the first stage of the lifestyle centre, which includes Gilmour’s, Bed, Bath and Beyond, and Farmers, opened in November 2018, with the next stage due to open towards the end of 2023.
It was currently building immediately next to Farmers and expected to announce stores later in the year.
Riley says the 35,000sq m shopping mall included more than 125 stores and eateries, with the lifestyle centre expansion expected to bring new 5760sq m and 850sq m large format retail stores and 185 car parks. The mall employed more than 1000 locals in part-time and full-time jobs across retail, entertainment, and food and beverage outlets.
“The number of jobs we create for the community will continue to grow as we grow.
“We are planning further stages for Tauranga Crossing shopping and lifestyle centres, and look forward to sharing further updates as we finalise plans.”
Tauriko in hot demand
Tauriko commercial and industrial sales consultant at Property Brokers, Philip Hunt, says despite being slightly affected by the “downturn” of the market, owner-occupiers are still keen to buy and have “substantial interest” in tenants.
“I have never seen tenant inquiries so strong.”
Hunt says inquiries are coming from “all sorts” of businesses either relocating from out of town or older industrial areas, plus others who had outgrown their home offices and wanted to move into small industrial units at Tauriko.
“The demand just seems to be getting greater and greater as we grow,” he says.
“We are in a unique bubble here.”
The “trucking hub” being built opposite Winstone Wallboard’s site is going to add “major benefits” to the logistics industry as it’s so close to the Port of Tauranga, he says.
Bayleys Tauranga commercial manager Mark Walton says there has been a severe shortage of industrial-zoned land in Tauranga and the Western Bay of Plenty in the last five years, and Tauriko Business Estate is popular with tenants wanting land within a manageable distance to the Port of Tauranga.
“Tauriko Business Estate is the only industrial subdivision in greater Tauranga that provides vacant land options of any scale.”
The number of inquiries for industrial buildings over 2000sq m in the last few months in transport, logistics and warehousing is “huge”, but there is very little supply, he says.
“Most new land out at Tauriko Business Estate is tightly held, and there have been limited releases of new sites over the last two years.”
Walton says the industrial category has been the most attractive for investors in the last few years, and Tauriko Business Estate has delivered “exceptional” capital growth over a sustained period.
“High occupier demand and a secure growth pipeline make property near the Port of Tauranga a sound investment bet.”
Vacancy rates for leased properties at Tauriko Business Estate are possibly the “lowest we’ve seen”, with no options over 750sq m that are built and ready for immediate occupation, and he recommended tenants with larger requirements begin considering their options 12 to 18 months before their lease expiry.
“We are working with a significant volume of tenants on design-build projects, which contrasts to previous years where tenants have expected to find tenant-ready built options.”
$78m in building consents
Tauranga City Council team leader of structure planning and strategic transport, Alistair Talbot, says the council has received 50 building consents valued at nearly $72m, plus 56 amendments valued at about $6m, between February 2022 and 2023 for building projects in Tauriko Business Estate - a total value of nearly $78m.
It has received seven consents and nine amendments in the last three months.
Talbot says it is working with the main land owner to identify what is needed for a Private Plan Change proposed to rezone land in the lower Belk Rd area to allow for the extension of Tauriko Business Estate.
It is also working towards public notification of the proposal to rezone land at Tauriko West in mid-2023.
“There will also be further opportunities for the local community to have input into the final details of the plan change, as well as roading connections and stormwater plans before the rezoning is complete.”
The council will also liaise with Waka Kotahi on long-term plans for SH29 and SH29A throughout the process. It is also in the early stages of scoping potential for rezoning the Keenan Rd area to allow for growth.
In September, Tauranga’s Western Corridor was selected as a potential Specified Development Project (SPD) area by Kāinga Ora, which could speed up much-needed development.
The proposed project area under assessment includes Tauriko West, Keenan Rd and Tauriko Business Estate’s Lower Belk Rd extension.
Proposals for the wider area include the development of new housing and employment areas, an improved transport network and community facilities, including schools and amenities such as green spaces.
Kāinga Ora’s national manager of specified development projects, Bryan Patchett, said its project team has been identifying constraints and opportunities relevant to the project under the Urban Development Act and engaging with Tauranga City Council, Waka Kotahi and other agencies, as well as meeting with mana whenua.
“We have met with key developers within the proposed Specified Development Project area to help us understand how an SDP will relate to other projects in progress, including at Tauriko Business Estate.
“In December, we wrote to land owners to provide further information on the process. As we continue to work through the SDP assessment process, we expect the public engagement phase to occur later this year.”


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Time: Apr 21-24,2020
Location: Karlsruhe, Germany
Germany Karlsruhe Paintexpo international coatings show is organized by Germany Karlsruhe international exhibition company, exhibition next two years, the exhibition is open the Germany market an important platform, Karlsruhe, Germany international paint Paintexpo previous attracted 537 exhibitors from exhibition, number of customers reached 12000, the exhibition is held in Karlsruhe, conference and exhibition center Messe Karlsruhe, the exhibition area of 17500 square.
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64.73 tons of problematic food seized in Qinghai Province
Introduction to phenol: weak market of phenol in China on November 12
Market fluctuation of domestic phthalic anhydride market on November 12
On November 12, the market focus of domestic toluene market rose
Slight increase in domestic pure benzene market on November 12
Acetone Guide: November 12, the focus of domestic acetone market is high


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McCains has sold its potato processing factory at Penola in South Australia, to the dismay of some local growers.
Meat company Midfield Group has purchased the plant, which ceased operation last year.
The deal has come as a surprise to growers, who were negotiating with McCains to buy the facility themselves.
The farmers currently rely on the site for storage.
Potatoes SA chief executive Robbie Davis says the growers are incredibly disappointed.
"They had formed a consortium to purchase the site.
"The consortium had worked on this for probably a period of ten months," she said.
"They lost that fight at the eleventh hour."
She says a great deal of time and money went into planning the purchase.
In a statement to ABC Rural, the Midfield Group says it will honour a five-year agreement with McCain to store up to 40,000 tonnes of potatoes on the site.
It will release more detail about its plans for the site early next year, after discussions with the local community.


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Google's Dead Wrong If It Thinks Broadband Caps Won't Hurt Game Streaming
from the do-not-pass-go,-do-not-collect-$200 dept
For a decade we’ve pointed out how broadband providers have increasingly imposed arbitrary, confusing, and punitive usage caps and overage fees to cash in on the lack of competition in US broadband. Not only have industry executives admitted these limits aren’t technically necessary, they’ve increasingly been abused anti-competitively. AT&T, for example, doesn’t impose the limits on its broadband customers who use its streaming video service (DirecTV Now), but will impose the added charges if you use a competitor like Netflix.
For years, ISPs have slowly deployed these unnecessary limits, hoping consumers wouldn’t notice they’re the frog in the slowly boiling pot of water. But as higher-bandwidth services like 4K video streaming have arrived, consumers have started to notice the unnecessary limits in greater numbers. But, however tight caps may become with 4K Netflix, that’s nothing compared to what’s going to happen as companies like Google begin pushing game streaming services like Stadia, which eliminate local game hardware, move all processing power to the cloud, and then stream everything to the end user.
Early analysis suggests that at full 4K, users will burn through Comcast’s monthly 1 terabyte usage cap in a matter of just three days. Many ISPs have far lower caps; AT&T for example imposes a 150 GB monthly cap on the majority of its DSL customers, who then have to pay $10 per each additional 50 GB of data consumed. It’s fairly obvious that as game streaming expands, users are going to be looking at some significant sticker shock (which, from the ISP perspective, was the whole point).
Enter Google executive Phil Harrison, who this week in an interview was asked about the impact broadband caps will have on the company’s game streaming ambitions. Harrison suggested the company isn’t worried, though his justifications for that confidence are laughable:
“ISPs are smart [and] they understand that they?re in the business of keeping customers happy and keeping customers with them for a long time.”
LOL, what? US broadband providers have the worst customer satisfaction ratings of any industry in America because they lack real competition in most of their markets. When you consider that means toppling the likes of the airlines, banking, insurance, and medical sectors, that’s no small feat. ISPs don’t have to “keep customers happy,” because there’s no penalty for not doing so. These customers usually have no alternatives to switch to, and rampant regulatory capture means there’s no real penalty from regulators for bad behavior either.
Harrison’s theory rests entirely on the false idea that ISPs will be shamed into raising usage caps:
“The ISPs have a strong history of staying ahead of consumer trend and if you look at the history of data caps in those small number of markets–and it?s actually a relatively small number of markets that have [data caps]–the trend over time, when music streaming and download became popular, especially in the early days when it was not necessarily legitimate, data caps moved up. Then with the evolution of TV and film streaming, data caps moved up, and we expect that will continue to be the case.”
Harrison’s wrong here too. Comcast is the country’s biggest broadband provider, and is increasingly nabbing a monopoly in more and more markets thanks to telcos that refuse to upgrade aging DSL lines. In the last decade, Comcast has raised its usage cap exactly one time since it was implemented, from 300 GB to 1 terabyte in 2016. Numerous other ISPs, with caps as low as 50 GB, have been just as stubborn. US ISPs already charge some of the highest rates in the developed world. Usage caps and overage fees are just double dipping on captive customers.
It’s like Harrison is basing his entire argument on a reality that doesn’t exist. To stay ahead of game streaming, ISPs like Comcast would need to raise their caps exponentially to 10 terabytes or even higher. But that would defeat the entire reason ISPs imposed these limits in the first place (read: make even more money off of emerging new services). You can’t shame natural monopolies into doing the right thing. Even if the inevitable stories blasting usage caps do force ISPs to raise caps, the new limits are going to be chosen based entirely on how to make the most possible revenue from captive customers.
Harrison also tries to claim in the interview that this will all work out thanks to 5G, which ignores that 5G isn’t some competitive panacea, is barely available, and in most instances will cost users significantly more money, while bringing some obnoxious, creative restrictions (Verizon already bans 4K video on its “unlimited” wireless data connections, for example). That’s before we even get to net neutrality, a concept Google hasn’t actually supported in any meaningful capacity since 2010 or so. Most ISPs are busy testing their own game streaming services and, like video, are likely to exempt those services from caps while still penalizing competing services like Google Stadia.
Harrison may just be naive, or he may believe that Google is big and powerful enough to buy ISPs off should they try to get in the way of Stadia. But, either way, consumers are inevitably going to be seeing some bandwidth sticker shock as they blow through their usage caps. And with little competition and no meaningful oversight, “public shame” isn’t likely to have nearly the impact Harrison seems to believe it will.


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On October 24 and 25, the commerce ministers from 13 WTO member countries will gather in Ottawa to discuss reforms to the intergovernmental organization. Canadian Minister of International Trade Diversification Jim Carr will host the meeting, during which ministers will discuss how to enhance WTO`s efficiency in the long run. Notably, the US and China, the world`s two biggest economies, are excluded from the gathering.
The forthcoming meeting certainly reflects the anxieties of the rest of the world in this round of trade conflicts, with the escalating Beijing-Washington tension in the spotlight. With the super fast growth over the past 40 years, China has become the second largest economy in the world. In particular, China was the largest exporter in 2017. Although China adopts similar export-oriented models like other East Asian countries, such as Japan, Singapore, and South Korea, China`s rise makes a huge difference for the international order both economically and politically because of its giant size. The fish pond is now getting more crowded with two big fish rather than one, namely, the United States itself. Even worse, the trade conflict of the two countries further squeezes the rest of the world into the tight space.
With the dispute settlement and rule-based system as its pillars, WTO is the symbol of multilateral trade negotiation agreements. The multilateral system works well for settlements among smaller economies or settlements between small economies and the big ones, and this is feasible and beneficial in this setting.
WTO isn`t very effective in dealing with the tariff war waged by the US against China, as the US could easily ignore the restrictions, and dishonor the rules by taking advantage of being the largest economy in the world. This might partially explain why the US has put aside WTO to directly talk to China. From the point of view, WTO is simply not a useful tool in US-China negotiations.
With the fall of WTO`s efficiency and the rise of trade protectionism from the US, what will the global trade order look like in the near future? The answer to this question surely depends on what US President Donald Trump really would like to do. So far, more evidence points to the direction that President Trump ideally hopes to rebuild the complete industrial production chain within the country to bring jobs back to the US, especially bring jobs back from China. In other words, he wants to change the global value chain into the “US value chain.”
However, the concept of the “US value chain” is not in any economic sense to bring benefits to the US economy to a national extent. It is simply against the cornerstone of international trade order-comparative advantage and production specialization. Thus, as expected, it would face a lot of resistance even inside the US. For example, America`s comparative advantage is not in the labor-intensive industry. A T-shirt, which is domestically produced in the US, would be much more expensive than the “Made-in-China” one.
It seems more feasible that the US could pursue to push the global value productions outside China and spread them into other smaller economies as a way to restrict China.
However, once again, it is not an easy or smooth path. Given China`s size, it would be extremely difficult for the US to find out enough new destinations to completely replace China`s role in the current global production chain.


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Nissan has extended its suspension of production in Russia through the first half of the business year that started April 1.
While speaking during Nissan’s annual general meeting, chief executive Makoto Uchida said the decision was made due to there being little prospect of the situation improving.
“We believe this situation could become more serious and prolonged,” a Nissan spokesman said while quoting Uchida.
Read Also: This Is The Home-Charger That Nissan Ariya Owners Will Be Using
Nissan first suspended production in Russia in March, shortly after the invasion of Ukraine started but it isn’t showing any signs of completely cutting ties with the country.
In fact, Reuters reports that just 2.4 per cent of Japanese companies operating in Russia have cut ties since the start of the invasion on February 24. Nissan’s alliance partner Renault has withdrawn from Russia despite once having a significant presence there through its majority ownership of AvtoVAZ.
In mid-May, Nissan revealed that it had written-off its Russian business in its forecast for the next fiscal year ending March 31, 2023, taking a 52.6 billion yen ($499 million) financial hit from its Russian and Ukrainian operations.
“There are many uncertainties over the impact of the geopolitical issues surrounding Russia and Ukraine, which may have a material impact on the Group’s financial position and operating results for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2023, and thereafter,” Nissan said at the time, noting that the lack of sales in Russia would have a “material impact” on its 2023 financial year results.
Nissan operates a factory in St. Petersburg where it builds the X-Trail, Murano, Qashqai, and Terrano. The facility has an annual capacity of 100,000 vehicles.


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Walmart-backed Indian payments services firm PhonePe is in advanced stages of talks to acquire Samsung-backed Indus OS, a startup that operates an eponymous third-party Android app store, a source familiar with the matter told TechCrunch.
The deal values Noida-headquartered Indus OS at $60 million, the source said, requesting anonymity as the matter is private. The deal has yet to close. PhonePe and Indus OS didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Indian news outlet Entrackr first reported about the development.
Indus OS powers several popular third-party Android stores including Samsung’s Galaxy Store and provides partners with localized content and apps.
Late last year, Indus OS said it offered its partners 400,000 apps in English and 12 Indian languages. The seven-year-old startup, which has raised about $21 million to date and monetizes through ads, has amassed over 100 million users.
The startup plans to launch an app store for individual users once Google begins accepting third-party app stores, another source familiar with the matter said.
It remains unclear why PhonePe is interested in Indus OS’ offering. The Bangalore-based startup has long offered its own mini app store on its app. A handful of firms — including PhonePe rival Paytm — have either launched or explored launching their own mini app stores in recent months.


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If you’re an AT&T mobile customer, and you have some extra bitcoin lying around that you’re not doing anything with, you can now use it to pay your phone bill.
AT&T just became the first big US wireless carrier to announce that its customers can now use cryptocurrency to make payments, as greater acceptance of this digital medium of exchange can be seen at companies ranging from AT&T to cable provider Dish, which also lets its customers pay via cryptocurrency. Likewise, Facebook on Friday garnered headlines over a report that it’s set to launch its own cryptocurrency for use on the social network early next year.
About AT&T’s move, all customers need to do is select the BitPay option at MyAT&T. BitPay is an Atlanta-based bitcoin payment service provider, and it’s also worth noting: This is an option that only currently works online and via the myAT&T app, so it’s not as yet available for in-store payments.
“We’re always looking for ways to improve and expand our services,” said Kevin McDorman, vice president, AT&T Communications Finance Business Operations, in a statement about the new payment option. “We have customers who use cryptocurrency, and we are happy we can offer them a way to pay their bills with the method they prefer.”
There are of course a slew of different cryptocurrency options out there, and AT&T’s announcement doesn’t specify a particular kind. BitPay’s website, though, notes that currencies it supports include Bitcoin, Gemini USD, and Paxos, to name a few.
As of now, it’s a safe bet to assume that crypto payments will probably remain a small minority of AT&T’s customer payment mix for the near future. That’s thanks to everything from the general public’s unfamiliarity with the digital asset to obstacles like its fees and high volatility, the latter being two of the most frequent criticisms you hear.
Still, expect to keep hearing more announcements like this as companies keep experimenting. Just a few weeks ago, for example, retailers like Whole Foods and GameStop likewise announced they’ll be getting in on the act too, accepting cryptocurrency through the Flexa payment network.


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Listed automobile sector’s profits surge 4.6 times in FY21
KARACHI: The listed automobile sector posted outstanding financial results during FY21, as their net profitability increased 4.6 times on a year-on-year basis.
Arsalan Hanif at Arif Habib Limited attributed the jump in profits to low policy rate, helping car sales to increase drastically, as auto financing has increased Rs97 billion during FY21 and low base effect, amid lockdown announced country-wide, which restricted the economic activity.
“[The] rapid growth in [the] economic activity and appreciation of [the] rupee against regional currencies improving gross margins of the listed companies resulted in 62 per cent increase in the automobile sales in FY21 to 181,386 units, compared with 112,266 units in FY20.”
Likewise, tractor sales increased 56 per cent during FY21 to 50,656 units, compared with 32,531 units in the same period of the last year.
The revenues of the automobile sector increased 77 per cent to Rs574 billion during FY21, compared with Rs324 billion in the previous year.
“[The] sales revenue increased due to rising demand on the back of improving purchasing power parity, higher inflows of foreign remittances, and higher prices of vehicles, compared with the same period last year.”
Profitability of the automobile parts manufacturers grew in line with the assemblers due to improvement in the margins of all the listed players given massive demand from automobile assemblers, economies of scale and currency appreciation against the greenback, resulting in a surge in gross margins.
Indus Motors profits recorded a significant jump of 152 per cent to Rs12.82 billion in FY21 versus Rs5.082 billion in the preceding period last year.
The growth in profitability is attributable to volumetric growth of 102 per cent to 57,236 units (Yaris 28,295 units, Corolla 18,355 units, Fortuner 3,543 units, Hilux 7,043 units), compared with 28,378 units sold in the previous year.
Millat Tractors’ earnings settled at Rs5.78 billion, up 169 per cent, compared with Rs2.15 billion in FY20.
Pak Suzuki and Honda Cars goes from loss to profit in FY21, as the bottom-line of both the companies skyrocketed on account of massive decline in the finance cost given lower interest rate, drastic increase in volumes and higher other incomes given surge in advance from the customers.
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Italian luxury brand Gucci has announced that it will be making two separate donations to both a local and global crowdfunding campaigns, in order to do its part in stopping the spread of the novel coronavirus.
Gucci plans to contribute €1 million (approximately Dhs4.1 million) to the National Civil Protection Department via For Funding, an Italian crowdfunding platform by Intesa Sanpaolo. Anotherr million will go to the UN’s “COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund” to help the World Health Organization via a fundraising page on Facebook.
Links to both these fundraising initiatives will be featured on the brand’s website and promoted across its social media channels.
Gucci isn’t the first notable luxury brand to take a stance in the fight against COVID-19 and support the Italian healthcare system. Versace recently made a large contribution to hospitals in Milan, and a number of fashion houses such as Bvlgari and Louis Vuitton have repurposed their production centers to create hand sanitizer for hospitals.
Lead image courtesy of Jason Lloyd Evans


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Coming back: Convention centers in the Triad seeing rise in attendance
- Steve Ivey
- Staff writer
(Page 3 of 3)
Greensboro-based Internet marketing and product brokerage Market America recently brought 25,000 franchise owners and distributors — and a $25 million impact — to the Gate City. That’s up slightly from a year ago.
“We’ve had other cities court us to take our conventions,” said Anthony Akers, vice president of communications for Market America. “We have seen growth in our convention because people are looking for a way to supplement or replace their income with a franchise. And we want to keep that impact here.”
Reach Steve Ivey at (336) 370-2909 or email@example.com.
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The Delta Regional Authority (DRA) will invest nearly $200,000 into the El Dorado Incubator Environment – known as EDIE's Village – to provide support for entrepreneurs across Ashley, Bradley, Chicot, and Union counties in south Arkansas. Other contributors to the partnership include South Arkansas Community College and the Arkansas Women's Business Center hosted by Winrock International.
The investment, which totals a little more than $185,000, is being allocated through the DRA's States Economic Development Assistance Program. It will:
- Develop student-run business, expecting 25-30 students to participate in the program
- Launch retail space for 20 local entrepreneurs in a low-cost environment for businesses to sell products
- Leverage additional resources from the SBA and HUD
- Provide one-on-one business development and product marketing counseling for participating entrepreneurs
A report released last month by the DRA showed that small businesses have been the primary driver of job growth in the Delta area of Arkansas and the U.S. as larger employers have left the region. The study showed that more than 90% of the new net Delta jobs over the past 20 years have been created by local small businesses of nine or fewer employees.
“This investment honors the hard work of our region's small businesses and entrepreneurs,” said DRA Chairman Chris Masingill. “They are truly the lifeblood of the Delta economy – starting and expanding small businesses that create jobs in good times and in bad. Business incubators like EDIE's Village will be on the front lines of that growth, helping these businesses create jobs today and a stronger Delta economy for years to come.”
“This funding is opening the door-both figuratively and literally-to fantastic opportunities for area business students and budding entrepreneurs,” said Dr. Barbara Jones, President of South Arkansas Community College. It will be a capstone learning experience, and we're fortunate to be able to offer it in our community. We at SouthArk see EDIEs Village as an investment in our own economic future.”
The Delta Regional Authority is a federal-state partnership that is congressionally mandated to “help create jobs, build communities, and improve lives” in the 252 counties and parishes of the Delta across an eight-state region that includes Arkansas.


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An anonymous reader quotes a report from Insider: Netflix is killing its most interesting shows in their infancy and it could be the streaming giant’s downfall. In the seven years that Netflix has produced original content, the world of TV streaming has dramatically changed. Now Netflix is getting left behind in the race it started. Many of its unique and ambitious shows have been canceled before they could reach their full potential. And Netflix keeps churning out more shows each year, without replicating the breakout success of 2016’s “Stranger Things.”
Statements from executives have described the cancellations as the result of a cost analysis that tells Netflix a longer-running show won’t lead to new subscribers. Still, with syndicated shows such as “The Office” and “Friends” leaving its platform and a string of disappointing cancellations, including “Glow,” Netflix has set itself up for a disaster when it comes to its reputation as a TV-watcher’s must-have service. In 2020 alone, Netflix has canceled 18 original series. Of those, 14 had only one season. […] TV lovers in these fandoms can only be burned so many times before they stop investing. Why should a Netflix subscriber spend 10 hours watching a new show if there’s a decent chance they’ll never see it end?