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This story previously said that Spotify had disabled Google’s ad stack. A spokesperson for Spotify said the company got it wrong and only turned off Google’s order management system, Google Sales Manager.
Friction caused by the Google Sales Manager migration in July caused Spotify to report around $ 10 million in third-quarter revenue, the company said in its earnings call on Monday.
Despite growing 20% year-over-year to $ 189 million, Spotify’s ad-supported revenue fell short of expectations, said CFO Barry McCarthy, who will resign in 2020, at the ‘call. About 80% of those failures were due to “self-inflicted implementation and integration issues that we encountered with the deployment of new order management software,” the company said in a press release. .
“The underperformance in the quarter was related to our abandonment of the implementation of a new operating system,” said McCarthy. “We left the Google ad stack. I admit, miss, it’s embarrassing, but it’s not related to the strength of the company.
Spotify typically sells 99.5% of its inventory, but the digital audio platform currently supplies 97.5% of its inventory due to the deactivation of Google’s order management system, Google Sales Manager, which resulted in a combination. lost orders and insufficient deliveries. on other orders. He expects to return to normal sales figures by the fourth quarter.
The migration hit programmatic sales particularly hard, pushing programmatic growth from 65% yoy in the second quarter to 48% yoy in the third quarter. The success was mainly related to a slowdown in revenues from the private video market.
“The main thing I want you to know is that there was a demand for this product, but we just couldn’t deliver it on the site,” McCarthy said. “The advertising sector is very efficient today. “
Overall, Spotify’s revenue grew 28% year-on-year in the third quarter to $ 1.9 billion, with premium subscription revenue increasing 29% year-on-year to $ 1.7 billion. Monthly active users (MAU) grew 30% year-over-year to 248 million. Average revenue per user fell 1% to $ 5.18 due to changes in product mix and the company’s geographic spread.
The podcast boom
It’s still early days, but Spotify is seeing positive trends thanks to its major push into podcasting earlier this year.
Podcast hours streamed on the platform increased 39% year over year, with 14% of Spotify MAUs listening to podcasts on the platform. Spotify now has 500,000 podcasts on its platform as well as 22 original and exclusive titles from Gimlet and Parcast.
Podcast engagement is also driving an increase in conversions from ad-supported listeners to paid listeners, although it is too early for Spotify to attribute causation rather than just correlation.
With positive momentum, however, Spotify will continue to invest aggressively in podcasting, harnessing data on music listening habits to create better recommendations for users.
“We’re still experimenting with formats and it’s still just a start,” said Daniel Ek, CEO of Spotify. “You should expect us to innovate on all forms of merchandising and discovery tools available to us so that we can dramatically increase that number. “


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MANILA, June 17 (Mabuhay) — Bangladesh is “working on” boosting the local manufacturing of COVID-19 medicine and generic drugs in the Philippines, its ambassador said on Friday, after his meeting with President-elect Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
Bangladesh has a “very booming pharmaceutical sector” which it is “hoping to enhance,” Bangladeshi Ambassador to the Philippines Borhan Uddin said in a press conference.
“We are hoping to enhance our cooperation in this sector also and maybe there will be some investment from Bangladesh in in the Philippines in this sector,” he said.
The diplomat said he is also also hopeful about the inclusion of Philippines in the production of COVID-19 drugs.
“We are working on it and hopefully we will do it,” he said.
“We have already produced some medicine for using for COVID and that is the remdesivir. We exported that medicine to many countries, including Philippines,” he said.
Bangladesh exports its pharmaceutical products to some 140 countries around the globe, including USA and European Union countries.
It was the first country to produce a generic version of remdesivir, a drug used to treat severe cases of COVID-19.
Uddin said his country is also trying to develop a vaccine for the monkeypox. (MNS)
READ NEXT: NCR still ‘low risk’ for Covid-19 — DOH

domain: news


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By The Nation
The American automaker said its strategic joint venture with SAIC-GM-Wuling (SGMW) will benefit customers.
It said SGMW’s advanced design, engineering and manufacturing capabilities will make it possible for Chevrolet to bring several new models to Thailand and other markets in coming years.
“Partnering with SGMW provides Chevrolet in Thailand and many other markets with a growing portfolio of world-class vehicles leveraging GM’s global scale and presence,” said Hector Villarreal, president of GM Southeast Asia.
“As the first vehicle born from this collaboration, the All-New Captiva has the honour of jump-starting a new era for Chevrolet in Thailand.”
SGMW implements GM’s BIQ principle on all Chevrolet vehicles. At every stage of manufacturing, from stamping and welding to painting and final assembly, BIQ processes give all vehicles the highest level of quality.
According to GM, this is fundamentally different from the way some other automakers operate, only conducting quality inspections before vehicles leave the line or plant.
GM said this containment approach, known as “quality inspected in”, has several weaknesses. It depends on the ability of quality inspectors to spot problems and requires undoing faults by dismantling and refitting vehicles. To do it that way is time-consuming and costly.
“In the 100-plus years that GM has been producing passenger vehicles, our quality systems and processes have continuously improved,” said Peng Lingchen, SGMW manufacturing operation director.
“Our BIQ principle puts quality in the build process. This ensures that any potential quality issues are addressed in the production process, rather than in the finished product.”
He said a vehicle starts to age the moment the customer takes delivery. How well it ages depends on weather, road conditions, driving style and maintenance, among other variables. Those are parameters no automaker can control.
The Captiva will go on sale soon, starting at less than Bt1 million. GM said it will offer one of the roomiest interiors in the market and be available in five- and seven-seat configurations, topped with a panoramic sunroof.


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THE DAILY BRIEFING: BMW miss forecasts as drivers switch to rivals' 4x4s
Drivers switching from BMW’s luxury sedans to 4x4s produced by their rivals have caused the German car maker to miss forecasts and post lower quarterly operating profit.
The low cost of fuel means Americans are buying gas-guzzling pick-up trucks and off-road vehicles. First-quarter earnings at BMW slid 2.5 per cent to £1.95billion – just below the £1.96billion analysts had forecast.
While BMW stuck to profit guidance for the year it will increase the proportion of SUVs sold in the United States to 40 per cent from 30 per cent.
German car maker BMW missed forecasts and post lower quarterly operating profit
Imperial Leather owner PZ Cussons has recruited the chairman of fizzy drinks maker AG Barr to its board.
John Nicolson, a former executive of Heineken and Scottish & Newcastle, joined the Cussons board as a non-executive director on May 1. Cussons chairman Richard Harvey is retiring to New Zealand at the end of the year.
Packager Macfarlane has bought rival Edward McNeil for £1.8million.
Glasgow-based Macfarlane makes specialist packaging used by the electronics industry to protect fragile components as well as in the aerospace and medical sectors.
McNeil posted sales of around £3.6million in 2015. Shares in Macfarlane fell 0.36 per cent or 0.25p to 68.25p.
AstraZeneca has sold the global rights to angina treatment Imdur outside the US.
The British drugs giant will receive £130million following its deal with China Medical System Holdings and Tibet Rhodiola Pharmaceutical Holding.
The company has also completed the takeover of Takeda Pharmaceutical’s lung business for £393million.
Lufthansa is the latest airline to cut routes as travellers stay home. The terrorist attacks in Belgium and fierce price competition has caused the German airline to cut growth plans for the year.
Last week British Airways owner IAG axed routes because sales had been hurt by a change in the travel habits of multi-national companies.
Lufthansa will increase overall flight capacity by 6pc this year instead of 6.6 per cent.
Estée Lauder Companies was boosted by Brits buying more make-up this year.
The US group reported 11 per cent rise in sales in Europe for the third quarter, helped by a strong performance in the UK, and is pinning hopes on more success with launches including a range by Victoria Beckham.
Sales for the group for the three months to the end of March rose 3 per cent to £1.8billion, but due to restructuring costs related to its online business, profits slipped 2 per cent to £183million.
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The Food and Drug Administration said today it will begin requiring medical devices, including pace makers and defibrillators, distributed in the U.S. to carry a unique device identifier — a barcode similar to ones found on a variety of consumer products.
The UDI is intended to help track faulty and counterfeit devices and help reduce medical errors by enabling medical professionals to precisely identify devices.
The proposal comes five years after Congress first required the codes.
“These regulations are long overdue and are critical for protecting patients from faulty and dangerous medical devices,’’ said Lisa Swirsky, senior policy analyst for Consumers Union, an advocacy group for patients. “This will enhance the FDA’s ability to identify problem medical devices more quickly and inform patients when their safety is at risk.’’
In the past few years, the FDA has grappled with a number of recalls, from surgical mesh products to faulty hip implants.
FDA officials told Reuters News Service the requirement could cost U.S. companies about $550 million to carry out over the next decade.


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Good news for Facebook fans , Facebook is supposed to launch a major profile redesign at its traditional developer event, known as “f8″, on September 22nd in San Francisco.
Here’s what Mashable quoted about the new profile design:
– The redesigned profiles will be more “sticky,” says one source. One of the goals of the new profiles is to get users to stay on them for longer.
– We already knew Facebook is launching a media platform at f8. However, we’ve also learned that the platform — which will include music and video from partner sites — will display the media content a user is watching or listening to on their profiles. Essentially, when you’re listening to Lady Gaga on Spotify, your friends can see and access that on your Facebook profile. This confirms a recent New York Times report.
– The redesigned profiles are part of a larger push into social ecommerce. We don’t exactly know what that means, but we’ve heard whispers that Facebook intends to give Facebook Credits more prominence. We’ve also heard that a Facebook app store may emerge at f8.
– Facebook’s push into ecommerce may be related Project Spartan, an HTML5-based mobile platform rumored to be launching soon.
We are 2 days away from this event , Stay Tuned to inform you what’s new .


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Primark‘s owner, AB Foods, has raised its profit expectations thanks to a double-digit sales growth in the past quarter. Fashion discounter Primark saw its sales go up 13 % to two billion pounds.
Primark itself referred to the fact that on average it was able to charge considerably more for its clothing, even though the chain is known for its low prices. However, according to the company, the price increases were necessary to cover increased costs due to inflation and rising raw material prices. Nevertheless, demand for Primark products seems to remain high, especially in the larger stores in city centres.
As major factors in last quarter’s increased sales, Primark cited summer clothing and nightwear, but most of all the Irish chain says it is reaping the benefits of its vastly improved website, The Guardian reports. Primark opened four new stores in the twelve weeks ending 27 May (one each in Italy, Slovakia, Spain and the United States) and announced that a Primark will soon open in Texas for the first time.
Profits also up
The food division of AB Foods, best known for brands like Twinings tea, even experienced an 18 % increase in turnover. Total group sales went up 16 %, to 4.72 billion pounds (5.51 billion euros).
For the full fiscal year, Primark expects the good results to continue, with operating profit slightly higher than a year earlier.


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Forget your traffic light travel woes – stay home and cook this dreamy dish instead.
A hen rehoming charity had more than 50,000 requests in lockdown. Would you get one?
The UK is expected to set out its negotiating position for a free trade deal with the US in the next fortnight.
This insulting gimmick reinforces the sense that knife carrying is mainstream, Bobby Dean writes.
And it gets worse 🐓
The supermarket is a major buyer of intensively farmed meat.
The cause of the blaze has not been determined.
'First we have no chicken, now no gravy?!'
I raised pigs for slaughter and it taught me the importance of knowing where your food comes from
Sometimes you come home, look in the fridge and think ‘I just can’t be bothered, let’s get a takeaway’. Or in my case, with


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Total card spending in Ireland fell by 4% to €8.2bn in June 2022 compared to the previous month, as consumers cut back amid rising prices and a cost of living crisis.
The decline marks a shift away from the record level of card spending in May 2022, which at €8.5bn, was the highest level of card spending since statistical collection began.
According to figures from the Central Bank of Ireland, ATM transactions also declined by 4% to €1.2bn in June 2022.
However, overall card expenditure was €1.14bn higher in June 2022 compared to the same month last year, when a number of pandemic-related restrictions were in place which limited certain in-person spending.
As increasing numbers of people head overseas on holiday, total in-person card expenditure outside of Ireland rose by 16% compared to May and a 170% increase from June 2021, when travel restrictions were in place.
Both the retail and grocery sector experienced a decline in card expenditure on a month-on-month basis, at 4% and 5% respectively.
Total in-store spending fell by €141m to €3.8bn in June, a decrease from the previous month.
Total online expenditure also took a hit, falling by 4% to €3.2bn, compared to May 2022. For the third consecutive month, online spending remained at 45% of overall point-of-sale spending in June.


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Fact Check: Did Bud Light Call Critics 'Crybabies' on Billboard in Wake of Boycott?
Last week images of a billboard with the line “LOL Crybabies” and sporting a picture of a can of Bud Light made the rounds on social media, causing many to assume the beer brand was putting up billboards attacking its own customers and causing many to wonder if the whole thing was real.
Bud Light, of course, has been suffering a growing boycott after it contracted with transgender activist Dylan Mulvaney to sell its product during college basketball’s March Madness.
As the controversy over the beer brand’s choice of pitchmen continued, a new brouhaha arose when a social media post on the previously mentioned billboard earned more than three million views, with comedian Tim Young asking, “Is this Bud Light billboard real?” and adding, “If so, they’re begging to lose another $6 billion in market share.”
Is this Bud Light billboard real? If so, they’re begging to lose another $6 billion in market share. pic.twitter.com/NaSfphADuf
— Tim Young (@TimRunsHisMouth) April 21, 2023
Another post featured what looked like an actual live video of this supposed Bud Light billboard featuring a camera sweeping across a city neighborhood and focusing on the purported “crybabies” sign.
Bud Light doubles down and TAUNTS their customer base for BOYCOTTING them. pic.twitter.com/GZ04yvQgf2
— Stew Peters (@realstewpeters) April 21, 2023
With postings such as these going viral on social media, many Americans are asking, are these billboards real?
Much as it would seem to be so readily believable, it turns out these billboards are not real, but are, instead, the work of a TikTok creator who specializes in convincing photoshop images.
According to the Associated Press, the actual billboard at the location seen in the video, which is in Toronto, Canada, does not feature any “LOL Crybabies” message from Bud Light.
“The Bud Light advertisement is not real, the owners of the billboard confirmed to The Associated Press. The actual billboard currently displays an advertisement for the streaming service Disney+,” the AP reported.
The AP added, “[T]he billboard, located in Toronto, does not contain an advertisement for Bud Light, an executive at Branded Cities, the advertising company which owns the billboard, told the AP. It has the same blue background as the one in the altered image, but it says ‘All these and more only on Disney +.'”
“Our billboard was altered in the images that have been circulating on social media,” Toby Sturek, president of Branded Cities’ Canadian division, told the AP.
Saw this first photo circulating on Twitter. I said, “I know that intersection.” So went to look. Sigh. That would have been funny though… #Toronto #BudLight pic.twitter.com/8oeTkJZ0D4
— Joe C (@joe_cristiano) April 21, 2023
The fake billboard video was created by videographer Jamie Lightfoot, who posts many of his creations on TikTok.
The fact that such a fake video is so believable, though, is a situation that Bud Light forced upon itself through its bad advertising choices. Indeed, just recently, Bud Light made a desperate attempt to put the Mulvaney mess behind itself with an ad touting its patriotism and its love for traditional American values. Unfortunately for the brand, it didn’t help as few appreciated the naked attempt to pretend it hadn’t just dismissed and insulted its own customers.
Though he initially felt he didn’t care much about the whole controversy, even Joe Rogan ended up blasting Bud’s most recent attempt to mitigate the mess its Dylan Mulvaney ad campaign caused. After Bud Light put out that cloying, pro-America ad, Rogan blasted the beer brand for making people hate them even more.
WARNING: The following video contains language some viewers may find offensive.
Joe Rogan slams Bud Light’s pivot to a pro-American ad after their tranny stunt.
“Shut the f*ck up. Now, I hate you more. Like, what are you doing?”
“Was this AI-generated? That’s probably a Chat GPT 4.0 version of the perfect American commercial.”
He speaks for most… pic.twitter.com/89jp6vv6JY
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) April 22, 2023
Meanwhile, Bud Light’s sales numbers are still cratering, and it was noted that the company had even lost billions in market value since the Mulvaney debacle.
The owner of Bud Light, Anheuser-Busch, also moved to stem the bleeding by putting the Bud Light executive who contracted with the transgender activist on a “leave of absence.”
Clearly America has not come anywhere near close to forgiving Bud Light for its transgressions. Still, it remains to be seen if this permanently hurts the beer brand’s bottom line. Bud Light may eventually see a return to prominence. After all, Americans are a forgiving people.
Truth and Accuracy
We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Read our editorial standards.


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What you need to know
- A new rumor has surfaced regarding the Google Pixel Fold's display.
- Google's first foldable phone will reportedly use an upgraded display from Samsung.
- The Galaxy Z Fold 5, on the other hand, will not apparently sport the same display and will instead use the same display system as its predecessor.
As Google prepares to finally take the wraps off its first foldable phone, rumors about the device continue to swirl, and a new report suggests the Pixel Fold will outshine Samsung's upcoming foldable device in one key area: the display.
According to The Elec, the Pixel Fold will use a new type of OLED display that will not be available in many of this year's upcoming foldable phones. The display will be known as M13, which will apparently succeed Samsung Display's M12. But even Samsung's upcoming Galaxy Z Fold 5 will not ship with the upgraded panel, if the rumor is any indication.
Instead, Samsung's next Fold will stick with M12, which is the same display used in the Galaxy Z Fold 4. This could give the Pixel Fold a significant advantage in an area where many foldable OEMs have struggled to improve in recent years.
It is unclear what improvements M13 will bring to the table, but with the search giant expected to hold this year's I/O event in May, we'll likely learn more about its upgrades. However, The Elec reports that the Pixel Fold won't be available to buy until the second half of this year. This contradicts an earlier rumor suggesting that the foldable handset would launch in June alongside the Google Pixel 7a.
On the other hand, earlier leaks gave us an idea about the Pixel Fold's display specs. The device will supposedly sport a 7.6-inch display with a 1840 × 2208 resolution and a 120Hz refresh rate.
Be an expert in 5 minutes
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Jay Bonggolto always keeps a nose for news. He has been writing about consumer tech and apps for as long as he can remember, and he has used a variety of Android phones since falling in love with Jelly Bean. Send him a direct message via Twitter or LinkedIn.


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In B2B marketing, customer relationships can span many purchase cycles and require long-term care and maintenance. ABM can help you keep your best customers in your orbit and coming back for more. See how–including how marketing automation can make ABM a piece of cake. Read the full article at MarketingProfs
‘We are a global platform now,’ says COO
Netherlands recruiter Michel Rijnders was able to add listings for CEOs at LinkedIn, Google
The führer finds a new nemesis in the ‘Polynesian Jew’ behind Jojo Rabbit
The company reported Q2 revenue of $841 million, up 18%
Regulatory uncertainty makes for a hard sell, especially with smaller companies
Vote now for your favorite advertising and marketing technology providers
Say what you will about Boris Johnson, former mayor of London and newly minted U.K. prime minister, but it can’t be denied that his bright blond mop of hair, penchant for the limelight and history of gaffes while in office at least give him a distinct personal brand (albeit one that’s drawn comparisons to America’s President Donald Trump).
Now that he’s officially taken on the U.K.’s top job, some creatives at Huge London have put together a set of brand guidelines for Johnson that include, according to the agency, “suggestions for tone of voice, typeface, art direction and personal values.”
Although it may look official on the surface, “Boris: The Brand” is really just a compilation of his worst offenses to date.
For instance, it’s recommended that he take heed of the saying “all PR is good PR,” a reference to his history of sexist, homophobic and racist remarks (last year, he said that Muslim women wearing burqas look like “letter boxes”).
In a comical list of “dos and don’ts,” it’s suggested that Johnson not mention the fact that his failed Garden Bridge project, which involved building a bridge covered with trees and flowers over the River Thames in central London, ended up costing taxpayers £43 million. Instead, the guidelines propose that he position the abandoned project as a “shining example” of the vision he had for London during his time as mayor.
“Boris: The Brand” hones in on the ephemeral ethos of the U.K.’s newly appointed leader: “polarising, ludicrous, baffling,” Huge London said.
While it’s meant to be satirical play, some are finding it to be all too real. Andy Oakes, founder and managing director of London-based communications agency Bluestripe, said it’s likely that a number of Johnson’s right-wing comrades are in the midst of putting together a document that’s eerily similar.
“The thing to remember about these guidelines is that whilst they are a grimly appropriate parody, there will be a set somewhere which won’t be that far from these put together by [Steve] Bannon, Lynton Crosby or Carrie Symonds, all heavily inspired by the Trump playbook,” said Oakes.
Agency: Huge London
Creative Directors: Hari Bajwa and Cátia Oliveira
Technologist: Ant Galvin
3 perspectives companies should consider at the top
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WE ARE OSHIN
A Digital Creative agency building next generation products to inspire the world


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The Activa 125 was Honda’s first BS6-compliant two-wheeler that the Japanese company had launched in India back in September 2019, six months before the BS6 implementation deadline in the country. Since then, Honda has launched 10 more BS6 models and sold over 11 lakh BS6 units in the domestic market.
Honda was among the first two-wheeler companies in India to launch BS6-compliant vehicles. Today, it has 11 products on sale, from 125cc scooters and motorcycles to 1100cc adventure bike, that comply with the more stringent Bharat Stage 6 emission standards.
Speaking on this joyous occasion, Mr Yadvinder Singh Guleria, Director – Sales & Marketing, Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India Pvt Ltd, said:
It’s a matter of great pride for us at Honda, that our 11 advanced BS6 models have won the vote of confidence and created a new joy of riding amongst customers across India. Truly, it’s #AQuietRevolution from Honda in the BS6 era as our product portfolio stands out as the industry’s most diverse starting from 110cc scooters and motorcycles going up to 1100cc premium adventure bike. As many customers are now preferring personal mobility for safety and hygiene in the challenging times of new normal, Honda is unlocking new value with its many initiatives like online bookings, attractive retail finance schemes, industry-first up to 6 year’s warranty option etc. Moving forward, we are confident that millions of Indians will continue to realise their dreams of mobility with Wings of Honda.
Apart from recording a figure of over 11 lakh in the BS6 two-wheeler sales register in the domestic market, Honda also ended fiscal 2019-20 with the industry highest BS6 sales of over 6.5 lakh units. Some of the recent BS6 products that Honda has launched in India include the X-Blade, Livo, Grazia, and CD 110 Dream.
In other news, Honda has announced a new digital, secure, and convenient ‘Online Booking’ platform for its customers in India. It will allow prospective buyers to book their favourite Honda two-wheeler without stepping out from the comfort of their homes.


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Yihai Kerry, parent company of the Chinese edible oil maker Jin Long Yu, has confirmed that the company plans to formally increase the prices
Chinese electronics and home appliances maker Midea has announced that it plans to invest CNY392 million to acquire a 32.5% stake in Egypt's Misr
Foreign technology manufacturers are worried about China's new Indigenous Innovation Product Accreditation Program.
Chinese meat and food processing company Zhongpin Inc. has received two payments totaling CNY21.4 million in cash subsidies from the Chinese government to help
According to Qiu Changheng, vice president of Alipay, China's first e-commerce credit system is expected to be launched by the end of 2009 and
According to a circular from the general office of the State Council, China will establish a ministry-level joint meeting on the management and supervision


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Excite xcit reveals $21 million in new ad sales
By Frank Barnako, CBS MarketWatch 6/2/98 8:00:00 PM
Shares of Excite Inc. (XCIT) xcit spiked higher Tuesday after the company announced agreements worth $21 million in advertising revenue in connection with its two-year partnership with Netscape Communications Corp. (NSCP) nscp Excite said the new deals show high advertiser demand for keyword, directory, channel and sponsorship opportunities. Under the May 4 deal with Netscape, Excite can sell and program search, directory and a suite of channels for Netscape's NetCenter Web site. Excite said it has hired 12 new sales people since announcing the Netscape pact. Excite's stock price, which slumped in the days after the deal with Netscape was set, gained or 5 1/4 to close at 56 5/8. Some analysts wondered a month ago whether Excite would be able to make money on the Netscape arrangement.
CDnow cdnw buys into custom CD production
The Web's largest online music retailer announced it has acquired the Web's first custom CD manufacturer. CDnow Inc. (CDNW) cdnw will absorb superSonic BOOM (www.supersonicboom.com), based in Herndon, Va. superSonic BOOM has licensed nearly 60,000 titles, 12,000 of which comprise the current online catalog. CDnow consumers will be able to select the music tracks they want, define the playing sequence, create their own album title and place the order.
"superSonic BOOM provides us with a talented management team and custom digital capabilities, that will significantly expand the level of personalization in the CDnow shopping experience," said Jason Olim, CDnow President and CEO. ``We believe this technology empowers our customers to create unique products for gifts, as well as their own listening pleasure."
Sprint sees one wire world
Sprint Corp. (FON) FON, +0.00% said it will deploy in a year telephone lines capable of delivering multiple services to homes and businesses at the same time. Chairman William Esrey told a New York news conference the new technology permits several people to be on the telephone, use the Internet and a fax simultaneously, using a service hub. He said the cost of the multiple services through one line would be between $100 and $150 a month. The one-line-for-all is currently being tested by several companies.
AOL aol signs Web search agent to jobs
America Online's (AOL) aol Digital City Inc. and Junglee Corp., a company which has developed tools for comparative shopping on the Web, Tuesday announced a free job listing database. The service will help match job-seekers and employers at the local, regional and national levels, and give employers a place to post their own help wanted ads. It's available both on the AOL proprietary service and its Web site. Junglee's virtual database technology collects job listings from the Web, and other data sources, into a database of more than 50,000 active job listings posted by more than 400 companies. This is done automatically, requiring no work from the employer. Job seekers can find jobs by specifying their search preferences such as industry, geographic location, occupation, company name, and keyword.
Web site efficiency measure set
Raspberry Hill Publishing Inc. said Internet World magazine will publish the GIF Wizard Web Site Efficiency Index, which tallies the 100 high-traffic Web sites. Part of the Index feature will examine the impact of inefficient graphics and code on site design. Pointed to a URL, a tool called SiteScan goes through levels of a Web site, checking for file size, compression and link problems that increase download times. "Bandwidth is limited, time is precious, and Internet traffic jams have become everyone's problem," said a spokesman for Raspberry Hill.
Wired Online expands e-commerce effort
The online media division of Wired Ventures announced an expansion Tuesday of its online commerce with the launch of the HotBot Shopping Directory, featuring 20 e-commerce clients and an online price comparison "agent." Using technology developed by Junglee Corp., HotBot Shopping Bot allows consumers to compare product pricing information simultaneously from several HotBot Shopping merchants and other Web retailers. Although formally announced, the shopping directory (shop.hotbot.com) wasn't accessible when CBS.MarketWatch.com tried it out on Tuesday morning. A spokeswoman at Wired Digital said "testing" was continuing this afternoon, and that the service likely would be up by 7 p.m. Eastern.
Wired Digital's 20 merchant partners include barnesandnoble.com, Gap (GPS) GPS, +0.75% , Microsoft Expedia Travel, Kodak (EK) ek , VideoServe and Z-Auction. The company said the shopping directory "represents an attractive new revenue stream for both Wired Digital and its merchant partners," worth an estimated $20 million over the next three years.
Main Street bullish on Wall Street
Most Americans are investing for the long term, not for a quick profit, and they currently favor technology and biomedical stocks, according to a poll by CBS MarketWatch.com. The survey of 1,080 adults, conducted by the CBS News polling unit found a majority of American investors believes that what happens on Wall Street influences the health of the nation's economy, and most are betting on the long-term good fortune of both.
"We wanted to see what ordinary folks really think of Wall Street," said Thom Calandra, editor in chief. Investors say they are used to the roller-coaster rides. "The majority of investors are in for the long haul," said Kathleen A. Frankovic, director of surveys and producer of the election and survey unit for CBS News.
In conjunction with the poll's release, the CBS MarketWatch site also kicked off a week-long "Best of Wall Street" series, offering a "who's who'' of those who most influence share prices among different industry groups. For example, the CBS MarketWatch Tech 25 highlights the 25 people or media outlets that carry the most weight among technology shares.
Lynch in no hurry to move online
The director of interactive sales technologies at Merrill Lynch says online trading is not a hot item for his firm's clients. "This is not one of the highest-rated things they're asking for," said Randal Langdon. His comment came Tuesday in a Wall Street Journal story reporting Lynch will offer online trading this fall, even while other brokerages including Fidelity Investments say they "are braced to see tremendous growth coming from online" investing. According to research conducted by electronic commerce analyst Bill Burnham, Charles Schwab (SCH) SC.H, +0.00% is the largest online broker, with 32 percent of the market. Far back, but in second place is E*Trade Group (EGRP) EGRP, +0.46% with 12 percent. Wall Street firms have been slow to move online because they fear it will cannibalize their current business, the Journal added.
AT&T T, +0.54% wins desktop space from PC makers
Owners of new Packard Bell and NEC Ready personal computers will see an AT&T (T) T, +0.54% icon on their desktop screen, offering free Internet access and discount long distance service. Don Herr, AT&T vice president for consumer markets, said the promotion is the company's initial effort at bundling services and offering them off PC desktops.
Excite xcit to China
Excite Inc. (XCIT) xcit is expected to unveil a version of its Web search, guide and directory services for Chinese users Wednesday. The Chinese language service will be called SinaSearch, News.com reported. It is the product of a joint venture between Excite and Chinese Web company Sinanet.com. A month ago Yahoo! (YHOO) yhoo launched its Chinese service, while Netscape recently also said it intends a Chinese-language Internet guide venture.


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Google has announced it is adding indoor views of certain businesses to its mapping service.
The Google Maps service already offers a 360-degree view from the street. But the new service is offering a chance to explore the inside of businesses with the same technology, according to reports.
The indoor views started as a pilot program in April and in May the company announced plans for 360-degree Business Photos, which sends professional photographers to businesses to take pictures for their Places Page.
The service is available in a limited number of cities in the U.S., including New York and Los Angeles, according to reports. It is a volunteer-based venture.
But the number of users and businesses participating in the program are expected to grow.
"We're seeing renewed interest in the past few days because as promised, as more of the imagery becomes available, we're getting more of it online," a company spokesman said.
The initial businesses selected to participate are the most regularly searched online, the company said. Businesses included restaurants, hotels, retail shops, gyms, salons, and repair shops.
Big-brand chains, hospitals and lawyers' offices are currently excluded from the project.
The indoor view function does not show anything a customer wouldn’t be able to see by entering the business, according to Google. People are blurred in the photographs that make up the 360-degree view.
"Building on the Google Art Project, which took Street View technology inside 17 acclaimed museums, this project is another creative implementation of Street View technology, to help businesses as they build their online presence," a company spokesman said.
The program is likely to draw similar security concerns as its predecessor, Street View.
Google opted to not expand its Street View program in Germany, according to a PCMag report.
Google was banned from expanding the program in the Czech Republic and required by Italian officials to provide adequate warning announcing when vehicles capturing pictures for the service would be passing through.


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Victoria’s Secret, Banana Republic Among $6,000 In Fraudulent Purchases
A California woman is behind bars in Washington County after police say she went on a spending spree of more than $6,000 after stealing credit cards from various locations in Northwest Arkansas and at the University of Arkansas.
Sara Erbe, 39, of Woodland, Calif., was arrested Friday on suspicion of forgery, theft by receiving, fraudulent use of a credit card and failure to appear. She remained Saturday in the Washington County Detention Center on $108,270 bond, according to the Washington County Sheriff’s Office.
Fayetteville police and University of Arkansas police detectives began investigating a case of a stolen credit card in June 2012, in which surveillance video showed Erbe and an alleged accomplice using the credit card at a local Best Buy store and a Walgreens, according to an arrest warrant affidavit filed in Washington County Circuit Court.
Police were also investigating similar fraudulent purchases at other businesses. During the investigation, detectives discovered Erbe had allegedly used a woman’s stolen cards at Liberty Bank, Murphy’s, Walmart, Bank of America, Victoria’s Secret and Banana Republic.
A month later, detectives responded to Monroe Boutique on Dickson Street in Fayetteville, where an employee told police a woman came into the business and tried to purchase $321.20 with a fraudulent check. Police believe the woman was Erbe because the employee recognized the suspect in a photograph lineup, according to the arrest warrant affidavit.
Another woman told police someone had broken into her vehicle and stolen her wallet. Her credit card accounts showed purchases of more than $600 at Private Gallery and more than $800 at two different Walgreens stores after the theft, the affidavit states.
Yet another woman reported to officers that her purse was stolen from her vehicle at Powerhouse Fitness. The cards were later fraudulently used at several local locations, including at a Target and a Walgreens.
Erbe was later located in a stolen vehicle, although an unidentified white male successfully fled the scene, police said.
Erbe has an arraignment date set for Dec. 9 in Washington County Circuit Court, according to the Sheriff’s Office.


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Transportation Industry News Prepared by: CPA International, Inc. April 2010 Hapag-Lloyd Hikes India RatesHapag-Lloyd Hikes India Rates Hapag-Lloyd will seek a general rate increase on all cargo moving from India to the U.S. East and West Coasts, effective May 1. The planned increase will be $600 per 20-foot container, $750 per 40-foot container and $845 per 40-foot high cube container. The move follows a similar GRI announcement by Dubai- based United Arab Shipping Company covering the same trade lane. Effective May 1, the UASC increase will be $500 per TEU. The Middle East carrier will also increase rates on the eastbound trades from North Europe to the Indian Subcontinent and the Middle East. Effective April 1, the increases are: $100 per TEU and $200 per FEU for shipments to the Indian Subcontinent, the Arabian Gulf and the Red Sea region; and $150 per TEU and $250 per FEU for shipments to Asia. FedEx Launches Automated International Document System FedEx Corp. said it has launched a system that allows shippers to electronically upload and manage international shipping documents. The FedEx Electronic Trade Documents system allows customers to migrate to a fully automated system for international shipping, the carrier said. Benefits of the system include the speed of electronic transmission, elimination of paperwork and streamlining of the customs process, FedEx said. FedEx Corp. is ranked No. 2 on the Transport Topics 100 listing of U.S. and Canadian for-hire carriers. A National Intermodal Shift The Obama administration is forming a national freight transportation policy that can be boiled down to one concept: Get more trucks off the roads. “We want to keep goods movement on water as long as possible, and then on rail as long as possible and truck it for the last miles,” Deputy Transportation Secretary John Porcari said at a March 24 Senate Environment and Public Works Committee hearing. In a single sentence, Porcari described what appears to be the most sweeping change in a generation in the federal government’s approach to shipping and transportation, promising an ambitious and concerted effort to redirect the way freight flows through the country’s long-standing supply networks. The DOT’s intermodal strategy is upending a long-standing if sometimes uneasy balance between transportation interests in Washington and transforming debate over federal transportation dollars. It comes as Congress and the White House grapple with spending priorities and even a schedule for turning a proposed $500 billion surface transportation bill into law. A National Intermodal Shift But the Obama administration is looking beyond the traditional multiyear highway bill for other ways to fund infrastructure projects, whether an infrastructure bank or new rounds of discretionary grants aimed primarily at intermodal freight. With the number of non-freight and non-highway groups seeking a share of federal transportation dollars growing, trucking interests are calling for stronger safeguards against any diversion of money from the fuel tax-fed Highway Trust Fund. Porcari’s comments echo remarks Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood made in an interview last month with The Journal of Commerce, when he said six times that “getting more trucks off the road” is a prime objective of the DOT’s freight transportation policy. YRC Worldwide Shipments Rose in March Trucking giant YRC Worldwide says its daily shipment volume improved month-to-month in the first quarter, but business levels remained depressed from a year ago. The preliminary first quarter shipment statistics indicate the company’s bounce back from the recession and its close brush with bankruptcy is proceeding slowly. The $5.3 billion company’s nationwide less-than-truckload carrier YRC handled approximately 42,700 shipments per day in the first quarter, the carrier reported. Customer fears raised by YRC’s battle to stave off bankruptcy late last year and brutal winter storms in February drove down shipments in early 2010, the company said. But shipments are blooming this spring. The average number of shipments handled rose each month from 41,100 per day in January to 44,900 per day in March. CSX’s First-Quarter Income Rises 22% Eastern freight railroad CSX Corp. said its first-quarter net income earnings-per-share jumped 22% from a year ago. Net income rose to $306 million, or 78 cents a share, from $246 million, or 62 cents, a year ago, CSX said late revenue rose 11% to $2.49 billion. Freight carloads rose 5%, led by a 64% jump in automotive shipments, the Associated Press reported. Commodity shipments such as chemicals and metals also improved. Intermodal revenue rose to $323 million, from $270 million a year ago, while intermodal operating income increased to $39 million, from $24 million. CSX operates in the eastern United States and parts of Canada. CSX Rates to Rise 4 to 5 Percent in 2010 CSX Transportation is sticking with its earlier guidance to see core pricing gains of 4 to 5 percent during 2010 although its first-quarter price gains were at the top of that range. CSX reported price gains of 5 percent in the quarter ending March 26 on what it calls “same-store” business, which is the company’s way of comparing freight activity on same lanes for the same commodities. The rail firm has 85 percent of our contractual business already signed and in place or this year, and good visibility into how the remaining 15 percent may unfold. So they will stick for now with the company’s previous full-year rate increase guidance for overall business Truckload Spot Shipments Rocket in March Truckload spot market freight volume reached pre-recession levels in March, climbing 259 percent from a year ago and 14 percent from March 2008, according to TransCore’s North American Freight Index. The index broke 1,000 for the first time since June 2008. It was the sixth straight month of positive year-over-year comparisons in the index, which is based on millions of spot truckloads and available trucks fed into TransCore’s DAT Network -- a load board for shippers and carriers in the United States and Canada. The spot market index supports truckload carrier claims of higher volumes in recent weeks and months. “We exceeded our goals for the first time in 18 months in March,” Pat Quinn, co-chairman of U.S. Xpress Enterprises, told The Journal of Commerce. “We’re definitely seeing a pickup in demand, though I’m not sure if it’s the economy picking up or the result of 15 percent of the available trucks being taken out of service,” said Quinn, whose company operates about 6,000 tractor-trailers nationwide. Truckload Spot Shipments Rocket in March The strength of the spot market measured by TransCore’s index is underscored by quarterly results, as well. Total spot freight volume more than tripled in the first quarter of 2010 over the same period in 2009 and was 11 percent higher than in 2008. The spot market results for the 2010 quarter exceeded first quarter results for every year since 2004, when volume was 4.5 percent higher. UPS Sees Higher First-Quarter Results UPS Inc. said its first-quarter earnings per share will increase to 53 cents, from 40 cents a year ago, while adjusted earnings will be 71 cents, up from 52 cents last year. As a result of the strong earnings and an improved outlook for the remainder of the year, full-year adjusted earnings will be $3.05 to $3.30 per share, “a significant increase over the $2.70 to $3.05” guidance provided in February, UPS said . First-quarter revenue rose 7%, led by increases of 18% in the international package unit and 14% in the supply chain and freight segment. International daily volumes grew significantly with exports up more than 9%, while U.S. domestic daily volume rose less than 1%, the first year-over-year growth in more than two years. ABF, Teamsters Reach Tentative Agreement ABF Freight System and the Teamsters union said they have reached a tentative agreement to modify the labor agreement for the company’s employees covered under the National Master Freight Agreement. No details were released by either side, but an ABF official said the less-than-truckload carrier could release elements of the plan as early as the beginning of the month. The Teamsters said in a posting on its Web site the plan will be presented to leaders of local unions representing ABF members. “The leaders will be asked to endorse the plan at the meeting in Chicago [and] if leaders endorse the plan, members will then have the opportunity to vote on whether to approve the plan,” the union said. ABF began talking with the Teamsters about cost reductions last year as its losses mounted. Excluding one-time costs, parent company Arkansas Best Corp. lost $99.9 million in 2009 after posting a profit of $49.1 million the year before. Arkansas Best Corp. is ranked No. 18 on the Transport Topics 100 listing of U.S. and Canadian for-hire carriers. Truck Rates Primed to Rise Trucking rates have nowhere to go but up, and they’re ready now, several speakers told freight shippers at NASSTRAC's annual conference. "Price increases will be coming, and they may be coming sooner rather than later," said Chad Thomas, director of intermodal at J.B. Hunt Transport Services. He was talking about truckload rates, but other speakers at the conference in Orlando, Fla., said the same holds true for less-than-truckload pricing. "From a shipper's perspective, rates are going to go up," said Jon A. Langenfeld, transportation analyst and associate director of research at R.W. Baird & Co. In truckload, "Rates are going to move higher if for no other reason than the age of the capacity base out there," he said, noting that many older trucks are being retired. "The age of the fleet today is as low as it's been in a generation, and that means there's not a lot of capacity out there for when demand increases.“ Truck Rates Primed to Rise "In truckload pricing, the pendulum has swung, and if you haven't talked to your carriers yet, get out there and do it before they come to you," Langenfeld said. On the LTL side, "it's going to take longer, but the trend is definitely up." Shippers are bracing for rate hikes while looking for ways to lower costs. "I see a lot of trouble explaining to our management why we need all these rate increases," said Candace Holowicki, manager of logistics at Masco Corp. FedEx Freight May Put Shipments on Rail in Future Trucking company FedEx Freight, which has pointedly rejected rail transport in the past, could switch and turn to intermodal in coming years if the price is right and customers want the option. The transportation industry is changing rapidly, and carriers must also be ready to change, Bill Logue, president of FedEx Freight, told shippers at the NASSTRAC annual meeting "Customers want options," said Logue, president of FedEx Freight. Logue says he isn't ready to drive freight toward intermodal yards. "We find in most cases the railroads still have a transit time issue," he said. "But five years down the road, intermodal may be much more significant. As international globalization continues, the dynamics will change, and there will be an opportunity for more rail," Logue said. Diesel Edges Up for Fourth Week Average price increases four-tenths of a cent to $3.078 per gallon The average price of diesel edged up four-tenths of a cent to $3.078 per gallon last week, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. In increments of less than a penny, the price of diesel barely increased over the last two weeks of April to stretch a four-week run of rising prices. The slow pace of increases extends an upward trend since prices hit their most recent bottom just over a year ago at $2.09 per gallon on March 23, 2009. The last time diesel was over $3 per gallon, it had fallen for four months from its historic peak of $4.764 per gallon on July 14, 2008 to $3.088 per gallon on Nov. 3, 2008. Prices were in the midst of a steep correction that brought them as low as $2.09 per gallon by March 23, 2009. Since then, a slower and less steady pace has brought the price up again. Transportation Industry News For specific questions regarding these topics, please contact CPA International toll free at 888-684-4288 or via Email email@example.com for details.
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Over 1 Million Copies Of Lion Sold On Day 1
On the day that Apple launched the new version of its operating system OSX Lion, it sold over a million copies. Apparently, people were not intimidated by a lack of a disc to install from. The ease with which Apple has distributed its update can be seen in the sales figures. The price of the update along with the ability to download is must have helped boost sales even further than Apple expected.
The update is available in the Mac App Store for only $29. It will be available on physical media in August.


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Iyoro Aboh from Nigeria message
Japan has become the largest car-producing nation in the world. This follows their emergence as major competitors in the global automobile market and has been enabled by their increased innovativeness in technology, improved level of car performance and competitive pricing, among other factors.Japan’s ability to produce popular, reliable, and affordable cars throughout the 1990s resulted in Japan becoming the largest car-producing nation in the world in 2000. Unfortunately, this disaster will push Japan’s automobile manufacturers to their limits in terms of ingenuity and resourcefulness.
Since Japan produces affordable, reliable and popular cars I think they have the best cars one can have.


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DS Smith Plastics has introduced a returnable beverage pack, Fillbee, designed to fit inside reusable crates, moving towards a sustainable packaging model. Read more
Tesco CEO Dave Lewis will today call on the food industry to be more transparent and publish their food waste data, to ensure that no food goes to waste across the global food chai... Read more
Mondelēz has claimed that it is on target to meet its 2020 sustainability targets, as it reduced C02 emissions, water usage and packaging waste in 2017. Read more
Food conglomerate Charoen Pokphand Foods (CP Foods) will work on a new project called “CPF Solar Rooftop”, the largest solar rooftop scheme in Thailand. Read more
DSM has signed a new energy supply agreement with Eneco, which will mean that from 2018 onwards 100% of the electricity used by the company in the Netherlands will be from renewabl... Read more
India will aim to eliminate all single-use plastics in the country by 2022 as part of a new sustainability strategy announced by the country's prime minister Narendra Modi. Read more
Unilever has claimed that its Sustainable Living brands delivered more than 60% of the company's growth in 2016, and have grown 50% faster than the rest of the company's business. Read more
Waitrose has pledged £1m to fight marine plastic pollution after it donated £500,000 to both the Marine Conservation Society and the Commonwealth research fund. Read more
New Zealand, Ghana and Sri Lanka have joined the UK and Vanuatu-led Commonwealth Clean Ocean Alliance (CCOA). Read more
Nestlé has joined the fight against plastic waste as the company has announced its ambition to make all of its packaging recyclable or reusable by 2025. Read more
© FoodBev Media Ltd 2019
World Dairy Innovation Awards – NOW OPEN FOR ENTRIES!
Have an award-worthy dairy innovation? Enter now and save £55 with our early bird discount.
Don’t delay – enter here today!


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By Jonny Lupsha, Wondrium Staff Writer
Rare earth elements have changed modern technology all around us. The 17 rare earth elements made X-rays safer and are used to make electric vehicle batteries. General Motors will source them for use in electric cars.
General Motors (GM) has announced that it will resurrect its long-dead campaign to utilize rare earth magnets. This time, they’ll turn to the group of elements to help power their electric cars. The news follows an October announcement that the automaker will invest in a battery cell development center in Michigan to lower the cost of manufacturing electric vehicles.
Before that, GM announced earlier this year that it will cease production of gas-powered vehicles by 2036.
Surprisingly, rare earth elements are rather abundant. In his video series Understanding the Periodic Table, Dr. Ron B. Davis, Jr., Associate Teaching Professor of Chemistry at Georgetown University, explains what they are and why they’re in that little standalone pair of rows on the periodic table.
The Landing Strip
According to Dr. Davis, the rare earth elements have become implemented everywhere in modern life from headphones to wind farms. Despite their name, which comes from the fact that they’re rare than many common elements, they’re easily found.
“Cerium, which most people, even today, have never heard of, is more abundant than copper,” he said. “The top three most abundant members of the group are more common than tin or lead. And the entire group, with one radioactive exception, is more abundant than silver—and far more abundant than gold.”
With regard to auto manufacturers specifically, hybrid and electric vehicles contain large batteries that are often made of “nickel-metal hydride.” The “metal” in that battery is mostly lanthanum, one of the rare earth elements. Each battery that uses lanthanum uses over 20 pounds of it, and those batteries are smaller and lighter than older lead-acid batteries.
“To understand how elements so rarely talked about can be so useful, we travel to the f-block of the periodic table, that long ‘landing strip’ of elements that’s strangely detached from the remainder of the table,” Dr. Davis said. “The first thing to remember is that f-block elements don’t really belong in that location. In reality, the partially-filled f-subshells actually belong between the s-block and the d-block.”
In Plain(er) English…
In other words, groups of electrons orbit the nucleus of an atom in different ranges from the nucleus, just like the planets around the Sun, if there were multiple planets on each orbit. These orbits are called electron shells. Each shell can only hold a certain number of electrons. Each shell is also composed of subshells. An f-subshell can hold 14 electrons.
Back to Dr. Davis’s point, the periodic table is grouped by elements with certain orbital characteristics. All the rare earth elements in the top row at the bottom of the periodic table could go up with the rest of the elements, starting just to the right of barium—but there’s one problem, and it explains automakers’ search for rare earth elements.
“The f-shell has 14 electrons—it’s an even number, just like the other shells: 2, 6, 10, and 14,” Dr. Davis said. “In yet another curious violation of the Aufbau principle—”which states that an electron occupies orbitals in order from lowest energy to highest—”lanthanum and actinium do not place their outermost electron in an f-orbital, but in a d-orbital.”
Due to this strange electron sorting, lanthanum would be classified as a different kind of metal than other elements in the f-block and would technically split the d-block in half.
“Chemically, all these [rare earth] elements are very similar,” Dr. Davis said. “Magnetically, the huge size of the f-shell allows for an unprecedented range of optical and electromagnetic properties, thanks to the fact that magnetism, at its core, is driven by the presence of unpaired electrons.”
GM is pinning a lot of its company’s future on those unpaired electrons.


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According to a new study by two environmental groups focused on raising awareness of plastic pollution.
The report was released Wednesday, the day New Jersey’s ban on single-use bags went into effect, which one of the authors, Judith Enck, said would bring almost immediate change for the state.
READ MORE: New Jersey’s statewide plastic bag ban goes into effect this week. Are stores and shoppers ready?
“A lot of laws are put in place and it takes years to see an effect,” said Enck, a former U.S. Environmental Protection Agency official and current visiting professor at Bennington College in Vermont. “You will literally see less litter like bags in the trees and on the streets in the next few months because of New Jersey’s plastic bag law. There will be a visible difference.
Enck is also part of Beyond Plastics, a Bennington College-based group formed in 2019 that seeks to build an “effective anti-plastic movement.” Beyond Plastics partnered for the study with The Last Beach Cleanup, a California-based nonprofit created the same year by Jan Dell, a chemical engineer, to educate the public.
“The current plastic recycling rate in the United States in 2021 is estimated to be between 5% and 6%,” the report said. “When accounting for additional losses that are not measured, such as plastic waste collected under the guise of ‘recycling’ that is burned, the true plastic recycling rate in the United States could be even lower.”
Enck said the report fills a gap left by the EPA’s inability to update its own recycling numbers. The agency last reported an 8.7% recycling rate in 2020, but that was based on an estimate of 2018 figures. The EPA did not release an update as expected in November.
To fill the void, the two groups pulled data from the US National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine and other “waste engineering experts”. The authors say the public generally believes that recycling rates are much higher.
During this time, plastic has become ubiquitous. Consider that Americans generated about 60 pounds of plastic waste per person in 1980, according to the report. In 2018, it was up to 218 pounds, a total increase of 263%.
In reality, Enck said, most municipalities only recycle #1 and #2 plastics, as listed on the bottom of containers. Philadelphia (and most municipalities) lists the types of plastics residents can place in recycling bins on their websites.
#1 containers are made of polyethylene terephthalate, known as PET or PETE. It is commonly used to make water and soda bottles. #2 containers are made of high density polyethylene or HDPE and are typically used to make milk jugs and shampoo and detergent bottles.
However, there are seven types of plastics that can be labeled with the recycling symbol. Residents often mix these with #1 and #2 plastics, contaminating loads that sorting facilities cannot consolidate for recycling. Thus, contaminated loads are generally grouped together to be landfilled or incinerated.
Plastic bags are not accepted for municipal collection and also block machines at recycling facilities. Styrofoam, yogurt and microwaveable meal containers are generally not recycled. Soft plastic wrap, a rapidly growing commodity used to make sealable granola pouches, large pet food bags and packaging for hundreds of other products, is also not recyclable.
» READ MORE: The fastest growing consumer plastic is not being recycled
Enck, however, doesn’t want people to get discouraged. “We absolutely want people to keep recycling,” she said.
Enck notes that paper and cardboard have a recycling rate of around 68%. Metals, such as aluminum cans, and glass, such as bottles, also have much higher recycling rates than plastics, she said.
Americans were tricked into thinking their plastics were being recycled because they were shipped to China for so many years, she said. But China stopped accepting American and European plastics in 2018. Countries then started shipping to Vietnam, Thailand and Malaysia, until those countries balked.
Meanwhile, municipalities and carriers have scrambled to find new domestic markets and retool facilities to better sort recycling loads contaminated with non-recyclable materials.
“The problem is not with the recycling concept or process, but with the material itself. It is plastic recycling that has always failed,” the report says. “Even when millions of tons of plastic waste were still exported to China every year, plastic recycling never reached 10%.
“Despite the egregious failure of recycling plastics, the plastics, packaging and product industries have waged a decades-long campaign of misinformation to perpetuate the myth that plastic is recyclable.”
This article has been clarified to say that 5% to 6% of the 46 million tons of plastic waste generated each year in the United States is recycled. Previously he said it was from all the plastic generated.


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Interview: Translating Ideas In International Retail To Domestic Innovation
Zia Daniell Wigder of Shoptalk spotlights retail innovations from Europe and Asia that U.S. retailers should study
As we seek new innovations to deploy in retail, sometimes we spend too much time looking at what other U.S. companies are trying to roll out. Because of market size, geographic constraints and even language barriers, unique retail ideas develop in European and Asian markets first.
In the latest PSFK podcast, founder and editor-in-chief Piers Fawkes talks to experts about the importance of looking beyond borders. This article is an extract of the conversation with Zia Daniell Wigder of Shoptalk. Shoptalk is arguably the most important retail conference on the planet, where thousands or retailers and their partners will meet to share stories and ideas. The organizers of this spring’s event in Las Vegas are making a special effort to inspire the attendees by putting a spotlight on international retail.
Zia: For Shoptalk 2018 we’re going to have a significant number of European brands and retailers taking part in the event, not just on Europe-specific sessions but throughout the entire agenda. They’ll be talking about how some of them are leading retail innovation.
Piers: What always has been interesting to me is that European countries and other “smaller” markets innovate in a different way because the physical nature of retail is reduced and even because of the geographic makeup of its markets. They have different pressures and concerns. You see some great innovation come out of that.
Zia: Absolutely. If you look at something like grocery, you see that the retailers in the U.K., for example, have very much led when it comes to online grocery and when it comes to digital transformation in the grocery sector.
As you said, part of that is due to unique or a different distribution of population, with population density being much higher in the U.K. as compared to the U.S. which means it’s more economical to do it.
Nevertheless, you haven’t seen the U.S. companies being as aggressive in that space traditionally as they have been in the U.K., which means that a much higher percentage of grocery sales are done online in the U.K. than they are in the U.S.
And in areas like experiential retail, I would say you’ve got some real leadership coming out of Europe. To your point, because of the different pressures and different environment we absolutely should be looking to Europe for inspiration.
Can you give us some specific retailers we should monitor?
The CEO from Ocado will be talking about their online grocery advances and some of the exciting things they’re doing, particularly on the logistics front.
Picnic is an online grocery startup with over €100 million in funding. They run exclusively through a mobile app. They call themselves the modern-day milkman, I think.
In effect, they are doing deliveries. They are bringing groceries to your door. They are also in charge of the whole back end. They’re vertically integrated. What they’re doing is very exciting.
Obviously, the Netherlands is a small country and is different then the U.S., but I think it’s a pretty innovative model and one that I suspect will be of great interest to the Shoptalk audience. We just want to show what’s possible when it comes to both the logistics piece as well as the overall bringing grocery to your doorstep piece.
What about innovation coming from Asia?
To broaden the global conversation, one of the things we’re also planning to do at Shoptalk is to expand our coverage of innovation coming out of China.
A lot of events have looked at the cross-border opportunity selling into China. But what we really want to showcase are some of the unique things that the companies in China—the Chinese e-commerce companies, in particular—are doing when it comes to retail innovation.
If you look at the likes of Alibaba or JD.com, they are in most cases ahead of where U.S. retailers are in things like logistics and fulfillment when it comes to automation in the warehouse. Even when it comes to things like AI, you’ve got some pretty sophisticated usage over there.
While we have Amazon Go here, if you look at what some of the leading Asian players are doing with cashier-less checkout as well as startups like Bingobox, it’s pretty interesting to see how they’ve tackled these issues.
With Asia, everyone’s fascinated by how consumers interact with brands in a different way, especially a mobile-first way.
We have both Alibaba and JD.com speaking at Shoptalk. I think both of those companies are absolutely phenomenal when it comes to the developments that they have pushed forward in retail and e-commerce. Both of them are very much looking at both online and physical retail innovation. If you had to cite two hyper-innovative players over there, those two would clearly be at the top of the list.
Another retailer is Bingobox, which is doing unmanned convenience stores—they’re another really interesting startup coming out of China.
Is there anywhere else in the world we should study?
Israel has been known as a powerhouse in cybersecurity and fintech, but you’re starting to see a lot of activity in retail and e-commerce right now. We have a series of Israeli startups that will be at Shoptalk talking about some of the unique innovation that’s coming out of Israel and also why retail and e-commerce is such a hot area there right now for their tech startups.
With Israel, will the focus be less on retailers and more on technology companies or back-end companies?
Yes. Israel traditionally dominates when it comes to tech companies rather than consumer-facing companies. I think you’re certainly seeing that in retail and e-commerce as well, with a lot of really innovative startups coming out of Israel that tackle different parts of retail, from companies like Twiggle, which is in search, to CommonSense Robotics.
Our innovation in Israel session features four different companies— Yotpo, Optimove, feelter and Syte—all of whom are tackling different areas of e-commerce but all with a very innovative approach where they tapped into some of the talent in Israel to be able to develop these new offerings.
Finally, can you remind us about what Shoptalk offers our readers?
Shoptalk is showcasing innovation in retail by bringing together the entire retail ecosystem. Between having nearly equal representation from traditional brands and retailers and then the venture-backed startup community, we’re already bringing together two groups that initially were quite separate from each other but now are working together much more closely.
On top of that, we add in a significant group of investors. We have over 100 VCs in attendance. We also have a number of equity analysts, buy-side analysts and other types of investors as well. Then we have the real estate developers providing their perspective at the event. Then, in addition to that, the whole other category of agencies and research organizations.
Really what we’re trying to do is to bring together everyone who’s playing a role in where retail is going—from the consumer-facing companies to the tech companies—not in a traditional trade show way, but one where the content is at the center of the event and where everyone can come together as part of one community to join the conversation.
Listen to more international retail experts in our recent PurpleList podcast ‘Why International Retail Translates Into Smart Innovation.’ The next Shoptalk conference will take place March 18-21, 2018 in Las Vegas.
Lead Image: Alibaba’s augmented reality Magic Mirror. Photo: Alibaba Group
Now Track More Ideas
- Customers Can Buy Produce Using Emojis On Target’s Updated Self-Checkout
- Grocery Chain’s Virtual Store Offers Customers Fast Delivery Of Healthy Food
- New Yorkers Can Have Their Target Groceries And Electronics Delivered Same Day
- Subscription Recipe Boxes Designed To Help Elderly Women Socialize With Neighbors


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The news is making rounds that Apple is going to protect iOS developers from copyright infringement claims by patent troll Lodsys which claims its in-app purchase patents don’t extend to third-party apps distributed on the App Store. FOSS Patents explains that Apple’s legal team has filed a motion with the Eastern District of Texas to intervene as the defendant in a lawsuit from Lodsys:
If the court grants Apple’s motion to participate as an intervenor, Apple has already submitted its answer to the complaint, and its counterclaim. Lodsys can oppose Apple’s motion to intervene. That may happen, but I believe Apple is fairly likely to be admitted as an intervenor.
The publication specialized in patent-related cases has provided the filing which reads:
Apple’s rights will not be adequately protected by the current defendants in this case, because Lodsys has chosen to assert these claims against developers who are individuals or small entities with far fewer resources than Apple and who lack the technical information, ability, and incentive to adequately protect Apple’s rights under its license agreement.
In short, Apple is going to challenge Lodsys’ claims that its licensing agreement with Apple, Microsoft and Google does not extend to third-party developers that use in-app purchases in their apps via system APIs. The same publication reported yesterday that a Michigan company named ForeSee Results Inc. has filed a declaratory judgment suit against Lodsys’s four patents with the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, seeking to invalidate Lodsys’ patents. You can read Apple’s filing in its entirety right below…
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.


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The CT6 was comparable to the CTS, which went out of production last year. So if the CTS had a better incentive program, dealers would sell that car more easily, said Howard Drake, owner of Casa de Cadillac in Sherman Oaks, Calif.
Drake's store sold about two CT6s per month out of about 40 total new vehicles sold.
News that GM was at least contemplating an end to CT6 production since late 2018 injected a sense of uncertainty into some customers' purchase, he said.
"There's a million things that go into a calculus like that, but it really hurt the momentum of the car," Drake said.
But for others, it was incentive to buy one of the last U.S. models.
Butler of Suburban Collection said, "There is [demand] because the vehicle is going away and it's really a vehicle that certain customers like." His stores had more than a dozen CT6s last week and were still awaiting deliveries of some 2020 models. Last year, Suburban's larger Cadillac stores sold about 10 CT6s per month. About a third of them had Super Cruise.
As CT6 inventory disappears, Butler will direct its buyers to the CT5. Although smaller than the CT6, it's dealers' "best hope" to keep those customers with the brand, he said.
Even dealers who sold few CT6s will miss the car because it often sells at a higher margin than other nameplates.
"Would my franchise be better off if I had a Blackwing, Super Cruise CT6?" Drake said. "Yeah, I think my franchise would be better for that."


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As expected, Google announced its new-generation Pixel smartphones at its Made by Google ’22 event today in New York City.
Recent Google Pixel Stories
I was transfixed by Google’s Pixel 4 launch presentation, which featured an incredible lecture on smartphone photography by distinguished engineer Marc Levoy.
With the Pixel 6a, Google has redefined its A-series lineup to address the longevity problems of previous generation handsets.
With the release of its first over-the-air software update, the Pixel 6a is now eligible to be enrolled in the Android 13 Beta.
Moving past the first impressions, what strikes me most about the Pixel 6a is how well it captures the Pixel 6 experience, but at a much lower price.
My review unit Pixel 6a arrived today, and we spent a lovely afternoon photographing trains before I got home and finally installed and configured all my apps.
The Google Pixel 6a arrives Thursday, and I’m happy to report that I’ll be reviewing it soon, though my unit won’t arrive until next week.
The Google Pixel 6a and PixelBuds Pro earbuds are now available for preorder and will ship to customers starting July 28.
Google today announced a new Pixel drop that brings new features to supported Pixel handsets.
There’s often a curious disconnect between my understanding of Google and the way it presents itself to the public.
Google’s supported Pixel handsets are already receiving the May 2022 update, which fixes bugs and security vulnerabilities.
Google wants to make Pixel devices easier to repair, and the company has teamed up with iFixit to offer official spare parts for Pixel phones starting with the Pixel 2 later this year
Google today delivered the Pixel Update for April 2022, and it looks like Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro users won’t have to wait to get it for a change.
Two weeks after it headed to other supported Pixel handsets, the March Feature Drop is available for Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro.
Users with supported Pixels will want to check for an update this week: Google has issued a new Pixel Feature Drop, adding several new features.
My trip to Mexico City this past week has given me an opportunity to re-test the Google Pixel 6 Pro after two months with the iPhone 13 Pro.
Android and the iPhone both have their advantages, for sure. But there’s one area where Apple’s device is curiously uncompetitive.
The March Pixel update will address the Wi-Fi issues that have been plaguing some Pixel 6 devices following the release of the February software update.
Google has started rolling out the February 2022 Pixel updates which bring Camera and Bluetooth improvements for the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro.
Over a month after Google promised to fix a sweeping set of issues with the Pixel 6 series handsets, it has a new release date scheduled for the update.
For the second month in a row, Google has issued a monthly update to all supported Pixel handsets except the Pixel 6 series
After an incredible period of silence, Google has finally told desperate Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro users what’s going on.
I’ve been using an iPhone 13 Pro and comparing it to the frustrating Pixel 6 Pro. And this comparison has proven more difficult than I’d imagined it would be.
Two weeks ago, Google announced a massive system update for the Pixel 6 series. But most users still don’t have it. What’s going on?
Like many, I was hoping that the Pixel 6 would finally give Android a decisive answer to the iPhone. But like many, I was disappointed.
Next week, Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro users will get a massive system update that addresses many of the complaints about the devices.
Those with Pixel 3a and newer Pixels have a new Feature Drop to enjoy. And it’s the first one to add new features to the Pixel 6 series.


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Editor’s Note: The following article is reprinted from
Macworld UK. Visit
Macworld UK’s blog page for the latest Mac news from across the Atlantic.
Fashion retail giant
Gap as developed and launched an app for the iPad that enables users to shop online.
The app, titled
Gap 1969 Stream, also includes video, photo, and social media content by incorporating RSS feeds, including the Twitter feed from Gap creative director Patrick Robinson.
The app includes a music video by Truth & Savage called “Them Jeans”, and a TV show features Jay Sario styling people in Gap cloths.
The app is a free download from the App Store.


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Apple's smartwatch will tap on the nifty capabilities of HealthKit, its health and fitness platform, as well as HomeKit, a software for the connected home.
According to John Paczkowski of Re/code, Apple will reveal its long-rumored wearable next month, corroborating previous rumors that the iWatch, Apple's alleged smartwatch, will be announced alongside the company's iPhones next month.
Don't Miss: The best Deal on a new Samsung Galaxy S8
Paczkowski is the latest Apple observer to claim first-hand knowledge of the company's smartwatch. In the previous months, Mark Gurman of 9to5Mac and John Gruber of Daring Fireball have also reported scoops about the iWatch.
"Sure would be nice to turn the lights on and off from my wrist, though — or navigate my Apple TV (caution: Total speculation). Oh. Could things change between now and September 9? That’s certainly possible — har-har — but I doubt it," writes Paczkowski.


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Community invited to celebrate at First 100 Campout
Up to 100 guests will earn a free year of Chick-fil-A
(TERRELL, TX – March 7, 2019) Chick-fil-A will open its first Terrell location and second metro-Dallas-Fort Worth restaurant of 2019 on March 14, bringing its handcrafted food and award-winning customer service, commitment to community engagement and hands-on mentoring for 80 newly hired Team Members.
Local franchise owner and Operator Lee Johnson is inviting residents to join in the opening festivities at his new restaurant at 1300 FM 148 by participating in a community celebration that has been a 15-year Chick-fil-A tradition. Chick-fil-A’s First 100 event has given away more than $39 million through yearend 2018.
First 100 Campout event
The overnight First 100 Campout party includes fun, engaging activities for all ages while enjoying Chick-fil-A meals throughout the countdown to the opening. Registration begins in the restaurant parking lot at 6 a.m. on March 13. Details include:
- Up to 100 adults will win a digital offer card with a year of free Chick-fil-A meals (52 meals with each consisting of a
Chick-fil-A Chicken Sandwich, medium Waffle Potato Fries and a medium beverage).
- The community event is open to guests surrounding the restaurant with a list of eligible zip codes and complete rules found at https://thechickenwire.chick-fil-a.com/News/Future-Openings.
About Operator Lee Johnson
Born and raised in South Carolina, Johnson was familiar with Chick-fil-A’s quality food and outstanding service but it was not until hearing Founder S. Truett Cathy speak while attending the University of South Carolina, where he took a deeper look at the company’s vision and values. After earning a master’s in international hospitality and tourism management in 2009, Johnson pursued his interest in Chick-fil-A by first working for three years in business operations at his local restaurant. He was then accepted into the corporate leadership development program, traveling across the country for four years to open and manage Chick-fil-A restaurants.
Johnson knew the brand fit his desire and passion for leadership, community service and entrepreneurial goals and applied to become an Operator. Becoming a Chick-fil-A Operator is no small feat with the company receiving some 40,000 applications yearly for approximately 100 franchise opportunities. In 2016, Johnson’s dream was realized when he was awarded the Hulen Mall location in Fort Worth where his hard work earned him Chick-fil-A’s Rookie of the Year for the Southwest Region in 2017.
Although raised in South Carolina, Texas has quickly earned his heart as that is not only where he first served as an Operator but also where he met his future wife, Meghan, while both working on a Dallas grand opening, The Johnson family look forward to serving the Terrell community at its first Chick-fil-A location.
“I am excited to bring Chick-fil-A to the people in Terrell and be an integral part of the community,” said Johnson. “I am committed to developing my Team Members as together we provide a remarkable experience to our guests, who become part of our family, and inspire people to continue taking good care of each other.”
Johnson’s nearly 5,000-square-foot restaurant has been designed to enhance all aspects of a guest’s experience from the drive-thru to the counter to in-restaurant dining. Highlights include a:
- dining room that seats 114 and an interactive two-story, indoor play area and outside seating for 20.
- vintage-inspired interior, including a large gathering table made from reclaimed wood, light fixtures from recycled Coca-Cola bottles and peach baskets,
- Chick-fil-A app mobile ordering inside pickup counter.
- full-service menu with a variety of healthy and dietary options, including breakfast until 10:30 a.m. Open 6 a.m. to
10 p.m., daily except Sundays.
- two-lane drive-thru merging into a single pick-up point that can handle upwards of 200 cars an hour, along with a covered canopy for face-to-face ordering to enhance and further speed up the process for guests.
Chick-fil-A expansion in Dallas
Chick-fil-A opened its first Dallas location inside Southwest Center Mall in 1978. Today, there are 79 Chick-fil-A restaurants within 50 miles of the city. The Terrell location is the sixth to open in Texas this year and the first of two opening within a week of each other in the metro area that will include the March 21 opening in Richardson. They are among 120 new Chick-fil-A restaurants projected to open this year creating more than 10,000 new jobs. Additional information about the new Chick-fil-A at Terrell can be found by visiting https://www.facebook.com/cfaterrell/.
About Chick-fil-A, Inc.
Atlanta-based Chick-fil-A, Inc. is a family owned and privately held restaurant company founded in 1967 by S. Truett Cathy. Devoted to serving the local communities in which its franchised restaurants operate, and known for its original chicken sandwich, Chick-fil-A serves freshly prepared food in more than 2,410 restaurants in 47 states and Washington, D.C. Chick-fil-A reported more than $10 billion in revenue in 2018, which marks 51 consecutive years of sales growth. A leader in customer service satisfaction, consumers voted Chick-fil-A, Inc. fourth out of 100 in Harris Poll’s annual corporate reputation survey in 2018. More information on Chick-fil-A is available at www.chick-fil-a.com.
By Bernard Hendrix.
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By DEANN SMITH
The Kansas City Star
A proposed dress code ordinance is unfairly aimed at the downtown entertainment district, and any such regulations should apply throughout Kansas City, Cordish Co. officials say.
The developers of the Power & Light District oppose the municipal law, saying any dress code regulations infringe on the rights of businesses. They say the current dress codes at district establishments are needed for both taste and safety reasons.
“It appears to us it was all about the Power & Light District,” said Zed Smith, director of asset management for Baltimore-based Cordish.
Smith and Kevin Battle, general manager of the nine-block downtown district, met Friday for an hour with The Kansas City Star’s editorial board.
Cordish had previously declined to publicly discuss the proposed ordinance intended to bar businesses from arbitrarily defining the length of jewelry, hair, sleeves, shirts or pants, or the type of shoes worn by patrons. The ordinance would regulate dress codes at any “businesses or facilities” that have received tax abatements, relief or incentives. That would include the entertainment district and the 18th and Vine Historic Jazz District.
But Cordish and some council members think the ordinance is worded so broadly that it would bar dress codes at business such as H&R Block. Smith said if the council imposes dress code regulations, then it is “only fair that it apply to every business establishment in Kansas City.”
City Councilwoman Beth Gottstein, the major sponsor of the ordinance now pending in the council’s Planning and Zoning Committee, said Friday that the city attorney’s office says the ordinance is worded to affect only businesses open to the public.
Gottstein said the proposal is not intended to focus on Cordish, but on developments receiving tax assistance.
“When there are public dollars involved, I think our stewardship is all the more important. The facilities belong to everyone,” she said. “The intent is not to be the decency police or the fashion police. But we have to be especially protective of public accommodations.”
Last year a public outcry arose when Cordish and some of its tenants imposed dress codes that some thought were inconsistently enforced and discriminatory against African-American males. The ban includes chains or necklaces worn by men, untucked shirts, white T-shirts, work boots and long, baggy clothing.
Smith said Friday that there were problems last year with one tenant and that Cordish worked to ensure the dress code was consistently enforced. He also said that the dress code is in effect only when alcohol is served in the evening.
“We have been working with the city and made adjustments,” Smith said. “We thought it was behind us.”
Smith explained that parts of the dress code are rooted in safety concerns to prevent gang paraphernalia from being worn, such as the ban on sagging pants or men wearing oversized jewelry, while others are a matter of decency and taste, such as barring men from wearing tank tops, which expose their armpits.
Cordish wants to create a safe and welcoming environment for a special night out downtown, Smith said.
“It becomes a huge nightclub,” he said. “Ninety-nine percent of people are dressed up.”
To reach DeAnn Smith, call 816-234-4412 or send e-mail to firstname.lastname@example.org.
Saturday, February 28, 2009
By DEANN SMITH


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On Thursday, Apple unveiled its new MacBook Pro and with it a touch bar that many have already dubbed the "emoji bar."
— Apple Event (@AppIeEvent) October 27, 2016
This new tool puts access to emojis — and plenty of other neat stuff — right on the laptop's keyboard, making it easier than ever to shower your enemies in poop emojis.
Naturally, Tech Twitter has its thoughts:
2016: Apple Adds Emoji Keyboard
2018: Apple Adds Gif Keyboard
2020: Apple Drops Alphanumeric Keyboard [article written in emoji & gifs]
— James Poniewozik (@poniewozik) October 27, 2016
Let’s be honest, this is the Emoji Bar.
— Ryan Jones (@rjonesy) October 27, 2016


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On Tuesday, Disney dropped a bomb in the entertainment industry, announcing that they were pulling their content from Netflix and starting their own streaming service in 2019. All of the current Disney and Pixar content will be available through 2019, but after that, it all goes exclusively to Disney's new streaming service. Disney Chief Executive Bob Iger said that the company hadn't yet decided on what they would do with Marvel and Lucasfilm projects after 2019.
Reuters is reporting that Netflix and Disney are currently in active talks regarding the streaming rights for Marvel and Lucasfilm projects after 2019. Netflix Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos said "we are still in active discussions" with Disney about the possibility of securing a deal to retain the rights to stream Marvel and Lucasfilm's Star Wars releases on Netflix after 2019. Disney could decide to keep all of the projects to themselves since they own Marvel and Lucasfilm as well. Would it make sense to have all of the Marvel movies, including Avengers: Infinity War and Lucasfilm's The Last Jedi all in one place under the Mouse House brand?
One of the questions was raised over Marvel content like The Defenders, Daredevil, and Jessica Jones, which are considered Netflix original content. As it turns out, those shows will remain after 2019, but it is unclear if Disney will choose to develop their own shows after the launch of their streaming service. Netflix and Disney inked the licensing pact for the U.S. pay-TV window in 2012, under which Netflix secured streaming rights to Disney's movies starting with 2016 releases. Netflix has had a similar "pay one" agreement for Disney titles in Canada starting with 2015 releases.
Shares for Netflix dropped after the announcement of the split and it was recently announced that the streaming giant is over $20 billion dollars in debt. Yes, you read that correctly: $20 billion dollars. The push for original content to compete with Amazon and Hulu has racked up a ton of debt for the company, which also saw a 25% increase in users over the last year. Netflix had better hope that those Disney negotiations go in their favor and might want to consider playing the Lotto every week. The company currently has over 105 million subscribers, but can't seem to get out of the monstrous debt.
In a weird twist, Disney's stock also went down after the announcement, despite it being up by 11% this year. There's going to be a lot of changes coming to streaming services over the next few years and it's going to be very interesting to see how strong the competition gets. Disney going off on their own seems like a smart bet, but ultimately it will depend on how much Disney decides to charge for their streaming service and what other titles will be available. We'll just have to wait and see what Disney ends up doing since the ball is clearly in their court at the moment.


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Lawless is happening in Bristol this weekend (28 & 29 May) with, amongst others, Steven Austin selling 2000AD cover prints and David Roach new art book.. Limited copies of both will be available.
The event this year has Brian Bolland who will be signing copies of his new art book, the panel programme has been revealed, there is a Iohn Wagner auction and you can purchase a programme too.
Tickets are limited but sone may still be available at http://www.lawlesscomiccon.co.uk
Have a great time to those attending.
Check out the ComicScene online store here.


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Only 8% of the worlds currency is actual physical money. This is because the majority of currency is actually digital.
Now to the markets:
Markets Last Week Performance
*As of Markets Close on 4/30/21
This upcoming week is full of earnings from many different companies in different parts pf our economy. Corporate guidance by companies in the last weeks has been significantly good, lets see if this trend continues this week.
Last Week Recap
Facebooks Monster Quarter
Mark Zuckerberg became $8 billion richer last week after Facebook destroyed their earning expectations last quarter.
Facebook stock price was up more than 6% in after-hours trading on Wednesday last week after the company released its first quarter earnings, beating Wall Street’s expectations for earnings and revenue.
Revenue: $26.17 billion vs. $23.67 billion expected
Daily active users (DAUs): 1.88 billion vs. 1.89 billion expected
Monthly active users (MAUs): 2.85 billion vs. 2.86 billion expected
Average revenue per user (ARPU): $9.27 vs. $8.40 expected
*Forecasts by FactSet
Some other insights form the quarter and earnings call!
Revenues grew by 48% compared to 2020.
Due to higher ad prices (30% increases). This is a good sign as it shows how FB can fare in inflationary times with their monopoly on ads and control on pricing.
Profit almost doubled to $9.5 B compared to 2020
FB makes $48/ year per each user in North America.
Facebook now has almost 3.5 billion monthly users across its main platforms: Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp. This is almost half the worlds population!
Oculus Quest 2 Enthusiasm
Zuckerberg was very enthusiastic about the Oculus Quest 2, which was just updated to enable wireless streaming. This could be a big deal and a breakthrough for AR/VR. Previous headsets need to have all sorts of wires running from them, which Zuckerberg believes diminished the experience, saying on the conference call, "The technology to deliver a great experience wirelessly is very advanced, and most companies aren't going to be able to deliver this, but we believe that it is the minimum bar for a high-quality experience."
He emphasized how this augmented reality headset would significantly add to the social network and customer experience in the long-run.
Big Tech Earnings Recap
Facebook wasn't the only Big Tech company that reported great earnings however.
- Google smashed all expectations. Its revenues soared by 34% to $55 billion. Profits almost doubled to $18B. YouTube had an impressive growth in revenues of 49% to $6B.
- Amazon Sales surged 44% from 2020 to an insane $109B. Profits more than tripled.
- Apple's revenues soared by 54% and broke a Q1 record as well. Profits more than doubled to $24B.
- Microsoft had its strongest revenue growth since 2018. Its cloud business decreased YoY however.
Verizon to Sell Yahoo and AOL to Apollo
Apollo Global Management agreed to pay about $5 billion to acquire Yahoo and AOL from Verizon as the wireless company exits its failed venture into the media business.
What's the Deal?
The private-equity firm is paying $4.25 billion in cash for a majority stake in the media assets and providing Verizon with interests in the businesses totaling $750 million. In addition, Verizon will keep a 10% stake in a new company, called Yahoo, that will be formed to operate the business.
Warren Buffet and Munger have often referred to the Blockchain technology as brilliant but refer to Bitcoin and Cryptocurrencies as bubbles and people only buying it to sell it to someone else for a higher price.